Chapter 65: Man-Eater vs Man-Eater(?) (3)

The first-years knew that the main characters that everyone was expecting to see on the last day of the exam period weren’t themselves, but the second and third-years.

After all, those guys were warriors who had been doing their best in honing their Combat Techniques. Not only that, they also had pushed their capabilities to their limits. It was only natural that a lot of people would flock to see them.

That was probably the reason why there were only a handful of people watching the first-years’ exams every year. They probably thought something along the lines of; ‘What’s the point of watching those guys when they’d barely be able to put up a good fight?’.

But that didn’t happen this year. A considerable number of people had gathered to watch the first-years’ exam. Their number was even increasing over time.

There were many commoners among the spectators, but the number of nobles among them was also something worth noting.

But why was this year different? Why were there so many people gathering to watch the first-years’ exam?

“…That’s him.”

“Really? Wow, he’s even more handsome than what the rumors said…”

“Young Master Roen!!”

“Glory to the brave lion-!”

[[Long Live Lionel! Glory to the brave lion of the kingdom-!]]

[Waaaaaaah!!]

This was the reason. So many of them gathered here just to see the face of one particular man.

They shouted various monikers on top of their lungs.

‘The guardian of the north.’

‘The glorious black lion.’

‘The eternal ally and comrade of the kingdom.’

They shouted in unison to the most anticipated lion of the present, praying that he would show a battle worthy of his great bloodline.

Anticipation, cheers, and longing.

Those intangible feelings poured out, coming out like fighting spirits. Needless to say, anyone who were facing this kind of situation would find themselves struggling with nausea.

But it wasn’t the case for the black-haired boy who was standing in the center of the Colosseum. His cold, firm eyes were focused on the enemy that he had to face.

“It feels like I’ve turned into an attraction…”

Roen muttered to himself, a light sneer appeared on his lips.

In truth, he didn’t feel too good about all this. Because in his eyes, showcasing his skills in front of this many people wouldn’t do him any good.

However…

-If you’re going to do it anyway, put your everything on it. Don’t do it halfheartedly.

…Two days ago, the instructor appeared in front of the cadets, wearing a haggard and tired look, and encouraged them with such words.

Not only that, he also told them to take care of themselves and make sure that they wouldn’t get hurt.

Roen actually found his statement strange.

After all, how could one afford to do their best, but also not getting hurt at the same time?

Does he really care about us that much?

However, there was a particular feeling that Roen just couldn’t shake off. He felt like when the instructor said they shouldn’t get hurt, he meant to say those words to the other guys. Whereas for the ‘put your everything’ part, he directed it towards him specifically.

It feels like he could see through my mind…

I never had any intention to participate in this exam…

Roen genuinely thought that he wouldn’t gain anything by getting himself involved in such a farce. That was why joining the exam wasn’t something he intended to do to begin with.

And yet, here he was, standing right inside the arena.

He just couldn’t bring himself to refuse his benefactor’s order, considering that he still had debts to pay to the man.

I don’t think this will be enough to pay all of my debts, but I’ll show him…

And so, he vowed to himself that he’d show his instructor his best.

[GRRR-!]

Roen slowly lowered his well-sharpened longsword. Instead of maintaining a straight posture, he relaxed his body. Some people might think that he was playing around when they saw this, but anyone with a keen eye would stare at him with wide eyes.

Because even with such a relaxed posture, he showed no opening in his stance.

“Know that you don’t deserve to face this technique, you detestable cur.”

[GRR?]

Since it was a monster without any intelligence whatsoever—it only possessed the ‘instinct’ to hit and destroy its opponent—it failed to understand what Roen was trying to say and just rushed at him.

Just like during its fight with Barry, it just rushed out recklessly.

But…

“Why is he standing still?”

“H-Huh!?”

Seeing the next thing that unfolded, the crowds descended to chaos.

The monster was already right in front of him, but Roen didn’t take up any stance. Instead, he muttered in a low tone, although his muttering was buried beneath the audience’s shouts.

“I call this Sword Energy.”

Wooong-!

In an instant, his blade flashed. It wasn’t a metaphor; everyone saw it happened.

Lights flickered from the blade of his sword.

Then, in the next moment…

Crackle-!

Crackle-!

[GR━…R…]

Bang-!

The Rock Troll stopped functioning, not even able to properly say its last words.

It was an absurd development, like something straight out of a dream.

“What the—?!”

For a moment there, people could only wonder what had just happened. Only after five seconds of silence passed did they finally find out.

The Rock Troll’s head, heart, and stomach were completely pierced. Before the spectators realized it, Roen had already inflicted three such wounds on the Rock Troll.

Upon seeing that, the spectators were almost struck speechless. The only reason why they weren’t was because of the thing they saw just now.

