Ch.20Practical Evaluation (2)

An unfamiliar ceiling.

“…Where am I?”

“Ah, you’re in the hospital room.”

When I turned my head, Sonia was there. She looked down at me with her hands modestly folded.

Something feels like déjà vu.

I barely managed to sit up. My entire body screamed as if it would break apart. When I checked my forearm, it was covered in dark bruises.

How did this happen?

I remember starting the sparring match with Rustila Kersil.

But everything after that has completely disappeared from my memory.

I think something flashed before my eyes…

“Young master, you were knocked out by Rustila’s strike.”

“…Was I?”

“Yes. You’ve been unconscious for three hours now.”

Sonia continued her explanation with a sigh.

It was fortunate that I only suffered minor injuries, she was worried when I didn’t wake up, Rustila feels sorry about it—that sort of thing.

Sonia, probably recalling pre-possession Eidel’s temperament, asked me to be generous and forgive Rustila when she comes.

Click.

Speak of the devil.

The door opened, and Seti and Rustila entered. Zermel and Dona were with them.

Seti and Rustila wore astonished expressions.

“…Hey, are you okay?”

Seti asked.

“You seem fine since you’re awake…”

My usually vicious sister was nowhere to be seen. Her eyes drooped at the corners. Her face softened. It’s an expression I’ve never seen before.

I waved my arm and answered.

“As you can see, I’m perfectly fine.”

“Ah…”

Seti let out an inexplicable sigh. Then, folding her arms, she started to snicker.

“It would’ve been a win-win if you’d died. We could’ve collected the life insurance too.”

“…Sister?”

“What? What do you want me to do? We still need to pay your academy tuition, you know?”

The spicy sibling banter made me dizzy. This hit harder than getting struck by Rustila.

“Miss, minors cannot be enrolled in life insurance.”

“You think I don’t know that? It’s a joke, just a joke.”

Seti glanced at me while saying that. She seemed to be gauging my reaction.

I didn’t have the energy to get angry, nor did I want to. I just sighed with my chin resting on my hand.

An awkward atmosphere settled in.

Rustila was sweating profusely, not knowing what to do. Eventually, she approached me with her head deeply bowed.

“I’m, I’m sorry. Did it hurt a lot?”

She repeated her apology like a broken wind-up toy. Her ocean-blue eyes trembled like a candle in the wind.

I thought her reaction was both excessive and pitiful.

“We also offer our apologies.”

Zermel and the other androids all bowed their heads in unison.

“We will cover your medical expenses. And if there’s anything else you need…”

“It’s fine.”

Zermel’s eyes widened as if they would consume the whites.

“This level of injury doesn’t require you to cover the medical expenses. I can handle it with my own money.”

I was planning to sell all the items in my room once I got accepted to Stellarium. I could cover it from there. There was no loss.

“What? But…”

“I said it’s fine. Look at this.”

I gently rotated my arm. Though it hurt, it wasn’t fractured, so I could move it. This was just muscle pain level.

“Young master. Forgive my impertinence, but our miss hates being indebted to others more than anything. If you have any requests, please make them…”

“Oh, is that so?”

Well, even if I’m not angry, I should still make a request.

But in a way that benefits both Rustila and me.

I looked at Rustila and opened my mouth.

“Then, let’s have one more sparring match.”

***

Sword Saint (劍聖).

The title Rustila earned after stopping the invasion of an S-class monster.

Getting personal training from someone of her caliber is a rare experience. It would probably be impossible without paying a considerable sum.

But still.

But still.

“…This doesn’t look very cool.”

I flicked the practice sword with my finger and expressed my dissatisfaction.

“Can’t be helped. Just in case…”

Rustila smiled bitterly, seemingly finding it ridiculous too.

For safety reasons, we had chosen balloon sticks.

Yes, balloon sticks. The ones people wave in both hands at baseball games or concerts.

Seti had bought them from a nearby shopping mall, either because she didn’t want me to get hurt or because Rustila didn’t want to kill someone.

“Wow.”

Even she seems to think it looks stupid.

[─ The God of Wisdom and Curiosity sighs.]

Rustila and I took our stances and pointed our “swords” at each other. I could hear passersby snickering. Rustila’s face turned as red as a carrot.

“S-shall we begin…?”

The sparring was to gauge my skill level.

Though defeat was inevitable, it was a necessary process to receive personal instruction from Rustila.

“…Come.”

I muttered with confidence.

And then.

“Ugh.”

As soon as Sonia gave the signal.

“Urgh.”

I started getting beaten like a dog.

Pop, pop, pop. The sound of bursting bubbles came from all over my body. It didn’t hurt, but my reactions were slow. I couldn’t see the path of her sword(?) at all.

I got hit in the same spots repeatedly. Hit and hit again. My forearms and legs gradually swelled up red.

“A-are you okay…?”

My whole body felt hot and stinging. When the sparring ended, I put down my sword and blankly looked up at the sky.

If it had been a real sword instead of a balloon, I would have been turned into cube steak long ago.

Rustila scratched her head as she looked at me, now red all over.

“I’m really sorry. I tried to swing as gently as possible…”

You call that gentle?

While I was sighing, Seti handed me a towel and said:

“I told you, right? You can’t even pick up your bones against Rustila. Be thankful you got hit with balloons.”

