Chapter 128: Did I Learn the Sword for This? I Feel Tormented and Ashamed (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 128: Did I Learn the Sword for This? I Feel Tormented and Ashamed (4)
The state sold me out.
Well, it was within the realm of possibility, so I reached out to them first.
At least they didn't drag me off by force and try to settle the debt with a measly two hundred bucks like in my past life. Since I came here knowing this kind of thing could happen, I figured I should at least check what they got in exchange for selling me.
—The Sword Emperor has agreed to visit the Kingdom this break.
I could only nod at the Captain’s words.
So they sold me for the Sword Emperor. Well, that can't be helped. Comparing me to the Sword Emperor at this point, the Sword Emperor is an overwhelmingly better deal.
However, the words that followed made me realize there had been a misunderstanding.
—You said you just have to beat the Saintess anyway. Someone of your caliber should find it easy.
“Excuse me?”
Just have to beat the Saintess? And it should be easy for someone like me?
Dumbfounded, I let out a deep sigh and replied.
“It’s not easy at all.”
—What?
I shook my head as I looked at the Captain’s expression, which suggested he couldn't comprehend what I was saying.
His intel was outdated. Just what version of Daisy was he thinking of?
“Ah.”
…Come to think of it, I’d been too busy to send in a report. I should take this opportunity to update him.
“So, the thing is...”
I spent about ten minutes explaining the recent events to the Captain.
—Hmm… So… the Saintess sliced through a Breath fired by our ancestor, the Dragonkin, and then carved him up?
I had merely reported the facts as they were, but somewhere along the line, Daisy had gone from "the Saintess" to "Her Holiness the Saintess" in his mind.
“She didn't exactly carve him up.”
People might think she killed him.
“She just smacked him on the forehead with the back of her blade, and he passed out.”
—Still, he’s a royal ancestor…
“He started using magic because it looked like he was going to lose.”
—Well, I suppose an ancestor from hundreds of years ago doesn't mean much now.
As expected of a knight of the Kingdom and my direct superior. He knew that a Leon who abandoned the sword held no value.
—Anyway, so you have to beat a Saintess like that…
The Captain closed his eyes and muttered softly. He was likely imagining a battle between Daisy and me in his head.
—…Good luck with that.
And then he immediately cut the transmission and fled. It seemed the "Adam Kim" in his imagination had suffered a crushing defeat.
The "Wannabe Holy Sword" Daisy held—which was actually the Demon King’s Magic Sword, a likely candidate for the world’s final boss weapon—was certainly broken, but it wasn't without weaknesses.
Well, it wasn't a single weapon to begin with, but a set.
Because of that, there were two points worth targeting. First, it was an item specialized for long-term combat. It didn't snatch away mana in huge chunks from the start; rather, it nibbled away at it continuously. If I prepared a "blitz strategy," it could definitely work.
The second weakness was that, in the end, all it did was steal mana.
In a fantasy world where almost everything is solved with mana, there’s nothing more broken than that, but there were exceptions—like Silence—who could counter magic while barely using any mana themselves.
Furthermore, Daisy is, for now, a "frail" woman.
Given Daisy’s current image, that might sound like total nonsense. Even though she’d experienced various incidents and started physical conditioning after joining the Swordsmanship Department, before she entered the Academy—meaning, as recently as early last year—she was just a young lady from an ordinary rural Baronial house.
In other words, excluding her innate talent for mana, her divine power, and the magic that absorbs others' mana, she was just a woman who had only recently begun training.
…The problem was that it was impossible to fight her without those factors.
However, that didn't mean there were no ways to exploit it.
“As you know, the human body has its limits.”
“……”
“……”
“No matter how much one reinforces themselves with mana or divine power, they eventually have to use their muscles. So, if we make her fight multiple battles in a single day, even Daisy would…”
“……”
“……”
I felt the gaze of those around me drop about four levels. Summer was approaching, but it felt awfully chilly.
“Even if we win like that, wouldn't it be a bit far from the victory we desire? Our goal is to prove that we can defeat Daisy while she wields the Magic Sword.”
Only the Sword Emperor pointed out the flaw in my opinion, but I had already thought of a countermeasure.
“We call two of them out quietly to a place where they won't be seen.”
“…Oho.”
“And only the last person fights in front of the public.”
“Then there wouldn't be a problem.”
“……”
“……”
the other two looked at the Sword Emperor with expressions of disbelief, but this was the logical way.
“If you don't like it, feel free to suggest another method.”
“……”
“……”
To exercise the right to remain silent without offering an alternative. Since they were being a bit petty, I decided to force them to speak.
“First, for the method of calling her out, the two of you can ask her to come to the rooftop after school because you have something to say…”
“No, wait a minute!”
“That’s—!”
“…If you confess your feelings right then and there, you could even inflict psychological damage, couldn't you?”
If they started with a "confession attack"—telling her to date them if they win—even the mighty Daisy’s mental state would surely be shaken.
“Oh.”
The Sword Emperor let out an exclamation of admiration at my suggestion.
“Sword Emperor-nim!”
“Grandfather!”
At the Sword Emperor’s reaction, the RoFan male lead candidates—no, the RoFan husks—looked like they were about to cry.
Fortunately, the Sword Emperor hadn't singled me out alone to fight Daisy.
Prince Ellen, who was right above me in both grades and skill, and the Minor Sword Emperor, who was right below me, were also heroes drafted for the anti-Daisy war.
In other words, the Kingdom hadn't just sold me; they’d sold Prince Ellen too!
