episode_0040

‘Comfortable.’

This was the thought of Mathias, who was standing in front of a group of men who were drawing their swords with a look of murderous intent. It was a sentiment that did not fit the situation at all, but for some reason Mathias felt that way.

What could be the reason? Mathias thought about it carefully and was able to easily figure it out.

I felt no fear from the crowd before my eyes.

There was a time when I was so afraid of the punks right in front of me when I first entered school that I didn’t dare to even look them in the eye. It wasn’t that long ago, but for some reason, I felt very ashamed of myself back then.

‘Just to that extent?’

The reason why such thoughts come to mind is because Mathias has already crossed swords with incomparable powers dozens or hundreds of times.

Compared to the aura radiating from their entire bodies like those of the strong men Ayla and Leah, who could easily break through any defense they put up, the thugs in front of them were no different from candles in front of the sun.

‘I’m in no danger at all right now.’

They must have felt a sense of comfort even in this tense situation because they instinctively knew that their attacks could not harm them.

‘The princess constantly emphasized the importance of keeping calm. I didn’t understand why she said not to get excited while mixing swords. Was this how it was done?’

It is true that Mathias half-listened to the many empty words that Leah would blurt out during her training, thinking that they were just words that emphasized the importance of one’s state of mind or attitude when practicing the sword. However, when he realized with his own body that they were practical teachings, he couldn’t help but laugh.

“What the hell are you splitting up, you idiot!”

Seeing that, Girne couldn’t control his anger and rushed at Matias. Matias, who was concentrating hard, could clearly see the movement. It was one of the basic swordsmanship movements that Matias had repeated over and over again, and it was also the simplest movement.

It was a downward slash. Not limited to a sword, ‘slashing’ something is the most effective way to transmit power, and it is also a familiar movement to humans. This is why most swordsmanship, not just basic swordsmanship, focuses on teaching how to properly use this downward slash and how to destroy it.

‘So that’s why the princess told me to keep practicing the movements.’

The accelerated cognitive abilities of Matias made it seem as if Kirn’s sword was still, but on the other hand, he could also see the trajectory that the sword would draw in the future. Since it was a sword technique he already knew, and a movement he had practiced, it was obvious how Kirn would attack, and that he had no intention of mixing in any tricks.

Mathias already knew the best way to respond to that attack, and his body was already in motion. It was the same motion that had cut through the thief’s body.

visor!

The blades clashed against each other, making a sound that was both pleasant and eerie. It seemed as if Kirn had not expected Mathias to block his attack. That was why Kirn was unable to respond properly.

Unlike Kirin, who was just standing there with his sword swinging, Mathias was already making his next move. When he took Kirin’s sword and tilted his own sword to deflect it, Kirin, unable to withstand the force, lowered his sword to the ground with a “Ugh!”, and Mathias, who had slipped out in the opposite direction, saw Kirin’s body completely exposed in front of him.

Swinging his sword at an empty body like this was a continuation of the movement that Mathias used to kill bandits, and it was a classic attack. However, Mathias had no intention of killing Girne─so he cut off his defenseless thigh. The same place where he had been injured.

“Ahhhh! What the fuck!”

Even though he didn’t cut very deeply, Kirin threw away his sword, grabbed his thigh, and rolled on the ground. Tears were welling up in his eyes. There was no emotion on Mathias’ face as he looked at Kirin. Unlike before, he didn’t have the fear of cutting a person, nor the exhilaration of taking revenge on Kirin who had been tormenting him.

“Giren, if I hadn’t blocked your attack just now, I would have died. Isn’t that too much of a joke after attacking like that?”

◦ Shut up!

Even though Kirin cried and shouted, the gang just hesitated and didn’t move. That was understandable, because the gang had followed him with the thought that they would just throw a few punches at him, so they never thought that he would suddenly use his sword, and since Kirin, who was relatively strong among them, was defeated in an instant, it was only natural that they would suffer the same fate.

