Chapter 9 - Professional Teacher

After roller-coaster of a meeting (emotionally) for the trio, the party of four took the thin sleigh and took toward the forest. Yenni, the merchant has the skill so he took the reins while the rest of us hung onto the railings. They were designed to be easily latched onto for more space and mobility, specifically for guards to easily shift their position and react to attacks. They were made for hunters and bow users so me and April took both sides, while Drom stood inside protecting the body of the sleigh from any attacks.

The enchantment [Hover] floats the sleigh and reduce friction, while [Grounded] keeps the sleigh from flying too off the ground. Together they act like a suspension system and make the sleigh easier to control.

We are heading out from the south side of the city. The city is basically surrounded by forests from west to south and mountains from north-west to east. A ridge exists between the two to the south-east leading to the ocean.

"The real scary part of the forest is in the west, the south side is quite thin and C-rank beasts are the most you will see. Normally you won't see them with how scarce they are, and travelling through the forest is quite easy for an D-rank so long as they avoid walking into monster territories. The west side is where the center of the forest lies, you will find C-rank above monsters frequently as you go further…"

'He suddenly started lecturing.'

'Isn't he mad when we're hunting his kind.'

'He's a goblin right?'

"Shaddap! Don't question my race!"

""I'm Sorry!""

"Hahaha~!"

"Pay attention! And your laughs are creepy, halfling!"

Seeing their carefree attitude really proves that they are wanderers, they are making the most of their immortality.

"Sir, are we really going to subjugate, um… goblins?"

"Yes, that's what I said."

They seem quite apprehensive so I continued.

"Even among humans there are tribes, nomads, bandits and cults that strays from the law or refuses to comply. There are such cases with monsters but the opposite. When we are too sick and tired of our savage lifestyle or hold an insatiable curiosity to the outside, we leave and enter civilisation. Moreover, human races kills their kins as well don't they, that's why there are no problem in hunting down some unlawful bandits that threatens order."

"But that's cannibalism-!!"

"No its not!! Don't make things up!"

"Haaa…"

"Hahaha~"

The elf barely understood what I said. The dwarf seem fed up with his leader while the halfling continues to laugh cheerily. Like this, we continued our journey while teaching them the hunter's 101.

Terrune is on the other side of the forest plus some more distance, with the Direwolf Express it will take two hours to get to the other side. It is currently running at a speed most monsters we meet cannot catch up to, adding on to the enchanted harness improving and recovering its stamina, we can reach the city without rest.

Yenni is doing well stabilising the sleigh, I thought he would be tired having to keep his concentration going but he is instead having too much fun. April and Drom basically has nothing to do as I shot down every monster that ambushed us from the front and any speedy monsters chasing from behind. All the while continuing my lecture.

"… and so to bring out the full extent of a material, you need to put effort in more skills than simply just . is a skill that supports most crafting class so you should acquire that and you need to learn magic too if you want to make any decent enchantments or magic weapons…"

It has been an hour already and I've finished all the contents about this forest so I moved on to crafting. It is a good time to review a little before teaching those kids, so I am teaching Drom the Art of Crafting. He is listening so intently that Yenni's sleigh acrobatic tricks isn't working on him.

"And Elf, why are you using a bow instead of you instrument. Aren't you a Bard?"

"W-well, Bard's skills can buff allies and hamper enemies on a large scale, but they are weaker than light and dark mage. It is unsuited for combat…"

"Who said that."

"Eh?"

"You speak as if Bards can't do anything other than support in a battle."

"Is that not so?"

"Of course not! Bard is one of the most powerful and respected profession in the world! It's just unfortunate that few has talent for it."

I look at the elf. Being a Bard is extremely difficult. Music is an art, and Bards use this art as a tool to affect the world. But the meaning of art is different for every individual, so no matter how exalted a Bard becomes, with their experience, they cannot raise another one of their own. Compared to magic and martial arts where they can continuously improve through systematic teachings, Bard became obsolete.

"The first thing to know is that your instrument is not just a tool, it is a catalyst. Every Bard has an instrument, and their true mastery lies in sound. The sound of music is an expression of the musician, in other words it's a language. Since it's a language it can be used to cast spells!"

"You can!?!"

"Yes, you can! So stop relying on the skills and learn some actual shit! You can find this much in any proper library!"

"Yessir!"

She looked so sick a while ago, now she is listening with greater intensity than Drom. Of course, Yenni's acrobatic stunts is no longer affecting her either.

After giving a lecture about Bards, I immediately had her play a piece. The most important thing when mastering the sound is to visualise the result. Only when there is a will, can she connect to the nature.

With her guitar-like instrument, she performed a song about nature and beauty.