"It's okay to have as many defeats as you want. The shame endured to maintain your belief is quickly forgotten. However, the memory of fleeing in terror haunts you for a lifetime. Whether eating, sleeping, or on the battlefield, you have no choice but to suffer. Therefore, the belief of a swordsman is equal to life. Once broken, it never returns."
No one mocked Rian anymore.
"Everyone doesn't want memories of being a coward. Especially if you're a swordsman. You'll probably come to hate the memory of today more than death. So let's end it here. If you want to be proud in the future, right now, in this moment, in this place....."
Rian shouted, coughing blood.
"Fight! Idiots!"
Rian's cry pierced the hearts of the cadets. Their blood boiled. Their skills varied, but their desire to be known as the battlefield ghost, the strongest swordsman, the steel knight, was the same.
The fighting spirit of hundreds of people boiling at the same time was transmitted to the skin. The air was getting hotter. There was no longer the same fear in their eyes when they looked at Faiger.
The group facing Faiger sensed the crisis, and each one unleashed their own murderous intent.
"Silence! Nobody listens to the words of the defeated! You want to bring me down? Then come at me. I'll make you the same as that guy hanging there."
Tess touched her lips with a smile.
"Hmm."
Ogent Rian.
Candidate to enter the Swordsmanship Academy.
"Good."
Tess kicked the ground and lunged forward. While jumping over Faiger and untying the rope, Rian, who had fallen with a dull thud, twisted in pain and writhed at the waist.
"Your name is Rian, right? I'm Tess. Let's fight together."
Tess offered a handshake, but Rian just stared. He was tied up and couldn't move.
Tess's appearance resonated among the children. She belonged to the female group, but the skills she demonstrated during training were considered on par with Faiger's.
"I'll fight too! I can't stand it like this!"
"If a girl steps forward, the boys can't stay still!"
One after another, they started siding with Rian. In the end, all the students except Group 1 joined in and shouted.
"Let's show them! Let's kick these idiots out of the academy!"
"Get them out! Get them out!"
Faiger and his group were surrounded by nearly 300 cadets. Even if they enhanced their strength with Scheme, they couldn't handle so many.
"These damn kids! Do you really want to die?"
"If you can kill me, go ahead, kid!"
A boy from Group 2, who was a bit strong, attacked first. While Faiger, with his chin twisted, looked at the boy with hatred, dozens of them pounced on him and beat him to the ground.
"Wait! Stop!"
Faiger shouted, facing reality, but the children's resentment wasn't easily resolved.
Here and there, the cadets from Group 1 received the same treatment. It was a situation where even the kids from outside the group came and hit them hard.
"He- Help me! Instructor! Instructor!"
Tess smiled as she looked at Rian, who was watching the battlefield indifferently.
"Hehe, do you feel it? It's like sticking a fork into someone else's meal."
"It's okay. I don't like playing the hero anyway. That's why I called you here on purpose."
"What? Don't you really know?"
Tess, realizing it was true when Rian looked at her puzzled, put on an absurd expression.
"Are you dumb? It's impossible for the instructors to leave us free. They're probably watching everything that's happening right now."
Tess's prediction was correct. Faiger suffered an injury and was expelled, and the other children from Group 1 who were in sync with him also completed the trial period, but were notified of rejection from the academy.
And Rian... Despite his poor training results, he entered the Kaizen Swordsmanship Academy as the first among the 30 admitted cadets.
Tess, remembering her first encounter with Rian, smiled broadly, lifting the corners of her lips.
"That Rian who used to be like that~ Now he's lurking at the bottom."
"Shut up. Why dredge up the past? Who asked to be the first?"
"Hehe, still, it's incredible. If it were me, I would have drowned in self-hatred, but seeing you train without taking a single day off..."
"Speaking of self-hate. It's been a long time since I graduated."
"But aren't you worried? Since you've entered, you have to graduate and make a name as a swordsman. If things go on like this, you won't succeed in anything, right?"
".....You were very determined to kill my spirits."