Also, the eerie smell of blood that resonated through the alleyway due to the excited Girren bleeding profusely was adding to their fear. ‘I could become like that too.’ They had not received proper swordsmanship training, so they were not prepared for that.

Furthermore, although this side had the numerical advantage, having more numbers did not necessarily mean that they had the advantage. If they had surrounded each other in a circle from the beginning, it would have been different, but if they had just stood in a normal confrontation and swung their swords at random, they would have either interfered with each other or attacked their own allies. Those who had fought quite a bit of common sense could naturally infer this.

When the gang showed no will to fight, Mathias put his sword away. Seeing that, the gang also breathed a sigh of relief and put their swords away as well.

“It’s not a deep cut, so there won’t be a problem. Please get him treated quickly.”

Leaving those words behind, Mathias turned around and walked away.

“Fuck, you son of a bitch! Just wait and see! How dare you touch me!”

Behind Matias, Kirin’s evil curses poured out, but Matias didn’t care at all. To Matias, Kirin was no longer someone he had to worry about. Matias, who had taken a step forward as an inspector, simply walked slowly while thinking back on what he had just realized.

.

.

.

“Fuck! You fucking commoner! Do you know who I am!”

Kirin lay in the treatment room, swearing repeatedly. As Matias had said, it was an excessive act to be hospitalized compared to the shallow cut on his thigh, but Kirin was someone who spent money like water, so he didn’t care about that.

Among the gang that usually hung out with Girne, only one remained. The rest were the group of ‘the guy who lost to Mathias even after attacking him first’, so they naturally left because they didn’t want to be tied down.

“Those crazy, disloyal kids.. I knew it when he didn’t swing his sword at me even once. I stumbled and luckily his sword just grazed me, but he got scared over that kind of thing..”

Although he knew full well that he had never once misstepped and that he had lost to Matias due to a difference in skill, he naturally hid it as if he was bragging.

“That’s right. There’s no way someone like Mathias could beat Ki-Rin. Those guys are stupid.”

“Johnny, I told you, you’re smarter than those kids.”

The boy called Johnny smiled broadly and answered the ramblings of insults against Mathias that Girne was spewing out. Girne, who had been quiet for a moment after pouring out all he had, heard Johnny’s quiet words.

“Grew up, but isn’t that strange? Until a few months ago, that weakling Mathias was a half-baked kid who couldn’t even keep up with class. But now that guy’s suddenly gotten stronger, and he even managed to catch your sword by chance.”

“That’s right. What on earth did you do?”

It was a question that not only the students but also the majority of those taking the Knights’ Undergraduate classes wondered: What on earth happened to Mathias?

“Whether it’s building stamina or practicing swordsmanship… Everyone knows that it’s ridiculous to suddenly increase that much in a short period of time. So─”

Johnny’s quiet words continued, “Isn’t there something beyond human power involved?”

“Wait a minute. So, are you saying that kid got the power of a god?”

“I don’t think a slacker like Matias would do that, but shouldn’t we think that we’ve gained at least a little bit of that? It’s definitely some kind of shady power.”

Although it was a groundless statement, Johnny’s words had a strange power, and Girne felt himself becoming more and more convinced by them.

‘Then that’s right. There’s no way a commoner could suddenly defeat me. He must have borrowed the power of mean socializing.’

Thinking about it that way, it wasn’t something to be ashamed of that he lost. His opponent had just used a cowardly move, and he had fought back with dignity and lost, so wasn’t that honorable?

“Giren, I have some seniors that I’ve been getting along with recently. They’re all lower-class nobles like us. Won’t you join the gathering?”

“They’re all inferior?”

Girren felt his heart sway at the tempting offer.

“Yeah. As you know, there are some upper-middle-class people in the Academy, but those arrogant bastards treat us like we don’t exist and only play among themselves. The commoners are the ones who do mean things like Mathias.”

“..That’s right. Johnny, introduce me to those seniors too. If the commoners and the upper-middle class kids ignore us..we’ll have no choice but to stick together.”

Girne nodded as if he had made a rational choice, and Johnny’s smile deepened as he watched.