Chapter 74
Chapter 74
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 74
Chapter Title: A Nobody Cadet (4)
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Every child believes they are special.
This was especially true for a child talented enough to be accepted into the Empire's most prestigious academy.
Stefan Grossman was no exception.
Having grown up showered with praise, hailed as a talent who would bring glory to his family and a prodigy of the sword, he had no doubt that he would continue to triumph at the Yoram.
But reality was different.
Evaluation score: 62. Entrance rank: 28th.
The only ones with lower scores were a cadet named Angelo, who couldn't even decide if he wanted to be a knight or a blacksmith, and a commoner cadet named Pon.
He wasn't special.
Here at the Yoram, he was nothing more than an ordinary cadet, easily overlooked.
In truth, it was to be expected.
These were the handpicked talents, chosen from the best of the best for the Empire's premier academy.
Praise like "genius" or "prodigy" was hardly a remarkable boast here.
Stefan Grossman simply could not accept that fact.
So he looked for other reasons.
If his family had been a renowned house, not just some run-of-the-mill martial family; if he had been taught by a true knight, not some country knight with no noteworthy song to his name.
Then he wouldn't have received such a pathetic score.
That's what he believed.
But before a certain gray-haired cadet, his flimsy belief was utterly shattered.
The Mage Slayer.
In the face of that astonishing achievement, accomplished as the squire of some nameless free knight, differences in origin and background couldn't even serve as an excuse.
Rather than despair, Stefan Grossman grew angry.
He harbored an infinite hostility toward the Mage Slayer, that thorn in his side.
Finding a pretext to unleash it wasn't difficult.
The mercenary tactics displayed in the mock battle, a far cry from chivalry.
The disgraceful display of cowering before Professor Navian, failing to even swing his sword.
And on top of that, the cowardice of trying to flee alone in a crisis.
"Isn't it so damn annoying being in the same group as a coward like that?"
"He probably forged his recommendation letter. It never made sense from the start. How could a squire defeat a mage?"
Stefan Grossman criticized and slandered the Mage Slayer at every opportunity.
When the class location was changed, it was he who persuaded the members of Group 3 to hide the new location from him.
Through these actions, he was able to shake off a vague sense of anxiety.
But that was only for a moment.
The cadet named Yan remained completely unfazed by the ostracism from his peers.
The expression he sometimes showed was far from the withdrawn look of an isolated person.
On the contrary, he seemed as composed as an adult watching the pranks of childish kids.
Whenever he met that expression, he was reminded of his own pathetic state and felt an unbearable anxiety.
That was why.
In the first joint class of the Silver Eagle class since the groups were formed, he had raised the level of his remarks higher than usual.
"It's only natural for a worthless disciple to come from a worthless master."
Normally, it would have ended with a few passing words to his close peers.
It should have ended there.
"What? Say that again."
If not, when his words reached the subject's ears, he should have admitted his carelessness and apologized.
"Ooh, looks like Stefan is going to teach that coward a lesson."
"Stefan's been waiting for this, after all."
He should have ignored the gazes of his peers, filled with subtle expectation.
But Stefan, elated by the expectant gazes around him for the first time in a long while, missed his last chance to correct his mistake.
"I asked if your master taught you no better than that?"
Instead, in that moment, he had a thought.
This was an opportunity.
If he could defeat the cadet ranked 15th, the one with the achievement of being the Mage Slayer, he could prove his own specialness.
There was nothing to fear.
He couldn't imagine losing to a coward who was too scared to even draw his sword in a guided sparring session.
As he saw it, this was a chance to make his name known among his peers.
"Ha."
It didn't take long for him to realize his misjudgment.
*Smirk.*
The moment he saw the smile playing on his opponent's lips, he knew something was wrong.
"Ah?"
Suddenly, his heart clenched tight.
An inexplicable chill froze his body.
Goosebumps rose on his exposed skin.
In that brief moment, countless thoughts flickered through his mind, appearing and disappearing in succession.
And what remained at the end was a single, unfamiliar emotion.
*Step, step.*
The Mage Slayer approached.
Stefan backed away.
He wasn't even aware that he was taking a step back.
He couldn't even turn his head.
