Ch.51Not Exactly Weak, but Not Strong Either

A sandstorm raged.

The continuous sound of two lightning bolts colliding echoed repeatedly.

The once flat ground was being gouged, split, and crushed, transforming into something resembling ruins.

Mounds of soil erupted like waves, and broken fragments scattered in all directions.

Demian’s greatsword had become even more ferocious in its momentum, now plowing through everything around it like an excavator.

The heavy sound of air being cut resonated fiercely like a giant’s roar.

Students who had retreated far away to avoid the aftermath simply stared blankly at the intense battle unfolding before their eyes.

They were acutely aware of the difference in level between themselves and the combatants.

But they weren’t watching Demian.

Opposite him was a woman who was effortlessly overwhelming the whirlwind of the greatsword with just a longsword, as if it were child’s play.

—-

“Whoosh!”

Demian’s greatsword, swung at an angle, plunged into the ground once more.

Flying soil particles tapped against armor.

Resting the longsword on her shoulder, she stepped back and smiled leisurely.

“You’re still the same. Still clumsy.”

Demian’s fighting style hadn’t changed much from before.

Powerful strikes utilizing the weight and centrifugal force of the greatsword.

Jumping down strikes, spinning slashes, and charging thrusts—rough and violent movements.

It was exactly as she had seen during the entrance exam.

A fighting style that exposed countless openings but covered them with the momentum of the greatsword.

Certainly, an opponent of similar level would find it difficult to exploit those openings.

They would struggle to even block, let alone counter, the greatsword filled with such intense power.

She easily dodged the greatsword aimed at her head, then used the base of her longsword to deflect the following slash, breaking its trajectory.

The misdirected sword path cut through empty air.

It was swordsmanship meant only to overwhelm the weak.

In the end, when facing a stronger opponent, it was so easily countered.

Well, it was only natural that his swordplay would end up like this.

Until coming to the academy, he probably never encountered anyone stronger than himself.

“First of all, your movements are too big. It’s obvious where you’re aiming, and easy to dodge.”

She dodged a spinning slash aimed at her waist by dropping low. The greatsword passed right above her.

The rough wind caught her hair, pleasantly cooling her heated forehead.

“—And easy to counter.”

She sprang up her upper body and thrust her longsword forward.

Due to swinging his greatsword too widely, Demian’s torso was completely exposed.

Relaxing her grip to avoid running him through, she lightly jabbed his side and retreated.

The belatedly swung greatsword cut through the air feebly.

Demian slightly furrowed his brow, then leaped and rotated vertically in mid-air.

His greatsword, charged with centrifugal force, came down like lightning.

“The momentum is good, but in the end, it’s just momentum.”

With sufficient physical ability to react, such an obvious attack…

Could be avoided by simply taking two steps to the side.

The weak might be overwhelmed by the pressure and unable to move, but…

The ground exploded with a thunderous roar when the greatsword collided with it.

Just the ground.

“Relying on strength and speed isn’t wrong… but that only works against those weaker than you.”

She stepped on the greatsword that had dug into the ground.

As the sword tip buried deeper into the earth, Demian’s upper body tilted.

“If your opponent is stronger than you, it means nothing.”

Demian’s arms bulged as if trying to lift the greatsword with force.

Not a chance.

The greatsword didn’t even budge.

Of course, the strength in one of her legs pressing down was far greater than both of Demian’s arms.

“Ngggh…!”

“Nice try.”

She kicked Demian.

With a thud, Demian let out a groan and was sent flying.

“Well, do you understand what your problem is now?”

He could probably overwhelm opponents weaker than himself.

He might even fight evenly against opponents with similar physical abilities.

It was the same during the entrance exam.

Since Knut fought without a blessing, the outcome was more or less a draw.

What did Professor Carlain say? That if a swordsman’s martial skill is only on par with a paladin’s, they might as well die.

Demian was exactly in that state.

“Not yet!”

Demian gritted his teeth and charged again.

His catchphrase is exactly like Millia’s. Somewhat annoying.

She raised her longsword.

Demian swung his greatsword like a storm.

Like fruit in a blender, the ground screamed as it was violently ground up.

Soil and gravel fragments scattered like a waterfall.

A continuous attack without pause.

This reminded her of when she fought Nigel.

“Haaaaaaah!”

“Yes, this is a bit better!”

She swung her longsword. Faster. Stronger.

Deflecting, blocking, and sometimes countering the greatsword, she responded to everything without moving a step.

“Clang clang clang clang!”

The series of collision sounds merged into one large noise.

A fireworks display unfolded.

She was certainly glad she had invested in a good weapon.

She marveled anew at the performance of the longsword. If it had been the academy’s standard steel sword, it would have shattered by now.

The black iron longsword made by Asha hadn’t even cracked under this tremendous impact.