"What are you saying! I'm very concerned. I'm also curious. What's the driving force that moves you?"
Rian looked at the sky and thought. The driving force. After all, he felt more comfortable compared to other cadets.
"It would be fine to make a name as a swordsman, but it doesn't matter if I don't. I just have to become stronger. For my Lord."
"Lord? What are you talking about?"
"Ah, I made a knight's oath."
Tess's eyes widened. It was like asking the boy next door whom he would marry and hearing that he already had a fiance.
"Really? When you're not even twenty yet?"
The Knight's Oath is an oath that a swordsman can only make once in a lifetime. Therefore, in choosing a Lord, one usually carefully considers their future and potential.
"Are you sure? Who is it? Is it someone I know?"
Tess was sure it would be someone famous. A war hero, a kingdom's minister, or if not, a lord from a provincial city. To entrust one's life, they would have to be of that status, right?
"Shirone."
"Shirone"? Hmm, Shirone... I don't know? What does he do?"
"He's my friend. Currently attending a magic academy in my hometown."
Tess was left dumbfounded as if it were ridiculous. A friend, furthermore, not even a formal mage, just a student.
"What were you thinking? However close friends you are, there's no need to make a knight's oath. Wait, don't tell me..."
Suddenly, Tess felt uncomfortable. There were cases of making a knight's oath to someone neither famous nor promising.
"Is Shirone perhaps... a girl?"
"Are you crazy? What are you thinking? No matter how little talent she has, she wouldn't make a knight's oath like that."
"Really? Hmm."
Tess let out a sigh of relief.
"Anyway, don't say anything carelessly. I think Shirone will be the best. That's why I'm staking my life on it."
Rian seemed different today. To put it bluntly, it was a display of rivalry between boys, but unless one was an extraordinary person, it wouldn't elevate to the level of a knight's oath.
'Who the hell is Shirone....'
At that moment, a good idea occurred to her. While thinking about spreading the word, a good case involving Shirone came to mind.
"Can I meet them once? That guy called Shirone."
"What? Why do you want to meet my friend?"
"You keep bragging about him, so how could I resist? It's like securing a job before finishing the academy, isn't it?"
"Is that reason enough to pay a surprise visit? Besides, Shirone is in Creas. It's very far from here."
"So what? The semester will end in a few days anyway. Plus, my family occupies a territory and there's no one to meet there. Let's go play in Creas. Of course, there's an island to the south, right? It's a tourist spot and I've wanted to visit. Let's go there with Shirone."
As someone who had prepared in advance, Tess's words flowed smoothly. When Rian heard that, his thoughts changed. Of course, he had no desire to go play alone with Tess, but if Shirone joined, it would be a different story.
"Hmm, with Shirone... But won't it be awkward if we go the three of us? I'm not the best at socializing. Especially with girls."
Tess's eyes gleamed at Rian's positive attitude. On one hand, she was jealous that he, who normally didn't listen to her, had changed his mind.
"Ask Shirone to bring a friend. There must be girls he knows at the magic academy. We can make it a 2-on-2 trip. A couple. What do you think?"
(T/N: We all know who'll go lmao).
A pair. It sounded fun. Above all, Rian, who had been thinking about how to spend time with Shirone after the semester ended, had no reason to refuse.
"Well, I'll think about it for now."
Even though he said that, it was as good as giving his permission. Tess nodded, satisfied.
"Alright. Shall we then brilliantly finish the final practical exam for the holidays?"
After most cadets finished their practical skill assessment, it was Tess's turn.
"Number 47, Elzain Tess. Ready for assessment!"
When Tess, who was at the starting line of the obstacle course, shouted, Kuan made a signal with his finger.
"Begin."
Tess ran through the descent obstacle like limbo. However, in front of the blade-shaped obstacle that was lower than her crouching height, she could only stiffen.
Although she had learned Scheme before others, today was the first time she experienced external gravity.
Because of the nature of Scheme affecting the body, mastering the scheme during childhood was rare. Also, even if one had it, it wasn't advisable.
