"I told you to complete 10,000 reps, but I never set a deadline. What I want isn't for you to just fill the numbers; I want you to build the stamina and endurance to spin that iron wire 10,000 times consistently. But don't just mindlessly fill the quota! How many times do I have to tell you not to obsess over the numbers, you brats! Feel the stimulus, understand how your muscles move, how your limbs move!"
Lee Han did not hold back his reprimands against those with the red markers, the so-called Young Masters.
"Is it because you're Young Masters? Do you need someone to wait on you hand and foot before you'll listen? Why can't you understand words?"
"...We are not Young Masters."
"Of course you are, it's obvious you were spoiled rotten. Ah, perhaps you grew up without even realizing you're a Young Master?"
"You...!"
"Upset? If you're upset, try doing better. Why are you so frail that you have to take this kind of abuse from a demoted knight? Tsk tsk."
"Just you wait! Someday I'll plunge a sword into that face!"
"Ooh, I certainly hope that happens."
"!!?"
His skill at provocation had practically reached the divine level.
With his tongue, he had them rolling, and Lee Han sneered, telling them they were free to curse him in their hearts.
'Curse me all you want, it'll help you live longer.'
His mental fortitude was too robust to be shaken by mere curses.
Lee Han spared no reprimand, constantly pestering them.
However, he didn't solely focus on the Young Master cadets; he made an effort to pay attention to everyone.
First, those with the yellow markers.
The so-called Chicks.
They were mostly comprised of women.
Let alone Aura Techniques, they hadn't even learned basic swordsmanship.
Because of that.
"First of all, you Chicks aren't even ready to hold a wooden sword, let alone a real one. So what's immediately important for you is basic strength and stamina. Ah, and by the way, don't worry about building muscles from exercising. Muscles don't grow that easily in such a short period, and you definitely won't bulk up from just this little bit of exercise."
He was kind.
Not because they were women, but simply because they were newbies who were too precious even for the Sprout level.
How could he berate a kid who didn't even know how to operate a treadmill at a gym?
If anything, he was gentle.
"I-Instructor, does doing this jump rope thing really build stamina?"
"Good question, Cadet Chick Number 1."
"C-Couldn't you just call me Levi?"
The sincere question of Levi Fauld, who had made a fairly good impression the day before.
Excellent.
Now that he was in a teaching position, he understood.
Just how precious it was to have a diligent student who asked questions like this.
Suppressing the urge to give her bonus points right then and there, Lee Han continued in an even softer tone.
"Jump rope doesn't just build stamina. It strengthens your muscular endurance and cardiovascular system, as well as improves your sense of balance and athletic ability. Of course, the effects won't show immediately, but if you keep at it consistently every day, there will come a moment when you feel your body has changed."
"Ah..."
"And for your information, it's also the best exercise for dieting."
"!!!"
At these words, all the female cadets snapped their heads up like meerkats, showing intense interest.
Motivation.
Lee Han gave the Chicks a reason to work hard.
"That's not all. If you just keep up with my training, you'll enjoy wearing clothes from now on. Cadets who are interested in fashion will know this. Even if you wear clothes that fit you perfectly, sometimes the silhouette can be unflattering. In some cases, that's because your body is too frail or lacks elasticity. But if your body gains overall elasticity, even clothes that didn't suit you before can start looking pretty."
"R-Really?"
"This instructor does not lie. Let me tell you something even more enticing. Maid-nim!"
"Yes!"
Leila Winter appeared the moment Lee Han's call fell.
An unfamiliar face they were seeing for the first time.
However, seeing her dressed in the attire of a royal maid, the women's eyes widened.
Because being a royal maid was one of the dream jobs that most noble women wanted to enter.
To them.
"Maid-nim, please demonstrate."
"Okaay."
Her somewhat languid tone and expression lacked any sense of reliability, but the moment she performed a curtsy, the women's eyes changed instantly.
Gazes gradually filled with astonishment!
"W-Wow, perfect."
It was a sincere remark spat out by a noble lady from a prestigious family, and everyone agreed.
It was a truly perfect and beautiful curtsy.
"As you can see, the Maid-nim's posture is beautiful. It's because her sense of balance and posture are perfectly straight. And to achieve such an upright and beautiful posture, the strength of your back and glutes is crucial. How is it, do you feel the desire to work hard now?"
"......Yes."
"I heard your answer. I promise. If you Chicks follow the training schedule set by this instructor, I will help anyone of you build a posture so magnificent that others will look at you and think you're beautiful."
"Y-Yes, sir!"
