Chapter 13 - What Is True Strength?

Bruce:

[Boy...what did you do...]

Leo:

(Damn! I thought I convinced them...I guess that was still too much! )

[...]

Reine:

[Leo...]

(This is all my fault...)

Reine suddenly went in front of Bruce

Reine:

[I can explain this...]

Bruce:

[Heh...GAHAHAHAHA!]

Reine and Leo:

[!?]

Bruce:

[How long has it been since I was defeated?! That's that, you passed the test, boy]

Reine:

[W-wait what?]

Bruce:

[Abby!]

Abby was still shocked but came to her senses after she heard Bruce

Abby:

[Y-Yes!?]

Bruce:

[Give this boy a Guild Card, and put him in rank - E]

Abby:

[Yes, A guild card and...Nya!? B-but sir, that's too much!]

Leo:

(Agreed, that's too much for a newbie adventurer. According to what I learned from Reine, the Rankings in this Guild are different from the Guild rankings of my past world.)

Apex Category:

SSS - the highest rank

SS

S - Bruce is currently here

Gold Category:

AA

A - Reine is currently here (Based from her)

BB

Silver Category:

B

C

D

Bronze Category:

E

F

G

Bruce:

[Is there a problem with that?]

Abby:

[U-unfortunately sir, since giving him the highest rank in the Bronze category will surely make some of our members question our guild.]

Bruce:

[Is that all? Gahahaha! If they ever do, tell them to come and see this place.]

Abby:

[...]

The room was so devastated that half of it was erased out of existence.

Bruce:

( I might actually give him SS since he defeated me, but giving him that rank will cause an uproar. I don't want this boy to be involved in this country]

Bruce went in front of Leo as he held Leo's shoulder.

Bruce:

[Congrats boy! Though I would've preferred if you lost. I might have convinced your friend over there.]

Leo:

[Hey, can I ask you something?]

Bruce:

[What is it?]

Leo:

[What were you trying to say to Reine during our battle?]

Bruce:

[That's...]

Reine:

[Leo! Let's go home. It's getting late]

Reine glared at Bruce

Bruce smiled as he looked at Leo

Bruce:

[Gahaha! I'll tell you next time boy]

That night

Andrea:

[Is that really true!? My baby passed the exam!? My, I'm so happy!]

Reynard:

[Hahaha! Is that so!? I'm glad it went well! hahaha!]

Reine:

(More like he Overpowered the strongest swordmaster in this country)

[Yes, Congratulations]

Andrea held Reine's hands

Andrea:

[Thank you for teaching my son]

Reine felt guilty

Reine:

[N-no problem]

Hours passed. As they all entered their rooms, Reine sneaked into Leo's room.

Reine:

[Hey, are you asleep?]

Leo:

[I was about to...]

Reine:

[My apologies...I wanted to tell you something]

Leo:

[hmm...]

Leo sits up as he wipes his eyes

Leo:

[What is it sensei?]

Reine:

[I know I said that I won't ask you your past but...after seeing what you did today...I really want some answers]

Leo:

[...]

Reine:

[...]

Leo:

[Sensei...I]

Reine suddenly smiled

Reine:

[...No, sorry. I don't like it if you force yourself]

Leo:

[...]

Reine:

[Actually, there's another thing that's been bothering me. You heard Abby talking about the declining of high ranking adventurers, right?]

Leo:

[Yes]

Reine:

[It seems that something bad is coming.]

Leo:

[Well, what is it?]

Reine:

[It's just my theory but seeing that there has been a large increase of high ranked monsters out in the wild, a catastrophe will soon happen. There's a high chance that a monster lord will soon appear]

Leo:

[Monster Lord]

According to Reine, monster lords are an abnormal type creatures possessing incredible strength, speed, power and intelligence that far surpasses that of a normal monster. These types of monsters have the capability of commanding other creatures and can gather an army of it whenever it wants to. Countries all over the world are considered threatened by these events since these creatures can take down a country itself.

Reine:

[It's just a possibility but it's chances of happening are high.]

Leo:

[What should we do then?]

Reine:

[We need to investigate the causes of these abnormal increases because if we don't, a lot of people will suffer]

Leo:

[How do we do that sensei? I can't just tell my parents that we're about to search for an abnormal creature leading thousands of powerful monsters]

Reine:

[No we're not, but we will go in disguise. I know that you're very powerful and I concluded that your strength is enough to take down a monster lord, if there is one. So may I ask for your help?]

Leo:

[...]

(I know I trust her but...)

Reine suddenly lowers her head

Reine:

[...I can't do this and even though I am a commander of the mage corps, in truth I'm just the same as my team. I have no power...All I can ever do is to rely on others...I'm pathetic...that's why I try to avoid going into dangerous missions...but now that I've seen how peaceful the people live in your home, I feel guilty and embarrassed knowing that I vowed and swear to risk my life for others...so Leo]

Reine lowered her head to Leo

Reine:

[Can you please help me, only for this time]

Leo went closer to Reine as he patted Reine's head

Leo:

[...In the past, I was really REALLY weak...]

Reine looked at Leo

Leo:

[...I was an arrogant boy, with no power but only wealth. I thought nothing was going to happen because we were nobles. But when we lost everything, I realized that because of my laziness and negligence I lost everyone I loved. It was my first time feeling weakness...It took me years until I finally somewhat recovered...but it wasn't enough]

Reine:

[...]

Leo:

[But sensei you're different. You're not weak and seeing how you care for people you've only met for a few months, that's really admirable. Even though you know it's going to be dangerous, you still think about the benefits of others, that's the strength I wish I had in the past.]

Reine:

[Leo...]

Leo:

[Now that I know your intentions, I might as well help you achieve it]

Leo smiled at Reine as Reine slowly smiled back at Leo

Reine:

[Thank you]