“…Yeah. But how can anyone be this fast?”

I really couldn’t see anything. Where the attacks were coming from, or where I should block.

I thought I had practiced enough with Sonia, but none of that helped.

“It’s because Rustila has a contract with a constellation. Her movement speed is different from others.”

“Ah…”

Come to think of it, the novel often described her sword strikes as ‘exceeding the speed of sound.’ It was a description that appeared repeatedly when depicting Rustila’s swift swordsmanship.

I didn’t realize it was literal rather than figurative.

We hurriedly put down the balloons and picked up wooden swords again.

“…Now, I’ll tell you what you need to improve.”

Rustila said this with a slight smile, like a flower about to bloom.

“Swordsmanship fundamentally comes from calming your mind. If your mind wavers, so does your sword path. You need to clear away distracting thoughts.”

“Distracting thoughts…”

“Were you thinking about something else?”

“I… wasn’t not thinking.”

Even during the sparring, I was constantly thinking about other things.

What specifically should I do after enrollment?

What types of outer gods appear according to the timeline?

Which monster should be dealt with first?

What elements are needed to develop gravity bombs, and so on.

I was trying to process with my outdated brain thoughts that would be challenging even for multiple people working together.

“Yes, it’s difficult at first. But if you unconsciously focus your gaze, you’ll gradually start to see my sword. Shall we start by fixing your stance?”

Rustila taught me the proper way to hold a sword from the beginning.

If Sonia was unorthodox, Rustila was textbook. The stance she recommended was difficult to maintain but had no flaws.

“Your calf muscles are weak. Now, bend your knees a bit more. Yes, like that. Lower your center of gravity, and keep your back straight…”

“Nngh.”

Physical exertion is really my weakness.

***

I received lessons from Rustila over several days. Thanks to that, my posture improved considerably, and my thoughts became calmer when holding a sword.

I didn’t learn many techniques. Those are shortcuts, she said. What’s important is knowing why you swing the way you do, even if it’s just one strike.

And the ability to subdue an opponent.

Regarding the first round of acceptance, of course I passed.

I passed, and so did Rustila and Seti. Especially those two, who hugged each other and cried as soon as the results were announced.

In my case, there was a lot of surprise at my acceptance.

Seti was surprised, Dona was surprised, and even Zermel was surprised. Only Rustila smiled slightly, as if she had known I would pass.

“Good luck.”

Rustila said.

“You’ve gained three extra days beyond what was planned, right? You’ve practiced a lot during that time, so you’ll do well.”

For some reason, the academy announced the written test results three days later than the scheduled date.

Well, there must have been some system error.

I shook off my thoughts and focused ahead. A male supervisor with messy hair tapped the microphone and began speaking.

“For procedural purposes, I’ll explain again. This year’s practical evaluation involves simulated combat against golems modeled after monsters.”

He continued his explanation.

“Plasma Swords are placed on the equipment rack to your right. You must use only the swords provided there. They have safety features, so use them without worry, but if any problems arise, we will take immediate action.”

More explanations followed. Evaluation criteria, precautions against cheating, and so on.

Simply put, they’re testing comprehensive physical ability and crisis management skills.

“Now, I’ll introduce the monster that will assist with your practical exam.”

“No way, that’s…”

“This is the C-class monster ‘Cluster.’ It’s a biological-type beast commonly seen in ‘Darwin’s Legion.’ As you can see, its characteristic feature is having three pairs of arms and legs.”

It’s like a doll with distinct joints. Its size was close to 2 meters. Each arm and leg had three segments. Its face was smooth like an egg.

The creature was holding cutting tools like axes or saw blades in each hand.

Although artificially made, it was threatening.

The examinees murmured and backed away at the shocking visual.

“There’s no need to worry. It just looks impressive. You won’t be injured.”

The supervisor assured them confidently. Only then did some students sigh in relief.

“Students whose names are called, please come get your swords. In our section, ten students at a time will enter designated rooms to take the test.”

Soon, the first ten students’ names were called. Neither I, Seti, nor Rustila were among them.

“That’s a shame. It’s better to go first.”

“What? Are you crazy? What if you make a mistake when you’re not mentally prepared?”

“They say it’s better to get the beating over with first.”

Seti frowned, displeased with my words. She took several deep breaths in succession.

“Typical Eidel. Getting unnecessarily nervous on exam day.”

“Shut up.”

While Seti and I were bickering, the huge monitor installed on the ceiling suddenly turned on and split into ten sections. Each horizontally elongated section showed a room where a monster model was waiting.

“For transparent and fair judging, the entire practical evaluation process will be open to the public. Please take this into consideration…”

Wow.

It would be embarrassing if I don’t do well.

Soon, the evaluation began.

The time limit is 10 minutes. Within that time, if you defeat the monster model or inflict significant damage, you get a high score. Conversely, if you get hit once, your score is greatly reduced.

[─ The God of Wisdom and Curiosity shows signs of discomfort.]

I watched the broadcast monitor with curious eyes. The monster models began to move, and each examinee confronted them in their own way. Some students fought evenly against the models, while others struggled.

In any case, the evaluation seemed to be proceeding smoothly.

…At least until the arm of the boy in room 5 was severed.