Ch.30030. Professor Brianna’s Exclusive Disciple

Seraphina bowed her head and quietly watched Gilbert’s back as he left the training room. Once the door he had opened closed behind him, she released her mana control that had filled the room and exhaled deeply.

“Yanik.”

“At your command, Lady Seraphina.”

Yanik, who had been standing like a shadow to one side, quickly responded to Seraphina’s sudden call.

“What do you think?”

“From my humble perspective, he spoke only the truth.”

Despite the vague question, Yanik, who understood the princess’s true intentions better than anyone, conveyed his assessment to Seraphina without embellishment.

Having served as the princess’s guard for over a decade, he had developed a keen eye for people through experiencing all manner of political schemes. He had reached the point where he could naturally discern the truth in someone’s words, and he concluded that everything Gilbert had just said was true.

There was the possibility that Gilbert might be skilled enough at acting to deceive even his eyes, but one couldn’t overlook the fact that he was merely a freshman who had just enrolled at Demeia Academy to prove his blue blood.

Unless one was a battle-hardened soldier with decades of experience or a cunning power player, it was impossible to deceive his eyes.

“I think the same. Gilbert Lyon Hart spoke nothing but the truth to me.”

That was why Seraphina had accepted Gilbert’s request. Whether it was because she had strongly inherited the imperial bloodline, she possessed an innate ability to see through lies. This ability stemmed from her characteristic skill, making it fundamentally different from Yanik’s ability built through experience.

When she used this ability to judge, Gilbert had told her nothing but the truth.

Of course, there had been something strange.

If asked to identify what was strange about what he said, it was when he confessed his delinquent behavior to her.

If one were to express truth and lies in colors, assuming truth appeared green, then lies would appear red.

However, when Gilbert told Seraphina about his misdeeds, they appeared crimson. That was the reaction that occurred when falsehood was hidden within truth.

Seraphina was genuinely curious about what he could possibly be hiding while confessing his wrongdoings.

Could it mean that Gilbert hadn’t actually committed all the misdeeds rumored about him?

Or was the claim that he was trash a lie?

Seraphina couldn’t tell. That’s why she accepted his request but attached one condition. It was a decision made with the intention of learning more about him.

“This year seems like it’s going to be really interesting.”

Yanik bowed his head as he observed Seraphina’s gentle smile. Somehow, he felt that Seraphina welcomed the emergence of an unpredictable variable.

***

Tactical Combat was fundamentally a mecha game about controlling giant god-soldiers, but it hadn’t abandoned fantasy elements. Rather, they were blended in at appropriate places throughout the game, and the knight setting was one such element.

Knights who had become superhuman through mana training techniques were pilots who controlled the giant god-soldiers, but they were also monsters capable of fighting a hundred men on their own. This was why knights were deployed on solo missions without using giant god-soldiers.

The reason knights were chosen as pilots for the giant god-soldiers also had to do with their unique control method.

The control method for giant god-soldiers was achieved through a contract with an artificial spirit installed in the mech. While there were control levers for handling the god-soldier, these played only a supplementary role; the core of the control technique was the contracted artificial spirit.

The artificial spirit transmitted the pilot’s mental imagery to the god-soldier to move it—this was the control mechanism of the god-soldier, a magical interpretation of the neural connection system commonly used in other mecha games.

For these reasons, highly trained knights and renowned swordsmanship were still highly valued.

In this respect, becoming Professor Briana’s disciple meant becoming both an outstanding knight and an exceptional god-soldier pilot.

Gilbert, who was now just one step away from becoming Professor Briana’s disciple, happily attended the strategy and tactics lecture before heading to Professor Briana’s research lab.

When he was under pressure from the Presence skill, he thought he might fail, but fortunately, that didn’t happen. Though conditions were attached, unlike what he had expected, even those conditions were something to welcome with open arms from the perspective of pursuing growth.

Upon arriving at Professor Briana’s research lab, Gilbert knocked on the door. Fortunately, she seemed to be in, as her characteristically emotionless voice came from beyond the door.

“Hello, Professor.”

“I see you’ve obtained the princess’s permission, given that you’re here.”

Briana, who had been doing paperwork, stopped her work and cast a glance at Gilbert as he entered confidently. Even she hadn’t expected Seraphina to approve the exclusive disciple matter. She had thought that Seraphina, who had the most discerning eye for people, would flatly refuse.

Briana organized the documents she had been working on to one side. Since Seraphina had given her permission, all that remained was her own approval.

“I never expected you to get Seraphina’s permission. This is unexpected even for me.”

“I was fortunate.”

“You may not know this, Gilbert, but Lady Seraphina’s permission is not something one receives through mere luck. She is… Never mind. Since you’ve already received permission, there’s no need to waste time. Follow me.”

Gilbert followed Professor Briana to a private training ground that only professors were allowed to use. Befitting Demeia Academy’s reputation for having the finest facilities, the spacious training ground displayed various weapons.

Among the common sword types alone, there were longswords, shortswords, valkyrie swords, gladiuses, and rapiers, and other weapons like spears, axes, and halberds were also easy to find.

“Take a weapon.”

At Professor Briana’s instruction as she took a longsword from the display, Gilbert also took a longsword.

“From now on, you just need to come at me with all your might. Even if you have the princess’s permission, I cannot accept you as my disciple if you lack talent. I am not someone who engages in such worthless endeavors.”

“What are the conditions for passing?”

Gilbert knew that the standard for passing was solely at Professor Briana’s discretion, but he asked to follow the flow of conversation.

