Chapter 49
Chapter 49
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Episode 14: Berserk? (3)
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The cadets were perplexed.
Why were they perplexed?
What's the point of saying it out loud?
"I sense a splendid fighting spirit. I eagerly await a battle so magnificent that even the fairies would be endlessly impressed."
The princess—the noble Crown Princess shining at the top of the royal succession—was 'encouraging' them. Maintaining composure in such a situation would actually be the strange thing.
...Is this a dream?
"However, it would be unacceptable to get injured just for the sake of a flashy fight. Please take care of yourselves. You are all talents who will benefit the kingdom in the future."
Ah...
But their perplexity was short-lived.
Those looking up at her bowed their heads in unison, their faces flushing red.
It was instinct.
'To think someone like her could exist.'
Beautiful—no, calling her beautiful somehow felt irreverent.
A transcendent beauty, as if an angel had descended to earth.
A nobility that must never be defiled.
Even alleyway rats like them felt it was blasphemy to meet her gaze.
The cadets kept their heads bowed, unable to lift them, their faces burning red.
And they found a new goal.
Aaah! We will surely win today and offer glory to her—!
They resolved themselves, their hearts boiling over.
This determination was shared by warriors and mages alike, giving both groups one more reason to win today.
Not just for the pride of mages and warriors, but to dare earn the honor of an audience with an angel,
with the princess.
The men's eyes blazed fiercely.
"Damn it, she's got us all riled up with that sweet talk."
Meanwhile, the instructor watching the whole scene clicked his tongue.
In the martial world of Dusan Sword Forest—or rather, in the capital—what were the three things to be most cautious of?
The elderly, children, and beauties.
Elements that could easily lead to carelessness.
And among them, nothing was as dangerously alluring as a beauty.
Especially.
'Getting bewitched by a nine-tailed fox is a one-way ticket to doom.'
He glanced at the princess seated gracefully in the VIP seats above, looking down at him.
Even after seeing her again after so long, the ominous chill she exuded made his skin crawl.
Like a wild animal's instinct.
He could clearly sense that getting involved would spell trouble.
Ugh...
Lee Han groaned and shuddered, while the princess, meeting his gaze,
'Insolent fool. If he were near, I'd have him severely punished.'
Tap.
toyed with the fan in her hand and furrowed her brow.
Always such an arrogant friend.
The colosseum where the war game was taking place resembled a miniature battlefield.
A massive arena formed by combining two soccer fields.
It was filled with landscaped forests and rocks.
The artificial natural environment evoked the image of a terrarium.
Though called nobles' entertainment, it was clear how seriously they took their 'play.'
The psychology of the rich was hard to fathom.
But one thing was certain: these matches in the grand terrarium appealed not just to nobles, but to the common folk as well.
The colosseum was open to cadets and citizens alike, who filled the stands, shouting their cheers at the top of their lungs.
[Waaaaah!]
It was pure frenzy.
In a medieval era starved for entertainment, such matches were a precious thrill.
In popularity, they rivaled American football.
And of all days.
"...Ugh."
"A-Am I shaking?"
"Y-Yeah, like crazy. ...Me too."
The cadets felt dizzy.
Thousands of eyes were easily upon them.
Attention, expectation, excitement.
The wave of emotions weighed heavily on their shoulders and necks.
Ironically, the only reason they could bear it was the harsh, unreasonable environment they'd endured under Vulcan.
"Whoa, that hellish time is actually paying off now."
"Right?"
"Haha..."
Even so, the scale of their first battlefield was overwhelmingly large.
Probably because of the princess's visit.
The king's descendant.
The great lady monarch they would serve loyally if they became knights.
With her displaying the kingdom's foremost beauty, captivating not just nobles but the commoners too, the crowd was even more feverish, focusing on them.
They were surely eager to dissect what value these cadets had to draw the next king here.
Of course, the princess's presence was an honor for them too, but it only heightened their tension.
And in this situation.
"This isn't the time to be like this, seniors. We need to plan our tactics now."
"......"
While all the men trembled, there was one steadfast girl maintaining her composure.
"Huh? Why are you looking at me like that?"
"...Lady Polt, are you really participating? You should head up now."
"Speak comfortably, senior. And as I said before, I have no intention of forfeiting."
"Umm..."
To them, still awkward around nobles, even a seemingly delicate woman was uncomfortable.
Levi Polt, with whom they'd shared hardships for a month and grown a camaraderie like comrades-in-arms, was the only one voicing opinions.
In that sense, they still felt a slight unease about her joining the war game.
Not just because she was a noble, but because she was a girl much smaller than them—if she got hurt, they'd feel guilty.
But the girl's eyes were resolute.
"Seniors, I'm weak, sure, but I've learned everything I could. So don't worry. I'm not standing here with just any ordinary resolve."
"Umm."
