Chapter 36. 17, Exceeding Expectations (3)
"······Hmm."
Rumian couldn't immediately answer Teoro's words.
Before the Sword Arts Festival began, there had been a conversation about Cal Krone.
At that time, Teoro had told him not to ignore Cal Krone, and Rumian had nodded in agreement.
It was because he thought it would be rude to say things like 'that guy is nothing special' in front of someone who had never beaten Cal Krone even once.
The same held true now.
Having already made one mistake, he didn't want to bruise Teoro's pride again. That was why Rumian was being sparing with his words.
But Teoro had accurately read Rumian's thoughts.
"No need to worry about me."
"Huh?"
"Just speak comfortably. No matter how strong you are, I won't be shocked."
"······."
"Anyway, once you step outside Tarajan, there'll be far more impressive people than me. Just think of yourself and Cal Krone as that kind of people. Don't try to hide things just to spare my pride—tell me properly. Just how strong are you?"
Rumian kicked a stone away.
When he was being told that much, there was no reason to hide his power. It wasn't like he was hiding his identity because he'd committed some crime. And showing it wouldn't make it wear away.
He nodded. Turning his gaze to Teoro, he raised his index finger and slowly drew up his aura.
Then, an energy like blue flame spread along his finger.
An incomplete aura sword.
Teoro, seeing the mark of an Expert, wore a dazed expression.
"Is this enough······ to explain?"
"······This goes far beyond my expectations."
Teoro watched the aura sword Rumian had manifested for a long while.
It was absurd.
Among Tarajan's ordinary knights who weren't part of the Royal Knight Order, more than half still couldn't produce an aura sword.
Yet his friend, who was only fifteen years old, had succeeded in creating an aura sword. And not just for a moment, but for quite a long time.
It felt like a dream. It also felt like he'd been struck on the head multiple times with a hammer.
Either way, he was bewildered.
Rumian, watching him, withdrew his aura.
Teoro, quickly coming to his senses, spoke to him.
"You crazy bastard."
"Hey, why the sudden cursing?"
"With this kind of skill, forget the Sword Arts Festival—you could join the Knight Order right now! What are you doing here?"
"I told you, I don't have any desire for honor or success. I just need women."
"No, if you join the Royal Knight Order as the youngest member and earn the title of youngest Expert, women in the capital will line up for you, so why the Academy······."
"Full-fledged knights are way busier than I am now. This environment is much better for dating."
"No, even so, there's no way you wouldn't have time to date······."
Teoro couldn't understand Rumian at all.
But Rumian was confident.
With a serious face, he explained his position.
"You see, I don't want to end my Academy cadet days bleakly without even a single romance."
"What does that even······."
"This is what I think. There are many kinds of romance. Romance from childhood friend days, romance during Academy cadet days, passionate romance between newly adult men and women, romance in one's late twenties to early thirties when each other's charms have deepened, middle-aged romance, twilight romance······ I want to experience all of these."
"······."
"But unfortunately, I can't have childhood friend romance. I've already aged, and the circumstances don't allow for it anymore. A 15-year-old cadet can't just decide to have a childhood friend romance and make it happen, right?"
Teoro nodded without realizing it.
Rumian, riding the momentum, laid out his thoughts even faster.
"It's the same with cadet romance. Right now, the circumstances and age allow it, so it's entirely possible, but just three years from now, it'll be absolutely impossible."
"Hmm."
"I never want to become an adult, reach middle age, or old age, and think back on the past with regrets like 'I really wanted to have a fresh and pure romance when I was at the Academy, but······' I'm going to enjoy a satisfying Academy life and graduate, filling all four years to the brim, just like everyone else."
"······."
"While sharing a pure romance with beautiful female students."
"I, I see."
Teoro stammered as he responded.
He could feel the intense emotion. When someone was saying all that, he couldn't very well tell him to drop out of the Academy and join the Royal Knight Order.
Of course, it was nonsensical by his own standards, but having just heard Rumian's life values, he couldn't say anything.
'Fine, just accept that this guy is this kind of bastard.'
Teoro took a deep breath and let it out.
His mind felt clearer. He continued speaking.
"By the way, are you sealing your aura sword on purpose? Because you're worried about early graduation?"
"No, it's not that······ Well, if I showed it, the professors and people from the kingdom would be annoying about it, but if I insist on staying at the Academy, what can they do? It's not like they can forcibly expel me."
"Then how about showing it in the finals? It seems like it would definitely work on women."
"That's another problem."
Rumian, his expression hardening, explained his situation in detail.
That he'd been putting effort into image crafting to draw favorable reactions from women so far.
That maintaining that consumed tremendous mental energy.
That therefore, utilizing both aura sword and image crafting simultaneously was impossible.
And finally, that showing just the aura sword without image manipulation wouldn't make a dent with the women in the arena.
Teoro nodded after hearing the explanation.
At first he wondered what kind of nonsense this was, but after seeing Rumian with his aura image activated and without it, he understood. And he came to agree with his words.
Cal Krone's popularity was that extraordinary. During the Sword Arts Festival, the women had already become devoted fans, unable to escape his charm.
'That bastard is crazy too. What did he do to make women lose their minds like that?'
Teoro shook his head.
Whether Rumian or that guy, both were outside his common sense.
"What should we do? Should I really forfeit?"
"No, wait a moment."
Rumian asked with an anxious expression, and Teoro reached out to stop his words.
