Chapter 18
Chapter 18
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: EP.5 – Instructor Lee Han
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EP.5 – Instructor Lee Han.
The one who spat out the rude remark.
Damian, the second son of the Baron Pollet Family, had muttered it to himself, but his voice echoed far louder than expected, leaving him flustered.
Perhaps the surrounding silence had amplified it even more.
But what mattered now wasn't the volume of his voice.
The problem was that he had hurled an insult at someone else, and now everyone knew about it.
'Oh no, my academy life...'
He felt his stomach churn at the realization that his image had taken a hit right from the start.
Insulting a knight?
He didn't care much about that.
It was just a demoted knight, after all.
The guy couldn't possibly stand up to him over a few insults.
Not unless he was suicidal enough to challenge a baron's family...
"Was it you—?"
"...Huh?"
The knight on the podium addressed him with certainty, and Damian, caught a beat late, froze.
"'Huh'? Watch your tone, you rude little shit."
The next instant, Damian's vision went black.
He saw the lectern hurtling toward him.
BAM!!
Chaos erupted in an instant.
...For a moment, people were dumbfounded in a different sense altogether, utterly stunned.
What the hell just flew?
No, more importantly, was it possible to hurl a massive lectern like a ball?
People had plenty to say, but they swallowed their words, hiding their complex emotions as they stared at the instructor standing on the podium.
"Oops, I meant to throw my gauntlet, but the lectern went flying too. My bad."
- ....
"For real. I couldn't hold back my rage at the insult and tried to toss my gauntlet, but this thing came along for the ride. Hmm, is the lectern made of lightweight material?"
He blamed the lectern as if pleading for understanding of his sincerity, and for a moment, everyone wore indescribable expressions.
What the hell is this lunatic?
As that shared thought crossed their minds, Damian was still out cold from the lectern, and the people from the Pollet Family sprang into action.
"Damian!"
"How outrageous! Have you ever seen such insolence!"
The Pollet Family members in the VIP seats glared at the instructor as if ready to tear him apart, radiating killing intent toward Lee Han.
In that moment, Lee Han...
"Bullshit."
He sneered, naturally pouring oil on the already blazing fury.
"You bastard!!"
Shiiiing!
A knight from the Pollet Family drew his sword, and in an instant, an overwhelming aura surged from his body.
The rippling haze resembled the heat waves from roaring flames.
Tangible killing intent.
The consummate skill of a warrior who had mastered the pinnacle of Fighting Technique.
It was a realm one step above the Sword Resonance Yord had shown the day before—a testament to the knight's exceptional prowess.
Yet that knight's sword was aimed at the mad instructor, lunging to impale him before anyone could intervene.
However.
Whoosh!
"Hup?!"
Before the sword could pierce its target, a handaxe sliced through the air, disrupting the knight's focus and stance for a brief moment.
And the knight should have realized.
That hesitation was fatal.
Fwoosh!
"You started it?"
Flash!
When had he moved?
Like a bird accelerating into a dive, Lee Han closed the distance in a blink, slipping into the knight's guard and seizing his nape.
He hoisted the knight's body overhead.
In an instant, the knight floated upward like a marionette with cut strings.
With intense buoyancy leaving no room for resistance.
Crunch!
He plummeted headfirst from on high, smashing into the floor.
"Gaaahhh!"
A horrific scream.
Had his neck not been tempered, it would have snapped outright from the impact.
Yet though it held, the shock of the overhead slam had already left him on the verge of unconsciousness, his body numb throughout.
Even so.
Whoosh!
He—Lee Han—did not stop.
Still gripping the knight's nape, he lifted him again and slammed him down once more.
"Kuhk!"
The knight, neck in vise-like grip, swung his sword reverse-handed in desperate defiance, a final burst of will refusing to die meekly.
However.
Thud.
"...Impossible."
"It's not that I trained my body weakly."
The knight had aimed for his gut but failed to penetrate.
Of course.
The knight had no idea how tough and unyielding his muscles and bones were.
His skin might scrape a bit, but his flesh wouldn't yield.
How else could his body remain intact after three years of battling Aura Users?
Thus.
"Not bad."
Whoooosh!
Lee Han praised the knight's resolve and brought him down for good this time.
