Swordsmen Academy Kaizen.
Kaizen Swordsmen Academy, located in the capital of the Thormia kingdom, boasts 200 years of history and has produced many knights who have achieved great success.
There were over ten certified first-class swordsmen, and among them, there were up to three who had been granted the title of Sword Master.
Ironclad conviction. Symbol of bravery.
Anyone who dreamed of becoming a knight in the Thormia Kingdom would want to enter the Kaizen Swordsmen Academy.
However, there was no entrance exam here. Instead, they underwent a one-month trial period, during which the qualifications of the cadets were evaluated, and the final admission was decided.
An astounding 300 cadets applied each semester, and of them, only 30 could be admitted.
Rian, who confidently belonged to those 30, was attending classes at the Kaizen Swordsmen Academy.
Urban Combat Training Ground.
The training ground, perfectly replicating the urban landscape, was Kaizen's pride.
The master, whose cheekbones protruded like a skull, was sitting on the steps, looking at the first-year cadets and speaking.
"Today's practical theme is movement. Among them, first-year students will focus on shifting the center of gravity, and they will be evaluated."
The name of the master is Parka Kuan.
As a certified 6th-class swordsman, he was a sword master known as the Sword Assassin before he injured his leg in a war.
"Center movement is a skill a swordsman must have. This is because the three sword timings: speed, power, and precision stem from here."
Kuan limped on his right leg and ascended the stairs. Then he asked, pointing to the tall boy with his chin.
"You. Where is a swordsman's center of gravity?"
"Yes! It's the navel!"
"Wrong. You, tell me."
Kuan pointed to a student who had eyes slanted like a shark's. Even if they didn't know the answer, they had to stand up immediately. If they hesitated even a bit, they would receive a slap, regardless of the exam or anything else.
"Yes! It's the sole!"
"Wrong."
"The sword!"
"Down on the ground. Do 200 push-ups."
"Understood!"
The student stepped out of line and started doing push-ups. Depleting endurance before an exam is terrible, but the instructors at the fencing academy didn't care.
Kuan drew the long sword tied to his waist. The tip was spread like a fan, and the sword's edge seemed relatively thin.
"Where is a swordsman's center of gravity? The correct answer is the outside. In terms of schema, it's called external gravity. Repeat after me, external gravity."
"External gravity!"
As they shouted, the students were fuming. Explaining a term they hadn't heard during the semester right before the exam.
"The reason I haven't explained it until now is that it was too bothersome. Of course, there's no way idiots like you will get it. But today I'm in a bad mood, so I'm going to add an evaluation of external gravity. Understood?"
"Yes!"
The cadets' responding voices echoed. The roaring ovation contained threats. What about the effort they've been putting in like dogs for half a year if the evaluation items change now?
'Oh, I really want to do something about this. What kind of teacher is that?'
"I'll just demonstrate once. Watch carefully so you can apply it to the evaluation."
Regardless of their thoughts, silence flowed in the Coliseum, which had been quiet from the start.
"Attack while advancing and defend while retreating."
Kuan showed an attack while repeating advances and retreats. It wasn't worth watching because of his limp, but the sound of cutting through the wind was daunting.
"This is the typical movement of fencing. Body power moves the center, and center movement enhances the sword's destructive power. Additionally, if you enhance your physical strength with Schema, the sword's destructive power can increase exponentially."
The students swallowed. It was a story they had heard until they were tired of it, but their tension was at its peak when facing the test.
"...You're probably thinking some stupid stuff. However, if you approach real combat with that idea, you'll die in 3 seconds."
'Too bad.'
The students' eyes became even more intense.
"Remember this. No matter how strong the destructive power is, if you lose in movement, the fight is over. Therefore, swordsmen use their center of gravity in their movements, depending on the situation. For example, something like this."
Kuan struck the ground with the soles of his feet. Then he lifted one leg, and his body collapsed toward the ground.
The students gaped in astonishment. Kuan's central axis was inclined more than 70 degrees.
Is it really possible? Unless a rope was tied around the waist, it was impossible for a human to maintain that posture.
"The power amplified by Schema maximizes the movement of the center of gravity. Currently, my center is outside my body. This is called external gravity."
Kuan's body stood upright like a stake.
"Using external gravity, the possibilities of movement become infinite. For example, something like this is also possible."
Kuan stepped on the ground again with the sole of his foot, and his body fell backward. His body, tilted to the point where his back almost touched the ground, traced a cone.
"External gravity is not actually existing gravity. It is simply an extremely strong inertia. Therefore, when you apply rotation to external gravity, your body also rotates."
As Kuan extended his sword outward, the rotation slowed down. However, as the angle gradually returned, acceleration was applied due to centrifugal force.
Swoosh!
Kuan, in an upright position, rotated at a tremendous speed. Then, as if time had stopped, he finished the rotation in a correct posture.
The students looked at Kuan with astonished eyes. What would have happened if they had been in his place? First, they would have severed their ankle. And then, the accelerated blade would have cut them into dozens of pieces.
Defense was impossible. It was the same principle that humans cannot block tornadoes created by differences in air pressure.
Such an explosive external gravity. If compared, it was a technique similar to a rotating mechanical device with an attached blade.
"This is the Sword Assassin."
It was a nickname given to the opponent because they bring about death without the enemy being aware of how they have been attacked.
"This is today's practical evaluation. The first is overcoming obstacles, and the second is urban combat movement."
"Sir, I have a question."
"On the ground. Do 200 push-ups."
