Sir Hero, It’s Time to Train!

Although it had been an intense training session, Christian did not sweat a single drop as he walked with Nemea to the room.

He thought it best to have a conversation with Nemea where no one could overhear.

As he guided her to the room, he glanced at Nemea. Her hesitant and cautious demeanor seemed quite unfamiliar to Christian.

‘Well, it’s not the demeanor I knew, but still…’

She had been as rough as their master and taller by a hand’s width compared to him.

Literally, as one called the “Red Wolf”, she was none other than the fierce Nemea Robran.

Christian was the first to enter the room and sat on a chair, while Nemea cautiously took a seat opposite him, keenly observing his expressions. Christian got straight to the point.

“Let me ask you directly, why are you here?”

The burning question: why was this woman here?

“You claim to be a knight of the Miles Viscounty? That’s just… strange…”

“A knight? Why? Also, I’m not even an official knight, just a contract knight, so I’m not tied to the Miles Viscounty.”

“A contract knight, you say?”

Nemea’s indignant rebuttal left Christian momentarily puzzled. However, realizing what a contract knight was, he nodded in understanding.

A contract knight, as the term suggests, refers to those who are not formally affiliated with a family and are instead promised certain compensation for temporarily serving with them for a specific period.

From one perspective, they may seem like mercenaries, but in fact, such contracts serve as a stepping stone to becoming a full-fledged knight.

From the employer’s standpoint, they couldn’t immediately accept someone from the outside as their family’s knight.

Similarly, the new hire couldn’t serve without knowing the true nature of the family.

Since it wasn’t bad for either party, noble families often recruited knights from outside under such contracts, allowing them to evaluate for anywhere from a few months to several years before establishing a formal master-servant relationship.

“Be that as it may, could you answer the question now? Why are you here instead of back in your northern homeland?”

“Let me ask you first. How did you know my name?”

“Well, that’s…”

When Christian hesitated, seeming troubled, Nemea’s expression darkened significantly.

“Don’t tell me, did they expose my identity to other noble families to catch me?”

“Ahem, almost like that…”

“Oh, seriously! Was it that damned brother of mine? Or Father? Or that wretched aunt of mine?!”

It seemed her family relations weren’t exactly amiable. Nemea’s face turned bright red as she glared, her eyes fierce enough to set flames.

Christian couldn’t help but be a bit taken aback by her outburst.

He took a calm sip of water and carefully gauged her reactions before cautiously responding.

“Our family was contacted by someone else, so, ahem. I’m not clear on the precise circumstances, but I heard they were… ahem… quite worried about you.”

“Worried, my foot! Those people who claim to care were trying to marry me off to an old geezer?! I won’t return! Even if I die, I’m not going back! Let them know clearly.”

Nemea slammed the table, glaring at Christian as if he were to blame. Memories of being cheeky and getting smacked in a past life came rushing back, making him shrink instinctively.

Though the situation seemed slightly altered from before entering the room, it was inevitable. Regardless of Christian’s disposition, Nemea declared boldly.

“I abandoned the Duran Duchy long ago, and as a child thrown away by that family, I’m going to live my life!”

“Duran?”

“What’s with that reaction?”

“……”

On the continent, particularly in the north, there was only one family using the surname “Duran”.

A Grand Duke of the Granier Empire. The supreme commander of the imperial northern army. Known as the “Iron-Blooded Duran”.

“And you’re a daughter of that family?”

Equaling the power and territory akin to a small king was precisely the Granier Empire’s triad of Grand Duchies.

The fact that Nemea Robran was the daughter of such a family came as quite a shock to Christian.

Nemea Robran, however, just snorted dismissively.

“Daughter, my foot. Being a concubine’s child, I wasn’t even treated as one.”

“But still…”

Understanding why someone of such standing would run away… that much he got, but why dream of becoming the mercenary king while doing mercenary work?

He earnestly wanted to ask.

“So then, the name Nemea Robran, is it by any chance…?”

“I took on my mother’s surname. And it’s my real name now. Who would use Duran’s surname?”

“Hmm.”

Typically, even a concubine’s child would inherit the family surname.

While there might naturally be differences in the power they could wield compared to children born to the official wife, they were nonetheless heirs to the family’s bloodline, often used as instruments of power.

It seemed she didn’t want to be such an instrument, prompting Nemea Robran to decide to run away.

Despite not knowing the details, the Duran family undoubtedly caused havoc deploying people to find her.

Considering talk of marriage had already arisen, it must have posed considerable trouble even for the Duran Grand Duchy, and it came as quite a stain on the dignity of the opposing noble family.

Given that a marriage arrangement with a Grand Dukedom was involved, the other party likely hailed from a significant power-holder family, no less.

Without considering the consequences beforehand, Nemea Robran’s daring actions matched her personality as Christian remembered.

Thus, he couldn’t help but grumble with amusement secretly.

This smile seemed to have been misinterpreted by Nemea Robran, who abruptly questioned Christian.

“So how much are you going to get paid?”

“Paid? For what?”

“For bringing me back, how much are those damned people promising to give you?”

“Uh, I’m not really sure…”

“Well, they wouldn’t have informed you with everything, but…”

Nemea let out a deep sigh, biting her nails as she watched Christian closely. Then, seemingly deciding something, she gleamed with resolve.

“You have considerable influence here, right?”

“I suppose I do.”

Despite not matching up to the Grand Duke families with foolish heirs, his family did rank among the top three for sheer martial might.

“Then, hide me.”

“You are quite well hidden already.”

“If you can recognize me, it’ll just be a matter of time before those beastly men hired by my accursed brother come charging after me.”

“Seems like you truly detest your family.”

“They’re worse than cockroaches. It’s just a nest of pests there. Anyway, help me out. I’m not asking you to do this for nothing.”

And with repayment, she retrieved a small pouch from her bosom. Tied tightly and worn around her neck, it seemed secure against loss.

Once Nemea had untied the tightly bound pouch, she turned it over and revealed its contents on the table.

When Christian, whose eyes widened seeing the dazzling gem the size of a thumb dropping— it became apparent. He couldn’t help but pale in recognition.

Staring at Nemea with shocked eyes, she merely crossed her arms and looked rather smugly at him.

“If you weren’t going to bring this, you should have just… left it there.”

The Grand Duke Duran’s family was undoubtedly looking for this woman. More accurately, not the runaway daughter but the object taken with her…

“Why on earth did you run away with a Spirit Stone?”

The radiant object on the table could be none other than a Spirit Stone.

Though some magical force sealed its immense latent power, it would not have fooled Christian, knowledgeable as he was about Spirit Stones and Ether Weapons.

“I vowed to take down at least one pillar, to get back at them for their mistreatment.”

“…”

She really took down a pillar. Christian had nothing to say.

“I believe this should cover the costs for hiding my identity and even provide some change left over.”

Seeing Nemea beam brightly with confidence made Christian realize that this was not the aunty he had known.

“The thing is, what you’ve suggested here is beyond my capability to decide alone. Could you accompany me home, and I’ll discuss it with my father?”

“Fine! Rangar is perfect for hiding, isn’t it?”

“…it’s not a haven for criminals.”

“You’ll find there are many people like me around.”

“…”

The truth, uncomfortably, is that it’s hard to deny. Nowhere on the continent’s western side provided a better hideout than the Rangar region.

Besides merely hiding, some managed to erase their tracks completely—thanks to monsters, that is.

“Well, anyhow, I’ll help, so get ready.”

“Yes! I’ll quit right away!”

Watching Nemea beam with joy, Christian could only come to terms that she was indeed not the same elder woman he once knew.