CH 117

Outing

Zechs narrowly dodged Sheila’s attack.

He kept his movements to a minimum so as not to miss an opportunity to counterattack. As if aiming for the slight opening created by his dodging, a sharp thrust immediately flew at him.

“Damn it!”

He tried to block it with his sword but was met head-on. The weight of the sword against her arm made Sheila realize how much Zechs had grown. He was much more polished in terms of both speed and strength, and he knew Sheila’s fighting style. In a normal fight, there was no doubt that she would have a hard time.

Still, the match this time was dominated by Sheila, who had the advantage of the land.

Quickly repositioning her stance, she ran up the trunk of a tree right next to her.

Glancing at Zechs, who was staring at her in surprise, she used the recoil from kicking up the trunk to slash at him. He barely caught it, but his face frowned at the fierce impact.

Sheila landed on the ground and lowered her stance.

Zechs blindly swung his sword, knowing that he would be no match for her if he was to pull off another feat. He knew that if he created another opening, it would be the end for him.

However, as expected, Sheila, who knew how to fight in a forest, was better.

She was able to repel the sword that Zechs was swinging with her strength. His sword plunged into the trunk of a nearby tree with a high-pitched clatter of steel. It sunk in deep into the tree trunk and was unlikely to come loose in the slightest.

It was too late to panic. Sheila had enough time to put her blade to his neck.

“All right, you’re wide open.”

“――I lost.”

Zechs, with a bitter look on his face, put his foot on the tree trunk and pulled hard at the hilt. After repeating it several times, the sword finally slipped out.

“Damn it, you’re not supposed to use trees.”

“It’s important to have tactics in limited spaces, you know? Because you can get into a fight indoors.”

“But that doesn’t mean anyone would run up a tree.”

Zechs rolled on the ground with a thud. He said he was going to take a short break, so she left him there and proceeded through the forest.

In that direction, Clauschezade and Cody were in the middle of a match. Sheila approached Jornwerner, who was quietly watching the fight.

“I’m surprised that Jornwerner-sensei is interested in training. Do you enjoy it?”

“Yes, it’s very interesting.”

“….”

He had a boyish smile on his face, but unfortunately, because of his usual conduct, it made him look suspicious. Sheila had a hunch that the fighting could be used for some kind of experiment.

Deciding not to go into it too deeply for now, Sheila looked next to him.

“What about you, Leidyrune-senpai?”

“Whether it’s fun or not, it’s a learning experience.”

Leidyrune was still sullenly pursuing his lips together, but he didn’t seem bored. Then, was the reason why he wasn’t in a good mood because the relative that he disliked was next to him?

After chatting for a while, the match was settled, and Clauschezade and Cody approached them.

Secretly regretting that she missed the showdown, Sheila sent her words of appreciation.

“Good job, guys. Which of you won?”

“A foolish question.”

Clauschezade answered curtly, not even a trace of sweat on his face. Cody, on the other hand, was drenched in sweat, but he looked very happy.

“Clauschezade was very familiar with my ability. Otherwise, I would have won for a split second. I knew he was a great teacher.”

Normally, Sheila would be a little taken aback by his devotion, but now she could nod her head in agreement. Witnessing that kind of power, anyone was bound to get excited.

“How about you two?”

Clauschezade asked, and Sheila clenched her fists.

“I’m very strong in the forest. I understand why you went to the trouble of giving me a real sword.”

He probably wanted to make them understand how difficult it was to fight when there were obstacles in the way. It might have been difficult to do so with a replica sword.

Clauschezade walked up to Sheila and picked up her sword.

“It seems you have become quite accustomed to this fine sword. When the new semester begins, I’m supposed to order some weapons and replica swords. You, too, should think carefully about what you should choose.”

“I see.”

Sheila looked down involuntarily at the thin sword in Clauschezade’s hand.

Come to think of it, most of the fourth-year students handled common long swords, but the upperclassmen seemed to have a variety of replica swords in their possession. Seiryuu’s replica sword during the competency test was also sharp and beautiful.

“Are you saying that you’re going to make a real sword and a replica sword in exactly the same shape?”

“That’s right. In order to familiarize themselves with their own weapons, it has been decided that replica swords of the same shape should be prepared. Even special students who cannot afford it can rest assured that if they apply for it, they will be able to order it as a supply item.”

“That’s very helpful. My family doesn’t have any money at all.”

Sheila didn’t know how many years it took her to purchase a weapon through barter. In fact, it was doubtful that there was even a blacksmith willing to sell them.

Since she had hunted beasts for a living, she had used various weapons in actual combat. There was nothing she wasn’t good at, and she could handle all of them to some extent.

However, since there was nothing that she was outstandingly good at, she had to look for weapons that could take advantage of her specialty.

“I think a chain-sickle will reflect poorly on my character when I become a knight.”

“The fact that you are considering a chain-sickle is in itself a terrifying thing about you.”

“It’s surprisingly effective in killing and is very convenient. It can be used in both close-range and medium-range combat.”

