Love Letter From The Future

The exercise of force must always be conducted with caution.

Power inherently possesses the attribute of privatizing force. From the perspective of power, an uncontrolled force is evil and merely an object to be eliminated by any means necessary.

This is the only way to maintain order.

The order of the Empire stems from the Emperor, the order of the Southern Kingdoms from the lords of each kingdom, and the order of the Holy Kingdom from the Heavenly Deity Arus. Their commonality lies in being the pinnacle of power in their respective nations.

Therefore, all “justified violence” belongs solely to power. This was similarly true in the Academy, which was responsible for cultivating the talents that would bear the future of each nation. In fact, it would not be incorrect to say that the Academy was a microcosm of power struggles.

In most cases, violence is not permitted. However, everyone knew that violence was secretly being perpetrated within the Academy. The reason problems did not arise was that such violence generally adhered to the rules of power.

Nobles are tolerated to exert a certain level of violence against commoners. While it may be an issue if it occurs in public spaces, in most other cases, commoners do not raise objections.

The period one can spend as an Academy Student is limited to just four years. After that, the gap between nobles and commoners becomes stark once again. All they could do was endure.

Instead, it was customary for nobles to cover up most incidents that occurred at the Academy. The more they did so, the harsher the punishment became for those who crossed the line.

This was a strategy for nobles to secure their dominance within the Academy.

Thus, the Academy appeared to advocate equality on the surface, but the deeper one looked into it, the undeniable hierarchy imposed by power became evident.

So when Tean’s gang did not respond properly when I struck the face of the aristocratic-looking man, nor when I drew the sword hanging at my waist, it was because their rationality could not comprehend the reality before them. It was understandable.

Though I too was a noble, I was merely the second son of a rural baronet.

In contrast, despite being from the Southern Kingdom, Tean’s gang comprised the scions of high-ranking nobles. In fact, the very man I initially struck appeared to be from the Empire.

Yet, they would never have imagined that I would strike first, and that complacent judgment granted me a considerable advantage.

I bypassed Tean before landing a blow on the face of one of his gang members who was awkwardly trying to rise.

With a satisfying smack, a man was sent flying through the air. He would not have died from being hit with the scabbard, but he had taken a blow to the face with metal. At the very least, he would likely have lost consciousness.

Now, I turned my eyes to seek the next victim.

It was then that the members of Tean’s gang regained their senses.

From the mouth of the man I had just struck, a couple of white teeth flew into the sky. One of his friends screamed in shock.

“Crazy bastard! Wh— cough, urgh?!”

That would be his last line. His gesture of pointing at me without even drawing his sword caught my attention.

The ensuing actions were succinct. Tean’s gang was clustered in one place, thus my next target was also standing nearby.

I twisted my foot and violently rammed the hilt of my sword into the man’s solar plexus. He let out a gasp as he struggled to breathe, and before he could even release that suppressed groan, my scabbard smashed into his neck.

With a thud, the sound of hitting a dense mass of muscle echoed. The compressed air burst forth with a muffled sound.

The focus disappeared from the man’s eyes.

With a thud, the bulky man collapsed. There were now five left, a manageable number.

I took a deep breath, exhaling while surveying my surroundings. The sound of weapons being drawn echoed all around. It appeared that the only mage was the aristocratic-looking man I had dispatched first.

The rest were wielding swords. This made the situation straightforward.

Standing opposite the gang members who were hesitantly pointing their swords at me, I smiled menacingly.

“Come at me, you bastards. Are you scared?”

Perhaps unable to withstand my provocation, one of the gang members shouted, veins popping from his neck.

“Kill him! That bastard is alone!”

Yet, within the eyes of the man shouting that, fear and tension lingered unmistakably.

In the blink of an eye, three out of the eight had fallen. Even that was the result of Tean purposely refraining from launching an attack.

In truth, attempting to assault Tean would likely have only put me at a disadvantage. Unlike these misfits, he possessed above-average skills within the Swordsmanship Department.

No matter how much I ambushed him, he was not someone I could take down with a single blow. Moreover, he was surprisingly prudent and enjoyed a certain respect within his group.

Such a man should not be taken down through foul means. One must fight honorably to earn genuine submission from the gang.

