It is inevitable for any organization to experience major and minor incidents each year.
No matter how thoroughly managed, since it is work done by humans, there can be no absence of flaws.
Therefore, accidents occurring isn't particularly strange, and it would be no exaggeration to say that how well follow-up measures are handled serves as the standard revealing an organization's capability.
In other words, what matters is how well the aftermath is managed; one shouldn't dwell on the incident that just occurred.
…However, this time was different.
"I heard the royal family is sending an inspector."
"They were usually too busy watching the Prime Minister—no, the Chancellor—to show up, but now they're making a fuss just because they got an opening."
The royal family was ransacking the Academy.
Even now, soldiers were roaming the departments, rummaging through all documents and disrupting work...
It was only natural for the instructors' complaints to rise.
But they weren't simply cursing the royal family blindly.
Knowing how serious this matter was, they also had the intention to cooperate.
However...
"I heard the royal family already knew about the signs of the impending terror attack?"
"Hah, this is practically a witch hunt! What did the Chancellor do wrong—!"
"Tell me about it."
The royal family and the Academy are essentially the same, so why is only the Academy being so severely rebuked?!
—Such complaints seeped among the instructors, fueling their anger.
"It's like a dog covered in dung scolding a dog covered in chaff."
A sigh that perfectly described this situation.
In truth, it was quite a well-known rumor that not just the royal family, but everyone had received reports about the signs of the terror.
A certain knight had passionately warned about it, but simply no one had listened.
In a way, it was belated reflection, a situation where everyone couldn't help but be sinners.
But conversely, no single person could take the responsibility now either.
If someone were to shoulder the blame here, someone would unconditionally have to go to the guillotine, and if one person went to the guillotine, that person's entire household would perish at the execution ground.
Thus, neither the inspector from the royal family nor even the unsettling rumors circulating within the Academy could be trusted now.
The mudslinging had already begun, and a hostile atmosphere would hover for a while.
"...But what exactly is the identity of the 'initial reporter'?"
"Don't know, because no one has any information."
"Rumor has it that it's some burly knight..."
"A burly knight... hmm, n-no, could it be...?"
"Let's not voice baseless speculation. It would be disrespectful to that person."
"Y-You're right."
The initial reporter.
The rumor that there was someone who had first declared to the Chancellor and the Princess that a terror attack would occur.
It was a rumor that had entered everyone's ears at some point, and it was natural psychology for people to search for and suspect the initial reporter.
After all, doubting and digging into the source of information was the sensible thing to do.
…Yet strangely, no information about the person who made the report was circulating.
Even though they could find out if they investigated.
Even the soldiers moving in real-time were keeping quiet despite having heard the rumors...
It was an unusual flow in many ways, but this couldn't be helped.
"Ah, this is driving me crazy. It seems like everything would be solved if we just tracked down the information provider, so why are the higher-ups telling us not to?"
"Hmm, since it's come to this, should we just dig into it? Who knows, we might earn some merit."
"Hey, if you want to die, die alone. Don't try to drag other people into it."
From the royal family to the upper ranks of the Academy.
An order had been issued that no one should pursue the source of the information.
The reason was unknown, but an order came down that he was not the culprit.
A strict warning was even issued to absolutely not investigate or think of harming him.
Thus, the investigators could only do time-killing work, having to abandon the easy means of obtaining decisive clues.
Agreeing not to poke a hornet's nest needlessly.
And now, the knight who was the initial reporter, presumed to know all the truth, and simultaneously acquired the title of 'Hero of the Academy' through this incident...
"—This is Sosim, who will be transferring into the Swordsmanship Department from now on. Make sure to treat him well."
"I-I'm not Sosim, I'm Derek..."
"At your level, you want to be called by your name?"
"...Is this a military?"
A new face was being introduced.
* * *
To speak of the results, all 80 students of the Swordsmanship Department achieved high grades in the semester evaluation.
Partly because they showed good performance in the match against the Rock Troll.
Their spirit and courage in fighting against hundreds of monsters were highly praised, and their potential was acknowledged.
Perhaps the grades received by the current first-year students of the Swordsmanship Department could be said to be the highest among all cohorts in history.
Among some of the students, they received scholarships based on such high grades, but it was only called a scholarship—in reality, their entire living expenses were covered.
For the bear cubs who were always struggling with money, it was a rain during a drought, and there was no longer any need to attend the Academy worrying about money.
And it wasn't just the bear cubs; other noble young lords and ladies were also scheduled to receive medals more valuable than money, which would be an opportunity to elevate their family names.
Without exception, rewards followed for the life-or-death battles they had fought, so their emotions were overwhelming.
However, among them, there was no arrogant one who thought they survived because of their own greatness.
"—First of all, this instructor feels grateful that not a single person died and everyone gathered safely. You all did well."
They had to know that it was solely thanks to him that they survived.
Lihan.
The knight who stepped forward before anyone else in this terror attack and annihilated the monsters, evaluated to have saved all the spectators and cadets.
A hero evaluated to have saved the royal capital!
The cadets cast looks as if they had known this would happen eventually.
'As expected, I knew he would make a name for himself.'
'He's truly amazing.'
'...Yesterday I saw that love letters, presumably placed by noble ladies, were piled like a mountain on the instructor's desk... I'm jealous.'
His notorious reputation that had spread through the Academy in the past had long been erased, and now, instead of fear and wary glances, gazes full of admiration and goodwill were pouring in.
For those who had fought alongside him, it would be a lie to say they didn't feel envious of him receiving even greater attention and honor than they did, but even they felt their hearts inexplicably warm when looking at their teacher.
