Yuril's fists and kicks rained down wildly on Trine.
Following them with his eyes was nearly impossible.
All he could do was entrust himself to instinct and defend.
Each time he was struck, for some reason, it hurt his heart more than his body.
"Ugh! Damn it!"
Trine knew perfectly well that the Yuril before him was an illusion.
But in Trine's heart, Yuril's illusion whispered endlessly.
'You can never beat me.'
'You boasted that you'd save me with only that much?'
'Why not just run away instead?'
"Don't be ridiculous!"
He absolutely could not back down.
If he lost even to a mere illusion like this,
Then saving the real Yuril would truly be impossible.
That was why Trine had no choice but to grit his teeth and endure the illusion's attacks.
Even as he staggered under Yuril's merciless punches and kicks, he was resolved not to fall no matter what.
Meanwhile, the other students simply cheered Trine on in excitement.
"That's it, Trine! Keep pushing her back!"
"You're the strongest one in our Academy, aren't you?!"
"Show us what the knight department's class representative can do!"
To the spectators, it merely looked like a scene from a movie.
Since they had been told no one would be injured, they probably did not take it seriously.
They had no idea how much Trine was actually suffering.
Instructor Eloy also puffed herself up for no reason and said to Knight Alberts beside her,
"See? He can at least do that much."
However, Alberts's expression was not very good.
'Something is strange.'
Ordinarily, once someone began overcoming their fear, the illusion would weaken as well.
That magic tool's power changed according to the opponent's fear.
And yet, for some reason, instead of growing weaker, it was becoming even more ferocious.
If so, there was only one possibility.
He had not overcome his fear.
He was fighting with the resolve to die.
'Even if his opponent were the enemy who killed his family, most people would not be that desperate.'
The despair of believing he could never defeat his opponent.
And yet the fighting spirit that would never allow him to retreat.
Those two emotions had collided, creating such a fierce battle.
Knight Alberts murmured without realizing it.
"It seems we may have discovered an extraordinary talent."
At that, Instructor Eloy replied proudly beside him,
"If you only look at his specs, he's just a country commoner, with a useless hand and pathetic mana."
"Then does that mean this student made it this far on passion alone?"
"Hahaha! Passion is probably the quality he lacks most."
"Then what in the world is his strength?"
At that, Instructor Eloy smiled bitterly and replied,
"His obsession with something, I suppose."
Just then, Trine shouted with all his might.
"Hraaaaaah!"
For the first time, Trine threw a punch at the illusion.
Their fists collided.
CRASH.
Suddenly, the orb shattered.
The illusion vanished.
Knight Alberts shouted without realizing it, shocked.
"W-What?! It exceeded the magic tool's tolerance?!"
Meanwhile, perhaps because the illusion's lingering effects still remained, Trine threw a few punches alone into empty air.
Then, like a puppet whose strings had been cut, he collapsed facedown onto the ground.
After lying still like that for a long while, he murmured in a somewhat dazed voice,
"...It hurts."
At that, the students began laughing loudly.
"What was that at the very end after fighting so well?!"
"The action movie suddenly turned into a comedy!"
"Our class representative really is entertaining!"
Knight Alberts could not laugh at all.
Those children could laugh because they did not know what Trine had just done.
Until a moment ago, Trine had been fighting against fear created by a magic tool at maximum output.
An ordinary person should have half lost their mind before that, crying and screaming in chaos.
And yet he had endured it steadfastly to the very end...
Instructor Eloy asked Knight Alberts,
"Did our Trine pass?"
"Haha... Even among knights, there has never been anyone whose mind was strong enough to break the magic tool."
Trine stood up with the support of the other students.
Then he approached Knight Alberts and began protesting.
"Are you joking? Were you trying to kill me?"
"I apologize for that. I did not know it would become this intense either."
Still somewhat agitated, Trine glared at Alberts.
But instead of Trine, Alberts looked at the broken magic tool and murmured,
"At any rate, this is a problem. At this rate, the other students will not be able to take the test."
While the students booed Trine wildly, Trine carefully asked the knight,
"Did I perhaps do something wrong?"
At that, Knight Alberts laughed loudly.
"Of course not."
Alberts held out his hand to Trine for a handshake.
"After you graduate, I will formally recommend you to our knight order."
Without taking that hand, Trine answered firmly,
"I refuse."
***
After that.
Knight Alberts gave a brief lecture to the knight department students in the classroom.
It mainly took the form of Alberts answering the students' questions.
"What is the knight order's annual salary?"
"It differs depending on position, but the starting salary is ten thousand gold, with large incentives added according to achievements."
"Are there many dangerous missions?"
"I will not deny it. However, statistically speaking, a knight's mortality rate is far lower than that of an ordinary soldier, so rest assured."
"How many achievements are needed to rise to knight commander?"
"The current three knight commanders all rose to their positions after accumulating at least five or so S-grade missions."
While everyone listened carefully to Knight Alberts,
Trine lay sprawled facedown on his desk without moving in the slightest.
In the end, Instructor Eloy scolded Trine.
"Hey, Trine! You shouldn't be rude in front of a national knight!"
"Leave me alone. I'm dropping out."
At that, Knight Alberts smiled awkwardly and replied,
"Let him be. One's mind tends to be a little shaken immediately after taking that test."
Depending on the case, some people even lay sick in bed for several days.
That student, in particular, had been affected by it to the maximum extent, so it was commendable enough that he had not immediately run out of the classroom.
"In any case, since all of you are in the knight department, at least half of you will enter our knight order."
Knight Alberts looked around at the students with a solemn expression and said,
"So even at the Academy, always think of yourselves as knights and set an example for everyone."
At that, the students, with a few exceptions, answered energetically.
"Yes!"
