Obern snickered, and the other students burst into laughter as well.
“You, an Arcane Path major, want to fight me?”
“Yeah.”
“Have you ever fought a knight? If you had experience, you would not say that so easily.”
It was not unreasonable for him to react that way.
Generally, in a one-on-one duel, knights had an advantage over mages.
Moreover, knights were trained in techniques for facing mages.
“Are you perhaps the same attribute as Lulusha?”
“Attributes do not matter. I will not use magic.”
Not that I could.
“Are you serious?”
“Yeah.”
“Then……”
Obern tilted his head before raising the corners of his mouth.
“Fine, I understand now, Armand.”
Obern looked around at the Eagle Class students surrounding us.
“Everyone, stop laughing. I think Armand is really cool. Armand is stepping up for his class president right now, is he not? Could you do that? If I were getting beaten senselessly like an idiot, would you fight in my place? Come on, I do not think the kids in our class would.”
When Obern said that, laughter broke out again.
He spun his wooden sword once before pointing it at me.
“All right, Armand. I will respect your resolve. I hope you are better than your class president.”
“What respect?”
Chepin grabbed me.
“Armand, what are you doing? That bastard is incredibly strong.”
“Yeah, he looks strong.”
“Then why are you challenging him?”
“Then why are you letting this happen to you?”
“I……”
“Do not worry. I do not necessarily have to win.”
“What?”
In truth, the chances of me defeating Obern right now were low.
When there was a difference of three or more levels, it was difficult to overturn no matter what you did.
Unless I could remove this damned Student Ring.
But I had not come here merely to win.
There was meaning in fighting itself.
“Chepin, I am Draco.”
“Huh?”
I did not have much attachment to the name Draco, but still.
Mother had said this.
A Draco was not someone who fought only battles he could win.
Even if he had no limbs, a Draco would crawl and bite the enemy apart.
“Just watch.”
I left Chepin in Karl’s care and faced Obern.
Now every student at the training ground was watching us.
“These are Knight’s Rules. You know them, right? Ah, perhaps you do not, since you are an Arcane Path major? We fight until one person surrenders or cannot continue. Do not surrender too quickly. That would not be any fun.”
“That is what I should say.”
Seeing my stance, Obern tilted his head.
“You have learned swordsmanship?”
“A little.”
I pushed mana outside my blood vessels and strengthened my body.
“Oh?”
Ever since I was driven out of Winter Castle, I had needed to learn all sorts of things to survive.
Gerald was an unreliable butler, but his swordsmanship was quite outstanding.
The things he had taught me came back to life in the hand gripping my wooden sword.
“An Arcane Path major who has also learned the Knightly Path? No wonder you have some spirit.”
[Status Window]
Name: Armand Draco
Arcane Path Lv. 10 (Sealed*)
Knightly Path Lv. 8
Traits:
Draco’s Eye***
Draco’s Bloodline*
Quick-Witted Improvisation*
Poignant Appeal*
Recently, my knightly senses had grown sharper, and my Knightly Path level had risen.
My odds were not entirely nonexistent.
Old memories flashed through my mind.
Yes, there was a light trick useful against someone like this.
Make that irritating bastard carry a handicap himself.
“Stop talking bullshit and start.”
I swung my wooden sword first. Obern met it as though he had been waiting.
Our wooden swords collided repeatedly.
Most high-ranking nobles were mages, but there were a few knightly families.
You had to be careful around people from such families.
They were killing machines who had honed techniques as deadly as the Arcane Path.
Obern was one of them.
“Not bad, but you have a long way to go.”
Increasing his speed, Obern brought his wooden sword down like lightning.
I hurriedly retreated, but I could not avoid it completely, and my cheek was cut.
“You are bleeding.”
Obern’s consecutive attacks flowed as naturally as water.
They were far more precise than when he had beaten Chepin.
I tried to thrust between his attacks, but there was no opening.
This bastard was better than I had expected.
“He is still holding out well.”
“Is he really an Arcane Path major?”
“He is better than I expected.”
As the students murmured, Obern twisted his brows.
He swung his wooden sword with fiercer momentum than before.
After blocking Obern’s attack, I shook out my wrist.
“It is starting to hurt, right?”