“W-What was that?”

“…Gods above.”

“…”

“T-That thing just now… W-Was that an Aura?!”

“I know he’s a genius and all, but becoming an Aura user at that age?! That’s just too much!!”

“N-No, that definitely isn’t an Aura… B-But… What is that exactly…?”

The spectators’ reactions were largely divided into three.

One, the people who admired what had just happened without even knowing how he had performed such a feat.

Two, the martial artists who had some knowledge of swordsmanship. They were completely bewildered and confused by what had just happened, as they were unfamiliar with the identity of the power that they had just witnessed.

And the last one was…

“So he combined Swords Resonance with tangible spirits.”

“Not only that, it seems like he also combined Swift Swordsmanship, Changing Swordsmanship and Illusionary Swordsmanship. Then, he used Martial Power to fill up any gaps it created… Seriously, it’s disgusting that he could utilize such techniques freely. That’s something I could never do…”

“Blackie is strong. Crazy strong!”

The small number of talented swordsmen who managed to recognize what he had accomplished; those who could confidently say that they were skilled. They managed to find out what kind of swordsmanship Roen had just displayed.

‘Sword Resonance’, a phenomenon that was created by a resonance between the sword and its swordsman; it allowed the swordsman to maximize the destructive power of the swordsmanship he used. Roen combined such a thing with ‘Tangible Spirit’, something that only those who had mastered Combat Technique could display.

After showcasing those two techniques, he even went a few steps further. He used three different styles of swordsmanship at once, and shot the energy produced by it in an instant.

Although from such an explanation this seemed like a simple feat to perform…

Both Sword Resonance and Tangible Spirit were techniques that could only be performed with a high level of concentration.

Even so, he was able to stack three different styles of swordsmanship on top of that.

What he did was the equivalent of playing a harmonica while writing two different things with his two different hands.

In other words…

He had achieved what was impossible.

This wasn’t something that could be achieved with effort or passion alone. It was a realm that could only be achieved by someone who possessed both the raw talent and a whole new perspective on Sword Resonance.

Human-Shaped Sword Energy.

A realm where someone could cut people with merely the spirit emitted by their sword.

It would be appropriate to call it that.

“T-That’s the kind of power that a genius who’d open a whole new era of Combat Technique would have…”

“Are you telling me he’s younger than us?!”

“Fucking hell!”

The second and third-years cadets were instantly thrown into despair after seeing Roen’s display of skills.

They heard the rumors about him that were circulating around often, but all this time they genuinely thought that those rumors were just a bunch of lies concocted by the northerners. In their mind, they believed that if they were to have a serious duel with him, they’d be able to embarrass him and expose those lies to the world. But from his display, it was clear that it wasn’t the case at all.

Let alone doing what he just did, those second and third-years weren’t even close to performing Sword Resonance. The gap between their skills was like the gap between a bunch of three-year-olds and an adult.

After all, the other guy had already mastered Sword Resonance, and was even able to make a Tangible Spirit. The gap between them wasn’t something that the second and third-years could overcome, even if they were to dedicate their whole life to it.

It made them feel like their whole lives—which they had dedicated to swordsmanship and Combat Techniques—were worth nothing. Despair washed over them as their motivation hit rock bottom.

“…Ugh.”

Such was the reaction of those who witnessed a talent so unbelievably great and blinding.

…However.

“T-That was amazing.”

“Yeah, but it feels a little ambiguous to me… I don’t know.”

“Right…?”

Unlike their seniors—who were despairing and heartbroken—the freshmen, or rather, the first-years who had been training under Lee Han, could only look at Roen with ambiguous expressions.

“That’s just another Combat Technique…”

Such assessment didn’t come out of their mouths because they were ignorant of swordsmanship or because they were unskilled.

Rather…

In their eyes, even though Roen’s technique that enabled his sword to emit light was amazing, it looked quite normal for some reason.

“The Hundred Steps Divine Fist is more amazing than that.”

A technique that allowed its user to strike something that was dozens of steps away from them came to the first-years’ minds.

“Also, I feel like Vajra is stronger than that technique, but will the instructor be okay if he were to be hit by that technique?”

“Brothers. In my opinion, the instructor would just dodge it with the Bending Body Launch.”

They knew that even if their instructor were to face a rain of swords and arrows, none of them would be able to pierce his skin. After all, if he were to utilize the Bending Body Launch, he’d be moving faster than the arrows themselves.

“No, I feel like Lion’s Roar is enough. It’s the Great Master we’re talking about. He’d erase that sword technique with one shout.”

“I really want to deny it, but I can actually see him doing it…”

At this point, the first-years had been exposed to too many abnormal techniques to admire Roen’s stunt properly.

