Chapter 97. < 38. The Best Disciple (3) >
In the past, many conditions were required to become a knight, but now the barrier to entry has significantly lowered.
As time passed and aura cultivation methods developed, possibilities were opened even to women lacking in physical strength, and opportunities for learning were opened to commoners to prepare for demon invasions.
Therefore, unlike in the past, in recent times many talents have emerged besides those from knight families.
However, Professor Ben Barrett did not acknowledge this.
He was a man with an old-fashioned mindset, as if taken out of an antique shop.
He worshipped the traditional knight powerhouse Jenas but looked down on the emerging power Rhodesia. He looked up to knights from prestigious knight families but thought little of other knights. He believed female knights had pathetic potential compared to male knights.
Because of this, Tanya Eloyce, who came from a literary family and was a woman on top of that, did not please him.
Because she was a presence that seemed to directly contradict his words.
'She'll just become a mediocre knight in 10 or 20 years anyway.'
Professor Barrett made a dissatisfied expression.
Of course, right now she was achieving decent results.
But he thought there was a limit.
A tree with weak roots cannot grow large. Professor Barrett had long ago concluded that Tanya Eloyce, without history or tradition, would see her growth plateau—it was a foregone conclusion.
'What I'm actually looking forward to is Logan Southwedge.'
His eyes turned toward the class second-rank again.
The Southwedge family. Though one step below the Croné Marquis family, it was still a knight family ranked within the top three in the Tarazan Kingdom.
Being the eldest son of such a place was virtually a guarantee of potential. His father and grandfather had both graduated at the top of the academy and eventually reached the Expert realm.
Therefore, Logan Southwedge would also distinguish himself before long. He would grow even further and push Tanya aside to take the top spot—that much was certain.
'So even if Logan achieves results a bit earlier, no one will think it strange.'
Professor Barrett wore a faint smile.
He truly thought so. Meeting with someone from the Southwedge family a few days ago, being treated to expensive food and gifted a famous sword—he believed none of that had anything to do with what he was about to do.
'I'm just trying to correct a wrong situation a little sooner.'
It was a nonsensical thought.
Professor Barrett intended to manipulate the grades. Whatever excuse he made, the fact that it was wrong did not change.
But he had already concluded that the Southwedge family's eldest son would rise higher anyway, and that Tanya Eloyce, a female cadet without roots, had reached her limit. Thinking this way, he didn't see it as such.
He simply felt fortunate that Professor David Karen was not present right now.
"Third year Class A. Is everyone assembled?"
"Yes!"
"Good. We'll begin the evaluation now. As announced last week, all cadets will engage in one-on-one sparring with me."
The cadets who heard his words wore heavily tense expressions.
Though rumored to be among the least skilled among the professors, Ben Barrett was still a Sword Expert. The thought of facing him one-on-one made their legs weak.
"Haha. There's no need to be too afraid."
The professor, enjoying the heavy atmosphere, spoke with gravitas.
"I will not use my aura sword. Furthermore, I will minimize my use of aura. I promise to use only one-fourth of my full power."
The expressions of Class A students brightened.
They listened to the professor's words with somewhat relieved faces.
"Of course, even so, it will be difficult for you to defeat me. I don't expect that much. Therefore, the grading standard will be how long you can withstand my sword. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Professor!"
"Good. I hope you'll trouble me for a long time. Then let's begin immediately. Jay Gardner! Step forward with your sword."
"Yes, yes!"
One cadet stepped forward with his sword.
He was visibly nervous. Being first was burdensome, but more than that, the thought of actually crossing swords with the professor was the real problem.
'No, it's fine! He said he'll only use one-fourth of his power!'
At that level, it was manageable. If he focused only on defense and evasion while maintaining distance without thinking of attacking...
"Are you ready?"
"Yes!"
"Then let's begin."
"Yes sir!"
Ka-gang!
Hwiiiik...
Puk!
However, contrary to the student's expectations, the match ended in an instant.
He couldn't even receive the professor's first strike and dropped his sword.
Looking at his sword that had flown far away and stuck into the ground, the student wore an expression close to tears.
"Pathetic. You're so tense your body is stiff. Do you plan to stand that rigidly in real combat too?"
