Chapter 16
Chapter 16
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 16
Chapter Title: Episode 004 (4)
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Murmurs rippled through the crowd.
Kuhn's unexpected action had stirred up a commotion among the trainees—not just them, but even the instructors stood in stunned silence, at a loss for words.
Some trainees gawked at him with slack-jawed expressions, while others glared with sharpened eyes, as if they'd finally caught him in the act.
They were the ones who'd long harbored envy and resentment toward Kuhn's growth and behavior—like the Silver siblings.
'Hmph. Idiot.'
'Let's see you get chewed out!'
All sorts of emotions poured his way: envy, jealousy, excitement, curiosity, mockery.
Of course, Kuhn hadn't exactly been short on offers from other trainees.
Beyond the Silver siblings and Taylor Rosetta, the second son of the Rosetta family, plenty more had approached him to form a team.
He'd simply turned them all down.
In the midst of it all, the Senior Instructor fixed his gaze on Kuhn and spoke.
"...Ku—Ethan, what does this mean? You're really planning to challenge it alone?"
He seemed just as flustered, nearly slipping up with Kuhn's real name before barely catching himself.
'Reports have been coming in that he's mostly trained alone, without teaming up...'
Even so, who could've guessed he'd actually try to clear the trial solo?
Was he insane, or did he actually have a plan? The Senior Instructor's eyes darkened behind his mask as he studied Kuhn.
Kuhn nodded calmly in response.
"Yes. That's correct."
With a composed nod, he even drew the wooden sword from his belt.
'Arrogance? Or...'
Either way, the reason would reveal itself soon enough. The Senior Instructor nodded readily.
"...Fine. Then let's begin the trial."
Arrogant or not, it was his decision. He'd have to pay the price himself.
Thud, thud.
No sooner had the words left his mouth than one of the Regular Instructors standing below the platform stepped forward.
Thud, thud.
A hulking figure carved from massive rock, his upper body even more solidly built than his lower half.
His appearance practically screamed dwarf heritage. Kuhn's eyes narrowed slightly at the sight.
'This guy...'
A familiar face—one of the instructors from the Three Valleys.
The only difference was his gear, slightly altered from the usual.
Kuhn scanned him carefully with sharp eyes.
'Wooden broadsword and a round shield covering about a third of his upper body.'
As the sizable shield suggested, this Regular Instructor was known among his peers as "Iron Wall Grollang," a member of the Black Lion Knights.
True to his nickname, he embodied seamless offense and defense.
A knight who favored lulling foes with ironclad defense before seizing victory with sudden counters.
Thud, thud.
His massive frame made the ground seem to tremble. He adjusted his grip on the shield.
Clank.
Then, peering over it, he sized Kuhn up with a sour look.
'Ethan.'
As a mere Regular Instructor—not Senior—he didn't know Kuhn's true identity.
But he knew plenty about Ethan, the Three Valleys trainee.
'The weakest, most pathetic body in all of Lion’s Den, let alone the Three Valleys.'
In any other cohort, he'd have been dropped ages ago without question.
He was practically shoved into Lion’s Den as a cautionary tale for the others.
Some instructors had even bet on how many days it'd take him to wash out.
'Most bet he wouldn't last a month.'
And indeed, the longest any had managed in his memory was about three weeks—no need to elaborate.
But...
'He didn't fall behind.'
Far from it—he'd stuck to training like he was mocking their bets.
And now, after two years, he'd grown into one of the top trainees in the Three Valleys.
'Though he still looks frail...'
Even so, impressive.
'But for a guy like that to make the blunder of challenging the first gate solo.'
Did crushing Barison's gang go to his head?
To Grollang, Kuhn looked like a cocky rookie drunk on his own growth—nothing more, nothing less.
He sighed lightly, still eyeing Kuhn with disdain.
'Still, it'd be a shame to break him like this.'
Even if he failed this trial, there was another shot in two months.
For the kid's sake, maybe hitting a wall now wasn't the worst lesson.
Grollang slowly extended his arm.
He tapped his shield with the sword tip, then crooked a finger at Kuhn.
'I'll teach you there's a wall you can't climb, no matter what. Rookie.'
.
.
Thud, thud!
The instructor tapping his shield now crooked his finger.
A question mark popped into Kuhn's mind at the provocation.
"...?"
Instructors usually yielded first strike tacitly.
But this blatant handover of initiative was new.
Kuhn's pupils dilated slowly.
Now he saw the instructor's stance: broadsword held diagonally forward, weight shifted back.
Shield half-covering his bulk, eyes peeking out—like a hermit crab ready to strike.
'That stance...'
Defense-first, perfect for countering. Clearly underestimating him. Kuhn's lips curved faintly.
—Swish.
.
.