“According to the criteria I set. Now, Gilbert, come at me as if your life depends on it.”

Saaaah!!

Professor Briana’s aura constricted around Gilbert. It was the fighting spirit that only a first-class swordsman could emit, different from Seraphina’s Presence skill.

Gilbert involuntarily swallowed as he faced Professor Briana’s test, which he had challenged countless times in the game. Cold sweat ran down his back from tension he had never felt in the game. If he couldn’t withstand this pressure, the test itself would not even begin. He took a deep breath and drew his longsword from its scabbard.

‘Ugh!’

As he drew his sword, the invisible force emanating from Professor Briana intensified. The intent to cut him down with a single step transformed into killing intent that pricked his skin. In the game, it had merely caused a stiffening effect, but in the real world, he felt the fear of death.

But Gilbert knew well how to escape this. Mana began to flow from his mana core according to the Lion Heart training method. His tense body began to relax as if he had entered warm water.

With that, his preparation was complete.

“Not bad.”

Briana praised Gilbert for breaking free of her pressure faster than expected. She had thought he wasn’t an ordinary student, but his level exceeded her expectations. Especially, the residual magical energy spreading from him was extraordinary.

But this was a place to test sword talent. Everything else was dismissed as secondary.

“How long do you intend to keep me waiting?”

At Professor Briana’s sharp words, Gilbert smiled fiercely. Now that his body was warmed up, all that remained was to clash with full force.

Without a word, Gilbert charged at Professor Briana, who showed no openings whatsoever, and swung his sword horizontally.

Whoosh!

Professor Briana avoided Gilbert’s sword simply by leaning her upper body backward. But having anticipated this, he immediately followed up with a shoulder strike, a move he often used while controlling god-soldiers.

Whisk!

Professor Briana easily avoided this attack as well, but she had to step back slightly from her position. She couldn’t avoid the surprisingly excellent horizontal slash and the smoothly connected shoulder strike without moving from her spot. Especially, Gilbert’s nearly perfected physique far exceeded Professor Briana’s expectations.

“Ha!”

With a short battle cry, Gilbert began his combo attack. If a diagonal downward slash failed, a kick would fly toward her face; if a thrust failed, a punch would follow.

His swordsmanship might seem unsystematic at first glance, but anyone versed in swordsmanship would quickly notice that all his movements, though still unrefined, followed a certain form.

It was not a haphazard style without system; rather, it accounted for close combat, using every available body part—arms, legs, shoulders, knees—as weapons.

Briana realized one thing from this familiar sight.

He’s similar to me.

Briana discovered that Gilbert’s swordsmanship was very similar to her own. Of course, it still showed flaws here and there due to its unrefined nature, but fundamentally, it shared many similarities with her style.

For knights who could manipulate mana, any part of the body could become a deadly weapon. Her “Winter Sword” style embodied this principle.

After leaping back to avoid Gilbert’s shoulder strike, Briana finally drew the sword she had been merely holding. She hadn’t intended to draw it, but seeing swordsmanship similar to her own piqued her interest.

“You’ve drawn your sword.”

Gilbert’s eyes gleamed as he readjusted his stance. In the game, he had seen the second phase only after 700 attempts, but now he was seeing it on his first try. This was natural for Gilbert, who had already challenged it a thousand times, but he thought Professor Briana’s feelings would be different.

“You were simply more skilled than I expected.”

“So have I passed?”

“Stop being impertinent and raise your sword. If you can withstand this, I’ll consider it.”

That was the end of their conversation. What followed was an endless exchange of attacks and defenses. They moved in perfect harmony, advancing and retreating.

Professor Briana’s sharp sword grazed Gilbert’s hair. Gilbert’s knee strike brushed past Professor Briana’s chin.

Attack met attack, and lightning-fast sword strikes decorated the training ground.

As the exchange continued, Briana marveled at Gilbert’s talent. His sword sense was innate, and his perfected physique gave wings to that talent.

She couldn’t use her full strength against a student, but her heart raced in a way that belied her age. She had never seen anyone whose swordsmanship so closely resembled her Winter Sword style.

At that moment, Briana decided to make Gilbert her disciple. Now, even if Gilbert refused, it wouldn’t matter. He would have to become her disciple, even if by force.

Their swords clashed loudly, and they both stepped back. The endless exchange reached a lull.

“That’s enough.”

Briana wanted to unleash the principles of her Winter Sword, but she held back, thinking there would be more opportunities. It was already remarkable that a student had kept up with her this far.

Continuing further would be her own greed and a burden on Gilbert.

“Huff. Did I pass?”

Gilbert asked, exhaling roughly. He had seen the faint smile on Professor Briana’s face, but he wanted to hear it directly.

“You passed. From now on, Gilbert, you are my exclusive disciple. I’d like to discuss related matters, but… it seems difficult today.”

“I think so too.”

Gilbert felt his body, exhausted from the recent duel, as heavy as a thousand pounds. Though physically excellent, the duel using mana was too much for Gilbert, whose growth was not yet complete. He desperately wanted to shower and collapse into bed.

“We’ll talk in detail tomorrow. Make sure to find me here early tomorrow morning.”

“Understood.”

“Then you may go for today.”

Gilbert quickly sheathed the longsword and placed it back on the display, then bid farewell to Professor Briana and left the training room. Fortunately, all his lectures for the day were over, so he could rest after a shower.

Gilbert headed hurriedly to his room, ignoring even the notification that a sub-quest had been completed. Today, even training was on strike.