Chapter 573
573fury
70. This side(6)
The Lion's Hall is the largest indoor training hall in the Training Pavilion. It is wide enough to not feel stuffy even when riding a horse, the floor height is over 6 meters, and nine thick stone pillars support the high ceiling. It is grand, reminiscent of an ancient temple..
Is it because of its impressive size??
Even though there were already more than fifty students there, there was a somewhat quiet atmosphere in the Lion's Hall..
“…….”
As he entered the training ground with the Southern students, he felt an inexplicable sense of discomfort. The students from the Western faction who followed behind quietly looked around the hall as if they had sensed the strange atmosphere..
Soon they were able to realize the identity of the awkwardness they were feeling. It was because of the silence that filled the hall..
Gdun had driven an ancient chariot in this place before. Although it was just entertainment that promoted practical training in war history, I participated in several other classes. Of course, it was always noisy and noisy. Isn’t that what a training ground is supposed to be?.
So the silence that fell in the Lion's Hall right now was quite strange..
“……what?”
As if trying to resolve the young Count's doubts, Gillian, who was looking around, approached a group of students nearby..
“Hello, everyone. Can I ask you something??”
“Jillian?”
“When did you guys arrive? The evaluation is over, right? How was it? What is this atmosphere??”
The young people frowned at Jillian's attitude of asking for information without a proper greeting or understanding..
They were children of robed nobles or court nobles..
Nobles like him usually had short family history and little or no fiefdoms, so they were often treated poorly by local nobles who acted like kings. It is natural that one cannot join the major regional factions..
“As you can see, I came earlier than you. There's nothing special about the evaluation, so go check it out for yourself..”
However, the young people who belonged to this 'royal capital faction' believed that they were better than 'petty feudal lords' like Jillian in terms of immediate power and prestige in the capital..
With those thoughts clearly evident on her face, Jillian spun around and pointed behind her..
“I'd like to do that too, but His Excellency Count Gdun over there was curious..”
“…….”
It seems that even students whose parents were high-ranking officials such as ambassadors, high magistrates, or cavalry inspectors could not ignore the name of the great lord..
The students of the Royal Capital faction reluctantly opened their mouths..
While Jillian was gathering information, other Southern students were closely observing the two people in the middle of the Hall of the Dead..
In the center of the training area, there was a pedestal and a low platform on which various types of wooden weapons were hung. Right next to it, a man sitting leisurely on a backless chair and a young man standing in front of a sack of gunny sack were attracting the students' attention..
There were only two people in sight, but I was able to tell right away who was the swordsman from the empire and who was Ludo..
“It must be that guy.”
“He's pretty big.”
The man sitting in the chair was tall and broad-shouldered..
His skin looked even darker in contrast to the lightly tanned bronze color of the noble students scattered throughout the hall. In addition, he had a rough, bushy beard and dark blonde hair that was brushed haphazardly. To add a little bit of exaggeration, it gave the impression of a barbarian among civilized people..
“I thought he was just a cocky guy, but now I see he was a really crazy guy..”
Jillian, who had obtained the information, continued speaking as if she was shocked..
“First of all, half of the kids here were rejected..”
Gdun kept his mouth shut the entire time to calm down his anger at being humiliated by Aeneas. But he couldn't help but question what Jillian said..
“……Have you been refused a course? why?”
“I don't have enough skills to take my own class..”
“……This is absurd..”
“You crazy bastard, how dare you say that?”
“Like the Gelan people.”
“No matter what, you said such a reckless thing about just a guest teacher? Principal, what on earth is General Terov doing??”
As her colleagues glared at the swordsman and complained, Jillian slowly added,.
“They said it was a policy for the students. What he is going to teach is practical fighting techniques, so if you don't have the basics of martial arts, it's worse than not learning them at all..”
“Seeing how he talks about combat, he must be a lowly mercenary..”
As Osbrim sneered, other students also joined in..
“That's not all.”
Jillian added another word as if to add fuel to the fire..
“After passing the level assessment, we decided on a class based on ability. They gave me a piece of an animal as a token..”
“animal sculpture?”
“On the outside, it was just an unremarkable wooden sculpture. Those who barely passed the evaluation received chickens, and those who did better received bears or horses..”
Gdun and Osbrim were so dumbfounded that they didn't even get angry anymore..
“……Isn’t this level of bravery rather than arrogance??”
“Maybe I'm just a mindless idiot.”
Gdun burst out laughing and looked back at Jillian..
“So, how does that famous swordsman evaluate his level??”
“That's sparring.”
“Sparring? That sword tiger?”
