The Tale of Gerald Vader, the Heretic Knightโs Rampage Through Another World
โChallenge the dungeon? You’re only thirteen! Of course it’s out of the question!โ
Once a week, Father returned to this mansion, his home, from the castle in the capital city.
I timed my visit to his study for after dinner, when Father seemed most in a good moodโฆ
But I got a thunderous scolding.
โGerald, my beloved son. Indeed, you have become remarkably serious lately, and your countenance has grown truly noble.โ
FatherโAaronโrose from his desk chair and came right up to me.
His towering frame made me look up, but he crouched down to meet my gaze, then placed his large hand firmly on my shoulder.
His face was ruggedโฆ or rather, stern, but his eyes held a gentle look.
โI’ve heard about your exploits from Alissa. For her to praise you so highly, especially since she’s feared by her own knights, means it must be something special. But you still have two years until your Coming-of-Age Ceremony. Your body isn’t fully developed yet. I can’t send you to Lord Kensei just yet.โ
โButโฆโ
โListen, Gerald. The dungeon where Lord Kensei resides is a dangerous place overrun by monsters. In the past, some who challenged it lost their lives young. No matter how confident you are, I cannot permit you to attempt it. Now, go to bed early. The sooner you sleep, the sooner morning comes. The day you challenge the dungeon will come a little sooner, too.โ
With that, my father shooed me out of his office.
โDamn it, so it’s no good after allโฆโ
Of course, I understood the Vader family tradition too.
Challenging the dungeon was reserved for adults in this worldโthose who had reached fifteen years of age.
Lord Kenseiโthe blessing of Swordcraft’s Dungeon Core is simple: โYou shall be granted a sword of immense power.โ But it’s obvious that training with that blessing versus training without it makes a world of difference in skill.
After all, the swords granted by the blessing are what you’d call โmagic swordsโ or โelemental swordsโ.
For example, the โStorm and Thunder Greatswordโ bestowed upon Alissa literally imbues the blade with wind and thunder attributes.
Once you channel magic into it and swing the sword, it unleashes a storm that sweeps away enemies.
Of course, the โswordโ I’ll receive won’t be the โStorm and Thunder Greatswordโ, but it will still be vastly more powerful than an ordinary sword.
Naturally, such immense power demands immense magical energy.
That magical energy grows even further through the use of โBlessingsโ.
Its growth rate is said to be incomparable to that achieved through meditation and training.
In other words, to master the power of โBlessingsโ, it’s advantageous to obtain them as early as possible.
And the longer I have the Blessing, the stronger I’ll be when facing the Demon of Destiny, greatly increasing my chances of survival.
Of course, I understand Father’s point of view.
As a parent, it’s only natural not to want to put your child in danger.
As Father said, dungeons are dangerous places where monsters roam.
In fact, when I visited Mother’s grave, I saw a tombstone for a young ancestor who died young, inscribed with:
โfought bravely against countless monsters in the depths of the earth and offered a noble soul to the Sword-Forging God.โ
But fifteen is too late.
After all, I’m destined to die at fifteen.
My father, unaware of my future, will kill me out of kindness.
To not waste my father’s feelings, I have no choice but to challenge the dungeon now.
So what to do?
Sneak out of the mansion at night, when everyone is asleep, and conquer the dungeon.
ใโ
The day of action was set for three days later, on the night of the full moon.
I planned to strike while my father was away on duties in the provincial capital.
Of course, this meant breaking a taboo, and I wasn’t entirely free of guilt.
Still, I absolutely hated the idea of being stopped, no matter how unlikely.
โโฆโฆโฆโฆโ
The dead of night, when all were asleep.
Nights fall early in a knight’s household.
Alissa sleeps around 9 PM. Bernard, tidying the mansion, and the live-in maids were all asleep by around 10 PM.
Of course, the knights guarding the house worked three shifts around the clock, but I knew their patrol times perfectly well.
No one would stop me.
I slipped quietly out of bed, changed into my outdoor clothes without a sound, and slung the bag I’d secretly prepared during the day over my shoulder.
Then I strapped on the hand axe for splitting firewood I’d snuck from the barn at the end of daytime practice.
Of course, the armory held well-maintained longswords, but for my build, the ones used by adult knights were too long.
Besides, sneaking into the armory meant passing near the knights’ quarters outside the manor.
That option had to be ruled out from the start.