As though he had found my weakness, Obern began releasing mana through his wooden sword.
Every time our attacks collided, his mana struck my wrist.
Even so, I did not avoid him and kept clashing wooden swords with him.
Then, at one point, the fierce impact nearly made me lose my grip.
I retreated far back.
“You are going to lose your weapon like that.”
Obern smiled as he pursued me.
“Are you running away? You must not know because you are an Arcane Path major, but in the Knightly Path, it is grounds for disqualification. You have to clash. Anyone can run away. Chepin was good at running away too.”
“You must not know because you are a Knightly Path major, but being as talkative as you is grounds for passing in the Arcane Path.”
“Passing?”
“Passing for being an idiot.”
“You still have plenty of room to talk!”
Obern charged at me even more savagely.
Confident of his superiority, Obern wanted to subdue me rather than merely win.
He was trying to make me drop my wooden sword.
To a knight, it would be a tremendous humiliation.
I deliberately let the grip seem as though it would slip, luring Obern further.
“How long are you going to do nothing but block?”
Obern’s movements grew larger. We exchanged several more attacks.
The time was ripening.
I took the opening Obern offered and thrust my wooden sword toward his stomach.
Obern twisted his body like an acrobat to avoid my attack, then trapped my wooden sword beneath his side and pulled.
I was helplessly dragged along.
“Got you!”
Laying his wooden sword flat, Obern swung his elbow.
My vision flashed with the impact.
Damn it.
“Oh, you did not drop your sword.”
Obern’s voice roused my consciousness as it began to darken.
“Will you be able to endure this one too?”
Obern swung his elbow again.
I was hit again.
Blood burst out.
“Urgh……”
Blood flowing from my forehead stained my vision, and my thoughts grew hazy.
“You still will not let go?”
Pulling his arm far back, Obern shouted.
“Let us see whether you can endure this!”
Obern pulled at my wooden sword and swung his elbow broadly.
If that hit, I would certainly lose consciousness.
I abandoned my wooden sword and raised my guard.
Obern’s elbow slammed into my crossed arms, pushing me backward.
“Success!”
Having finally taken my wooden sword, Obern raised the two wooden swords high with both hands.
“I took his weapon!”
With a wide grin, Obern showed off his trophies to the spectators.
The moment I had been waiting for arrived.
He seemed to have forgotten, but this was not about having wooden swords taken away.
The instant Obern was drunk on victory, I did not miss it.
I moved one beat faster than I had shown until now.
I aimed for a place far from the two hands he held high.
And kicked him in the groin.
Obern widened his eyes, unable to understand the situation.
The aftereffects came one beat later.
“Uh……”
Obern dropped the wooden swords, brought his legs together, and curled up like a shrimp.
“Ghhhhh……”
He fell to his knees, making the sound of a dying man.
The male students watching pressed their palms to their foreheads.
It was neither fair, knightly, nor noble.
But I was not a knight.
Nor was I a noble.
“C-Coward……”
The spar should have ended here, but I had no intention of doing that.
If I retreated now, it would only remain as a loss by foul.
Of course, I did not consider it a foul.
I had not intended to have a spar in the first place.
“Is bullying someone weaker than you not cowardly?”
I punched Obern directly in the face.
Obern fell to the ground.
I did not stop. I kicked Obern in the face.
Low cries rose from the surroundings.
Well-raised noble children—or commoner friends of the Age of Glory—would not understand.
When the necessary moment arrived, you had to become properly cruel.
Half-hearted violence earned resentment, but overwhelming violence engraved fear.
As my kicks continued, Obern’s face became drenched in blood.
Before I knew it, the training ground had fallen silent, with only Obern’s groans echoing through it.
I was about to pick up a wooden sword to beat him more thoroughly when Obern staggered to his feet and rushed at me.
“You dog bastard!”
Unable to grab the wooden sword, I stepped back.
Obern swung his fists wildly.
“I will kill you!”
“Yeah.”
I grabbed a fistful of sand from the ground and threw it at him.
Sand stuck to Obern’s face, already covered in blood.
Using cowardly tricks as naturally as breathing made exclamations burst out from all around.
“C-Cowardly bastard!”
As Obern covered his eyes and flailed, I picked up a wooden sword and struck him on the head.
