Chapter 146: Early Education (1)

For a while, Louis remained silent. His mind was too cluttered with thoughts.

Is this kid really Sword Saint?

He tried to calm his racing heart.

No, Kendrick is quite a common name.

Of course, how many red-haired Kendricks could there be like in the original story…

Still, it might not be him, right?

Louis became more cautious.

Kendrick… Kendrick…

The information he had about young Sword Saint Kendrick wasn’t much:

He lived near Genelocer’s lair.
He lost his parents at a young age and lived with his sister.

The Mad Dragon Genelocer had razed their village to the ground, taking Louis’s younger sister with him.

Wait, a younger sister?

Recalling this detail from The Legend of Kendrick, Louis turned to Lia.

“Lia, do you happen to have…a daughter?”

Her eyes widened at his question as she replied, “How did you know?”

“Does her name perhaps start with…”

“Heh-heh, it’s Tania. She just turned four.”

“…?!” Once again, Louis froze.

Ahh… Damn.

He sighed internally.

I’m afraid…I might be right about this.

Kendrick’s younger sister—her death was what drove Sword Saint to seek revenge against the Mad Dragon in the story. As such, her name occasionally popped up throughout the novel.

Her name was precisely ‘Tania’.

Ah…

If one were to search for a boy named Kendrick in the mountain village nestled within the Greenwood Mountains, they might find several candidates. But…

Red hair.

A sister named Tania.

How many Kendricks would meet both conditions?

All these details pointed to the six-year-old girl before him as being Sword Saint Kendrick.

…Now that I think about it, her age seems right too.

Currently, Louis was 483 years old. In another sixteen years, he’d be 499. That placed Kendrick at around twenty-one or twenty-two when Louis died in the original story—a timeframe consistent with what had been described.

The child before him would be twenty-two years old in sixteen years’ time.

“Hmm…” Louis let out a soft groan.

Fine. Let’s say this kid is Sword Saint. But… why here?!

As far as he knew, Kendrick’s village was much closer to Genelocer’s lair than this place. That’s why Louis had planned to search for Sword Saint later on. Yet unexpectedly, it turned out that the son of the girl he’d saved was none other than Sword Saint himself…

Aha… So that’s why!

Suddenly, Louis realized why his intuition had drawn him inexplicably towards Lia all along.

Noticing Louis’s prolonged silence, Lia looked at him with concern. “Louis? Is something wrong?”

“There is if there should be; otherwise not…” he replied cryptically.

“Well then, take your time thinking about it… But come inside first. We can’t just stand in the doorway all day, right?”

”…I suppose so.”

As Louis nodded, Lia smiled warmly and led him through her home. Contrary to its modest appearance from the outside, Lia’s house was quite spacious, divided into several rooms and a kitchen area.

Scanning his surroundings, Louis remarked, “Your domestic skills haven’t changed over time.”

“Heh-heh, that’s all thanks to learning from you, dear brother.”

It wasn’t an exaggeration to say that during their childhood, Lia had learned nearly everything she needed for life from Louis.

From letters to scholarly knowledge and various practical skills—Louis had imparted much during their childhood together.

Lia’s compliment made Louis shrug modestly. “Well, of course! But where is your husband?”

“He’ll be back shortly. More importantly, have you eaten yet?”

“No, not yet.”

“That works out well then. Let’s dine together for the first time in ages!”

“Yes, let’s do that.”

The thought of sharing a meal with Louis after so long brought joy to Lia’s face.

Just then…

“Mommy…”

A little girl toddled out from one of the rooms.

“Our Nia is awake now?”

“Mm-hmm…”

Lia picked up her daughter gently.

She then handed the child over to Louis with a grin.

“Huh…?”

“Just hold on to her for a sec. I’ve gotta get dinner ready, heh heh.” With that, Lia disappeared into the kitchen, still smiling.

And so it was just Louis, Kendrick, and Tania left in the living room.

Louis stared blankly at the little girl in his arms.

”…”

She had red hair like her mother, with chubby white cheeks. Despite being young, she had well-defined features, including beautiful green eyes that shone brightly. She wasn’t fussy at all, even though this must have been her first time being held by someone new since birth.

This kid would definitely be popular among neighborhood elders.

Meanwhile, what about Kendrick, supposedly the future Dragon Slayer? Louis’s gaze shifted to one corner of the room.

“…” From behind the fireplace, a pair of green eyes peeked out warily at him. Who would’ve thought that this kid was supposed to be the great dragon slayer?

“Haaah…” As Louis let out another long sigh, Tania squirmed in his arms.

What is going on here…?

He’d come outside for some fresh air after reminiscing about old times only to find himself unexpectedly watching over these children. And among them was a monstrous creature who might someday become his own father!

Louis lifted little Tania up until she was eye level with him.

The child giggled with pretty eyes sparkling.

As the four-year-old girl met gazes with the 483-year-old dragon…

“Kendrick! Tania! Daddy’s home!” The door burst open as a blonde man rushed inside.

His eyes locked onto Louis the moment he stepped through the threshold.

“…”

For a long moment, silence reigned between them.

Suddenly, the stranger drew his sword from where it was strapped at his waist and bellowed:

“What kind of creep are you?! Put down my daughter right this instant!”

Who wouldn’t be startled by finding an unknown person holding their child in their own house?

Hearing the commotion caused by his shout, Lia appeared on the scene.

“Aaron, what’s going on?”

“Darling! What kind of brat is this with our children?!”

“It’s alright. This gentleman is…”

“Oh! Do you know him?”

“N-no, not a ‘him’… I mean…”

“I-I don’t care whose kid he is, but he looks quite well-off.”

The red-faced man called Aaron snarled at Louis, causing the veins in Louis’s forehead to bulge.

“Lia,” he said quietly.

“Yes?”