After all, encountering monsters in the dungeon meant fighting in confined spaces.
Therefore, the hand axe would be easier to handle.
After preparing, I quietly opened my room’s window and leaped down into the courtyard.
My physical abilities were enhanced by the magic power honed through training, and the soft earth below meant my landing made almost no sound or impact.
Keeping low, I sprinted silently across the courtyard.
The garden, bathed in the light of the full moon, needed no additional illumination.
The dungeon lay deep within the forest, about a fifteen-minute walk from the manor, near the cemetery where my ancestors rested.
Beyond the forest’s entrance, it was pitch black, as expected.
I pulled a lantern from the bag on my back and infused it with magic.
A soft phosphorescent glow flared, bathing the surroundings in a pale green light.
โSeeing this lantern really makes you think, โThis is fantasy, huhโฆโโ
I muttered to myself as I advanced deeper into the woods.
The lantern was magic-powered, using magic ore mined within the kingdom as its light source.
Since it didn’t use fire, it didn’t waste oxygen in enclosed spaces and produced no heat.
It was practically an essential item for dungeon exploration.
I’d borrowed this one from the barn too.
The dungeon entrance lay a short way further into this forest.
I quickened my pace slightlyโฆ then halted just before reaching it.
The entrance itself was near, but light shone from what seemed its vicinity.
Someone was there.
I had a hunch who it might be.
Steeling, I walked up to the entrance.
โโฆNee san.โ
It was Alissa, as I suspected.
She had been sitting near the entrance, but upon seeing me, she rose quietly and positioned herself to block the entrance.
She wore armor, a greatsword strapped to her back.
Of course, it was the blessing granted in the dungeonโฆ the โStorm Lightning Greatswordโ.
โWell, you’re still you. Your movements are just like a cat’s. I didn’t recognize you until I saw your form.โ
She said this quietly.
There was no reproach in her tone.
She looked at me with eyes that seemed a little nostalgic.
Hmmโฆ So escaping the mansion was typical of me?
Nee san sure says strange things.
Incidentally, in my view, it’s more like a monkey than a cat. Though I do prefer cats.
โHmm, you still don’t remember, do you? Well, it can’t be helped. You were still just a child back then.โ
Alissa smiled fondly, as if recalling the past.
What on earth was she talking about?
Truth be told, ever since I regained my past life’s memories, the memories I had as Gerald have gradually become hazy.
Of course, useless memories lingerโlike her celebrating my birthday, or getting beaten up by my old sword instructor during trainingโฆ
Anyway, I can’t back down now.
โโฆNee san, please move aside.โ
โWhy challenge the dungeon now?โ
Alissa said this in a tone meant to reason with me.
โI can’t say. But I need to obtain the โBlessingโ as soon as possible.โ
โโฆโ
For a moment, Alissa and I locked eyes.
She hadn’t drawn her sword, but unlike before, she radiated a palpable, stinging tension.
Looking closely, her eyes fixed on me seemed faintly bloodshot.
And around her eyes, I could see something like faint dark circles.
It was a haunted look, like she’d pulled all-nighters for days on end, though that couldn’t possibly be the case.
She’d come to stop me with considerable resolve.
I was certain of it.
But this situation was also within my expectations.
No problem.
I’d just go home quietly today and wait for the next time when I could be sure Alissa was sound asleep.
But contrary to my expectations, she sighed once, then stepped half a pace to the side.
โโฆVery well. I have no intention of stopping you from challenging the dungeon.โ
โYou don’t mind?โ
โWhat I follow isn’t ancient tradition, but โstrengthโ. Knights are warriors, after all. Isn’t that only natural?โ
She crossed her arms and grinned.
โFrankly, did you really think I’d stop a man who took a point from me โbecause I’m worriedโ? I justโฆ wanted to see my brother’s face before he leaves for the capital, to see how splendid he’s become.โ
โโฆNee san.โ
Something welled up inside me for some reason.
I couldn’t quite place the source of that feeling.
Of course, I was happy to be praised by my sister.
But I hadn’t expected it to make my voice tremble like this.
Perhaps this was the emotion of the original โGeraldโ.
Still, it wasn’t an unpleasant feeling, surprisingly.
โNow, go. And when you return safely, be the first to show me the sword bestowed upon you by the Swordmaker.โ
โYes, Nee san!โ
With a pat on the back from Alissa, I stepped into the dungeon.