I don't know what happened in their younger days that made both His Highness and the Captain so obsessed with the Sword Emperor, but with this, the win rate would surely rise… or so I thought, but it didn't seem likely.
“……”
That was because these two seemed to have absolutely no intention of winning against Daisy. No, beyond winning, they seemed to have zero will to even fight.
Of course, it wasn't that I didn't understand. Having to beat down the girl you have a crush on would be hard to wrap your head around.
“And so, for the sake of order within the Academy, someone must defeat Daisy.”
But the reason being "for the sake of order within the Academy"?
They called it "order," but it was basically the Academy admitting they couldn't handle her and telling the students, "You deal with it."
The Imperial Academy… is it really okay like this? Come to think of it, the place had been pretty dysfunctional since last year.
“I have a question.”
Of course, even setting that aside, I still had doubts.
“What is it, Student Adam?”
“What is the Magic Department doing?”
The Swordsmanship Department wasn't the only one in the Academy, so what on earth was the Magic Department doing?
Of course, by the nature of magic, they had no choice but to use vast amounts of mana. Our "Super Fire Spammer" had already demonstrated just how much of a nutrient that was for Daisy’s Magic Sword.
Even so, my question was based on the sentiment that it wasn't right for the Swordsmanship Department to take the fall alone.
“Is it not natural that a mage cannot defeat a swordsman?”
“……!”
“Therefore, this is a task that only our Swordsmanship Department can accomplish.”
“I see.”
The answer was so logical that I couldn't offer any rebuttal.
“Since that is the case, I plan to train you all so that you may defeat Student Daisy.”
I didn't know if simple training could overcome a Magic Sword, but it was about time for a power-up event. Even if I’d hit a plateau, I could feel that my recent growth had been sluggish.
This was an event where the legendary Sword Emperor himself would grow the RoFan male lead candidates. If I could squeeze in, I’d surely gain something.
The name of the event: Joint Enhancement Training!
The goal: Defeat the King of RoFan, Daisy!
“The best way would be, quite simply, to not have your mana stolen.”
“Is there such a method?”
“There is.”
At that, the Sword Emperor drew his sword, saying he would show us a good method.
Then, he slowly infused mana into the blade.
Literally, starting from just infusing mana into the sword, he compressed it until it reached the stage commonly known as Sword Energy.
And then, very slowly, he refined that Sword Energy. I don't know why the stage after Sword Energy is called "Aura" instead of "Sword Force," but anyway, he showed us the creation of an Aura Blade, the symbol of a Sword Master.
And then.
“This thing commonly called Aura is a mere mass of mana, but at the same time, it signifies that the swordsman has gained absolute dominion over the mana itself.”
It was the ultimate technique, achieved by purely compressing mana to the extreme—something those "Magic Spammers," the self-proclaimed "understanders of magic," could never accomplish.
“With this, you won't be easily absorbed.”
I knew that fact too. I just couldn't use it.
“You just have to learn this.”
“……?”
If I could have done that, I would have done it ages ago. These "genius" bastards really don't understand the hearts of ordinary people.
“I will assist you until then.”
They really don't know…
The Sword Emperor’s method was simple and efficient.
—From now on, prepare to die.
The reason it wasn't "kill each other" but "prepare to die" was simply because the Sword Emperor was beating the crap out of us.
“You lack conviction in yourself, Asran.”
“Urgh!”
“Your technique has certainly improved since before you entered the Academy, but your actual skill has declined. Who can you defeat with a sword that even you cannot trust?”
Watching the Sword Emperor beat his own grandson while saying such things, I couldn't help but realize my own fate.
“Gah!”
“Don't pretend it hurts. I can feel that you are strangely accustomed to being hit.”
This is why I hate sharp-witted old men.
It was true that I endured better than others because my naturally born toughness was combined with the physical build of a sandbag raised specifically for the royal family.
But it was literally just "enduring." It didn't mean I didn't feel the pain at all.
“Ack! It really hurts, though?!”
“I hit you so that it would.”
That’s right. Other students might be one thing, but if a man of the Sword Emperor’s caliber hits you for real, even a sandbag will burst. Seeing him gradually increase the power as he watched my reactions, it didn't look like this would end easily.
“Ugh…”
After being beaten for a long time, I sprawled out on the ground and watched, anticipating our Prince getting his turn to be thrashed.
…Where else would I get to see Prince Ellen getting beaten up?
“Then, here I come.”
“Very well.”
And so, the grand battle between the current strongest swordsman and the future strongest swordsman… didn't happen.
“Kh!”
No matter how much he was the future strongest swordsman, he wasn't there yet. Watching him get beaten up no differently than I had, I felt a bit relieved.
Fortunately, I wasn't the only one whose growth had stalled—
“……?”
“……?”
Did I just see that wrong?
I shifted my gaze slightly to look at the Minor Sword Emperor, and he had roughly the same expression as me. It was an expression that said, ‘Holy shit, what did I just see?’
I quickly turned my head back to look at Ellen swinging his sword.
As Ellen’s sword and the Sword Emperor’s sword collided, the sound wasn't the clashing of steel, but a sort of crackling, sparking sound.
“Clumsy. But, it is a clumsy stage.”
Watching that, the Sword Emperor was smiling strangely. He looked a bit surprised, but also like he was having the time of his life.
I felt a chill. A pile of work was flying toward me, ready to pierce my chest.
Please, let it be anything but what I’m thinking.
…Ellen, if you do it, I have to do it too!
“Yes. If you use mana and compress it like that, it becomes Aura!”
But at the Sword Emperor’s exclamation of admiration, I could only shed tears.