Chapter 82
Although swinging a wooden sword in basic motions without an opponent feels easier than sparring, repeating the same action for a long time is exhausting, and the next morning my arms are so swollen that I can't even hold a pen until noon.
In a way, this simple motion, said to be the toughest, is included in the last hour of afternoon training every day, and there are those who lower their wooden swords because their arms won't move, or those who sit on the ground due to physical exhaustion—everyone reacts differently.
Right now, with just a few dozen minutes left, it's probably only Finn and me still swinging our wooden swords.
"Hey...! The expedition team is back!"
"Really, where?"
"Look, over by the school building."
"Whoa, they all look so worn out..."
As I alternate between my right and left hands, switching the sword and repeating the same motions from top to bottom, right to left with focus, voices rise from the entrance of the training ground. At the same time, the bell signaling the end of afternoon training rings, and those who hurriedly greeted Instructor Tseri are now crowding at the entrance.
It seems the upperclassmen who went on an expedition a few days ago have returned.
"...About five days, maybe?"
"Yeah, something like that. I heard expeditions can last up to a week, so this might be on the shorter side?"
Perhaps because we'll be heading outside the city ourselves starting this year, I mutter while watching my classmates desperately try to get a glimpse of the returning upperclassmen. Sil, who had been sitting on the ground resting, counts the days on his fingers before tilting his head.
"Who knows. Last year, I was too busy getting used to this lifestyle to pay much attention."
"Right, we thought it had nothing to do with us back then. And yet, time passes so quickly..."
"Hey, Silvio, that sounds like something my grandfather would say."
At Finn's comment about grandfatherly remarks, Sil makes a face like "Ugh..." and keeps glancing toward the entrance, clearly curious.
"I've been preparing a lot since exercises start in the summer, but I still want to get direct advice from someone who's actually experienced it."
"I get that. Stories from my father or the instructors are helpful, but the situation changes every day. I've heard there's been a lot of friction with neighboring countries recently, so I want the latest information."
"Exactly. Since expeditions involve training far from the city, even the smallest details..."
"In that case..."
Sil and Finn are having an animated conversation. It's rare to see this, and as I watch them, someone lightly taps my shoulder—tap, tap... Turning slowly, I see Instructor Tseri smiling at me...
"...Ah, thank you for your guidance."
Startled, I let out a strange gasp but manage to straighten my posture, salute, and greet them.
One might think I'd be used to this admired figure by now, but that's not the case at all. Every day, I reaffirm that they will forever be someone I look up to.
While I maintain a straight face to hide my racing heart and loosening smile, Sil and the others finish their greetings.
"Good work. Sorry, it seems I startled you."
The devastating charm of Instructor Tseri's faint smile is incredible. Even after getting married, it's no lie that women line up for them at evening gatherings.
"No, I'm the one who should apologize. As students, we should have come to greet you first."
"Not at all. You were the last ones here, so I came over myself. It looked like you were discussing something intently?"
The last...? Looking around the training ground, I see that indeed, no one else is here.
"The upperclassmen returned from their expedition, so we were talking about that a little."
"An expedition, huh... It seems they've returned earlier than planned, which makes me a bit curious too."
"So it is early?"
"I saw the training schedule beforehand, and it wasn't something that could be completed in five days..."
"Is that so?"
"But it's just a schedule. It might be normal, and nothing in particular happened. I'm not from the military school myself, so there are still many things I don't fully understand."
As if to reassure me when I falter for words, Instructor Tseri shrugs with a smile, saying, "I'm a newcomer just like you all," and I can't help but relax and let the tension leave my body.
"If you're curious, you should go ask. The upperclassmen who went on the expedition are your cousins, right?"
Instructor Tseri points a thumb toward the entrance, their eyes suggesting it's faster to ask the people involved directly.
While I hesitate, thinking it's surely not possible to ask right now on the very day they've returned, I sense some rustling movement behind me...
"Alright, I've got my stuff."
"I'll go return the wooden sword."
"They'll probably take roll call at the school building first, so if we go now, we might still make it."
"That's what they're saying, you know?"
Sil has gathered everyone's scattered belongings into his arms, and Finn hurries to put the wooden sword back in the storage. I can understand those two being eager since they were just talking about the expedition, but even Severi, who hadn't participated in the conversation at all, seems enthusiastic...
"..."
Normally, after afternoon training, we stay behind for a bit of self-training.
Feeling pressure from Sil and Severi, who are staring at me intently, my mouth twitches.
"Is there really a need to go ask right now...?"
"Of course there is. We've been told by Instructor Harrison and Instructor Tseri to share information while it's fresh."
"That's... true, I suppose."
When I turn to Instructor Tseri for help, they nod with a pleasant smile, and I reluctantly agree.
Indeed, we were taught something like that in class, but that was about the battlefield. It doesn't mean we should force exhausted upperclassmen who just returned from an expedition to share information.
"Now that we're in a higher grade, there's more for us to learn. Celes, your cousins have been going outside the city more often, right? So it's hard to find time together. In fact, they can't join early morning training anymore, can they?"
"Not every day, but we train together about once a week."
"Don't you want to use that precious once-a-week time for training? You've said you're happy because there's so much to learn from your cousins, right, Celes?"
"That's true, but..."
"Then now's the only time. Come on, if we don't hurry, they'll head back to the dorms."
