Chapter 47: The Tin Knight and the City of Clockwork (6)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 47: The Tin Knight and the City of Clockwork (6)
Adelaide thought to herself.
I was sure I’d lose…
Five consecutive battles against a wide variety of magic dolls.
To top it off, the final opponent was gushing with so much mana that my sword couldn’t even pierce it, and its movements and strength were monstrous.
I’d managed to hold on somehow, thanks to the hellish training I’d endured with the Tin Knight, but that was my limit.
To be honest, Adelaide had half-given up on winning midway through.
My sword won’t work, so I can’t win.
I guess this is as far as I go this time.
She had only been running around because getting hit would hurt; her mindset was as good as admitting defeat.
And yet.
She had been certain there was no chance of victory.
But looking back at the result, she found victory clutched in her hand.
It was all so strange to Adelaide.
Thud.
Not even thinking of lifting her exhausted body, Adelaide simply shifted from her face-down position to lie on her back.
Her golden hair was dirtied by the floor, but she had long since abandoned the delicacy to care about such trivial things on the first day of her training with the Tin Knight.
Staring at the ceiling, Adelaide replayed the recent battle in her mind.
It had been an incredible experience.
The sensation of her body moving on instinct rather than reason.
A battle that had reached the realm of reflexes, not thought.
The Knight’s commands… he must have calculated everything, even the delay between me hearing his command and actually moving.
There was no other way to explain this result.
No matter how much Adelaide moved almost unconsciously, following the instructions she heard, there would always be a subtle difference from the Tin Knight moving its own body.
And that wasn’t all.
With Adelaide’s strength and weight alone, it should have been impossible to drive her sword into the wooden doll’s neck, even if it was a weak point.
Yet the attack had succeeded because he had precisely predicted the timing of the opponent’s charge and had her execute a counter.
He had read how the opponent would think and act in advance, supplementing the strength and momentum Adelaide lacked on her own.
It felt as if he was teaching her that even if you lacked strength, speed, or a sharp weapon, you could still win by skillfully combining what you had.
He’s amazing. The Knight.
Adelaide was once again filled with admiration.
Her teacher was truly incredible.
Yes, he was absolutely incredible, but…
[The ‘Tin Knight’ is fired up, suggesting you clear the 6th and 7th levels as well!]
Could you please, for the love of god, consider human limits?
I’m seriously going to die at this rate.
Even now, my whole body feels limp, and my shoulder where I collided with the magic doll and both my wrists from swinging the mace are throbbing in pain.
Unable to voice her complaints about the Tin Knight who knew nothing of the human heart, Adelaide’s eyes slowly fluttered shut.
Just before her consciousness faded completely.
She felt as if a hard, cold back was carrying her.
*
“My, that was incredible. I can see why Ruben was so impressed.”
Clap, clap, clap. René von Lennart approached you, applauding.
The androgynous instructor looked at Adelaide, sleeping soundly on your back, and offered words of admiration and praise.
“It’s not as if there haven’t been skilled individuals who’ve passed the 5th level before, but she is the first to do so without using mana. I’d like to build a hall of fame to commemorate this.”
You wanted to say that was an excellent idea, but unfortunately, you had no mouth with which to speak.
Perhaps it would be possible if you let them touch the brooch, but Dorothea had warned you not to use it unless it was a special case, saying she didn't know if it could be fixed if it broke from being carelessly shown to just anyone.
You simply nodded in response.
René, who gave a satisfied smile at your reaction, held out a fan-shaped piece of a crest.
Like the pass token from the Lowefelt dojo, it was part of a circular image split into five pieces.
“As the instructor of the Lennart dojo, Lowefelt Branch, I, René von Lennart, declare this. Adelaide von Lennart is fully qualified to receive the recognition of this dojo—”
“—Who says you can!”
A rough voice forcefully cut René off.
It was so loud that most of the students scattered throughout the amusement park-like dojo turned to look toward the main gate where the voice had come from.
René’s expression crumpled.
“Those nuisance grandpas are back again. Don’t they ever get tired?”
“I can hear you, you cheeky brat!”
A formidable-looking old man with blond hair streaked with gray and muscles that seemed ready to burst through his clothes glared at René.
Behind the old man stood several dozen middle-aged and older men who, while not as massive as him, had impressive muscles of their own.
The old man saw the token in your hand and growled like a beast.
“The dojo’s token is given only to those worthy of shouldering its pride and honor. And you’re handing it over to a piece of scrap metal like this?”
