Sir Hero, It’s Time to Train!

Sonya was in a particularly bad mood.

Despite being in her favorite carriage with one of her favorite people, Liber, her sulking expression showed no signs of fading.

Seeing Sonya’s demeanor, Liber spoke with a wry smile, “Cheer up. Didn’t Viscount Derin arrange this outing just for you?”

“No way. If they were truly considering my feelings, they would have left me alone. That includes you too, elder brother Liber.”

Sonya’s pouting expression was cute, but to the watching Liber, it was a challenging task to find a way to soothe her anger.

Still, Sonya felt genuinely aggrieved.

She woke up in a good mood, only to be suddenly told to head to the royal city without any prior agreement or even the thought of going along until yesterday.

She had only intended to see off the heirs of Worden, Cotra, and Humbleton to the capital.

Yet, that very morning, she received the shocking news from her father that she was also included in the group going to the royal city. The shock was profound enough to turn her face pale.

“They decided without telling me and sprang it on me. Dad and mom are just too unfair. If they told me sooner, I would have thought of a way to escape!”

“Well, it was all for your own good.”

“None of it was for my good! I really don’t want to go there….”

“But you get to see your dear elder brother after a long time, right?”

“Meeting elder brother is good, but….”

“And you can explore the capital, eat delicious food, and shop a lot, right?”

“Uh….”

When calming children, nothing beats showing them food and fun things.

Liber, who seemed accustomed to looking after children, likely due to having a younger sister, naturally comforted Sonya.

“I was really happy to travel to the capital with you, Sonya. Weren’t you?”

“I do love traveling with dear elder brother! I’d been looking forward to it! My dream was a honeymoon with dear elder brother!”

“Is that so?”

Sonya’s overly eager attitude, sparkling eyes included, made Liber flinch.

Thankfully, she didn’t show any further signs of displeasure, which allowed Liber to stroke her hair with a relieved smile.

“Then don’t hate your father and mother anymore. Let’s promise.”

“Yes, promise!”

When Liber extended his pinky finger, Sonya, with lightly blushing cheeks, wrapped her finger around Liber’s.

“Now, I’ll step out for a bit to check if the preparations are complete and will be back. Rest up.”

“Yes. Hurry back, elder brother Liber.”

With her complaints gone, Sonya returned to her usual self, allowing Liber to step out of the carriage with relief.

“Well done.”

“Yeah, thanks.”

Watching him leave, Caedwin patted Liber’s shoulder in quiet encouragement.

Attempting a smile in response to Caedwin’s support, Liber looked around and then asked something that seemed amiss to him.

“Aren’t Christian and Aira out yet?”

“They’re already out. They’re on the other side.”

“Oh, really?”

“But there’s a bit of an issue.”

“Huh? An issue?”

With a face full of discontent, Caedwin nodded towards the opposite side of the carriage. Liber chose not to point out the impolite gesture.

Liber moved towards the opposite side, pointed out by Caedwin, and there stood the two siblings, perfectly prepared.

“You’re good with kids.”

“It makes sense now why Viscount Derin wanted you to bring that kid—Sonya, I mean.”

Facing the overwhelming stares from Aira and Christian, Liber took an unconscious step back.

“Are the preparations complete?”

“Yes, perfectly.”

Christian nodded with a self-assured smile. Liber, slightly turning his head, questioned Caedwin beside him.

“You said there was an issue, right? What is it?”

“Can’t you see?”

“What?”

Caedwin ground his teeth, pointing accusingly at the siblings.

“They have no horses!”

“…….”

Just as Caedwin pointed out, neither sibling had a horse to ride. However, Liber, wearing a simple smile, showed no signs of worry.

“It’s fine. We can just take the carriage together, right? We’re going to take turns driving it anyway, so there’s no real problem.”

Listening quietly to the exchange, Christian casually remarked, “We’re not planning to ride the carriage anyway.”

“…….”

Despite Aira’s visibly strained face, it was Christian’s refusal to board the carriage that posed the bigger issue.

“Why? Is it uncomfortable for you to ride with others?”

“No, we’re planning to run all the way to the royal city, so it’s fine. Oh, and it would be nice if you could drive the carriage a bit faster… is that alright?”

But why?

For what reason?

Questions filled with doubt hovered over Liber’s mind.

With Liber’s confused appearance, as if perceiving it newly, Christian confidently asserted, “We ran all the way here too, remember? We won’t inconvenience you at all.”

“That….”

It was bothering him terribly.

Traveling companions running alongside a moving carriage.

Especially when they were, in a way, guests who were supposed to be taken care of, guests of honor.

Should anyone see this, it might look like the siblings were being ignored and mistreated.