"N-no, sir!"
"I'll hear your excuses in the next class. Next! Louis Harper!"
The next student gulped and stepped forward.
He was more confident in his skills than the previous student, but the pressure from the professor was still beyond imagination.
It was hard to believe he was using only one-fourth of his aura. In the end, he too couldn't last more than 30 seconds before losing his sword.
And for a while after, similar situations continued.
"21 seconds."
"48 seconds."
"1 minute 17 seconds."
"2 minutes 1 second. You did reasonably well. Good work."
"Th-thank you..."
The student who received praise returned to his seat with a proud smile.
Other students couldn't surpass an average of 1 minute before dropping their swords. Among them, he alone had exceeded 2 minutes, so he had reason to be proud. Other students also exclaimed in admiration, showing envy.
However, that atmosphere quickly died down.
The class second-rank and eldest son of the Southwedge family, Logan Southwedge, was finally called.
"It's Logan."
"How long will he last?"
"He'll last at least 3 minutes, won't he?"
"No, he might even exceed 5 minutes. It's the Southwedge family."
"Well, whatever happens, he'll last much longer than us anyway. I'm curious."
The children's eyes held anticipation, envy, and curiosity.
Receiving all that attention, Logan Southwedge stepped forward before the professor.
Seeing him bow his head properly, Ben Barrett smiled with approval. Logan also showed a confident smile.
It felt as if the results were already decided. The two exchanged glances and simultaneously raised their swords.
"I'll begin."
"Yes sir!"
Ka-gang!
The sparring began with a light clash of swords.
"Ohh, amazing!"
"Wow, this is no joke."
"His skills have improved tremendously?"
The students watching Logan's sword all wore surprised expressions.
He was flawlessly defending against the professor's ceaselessly pouring strikes.
Seeing Logan Southwedge showing a form as solid as a castle wall, yet occasionally launching attacks that struck at vulnerabilities, all the students couldn't close their mouths.
No one suspected anything.
Naturally so. Professor Ben Barrett hadn't particularly reduced his aura amount just because it was Logan Southwedge.
He had simply met him separately yesterday and practiced the sequence beforehand. Blocking sword paths he already knew wasn't particularly difficult.
Ka-gang!
"Mmm..."
Of course, he couldn't keep being Logan's opponent forever.
Dragging it out too long would damage his own reputation. The professor launched a heavy strike at an appropriate moment with a satisfied expression.
The result flowed from his lips.
"Logan Southwedge. 7 minutes 37 seconds."
"W-wahhhhh!"
"No way! He lasted 7 minutes?"
The students who had been holding their breath watching the sparring simultaneously exclaimed.
It was truly a crazy result.
Even though there was quite a difference in class rankings, the student ranked 3rd in the class had managed only 2 minutes 1 second.
Yet 7 minutes 37 seconds, more than triple that. It was unbelievable.
Even after Logan's sparring ended, the students all expressed admiration.
"Wow, this is really amazing."
"Logan, when did you get that strong?"
"Hahaha, I just trained diligently..."
"Tanya, you'll need to be nervous this time."
"Right. Of course Tanya is also incredibly strong, so we don't know how it'll turn out."
The students who had been praising Logan now turned their gaze toward Tanya.
Between the second-rank and top-rank, there would naturally be tension, but for the other students, both were just classmates.
Moreover, since Tanya conducted herself well publicly, almost no one disliked her. Therefore, all the students offered words of support to Tanya as well.
"Good luck, Tanya."
"Show us something cool like Logan!"
"......."
Of course, Logan Southwedge and Professor Ben Barrett didn't think favorably of Tanya.
Since first year, they had constantly tried to suppress her spirit. They continued endless checks against her.
But she didn't yield. Rather, she showed such remarkable affinity that she turned most of her classmates who had ignored her into allies.
Professor Ben Barrett didn't like even that.
'Is it because she's from a literary family? She's incredibly good at politicking. If she's going to do that, why become a knight...'
"Next, Tanya Eloyce!"
His mood was directly reflected in his voice. The children who had been chattering fell silent and looked at the professor.
"Yes."
