‘So the Karl Kingdom sent us a monster.’
Angelica.
She was a monster who surpassed even genius.
Her swordsmanship went beyond mastery, approaching perfection.
She was good enough to be invited here as an instructor rather than enrolled as a student, and no one would have a word to say about it.
Even combining my life with my life as bones, I had never seen a child with such talent.
There was probably not a single swordsman of her age capable of wielding swordsmanship that could contend with hers.
So the rumor that she had defeated a Sword Master through swordsmanship alone was not an exaggeration.
That was why I had expected it to end in five exchanges.
Yet to think he would manage to fight Angelica to a draw.
Ian de Logres.
When Angelica chose him rather than the second imperial prince or the first prince of the Karl Kingdom—
I did not know what she had seen in him, but—
For a brief instant, life had entered the eyes of that normally indifferent child.
Life in a monster’s eyes.
That meant Angelica had expectations of Ian.
Even if he had entered without taking the academy examination, he had the accomplishment of exterminating heretics.
He could not possibly be weak.
He was the only student who had experienced real combat, so naturally he ought to be strong.
I thought perhaps that was why Angelica had judged him to be the strongest among the students.
At least, that was what I thought until Angelica beat him senseless.
"I am Ian de Logres. Angelica de Olivier, I challenge you to a duel."
Ian charged forward with confidence, playing at being a knight.
And he got beaten without being able to counterattack.
No matter how he swung his sword, he could not reach Angelica.
Because Ian’s swordsmanship was ordinary.
Before Angelica, any swordsmanship would seem mundane, but even accounting for that, Ian’s swordsmanship was ordinary.
It was at a level where, if a swordsman were skilled enough, they could land a hit if they wanted to.
But Angelica stood at a distance that no amount of skill could ever bridge.
The only thing he could do was take the blows.
Even if he was somehow enduring through the Logres family’s distinctive [Dragon Strength]—
There would come a point when even that reached its limit.
But from a certain moment onward—
He began keeping up with Angelica’s sword.
At some point, he began using Angelica’s swordsmanship.
And suddenly, he started matching exchanges with her.
Then, little by little, he began to consume Angelica’s sword paths.
Ian, who had wielded his blade with the talent of an ordinary man, was suddenly wielding it with the talent of a monster.
As though he knew exactly where and how it would flow.
His swordsmanship seemed to declare that he had copied the very sword Angelica wielded.
The same stance, the same breathing, the same sword paths.
He blocked every one of her attacks with precisely the same form.
He exchanged blows with her, again and again and again.
Ian, who had been nothing but a punching bag, had somehow reached the point where he could trade exchanges with her.
The few students who had mocked him, as well as those who had watched with bored expressions as if they already knew the result, all watched their sparring match.
So did I.
I could hear nothing else.
The only sound was wood striking wood.
At the beginning, he was pushed back without respite.
In the middle, he began to trade exchanges with her.
And near the end, he even counterattacked.
Like a carefully constructed script.
Ian’s figure as he silently pressed forward through that unfair battle—
It was the very image of a knight.
Though I had no sweat to shed—
It felt as though sweat were forming between my bones.
Two swordsmen giving their all within the script of a story.
Wasn’t a story being written every time their exchanges collided?
Ian was charging ahead to reach Angelica, even going so far as to copy her.
And Angelica, though she kept pushing him away, was waiting for him to reach her.
Ah, this is fun.
So fun.
"If it’s you, you’ll reach me."
Ian arrogantly declared.
"So I’m not alone."
Angelica accepted it as though it were only natural.
One person striving to reach a genius, even copying everything about her.
And a genius waiting for that person to someday reach her, high above.
They prepared their ultimate techniques.
Everyone held their breath as they watched them.
A frenzied storm that swallowed everything in violent passion.
And a swift sword strike that severed all things.
The clash between the two ended emptily as both their weapons shattered.
There was no victor.
There was no loser.
Like a script that had been written from the beginning.
Their match ended in a draw.
It was like watching a prearranged script unfold.
And yet, it was not childish at all.
No, because it was childish and predictable—
That was precisely why it was fun.
‘You were right. It seems some interesting students have arrived this time, Ash.’
#
[You have learned [Mad Orlando]!]
[You have upheld chivalry before a powerful opponent.]
[A reward is granted for the [Oath of Chivalry].]
[You have succeeded in facing an impossible enemy and fighting it to a draw!]
[[Logres Swordsmanship] has increased to Level 5!]
[[Orlando’s Muscle Cultivation Method] has increased to Level 2!]
[You have leveled up.]
[You have leveled up.]
[You have leveled up.]
[You have completed the challenge, ‘Contending with the Strong’!]
[You have leveled up.]
[You have leveled up.]
[You have acquired the title, [Rival of the Sword Demon].]
[Through your efforts, the fate of the protagonist, Angelica, is revised.]
[The current world has diverged slightly from the route to the DLC, the world fated for destruction.]
A flood of notifications filled my entire vision.
I had never received this many notifications before.
I had not even defeated Angelica. I had barely managed to draw after getting beaten over and over.
And yet, these rewards.
I could not even begin to grasp how strong she truly was.
The [Dragon Strength] and armor that had allowed me to withstand her attacks.