“I’m sorry about this.”

”…?”

“I might make you a widow today.” The corners of his mouth twitched upward.

This bastard keeps calling me a brat! Flames seemed to leap from Louis’s eyes.

Fortunately, Lia wouldn’t become a widow after all.

She quickly diffused the situation before it could escalate into a full-blown commotion.

As things settled down, Louis, Tania, Kendrick, Aaron, and Lia gathered around a table together.

Aaron cleared his throat and began hesitantly:

“Ahem, I-I’ve heard so much about you.”

“What was that?”

Lia explained, “He has an older brother who took care of him since childhood…”

As she spoke, her gaze flicked towards Louis.

Anyone would estimate him to be only fifteen based on his appearance alone. It raised doubts as to whether this young boy truly matched the description of ‘the savior-brother’ Lia had mentioned earlier.

While Aaron scrutinized Louis, Louis returned the look with equal intensity.

Is this really Lia’s husband?

His refined appearance was uncharacteristic of someone from a hunter village. Though Louis had only seen him once at their wedding, he’d heard snippets about their story before.

I think he was originally from out of town.

Aaron used to be a bodyguard in a nearby territory. He stopped by the village on duty and fell head over heels for Lia upon first sight.

Lia certainly is pretty.

Not just Aaron, but Lia herself exuded an air of sophistication uncommon among country women.

I guess they say opposites attract, huh?

As the two men engaged in some friendly banter,

“Oh…” Tania suddenly reached her chubby little arm towards Louis while still nursing from Lia.

Lia chuckled and asked her daughter, “My girl, do you want to go with your uncle?”

“Mm-hmm.” Tania nodded briefly.

Lia looked at Louis, clearly perplexed.

Louis sighed and held out his arms. “Give her here.”

“I’m sorry…” Lia said, but swiftly handed over her daughter.

She was slightly taken aback by how quickly Tania started giggling as soon as she landed in Louis’s arms. “Nia seems to like you quite a bit! She usually takes forever to warm up to people.”

”…Really? You think she’s shy around strangers?”

“Yes, indeed.”

“But I don’t see it. What makes you say that?” Louis playfully poked Tania’s chubby cheeks, relishing their soft squishiness.

“Kyaaah!”

Tania burst out laughing every time Louis playfully pinched her cheek. Lia found this scene utterly fascinating.

“You know, Nia used to be incredibly shy,” she remarked to her husband. “Isn’t that right?”

Aaron nodded reluctantly at his wife’s observation.

“Yes, you’re correct. She was so reserved that…she would even hide from me.”

“That’s only because you never bothered to shave before giving her kisses!”

“Oh, is that why…?”

In front of them, the bickering couple seemed oblivious to their six-year-old son Kendrick, who was engrossed in eating his soup despite the commotion. Meanwhile, a four-year-old girl sat on Louis’s lap, beginning to drift off to sleep.

Though the scene appeared peaceful to any observer, Louis was deeply troubled by some serious concerns.

What should I do…?

The child slurping soup with his mouth wide open was almost certainly destined to become the Sword Star—Louis was about ninety-nine percent sure of that. But what could he possibly do about it?

I know I’m supposed to eliminate potential threats, but…

He couldn’t kill such a young boy—and besides, this was Lia’s son.

Should I just let him live peacefully here?

As long as the Mad Dragon didn’t show up and Tania remained alive, there would be no need for a Sword Star to exist. If Louis left things alone, this six-year-old might grow up to be Kendrick the Hunter instead of the Sword Star.

But…

The real problem is that bastard.

That man, Elvis, was the true issue at hand.

Knowing about the future, would he let go of such a powerful ally as Sword Saint?

If it were him, his first instinct would be to seek out Kendrick.

Then…

A brilliant idea flashed through Louis’s mind.

I just need to get Kendrick on my side before that Elvis guy shows up.

The situation couldn’t have been more perfect for Louis since not only had he met young Kendrick before Elvis did, but also because he’d encountered them during their childhoods.

Louis inwardly smiled at this stroke of luck and turned toward the bickering couple.

“Lia.”

“Yes?” She finally looked over at Louis after hearing her name.

“How do you plan on educating Kendrick?”

“Um… I haven’t really thought about it much yet because he’s still so young…”

“I see.”

Though she tried to brush it off, Louis knew no parent could truly be indifferent towards their child’s education. He decided to gently probe this matter further.

“Well then… may I offer some assistance?”

“Pardon?” Liah blinked momentarily at Louis’s suggestion before her face lit up with hope.

She soon asked in a loud voice, “Really? Would you truly be willing to help us?”

“Well… It is your child after all. I can certainly spare some time.”

“Oh course we’d appreciate that!”

Having learned much from Louis during her own childhood, Liah was well aware of his vast knowledge and expertise. Moreover, there was simply no one better suited to teach Kendrick than Louis in this small mountain village.

Just then, a grumbling voice came from one side.

“But Kendrick is already being taught by—”

“Aaron! Please be quiet!”

“D-darling?” Aaron interjected slightly disgruntled but eventually slumped his shoulders at Lia’s firmness as she passionately advocated for their son’s education. He had never seen such intensity in her eyes since they’d been married.

Lia looked at Louis with fervor and pleaded, “Louis, I’m begging you!”

Having easily obtained parental consent, Louis broke into a wide grin. “Don’t worry. I’ll do my best to teach him well.”

Meanwhile, Louis inwardly sneered at Elvis, wherever he might be lurking in this world.

Go ahead and try taking Kendrick with you if you want. I’m not sure if he’ll actually follow you.

His eyes met Kendrick’s playful green ones. Louis gave him a friendly smile despite his mischievous nature.

And so it was decided that day: The early education—no, brainwashing disguised as early education—of future star swordsman Kendrick would begin immediately.