However, at this moment, no one could comprehend my intentions. In their eyes, I appeared as a fearsome opponent who had disregarded the delectable prey that was Tean and had swiftly dealt with three of them.

Tension and fear caused their bodies to stiffen. And the more so, the clearer the “signs” became.

My held breath resonated in my eardrums. Time seemed to flow increasingly slow. A dull, heavy rhythm pressed against my skin.

Since the battle against the monster, my heightened senses had opened a new dimension to how I perceived the world. It was indeed a sense of time where every fleeting moment competed against another.

A phantom trajectory formed before my eyes. Four of them, aside from Tean, were charging at me all at once. The trajectory appeared complex and difficult to evade.

So I decided to take an alternative approach.

The path of the sword from the first man to charge at me was drawn. An exemplary downward slash from the upper right to the lower left. I gritted my teeth and struck the moment the sword path turned into a solid line.

With a sound like a thud, the sudden blow distorted the sword path. The space that had been swung out became the location where yet another man was preparing to strike.

“Oh, at that moment, the swords of both men collided. The force from both of them caused their swords to simultaneously plunge into the ground. Only two swords remained.

In an instant, I pulled myself close to the man who had swung the sword, twisting my body to ensure I could sink into his space. I glimpsed the surprise in the eyes of the bewildered man.

Unquestionably, the sword’s tip dealt a blow to his solar plexus. With a gasp, the man hunched over. The remaining sword was swung at that moment.

My body pivoted, and I moved behind the man struck in the solar plexus. His upper body, slightly hunched, was now directly in the center of the sword’s path.

“Ugh!”

With a bang, the man crashed to the ground after being struck in the back. The swordsman who had swung his weapon in panic appeared visibly flustered. I couldn’t let that opportunity slip away.

With a leap, I surged forward toward the man who had been standing in shock. By the time he regained his bearings, he hastily raised his sword to downstrike, but my blade was faster.

My sword struck the man’s scabbard with a thud. Unable to withstand the sudden impact, his stance crumbled. I leaped on him, pinning him down.

It was a textbook mounting position. However, I had no intention of landing punches. Before he could regain his senses, my scabbard struck his face several times.

Smack, smack, smack. It was just three hits. Yet, that was enough to render him unconscious as his eyes rolled back in his head. But the cost I had to pay to finish him off was significant as well.

With a thud, a powerful impact struck my back. I hadn’t been aware of it at the moment, but the sound reverberating inside felt wholly different from that of the external world.

My insides compressed, and my breath was stifled. My muscles involuntarily tensed, causing my movements to stiffen.

The two men whose swords had once entwined had charged at me. I had anticipated this, twisting my body to minimize the impact, but it still hurt.

I rolled on the ground as my body curved in pain. Then, two more strikes came down in the spot where I almost had fallen.

Had I not dodged in time, that would have been the last place I remained. At least in this battle.

As I continued to navigate the series of intense movements, my breath grew slightly ragged. Hah, hah, the harshness of my panting echoed in my ears. Two enemies still remained.

Tean still had not moved. Yet it was a situation where he could join the fight at any moment. Thus, I had to finish off those two as quickly as possible.

The two men were glaring at me with increasingly wary eyes. It seemed they realized that if they rushed in recklessly, the tables might turn.

My heightened senses were primarily useful for counterattacks. Moreover, my best attributes were agility and horsemanship. I could proudly say I ranked among the best in those areas at the Academy.

It’s well-known that footwork is crucial in close combat. With the combination of sharpened senses, none among them could match me if they were on par with my skill level—assuming they would attack first.

However, I was now the one in a hurry. The two men waited with hesitant looks, hoping for Tean to come to their aid. That couldn’t be allowed.

My sword shot forth with a slicing sound. It was a throw. The rotating scabbard flew toward them at terrifying speed.

They clearly hadn’t anticipated someone throwing a weapon, as their eyes widened in shock. So flustered, both simultaneously drew their swords.

Thanks to that, my sword, which had been flying at breakneck speed, embedded itself in the ground. Still, that alone was enough.

It struck the ground with my hunched posture intact. Before they could regain their full composure, my body surged into their close proximity. Though the two men looked a bit surprised, they quickly regained their calm.

