Namgung Se-ga, the warrior, was reincarnated in Romance

Monday.

I had always thought that the Imperial swordsmanship was simple and boring, but as I started learning it, I realized it wasn’t as easy as I had expected.

It was a defensive yet elegant style of swordsmanship. A sword focused on offense traveled far, while one for defense stayed short.

I was used to using a light, nimble sword, so stopping where I needed to and advancing only as much as necessary was more challenging than I had imagined.

Standing in line with the other students, holding the same type of sword, maintaining a consistent distance, and practicing the same movements in the same order, reminded me of when I first learned the “Cheongcheon Mu-ae Sword” in the central plains.

It was a process of refining my sword to its true form. It was exactly what I needed.

“Mikael, focus.”

“Yes!”

Ah, there was no time to think about anything else. I focused, my eyes wide open.

By the time the class ended, I was so exhausted that I almost confused Ruber with Lucilla. I tried to pat Ruber on the head but mistakenly patted Lucilla instead, which made everyone laugh loudly.

Lucilla’s hair, tied up high, looked a bit dusty and frizzy.

Monday was also the day we had intermediate alchemy class. In the previous class, we had learned how to write an order form for items, adjusting the list to the required specifications.

Today, we were each holding the order form we had written and were to go visit the wholesale and retail material suppliers in person.

Under Cedric’s guidance, we climbed into the carriage in groups.

As I sat facing familiar faces in the carriage, I couldn’t help but recall that chilly evening when Damien had returned injured, which made my stomach churn.

However, it seemed I was the only one still thinking about that day, as the other students were happily chatting away.

I quickly joined in on their conversation.

“By the way, didn’t you stop saying something before?”

“Huh? What do you mean? I’ve left so many things unfinished.”

“You were talking about something that happened with the Serbel siblings.”

“Ah! That’s right, Mikael. I was going to thank you.”

During last summer’s holiday, I had spent time with the Serbel siblings, and we had talked about my friends. Since we were in the same academic department, I had casually mentioned that it would be nice to get along if we ran into each other, but I didn’t know that Leila Serbel had immediately gone to find Jenny once the semester started.

This winter vacation, it seemed that Leila brought along her cousin and introduced her to Jenny and Damien, joining my group of friends to talk and mingle.

“Her cousin?”

“Yes. I needed someone like that for a while now. It’s fine for freshmen to hang out only with other freshmen, but from the second year onwards, that’s not enough.”

“…What’s a Sharfron?”

“Ah. Well, it’s probably not something Mikael needs to know, but…”

I was told that a Sharfron was a cultured older woman who helped guide a young woman who had just debuted into society, offering advice and support, using her authority to protect the younger woman from the turbulent social world. It was fascinating to hear about this custom.

I blinked in confusion.

“Do men need such a thing too?”

“Uh? I’ve never heard of men needing Sharfron.”

“I think that’s a custom that needs to be changed.”

Marianne interjected slyly.

“Nowadays, it’s not as common, but in the past, there were often men who acted inappropriately. They started appointing ‘safe’ women to look after young girls, to make sure they wouldn’t get grabbed. But no matter how well they were protected, they still had to stop the crazy men and scold them.”

“A ‘safe’ person?”

“An adult woman who is married and holds some authority. People believed only a woman like that wouldn’t try to take advantage of a young girl.”

This was the first time I learned about the Sharfron, and it was also the first time I heard a different opinion on it. I didn’t know what to say, so I just nodded quietly. Seeing my confused expression, Damien added with a smile.

“Nowadays, it’s become just a symbol of beauty and nobility, and it’s slowly disappearing. That’s why Jenny’s Sharfron is still a young woman.”

“Why is that?”

“The Sharfron’s role is to maintain its form while also serving as a guarantor within social circles. Since I aspire to work in the Imperial Palace, it’s important to build connections with potential future superiors.”

“I see.”

I thought for a moment before asking again.

“Did it help Jenny?”

“Definitely.”

The child laughed cheerfully, which made me feel at ease. I trusted that the Serbel siblings would handle things wisely and kindly, so I wasn’t worried.

The alchemy material wholesaler we arrived at had an oddly nostalgic atmosphere.

There was a strange, musty smell in the air, but at the same time, you could tell the place had been cleaned thoroughly inside and out.

The materials hung in front of each shop, swaying like a landscape whenever the wind blew, beneath the sunshades set up to block the sunlight.

I had only seen the clean and organized markets of Siron, so seeing the dried frogs hanging on strings and scorpions sold in baskets made it hard to tell whether this was in the central plains or Siron.

Ivan, who had once said he hated bugs, jumped back in disgust. Coming from the central plains, where I had been accustomed to boiling dried frogs for medicinal purposes, I didn’t mind it at all. The calmest of us were Marianne and Damien.

“Magic and alchemy share a lot in common. They use similar materials… I’ve been here before.”