If his father or Caedwin’s father were to find out about this incident, there would be no telling what might happen upon their return home.

While Liber was caught up in the confusion and didn’t know how to articulate his thoughts, Caedwin, overwhelmed with anger, shouted loudly.

“Does that even make any sense?! The distance to the royal city is so far, and you’re going to run that?!”

“We ran all the way from home to here; why wouldn’t we be able to run to the royal city from here?”

“…….”

Having stated that they did so already, there was no way to counter them.

On the contrary, Christian proudly maintained his stance, seemingly implying, ‘Why are you making a fuss when we are the ones choosing to run?’

“And we mentioned before, it’s part of our training. We’re not going to borrow anyone’s horse or carriage forcefully; we’re just going to run. Why is that your business?”

Though Christian spoke respectfully to Liber, he showed no sign of intending to do the same for Caedwin.

Caedwin felt this was absolutely unfair. Some people addressed him respectfully, treating him like an adult, while others casually used harsh words.

“So running is training? Is that one of the training methods of the Worden County?”

Despite feeling wronged, Caedwin couldn’t express it. He pushed his grievances aside and asked Christian about the suspicious parts.

“If you say it’s one of our family training methods… then I guess that’s right?”

“What’s right about that! You just subject yourself to excessive and mindless training!”

When Christian sneakily glanced at Aira for confirmation, her response was cold and dismissive. Christian shrugged with a light chuckle, seemingly unconcerned.

“But it was due to that unsophisticated method that you were able to defeat him in one blow.”

“Well, I can’t deny that.”

Caedwin felt an unexpected pang of being referred to as the one who was defeated in a single move.

Yet, part of him felt drawn to the notion of the twin geniuses’ training method.

‘Did they grow strong just by running? But how….’

As Christian watched Caedwin’s contemplative face, a sly smirk crept onto his features as he inquired with a curious glint.

“Why? Are you interested?”

“That…”

“Well, if you’re interested, you could try it too. And we’re not just mindlessly running, after all.”

“There’s more to it?”

“Of course. If simply running made you strong, even a passing dog could unleash magic waves, right?”

While not incorrect, it still seemed somewhat suspect.

“Why would you teach me that?”

“Close families should help each other out, right?”

It appeared suspicious.

Both the words from Christian and the mysterious smiles from Aira and that troublesome sibling were highly suspect.

Given Aira’s character, wasn’t this the kind of proposal she should strictly oppose?

But then….

“For now, you can try it. If it doesn’t suit you, you can just quit, can’t you?”

Right. He could try it out, and if it didn’t work out, he could quit.

“So, what should I do?”

“Oh, it’s nothing much. Aira.”

Christian brandished a mischievous smile and extended his hand toward Aira, who, understanding his intent instantly, fetched something from her bag and placed it into Christian’s palm.

“A ring?”

“Just wear this and run with us. I’ll explain everything to you slowly as we go.”

“Hm.”

Feeling a sense of magic emanating from it, it appeared to be a mana tool.

Could it be that they harnessed the power of a mana tool for this training?

Indeed, the Worden County. Wealthy and distinctive in their methodology.

Finally understanding, Caedwin put on the ring without reservation.

He didn’t notice the sibling’s smile growing suspiciously broader, but Liber, observing the situation, felt an ominous chill from their looming expressions.

“Ca, Caedwin, I don’t think that’s a good idea….”

“Let’s get going. I’ll leave managing the carriage in your hands, elder brother Liber.”

“No, but this…”

Before Liber could even voice his opposition, he found himself helplessly pushed to the driver’s seat by Christian and Aira.

Even as he sat begrudgingly in the coachman’s seat, his eyes inevitably gravitated back towards Caedwin.

“Also, make sure to use your body activation during the journey. It’ll make it easier.”

“Is that so? Well, simply running wouldn’t make you stronger, would it?”

Though Christian’s sudden kindness felt suspicious, the thought of experiencing the twin’s unique training method was enough to push any doubts out of his mind.

“Alright then, let’s get started.”

“…….”

Christian addressed Liber.

“Off we go.”

Aira signaled with her eyes for him to move quickly.

“Come on, elder brother Liber. What are you waiting for?”

“Sigh….”

Urged by even Caedwin to start, Liber had no choice but to sigh deeply.

He couldn’t fathom what they were thinking.

With a heavy heart, Liber slowly guided the carriage away from Viscount Derin’s estate.

Accompanying him were Christian, Aira, and even Liber himself, running alongside.

“Wait? Wait! elder brother Liber! Am I going alone?!”

From within the carriage, Sonya, now left alone, found herself once again embarking on a journey tinged with melancholy.

TL’s Corner:
Haha, Caedwin got scammed.