Chapter 86
Chapter 86
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 86
Chapter Title: Forest of the Dead
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The white light erupting from the sword's tip was magnificent.
Engulfed in the dazzling light, the sword gracefully embroidered the air.
The blade moved with the fresh lightness of a fluttering butterfly.
But the result was anything but beautiful.
*Fshhhhhhh—!*
With a clear, sharp sound that tickled the ears, the cluster of light burst forth.
Then, for a moment, space itself seemed to distort.
'With the power of aura... he caused a distortion?'
Influencing dimensions with highly concentrated aura, as if with magic, was no easy feat.
But Jerome Klébitz had managed to cause a spatial distortion.
Of course, it was only a temporary phenomenon, but the success itself was incredible.
It proved just how immense the power of the sword art he had just demonstrated was.
'So this is why he was nicknamed the Wings of Radiance.'
The countless streams of light suddenly ceased.
All was quiet, as if nothing had happened.
Dean Klébitz looked at me, standing there blankly, and wore a solemn expression.
"Can you do this as well?"
"..."
To be honest, perfectly mimicking the sword strike he had just shown was next to impossible.
How could I imitate such an insane sword art that caused spatial distortion after seeing it just once?
Jerome Klébitz's stiff expression finally softened.
"It is the masterpiece of my life's work; you couldn't possibly follow it immediately. This is a sword art called Destructive Glory."
I shuddered slightly, recalling the time I rescued Wendy.
'If I had been caught back then, not even my bones would have been left to find.'
Jerome Klébitz was one of the top five swordsmen in the empire.
An opponent even I, at the level of my past life, would have struggled to defeat.
'But what's his intention in showing me this?'
The question popped into my head, but for now, I just stood there silently.
Jerome Klébitz would explain it himself anyway.
"I will teach you the basics, so give it a try. We'll start with the heavy sword."
Dean Klébitz then demonstrated a neat and precise sword technique.
The sword path seemed not too different from the first three forms of the Imperial Sound Lock Sword.
It was nothing more than a series of simple, basic slashes.
But as the speed of the strikes increased, a sudden flash of light burst forth.
*Fzzt—!*
'Oh...'
Despite my inner admiration, my eyes followed the sword's tip to the very end.
This time, he performed it relatively slowly, so I could quickly grasp the movements.
When Jerome Klébitz finished his demonstration, I lifted my practice sword without a word.
'Infusing the principles of the phantom sword into the heavy sword. The core concept is simple, but realizing it is not easy.'
Fundamentally, the heavy sword was a style that pursued both power and speed.
However, the phantom sword was much faster and incorporated extreme variations.
In reality, they were as difficult to mix as oil and water.
But the method itself was simpler than I thought.
'You just have to imbue the sword with a lot of aura. But that's easier said than done, isn't it?'
Wielding a large amount of aura at once was incredibly difficult.
If it were that easy, every Tom, Dick, and Harry would be slinging around aura blades.
Normally, a person could only manipulate an amount of energy appropriate to their level.
This applied to both swordsmen and mages.
However, my case was a little different from the norm.
'Inside my body is the Black Flame Dragon... no, the Demonic Soul.'
The Demonic Soul provided as much aura as I wanted and even handled its control.
It read my will and assisted me.
Thanks to it, I could wield far more energy than my level would suggest.
Without much effort at all.
*Fwoosh!*
Starting with a heavy middle slash, my swordsmanship rapidly accelerated.
Then, it began to emit streams of white light.
*Fzzt—!*
Jerome Klébitz's eyes widened as far as they could go.
It was for a very brief moment, but he realized I had completed the basic stage of Destructive Glory.
"Hah!"
It was only natural for a disbelieving groan to escape the dean's lips.
Even if it was only the introductory level, I had executed a specialized secret art after just one lesson.
Honestly, I hadn't expected it to work so well myself, so I stood frozen in the posture of my swing.
'Did I go a little too far?'
I had intended to use Dean Klébitz's special lessons as an excuse to justify my martial strength, which set me apart from other students.
So I had planned to show a moderate amount of skill, but I did much better than expected.
I didn't think I'd get it on the first try either.
As I sheathed my sword, I snuck a glance at him and saw Jerome Klébitz frozen with a serious expression.
'Ah, this feels ominous.'
Then, he began striding toward me.
Suddenly, Dean Klébitz grabbed my hand and said.
"You, young man! Will you not become my disciple?"
What in the world...
I tried to back away with a flabbergasted look, but I couldn't shake his hand off.
The dean clung to me tenaciously, as if possessed by a leech.
"What are you doing? You're already a professor, and I am a student of Venderford."
When I pointed out that I was already his student, Jerome Klébitz cleared his throat.
"Ahem! Ahem! I don't mean a disciple in that sense, but... you know."
Being quick on the uptake, there was no way I wouldn't know what this man was thinking.
