Sieg and Fried are receiving what could be called gifted education. This is natural, considering they are expected to bear the future of the Kingdom of Tubant on their shoulders. This education also includes combat training. Royalty is expected to at least be able to defend themselves as a matter of etiquette.
While the current era is peaceful, it feels largely forced by the power of Marius and Auraniess. There hasn’t yet been a societal shift towards enjoying an era free from conflict. Their combat instructors are their third mother, Catherine.
“The important thing is the basics. Steadily continuing the same training every day is the first step to becoming strong.”
“Did Mommy Catherine become strong that way too?”
Marius’s youngest wife nodded at Sieg’s question. “That’s right. Effort never lies.”
“Okay!”
The two siblings merrily repeat punches and front kicks. Nergal watches them, looking bored. She can’t participate because she was told there was no point in doing the same exercises.
“This is boring. Nergal wants to do it too.”
Their sibling relationship isn’t just good; it’s excellent. Nergal’s personality is that she wants to play with someone she’s close to. However, Catherine wasn’t being mean. It was impossible to have a girl who could summon a storm and crack countless buildings with a simple punch train alongside two children who, while strong, were still only at a human child level.
“Be patient, be patient. Daddy said patient children are great.” Nergal tells herself. Her current ambition is to endure a lot and then be praised by her beloved father.
Someone then calls out to the young girl. “Nergal, you’re here.”
“Ah, Mother.”
It’s Auraniess. “You’re training too.”
“Okay!” Nergal jumps up without hesitation. Seeing this, her mother felt a sense of doubt.
“You’re surprisingly obedient today. Did watching their training make you want to join?”
“Yes.” She nods obediently. Auraniess, surprised by this, thought that perhaps her daughter could be taught seriously. Her daughter, for some reason, is quite easily bored. She is completely unsuited for teaching that requires time.
“Alright, I’ll create a training space over there. You can train to your heart’s content.”
“Okay!” Again, a quick response that pleased her mother.
“Alright, today we’ll train to suppress your power to a level where you won’t blow away the continent! And eventually, to a level where you won’t blow away a whole country.”
“Ooh!” The mother and daughter begin their training, talking about destructive things. Catherine watches the two of them leave and lets out a small sigh.
(I wish she wouldn’t overdo it.)
A large part of Nergal’s strength, which belies her age, is innate. However, it’s also partly due to her mother, Auraniess. When Nergal was two years old, she threw a tantrum and blew away a mountain and a forest. Since then, they’ve been trying to teach her restraint. …Or so it was supposed to be, but her restraint hasn’t improved much, while her combat power has increased.
“Mommy Catherine?”
Sieg’s call brings her back to reality, and she returns to instruction. Her specialty is hand-to-hand combat; magic is handled by Barra. As for Marius, he was stripped of his teaching qualifications for starting his sons’ lessons with an explanation of Forbidden Spells. He claims, “I just wanted to explain the basics of magic first,” but he wasn’t believed due to his past actions.
“That’s all for today. Barra will continue with you.”
“Thank you very much.” Sieg and Fried, lying down drenched in sweat, thank Catherine. As she leaves, Barra enters.
“Catherine worked you hard?”
“Y-yes…”
“She’s very good at judging our limits.” The two, who were asked this with a smile, barely manage an answer while catching their breath.
“She used to specialize in combat too, you know.” Barra says nostalgically, narrowing her eyes. The passage of a few years has transformed that young, simple girl into an experienced warrior. Capable enough to be a good instructor for young children. On the other hand, it has also led to the decline of her, who was once considered the strongest human. The flow of time is equal, but the results it brings vary greatly.
“Shall we begin then?” Barra’s magic restores the boys’ fatigue. Their mental state remains unchanged, but this was considered a method that would further their training.
“Please.” Sieg and Fried accept Barra’s rigorous training without complaint.
“I want to master the twelve supreme magics,” Sieg says. Fried replies, “I want to learn healing magic, so that it’ll be okay even if Nergal goes a little overboard.”
“…Don’t you think it’s impossible for us to do that?” The third person, who overheard the brothers’ wishes, states frankly. Fried doesn’t deny it but doesn’t back down either.
“But if we’re going to do it, our goals should be high! Right?”
“That’s true, but…” This was something the adults told them before their training began. They said that having high goals makes growth easier. Sieg thinks it might be a bit much to expect them to support Nergal. Even with restraint, she’s the kind of sister who can knock out Auraniess.
“I think Fried’s goal is the right one.” Barra, who had been listening, chimes in.
“Mother.” The two children turn around.
“Nergal isn’t a bad child, but she can be emotional. Someone needs to be able to rein her in. We can’t always rely on Marius and Auraniess, can we?” The boys fall silent. Their father, Marius, and Auraniess, having defeated the Evil God and gained its power, have essentially lost their lifespan. Therefore, if they wished, they could reign eternally, but they don’t seem to intend to. While Auraniess is one thing, it was surprising that Marius felt the same way, but he answered his sons’ question like this: “It’s problematic for the top of an organization to remain unchanged forever.”
The two didn’t quite understand, but all the adults around them agreed. Will they understand someday?
“I want to understand that kind of thing,” Sieg mutters. To them, Marius is an incredibly great father. They say he rose from being a mere mage, defeated demons and Demon Lords, and finally became King. Sieg thinks it’s amazing that he founded a nation from scratch. While Fried feels a bit conflicted because the actual work is done by his subordinates, he praises Marius for being able to gather and command such subordinates. Sieg argues this point. This is not just his personal opinion but largely a result of his education. If a nation’s king acts solely relying on their own power, it only causes trouble for their subordinates and citizens. He has been drilled by his tutors that discovering excellent talent and earning their loyalty is what’s truly important.
“You’ll understand someday. Marius and I intend to entrust the country to you.” Barra says. They are happy that their two sons, as well as Nergal, are growing up upright. Royalty is not great simply because they are kings. They are great for properly managing the nation’s affairs and protecting it.
“Are we going to be okay?” The two look a little worried. But Barra thinks that’s just about right. Being somewhat anxious would lead to more careful political decisions.
“Well, it’ll be a while before you take over. Even when you do, we plan for everyone to stay for quite some time.” The intention is to have them take over while the opinionated advisors are still around, allowing them to learn various things.
“Yes!” The two reply energetically. After training, they take a break and then study. Sieg suddenly voices a thought.
“How amazing are we?”
“What are you talking about all of a sudden?” Fried makes a strange face, and rightly so. There was no preamble.
“Well, I don’t think we need to be that strong, but it wouldn’t be good if we’re too useless.”
“Hmm, I understand how you feel, but…” Fried hesitates. He certainly feels the adults’ expectations. It’s not a burden, but it does make him feel like he has to try his best.
“It’s hard to tell because Nergal is the only one around us.” Sieg, hearing this, also makes a complex face.
“Everyone says not to use Nergal as a benchmark, you know.”
“I wish we could play with other children too.” Their hushed conversation continues. They are wondering if there’s a reason they aren’t allowed to play with children other than Nergal. They are being considerate in their own way.
“Mommy Barra used to be the strongest human, and now she’s at best among the top,” Fried says, nodding at Sieg’s words. “She said she got weaker after having children.” Even though Barra seems incredibly strong to the two boys, she has apparently weakened.
“She says Mommy Catherine is stronger now.” Catherine is said to be the strongest human warrior. The problem might be that the Kingdom of Tubant has multiple non-human entities. Because of them, she isn’t even in the top five.
“Being ranked first among the strongest humans, isn’t this country just insane?”
“Hmm, in the first place, do we really need so many gods and Demon Lords?” Their questions are endless.