Crack, crunch, boom!
Explosive blasts and grating friction assaulted the ears.
Sounds too vicious for mere wood on wood!
Each clash sent wooden splinters flying wildly—who knew whose sword they came from.
Whoosh!
One sharp fragment grazed Kuhn's eye, and his lips twisted into a crooked smirk.
One corner hooked up.
His eyes coldly gauged the instructor's full power.
'Roughly sixty percent... a bit under, precisely.'
Despite the fierce exchange, the instructor hadn't gone all out.
'Of course. Makes sense.'
No matter the hellish training, trainees were still mid-to-late teens.
Surpassing a first-rate—or super first-rate—aura practitioner? No easy feat.
Even prodigy Taylor Rosetta couldn't yet.
No need to spell it out for the rest.
By now, the instructor was probably convinced Kuhn couldn't touch him, no matter what!
And that conviction... was exactly what Kuhn had baited.
Boom!
"...?"
As if to prove it, an eerie mana seeped from Kuhn's rebounding form.
Shhh!
A sinister chill, like colorless ink bleeding over white paper!
Nearby birds startled skyward first.
Flutter!
Caw, caw!
In a world flickering black and white, Kuhn whispered cautiously.
"Illusion Technique."
⟨ Illusion Technique ⟩
Vivid as if whispered in one's ear, despite the distance.
This marked the debut of the demonic arts' pinnacle—the monster known as Myeong's forbidden spell in this world.
.
.
As the name implied.
Illusion Technique conjured hallucinations, twisting human senses and perception to show illusions.
Its creator, Myeong, once summoned vast hellscapes over enemies' eyes with it.
'Of course, my mastery isn't that high yet—no grand visions.'
But fooling an instructor's eyes briefly? Well within reach!
Normally tricky against first-rate aura users' mental barriers.
But in that split-second of underestimation—
───────!!
As proof, the spell completed, Kuhn's thighs ballooned.
His body rocketed forward like a cannonball.
────!!
Motion a solid twenty percent faster than before!
Illusion-distorted perception, layered with genuine speed boost—Kuhn's double feint!
To the instructor, it must've looked like Kuhn vanished in a speed blur.
And sure enough!
Grollang yelped as Kuhn slipped from view.
"What?!"
'Fast!'
Even a moment's slip shouldn't allow escaping his sight so soon.
Unaware of the spell, it was natural he'd think that.
A lesser knight might've lost control there.
But...
Unfortunately for Kuhn, Grollang was no ordinary knight.
Years in the Black Lion Knights had honed his experience and battle sense to near-super first-rate.
And that instinct now clawed the area.
Whoosh!
'Right side!'
A sharp presence charging from the right flank.
Diagonal strike from the rear-right.
No time to ponder how he got there—too swift!
Shield too slow now.
A sloppy response would doom him...
Goosebumps rose.
'Then...!!'
His broadsword tip glowed white-hot with power.
By the time he snapped to, he'd already swung wildly.
——KABOOM!
The force was immense—Kuhn rocketed backward amid the explosion.
Not stopping, he bounced off the ground, smashed into a tree behind.
——Boom, boom, crash, splinter!
The tree toppled with a heavy thud, as if struck by lightning.
Forest shook; dirt and sand billowed.
As choking dust rose, reality crashed back on Grollang. Pale-faced, he spoke.
"Th-this?!"
Too shocked—he'd botched his power control.
"H-hey, Ethan, y-you okay?"
He called out, stumbling toward the crash site.
"Cough, cough..."
A wet, bloody cough echoed from the dust.
Blood trickled from mouth and nose, yet he propped himself with his half-shattered wooden sword, staring intently.
"Cough, cough..."
Something was off.
Still conscious was miracle enough... but his free arm thrust forward boldly.
"What...?!"
Grollang spotted a blue button at the fingertips—eyes widening, he whipped his head around.
'...!?'
His right shoulder—where the button had been—was torn clean off.
Ragged, like mauled by a beast.
Finally grasping Kuhn's ploy, Grollang looked up, dumbfounded.
'No way... the attack was bait from the start. The real goal...!?'
Makes sense—the trial was snatching the button.
But overlooking it proved how startled he'd been.
Then Kuhn spoke.
"With this... ptui."
Bloodshot eyes, nosebleed streaming, he continued.
"The first trial... pass."
Such audacity—high-speed vanish and lethal strike as mere bait.
Plus unyielding grit amid gut-wrenching pain.
Old saying fits: give flesh, take bone.
'Knew he was no ordinary kid since he first gritted his teeth and kept up...'
Grollang shook his head, half-aghast, half-awed. Glancing at Kuhn's fading consciousness, he muttered.
"Crazy bastard."
A voice laced with stunned admiration.