Obern let out a sharp scream and fell.
“Just take your beating quietly.”
I brought the wooden sword down on Obern’s body.
“Ghk! Guh!”
Obern, curled up as he was beaten, eventually began crawling away.
I was about to follow and lash him with the wooden sword when—
“Stop!”
“You crazy bastard!”
“That is enough!”
The Eagle Class students who had been watching grabbed me.
I needed to grind him down more.
“Obern, are you okay?”
“That lunatic bastard fought cowardly……”
“That was a foul!”
While I was held back by Eagle Class, Obern wiped his face, which was a mess of blood and sand, and rose to his feet.
His bloodshot eyes gleamed with murderous intent.
“That dog bastard. I will kill him today.”
Before Obern could approach me, I raised both hands.
“All right, the spar is over.”
“What?”
“Let us stop here.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Do not touch Chepin again. Chepin is our class president. Mind your own class.”
“You are ending it on your own?”
“The outcome has already been decided. If they had not stopped me, you would have died.”
“You cheated from the beginning!”
“You never said striking vital areas was forbidden.”
“Even if it was not said, that is obviously cheating!”
“Hey, think of this as a battlefield. On a battlefield, no one makes allowances for your circumstances.”
When I threw back the words he had used on Chepin to mock him, Obern’s face turned bright red.
“Shut up! You cheated. Since you fought like that, I will make you the same way.”
“Then assume that I surrendered.”
“Shut your mouth.”
It seemed he had truly snapped.
Even so, the Eagle Class bastards blocked me from leaving while clearing a path when Obern approached.
Mana boiled in Obern’s fists as if it would explode.
If that hit me, I really would die.
“Wait!”
At that moment, surprisingly, Chepin stepped in front of Obern.
“Stop.”
“What?”
“There is no need to continue. Let us stop now……”
“Get lost, idiot!”
When Obern swung his arm, Chepin went tumbling pathetically away.
The attempt was good, Chepin.
“Hey, how about calming down?”
“You must be scared. Apologizing now will not help you.”
“I have no intention of apologizing.”
It seemed there was no other way.
“Obern, do you think I came here without any plan?”
“What?”
Before Obern could get any closer……
I turned my back and bolted.
The Eagle Class students, caught off guard, could not grab me.
“W-What?”
“He is running away!”
“Catch him!”
Obern began chasing me too late.
After escaping the Eagle Class students, I hid behind one boy who had been watching among the spectators.
He was tall enough to hide me well.
“Hey.”
I thrust the wooden sword stained with Obern’s blood into that guy’s hands.
“It came to this. Help me.”
“You……”
The boy let out a dry laugh.
When I pushed his back, his golden hair swayed.
“You will help, right?”
It was true that Obern’s skill was outstanding for someone our age.
But still.
[Status Window]
Name: Karl Teatree (Karl ■■■■)
Knightly Path Lv. 13
Traits:
Sword Resonance**
Lionheart**
Beastlike Reflexes*
One Strike, One Kill*
This guy was simply a monster.
“Armand, you really are something else.”
Karl smiled.
Obern, who had been approaching, raised his eyes irritably toward Karl.
“Stop messing around and move…….”
Obern could not continue.
With Draco’s Eye, I could see Karl’s materialized Knightly Path pressing down on Obern’s shoulders.
Karl raised both hands.
“Obern. Calm down.”
“You……”
Obern looked flustered.
He must not have known how skilled Karl was.
For some reason, Karl was hiding himself.
While Obern stood still, the Eagle Class students surrounded Karl and me.
“Move. That bastard cheated!”
“Do not cover for him just because he is your friend!”
“He insulted Eagle Class!”
Instead of answering, Karl smiled and lightly tapped the wooden sword with his fingertips.
It seemed like he was already imagining how to butcher them in his head.
But there were too many opponents.
At this rate……
“Everyone.”
Unexpectedly, a group of students stood beside us.
“I think that is enough.”
It was Marco.
That suspicious squinty-eyed bastard was a little welcome right now.
[Status Window]
Name: Marco Prax
Knightly Path Lv. 9
Traits:
■■■■ ■■**
■■■*
Charisma*
Artful Rhetoric*
This guy did not act as a leader for no reason.