With this, the female cadets—no, the Chicks—promised to follow him like believers following a god.
As expected, what moves people is their fundamental desires.
Lee Han inwardly found it funny that he was going this far, but you were supposed to be kind to newbies by default.
Conversely.
"Green Sprouts."
"...A-Are you speaking to us?"
"Yes. I'm talking to you."
"...It doesn't sound like an insult, but I feel weird."
There was a particularly strict part when it came to those with the green markers.
They weren't newbies, and because they were ambiguous existences, he had to be even stricter.
"You lot have learned swordsmanship to some extent. You haven't learned Aura Techniques, but you probably diligently practiced swordsmanship since you were young. Therefore, your basic stamina is actually quite good. Better than those red Young Masters over there."
"...I'd rather be called Sprouts."
"Then try hard enough to be called Weeds."
"T-That's a bit..."
"Whatever. Let me give you a serious piece of advice right now. If you want to become knights, rather than attending the academy, I'd recommend you quit immediately."
......W-Why is that?"
After a brief silence, they asked.
They had observed that he didn't spit out harsh words without reason.
And as expected.
"Because you haven't learned an Aura Technique."
"...Ugh!"
The moment Aura Techniques were mentioned, their faces darkened as if they were facing a reality they had tried hard to ignore.
"Those who already know, know. Yes, there is a massive gap between someone who has learned an Aura Technique and someone who hasn't. It's an unreasonable disparity, like a child fighting an adult."
Even a brawny adult man famed as the strongest in his village would inevitably be overwhelmed by a child who had learned an Aura Technique.
And those who honed such Aura Techniques to the limit were knights, which was why they were both admired and called objects of fear.
"Of course, having enrolled in the academy, you'll be able to learn the basic Aura Technique provided by the academy. However, the Aura Technique provided by the academy is fundamentally low-grade. If it were a sandwich, it'd only have bread and vegetables, with no ham, cheese, or sauce. Well, if there's an incredible genius among you, you might be able to reach the extreme even with such a low-grade Aura Technique, but..."
"...Haha."
It was just a sweet dream, an empty illusion.
If they were a genius of that caliber, a noble would have already recognized their talent and taken them in as a knight order trainee.
Instead of the academy.
"Right, nothing in the world is absolute. Still, this instructor doesn't view staying in the Swordsmanship Department as a very good choice for you. If you had joined a high-ranking mercenary band or a warrior/swordsman guild instead, you could have learned a proper Aura Technique, not a low-grade one. ...Though it is a life where you stake your life on the line."
"We came here because we hate that."
The answer of one of the Sprouts.
Lee Han nodded his head as well.
Mercenary work was a neighborhood where people dying was commonplace.
Guilds were exclusive, and if it made money, they would do anything, making them sinister and cruel.
So it was somewhere you shouldn't go if you could help it.
However, Lee Han knew.
'By the time they reach their 2nd or 3rd year, most of the commoner cadets in the Swordsmanship Department drop out and go to mercenary bands or guilds. Probably because the gap between them and the noble Young Masters is too wide.'
Because of that, the only 2nd and 3rd year Swordsmanship Department cadets left now were all noble cadets.
In a way, it was the reality of the academy, starkly revealing the world's unfairness.
It was funny.
They said they were selecting talent, but the ones getting fat were the mercenary bands and guilds, not the kingdom.
If this continued, in about 20 years—no, less than 10 years—there was a high possibility that the hierarchy between the knight orders and the mercenaries/guilds would flip.
Numbers were might, and the influence of the mercenaries and guilds would only grow richer over time.
'Well, it's not really something for me to worry about, is it?'
By that time, whether I defeat Baltar or that old man retires from old age, he won't be able to stop me.
'...He surely won't still be around in 10 years.'
That guy will get old too.
...Definitely.
"Instructor?"
"Ah, sorry. This instructor's thoughts got a bit complicated."
"...Thank you. For thinking of us like that."
"Um, it's an instructor's duty."
It seems a misunderstanding has occurred, but let's just let it slide.
A misunderstanding is beneficial if it's a good misunderstanding.
"Ahem, anyway, this instructor doesn't see it as positive for the Sprout cadets to stay at the academy."
"......"
"However, this instructor's duty is to teach you well, and as an instructor of the Swordsmanship Department, I need to make you strong. In that sense, I intend to teach you Sprout cadets 'this.'"
"?"
"Watch closely."
Lee Han brought over a fallen tree branch.
It was broken but looked fairly sturdy, and Lee Han simply rested his fist lightly against it and stayed still.
But then.
"You saw it yesterday, right? The technique called 'Gyeong'."
