From Old Country Bumpkin to Master Swordsman
From Old Country Bumpkin to Master Swordsman: My Hotshot Disciples Are All Grown Up Now and They Won't Leave Me Alone is a Japanese light novel series written by Shigeru Sagazaki and illustrated by Tetsuhiro Nabeshima. It initially began serialization on the user-generated novel publishing website Shōsetsuka ni Narō in November 2020. It was later acquired by Square Enix, who began publishing it under their SQEX Novel imprint in April 2021. A manga adaptation illustrated by Kazuki Satō began serialization in Akita Shoten's manga web magazine Dokodemo Young Champion in August 2021. An anime television series adaptation produced by Passione and Hayabusa Film aired from April to June 2025. A second season is set to premiere in July 2026.
Plot
Beryl Gardinant is a swordsman in his mid-forties who teaches at a small dojo in a countryside village. Though viewing himself as thoroughly unimpressive, one day, he is visited by one of his former pupils and invited to become an instructor for the knights of the Liberion Order in the capital. Reluctantly accepting the offer, this leads to Beryl reuniting with many other former disciples and discovering that they have all become highly accomplished individuals using the "backwater" skills he taught them.Characters
;Beryl Gardinant;Allucia Citrus
;Surena Lysandra
;Curuni Crueciel
;Henbritz Drought
;Ficelle Harbeller
;Lucy Diamond
;Mewi Freya
;Spur
;Rose Marbleheart
;Gatoga Lazorne
Media
Light novel
Written by Shigeru Sagazaki, From Old Country Bumpkin to Master Swordsman: My Hotshot Disciples Are All Grown Up Now and They Won't Leave Me Alone began serialization on the user-generated novel publishing website Shōsetsuka ni Narō on November 17, 2020. It was later acquired by Square Enix who began publishing it as a light novel with illustrations by Tetsuhiro Nabeshima under their SQEX Novel imprint on April 7, 2021. Ten volumes have been released as of December 2025. The light novel is licensed in English by J-Novel Club.Manga
A manga adaptation illustrated by Kazuki Satō began serialization in Akita Shoten's manga web magazine Dokodemo Young Champion on August 24, 2021. The manga's chapters have been collected into eight volumes as of December 2025.During their panel at Sakura-Con 2024, Yen Press announced that they licensed the manga adaptation.
A spin-off manga series written by Itsuki Watanabe and illustrated by Megumu Soramichi, titled From Old Country Bumpkin to Master Swordsman: The Mage Knight's Origin, began serialization on Square Enix's Manga Up! manga service on November 29, 2024. The spin-off's chapters have been collected into two volumes as of December 2025. The series is published in English on Square Enix's Manga Up! Global app.
Another spin-off manga series, titled From Old Country Bumpkin to Master Swordsman: The Twin Dragonblade's Journey to the Top, began serialization in Square Enix's Young Gangan magazine on February 7, 2025. The series is written by Zenji Yotsuya and illustrated by Sasami Hazama and is centered around the character Surena Lysandra. The spin-off's chapters have been collected into two volumes as of December 2025. The series is also published in English on Square Enix's Manga Up! Global app.
Volumes
''From Old Country Bumpkin to Master Swordsman''
''The Mage Knight's Origin''
''The Twin Dragonblade's Journey to the Top''
Anime
An anime television series adaptation was announced on August 1, 2024. It was produced by Passione and Hayabusa Film and directed by Akio Kazumi, with series composition by Kunihiko Okada, characters designed by Satsuki Hayasaka, who also served as chief animation director, and music composed by Yasuharu Takanashi. The series aired from April 5 to June 22, 2025, on the IMAnimation programming block on all ANN affiliates, including TV Asahi. The opening theme song is "Heroes" performed by Takanori Nishikawa, while the ending theme song is "Alright!!!" performed by Flow. Amazon Prime Video is streaming the series worldwide.A second season was announced after the conclusion of the first season and is set to premiere in July 2026.
Reception
By January 2024, the series had over 4 million copies in circulation. By August 2024, the series had over 5.5 million copies in circulation.The manga adaptation was ranked third in the "I Want to Read it Now!" category at Rakuten Kobo's 1st E-book Manga Awards in 2023. The manga, alongside When Marriages Fracture and The Great Snake's Bride, won the 2023 Piccoma Award in the manga category. The manga was also ranked thirteenth at the 9th Next Manga Awards in the web category in 2023. The manga was also ranked second in the 2023 Tsutaya Comic Awards. The manga was also ranked thirteenth in Nationwide Bookstore Employees' Recommended Comics list of 2024.