NOVEL NEXT Chapter 119.3
When I arrived home, Ted was training Quince and Kyle.
Watching were Gemma, Nails, Emily, and Ginny.
They noticed me and started to stop, but I shook my head to let them continue.
I joined the spectators in the backyard, standing beside Gemma.
During the roof experiment, Quince and the others had witnessed life-and-death battles against orcs and monsters.
Since then, they’ve been more dedicated to training.
The two girls have also started taking it seriously, but perhaps due to lingering fear, they focus mainly on ranged weaponry.
They’ve only just begun, so for now, that’s enough.
“Hey, who’s that?”
Gemma, noticing another spectator, nodded toward him.Talvitt was watching the practice with interest from the alley but pointed a finger at me as soon as our eyes met.
“I got it! You’re training here, aren’t you!?”
“No, this is my home.”
“Then, these guys are…”
“Various things.”
As the training wrapped up, I left Talvitt and entered the house.
After changing, I returned to the backyard to find Talvitt happily chatting with Ted and the others.
He fit right in immediately.
“Talvitt is amazing! He’s got ‘Two-Handed Sword 3’!”
Gemma reported with a smile.
He must’ve shared his status with someone he just met.
Impressive, in a way.
Talvitt ended the conversation and pointed a two-handed sword at me this time.
“Fight me, Tenko!”
“Even after losing twice, you still want to challenge me?”
“I didn’t lose!”
Talvitt shouted like a stubborn child.
Ted and Gemma seemed to relate to him deeply.
“I’m busy. How many times do I have to tell you the same thing? If you still want to fight—Ted, how about you take him on?”
“Can I!?”
Ted’s face lit up with joy.
In contrast, Talvitt frowned.
“If you manage to get everyone—oh, except the little ones over there—to admit defeat, I’ll fight you as much as you want.”
“Really!? It’s a promise, right!?”
“It’s a promise.”
I took away Talvitt’s two-handed sword and handed him a wooden one.
I also laid out several healing potions just in case.
“I’m going shopping. I’ll leave the house to you.”
As I said this and left for the alley, I could immediately hear the sound of wooden swords clashing.
It’s tough dealing with them.
I hope they last until I get back.
After stopping by Old Lady Lime’s shop and Breos Trading Company, I bought some potion ingredients and daily necessities.
I also browsed the stalls for any bargains and picked up a few reasonably priced accessories.
When I got home, Gemma and Talvitt were fighting.
He’s putting up more of a fight than I expected. I wonder which round this is.
Gemma was covered in bruises, and Ted, who was watching, didn’t look much better.
Nails grimaced as Quince and the others bandaged him up.
Talvitt hadn’t taken much damage, but the continuous battles were taking their toll, and he was drenched in sweat and breathing heavily.
He didn’t even notice I’d returned.
I entered the house through the front door, sorted the groceries, and, accompanied by their unusually energetic shouts as background noise, began mixing alchemical solutions.
A little later, I looked out the second-floor window into the backyard and saw Gemma and Nails fighting for some reason.
Talvitt was standing beside Ted, watching and yelling, “There!” and “Watch your footwork!”
He was fully in the role of instructor.
I paused my mixing and went to the kitchen. Using [Pure Water] and [Ice Blow], I created a large amount of ice and brought some fruit water to the backyard.
As I served everyone, I asked Kyle nearby how it was going.
“He collapsed a little while ago.”
Kyle answered quietly while keeping an eye on Talvitt.
Well, that figures.
Even among the people who gather here, Ted and Gemma are special.
There aren’t many students with as much grit and a hunger for strength.
“Next is us!”
As Gemma claimed victory, Ted stood up.
Talvitt, realizing we were pointing at him, made a face of clear displeasure.
“We’re doing this again? Give me a break.”
“You’ve rested enough.”
“I just sat down! At least wait until I finish my drink!”
Talvitt began sipping his fruit water slowly.
Beside him, Ted hurried him, saying, “Hurry up, drink it already.”
Talvitt kept silent for a while, but when he finally had enough, he downed the drink in one go.
“Fine! I’ll do it, okay!?”
“Afterward, it’s my turn!”
“Can we stop with the back-to-back fights!? Let’s draw lots!”
“Monsters won’t wait for you.”
Faced with Gemma’s logic, Talvitt fell silent.
Quince and the others laughed uproariously at the sight.
Talvitt seemed like he’d be a good training partner.
I focus on speed, while Lambert and Felix are technique-oriented.
The monsters Ted and the others struggle with aren’t about either—they’re all about using their size to their advantage.
They probably know that too.
Otherwise, they wouldn’t be so persistent.
On a humid afternoon, I leisurely watched the mock battles.
Talvitt swung his wooden sword with reckless abandon, letting out desperate roars.
His eyes seemed to have a hint of enjoyment in them.