The [Insight Eye] that had copied her swordsmanship.
Even the [Insight of One Who Has Seen the End].
If even one of those three had been missing, drawing with her would have been impossible.
The sword wounds on Angelica had also healed somewhat thanks to her regenerative power.
I had been beaten so badly that there was no way I could move violently anymore.
Well then, time to check the notifications…
Clack clack clack clack clack.
The sound of two hard things striking one another.
When I checked where it was coming from, Professor Luke was applauding us by clapping his polished bones together.
Beginning with his applause—
Clap clap clap clap clap.
As though responding to it, every student in the lecture hall began applauding.
As if they had been captivated by the spar itself.
Not a single person hesitated to clap.
And I stood at the center of that applause.
For some reason, it sounded good.
The class continued.
Unlike Angelica and me, who had sparred after being singled out by her, everyone else sparred through random selection.
Angelica and I were naturally excluded.
Thanks to that—
[You have learned the Holy Kingdom’s swordsmanship…]
[You have learned Karl Kingdom swordsmanship…]
I was able to thoroughly mooch off everyone else’s swordsmanship.
Unfortunately, they did not use secret techniques or hidden arts like Angelica had.
Still, it was better than nothing.
Much appreciated.
It did not seem like class would end anytime soon.
So while watching Iris and Haede’s WWE match, I decided to catch up on my overdue homework.
First, my status window.
【Ian de Logres】
◈ Level: 20
◈ Title: [Rival of the Sword Demon]
◈ Traits: [Dragon Strength], [Insight Eye], [Oath of Chivalry]
◈ Stats
Physical: 185 | Mana: 85
Luck: 10 | Mental Strength: 30
(SP Held: 25)
▶ [Skills]
I was Level 20 now.
Only ten levels remained until I awakened sword aura.
Once again, I poured every last point of SP into mana.
My mana became 110, and my Physical stat became 210.
I had reached a point where stats alone no longer meant much.
Next was the title, then.
The first title I had gained since falling into this world.
[Rival of the Sword Demon]
A title acquired when one becomes the rival of a demon mad for the sword.
◈ The experience you gain is greatly increased until you reach Angelica’s level.
◈ The title is revoked if Angelica judges you unqualified.
I never imagined… I would be the one to gain this title.
A title earned by drawing with or defeating Angelica.
[Rival of the Sword Demon].
This was originally not meant for the player, but for the male leads.
And it was also the key to preventing Angelica from reaching her bad ending.
The notification saying Angelica’s fate had been revised was probably because I had acquired this title.
That was because Angelica’s bad ending branched depending on whether at least one male lead obtained this title in the game.
Who would have known?
Her bad ending was not the heroine dying, but the heroine becoming the final boss.
Fitting for Angelica, who billed herself as an overpowered genre, even her bad ending was truly extraordinary.
If the game reached its ending without a male lead possessing the title [Rival of the Sword Demon], Angelica herself would become the final boss who destroyed the world.
She would become a true sword demon, cutting down with her own hands the people she had protected with her sword.
That was Angelica’s bad ending.
So I had intended to make one of the male leads obtain this title, yet somehow I had received it myself.
Thanks to that, I had one more reason to grow stronger.
The moment Angelica got sick of me, I would be taking an express train straight to the bad ending.
Once the title was assigned, it could not be given to anyone else, and if it vanished, it could never be acquired again.
In the game, the player decided whether the title would be revoked, but the Angelica before me was not a player I controlled.
You could say I was completely fucked.
I had barely managed a draw by stacking cheat upon cheat…
How the hell was I supposed to be that monster’s rival…?
I clutched my throbbing forehead.
Beside me, Angelica was looking at me with a gentle smile, apparently pleased about something.
#
After the first class ended, one thing had definitely changed: the way the others looked at me.
I was not even the runner-up, and my only accomplishment had been stopping the terrorist attack on the train.
Even that accomplishment had lacked credibility because Dolnesia, a genius, had been beside me.
But I had proven myself by fighting the top student, Angelica, to a draw.
Well, after getting beaten to a pulp.
And only forcing a draw by breaking our wooden swords.
Still, I had become famous overnight.
I had been famous already, of course.
As the immature young master obsessed with chivalry.
You could say my reputation had been corrected.
I was not used to these looks, but there was a dining hall for students and eating there felt somehow burdensome.
So I satisfied my hunger with some bread I had casually bought from the shop.
‘A club, huh…’
What I was looking at now was a club.
A club!
They were an indispensable part of the social system.
Gatherings where people interested in a particular hobby came together to hone that hobby, or simply met as a social group.
Especially at Dawnstar Academia, clubs played an important role…
Poke, poke.
Someone poked me in the back.
When I turned around, it was Angelica.
Angelica fidgeted with her fingers as though she wanted to say something.
"What is it, my lady?"
"Um… well."
Angelica suddenly brought her face close to mine.
We were so close that if either of us moved even a little, our noses would touch. It was close enough for me to feel her faint breath against my skin.
What the hell does she want…?
"Um, Ian…"
Yes, go ahead.
"Could you do it with me?"
………?
Excuse me?
Comments (0)
Please log in to leave a comment. Login or Register