Swordsmanship Genius Sees the Future

Chapter 035 - First Class Competition (2)

The first inter-class competition for academy freshmen.

Although it was scheduled to be held once every month from now on, it garnered high attention as it was the inaugural event.

The grand auditorium where the competition was held was packed with spectators.

Most of them were academy students or professors, but... perhaps my brother or sister might have been in those stands.

Perhaps I wouldn't have been in this arena at all.

How wonderful would that be?

If I could lounge around the mansion and greet my brother and sister, who returned every vacation, with envious and jealous eyes...

It's a happy delusion.

Now I stood here as the representative player for Class B freshmen.

The order was Class B and Class C fighting first.

The winner would then face Class A in the finals.

Naturally, this method heavily favored Class A, but no one complained.

After all, Class A usually wins the finals anyway.

The important thing was that participating players and winning players earned extra credits.

Every time you participated in a match, you gained 1 credit, and if you won, you gained another 1 credit.

So, in terms of grades, Class B and C had an advantage.

They always played one more match, giving them a chance to earn additional credits.

It was understandable why students in Class C were making such a fuss about participating in the competition.

Just participating earned them credits, after all.

I wish our Class B would take a leaf out of their book and show some of that passion.

"...The freshmen inter-class competition will now begin. Class B and Class C sword event representatives, please step forward."

While I was lost in thought, the opening ceremony had ended.

I took a deep breath and walked towards the arena in the center of the grand auditorium.

"Ha! He's nervous!"

"Don't chicken out! It's nothing!"

"Hey! Relax! You know what happens if you fight half-heartedly, right?"

"Hey! Class B over there! If you lose to that Class C guy, you're dead meat later, got it? The honor of Class B is on the line!"

"Snap out of it! You'll die if you're unlucky!"

Shouts and boos poured down from the seniors in the second-floor stands.

From their words, most seemed to be from Class B.

2nd year Class B.

3rd year Class B.

4th year Class B...

"...Hey, isn't that Lily's younger brother?"

"Looks like it. They really do look alike."

"If he just had long hair, he'd be Lily herself, wouldn't he?"

"The vibe is completely different from Rajiks senior..."

"Win! Ray Granvelle!"

"Fighting! Ray Granvelle!"

"We, 2nd year Class A, are cheering for you!"

But why 2nd year Class A?

"..."

My breath caught for a moment.

It was my sister.

If my sister were alive, she would be attending 2nd year Class A right now.

But now my sister is gone.

Instead, my sister's friends came all the way here just to cheer me on.

Even though Class A didn't have a match yet.

-Thank you, everyone.

The choked breath slowly eased.

I had one more reason to win.

I couldn't possibly disappoint my sister's friends.

"Representing 1st year Class C for the sword event! Orgen Christ! Provisional Swordsmanship 2-star!"

With the referee professor's announcement, the Class C student facing me stepped forward.

Black messy hair and sharp eyes.

His unfocused gaze trembled uneasily.

"Facing him, representing 1st year Class B for the sword event! Ray Granvelle! Provisional Swordsmanship 7-star!"

"What?"

"7-star?"

"Gah!"

"Really? It wasn't just a rumor?"

"No way. Does the Granvelle family only produce monsters?"

"Seriously. Wasn't Rajiks 4, 4 too?"

"No, Rajiks was 4, 5. Swordsmanship 4-star and Aura 5-star."

"Wow, crazy. It's a million-to-one blessing that he died... Gasp!"

"Hey, watch your mouth. Where are you spouting nonsense? Are you a Poison King Cult spy?"

"Ah, no, I just... because of the grades..."

In an instant, the entire arena buzzed.

The gaze of the Class C student facing me trembled even more.

Yeah.

You're having a tough time too, aren't you?

You came all this way hoping to get some credits.

But with so many people watching you from all directions, comparing you to your opponent, and making arbitrary judgments, it's confusing, right?

Right.

Me too.

So, it'd be better for all of us if we end this quickly.

As quickly as possible...

***

"Ugh. Not good. I never like it here, no matter when I come."

The old man began to complain as soon as he sat down.

"VIP seating, my foot. Making an old man like me climb up to the third floor. The chairs are terrible too. I tried to get this fixed before I quit, but it's still the same."

"I apologize, Professor. I also suggested it many times, but they said it's an academy tradition and difficult to change."

Professor Totten, sitting next to him, chuckled awkwardly.

The old man glanced at the VIP seats on the opposite side and clicked his tongue.

"Did the dean say that? Tsk tsk... Anyway, nothing here pleases me. From the students to the professors, there's nothing I like. I hope this academy just goes bankrupt."

"Oh my, please watch your words. Wasn't this where you personally taught students until two years ago, Professor? Since you've made the trip, please say only good things..."

"Hmph, students, my foot."

The old man snorted and shook his head.

"You should speak plainly. There wasn't a single kid worth teaching. For almost 10 years, that is. That's why I quit. Ah, at the end, that Granvelle family kid, Rajiks or whatever he was called, he was at least somewhat decent."

"He... As you know, Rajiks Granvelle is dead."

"I heard. It was a terrible incident."

The old man frowned and lowered his gaze.