That was only natural.
'He held off such a monster alone, so it would be funny not to respect him.'
Because his achievements were that remarkable.
An ancient monster that could have appeared in mythology.
Everyone at the Academy saw him fight bravely against the Troll that boasted massiveness rivaling a giant.
If he hadn't held off that monster to the end, not just the Academy, but the entire royal capital would have been in danger.
Therefore, he is a hero.
He alone saved countless lives, and showed a noble spirit by holding off the monsters until reinforcements arrived.
...However.
"I-Instructor, there's a noble outside who wants to see you, what should we do?"
"Tell them not to disrupt class and to get lost."
"...They're Count-level though?"
"Should I go personally then?"
"...If you go personally, you'll snap their neck, right? I'll just go and politely decline."
The instructor himself seemed to have no particular excitement about what he had done.
Rather, he seemed quite displeased with the bothersome attention pouring in.
'Thank goodness we have the assistant.'
'He's got quite the temper.'
If Damian hadn't skillfully handled the visiting nobles and merchants, something would have happened long ago.
"Good-for-nothing people."
"...Still, they wouldn't be visiting without any reason. Among those visiting, there must be some whose lives were saved thanks to you, Instructor."
"Or even if not them personally, their blood relatives might have received help."
The cadets recited reasonable excuses to lighten his mood, but Lihan snorted.
"Do grateful people recklessly visit during class time or trespass into my house? Is that how gratitude is expressed these days? How amusing."
"......"
"Or am I just behind the times?"
"Cough."
At this point, there was nothing to say.
It was definitely not an exaggeration to call him tactless.
"...Just asking out of curiosity, but what did you do to the trespassers?"
"Rather than asking what I did, I think it would be better to ask how I 'disposed' of them."
"......"
...Let's stop asking.
"—May I ask a question for a moment?"
Since it was the first class in four days after the terror attack, they had a lot of curiosity, and truly many questions flew in.
Perhaps because they're young, they can't contain their curiosity.
But amidst all that, a guy who had been consistently quiet asked a question.
"The newly transferred cadet—is that cadet perhaps the one who scattered peculiar hidden weapons from the sky the other day?"
"...Hmm."
I wondered why no one was curious, but finally a guy who showed interest in the new transfer student appeared.
Well, he was a somewhat troublesome guy though.
The regressor from the North gave an intense look to the (Sang)Taechang who used skills.
As if he still remembered the Mancheonhwau that had embroidered the sky.
"U-Um, I..."
Experiencing being overwhelmed by that intense gaze, he broke into a cold sweat.
He was the type to answer that mingling with others was the hardest, and receiving attention from the most burdensome guy among them, he couldn't even speak properly.
Lihan decided to help the transfer student who was gradually making a crying face.
He had gone through the trouble of scouting him, so he couldn't have his image ruined from the first day.
Lihan warned him 'gently.'
"Black Sword. Everything else is fine, but remove those burdensome eyes of yours. I might just extract ink from those black pupils of yours."
"......"
"If my assistant candidate I went through the trouble of bringing runs away, what I just said won't be a joke anymore, haha."
"...I don't know why you say you'll kill someone so gently."
"Kill? When did I say such a thing?"
"That's what my ears heard."
Only then did the Black Sword—no, Roen—withdraw his gaze.
Because he had no intention of defying a knight who had fought evenly with the Ghost King.
And above all...
"If I may correct myself, I only asked the question to express my gratitude. Thanks to the hidden weapons that poured from the sky, there were zero casualties."
The needles that resembled flower petals pouring from the sky.
When those needles embroidered the sky and fell, a massive number of monsters were annihilated, and those who were injured or exhausted actually recovered their strength—a miraculous phenomenon.
"I was the one with command authority in place of the instructor that day. As the person in charge, I have an obligation to convey my gratitude, so I merely sought an answer. ...Therefore, I'll say this in advance. If you are the one who scattered those hidden weapons, I pay you my respects. I stake the name of Lionel that I will definitely repay this debt."
A still burdensome gaze was given, but the atmosphere was different from before.
Respect for Sosim was included, and sincere gratitude and acknowledgment were conveyed.
When a man receives such acknowledgment filled with respect and reverence, his heart cannot help but burn hot.
The Sosim guy also blushed and bowed his head deeply.
In reality, his identity was already revealed, but Lihan wasn't a petty adult who would scold his disciple for something like this.
'That Black Sword bastard, he speaks cringeworthy words well for a noble.'
Though cringeworthy, a voice infused with sincerity toward the other person has power.
Especially in that guy's case, it was even more intense.
'Anyway.'
He occasionally shows extraordinary qualities.
Lihan felt satisfied confirming that an atmosphere for the Sosim guy to blend in well was being created, but...
"And Instructor, asking this now might be discourteous, but... can I learn, no... can we learn the way to bloom flowers with sword qi?"
Whoosh!
"...Huh?"
The moment the Black Sword guy's second remark followed, passionate interest gathered toward him.
As if Sosim was the appetizer, and he was the main dish.
"...These bastards."
Lihan was dumbfounded.
After going through the trouble of raising them as Arhats...
'Are they trying to convert to Plum Blossom Sword Saints?'
His brow furrowed.
'They say if you speak of the Mount Tai and North Star of the martial world, it's Shaolin, but Huashan Sect...'
Honestly.
'Rootless bastards.'
The small wuxia world inside Lihan's heart wanted to shout a reprimanding喝.