Though the edge was completely blunted.

Rather, Demian’s greatsword, made of ordinary steel, was reaching its limit first.

She could clearly see cracks forming on the blade.

She gripped the longsword firmly and added more strength.

“Kaaah!”

A powerful slash aimed precisely at the cracked area.

With a clang, Demian’s greatsword split in two.

The front part flew toward the watching students.

Shocked by the sudden danger, they hurriedly moved out of the way.

“Kuk..!”

“This is the end.”

Demian raised the broken greatsword like a shield to block her punch aimed at his solar plexus.

Well, that won’t stop it.

“Crash!”

The greatsword shattered like glass, and her fist drove straight into Demian’s abdomen.

“Khaaaaak…!”

Demian flew horizontally about ten meters.

Hopefully this didn’t rupture his internal organs? She hadn’t intended to send him to the infirmary.

She sheathed her longsword and approached him, cracking her knuckles.

Demian groaned and staggered to his feet.

There was some blood at the corner of his mouth, but since he wasn’t coughing up blood profusely, he was probably fine.

He clenched his fists and charged.

Time for a beating.

—-

What followed was almost a one-sided assault.

Demian’s fighting skills were terrible.

He couldn’t properly block or deflect punches and kicks, and just flailed his arms and legs clumsily.

Unable to even dream of counterattacking, he barely managed to react to attacks aimed at vital points by taking them on other parts of his body.

A meaningless tactic against her.

“Gah! W-wait, Haschal!”

“You’re not dodging, but blocking with your body? Isn’t that still your body?”

Taking a knife-hand strike aimed at his neck with his shoulder doesn’t make it hurt any less.

Demian’s head kept snapping back.

Like an air-filled balloon doll, his whole body wobbled this way and that with each hit.

Hmm, this is kind of fun.

“Ngggh…”

Unable to raise a hand or foot in defense, Demian finally collapsed after being thoroughly beaten.

His once clean face was swollen in various places.

“As expected, you haven’t properly learned hand-to-hand combat either?”

She knew it when she saw him desperately swinging just that one greatsword.

As a rule, no one who digs only one well survives long in battle.

In a fight where anything can happen, one should be equipped with various means.

“What a waste of talent. At this rate, you might even lose to Millia if you drop your greatsword.”

She probably wouldn’t actually lose, given his basic physical abilities.

But one thing was certain—with these skills, he wouldn’t survive as a hero.

“This won’t do. From now on, you’ll have special training with me during every sparring session, understood?”

“……”

No answer means consent, right?

At least he’s not backing down from challenges—befitting a hero.

Your mindset is admirable, Demian.

“Um, Haschal…?”

“Yes? Millia?”

From behind, she heard Millia cautiously calling her name.

She turned to look at her.

Millia’s trembling eyes were filled with bewilderment and awkwardness.

Perhaps seeing her admired man being beaten so helplessly was quite shocking…

“I think Demian… has fainted.”

At those words, she looked back at Demian.

He was lying limp and motionless.

He really did faint. He was still twitching just a moment ago.

To faint without even having bones crushed—his mental fortitude needs training too…

In the end, Demian was carried to the infirmary.

Millia’s staring gaze made her feel guilty.

Well, he wasn’t seriously injured, just multiple contusions and a few fractures.

“Haaaaah…”

She exhaled smoke, feeling frustrated.

The future hero is too weak.

Objectively, for his age, his skill level isn’t weak but rather exceptional.

But considering what lies ahead, merely being exceptional isn’t nearly enough.

Perhaps it can’t be helped since he’s a first-year.

Even if she wanted to train him properly, he needs freedom to move around.

There’s a limit to how much she can spoon-feed him.

For now, she’ll continue the sparring sessions.

If she beats him up for two months, she should be able to develop him enough to be useful during the Werebeast attack.

—-

She also had a free sparring session with Millia.

Millia pondered for a while when asked to spar with her.

She didn’t beat her up, just blocked and deflected Millia’s three swords while pointing out her issues.

Overall, her sword form was sharp, but she critically lacked sense.

“Your concentration is good, but you can’t respond to attacks coming from outside your field of vision.”

So when facing multiple enemies or someone with quick movements, she’d get flustered and overwhelmed.

She might be fine against Kobolds, but anything beyond that would be difficult.

“You also lack stamina, making it hard to fight for long periods.”

After fighting for more than three minutes, her swordplay noticeably slowed down.

“Like Demian, your attacks are too straightforward.”

Thrusting is a linear attack, but you should still conceal where you’re aiming.

If the target is visible, the opponent can simply dodge.

“But your ability to exploit openings with thrusts is good.”

She didn’t forget to praise her too, not wanting her to become discouraged.

Millia smiled gratefully after the sparring session, so it must have gone well.