Chapter 4
Chapter 4
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: First Spar (1)
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The commoner cadet squad, which had been stuck at the very bottom until now.
One of its members' voice filled the lavish annex palace.
"I'm Veil Mikhail."
Was it because no one had stepped forward until now?
The imperial princesses turned intrigued gazes toward me.
"Hmm..."
Especially Lea.
She lifted her monocle, seemingly amused that I was boldly challenging the man she had her eye on.
"Good. Standing up without regard for the opponent—brave."
The princess elegantly approved my request with a graceful gesture.
Thanks to her, I could step forward confidently in Cain's place.
"You... you sure about this...?"
Cain looked at me with trembling eyes.
"Don't worry."
My fellow cadet wore a worried expression.
I patted his shoulder and moved ahead.
"I know his type well enough."
It wasn't just for Cain's sake.
If this situation wasn't merely a fleeting montage.
After this appointment ceremony, I'd have to head to the northern front again.
'To prevent that hellish scenario, I have to face him myself.'
And this time, I had to win.
No matter what.
"..."
Once the spar was set, Richard slowly approached me.
He shrugged his shoulders repeatedly as he walked over, looking annoyed.
"Why step up now after staying quiet all this time?"
His eyebrows furrowed, as if things weren't going according to plan.
That obnoxious slicked-back hair was as irritating as ever.
"Just figured the top swordsman should face off against the top swordsman, right?"
He snorted, finding my words ridiculous.
"Trying to catch the princesses' attention by facing me, huh."
Soon, Valerian approached to explain the sparring rules.
Dark shadows under his eyes made his fierce black pupils gleam.
"Richard, restrain yourself from excessive aggression in this spar."
Having witnessed his antics multiple times, Valerian issued a warning.
"Understood. I'll try to 'hold back' as much as possible."
Richard replied to the general's stern face with a relaxed smile.
'Hold back, my ass.'
Even as the top rank, he'd start as a rookie again in the knight order.
Plus, with no front-line experience, he was sorely lacking.
Valerian then turned to me.
His expression softened compared to when he'd looked at Richard.
"Mikhail, I commend your courage in stepping up."
The general seemed impressed that I'd volunteered despite knowing Richard's reputation.
However, I couldn't just bask in his approval.
He knew full well how strong Richard was.
"But don't overdo it. Getting injured in a spar only hurts you."
His words were both advice and a warning.
I nodded calmly, saying I'd keep it in mind.
"Let the spar begin. Give it your all before these esteemed witnesses!"
Now, only Richard and I remained in the vast hall.
Sunlight poured in, reflecting off his hair.
It cast deep shadows under his eyebrows.
"..."
His gaze toward me was chilling.
The commoner cadets who usually cowered before his overwhelming presence.
But my utter lack of fear seemed to enrage him thoroughly.
"Arrogant look on your face."
His main weapon was a two-handed sword like mine.
Yet Richard wielded that massive blade with the finesse of a dagger.
'That brute strength is the same as ever.'
Still, I had no intention of backing down.
If this was truly reality...
'I never want to go back to the northern front.'
I'd defeat him and stay in the capital.
"There've been guys like you before. The type who hang on desperately just to get noticed."
I calmly scanned Richard, observing him.
He looked much the same as he would five years later, when the bloody purges began.
He'd already consumed countless elixirs before even becoming a full knight.
"Think the world revolves around you just 'cause you swing a sword decently in the commoner squad?"
He was goading me subtly to strike first.
In the past, I'd fallen for that taunt and swung wildly.
'And lost control of the pace.'
Induce the opponent to attack first, then fluidly counter.
A common tactic among well-trained noble swordsmen.
"Not the commoner squad—the Second Knight Candidate Squad. Don't even know the proper name?"
Instead of pointing my sword at him, I slung it over my shoulder.
Then, narrowing my eyes, I smirked at him.
'This time, I'll use his own method against him.'
"...?"
Richard's eyes twitched at the unexpected provocation.
But he quickly clenched his teeth and regained his composure.
"You don't even realize you're being mocked as lowborn. The only official candidate squad is ours. Your so-called Second Knight squad is just something you pathetic commoners forced into existence..."
"Ah, you're so damn annoying."
I yawned and glanced toward the princesses.
With a smile in my eyes, I said,
"Just get on with it. Can't you see the princesses getting bored?"
The first to meet my gaze was the Third Imperial Princess, Lydia.
She giggled, finding my cheeky attitude toward Richard amusing.
"Veil, was it? Got some guts."
Lydia chewed on a candy she'd popped in her mouth.
Her cheeks puffed out roundly.
"But how do you plan to beat Richard?"
Propping her chin, she watched me intently.
"..."
Irina glanced sideways at her younger sister showing interest in me.
Irritated by the sound of her munching candy, she pressed her lips tight.
"Fine. Fighting a commoner is embarrassing for me anyway..."
Realizing his provocations weren't working, Richard raised his sword.
Gripping the hilt firmly, he resolved to test my skill himself.
"I'll end this quick."
The atmosphere in the annex shifted.
Richard stepped forward, assuming a textbook sparring stance.
And then.
――――――!!
He charged at me with insane speed that belied his build.
