episode_0022

I may have been thinking a little complacently.

Because I knew nothing about the feeling of hatred.

I know fear. I know hate. I know anger. I knew contempt, but not hatred.

I just mistakenly thought I knew.

This was my first time directly encountering hatred that was as vivid as if it was trying to grab my heart and as persistent as if it was trying to dig into my eyeballs.

The looks I got when I got off the carriage were nothing but disgust from third parties who heard about my notoriety.

Those are the eyes of the person involved.

The breathtaking murderous intent was roaring silently but fiercely.

—-

“Hmm. It looks like you’re looking this way. Are you by any chance a spherical person with Lord Hashall?”

“…I don’t know this guy.”

Calix asked me a question, tapping his lower jaw with his finger as if he was shaking.

I quietly denied it.

I can’t be sure because it’s an entrance exam, but at least I’ve never seen a character like that in the main game.

So does that mean he’s going to be eliminated anyway?

No, the man’s spirit was too unusual to think that way.

The violent pressure emanating from his entire body, along with his unrefined and rough murderous intent, actually revealed a more intense feeling of weight than the main character, Damian.

“Then, is it the blessing of the nation? The eyes show deep karma. If that young man passes, he will have a hard time.”

“Of course. It looks like it’s going to rush this way at any moment, right?”

Calix nodded deeply with a serious attitude.

Perhaps because he was worried about me, his eyes were slightly hardened.

It’s hard work. I guess so.

Just by looking at it, it looks like he’s itching to throw that ax in this direction.

My sharpened nerves were reacting to the man’s hostility, and my right arm was twitching slightly, as if telling me to pull out my sword immediately.

“Ha, I don’t know. It’s fun. It looks like they know you well.”

Friede snorted and sneered.

“Well, the perpetrator probably won’t remember. It must be normal for you sub-races. I think that guy is a good match for me.”

“Ka`har is now a similar race recognized by the empire. I heard that the Principality of Palun follows the Empire’s will well, but looking at you, I guess that’s not necessarily the case?”

“……”

As if he had nothing to say in response, Friede closed his mouth, showing a dissatisfied look.

Let’s not pay too much attention to him.

If you cross the line, you can challenge me to a duel later. If I still have to fight, my image will only get worse.

The place to worry about now was Damian’s side.

What are the main character’s skills, and what are the skills of that Dane who is clearly hostile to me?

You’ll have to check both sides.

—-

“Where are you looking? Your opponent would be me.”

Damian calmly recited to the young Dane.

The sight of the young man only paying attention to the other side even when he was in front of him seemed to be quite annoying, and his right arm holding the great sword was tense.

The young Dane who was glaring at me gritted his teeth, closed his eyes tightly, and turned his head.

“Okay…not yet. Not yet…!”

It was a low, suppressed voice, as if he was being forced to chew.

The young man facing Damian solemnly bowed his head and apologized.

“…Excuse me. Yes, a warrior must first focus on the enemy in front of him.”

After speaking, the young man picked up the ax he was holding with both hands and took a fighting stance.

“My name is Knut. This is Knut, son of Sven. Say your name, enemy.”

“Damian.”

Damian brought his left hand to the hilt of the sword, grasped it tightly with both hands, and lowered his posture.

With a loud noise as they hit the ground, the great sword and ax clashed fiercely.

—-

A series of thunderous noises shook the walls of the test room.

The excited spectators waved their arms and went wild at the clash of talented people, which is rare in entrance exams.

The great sword cut through the air, making an ear-piercing sound, and the slashing ax shook the earth.

Perhaps they were overwhelmed by their battle? The other test takers were staring at them blankly, forgetting about their own fight.

Damian’s attack was like a swirling whirlpool.

A heavy sword strike that rotates fiercely, as if being swayed by the weight of a huge sword.

These were clearly exaggerated movements full of loopholes.

Nevertheless, the fierce momentum that made it difficult to even approach and the wind pressure of the heavy greatsword filled the gap, and a single strike that was almost reckless was barely established as a form of swordsmanship.

On the other hand, Knut’s fighting style was quite contrasting with Damian’s.

Holding the ax tightly in both hands, he checks the opponent’s attacks with careful eyes, blocks attacks that can be blocked, and avoids attacks that cannot be blocked, even by rolling on the ground.

Rather than hastily attacking first, this is a strategy of dodging the opponent’s attack first and then taking advantage of the gap to counterattack.

Contrary to the rough ferocity suggested by its appearance, it was a very calm fighting style.

