A peculiar invitation[3]

Kayden was sure he would manage to use at least one attack before Astolfo managed to control the impact of the shock between his blows. He fought long enough to be sure of Astolfo's strength.

And he knew that no mana had been used, there was no point in calling him here to win unfairly, especially under the old man's eyes.

"It's over now," Kayden said neutrally. The two put away their weapons, Astolfo had a pained expression on his face, while Kayden was expressing absolutely nothing.

Compared to other injuries he'd had, these small cuts seemed like child's play. His mind was more concerned with the battle, everything changed when the elder permitted Astolfo to use the family art.

Kayden knew that his technique was nothing to write home about since it was developed by him during his countless fights, there were probably several mistakes and moves that could be improved.

"Here, take one each," the old man threw a small pot containing several brown pills.

Clumsily picking up the pot, Kayden snapped out of his reverie. He was stunned for a moment without knowing what to do, these pills were alchemy items that only rich families would have access to.

Each of them cost at least 1 gold coin, he had never used anything like them, and normally mages specializing in healing were cheaper. To avoid being insulted, Kayden took one and passed the pot to Astolfo.

"Thank you," Kayden thanked the old man and popped the pill into his mouth.

As soon as he swallowed the medicine, he felt his body begin to heat up uncontrollably and his wounds began to cool down, it was a very strange sensation of having two opposite types of temperature running through his body.

His mind became calmer and it felt like he had just come from a walk in the park and not a violent battle, his energy recovered to the level it was when he woke up earlier today.

The temperature sensation lasted a few seconds and as soon as it was gone, Kayden saw his entire body healthy again and, unlike healing magic, this pill recovered his mental state.

Seeing that Astolfo had also recovered, Kayden looked at the elder waiting for what would happen now, it had already become clear that the spearman was just an assistant in this situation and the one who gave the orders was his master.

"Well, now that we're ready, let's talk, Kayden." With his sentence, a small table was levitated from the second floor containing tea and some snacks. The elder and Astolfo sat on the floor, inviting Kayden to join them.

As soon as everyone got ready, the old man resumed speaking.

"My family has countless spear and sword arts and dozens of practitioners of both disciplines. I was its second patriarch and we are on the sixth. I have already accomplished everything I had to do with this family." His tone sounded nostalgic, as if he was remembering things that happened a long time ago. "I have had dozens of apprentices, from spearmen like Astolfo to katana practitioners. My father taught me that knowledge should be shared."

The old man took a break to drink tea. At that moment, Kayden realized that perhaps luck was smiling at him for the first time in his life.

"I have several nicknames among my generation, but the main one is 'monster'. Not because I'm strong, there are several people much better than me. This nickname is due to my innate level 1 talent."

The last part caught Kayden completely off guard. It was the first time he had seen someone in a high position have a low-level innate talent. And without a doubt, that old man was strong, otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to be the patriarch of such a large family.

"I spent my entire childhood abandoned. My family practically discarded me like trash." His story...was similar to what Kayden went through in school. But, unlike the old man, his family was not impacted by the revelation of his talent. "Ah, but that doesn't matter, the past is over."

The calm and gentle smile returned to the previously serious face.

"When I was younger, I made a promise... I promised myself that I would pass on everything I achieved to someone like me." This... was too good to be true. "It's been decades of searching for someone with the same innate talent. Level 1 is extremely rare and those with the willpower to cultivate are even fewer."

That was true. Kayden has never met another person with talent merely similar to his. It was easier to find level 4 and 5 than a level 1 innate talent.

"And guess what when my grandson told me about a 5th-rank apprentice facing people at the 7th rank? And even better, his talent was level 1." The old man's eyes showed a certain shine. "Kayden, I want you to be my disciple."

There was what Kayden was waiting for.

"I don't even know you, sir. You don't expect me to accept an unknown master, do you?" His sentence made Astolfo jump from his seat.

"Kayden!!! Stop being insolent! My master is..." Before he could continue, the elder raised his hand.

"The boy's right, Astolfo. I wouldn't go into something like that blindly either." With that sentence, the old man stood up and retrieved a katana from the second floor. "My name is Sasaki Kojiro and I am a swordsman of three kingdoms. I am currently one of the oldest men alive and hold the title of katana master in our kingdom."

The title of the master was something Kayden had already heard of. The kingdom gave the strongest person with a certain weapon or technique the title of master. Kayden didn't expect to meet a title holder on a random day.

They were giants in their ranks, people who had reached the peak of the peak in the human world.

"I am known as the calm swordsman." The man began to draw some movements in the air with his katana. They seemed... calm, but the more Kayden paid attention, the more ridiculous the technique became.

The movements that looked clean were several strikes together. When the katana came down, there were at least three different hidden movements. The boy was sure he was only seeing this because the old man was allowing it.

The elder's sword had a faint tinge of white in its movements. It felt like a dance as if the universe resonated with their movements. After a few seconds, the old man stopped.

But Kayden was still in deep thought. The world had opened up to him. The elder's art was impeccable. His proficiency was capable of leaving Kayden stunned. The boy didn't remember seeing anything like that at any point in his life.

"Kayden," Sasaki called the boy. "I don't expect you to make up your mind now. First, you must prove yourself worthy. To do that, I want you to win this year's city championship."

His request was... unreasonable. Kayden was taken by surprise. He was sure that he still wouldn't be able to accomplish such a feat. Most of their opponents would be senior seniors who were at the 7th or 8th apprentice level. Even more so with your team of beginners.

Before the boy could say anything, he found himself being levitated out along with Astolfo. Passing through the door, Astolfo landed on his feet, but Kayden wasn't used to it and fell flat on his face.

"Come back when you fulfill my request," the elder's voice came from behind the door. Kayden stood up and looked at Astolfo.

"Your master... he is... eccentric," Kayden wanted to call the old man a crazy dreamer for giving him an impossible mission, but it was better not to push his luck. Astolfo seemed to agree with Kayden's statement.

"He's...one of a kind," Astolfo agreed with Kayden.