“Are you blind, sir? This person is merely receiving it as a proxy. The true recipient is the girl on his back.”
René’s words and attitude toward the old man were nothing short of scathing.
And the old man, in turn, made no attempt to hide his contempt and disdain for René.
“That’s just as much of a problem! All the truly skilled members of this dojo are with me. Who in the world did that girl prove her skills against? Did she beat those precious toys you play with? If you hand over the token for such a pathetic reason, the honor of this dojo will be dragged through the mud!”
“I am the representative instructor of this dojo. And I am the one who sets the criteria for awarding the token. Not you and your gang, who were kicked out by a group petition after abusing the students with your outdated ‘spirit over matter’ nonsense!”
“Oh-ho, that’s right. I was kicked out. All because of some ungrateful bastards who betrayed their master and seniors without a second thought just because the training was a little arduous, even though I was teaching them the fundamentals of martial arts step by step!”
As the old man glared around the dojo, the students couldn’t meet his gaze and looked down at the ground.
A few glared back at the old man with displeased expressions, but they were in the minority.
“That’s enough. There’s a limit to how much I can respect you as a senior from the same dojo.”
René warned in a cold voice, but the old man just snorted.
“We’ll see soon enough who needs to stop.”
The old man threw a piece of parchment at René.
Catching it, René unfolded the parchment and scanned its contents, their brow furrowing.
“Well, shit.”
A vulgar curse, unbefitting of their pretty face, escaped their lips.
As if pleased by the sight, the old man let out a hearty laugh and spoke.
“You saw it, right? It’s a direct order from the Duke. It revokes my dismissal and your appointment as representative instructor, and orders a re-evaluation under the supervision of the lord of Tik-Tok to determine which of us is truly fit to lead this dojo. Do you understand? You are no longer the representative instructor, and therefore, that token you handed over is invalid!”
“You senile old fool. I thought I saw some faces that weren’t from around here, did you really drag in all your connections to go cry to the main family about how unfair it was? How can a person be so petty? Trying to use your connections to overturn a match that’s already been decided?”
“Hmph, spout whatever nonsense you want. The day the lord of Tik-Tok proclaims my victory, I’ll tear down this whole toy garden and turn all those damn pieces of scrap into actual scrap!”
“You damn bastard! Do you have any idea how much money I poured into acquiring these precious things?! Cut the crap!”
“You’re the one who should back down quietly, René!”
“That’s right! Did you think we’d meekly accept defeat just because you pushed out our great master with some cheap paperwork!?”
“‘Great master,’ my ass! You just slapped that title on him because he got stripped of his representative instructor name!”
“We like the way things are taught now! Get lost, you old geezers who only know how to boss around your juniors!”
The argument, which had started between René and the old man, had quickly devolved into a dogfight in a marketplace as their respective followers joined in.
Somehow, they hadn't come to blows yet, but it was a precarious balance.
You paused for a moment in thought.
You were debating whether or not to slice up the old man and his lackeys who kept spouting infuriating nonsense in front of you.
You could more or less tolerate being called scrap metal, since the ‘Tin Knight’ was indeed an old model, but the sight of them vehemently insisting that the token your pupil had worked so hard to earn was invalid was incredibly unpleasant.
Honestly, if you weren't carrying Adelaide, you might have already split the old man’s skull with your sword.
As if sensing your mood, René bowed their head to you with an apologetic look.
“I apologize for getting you involved in this troublesome affair. I can sense human-like emotions from you, unlike ordinary magic dolls. Please leave this to us and go. You can ignore that old man’s drivel. Once I’m re-certified by the lord, there won’t be any problem.”
You looked at René silently, then nodded.
It was just as you were walking toward the gate.
“Hey, you! If you’re leaving, you’d better leave that token behind!”
“Nah, what’s the point of talking to a doll? Let’s just take it back!”
A few members of the old man’s group suddenly grabbed you and started spouting nonsense, without a hint of an apology.
Seeing this, René’s eyes widened.
“Hey, you all! What do you think you’re doing—?”
And you had no intention of listening to any more of this pointless bickering.
—Crack!
A middle-aged man, struck in the shin by your kick, crumpled to the ground, clutching his leg without even letting out a gasp.
Instead of your right hand, which was supporting Adelaide, you shot out your left. You grabbed the back of another, wide-eyed man’s head and slammed it down onto his companion on the ground.
With a heavy thud, the two of them collapsed in a heap.
It looked like some blood was seeping out, but that was of no concern.
Well, who told them to pick a fight?