Tilting his head cutely and pleading with a "Right? Right?" I narrow my eyes at Sil and let out a deep sigh.
With his ever-present harmless smile and mystical appearance rare in this country, Sil leaves a very good impression on everyone except those close to him.
Not just among our peers, but somehow, Sil has charmed upperclassmen and underclassmen alike.
His personality is terribly bad—he curses with a smile, hates patience, and is surprisingly short-tempered. As he himself admits, only those of us who spend time with him regularly and our classmates know the true nature behind his perfect outward image.
"Celes."
Even Severi, who has spent years with him, says Sil is uncontrollable. No one can outtalk him when trying to reason, and he's truly an incredibly troublesome guy.
"...Let's go."
Resigning myself cleanly, I drop my shoulders and start walking toward the direction where my older brothers are likely to be.
※
The upperclassmen who just returned from the expedition are lined up in front of the school building for roll call.
Despite looking exhausted, their straight posture and quiet demeanor are exactly what you'd expect from soldiers.
The moment the instructor says "Dismissed," the upperclassmen collapse to the ground like puppets with cut strings, and the once-quiet area becomes lively with noise.
"Roberto, my brother."
Amidst this, I call out to my brother Roberto, who is standing at the front of the line giving some instructions, and run toward him, but...
"Celes...? Ah, wait, stop right there! Don't come any closer... Hey, you three guys over there, stop Celes!"
Roberto, my brother, turns at the sound of my voice and clearly shows a happy expression, but for some reason, he suddenly changes his attitude, thrusts a hand forward, shouts, and steps back.
"Roberto, my brother..."
Before Sil and the others, who were called "you three guys over there" by Roberto, can stop me, I halt on my own, my voice weak from shock.
"It's not like that, okay? It's not that I don't want to see you, Celes."
"..."
"Wait, just... don't move from there."
"..."
"So... ugh, Liam!"
As I inch forward step by step to close the dozens of steps between us, Roberto, my brother, calls for help from Liam, my other brother, who is standing a little farther away.
"Don't drag me into this."
Liam, my brother, says this nonchalantly as usual. For some reason, I decide to change direction toward Liam, thinking he might be better than the fleeing Roberto, but...
"Liam, my brother, I have something to... Why are both of you keeping your distance from me...?"
If I approach, they retreat.
Liam, my brother, moves to Roberto's side, maintaining a constant distance from me as if drawing a circle.
"Celes, both Roberto and I just got back from the expedition."
"I know."
"Right, so we haven't bathed in about five days. You might not notice now, but if you get closer, the smell is awful."
"It's not just the mud and dust; it was hot, too..."
Realizing why they're avoiding me, I let out a wry smile.
"It's fine."
"...No, it's worse than you can imagine."
"I've been at the fortress for a long time, you know? I've seen soldiers who hadn't left the fortress for over a month, and I've treated them too. I've been in training myself, so there were plenty of times I was in no condition to appear in front of others. Besides, at the fortress, after training, we'd wash off the sweat by going completely—"
"Celes, that's enough. Stop talking."
I meant to explain that I don't mind since I've been toughened by various experiences at the fortress, but Roberto, my brother, covers his face with one hand and hangs his head, while Liam, my brother, furrows his brows tightly and lets out a deep sigh.
"I knew it, but... I don't even know what to say. This is definitely Grandfather's influence."
"No one would think she's a daughter from a family that could marry into royalty."
My brothers often look at me with the same disappointed eyes as my father, Uncle Ruget, but I wish they'd face reality and give up already.
"......So, what's this matter so urgent that you had to stop us right after we got back?"
We moved from the noisy circle of upperclassmen to a corner of the school building and sat together on a long bench placed beside a flowerbed.
I tried to sit next to my brothers, but they were still bothered by the smell and guided me to a different bench, even placing Sil and the others between us.
Forced to sit the farthest away from my brothers, I kept my frustration to myself despite finally getting to see and talk to them after so long, and instead directed my complaint to Sil, who was sitting next to my brothers, saying, "The one with business is Sil."
"Eh, wasn't it Instructor Tseri who suggested this......?"
"It's Sil."
"Celes!?"
"You know we're exhausted, and yet you treat us like this...... Silvio, you're a terrible guy."
"He's a terrible guy."
"Celes, did I do something!?"
It was Instructor Tseri who said we should ask, but since it was Sil who insisted on doing so, there's no issue.
"So? What do you want to ask about?"
"It's about the exercises and expeditions."
"......Ah, so the exercises start in the summer."
"We've received some explanations from the instructors, and related training has already begun, but since we have connections with seniors like you, we thought we'd ask for the finer details."
"Couldn't that have waited until later?"
"They say timing is everything, right?"
"For us, this is the worst timing though......"
"But...... ouch!"
As Sil leaned toward my brothers, smiling and trying to charm them, Roberto, my brother, struck Sil's forehead with a hand chop. Watching Sil hold his forehead and complain, my brothers laughed; despite everything they say, they seem to like Sil.
"What a charmer......"
"Silvio sure benefits a lot from his looks."
"He's been doted on by everyone around him since way back."
While we were impressed, thinking that's a kind of talent in itself, we instantly reacted to Roberto, my brother's words, "About the exercises......" and leaned in to listen closely.