He felt that if he looked away, even for a second, something terrible would happen.
His foot caught on something.
*Thump.*
"Uh, uh...?"
Having collapsed in an unsightly heap, Stefan was unaware of his own state, muttering only dazed sounds.
"That's far enough."
Just then, someone stepped between them.
"I fully understand your anger, but as group leader, I can't just stand by and watch a peer get murdered."
It was Lian Kart.
Only then did Stefan realize the nature of the unfamiliar emotion he had felt.
Fear.
The other cadet had truly intended to kill him.
"Hiiik!"
The moment he realized that fact, Stefan completely lost his mind.
"Hasn't he already lost his will to fight?"
Lian Kart glanced back before continuing.
"I know it's ridiculous for me to step in now after being a bystander until this point. It's all my fault. I failed to fulfill my duties as group leader. Still, I'd appreciate it if you'd listen to me this once. It's right to end it here, now. This is all for your own good."
The Mage Slayer, who had been walking forward, blindly radiating killing intent, reacted to his words for the first time.
*Flinch.*
His expression was deeply scrunched.
"Let's end it here. If we stop now, we can move past this without any trouble."
"Hah. Forget it. What am I even doing with a bunch of kids?"
The complaint came out a moment later, in his usual sullen voice.
Almost simultaneously, the killing intent that had been engulfing the area vanished as if it had never been.
"Thanks for doing me a favor."
"I let you save face as the group leader. You owe me one."
"Anytime."
A straightforward reply.
Lian Kart smiled back.
And so, the situation was resolved.
Or rather, it was about to be.
"How dare a guy who served some rootless wanderer do this to me! I'll never let you get away with—!"
Had Stefan, freed from the killing intent, not run his mouth, it surely would have ended that way.
"You idiot!"
Lian Kart cursed.
*Fwoosh.*
The subsided killing intent flared up once more.
"If you try to stop me again, I'll cut you down first."
Before the short warning was even finished, a *bang* was heard as he kicked off the ground.
The Mage Slayer had reached Stefan in an instant.
"…!"
It was a speed that was unbelievable even when seen with their own eyes.
For the cadets, who had not yet fully adapted to the pressure of the satellite city, it was a jaw-dropping sight.
*Crack.*
The sickening sound of something hard being crushed echoed out.
"Aaaargh!"
Stefan Grossman screamed, his two broken wrists dangling limply.
The Mage Slayer didn't even bat an eye.
*Crack.*
His right foot was bent at a hideous angle.
*Crunch.*
His left foot was twisted around.
"H-Help me! I-I was wrong… Gack!"
A fist slammed into the mouth of Stefan Grossman, who was utterly terrified and repeatedly apologizing.
*Shatter.*
Broken teeth scattered in all directions.
"Stop…!"
A few cadets, unable to watch any longer, stepped forward.
But before they could even get close, they were stopped by Amelia Justice.
"He is exercising his rightful due. No one should interfere."
She spoke with a stern face, as if delivering a verdict, and permitted no counterarguments.
"What do you think you're doing!"
In the end, the Mage Slayer's exercise of rights was only concluded after the professors arrived.
"You…!"
Even under the professor's sharp gaze, the Mage Slayer was not the least bit intimidated; on the contrary, he was perfectly composed.
"...I trust you have a justifiable reason for this."
The professor, frowning at his unabashed attitude, turned his head.
"What are you all staring at! Call for medical support, now!"
Several cadets began running in the direction of the infirmary.
***
The scheduled joint class was canceled entirely.
The offending cadet was detained in a separate private room, and a disciplinary committee was convened on the spot.
An immediate investigation was launched, with the students who had been present at the scene questioned.
"Cadet Yan was merely exercising his rightful due."
"Wielding indiscriminate violence against a defenseless opponent, regardless of the reason, goes against the code of chivalry."
"As the group leader who failed to fulfill my duties leading up to today's situation, if Cadet Yan is at fault, then so am I."
"I heard it clearly. Cadet Stefan admitted his fault and begged for forgiveness several times. But Cadet Yan did not stop his assault."
The cadets' testimonies were polar opposites.