The student stepped out. And while doing push-ups, he thought, "What the hell did I do wrong?"
"Always remember that to get the answer you want, you must overwhelm the other party. A teacher is not your parent. Don't look with eyes hungry for praise. It's disgusting. Understood?"
"Yes! I'll correct myself!"
"Try again."
The student who finished his punishment raised his hand with a shout.
"Instructor! I have a question!"
"Speak."
"What is the evaluation criterion for urban combat movement!"
"That will be explained from now on."
The cadet felt embarrassed. In fact, he asked a question because he wanted to look good in front of Kuan. However, Kuan considered even respect as a form of weakness.
"Urban combat movement. I'll keep it brief because it's troublesome."
Kuan entered the building. The facade was wide open, like a dollhouse, so there was no problem hearing the explanation.
"Where external gravity shines is complex terrain. Especially in urban battles, the space is so narrow that the outcome can be decided by the level of movement."
Kuan stomped on the ground. However, he didn't attempt external gravity.
"The reason for stepping on the ground is to generate force and move the center of gravity. This is called First Impact. Of course, you don't have time to do crazy things like this in real battle, but for you, young ones, it would be good to definitely step on the ground."
Despite his contemptuous and mocking tone, the students, who admired Kuan's skill, were no longer angry.
"However, I don't stomp on the ground for the First Impact. If I were to strike here with my power, the ground would shatter. In Schema, the series of external gravity uses several First Impacts, and among them, I use muscle vibration, which can be called the basic one."
Kuan contracted the muscles in the upper part of his body to generate vibrations. In this state, he jumped and touched the wall. Bending his elbows to adjust the inertia, he seemed to float in the air for more than 3 seconds.
"Whoaaa."
The students exclaimed. Of course, the order should have been "On the ground!", but Kuan kept explaining, perhaps because it was annoying.
"With the First Impact, I jump by creating external gravity. Of course, in this case, the force of external gravity would act in the direction of the wall. By applying this, that movement is also possible."
Kuan walked along the wall. The students, slowly raising their heads, looked up with unbelieving expressions. Kuan positioned himself upside down with both legs supported on the ceiling.
"Ultimately, external gravity uses the power of inertia to counteract gravity. Therefore, currently, there is no gravity acting on my body."
The sight of Kuan walking on the ceiling went beyond amazement, to the point of being unbelievable. But it wasn't any magic trick.
Even circus acrobats without Schema can run on walls. Kuan simply used a more powerful and precise force to maximize inertia.
As external gravity dissipated, Kuan's body fell due to gravity. When he finished his demonstration and exited the building, the expressions on the students' faces had changed 180 degrees.
"Everyone on the ground. Do 200 push-ups."
"As ordered!"
The students lay down with faces that seemed to regret their fate. As official students, most of them can handle Schema, so it's not an impossible task. However, the range of improvement they, as first-year students, could apply was not so large, so doing it 200 times would be a quite daunting task.
"Listen while you do it. The first practical test is a horizontal obstacle, and as the scenario goes up, the height decreases. The final stage cannot be passed without using external gravity. The time limit is 20 seconds. As the obstacle is made of a real sword, it can lead to death in severe cases. Of course, I believe there won't be fools attempting to avoid the obstacles. If you get injured, you'll be treated by Instructor Kain."
Kain was the best healer at the Swordsmen Academy. If mages have healers, swordsmen have healers who perform external operations. The issue was that the pain of the surgery was extremely severe. Especially for amputees, they even reconnect the nervous system, so it was common for people to faint while receiving treatment.
'Darn it! Hearing that makes it even scarier!'
"Urban combat movement is simple. Create external gravity and lean against the wall. The longer you hold on, the higher your score will be. Understood?"
"Yes!"
Observing the serious expressions of the cadets whose fighting spirits were on edge, Kuan collected the evaluation sheets and changed his position.
"We'll start with number one. I won't say names, so go out at your discretion. Those waiting can rest."
Rian sat back and rested his chin. It would take at least three minutes per person, so there was plenty of time.
"What do you think? Do you think you can do well?"
It was a female voice rarely heard in the Swordsmen Academy. But Rian, as if there was nothing important, averted his gaze. She was a beautiful woman, with golden hair cascading like a wave. Tall and slender, her long arms and legs gave her a refreshing look.
Elzaine Tess.
She was the only daughter of the renowned Elzaine family in the kingdom, and she enrolled in the Swordsmen Academy to follow in her father's footsteps, a commander.
Her face could be cute or fierce depending on how one looked at it, but no matter how her character seemed, she was fierce. She was naturally fearless and stood out even among many men for her extraordinary skills. In her first year, no one could keep up with her.
"Sit quickly. If the instructor catches you, it's a death sentence."
"Oh, so even the mighty Rian is afraid of the instructor? He's too busy grading anyway."
"What's the problem? That nobleman has eyes in the back of his head. But why are you suddenly changing seats?"
"What's wrong with having a friend? I came to see you in case you were nervous."
"When have you ever seen me nervous?"
"Haha. Well, there's no room for you to drop any further, so better to have something to be nervous about... You seem comfortable at the back."
While these words might bother a student at the Swordsmen Academy, Rian only pursed his lips and said nothing. Tess smiled. Her character, barely getting angry over trivial matters, was truly distinct from others. Why would such a man end up at the back?
Rian was undoubtedly the one who trained the most among the first-year students. In fact, every day, he underwent training so brutal that it could almost be considered torture.