Right, just as she said.
A month mingling with Levi Polt.
The girl they'd come to know was strong.
Not in physical power, but in spirit.
To put it bluntly, they might be stronger than her now, but who knew about the future.
The firmness of her spirit had even earned admiration from Young Master Roan.
"We win this. I want to prove my worth, and you seniors prove yours too."
"......Yeah."
Sometimes, men become utterly simple.
Ready to lay down their lives at a beauty's touch, fired up by others' cheers.
And a noble girl politely calling them 'senior' and encouraging them?
This was...
"-She's got some tails too."
Not quite at the big sister's level, not nine, maybe two?
She knew exactly how to stir men's blood.
He smiled, satisfied with the girl's growth—she was no longer a chick he could call that.
Fortunately, the king did not make an appearance.
It was a blessing beyond blessings, shaving ten years off their lives in relief.
Prediction: Isis probably had a hand in it.
With Duke Galahad and Grand Duke Lionel already moving, if the king joined, it could spiral into an uncontrollable mess.
'If the king moves, the army moves.'
Troops on a division scale would mobilize in unison, and even the great nobles would have to act.
How could they stay put when the king himself was present?
If that happened, the academy festival war game would cease to be the cadets' event and become a stage for power plays.
That would grossly violate the academy's purpose of maintaining neutrality.
Thus, Isis attending lightly as the king's proxy was the academy's acceptable limit.
"Good thing I don't see the duke or grand duke either."
"I-Instructor, mentioning them so casually is..."
"I'm not their subordinate, am I? And they're in stealth mode, right? So they shouldn't show up just because I say something. If they're incognito, they should watch quietly like they're supposed to."
"...Sometimes I wonder if you have multiple lives."
"Jealous?"
"Not at all."
"Heh."
Duke and grand duke.
Neither Lee Han nor the cadets or faculty knew where they were.
Actually, only a tiny few knew they'd even come.
The princess had announced her visit officially, but the two monarchs hadn't shown themselves at all.
Honestly, they might as well not have come.
Was Leira's intel wrong?
'Nah, these guys really came.'
But Lee Han knew Leira Winter's information was accurate.
If he hadn't heard from her, he'd have brushed it off, but now that he knew, he noticed—felt—things.
'Murderous.'
In the general stands, among cadets and spectators, an alien aura stood out.
They hid it, but not from Lee Han's senses.
The moment he sensed it, instinct told him.
'Not a single one below me.'
The power emanating from those in his sensory range was immense, every one of them.
Especially two.
Far apart, but grating on his nerves particularly.
One even seemed to boldly declare his presence.
Like a spike aimed at the back of his head...
'This bastard?'
Ha!
He knew who.
That arrogant punk from yesterday's brutal fistfight.
The duke's knight.
The guy was provoking him.
Crack!
He wanted to rush over and settle the unfinished fight right then.
Progress in the last month wasn't just the cadets'.
He'd trained harder while teaching, pushing himself more fiercely.
He was confident he wouldn't lose in skill like yesterday, itching to test it.
"...Hoo."
But he forcibly suppressed his boiling blood.
Yes, he had to hold back 'today.'
Today wasn't about him.
It was the day to check how much his nurtured sprouts,
his bonsai, had grown.
So he endured.
Even with that arrogant fool flaunting his presence and provoking him.
'You wait till next time.'
It wouldn't end like today then.
Lee Han turned his gaze to the disciples he'd raised, looking forward to next time.
......But Lee Han should have realized.
Just as he sensed and observed others.
"Ho, interesting fellow, brother."
Someone else could be observing him.
The black-haired man showed interest in him.
"What do you mean?"
"Just what I said. That guy's the real deal. No telling who'd win in a fight."
"...You rating him that highly?"
"Yes. And that one over there? Not to be underestimated either. The duke's house raised a monster."
"......"
"Tch. I thought no one but those 'three monsters' could match us, but time to reflect."
"...Is that so? I thought them utterly decayed, yet they still have this much potential."
The reason the black-haired men had come all the way to the distant capital wasn't to watch this farcical play.
Nor was it some petty scheme to check the royals.
Their purpose was none other than.
"Roan, was what you wanted to see such things...?"
To see their runaway arrogant 'bloodline,' coming to the capital for that alone.
They had little interest in such a sideshow.
Compared to northern life, this struggle was mere playacting.
Yet in this place, there were two whom even northern champions couldn't confidently beat.
And the young warriors raised by one of them stood on stage.
This...
"...Perhaps we can witness it after all."
"Witness what?"
"Why the one child among my bloodline worthy of the lion title, my son, came to the center."
"Ho."
"Maybe we'll see it now."
"That sounds entertaining, heh."
Thus, unknowingly drawing unintended expectant attention, the bell tolled.
The bell signaling the start of the war game, laden with the expectations of countless people.