Children of the Rune – Winterer - Chapter 74

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 74.
The Island of the Survivors (16)
“What are you thinking about?”
“Not much.”
Liriope cast an inquisitive glance his way. Daphnen withdrew a book and began leafing through it—a collection of legends compiled for children, it seemed.
Without his peer, the reading instructor, at his side, even the books felt hollow and purposeless. He returned the volume to its shelf and turned away.
Oizis was watching him intently.
“I… I…”
Oizis, who habitually stammered, paused momentarily to catch his breath.
Daphnen regarded him with emotionless eyes—genuinely emotionless. Though he had yielded to the children’s coercion and given testimony unfavorable to himself, it scarcely troubled him. Just as he felt no compulsion to love someone new, he harbored no particular desire to despise anyone.
Suddenly, Liriope interjected.
“What right do you have to speak to him? If you lack courage, shouldn’t you at least possess a conscience? You’re nothing but a coward and a pathetic wretch! You know perfectly well why I’m saying this, don’t you?”
Few understood better than Daphnen that without courage, one cannot preserve conscience. Yet no compassion stirred within him—only a lingering trace of displeasure.
Oizis, despite the harsh words, continued with difficulty.
“I… I know everything. But… no, I won’t make excuses. This is all I am. Truly, just as you say, Liriope—I’m a coward and pathetic… I’m sorry… I wish you would just beat me thoroughly… it would ease my mind…”
Liriope let out a derisive snort.
“So he’s supposed to beat you just to make you feel better? What kind of nonsense is that? Everything you think is twisted. Don’t you understand that you’re not even worth his effort? All this time getting beaten, and it’s scrambled your brain too?”
Oizis seemed to accept every word Liriope spoke as truth. Rather than refute her, he hung his head low—a child so accustomed to self-deprecation that he had forgotten how to feel anger.
“You really are…”
“That’s enough.”
When Daphnen spoke, Liriope fell silent. She pursed her lips with a sharp expression, then crossed her arms.
Daphnen addressed Oizis.
“I’m not dwelling on it.”
He paused, then elaborated more specifically.
“Desi Priest told me to cast away the past along with my hair. You can see how short my hair has become, can’t you? Don’t burden me with thoughts of that matter. It’s finished.”
Daphnen turned and left the classroom, with Liriope following behind.
As he walked, Daphnen fell into contemplation. Had he just forgiven Oizis, or had he simply refused to accept his apology?
Liriope’s voice had grown somewhat quieter.
“Come to the small classroom at nine tomorrow morning. Go to Petra, the Priest of the Sleeves, and she’ll provide the necessary supplies for new Skoli students. She lives in a house east of the Town Hall where many fir saplings grow. Tomorrow the instructors will assess your abilities, but it’s a simple examination—if you can read and write, there’s nothing to worry about. By the way, you’re going to be living with Nauplion Priest, aren’t you?”
The two soon parted ways. Liriope returned to Skoli, her expression thoughtful.

“Ah, so you’re the ‘Daphnen’ who came from the Continent? So that was you all along?”
How many was it now? Since arriving on The Island, I seemed to encounter one hostile person after another without fail, and another had just been added to that list.
This time, my opponent was Jilebo, the staff combat instructor at Skoli. That was his real name, he’d said.
He appeared to be around the same age as Nauplion. He rotated the staff he gripped from side to side, loosening his shoulder muscles while appraising me from head to toe.
Around us, several children held similar staffs and concentrated on their practice as the instructor directed.
We were in the Scoli Courtyard. It was afternoon.
“So you’re saying you’re the disciple of that esteemed person? And you became a disciple before even receiving a name upon entering The Island? That’s quite an extraordinary arrangement.”
Only then did I grasp what the instructor wanted to say. Jilebo paused his arm movements.
“Is there even a need to test you? You’ll surely be impressive, won’t you? Being the disciple of such an esteemed Priest, it would be strange if you weren’t exceptional. Come to think of it, you might even surpass me in skill?”
That day, I was tested on fundamental learning abilities by several instructors.
Idmon said my reading, writing, and composition skills were superior to those my age, while Philomela evaluated that I had no magical knowledge whatsoever but possessed a good voice.
Genesis expressed surprise at how familiar I was with books despite my appearance. These days, it was rare to see a child reading on The Island.
This was the fourth place I’d visited.
I merely looked up at the instructor without responding. However, if he uttered even a single word of criticism toward Nauplion, I was prepared to immediately refute him.
“Let’s just observe. Since this is merely observation, please tell that person not to be angry that I dared to test his disciple.”
I released Winterer and set it on the ground, then grasped the staff. I stood three paces away. Jilebo waved the staff before me as if mocking, then struck at my shoulder with a quick motion.
I managed to dodge without catching it, but reflexively, the staff in my hand flew from my grip. The staff grazed past the instructor’s elbow. Jilebo’s expression changed.
Of course, since the staff had no blade, there was no point in swinging it as if to cut.
I recalled the times I’d wielded a wooden sword with Elder Brother, but even then, I’d only used it as a sword substitute—I’d never learned to utilize the staff’s unique characteristics. I retreated again.
The instructor withdrew his arm and rapidly thrust three times at both sides of my face.
I could have dodged all of them, but that was a feint. Taking advantage of my confusion, the staff struck my leg. This time, I took the hit. The long staff was swiftly withdrawn.
