The Regression Of A Grand Mercenary - 33 - Winter is Coming

As the rain started to pour out in the night, Escanor was by the window, with a glass full of whiskey on hand.

“…” Staring in the poorly lit village, he contemplated today’s fight.

“What are you standing by the window dear?” asked Eliana as she approached him from his side.

“I can’t stop thinking about it…at his final attack, I felt it.” he said.

“What did you feel?”

“Power…emotion…but most of all, his eyes. I was drawn in by his eyes…”

“Really?”

“Yes…Thill, if that boy wasn’t a blacksmith, surely he would have been a fine knight…maybe become one of the finest yet. His eyes didn’t show a speck of mercy when he released that final move…if he continued on, who knows what would have happened.” said Escanor.

“Well, who’s to say that he can’t be both?” she asked.

“You heard it from him yourself. He doesn’t want anything other than to live a peaceful life here in the village.” said Escanor.

“True, but if he marries Evelyn, surely our families will merge, and from it, our strength in the household will rise yet again. And if an opportunity arises, with his help, we can finally attain a noble title from the king himself.”

“You’re right…”

“That is if the boy is willing to marry.” said Reginald as he intruded in their room.

“Father…” Eliana leaned to the sight of her father entering the room.

“The Topic of marriage is quite a frisky line to cross…Father.” said Escanor.

”Hmm, there are only so little ways we can secure a person like him into our family. One would be through marriage. Seeing as how close my daughter has been to him, in time, if their feelings for one another continue to grow, he will one day be a part of this family.” said Reginald.

“…”

“But they’re still young. Yes, they’re at the age where they are allowed to be wed with one another, but two months isn’t enough to secure a woman’s heart. Surely in your example, how many years did it take you to finally gain the courage to say yes, Escanor?”

“Well, for us, it took us over four years to finally confirm our feelings for one another.” said Escanor.

“That’s true…I guess we can’t rush the two then.” said Eliana.

“We’ll just have to wait until they themselves gain the courage to act on their feelings to one another.” said Reginald as he poured himself a whiskey and drank it straight.

As Reginald drank his whiskey, inside Thill’s home, he was treating his arm from the recent fight.

“Brother, are you sure you don’t need any help?” asked Theresa as she sat in front of him in their dining table.

“I’ll be fine. I’ve overdone myself with using a technique my body wasn’t ready to handle.”

Looking at his arm, Theresa could see the skin of his arm open and with bits of flesh present.

“H-how long do you think you’re arm is going to heal?” asked Theresa as she looked worried.

”Two days…I can heal my body naturally in two days.” he said as he started to close his wounds with bandage.

“I don’t think I’ll be able to use this arm during that time, but either way…”

“You shouldn’t have done that.” she said as a bit of anger was present in her tone.

“…I know, and I’m sorry.”

“Why did you go too far with the spar? If you hadn’t, you wouldn’t be here tending to an injury.”

“I…I got too caught up in the moment.”

“Why? Is it because you wanted to win?”

“…Yes.” he said, with his eyes turning away not to face her.

“Really? Going all out just to win? What would that get you? I’ll tell you yourself because you don’t seem to get it! You’ll get hurt! That’s what happens to being an idiot!”

“…”

“Thill, no one asked you to win…so why try?”

“…You wouldn’t understand.”

“Wouldn’t understand what? Is this about your pride? About your manhood? Is this a warrior code I don’t understand because I don’t use a damn weapon?! Tell me, what do I not understand?!” she started to shout more and more…showing her anger in the moment.

“…It’s about proving just how much a person is worth by what he can do best.” he said calmly.

“What?”

“I put my all in that fight…and even then, I still lost to him.”

“Why would that matter?” she asked.

“…”

“Thill, you’re a great blacksmith. As far as I could see, you could be one of the best…so it makes me question, why are you still using a weapon?”

“…Did you ever feel so hopeless when you lost someone you cared deeply for?”

“Is this about mother and father?”

“I promised to protect and everyone I love…that’s the reason why I’m still using a sword. And in this world where wars are constantly being waged, I will never put down my sword…if I did, I know I will regret for the rest of my life.”

“…”

“I’ll continue to grow stronger and stronger, day by day until finally I am put on my deathbed.”

“…”

“When facing an enemy…any possible enemy, always go for the win…that way, I have a chance in saving you and everyone else.”

“Thill…you don’t have to go so far for us.”

“I do…it’s my duty to protect this family.”

“But who’s going to save you if you lost?”

“It doesn’t matter…if I lost my life or not, all that matters is that you guys are saved.” as he spoke his resolve, a certain image then appeared in his mind.

The image of everyone he loved…dead on the floor…

Remembering it all, he gritted his teeth…but breathed in calmly soon after.

But as he had his dark thoughts, when he raised his head, he noticed Theresa with tears in her eyes.

“!?” he was shocked.

“…You’re an idiot…a stupid idiot!”

“Why are you crying?”