"Even after hearing his former master insulted, Cadet Yan showed the magnanimity to hold back once. What happened afterward was entirely brought upon by Cadet Stefan himself."
"Cadet Stefan had already lost his will to fight. If he had requested a duel of honor through the proper channels, no one would have objected. Even if it had resulted in Cadet Stefan's death."
Testimonies arguing that the offending cadet's actions were justified clashed fiercely with those asserting that, whatever the reason, it was wrong to be so vicious to an opponent who had lost the will to fight.
"Cadet Yan's usual conduct is also problematic."
"Having personally witnessed his cowardly side when he tried to abandon his peers and escape alone during a recent incident, I am certain that Cadet Yan is someone who is strong only against the weak, a person far removed from the code of chivalry."
"To behave like that toward Cadet Stefan, whose entrance rank is far below his own, can only be seen as bullying the weak."
In the process, the offending cadet's usual conduct was raised as an issue.
"..."
Even the cadets who had consistently defended the perpetrator's position could not offer any counterarguments on that particular point.
"Why is the Yoram called the Yoram? Isn't it because it's a place that warmly embraces and correctly guides the future leaders of the Empire before they step out into the world? If we are to apply the law of the jungle here, then there is no reason for the Yoram to exist!"
"How can a squire not have honor to protect? Moreover, how many admirable children are there in this day and age who would rise up so fiercely, not for their own honor, but for one they once served? If we punish Cadet Yan, we will no longer be able to dare teach our cadets to value honor."
A heated debate erupted among the professors as well.
"You have to look at his usual conduct! This wasn't done by a cadet who normally values honor and holds chivalry as sacred as his own life!"
"It seems to me that he was just venting his violence because he knew his opponent was weaker."
"If he had done this to a cadet with a higher rank, it might be a different story. But this is a bit..."
However, many professors also took issue with the offending cadet's usual conduct.
Despite this, an immediate expulsion was not ordered because the professors defending him were so adamant, and because everyone agreed that, while excessive, the grounds for exercising his rights were clear.
The inconclusive debate continued for some time.
"So, what everyone is saying is that the perpetrator's usual conduct is the problem."
The Vice Director, who had been fidgeting for some reason, stepped forward.
"Because he has not shown himself to be faithful to the code of chivalry in his daily life, this incident is also judged as an act of violence against the weak, rather than a duel of honor. Is that correct?"
The professors nodded in agreement.
"The fact that he cowered and collapsed without even drawing his sword during the guided sparring can be somewhat excused, given his young and impressionable age, but abandoning his peers to try and save himself is inexcusable."
"A knight's sword may be dull, but it must never be cowardly."
The Vice Director once again summarized the professors' statements.
"If the perpetrator's usual conduct had been faithful to the code of chivalry, this wouldn't have even become an issue in the first place. I will take it that everyone agrees with this statement."
The professors raised no objections.
*Clap.*
The Vice Director suddenly clapped his hands and stood up.
"Then the conclusion has been reached..."
"...?"
"Now, would you all please take a look at this?"
At his nod, an assistant instructor next to one of the professors operated a terminal.
*Flick.*
Colors began to spread across the white canvas hanging on the conference room wall.
[This was weird from the start! A city floating in the sky is impossible!]
[That's right, they said anything with wings would fall! How is the Yoram any different!]
[Don't say such unlucky things!]
Soon, a scene of pandemonium unfolded on the canvas.
[Everyone, calm down!]
[Let's all get out of here first! We need to get to where the staff are!]
The image of the gray-haired cadet running around alone, struggling to control the situation, was imprinted in the professors' eyes.
***
"Cadet Yan, you may enter."
Waiting outside the conference room, I stood up at the assistant instructor's call.
"Only Cadet Yan is to enter."
Lian, who had started to rise with me, looked flustered and was about to say something, but I stopped him.
"You've played the part of group leader well enough. You can go now."
"But...!"
Leaving him to hesitate, unable to bring himself to leave, I opened the conference room door.
"We will now begin the disciplinary hearing regarding the unauthorized duel of honor between Cadet Yan and Cadet Stefan that took place today."
As soon as I stood in the middle of the conference room, a professor I didn't know made the declaration.