“Tsk, how will you flatten my nose like that?”
I’d never intended to flatten the instructor’s nose. I didn’t even believe I had the skill to do so.
Yet the more I listened, the more anger quietly welled up within me.
“Come on, try attacking too!”
I grasped the middle of the staff with both hands. I had no idea how to use such a long weapon, but I was quite skilled with a sword.
I swung both ends of the staff, which were now equal length, as if moving my two arms. Doing so, I suddenly thrust one end rapidly.
However, Jilebo was a man who had devoted his entire life to mastering the use of this staff.
He had already seen through a beginner’s improvised attacks. My staff was blocked, then shattered. As my attack failed, my openings naturally became exposed.
Jilebo struck my waist with a fluid motion, struck my arm, and attempted to sweep my feet to topple me.
At that moment, I realized it was better to simply fall, so I deliberately dropped to the ground.
However, I failed to time it precisely, and I fell as the staff made contact. The instructor couldn’t possibly have missed that.
“What gives you the right to pretend to lose like that! Do you think I would actually lose to you?”
His tone was completely different from his mocking earlier. I rose and spoke calmly.
“I have no means to defeat you, instructor.”
“Ha! Growing more insolent by the moment. Don’t pretend to go easy on me. I’m not so incompetent as to receive such treatment from a child like you. Do you think you’re superior to me, your instructor, simply because you’re the disciple of Priest Nauplion?”
I’d never even spoken such words aloud. Only then did it occur to me that Jilebo might harbor some inferiority complex toward Nauplion.
With every sentence, he invoked Nauplion’s name while trying to provoke me, yet it was he who grew increasingly agitated.
“The Priest is indeed excellent. However, I am young and lack skill.”
“Don’t make me laugh! You’re already so full of yourself that you don’t even regard me! Shall we fight properly? You won’t even be able to walk out of here on your own feet.”
Upon hearing those words, Daphnen felt a spark of defiance kindle within him.
“I have no confidence in defeating you while wielding an unfamiliar staff, sir.”
“What? So you’re saying you could beat me if you held a sword instead? Go ahead and try! Draw your blade and come at me! Show me that impressive skill you learned from Nauplion the Priest! Come on, should I draw mine too?”
Only then did he realize his words had been a mistake, but no way to take them back came to mind. Jilebo instructed the boy beside him to fetch a sword from the Warehouse.
The children around them had already stopped their practice and were watching the two quarrel.
Yet not a single child expressed concern for Daphnen’s predicament or attempted to dissuade the instructor. Their eyes held only the gleam of those who had found entertainment.
Soon, Jilebo drew his sword and bellowed with unbridled confidence.
“Draw your blade at once!”
“I will not fight you, sir.”
“Who do you think you are to refuse? Are you admitting that Nauplion the Priest’s skill is inferior to mine?”
He could never concede such a thing, not even facing death. Daphnen shook his head with unwavering resolve.
“I don’t understand why you’re doing this to me, sir. If you wish to test your skill against Nauplion the Priest, wouldn’t it be better to meet with him directly? How could I possibly defeat you? And if my skill is lacking, it’s only because I’m too foolish to fully grasp your excellent teachings. Please don’t keep invoking Nauplion the Priest’s name over my inadequate abilities.”
At that moment, a boy approached Jilebo’s side.
“Sir, there’s no need for you to face a mere child directly. I myself am proof of how excellent your teachings are.”
Both the instructor and Daphnen turned their heads to see it was Hector. Jilebo seemed momentarily surprised, then twisted his lips into a smile.
“It’s unexpected that you’d fight for my honor, but your words certainly ring true. If you two were to face each other, it would reveal whose teachings are superior.”
It appeared that Jilebo and Hector weren’t on particularly good terms either. Yet it was nothing compared to their relationship with Daphnen. And they both despised Daphnen equally.
Hector stepped forward and spoke.
“So, shall we test ourselves against each other? If you prefer swords, let’s use swords. Draw yours now.”
Hector took the sword from Jilebo’s hand, his eyes gleaming as he assumed his stance. But Daphnen faced another problem.
“I cannot draw this one. If you provide me with a practice sword, then I’ll fight.”
Hector’s eyebrows rose sharply.
“Are you afraid you’ll hurt me if you use that fine blade? Don’t worry. You won’t land a single scratch on me.”
It was the Winterer—a sword he hadn’t drawn even once since Nauplion’s warning.
During his time in Lemme, he had used a different sword instead of the Winterer, but he had sold it before coming to The Island. He feared that carrying two swords might appear aggressive.
He also hadn’t anticipated that he would need to wield a blade so soon after arriving on The Island.
Daphnen shook his head.
“I can’t. This is a sword that shouldn’t be drawn carelessly. I won’t fight you unless you provide me with a different sword.”
Jilebo shouted in exasperation.
“This little brat complicates everything! Bring him a practice sword!”
Hector sneered.
“Hmph, so the blade’s condition must be absolutely terrible? Has it become a worthless hunk of metal with all its teeth worn away from your negligence in sharpening it?”
He had no intention of responding to such petty provocation. At last, practice swords were placed in both their hands.
The watching children cast curious glances at the Winterer resting to the side, their interest clearly piqued.
The two clashed in silence.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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