“yes.”
“……Osbrim. I guess you're right. He must be an idiot.”
Hundreds of noble students are studying at the Royal College, and recently, not only ordinary nobles but also children of great families can be seen frequently..
And in the case of children of great families, they begin training to become knights from a very young age. It replaces the life of a starter, seed, and apprentice through expensive training that has been developed over a long period of time..
From the time they begin to walk, they receive careful care from the best wizards and priests in the territory, endure harsh training, and learn the family's secret martial arts. Preparation to overcome human limitations is built from childhood..
After going through this process, by the time you reach your mid-teens, you will have skills comparable to those of most ordinary knights. If a dog is particularly talented, it will naturally achieve greater achievements..
Thanks to this, the swordsmanship teachers at the Royal College may have slightly better skills than the children of great families, but their overall physical abilities, including strength, agility, reflexes, and durability, tended to lag significantly behind. In other words, in terms of overall combat power, there were many students who could overwhelm the swordsmanship teacher..
“But it’s sparring… … . Is this a licensed swordsman??”
Gdun, the head of the Count Isivan family, was one of those students. Although he was only seventeen years old, he was capable of taking on two knights at once..
Thanks to this, like the children of other great families, I have barely taken any classes related to martial arts since entering the Royal College..
If you want to train, all you have to do is hang out with your blood relatives or the family's bodyguards who followed you to the capital. Why go to some idiot's lecture?.
The purpose of coming to the Lion's Hall this time was to take care of the arrogant Gelan guy, and I had no intention of learning anything from him..
“……hmm.”
Gdun laughed in bewilderment, but when he thought about it again, it wasn't a bad situation. The original plan was to pick a fight with that arrogant swordsman and beat him up. It was a perfect opportunity for Dalian..
“Okay, if that's the case.-”
Just when Gdun, with a confident smile on his face, was about to move towards the center of the hall. A boy was approaching the swordsman one step ahead..
The old man, a boy of short stature, was half-pushed forward by the car..
Count Aeneas scolded him so harshly for his weak and timid attitude that approaching the large Ghelan man felt like a refuge..
“oh.”
Whether he was aware of the situation or not, swordsman Rudo got up from his chair with a very happy expression. Then he gestured to the tall servant standing next to him..
“Egon, list.”
“yep.”
The swordsman bowed to Banoin while receiving a thin folder and a quill..
“Welcome, young master. Your name is?”
“Well, Banoin de Ovos Boyd..”
“Banoin de Ovos Boyd. Are you sure you came to listen to the lecture on ‘General and practical imperial combat techniques’??”
Contrary to what he expected, the boy just nodded his head when he saw the other person speaking fluent Milano. The swordsman scribbled his quill and smiled..
“We will proceed with the level evaluation as announced. The purpose is to ensure that my classes are suitable for you and to place you in a class at the appropriate level for effective teaching. If you choose the wooden sword you like from the weapon rack over there - Oh.”
The swordsman, who continued speaking kindly, smiled as if surprised..
“You brought a wooden sword.?”
“Ah, well. exactly.”
As Banoin awkwardly nodded while adjusting the wooden sword at his waist, Ludo smiled brighter..
“This is the first time someone brought a wooden sword. Excellent.”
Ludo's tone was polite and calm, but his voice was quite loud and resonated through the high ceiling. Thanks to this, other students in the hall were able to hear his praise as well..
“Yeah, of course it's the first time..”
“Well done, Banoin. Excellent.”
As the southern students laughed and laughed, Banoin tightly pursed his lips..
Seeing that, the swordsman furrowed his eyebrows. And without saying anything, he turned around and guided the old man up to the low platform..
“Okay then-”
Seeing the large swordsman pulling out his wooden sword, the short noble boy also pulled out his wooden sword..
“Show me your skills.”
The swordsman slowly took a stance. I straightened my back, spread my legs, and picked up the wooden sword. That was it..
Huh.
A gentle breeze of unknown origin swept through the wide hall..
“……uh,”
From that moment on, Banoin could not breathe properly..
The same was true for students standing far away from the platform. Students from the southern faction, including Gdun and Osbrim, and students from the western faction, including Garwin and Aeneas, also stopped breathing..
Most of the students were just bewildered and confused, but some students, including Gudun, could not help but be astonished by the unfamiliar and overwhelming force. And then I realized why the other students stayed in the Lion's Hall even after completing the evaluation..
Eyes with a mix of confusion, astonishment, admiration and doubt gathered in the center of the training ground..
And, the swordsman swung his wooden sword..
Comments