Chapter 46: Chapter 32: Meeting

Chapter 32

Meeting

Her whole body was on fire.

At the same time as she woke up, her body flared up with pain all over. As Tino turned over, she let out a small groan.

Being in a soft bed did nothing to ease the pain.

As she peeked out from her futon, the sight of her plain room rented near the clan house came faintly into view.

『What you can’t do in training, you won’t be able to do in actual combat right?』Her teacher’s pet saying.

The verge of death. Training to control the power only released when you break through the limit between life and death.

Every time she received a lesson with that objective Tino went through a time of hell.

From the first time she had actual combat training, there were no signs she was getting used to it.

As Tino raised herself up she hid a scream behind a sour expression, and she got out of bed.

Seen in the full length mirror in her room, the disheveled hairstyle, disorderly clothes, and displeased face of a girl was reflected.

Most likely after she couldn’t move due to the fatigue and damage from almost dying, her teacher had washed her and changed her dirty clothes before tossing her into bed.

In the beginning not even that had been done and she had been left in the training grounds as is.

Not being able to stand by and watch something he didn’t think was appropriate, the master spoke up and the bare minimum became to be done.

It was quite a careless cleanup, but it was better than being left like that to be seen by other clan members for who knows how many hours.

Tino’s limbs reflected in the mirror had no wounds. From the pyjamas that were left widely exposed, white smooth skin showed through as if she didn’t make a living through fighting.

Did she recover naturally while unconscious or was she soaked in potion before being washed? Or did the teacher that was bad at going easy finally learn a technique to knock her around without harming her on the surface?

Anyway, she was thankful that there were no visible wounds.

The remaining pain also wouldn’t take long to go away. This much was possible for Tino who also absorbed Mana Material.

Although she was still exhausted she went to shower, and after dashing water over herself without hesitation, her consciousness fully woke up.

The cold water brought her body full of heat to her senses.

She closed her eyes to the pleasant sensation of the dull aches being cooled, and checked over her physical condition.

Body regulation was an essential skill for hunters. In particular, Tino’s teacher would give training without thinking of her condition, so it became second nature to pay attention.

Glittering water fell off her shoulders as she rubbed down her arms, and spoke to herself in amazement.

“As expected of Onee-sama...there isn’t a single bruise...”

Originally the 『thief』 role would have low offensive ability. For Tino right now, Liz’s blows were heavy to the point that she wasn’t safe even if she guarded.

It was better at least that she didn’t use weapons, but her thrusts and kicks were cooly aimed towards the joints. If she reacted wrongly, they would become fatal blows.

A few of her bones should have been broken. That there was no internal bleeding was a mystery.

Her memory was clouded. There was a time during the training that she had closed her eyes, because her consciousness was scattered here and there, she didn’t remember much.

But she was probably successful. She must have managed to attack while expecting to die.

Otherwise she wouldn’t have woken up alive like this.

There were many places in the Capital that you could learn fighting techniques. There were more than a few where the teachers were retired master hunters. There were even schools.

Most hunters level 3 or more had received some sort of systematic training.

But, did other hunters go through training like this?

Tasting the ground, throwing up blood, breaking bones, no matter how you saw it

– you could only seriously think that she was bathing in awful bloodlust-. Tino being discipled to Liz Smart, was under her own will.

Tino hoped for it, and at first, Liz had rejected it. Since she was someone without the free time to teach.

Now that Tino was Liz’s sole disciple, it was merely a consequence of good luck.

If at that time Master hadn’t coincidently been around to persuade, Tino probably wouldn’t have become a hunter.

To be called strong. That year she had devoted herself, and had been praised. Before she knew, making desperate efforts became ordinary.

It was harsh to the point of death, and it took on the name of torture, but Tino didn’t plan to quit being a disciple.

She frequently became dispirited, but she would not lose her spirit. For now. But, would she really be able to meet the target set by her teacher?

Caught on that doubt Tino’s shoulders quivered, and she turned off the shower with a trembling hand.

§

Tidying her outfit, as always Tino headed towards the clan house.

Her home was rented because it was near the Clan House, within walking distance. The Clan House was much taller than the surrounding buildings, so Tino could see the top of it through her bedroom window.