Just then, a scrawny boy was walking towards the center of the grand auditorium.

"Is that the child you were talking about?"

"Yes, that's Ray Granvelle. He is the younger brother of Rajiks Granvelle, whom you mentioned."

"And Roah Granvelle's son, too. Hmm... His bone structure is terrible. Can he even swing a wooden sword properly with that? One poke and all his bones would break. He looks like he should be attending a nursing home, not an academy."

The old man spewed venomous remarks.

Professor Totten looked at Ray, who had entered the arena, and asked again, "Does he look that bad to you?"

"Bad, indeed. He's scrawny."

"He's only 15. Won't his physique improve in a few years?"

"I'm not talking about his physique. I'm talking about his bone structure. His bones are too thin. He won't achieve greatness like that."

"Weren't you also not particularly outstanding in bone structure, Professor?"

"Me? Right. That's what I'm saying. This old man ultimately didn't achieve greatness, did I? Giggle, snort..."

The old man chuckled eerily and leaned back against the chair. Totten sighed inwardly and recalled the old man's name.

Ansbach Highwind.

Despite his words, he was one of the four heroes, also known as the 'Four Gods', who led the Sword King family for decades and distinguished themselves in numerous battles.

He was also one of the few spiritual pillars of the swordsmanship faction.

Totten smiled calmly and boosted the old man's spirits.

"Still, isn't there no one like you in our swordsmanship faction, Professor? In my heart, you are always the best. And among the Four Gods, you are the only one who truly had a passion for swordsmanship."

"Four Gods, my foot. The dead old men would rise from their graves. They'd scream that they were grouped with a weakling like me."

"You're joking... Of course, the deceased were strong, but many still believe that the Thunder God and Wind God are the best."

"Ha! Don't even use those cringeworthy names."

The old man shook his head with a disgusted expression.

"Wind God, they attached that well. How could I ever be on par with that old Thunder God? If we fought, I'd be instantly crushed."

"Crushed, don't say such things. Of course, the Delta family head is strong, but..."

"Not just strong. He's a monster, a monster. Raul Delta, that old man, can't be compared to a shriveled has-been like me. I saw him a few months ago, and his muscles are still firm. Phew, I should just die quickly."

"Stop saying such things... Since you're here anyway, why don't you enjoy watching the skills of your disciples with a good mood?"

"Ugh. I don't like it."

The old man closed his eyes and shook his head. In the arena, the two players faced each other and bowed.

"...Anyway, the trend is aura."

"Yes?"

"Isn't it great that children with high geomantic sensitivity are born in droves? You can teach swordsmanship for a hundred days and barely make one person useful."

"Yes, yes. I know. But you'll change your mind when you see Ray."

"Hmm..."

The old man squinted one eye and mumbled to himself.

"It would be better to watch a bit more before deciding. Just looking at his Flowing Sword skill, he certainly has the basics down... The important thing is what comes next. By the way, someone should stick by him and make sure he eats well. Hmm, well, I understand why you're paying attention to him. I wonder if I'll have anything to add or not..."

The first match ended quickly with the Flowing Sword.

The Flowing Sword is a swordsmanship technique that naturally maintains a flow, like a dance.

Once accustomed to it, one can compress the intermediate steps to reach the target.

This means omitting all subsequent movements except for the starting motion.

This makes it appear to the opponent as if I'm just rushing in and wildly swinging my wooden sword.

However, in that short moment, various flows actually connect.

The flow of rotating the body.

The flow of pulling the shoulder back to prepare for a slash.

The flow of crouching the body for a thrust.

Simple flows continuously connect between reality and illusion, with only the preparatory movements visible.

Drawing out the opponent's wrong reaction with this is the completed stage of the Flowing Sword.

My attack was a thrust.

But the opponent unconsciously twisted his hand to block a slash and got hit on the back of his hand.

He was deceived by the intermediate flow of the Flowing Sword.

What if the opponent had boosted their physical abilities with aura? They could change their posture at the last minute and respond. But this was the swordsmanship event, where only pure swordsmanship was competed. Activating aura would immediately result in disqualification.

"Wow!"

Froggy, who was waiting in the player area, raised both arms and cheered.

"Congratulations on the win, Ray! I knew you'd win! But how did you do it? From behind, I couldn't tell what happened at all."

"I thrust the end of the wooden sword into the back of his hand."

"So how?"

"How, you ask..."

"Next player! Come to the dueling arena!"

"Ah, it's my turn."

Froggy confidently smiled, swaying his interlocked hands.

"Hehe. Hehe. Heheheh..."

"..."

"Finally, this moment has arrived, hasn't it? I tried not to fight at the academy if possible, but I guess I have no choice. I'll just have to unleash my hidden seals."

"...Fight well and come back."

"Yeah. I'll win and come back."

Froggy waved his hand and stepped forward.

No matter how I look at him, he seems to have the mental age of a child.

People usually say that when you're like that, you let your guard down and get seriously hurt...

Well, the referee will stop him midway, right? There's also a professional medic waiting behind the arena, even brewing herbal medicine, and above all, when you use aura, your durability increases and your recovery speed becomes ridiculously fast.

Even serious injuries are said to return to normal in just a month.