His furrowed brow spoke of his distress. Rumian held even his breath, waiting for him to come up with a method.
Thus a brief silence flowed.
Finally, Teoro, having finished thinking, looked at Rumian and spoke.
"That······ artificially creating the atmosphere you want. Can you create other atmospheres with that too?"
"Other atmospheres?"
"Yeah. The current wildflower-like fresh and pure image is good, but that won't work. It gets completely overwhelmed by Cal Krone's splendid image."
Rumian nodded with a serious expression.
He was right. The image Cal Krone had shown today was like a rose.
To stand beside him, who possessed a deadly charm, his own presence was too thin. This would mean certain defeat.
That was when Teoro proposed a new concept.
"Let's win with poignancy and desperation."
"Poignancy and desperation?"
"Yes. So no one can criticize you. Show them such a struggle that just watching makes them naturally want to root for you. On top of that, intentionally create a situation with a top dog versus underdog feel, and finally······."
Teoro enthusiastically explained this and that, and Rumian nodded frantically.
He didn't know if it would work. But it seemed much better than before.
To Rumian, whose expression had brightened somewhat, Teoro asked one last thing.
"The most important thing here is your skill. Making the match flow as I described depends entirely on your ability."
"Right."
"Are you confident?"
"Of course."
"Good, then let's practice."
"Alright."
Rumian and Teoro exchanged glances with serious expressions.
They immediately began practicing.
Teoro kept pointing out Rumian's atmosphere, lines, and actions. And Rumian, with a hardened face, accepted his feedback.
They looked like a director and actor who had been working together for a long time. Their training didn't stop until the day of the Sword Arts Festival finals dawned.
It wasn't just them who were absorbed in training.
Cal Krone was also doing his utmost for the finals.
Wooooong.
The Cron Marquis House's secret aura cultivation method.
Cal Krone had added his own insights to it. He had modified it to be more suitable for his body and disposition, increasing the efficiency of aura cultivation.
It was remarkable. A mere fifteen-year-old dismantling and revising a completed aura cultivation method. The descriptor 'genius' wasn't wasted on him.
And now, a spark had been lit in that genius's heart.
It was a spark Rumian Callad had ignited.
His passion for the sword and aura, which had been fading from lack of proper opponents for so long, had ignited once more. Cal Krone devoted himself to cultivation, forgetting even the passage of time.
Sssssip.
He stopped his training at 9 AM.
It was shortly before the finals.
Cal Krone, rising from his seat, slowly moved his body.
'My condition is excellent.'
Despite staying up all night, his condition was at its peak. His mood was also at its best.
He no longer felt worried about Rumian. Instead, infinite confidence in himself filled that space.
Looking in the mirror, he grinned and murmured.
"Let's go up. Higher."
As it had always been.
Finished with his preparations, he headed for the arena.
***
"Kyaaaaah-!"
"Cal Krone! Cal Krone!"
"Please win! You must win-!"
"Crush that country knight guy in one blow!"
The Sword Arts Festival finals.
Even before the match began, the cheering was completely one-sided. Most were hoping for the Academy's most popular man, Cal Krone, to win.
This was inevitable, as over seventy percent of the spectators gathered in the arena were women.
Having become Cal Krone's devoted fans, they had used every means to secure seats, and men who didn't have that level of enthusiasm had no choice but to be pushed outside the arena.
"Cal Krone fighting! Cal Krone wins!"
Miss Amora, who had claimed the front row of the arena, was also one of Cal Krone's fans.
For today, she hadn't opened her mouth once since yesterday's match. She had saved her voice to cheer until her throat burst.
Her affection for Cal Krone was of that degree.
And that affection was something dangerous that could easily turn into slander toward the opposing participant if she wasn't careful.
'Just try making things difficult for Cal Krone! I'll curse you out immediately!'
Miss Amora clenched her dainty fist, making a vow.
She didn't bear any ill will toward the participant Rumian Callad. She had actually quite liked his innocent appearance.
But even that Rumian wouldn't be spared.
If he did anything to harm Cal Krone even slightly, she was ready to immediately spew curses.
'No, should I start now and crush his spirit? So he can't show his true ability?'
A dilemma settled on Miss Amora's face.
She knew well that it wasn't proper conduct for a virtuous lady, but she thought if sacrificing herself would give Cal Krone an advantage, it certainly wouldn't be bad.
Alright. Let's do it. She made up her mind firmly.
Just then, Rumian Callad was called and was coming up onto the stage.
It was the moment she was about to utter harsh words to undermine the opponent's spirit.
'What is this?'
It was strange. Truly strange.
The moment she saw Rumian's entrance, she didn't feel that way at all.
She felt a sense of guilt, as if she were throwing a stone at someone who had been running toward a single goal for a long time.
'Why am I feeling this way suddenly?'
Miss Amora rubbed her eyes and looked at Rumian again.
But the atmosphere emanating from him remained the same.
It was desperate, and poignant.
Question marks rose in her mind.
'Why am I feeling this way? When I don't even know him?'
Miss Amora didn't know Rumian Callad. Naturally, she didn't know his past either.
Nevertheless, it naturally came to mind.
The thought that he must have walked a lonely, solitary, and arduous path until now naturally arose and dampened her heart.
For what reason?
What on earth could he have been walking such a difficult path for?
While such questions arose in the minds of Miss Amora and a few other sensitive individuals.
Rumian's mouth, which had been firmly shut until now, opened.