“I just find these things interesting.”

“Didn’t you also say you were interested in artifacts?”

“That too.”

As more carriages arrived, Cedric called the students together.

He handed each group a money pouch. Inside were four gold coins. Since I had never used gold coins directly, I didn’t know their value right away.

I mentally calculated and added up the amount. It was enough to visit the botanical garden more than forty times. I was suddenly reminded how expensive alchemy materials were.

Cedric drew everyone’s attention with his loud voice.

“Alright, welcome to my hometown. Before we go get the materials, here are three things to keep in mind.”

He raised his right hand to shoulder height and held up three fingers.

“First, every shop has different prices. It’s not a fixed price system, so compare carefully and buy based on both quality and price. Second, if you go over budget, your score will be deducted. Make sure to haggle and get the right price. Third…”

Cedric smiled and clapped his hands.

“Today is not the only time we’ll be coming here, so treat the merchants with respect and behave politely. That’s all!”

“Understood!”

A few of the eager students replied quickly.

Everyone seemed excited just to be out of the academy and into the market.

After Cedric gave instructions on where to meet up, he waved us off with a smile.

I, too, walked along the street with my friends, skimming through the list of items we needed to buy. The signs above the shops only had the names of the merchants, and there were no details on what they were selling, which was confusing.

Damien walked ahead without hesitation.

“Uh, do you know where we’re going?”

“You said we’re making sunscreen. That means we need to buy slime first.”

“…Slime? Isn’t that a monster?”

“It’s a non-aggressive monster. It just exists there. There’s even a merchant who farms them in the Unique Mountain Range. If we want fresh slime, it’s better to go there.”

“Why do they call it a monster if it’s not aggressive?”

“Well, it’s because it inhabits the lowest level of the Unique Mountain Range… I heard it can’t survive without mana. It’s easy to pick them up since they just lie on dead animals’ remains until they’re digested, but getting to the slime habitat is a hassle, and maintaining it is costly.”

As I quietly listened to the children’s conversation, I suddenly became puzzled.

“…You said we’re making sunscreen, right?”

“That’s right.”

“You’re saying we’re applying a monster that dissolves animal corpses onto our skin?”

“We have to remove the slime’s digestive organs. I’ll explain it later.”

Damien puffed up his chest as if he were the senior, but his knowledge was undeniably helpful, and the children all cheered and clapped.

At first, Damien used to shy away from compliments, but now he couldn’t hide his excitement whenever he received praise.

“I think I’m pretty awesome. Feel free to clap more.”

“Uh, suddenly I’m feeling weird about this.”

“It’s fine. I understand.”

“Wow, look at that expression. Damien’s gotten so cheeky.”

The children’s playful antics were so cute that I clapped loudly, causing my hands to feel sore.

Damien led us to a store he was familiar with, where we bought a live slime in a jar with a lid for a reasonable price.

Since I didn’t know the usual price range, I just cheered on Marianne and Damien as they haggled.

The slime was heavier than I expected, so I ended up carrying it. Occasionally, it wobbled as if the lid would open, which was a bit unsettling.

Purchasing the rest of the materials was surprisingly quick. As soon as we bought the slime and stepped out, a middle-aged woman standing in front of the shop waved at the children.

“Did you come from Siron Academy?”

“Yes? Yeah.”

“Since it’s the first month of classes, you’re making sunscreen, right? All the materials will be 2 gold and 3 silver.”

“…Huh, really?”

“Take the slime price out of your budget, and you’ll have 2 silver left as change. How’s that? You won’t find a deal like this anywhere. I’ve also made sure there’s extra, in case you make a mistake and need more to remake it.”

Damien stared blankly at the basket the merchant held out. Marianne picked up a dry leaf, smelled it, and looked at it in shock.

“…Oh… this is really high-quality. It’s fine, right?”

“No, it’s just that the professor usually sets the budget tight… I thought it would be much harder.”

“Phew, you’ll be coming here every month, so it’s fine. I’ll introduce you to my friends too. Got it?”

“Yeah… okay…”

“Well then, are you buying it? I’ll wrap it up for you. If you’re curious, you can watch me pack it. It’s exactly the same as what I showed you.”

The children looked at each other, and soon enough, laughter erupted.

“Yes, please. Thank you. We’ll come again.”

“Okay, okay. Which one of you is in the swordsmanship club? Will your friend carry it?”

“…Uh, yes.”

“Hmm, you’re still small. I’ll pack it in a bag for you so it’s easier to carry. Just wear it on your back.”

“Yes, thank you.”

When we arrived at the gathering spot, we realized that all the groups had the same bags.

Cedric burst into laughter, even shedding a few tears. After laughing for a while, she declared that next month, they would make a different kind of potion from last year.

At least there wasn’t one exceptionally well-performing group, which was a relief.