Dean Klébitz was the captain of the Luminous Knight Order.
He was offering to teach me Destructive Glory in exchange for me joining the Luminous Knight Order.
'By the way, just how many positions does this guy hold?'
Seeing how he held all the good positions, it made me wonder if he was the empire's number one professional mooch.
I should live comfortably like this man...
It wouldn't be a bad idea to leech off Jerome Klébitz's fame and establish myself in the empire.
Of course, that's not going to happen.
'A knight's status is too restrictive. Besides, there's no way my family would approve.'
Once my thoughts reached that point, my grand dream of using Dean Klébitz quickly deflated.
Even so, my eyes kept drifting toward Destructive Glory.
The desire to master the sword art in depth reared its head once more.
Twisting my lips into a smirk, I cast out some bait.
"But why are you looking for a disciple?"
"Because no matter where I looked, there was no talent. Even when I had outstanding knights try the basic steps, their performance was lackluster."
"Is that why you took the position of dean of the knight faculty?"
"Precisely. I thought I would find the answer here, where the continent's finest talents gather."
From Jerome Klébitz's answer, I was able to glean a few clues.
First, Destructive Glory was a specialized secret art that required considerable innate talent.
Dean Klébitz was looking for someone who could wield a large amount of aura even at a young age.
Honestly, how many such talents could there be on the continent?
'Perhaps the direct descendants of the four great families. But they wouldn't want to become this man's disciple.'
The reason he was showing so much interest in me was likely because I was an admission-by-donation student.
With no powerful backing, I would be easy to persuade.
But what to do about this?
He's barking up the wrong tree.
"So you're saying I'm that answer?"
"At least, in my eyes, you are."
"But about this disciple thing. Do I have to join the Luminous Knight Order?"
"Why? Is that not a good thing?"
At my question, Jerome Klébitz tilted his head.
As the disciple of the man known as the Wings of Radiance, the vice-captain position would be a shoo-in.
Moreover, I could easily become a knight captain anywhere I went.
"I just don't like being tied down. To be honest, if they didn't teach the imperial sword arts here, I wouldn't have come."
"Ah... Well, I suppose that's understandable."
Faced with an unexpected answer, Dean Klébitz seemed a bit flustered.
He probably never imagined a student would refuse his offer.
I hammered the final nail in the coffin.
"I'll come see you if I change my mind later. There's still plenty of time until graduation, right?"
"...Do so. That's all for today's lesson."
"Yes."
Jerome Klébitz turned away with an awkward expression.
Without dragging on, the special lesson came to an end.
'I can't be stuck with this guy for a whole week. I have too much to do.'
* * *
"President? When exactly are you taking down these embarrassing banners?"
I was lazing about in my hammock when someone came to disturb my easy life.
Lifting my head, I saw it was Mac, one of the real powers in the student council.
But why is he a real power, you ask?
Because he does the most work.
The most appropriate description would be to write 'real power' and read it as 'slave'.
"Hey, are you even listening to me?"
"Yeah. So you can speak more quietly. You're so timid everywhere else, why are you so bold only with me?"
"Because the workload pisses me off?"
Ah, to be consumed by anger. How foolish.
I waved my hand dismissively and said nonchalantly.
"What about the banners? Stop talking nonsense and bring me a cup of that tea over there."
"This isn't tea, it's alcohol."
"It's made by fermenting grain. So it's grain tea, what else?"
"Ugh! That's not what's important right now. Just take down those hideous banners and go to the bulletin board."
"Why?"
"A new mission is up. They say it'll be part of the final evaluation this time too."
"Oh, really? They said they'd post a notice soon, and it's finally here. The administration office sure is quick with their work."
"Isn't it that you're slow, Ray? You're always just lazing around."
"It's fine if I'm slow. As long as my slaves—I mean, my student council officers—are fast."
"...What did you say?"
I gave the dumbfounded Mac an exaggerated pat on the back and left the tent.
Immediately, banners reading 'Female Students Welcome' and 'Campus Romance Support Initiative' caught my eye.
"I'm offering full support with the student council budget, but no one's applying."
"That's because our biased student council president chases away all the men."
"Ugh! Hitting me with facts, you coward!"
As I feigned clutching my heart, Mac Ties shook his head.
When we finally arrived at the bulletin board, a crowd of students was gathered, chattering noisily.
It seemed everyone was excited, as it was the first off-campus mission in a while.
I nudged Mac, who was standing there blankly, and said.
"Aren't you going to do it?"
"Do what?"
"You're supposed to announce, 'Make way for the student council president!' and clear a path."
"Don't make me do something so embarrassing. I'll resign, I swear. And do you really think they'd move for such nonsense?"
"Aish. So prickly."
Having no choice, I pushed through the crowd myself and finally managed to read the bulletin board.
But then, a rather familiar word seemed to bore into my eyes.
"...What? The Forest of the Dead?"