***
After the lecture ended.
Before leaving, Knight Alberts briefly spoke with Instructor Eloy in front of the Academy.
"No matter how much old affection there is between us, you should not summon a national knight so casually."
"How petty of you."
"And I will be billing you for the three hundred gold cost of the magic tool that broke today."
"What?! Aren't you being way too petty?!"
"I have to go back and write an incident report because of you."
"I already had my salary cut, too."
Knight Alberts laughed once and said,
"In any case, it seems the important thing will be persuading Trine to join the knight order before he graduates."
At that, Instructor Eloy scratched her head and replied,
"I suppose it can't be helped. That is what an educator ought to do."
"That said, threatening him by force would not be good."
"Do I look like the kind of person who would do that?"
"Trine seems to be carrying a heavy burden in his heart, but once that is resolved, the path should become clear."
Instructor Eloy smiled bitterly and said,
"I know."
***
Meanwhile.
In the classroom, Trine was being bombarded with questions from the other students.
"Who in the world is that girl?"
"My childhood friend."
"Is she really that strong?"
"She's stronger than you."
"She was incredibly pretty. Can you introduce me to her?"
"I'll kill you."
Trine answered every question in an irritated voice.
The one fortunate thing was that his relationship with Yuril had not yet been discovered.
Trine had declared to his classmates that he had come here to save a friend who was under a curse.
But they had not realized that Yuril was that friend.
After all, judging by the fight from earlier, the two of them seemed more like enemies who hated each other terribly.
Just then, Prince Sirean placed a hand on Trine's shoulder and said,
"Do not look so dejected. I have some good news for you."
Trine glared at Prince Sirean and replied,
"What good news?"
"Come out with me tomorrow and meet someone."
Trine eyed Prince Sirean suspiciously.
"I don't mind, but why is that good news?"
"Stop asking and come with me. You'll find out."
At that, Jize cut in from beside them.
"Is it another group date? Can I come too?"
"You sit this one out."
***
That night.
Trine once again stood in the dormitory backyard with a sword in his hand.
"To think I was frightened even by Yuril's illusion. I still have a long way to go."
It had already been nearly two weeks since he came to the Academy.
However, all that had increased were troublesome matters, and he had not found a single clue to save Yuril.
Perhaps swinging his sword every day like this was nothing but meaningless obsession too.
"No, please stop thinking like that."
Trine shook his head once, took a deep breath, and emptied his mind.
Then he began swinging his sword again.
...After some time passed, Lizbette approached and spoke to him.
"As expected, you're training today too."
Trine relaxed his stance and answered,
"Rather than training, it's more like a rehabilitation exercise."
"Is your mind all right?"
"Are you trying to pick a fight?"
At that, Lizbette laughed once and answered,
"Sorry. That came out wrong. Are you feeling better after the mock test earlier?"
"I'm trying to swing my sword a little for the sake of recovering my mental state."
"That is a good attitude."
Lizbette drew her greatsword.
Then, just as she had before, she took her stance beside Trine.
"Do you mind if I join you for a bit today too?"
"Honestly, I'm more comfortable training alone."
"Do you mind if I join you?"
"No, I mean-"
"Surely you aren't thinking of saying no?"
"...Do whatever you want."
Trine let out a sigh deep enough to sink the ground beneath him and began swinging his sword again.
Lizbette smiled faintly and swung her sword too, matching his rhythm.
After the two of them continued that ridiculous training together for a while,
Lizbette soon spoke to Trine.
"Actually, I also came out today so we could coordinate in preparation for the sports festival."
"The sports festival?"
"You know there's a sports festival next Tuesday, right?"
Only then did Trine remember that fact.
In truth, it was called a sports festival, but in the end, it was mock combat training where each department competed against the others.
"Trine. You're going to participate in the swordsmanship event with me, right? With Jize too, that makes three of us."
"I was thinking of entering the shooting event with Prince Sirean."
"You're going to participate in the swordsmanship event, right?"
"Honestly, swordsmanship is a bit-"
"You're going to participate, right?"
***
Early Sunday dawn.
As Trine sat on the train with Prince Sirean, he grumbled,
"Who in the world are we meeting that we have to take a train at this hour?"
At that, Prince Sirean yawned and replied,
"The other party is busy too, so it can't be helped."
"How about you tell me who we're going to meet now?"
"I will save that for the pleasure of when you meet."
Prince Sirean leaned his head against the window on his own and closed his eyes.
So Trine let out a short sigh and began guessing alone.
Who in the world was Prince Sirean trying to introduce him to?
For starters, he had said it was someone Trine would be glad to meet.
If so, there was a high chance it was someone Trine already knew.
But there were only a handful of people he knew outside the Academy.
In the end, Trine arrived at a single conclusion.
'Could it be Yuril?!'
Come to think of it, Prince Sirean's attitude had been strange all along.
Whenever Trine spoke about Yuril, he acted as though he somehow knew something.
Could Prince Sirean have known Yuril from the beginning?
Trine began sweating coldly by himself.
If it really is Yuril, what am I supposed to say when I meet her?
It'll be the first time we've met since I ran away from Yuril without a word, won't it?
She must think I'm just a pathetic stalker or something.
Should I just run away instead...
'No. That is the one thing I absolutely must not do.'
Trine hardened his resolve.
Whatever happened, he would meet her first.
About thirty minutes later.
As soon as Prince Sirean got off the train, he waved at someone.
"Hey! Over here!"
Trine calmed his pounding heart and looked at the other person.
But the one approaching Prince Sirean with quick little steps was a girl he had never seen before in his life.
She had long blond hair and somehow resembled Prince Sirean.
When her eyes met Trine's, she smiled softly.
With a blank expression, Trine asked Prince Sirean,
"Who?"