“With you in their ranks, the glorious Order of the Imperial Knights will be transformed into bandits in no time. What a wonderful vision of the future.”

“All you do is complain. Then, how about a billhook?”

As they were having a lively discussion about weapons, Leidyrune interrupted to break up the conversation. 

However, because of his habit of staying silent, Sheila couldn’t understand his intentions. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw that Jornwerner was laughing for some reason.

Sheila huffed but suddenly remembered Cody’s words. 

“Maybe Leidyrune-senpai is frustrated at being left out of the group.”

In other words, did that mean he wanted to have a friendly spar too and aim higher together?

“Ah, that’s right! Since you’ve come all this way, Leidyrune-senpai probably wants to get in shape too! So, who would you like to go against first?”

Beside Sheila, whose eyes were shining, Jornwerner curled up his body even more and laughed harder.

Leidyrune, the person in question, raised his eyebrows in puzzlement but eventually fixed his gaze on Clauschezade.

“Hmm…. Will Clauschezade-sensei be willing to spar with me?”

The tension was so great that it made their skin crawl. The expression of the two people looking at each other was very intense.

The atmosphere was tense as if they were about to strike each other, and Sheila quickly took refuge by Cody’s side.

“Hah~ I would’ve liked to fight him, but this may be the first time I’ve seen these two fight. It’s so amazing and exciting!”

Sheila was wondering if she should call Zechs, but for some reason, she noticed that her friend had a pale white complexion.

“Cody, what’s wrong? Are you feeling sick somewhere?”

“…. If you ask me where, I feel sick to my stomach, hahaha.”

As Sheila stared curiously at his hollow face she suddenly felt a trickle of rain on her cheek.

“Eh, it’s starting to rain again.”

Sheila’s lips twitched as small raindrops began to scatter. Just when she thought things were about to get fun.

Unexpectedly, Clauschezade immediately lost his fighting spirit.

“It’s a little early, but let’s call it a day. It would be a disaster if you all got sick from the training.”

“Eh, are you going home? I wanted to fight with both Clauschezade-sensei and Leidyrune-senpai.”

“We can continue at another time.”

Both Clauschezade and Zechs, who had gotten up and caught up to them, quickly walked away. Even though Sheila was dissatisfied, she followed at the end of the line.

The raindrops hitting their bodies were getting bigger. The group headed toward where the horses were tied up while walking a little faster. Clauschezade, who led the group, seemed to have experienced walking in this forest, and his steps were steady.

They soon reached the entrance to the forest and hurriedly untied their horses.

Sheila, who had excellent hearing, was the first to notice that something was wrong.

“Eh….?”

She paused her work and slowly looked up.

There was the sound of hooves running across the ground. Their gait was terribly disordered as if to indicate the urgency of the situation.

Seeing Sheila frowning, Clauschezade opened his mouth.

“What’s wrong?”

“A horse is approaching us. Alone, and it’s going very fast.”

By the time Sheila answered, the shadow of a horse could be seen. Clauschezade noticed it and took a step forward with a stern look in his eyes. He stood there as if protecting Sheila.

In the distance, the figure on horseback tilted back.

Falling from a horse often led to serious injury. Sheila rushed forward as quickly as she can.

Clauschezade didn’t make any special effort to hold her back, probably because he was clear on the identity of the person they were dealing with. As Sheila got closer, she realized that the person was wearing the uniform of the border guard.

“Are you all right!?”

She checked to see if the other person, who had fallen on his face and wasn’t moving, was conscious or not. She was relieved when he groaned in reply.

Sheila quickly checked everything. The fall mustn’t have caused too much injury, and there seemed to be no abnormality either in the bone.

There were some minor abrasions, but what bothered her the most was how weak the man felt.

He was sweating profusely and his face was pale. Sheila thought it was because of the fear of falling off the horse, so she held his hand to reassure him. Then, he gripped my hand back with an uncontrollable force.

“…. Ugh.”

When she frowned in pain, Clauschezade took her arm back from the side.

“You’re from the Border Patrol, I presume. What happened?”

The man’s hazy consciousness came into focus at Clauschezade’s calm tone. His eyes were filled with agitation.

“That armor, are you from the Imperial Knights Order…? Please, please inform His Majesty the King.”

The man squeezed out a hoarse voice. His trembling arms were unconsciously trying to cling to something. Sheila again took the man’s hand in hers. She repelled Clauschezade’s reproachful gaze with a single gaze.

“It’s okay, please speak slowly.”

“We don’t have much time. You’re students, aren’t you? You all need to evacuate from here as soon as possible.”

Swallowing heavily, the man shouted with a desperate expression.

“I-It’s a demon attack![1] They’ve broken through the border with the Faril Divine Kingdom and will soon arrive at the royal capital….!”

――The rain was getting heavier.

Translator Notes:

1. I felt that it was more appropriate to use ‘demon’ than ‘monster’ so I’ve edited the word in the previous chapters. ↵