“Haaa!”

Damian leaps with the great sword as the axis, rotates vertically, and strikes the sword with the force of a thunderbolt.

Perhaps sensing that it was an unstoppable attack, Knut rolled to the side to avoid it.

-Cow!

The great sword struck the ground and spat out rock fragments along with a loud noise.

Knut, who rolled on the ground, swung his ax with all his force, and Damian blocked it with the blade of his greatsword.

Even though it was a collision between trees, a collision sound like steel rang out.

Weapons that could not withstand the impact of the collision scattered wood fragments like screams, revealing their internal metal skeletons.

The two men paid no heed to this and continued the fight.

Knut twists and throws away Damien’s stab as if he were spinning a sword handle.

Damian’s new model stumbled greatly.

He barely deflected the ax blade aimed at his head with his hastily recovered greatsword.

-Kagagagak!

The ax blade scraped the surface of the sword, emitting a harsh dissonant sound.

He widens the distance as if to shake off the weapon and takes a large leap, catching the tip of the sword as it swings down, with the blade of the ax raised diagonally.

-Quaaang!

The missed greatsword landed almost half on the ground, and Damian’s body stopped momentarily.

Knut’s ax swung as if aiming for the opening, and Damien grabbed the hilt of the sword and spun around to avoid it, kicking Knut’s torso.

“Kk..!”

Knut, who stumbled back two or three steps, readjusted his stance, and Damien, who had drawn his greatsword, raised his sword again.

All of the wooden parts of the two men’s weapons had already fallen off, and they had become nothing more than blunt steel weapons.

—-

“Good fight…”

As I watched the two battle, I muttered with a mixture of admiration and embarrassment.

Damian is the original protagonist and is destined to become a warrior, so let’s say that.

However, that Dane named Knut is also comparable to Damian. No, on the contrary, he was showing a strength that seemed even stronger than that of Damian.

Although both were weaker than Nigel.

“Of course, both are excellent martial arts. Even by knight standards, these skills are already quite strong. This year’s freshmen will be successful if they get just those two.”

“Save them both? If they fight like that, wouldn’t one of them be eliminated?”

Didn’t the fact that the entrance exam was a sparring match mean that the winner of the two would be admitted?

So, for me, I was hoping that Damian would win.

“Oh, don’t you know? Well, I guess it could be because I am a special admission student. The academy’s entrance exam is decided by two rounds of sparring. After just one sparring, the person with good luck will definitely pass. They say luck is part of skill, but isn’t that how you can select the right talent?”

Calix nodded repeatedly, as if satisfied, and stared at the battle between the two men.

“Those who achieve 2 wins pass. Those who have 1 win and 1 loss will be left to the discretion of the examiner, and only those who have not won even once will be eliminated. There were some opinions that at least 3 spars were necessary, but that would take too long.”

I see It was a strangely reasonable explanation.

In the end, even if that Dane named Knut loses here, as long as the next battle is not too bad, passing is a given.

I feel like sighing.

“So, who do you think will win?

Asha asked with sparkling eyes.

So, who will win? After all, Damian is the main character, so you still won’t let him win?

“Well, maybe it’s Damien? The attack force itself is much more intense.”

“……Knut.”

As if trying to refute my words, Friede mumbled something.

“Hmm… It certainly seems like a young man named Knut will win in Hinayanag’s opinion. The skills themselves were similar, but Sohyeop, who was holding a great sword, made all of his movements too big. Your stamina will gradually improve.”

Calix agreed with Friede.

Looking closely, I could see that Damian’s shoulders were shaking slightly.

I had a headache. The original protagonist’s first appearance was a defeat due to a character who didn’t even appear in the original.

After all, it’s probably because of me.

If a Dane, who wasn’t in the original work, suddenly came to the Academy, the only reason that could be said would be rumors of Ka’har’s admission.

I was worried about the future because it already felt like the story was being twisted.

“Wow! Look at that. Looks like the winner will be decided with one blow!”

At Asha’s fuss, I looked down at the competition hall again.

Damian, with his great sword hanging down, and Knut, with his ax raised high, were raising their momentum with all their might.

As if immersed in the momentum of the two, the stadium fell into silence for an instant.

The next moment, the two clashed at the same time.

“Haaat-!”

“Woehlberg!”

Letting out a fierce roar, Damian kicked the ground, and as if fighting back, Knut cried out the name of the warrior god and struck down his axe.

-Quaaa!

With an explosion that shook the ceiling, two pieces of great swords flew into the air.