Although it wasn’t possible with Tino’s visual acuity, according to her teacher from Tino’s room you could see the top floor of 『Footprints』 – the clan masters room.

That was also one of the reasons Tino rented this room.

Among hunters some did not have a fixed home, some always lodging at an inn. Tino didn’t have any plans to leave the Capital, so a rented house was convenient.

Tino was still only half a hunter. She was level 4 which made her at least midrank, and she also explored shrines but she wasn’t recognised by Liz.

Tino barely left the Capital, and while Hunters were recommended to form parties, she was still solo since she was still in training.

For Tino, her life was devoted to training.

Liz was her teacher as well as being a hunter. The fickle temperament and free spirited nature of her 『Onee-sama』 meant that she didn’t actually have much time to train her.

Casually going off somewhere without saying anything was a daily occurrence. That was why when she knew her teacher was in the Capital, she tried to stay close to her as much as she could.

An unusual amount of carriages were stopped in front of the clan house.

They were large carriages that anyone would be able to ride. Unlike the decorated carriages owned by nobles, these were made of iron, they gave a tank kind of impression.

Linked to them were robust horses specially bred to run through lands where monsters and phantoms existed. They pawed at the ground in agitation.

Inside the clan house – dozens of hunters gathered in the lobby.

Could it be an expedition? The lobby that was usually spacious became cramped from the amount of people gathered.

The jobs, outfits, and levels of the hunters were all varied, their only point in common was that they belonged to this clan – 『Footprints』 and that was it.

They were all armed, and the hunters all together had the appearance as if they were about to go off to war.

Tino frowned at the situation.

『Footprints』 had a large amount of Hunters belonging to it, putting it among the biggest clans in the Capital.

But it was rare for such a large crowd of those hunters to assemble together in the one place.

Primarily, the clan was organised to be be mutually beneficial. It didn’t restrict the actions of the hunters that belonged to it.

Even the clan master who held the position of top convenience didn’t hold strong authority.

Rules were different between clans, but in regards to 『First Step』, the clan

master did not have the power to issue orders to the hunters that belonged to it. That could be said to be one of the reasons for 『Footprints』 growth.

Hunters in the clan were acquainted with Tino who had been with the clan since it was founded.

She questioned a nearby swordsman hunter. “What’s going on?”

“Hm...Ah-, Tino. You didn’t hear? Yesterday there was a summons. It seems like there’ll be a joint operation with the Explorers to the 『White Wolves Den』.”

“...With this amount of people?”

Her eyes widened at the name of the shrine she had heard before, and looked around the lobby once again.

The lobby was full of prominent members. Just counting the numbers, half of Footprints had gathered.

There were many members out on expeditions, so the amount collected here must be nearly all the remaining members in the Capital.

There should have been no authority to issue commands yet this many had gathered, as expected of Master...

Even while having such a thought, her questions didn’t disappear.

Certainly the White Wolves Den was troublesome, but these were Footprints elite. These members outranked Tino not just a little.

She had heard an investigation would be carried out, but this wasn’t on the scale of an investigation.

With so many hunters mobilised, just how difficult was the outbreak exactly?

The boss had been disposed of. When Mana Material accumulated it would be revived, but such a powerful phantom wouldn’t occur so frequently.

At Tino’s quizzical expression, the male hunter spoke candidly while lowering his voice.

“Just between you and me... the Master said that he was going to send out Ark-san at first.” n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

“...Eh?”

What was he saying, this guy...?

As if Tino had forgotten how to blink she stared at his face, but there was no sign he was joking.

The man saw her expression and his lips curved into a smile as if to say ‘that’s exactly what I had thought’.

“Ku ku ku, seems like a joke doesn’t it? Something like asking the top hunter in the clan to capture a shrine that’s only level 3.”

“...”

“But, at the moment Ark’s away. The ones gathered here... are his substitute.”

At his words, Tino realised why the assembled hunters seemed to be on edge.

Since they belonged to the same clan there wouldn’t be any disputes, but their expressions despite being safe inside the Capital gave the same sense of tension as if they were exploring a shrine.

Ark Rodin. That was the most famous hunter in the Capital.

A man that had received the blessings of all the gods in heaven, born with the status of a promised hero.