Crunch!
-!!!?
In an instant, the branch was pulverized, and they were astonished.
The branch being pulverized wasn't that surprising, but what was truly astonishing was that he hadn't taken any swinging motion.
Zero distance.
He didn't swing it, he merely placed his fist against it, and without taking any stance, the branch was pulverized.
If they didn't find this amazing, what would they be surprised by?
"I named it the 'Method of Hardening'. Some of you may have heard of it yesterday. This is not an Aura Technique. It purely uses the comprehensive power of your bones, muscles, and tendons. In other words, it's a technique you can learn through effort, and once you grasp the sensation, its applications are infinite."
"Y-You're going to teach us such a precious technique!?"
They turned pale with shock.
Even though he was an instructor, they couldn't hide their alarm at the thought of him teaching them such a precious technique.
Had they not seen it?
His skill in overwhelming a genius they could never rival even if they died and came back to life twice, with nothing but a wooden sword.
And for the cadets who knew that the reason it was possible was that technique called Gyeong, it was unbelievable.
That he would teach them such a precious technique.
But of course, there was no such thing as a free lunch in the world.
"It goes without saying, but I have no intention of teaching it for free."
As expected.
Did they think Lee Han was such a sucker that he would just hand everything out?
His technique was, in a way, an idea he had realized firsthand through the battlefield and training, his 'intellectual property'.
So teaching it for free would be a loss.
However.
'Even combat sports fighters make a living teaching their techniques after they retire.'
He needed to prepare for his retirement too, didn't he?
And a fairly solid one at that, like a pension lottery.
Lee Han hid his ulterior motive and continued with a rather long explanation.
"First of all, if you receive this technique from me, you must all serve me as your 'Great Master,' and for 15 years after you get a job and start earning income, you must pay dues to me, your Great Master. Also, you must not teach my technique to others arbitrarily; to teach it, you must unconditionally receive my permission."
A 15-year long-term pension was not to be sneezed at.
"And if you learn the technique from me, a master-disciple relationship will be formed. Forming a master-disciple relationship doesn't mean you just play at being friends. It means you must keep an eye on each other and thoroughly manage it so the technique doesn't leak out. If anyone abuses the technique, you must execute them yourselves, and if someone steals the technique, you must punish them as well."
Additional pension was precious. And if he had children, he'd have to leave them some inheritance.
He couldn't forgive someone else eating away at that wealth.
"Of course, I'm not telling you to decide right now. Think about it sufficiently before telling me. It could be an important crossroads in your life. But I want to say this. If you want to become stronger, shouldn't you at least have the resolve to stake your life on it?"
—That is all.
"......"
Silence lingered.
Because it was a feast of astonishing stories to that degree.
'Strict, but... it's doable!'
Some fairly strict conditions were laid out, but they were only strict and fully acceptable.
Even the instructors who had taught them swordsmanship until now had presented similar conditions.
The conditions the instructor presented were just a bit stricter and longer in duration.
But if they could learn a precious technique that couldn't be learned anywhere else, that would be more than enough—it would be an overflowing benefit.
However, they needed to think about it.
As the instructor said, they needed to firm up their resolve to stake their lives on it.
They had to decide after sufficient deliberation so they wouldn't regret it later...
"Kunta! I want to learn that! Instructor, I'll serve you as my Great Master!"
"What if a dispute or problem arises between fellow disciples? Are there set rules for that?"
"Instead of Instructor-nim, should we call you Great Master from now on?"
"Lucky me. I actually wanted to learn it."
"They say those who have are even greedier..."
Four cadets had gathered in an instant, having been listening for who knows how long, and Lee Han clicked his tongue in disbelief.
They already had so much, yet they were so greedy. Good grief.
However, seeing those with abundant talent and nothing to envy stepping forward willingly, the Sprouts made their decision.
"...You only live once, so I should at least give it a try."
That was enough to blow away their hesitation.
"-But, Sir Knight."
"Why do you call, Maid-nim?"
"You've formed a faction now, so what's the name of your faction?"
"The name?"
"Yes! Every faction has a name!"
"A name..."
A part he hadn't really thought about.
A sharp point.
Even if it was decided on the spot, a name was important to foster a sense of belonging.
And after a little thought.
"[One Hundred and Eight Arhats] should do."
"That's a unique name?"
"It means I want to gather one hundred and eight excellent warriors someday, haha."
"That's a good meaning!"
The pure maid, who knew nothing, praised him brightly, and Lee Han felt a little twinge of guilt.
Sometimes, such purity pierced the chest more fatally than anything else.