They realized I was unarmed. There were limits to subduing a trained swordsman with bare hands. It was the difference between being armed and unarmed.

Their eyes reflected a glimmer of relief, believing they could at least withstand a strike. However, the instant my hands began to grope my waist, horror returned to their eyes.

I had one more weapon left.

With a thud, the sound of an axe embedding into wood rang out. That was the sound of a hatchet striking someone’s neck.

It just wasn’t the part that was sharp. Though the reverse-swinging hatchet hadn’t pierced the skin, as a blunt weapon, it was still formidable.

One more fell. The remaining man swung his sword like a maniac. I yanked the hatchet I had just swung back, causing the edge to close in on the edge between the handle and the blade.

With a clunk, the solid impact of two objects intertwining resonated through my forearm. The opponent’s downward force was intense enough that I almost lost my grip on the handle, yet I grimaced and exerted more strength, pushing the sword away.

And then, I thrust my head into the chin of the last man with bewildered eyes. My slightly bent posture straightened, and a powerful propulsion followed.

Thud, pain burst forth in my head. But it was nothing compared to what he had to bear.

Struck on the chin, the man staggered and collapsed. Now, only seven groaning men lay on the ground.

Of course, I wasn’t unscathed either. My back muscles, having taken a blow, continuously complained of pain. It was abnormal for my head, having struck another man’s chin, to be feeling dizzy.

Stumbling, I felt along the ground to retrieve the sword I had thrown away. I stood up once more.

Because there was still one enemy remaining.

Tean Aitry. With bronze skin, golden hair, and a muscular body that epitomized a trained warrior.

He was watching the struggle between us with a scowl. Slowly, his mouth opened.

“…I thought you would be a bit smarter.”

“Then why start chaos by touching someone who was being quiet?”

With a sigh, he drew the great sword he had on his back. At this point, there was no escaping the fight. It was a fact we both knew well.

Despite this, Tean clicked his tongue, displaying a mood of clear reluctance. His eyes sank deep.

“Ian, your reflexes have greatly improved. And your footwork… How did your skills rise so rapidly in that time? Did Yuridina give you some special tonic?”

Hearing that, I panted, watching him intently. A half-hearted chuckle escaped my lips.

“You slimy bastard… I hear that any student from the Swordsmanship Department knows all the information, regardless of grades.”

“Since you’re my rival, isn’t it only natural?”

“Yet you still touched Ceria’s mother?”

Tean merely scoffed at my growling voice. A cruel glint flickered in his eyes.

“It seems you’re somewhat mistaken…”

And in the next moment.

A gust of wind rushed at me. Tean kicked off the ground and charged forward. That hulking body shot forth like a bullet.

Even to the eye, it was an unbelievable speed. It seemed as though everything except me had vanished from his view. It would be impossible to make such a straightforward charge otherwise.

He was disregarding any variables; it was reckless. That made it feel all the more powerful.

My sharpened senses had been warning me that Tean had been preparing for an ambush all this time. So my response was not delayed.

My sword intercepted Tean’s trajectory. But that was all.

I felt an impact as my insides twisted. A suppressed groan escaped my lips as I felt like I could almost vomit.

Tean’s arm muscles flexed. My spot sank beneath his footsteps.

“Ugh, ah…!”

“Gathering information is to understand the weaknesses of the opponent. Right? You do the same, Ian.”

Once again, the great sword came crashing down. A strike packed with even more power than before; my body, blocking it with my sword, was shoved back.

My arms were already trembling. I had only clashed twice.

A fierce gaze aimed at Tean, yet he merely flashed a grin back at me.

“Your mana has increased, but it’s still below average. That’s why you can’t take me on.”

Tean Aitry, the firstborn of the prestigious Aitry family from the Southern Kingdom.

When recounting his talents as a swordsman, numerous advantages could be listed. An innate cruelty, viciousness, yet a prudent demeanor that allows him to observe situations, along with the robust physique unique to the Aitry family.

But if one were to pinpoint just one, most would likely arrive at the same answer.

Mana capacity.

His amount of mana was prodigious. It was something that could not even begin to be compared to mine.

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