An all rounded hunter that had knowledge of all magic and was a master of techniques. When he brandished his sword it was like the flash of ten thousand lightning strikes as if to tear the world asunder.

The most perfected hunter, the man said to be the star of the next generation. There were extreme devotees in the upper stratum of the Empire, along with inside Footprints itself.

He was also the rival of her teacher and her companions.

Originally, if it was for the investigation for a level 3 shrine, he wasn’t a man that would move for that.

There was an appropriate order to things.

The Explorers Association recommended that hunters explored shrines that matched up adequately.

If high level hunters laid waste to low level shrines, killing all the Phantoms and snatching all the Relics, low level hunters would go into poverty.

There was also the potential for high level hunters to become unable to act in a time of emergency.

Naturally though, there was no way that the Master didn’t already know all this.

In other words, it meant that in that Shrine there were abnormalities that required Ark Rodin to move.

Tino who wasn’t a god, couldn’t imagine what would occur. But had Tino been in the same position as those hunters, she would have written her will with the same stern expression that they were wearing.

At least, the Phantoms wouldn’t be any less than the ones Tino had encountered.

No, if she met Onee-sama right now, there was a possibility that she might throw her into this.

“...With the small amount of people here, will you be able to manage?”

“Oioi, don’t look down on us. At least, that’s what I’d like to say...”

Shaking off his uneasiness, the swordsman scratched his jaw at Tino’s question.

Ark Rodin was without a shred of doubt, one of the strongest hunters in the Capital.

Sword and sorcery. You can become a top-notch hunter by mastering one or the other, but the man called the hero had combined the two to an extremely high level.

That power was to the degree that it was recognised by Tino’s teacher with the strongest pride in her own ability.

If the other members of his party – 『ArchBrave』 held about 70% of his power,

they might hold the seat of the strongest party in the young generation.

There were a lot of individual differences between treasure hunters. Even with a large amount of people, there was a limit to their ability to substitute.

But, the hunter showed a smile while his cheek was twitching. He showed strong fighting spirit, with just a little fear.

“Well, we’ll work it out somehow. There are other parties coming outside of

『Footprints』.”

At that point, it became noisy.

All eyes focused on the young man coming down the stairs.

『Infinite Variety』.

The man at the top of Footprints, with the power to see through all things.

Next to him the opposite was occuring, the right hand to the focal point standing up straight, the deputy Master checked over each person assembled with sharp eyes.

In an instant the noise stopped. Everyone waited for the Masters words.

Unlike the time he came to assist at the shrine, the casual appearance of the Master was at odds with the hunters full of tension and armed to the teeth.

“Hmm? Huh? What’s this? What’s wrong, gathering like this? Was there a festival going on?”

“Cry-san, this is concerning the matter you talked about with Gark-san.” “Ah-, that huh. But there’s so many.”

“Cry-san wanted to make the request to Ark-san, but since Ark-san is away... they were summoned as his substitute. By my calculations this should be enough

gathered strength.”

Cry’s eyes opened wide at Eva’s words.

Among ordinary people, many made huge misunderstandings about the ability of hunters.

‘Since they were both people it would be fine if they were cautious’, in this way there was a fixed rate of ordinary people that didn’t return from shrines every year. Their sweetened perception invited disaster.

Eva wasn’t a hunter, but outside of the master she held the most amount of knowledge about the hunters in the clan.

The fact that no one had made a complaint, was an indication that her calculations were accurate.

Everyone was satisfied with the amount of people, but the Master made an indescribable expression.

“Eh!? ......Ah, yep. Uh-huh yep, that’s right. Is that so, like this huh...”

“!? ...If there’s something, a place I’ve made an error, please let me know.” The place became quiet. Ark was the clans strongest solo unit of force.

There was no person in the clan unaware of that power.

The only people that argued over who was the strongest were the members of

『Strange Grief』.

To the gathering that raised no objections, the Master tilted his head to the side as he gazed out at them and then made a smile that stabbed at their self confidence.

“Hmm...with just the elite, can’t we go with half this amount?” a

Translator notes

Some of you may have noticed the use of ‘tank’ as a comparison. It’s not an anachronism (like if Naruto mentioned his new yeezies).

That tanks exist in the world either tells you about their level of technological progress, or that they exist as part of the worlds memory.