Even the noble ladies treated Roen’s technique in indifference, treating it as nothing but a ‘fancy technique’.

“The instructor is more amazing than him.”

Because the techniques their instructor had shown them were way more astonishing, creative, and shocking.

They had only been taught by him for three months, but the first-years’ standard had already become so high.

“…Stop comparing my lord to the instructor! Just look at what he showed you guys properly without comparing it to anything!”

The reason why Roen was called the most powerful successor of the north was because of this exact technique. However, for some reason, even after witnessing it, the first-years’ reaction was way too indifferent than expected.

Even Sir Maximus’ eyes opened wide when he witnessed this technique!

And yet, these guys—! Seriously, they are too much!

But…

…I actually can see where they came from. I was shocked when I first saw it, but now…my lord technique does indeed…feel normal…

Even though he tried to defend his lord, Jack actually found himself agreeing with his classmates’ assessment. Although, unlike them, he could tell that the reason why their assessment was so weird was because the instructor had shown them a little too many amazing techniques when he taught them.

With that in mind, Jack came to a new conclusion.

If my lord is a genius, then that man is…

…A beast.

Of course, he wasn’t just an ordinary beast. He was a beast that accidentally gained human’s wisdom, published an academic journal, and got his doctorate.

It might sound a little crazy of an analogy, but Jack had a feeling that all of his classmates would agree with him if he were to tell them this out loud.

That was why…

Unfortunately, compared to an elephant who got a doctorate, you’re just an ordinary person, my lord…

He ended up looking at his lord with pity, thinking that his lord had truly been born in the wrong era.

Meanwhile, the ordinary genius(?) who was at the end of Jack’s pitiful gaze…

“…What?”

Why is their reaction like this?

Felt a little disappointment somehow when he saw his classmates’ reactions.

Actually, there was a girl who was secretly admiring Roen—or rather, she was admiring her first-year classmates, Roen just happened to be one of them.

“They are all amazing. I couldn’t imagine standing in front of all those people… I’d just be too afraid to move…”

[You’re too weak to the gaze of others, Arin!]

The girl was none other than Irene Windler.

She was secretly watching the exam while casting a perception-impairing spell.

Although, while she came here to cheer on her classmates, the one she was looking forward to seeing was obviously…

“The instructor isn’t here…”

[We saw him the day before yesterday, but he looked really tired back then. Is he okay?]

Irene thought she might be able to meet him. But unfortunately for her, he didn’t show up today either.

Today was the tenth day of the exam period. The girl and the ghost were worried about the knight.

At one point, on the day they wandered around the Academy with him, he suddenly wore a serious look and never took that look off his face since then. The next day after, he just disappeared after telling them that he wanted to do a seclusive training. Even though they were neighbors, Irene couldn’t meet him even if she wanted to.

Actually, he already got back home yesterday, but when she was trying to see him…

-Sir Knight? He sleeps all day long because he’s tired! Every time he wakes up, he just eats and goes back to sleep again! I tried to wake him up, but he just won’t wake up no matter how hard I tried…

…That was what the maid told her.

When she heard that, the first thing that came up in Irene’s mind was that he was avoiding her because she made him uncomfortable.

Why can’t I just live with him…? Just like the maid…?

No! Stop whispering strange things in my ears!

[But that’s what you want, no?]

Shut up!

Irene lashed out at the ghost after she whispered in her ears and made her say some strange things.

Living with him? It’s way too early for—

Y-You! You did it again!

[What are you accusing me of?]

The ghost shrugged, denying the accusation that was thrown at her.

“You—!”

Irene Windler’s face turned bright red for no reason and she was about to shout at the ghost again, but then…

Pitter patter-!

“…Rain?”

[Huh? Where did all these dark clouds come from?]

Rumble-!

The sky that had been clear just a moment ago suddenly turned black as dark clouds gathered. It was a clear indication that rain was about to fall, but Irene blinked at the sky in confusion as she saw it.

[What’s wrong, Arin?]

“…Those clouds look weird.”

[Huh?]

“…”

While Irene Windler was a clumsy girl who tended to make a lot of mistakes, not to mention that she was a lazy bum, her magical abilities were unparalleled among her peers. On top of that, she was a mage with high aptitude for both wind and water.

With her magic, she could immediately tell that something was up with these dark clouds—since all clouds were made of water vapor.

Those clouds don’t seem to have been formed naturally… Just what—

She tried to take a closer look at the dark clouds while wondering what was up with it. Then suddenly…

“Huh!!?”

[Arin?]

She was completely flabbergasted.

T-There’s no way! I-I must have seen it wrong!

Even though she tried to deny the truth in front of her, there was no way she was able to deny something that she had already found out.

She had no choice but to admit what he saw with a pale face.

Those dark clouds were indeed—

—Alive and moving.