“Because! You don’t care about your own life…and I’m scared of what will happen if I just let you be. You’re reckless! Everything you do is reckless…why can’t you consider the fact that maybe we don’t want to lose our brother this early! Maybe we don’t want you getting into fights! Because if you go too far, you’ll probably end up dead…and what then?!”

“…”

“You’re doing all of this for us…but try to think of how we feel when we saw you injured and bleeding. Tilly wasn’t crying because she was scared…she cried because she thought that she might have lost her brother because of how reckless he was being.”

“…”

“Right now, it might just be an arm you got injured…but what of the future?”

“I…I’m sorry.” he tried to apologize, but with her furrowed expression, he knew that an apology wasn’t enough.

“…I can’t stop you from raising your sword, I know that. But at least try not to get into fights so often. That’s all I ask…”

“I promise I’ll be careful. From here on out, I won’t cause any trouble unless…unless necessary.”

It was hard to consider it all for Thill. After all, he’s been fighting all his life since the day he lost his family. Now that he had returned to the past, he had to consider their happiness more, and to do that, he simply can’t go about risking his life without considering the fact that his life itself matteredd in their happiness.

A promise is only a promise if its kept.

It’ll be hard to throw away habits, especially when his habits involved the way of the warrior.

***

The next day, Evelyn came by with a happy smile on her face.

“What brings you by Evelyn?” asked Thill as he looked and noticed that she was on her own.

“Aren’t happy just to see me?” she asked.

“I just saw you yesterday. I thought you and your family were preparing for your agriculture project?”

“We are…and a few steps and plans were made. But all of those will only happen once winter ends and spring arrives.”

“Okay…that makes sense, but again, what brings you by?” he asked.

“Hmm if you’re going to be like that, I’ll ask again…aren’t you happy to see me?”

“…”

Looking around, he could see that no one was home, so he slightly nodded his head.

“Hehe, you’re quite shy aren’t you?” as she said this, a pinkish blush appeared on her cheeks. And to hide it, she came and embraced Thill for only a little bit.

“Hnn- O-okay…” feeling a bit embarrassed, Thill tried to gently push her away, but she wouldn’t let go.

So he gave up.

“Did you sneak away from your home? You’re by yourself today.” he said.

“Ugh…I’ve spent the entire night listening and trying to understand my father’s plan for this project…and now, I just want to rest. Please don’t rat me out when they ask.”

“It must have been hard, huh.”

“It was…and right now, I just want someone to spoil me for a bit.” and from her embrace, she raised her head from his chest and looked innocent to Thill.

‘…God, she’s adorable.’ he thought.

“C-Come inside.”

As he invited her in, she smiled playfully and gratefully accepted his invitation.

“Where’s everyone?” she asked as she looked around.

“Well, the girls are at the market while Thomas is by the bakery saying his goodbyes. As for Theodore, he spent the entire night reading a book, so he’s inside his room sleeping.”

“Oh…so it’s just you and me today?”

“Yeah…I guess you could say that.”

“Hmm, are you stocking up for the winter?” she asked as she tried making a common conversation.

“Well, we’re planning to. Because we’re going to the city in a couple of days, we’re planning on stocking up on the necessary things. Tomorrow, I’ll make rounds around the market to buy what we need. Things like coal, rice, meat…anything that could be used in the shop and the kitchen.”

“Hmm, since you’re going to the city, do you have any other plans than just touring around?” she asked.

“I do. Before me and my family get to tour the city, I’ll have to visit the guild to try and contact one of my clients and sell him another iron sword.”

“Oh? And who’s you’re client?”

“Liondel, the hundred blade Master.”

“Eh? You were able to make him your client??” Evelyn was surprised.

“Yeah…in a way.”

“That’s not really surprising since you made the sword, but Liondel is quite the character. He rarely ever interacts with any stranger at all. Tell me, how did you get to meet Liondel?”

“I got recommended by one of his friends.”

“Oh…from what I know, Mr. Liondel only has a few friends. And their identities are kept private. You must have been lucky to meet one of them.”

“Ah…haha, something like that. Anyway, I’m planning on making another set of swords for him. Tell me, do you think it’s a good idea to make the same kind of product to a client?”

“What do you mean?” she asked.

“I mean, I’m asking you as a merchant. Do you think that for someone like Liondel, do you think he’ll buy the same sword twice?”

“Well, judging by Mr. Liondel’s character, he’s known as the Hundred Blade Master for a reason. I think as long as you make him a quality sword, he’ll surely buy it from you.” she said.

“Thanks, I wasn’t certain if he would…but either way, if he doesn’t want to buy it, I’ll just look for another client in the city while I’m there.”

“Hmm, if you’re that worried, why not make a different sword to impress him? Like my father always said, money is always available from satisfied customers.”

“Okay…I guess that makes sense.”

As the two talked, soon enough, Thill noticed the sight of snow falling.

“Huh, would you look at that. The first sight of snow.” he said as he went near the window.

“Winter is upon us…” said Evelyn as she walked up to his side and leaned on him. The two looked to the sight of snow falling down on the village…

The couple smiled and embraced the new season…

A new season where trouble will brew and love will sprout into the open air.