Tanya answered calmly and picked up a sword from the weapon display.
It wasn't the sword she had been using until last semester.
A heavy sword she had started learning just a month ago.
Seeing this, Professor Ben Barrett openly scoffed.
"Tanya Eloyce."
"Yes, Professor."
"Are you joking right now?"
"What do you mean..."
"Don't tell me you intend to face me with a heavy sword you've learned for only a month?"
"......."
Tanya didn't answer.
It was silence meaning affirmation. The professor burst out with a hollow laugh and shook his head repeatedly.
"I'm disappointed, Tanya."
"......."
"Even if something is blocked, even if a new breakthrough is needed, one should find it within what one already has. Going down a completely different path is nonsense. Do you know this?"
"I apologize. However, I personally thought the new style I changed to suits me well, and I judged I could achieve much better results."
"...!"
The classmates looked at Tanya with surprised expressions.
She had always acted cautiously before professors. Of course, this statement wasn't discourteous, but it was certainly much more aggressive than usual.
Ben Barrett also felt this. His face turned beet red as he repeatedly burst out with hollow laughs of "Huh, really, haha, ha."
Several seconds passed like that.
Sharp words spilled from Professor Barrett's lips.
"I heard the heavy sword you learned was taught by the second-year top student."
"...That's correct."
"There's occasionally that type of person. A brat who luckily shows talent young and thinks their life is decided by that. Seeing that you dare ignore even a professor's advice, you must be completely full of yourself."
"......."
"Well, fine. This midterm evaluation result will tell. Prove it. That your choice was right."
Wuuuuung-
Professor Barrett raised his sword.
That wasn't all. Without the students noticing, he secretly drew up more aura.
About one-third of his full power. If he used more than that, the students might suspect.
'But this should be enough!'
He wore a rotten smile.
1 minute. No, he'd end it within 30 seconds.
He would make her deeply feel how arrogant it was to try facing a professor with a heavy sword she'd learned for barely a month.
Thinking this, Professor Barrett opened his mouth.
A fierce voice emerged.
"Are you ready?"
"Yes, Professor."
"Good. Come."
Immediately after those words fell.
Tanya's sword, raised in an overhead stance, descended at tremendous speed.
Kwaaaang!
"Guh!"
His entire arm stung. Professor Barrett squeezed his eyes shut as if they'd tear apart.
He couldn't understand what was happening. With disheveled posture, he looked at Tanya with a bewildered expression.
What is this?
What's going on?
His thoughts didn't continue.
Tanya, having taken the same stance again at some point, was swinging her sword down with an indifferent expression.
Startled, he raised his sword.
Kwaaaaaaang!
"Kuheugh!"
This time the groan was even louder.
It was so loud that the students watching with excitement were startled, loud enough that everyone could feel he was genuinely in trouble.
With a contorted expression, Professor Barrett quickly drew up his aura.
One-fourth or one-third, he didn't have the leisure to care. To block that girl's sword, he couldn't show any mercy.
However, his posture was the problem.
He had received two strikes far exceeding his expectations. Having blocked the incredibly heavy sword head-on, his stance was completely destroyed.
In that state, belatedly drawing up aura was futile.
In the professor's eyes, Tanya's third heavy sword strike entered.
Seeing her blade tip gradually expanding, he let out a desperate shout.
Jiiiiing-!
"Kuaaaaaah!"
Sseogeok!
...Puk!
The match was decided.
It was a short time not even lasting 5 seconds. Tanya quietly stepped back holding the sword that had been cut by Professor Barrett. A perfect defeat.
Yet no one thought of her as a loser. The students' gazes moved toward the professor, or precisely, toward the blade of the sword he was holding.
Wuuuuung...
Flickering like flames, a dark red incomplete aura sword.
It was clearly a rule violation.
It was clearly a disgrace.
An Expert unleashing a full-power aura sword against a 16-year-old knight cadet!
Professor Barrett's face turned as red as his aura.
"I've learned a lesson."
To him, Tanya Eloyce bowed her head.
Blood flowed from her mouth due to internal injuries, but her expression was very refreshed.
Seeing this, Professor Barrett's face went beyond red to dying black.