Tess calmly executed the First Impact. The shockwave upon hitting the ground transmitted through Scheme.
"Shift the center of gravity out of here!"
External gravity isn't magic. It's merely creating powerful inertia to surpass gravity. With that confidence, Tess leaned her upper body.
Done!
Tess's body escaped from under the blade while drawing a fan-like motion. It wasn't a fluke. All the training she had been doing without using external gravity had yielded the current results.
"Number 47, Elzain Tess. Obstacle course completed!"
When Tess extended her arms and reported, the apprentice's applause burst out. However, Tess, whose heart was pounding, couldn't hear anything.
'I did it. Is this for real?'
Kuan's instructions hadn't been in vain. He had planned to teach her this from the beginning.
'Even if HE has a broken personality, a teacher is a teacher.'
Tess, who perfected urban combat movement, proudly stood with the top score. As there weren't many participants left, it seemed unlikely that someone would surpass her score.
"Number 52, Ogent Rian. Ready for assessment!"
When it was Rian's turn, Kuan frowned. Anyway, he didn't expect much. But because of that, Rian was a peculiar apprentice who aroused a strange sense of anticipation.
"Go for it."
Rian kicked the ground and charged. He passed obstacles that didn't require Scheme at an outstanding level. However, the problem was the last obstacle.
"First Impact!
He bent his upper body while forcefully stepping on the ground. At the same time, Kuan's eyes gleamed.
Rian thought something was off. For some reason, the sword seemed to be approaching his neck...
"Eh?"
Kuan flew at breakneck speed and kicked Rian in the face. Rian rolled on the ground and couldn't get up for a long time. An angry instructor limped in front of him, struggling to lift the upper part of his body.
"Idiot! Are you crazy? Do you want to die? Where did you sell your Scheme and why are you throwing your neck at the blade?"
Rian, who regained his senses, jumped up and shouted.
"I'm sorry! But I can do it! Scheme..."
"What nonsense are you saying? Don't you know what Scheme is? Those who can't do Scheme are disqualified from the practices!"
"No! I definitely did it! I took the strength enhancement test and passed!"
"What, demon? Strength enhancement? Where did you come up with that lie..."
Strength enhancement was a test that verified the existence of Scheme by lifting twice your body weight. Kuan, who had been looking around, calculated Rian's weight and found something suitable.
"Hey, you, come here and try lifting this."
It was a large rock leftover from the training ground's construction.
Rian took a deep breath and approached. To be honest, since he barely passed the strength enhancement test, he couldn't help but be nervous.
"Huuuh!"
Rian, who embraced the rock, exerted all his strength to lift it off the ground. With wobbly legs, he stabilized his center and abruptly lifted his arms. The heavy rock rose above his head.
Kuan pressed Rian's body with his fingertips. His expression darkened when the vibration transmitted the action of the muscle fibers.
'Damn it.'
It wasn't Scheme.
He had trained many cadets, but it was the first time he had seen someone so devoid of talent.
No matter how talented they were, if they received education in top-notch facilities, they would typically develop Scheme. But Rian wasn't even doing that.
Of course, if he didn't have talent, he could simply give up. The world is full of aspiring knights.
But Kuan didn't want to give up on Rian. He was the kind of person who evoked such feelings.
'How much training must he have done...'
He couldn't hate someone like that. No, as a knight, it was admirable willpower. But one problem blocked everything. He had no talent. If he had even a little, he would have tried something, but he had none.
"Rian, I'm sorry to tell you this, but you don't master Scheme."
The cadets' expressions changed to bewilderment. It was the first time they had heard words of apology from Kuan's mouth.
"It can't be! Look... I'm lifting this rock! So, what is this?"
Kuan sighed and said.
"That.... It's just the muscular strength in your body, you're only as strong as an idiot."
Rian wore a bewildered expression. A moment later, the rock he was holding fell with a dull thud.
[Ogent Rian. Last place confirmed.]