BAM!
Once, twice, three times...
A full five times he slammed the knight's nape into walls and floors repeatedly.
As if testing whether the opponent would break first or he would tire.
Any normal person would have exhausted themselves, but Lee Han showed no fatigue.
Instead, he rampaged like he was venting pent-up stress, building to a different intensity this time—as if truly intent on killing—as he leaped into the air.
The flow was different.
No matter how tempered the knight's body, this one would be unendurable.
Even a sharpened blade couldn't pierce him, so with full-body strength like iron, he was confident it could bend.
And so—!
"Stop—!!!"
BOOM!!
"Cough..."
Drip... drip...!
...Thankfully, the knight didn't die.
Another knight had intercepted Lee Han's final drop with his own body.
But blocking it didn't mean he emerged unscathed.
"...Thanks for stopping me."
"You'll have to explain yourself. You intervened in a knight's 'duel,' so you bear that responsibility."
"...Fair point."
The middle-aged man nodded gravely.
Mistake or not, the Pollet Family had struck first at a knight's honor.
And it was their knight who had drawn steel.
At this moment, a duel was as good as established.
A duel that ends only when one's head rolls.
That was the way of knights' duels.
The victor claims the loser's life willingly.
It was the ironclad, unspoken rule knights had upheld for ages.
Though Lee Han was mocked as a fake knight, in this moment he embodied one fully, rationalizing everything under the banner of honor.
It seemed reckless, but the fact that it worked made it amusing.
And all of this was possible thanks to the overwhelming force Lee Han had just demonstrated.
It wouldn't have flown if he weren't so strong.
"I'm Lord Roden, head of the Pollet Family."
"Lee Han. Demoted knight."
"...First, my apologies. My foolish son insulted you—and by extension, the White Silver Lion Knights."
"You should've said that before this bastard lunged at me, right?"
The knight still dangled limply in Lee Han's grasp.
His eyes were rolled back; he could expire any second.
Lord Roden watched him pitifully and spoke.
"I know. I should have stopped him."
"No, not 'should have'—you should have stopped him ages ago. If that guy's sword had pierced me, you wouldn't have stepped in. You only did because he looked like he was done for."
Crunch.
An ominous sound emanated.
From the knight's neck—if he survived, he'd need long-term rest.
But survival meant hope.
"He's our vice-commander. My disciple as well. Rough-tempered, but too valuable to be crushed here. I'll take all the blame and offer my neck, so please show mercy."
Thud.
Roden set down his sword and dropped to his knees.
The baron offering his life to save a young one.
It was a noble sight, and the cadets and VIPs, stunned by the sudden duel, were moved by the baron's selflessness.
If they were knights or nobles who prized honor and nobility above all, they might have praised him and forgiven everything...
"—Nah."
- ....
To Lee Han, honor and nobility held no value.
People were truly speechless this time.
"...That guy's completely insane."
"No, seriously..."
"Is that a human or an ogre?"
"Ugh..."
Revulsion filled the air.
Yet mixed in was resentment toward his villainy in rejecting even the baron's noble plea.
Most felt that way.
...But 'most' meant...
"Impressive."
Some did not.
"My lord?"
"That knight's excellent. You must thoroughly crush potential threats. "
"...?"
"He's skilled in real combat too. Did you see, Jack? When that knight threw the axe first, he completely stole the opponent's rhythm. That's not something you can do just knowing it—you need proficiency forged in countless battles and training. Smart knight."
"R-Really? He just seemed brutally strong."
"Nonsense. Those who know can tell. In clashes between skilled swordsmen, psychological warfare and timing disruption become paramount. Excellent."
"......Huh."
Jack was shocked.
Not by the knight's skill, but because his young lord had never praised an outsider like this.
His lord startled others, but was never startled himself.
"I've already found a treasure, Jack."
His lord, Roan Dimitri de Lionel, gleamed like he'd unearthed a gem.
And not just him...
[Jackpot...]
"Irene?"
[Totally my type...!]
"Huh??"
[Hehe!]
"???"
The ghostly woman, who preferred beastly men over pretty boys and had unique tastes, was drooling.
—Unbeknownst to Lee Han, he had unwittingly drawn the interest of his observation targets on his very first day.