He swung the longsword with one hand alone.
The thick blade bent like a snake from his overwhelming power.
The curving blade slashed down toward my shoulder.
'Definitely fast.'
A speed and trajectory no other cadet would have experienced.
Boosted solidly by elixirs and spirit medicines.
But.
Compared to the savage warriors' axes on the front lines, it was laughably slow.
And crude.
Forced strength absorbed artificially, not earned through effort.
I gripped my sword with both hands.
Then blocked his strike near the hilt.
Kaaang――――――!!
Red sparks erupted from the clashing blades.
Yet I withstood his blow with a resolute expression.
Even though he was far bulkier than me.
"...?!"
Everyone's eyes widened at how easily I blocked his overpowering strike.
Especially Richard.
His smug smirk trembled.
"What? Surprised I held up so well?"
I smirked mockingly.
At my leisurely grin, a vein bulged on his forehead.
"Pulling some cheap trick...!"
It's not just about raw power.
The force varies wildly depending on the point of contact.
'You'd realize that after tasting a savage's axe yourself.'
I twisted our locked blades diagonally.
His brute force dispersed sideways.
"Urgh...!"
Our swords slid apart simultaneously.
The screeching friction shook the annex's glass windows.
Richard disengaged first.
The moment our blades separated, he targeted my side.
Textbook noble technique.
I hurriedly met his thrusting sword.
Then shoved with all my might to deflect his stab.
His ambush was quick and sharp for his size.
But I wasn't the same as my past self.
If he'd only sparred with his master a few times...
'I clashed blades with real enemies hundreds of times.'
"Huuu..."
Richard's thick brows furrowed.
All his attacks parried, he backed away to create distance.
He glared at me murderously for interfering with his top spot.
"Picked up some fancy tricks somewhere...?"
His neatly pomaded forelock had fallen loose.
Seeing his disheveled face, I responded leisurely.
"Calling this a trick means you're still got a long way to go."
Hitting him with the provocation he loved so much.
"..."
Richard blew his fallen bangs aside.
Gritting his molars, he gripped the hilt.
This time with both hands.
'Finally getting serious.'
He realized he couldn't beat me with swordplay alone.
Patience exhausted, he planned to crush me with raw power.
And that power...
Was mana.
"..."
I gripped the hilt tighter as well.
Focusing on Richard's blue eyes.
Blue mana began flowing from them.
Overflowing from his body...
An absurd amount.
The mana soon spread throughout his frame.
'Intermediate Sword Expert.'
A technique that expels mana from the body to reinforce flesh and weapon.
Post-reinforcement grants toughness and speed to deflect arrows.
'Of course, I can use it too.'
But not all knight cadets have equal mana reserves.
Nobles had vastly expanded theirs with elixirs and medicines.
Unfortunately, I had no such luxuries back then.
A single low-grade elixir cost half a commoner's yearly living expenses.
That was the class difference.
One consolation: I was far different from my past self now.
"Huu..."
I focused my mind as well.
Wrapping the emanating mana around my body.
But compared to Richard, the color was faint.
Pale sky blue against his deep azure.
At the stark difference, Richard scoffed.
"You should dodge. I might slice you along with that sword."
His serious final warning.
With that, he charged faster than before.
――――――!!
He swung the two-hander like a rapier, without restraint.
The thick blade wobbled like a skewer.
I knew.
One hit from that skewer meant instant death.
But more mana doesn't guarantee victory.
What matters is how well you wield it, regardless of amount.
I concentrated all my mana into both arms in an instant to block his attack!
Kaaang―――!!
A flurry of slashes followed.
Each barrage of his brutal blade tore the air, assaulting my ears.
'At this rate, we'll both take internal damage...!'
I thrust my sword into the shattered floor.
Just as he wound up for another relentless swing.
"...!!"
I kicked up the embedded stone dust and flung it at his face.
"You filthy commoner bastard!"
Caught off guard, he staggered back.
Panting raggedly, he rubbed his face.
His once powdered face now looked no different from us commoners'.
"Can't win with skill, so you resort to dirty tricks...?"
The knight captain's son glared, seething.
His blue eyes bulged red with burst capillaries.
His surging mana was growing hard to control.
"Is there such a thing as a 'dirty' move in a fight?"
I met his gaze calmly.
"What...?"
"You're the one making excuses about 'dirty' because you lack the skill."
I shrugged.
Deep down, I thought firmly.
If you stood on the front lines yourself, you'd never say that.
"Lowly scum..."
Unable to endure my words any longer, Richard raised his sword skyward.
He focused the mana cloaking his body solely into the blade.
"Today, I'll beat the bad habits out of you proper."
In that moment.
Red aura began sprouting from Richard's sword.
"..."
My relaxed brows furrowed.
I'd grasped what his action meant.
Condensing red mana into the blade.
It meant he truly intended to kill.
A killing strike.
"You're the same as ever, past or present."
Through that unpleasant red glow, I realized.
This situation wasn't some mere montage.
This was no illusion.
This was reality.
"Thanks. For making me see it clearly."
Now I could resolve myself.
To use freely the power earned through endless suffering in my past life...
This life, no more getting dragged to the front lines.
I'd start a new life here in the empire's capital.