Chapter 38

The lecture that day was held indoors.

The sky was clear, and the students still kept their heads down, avoiding me.

Like they were praying that the lion wandering beside them had a full stomach.

Kenneth was nowhere to be seen.

He should have recovered by now, but I hope he didn’t drop out or something.

For some reason, I felt uneasy, and my expression soured.

That type always holds a grudge and shows up later.

I hope nothing troublesome happens.

In the corner of the lecture hall, Ophelia, who had spotted me, gave a sly smile.

I casually nodded in greeting and sat down next to Damien.

“Ah, Hasarl. It’s been a week, huh?”

Damien greeted me with a light smile.

Milia, who had been sneaking glances at me from beside Damien, flinched when she saw me sit across from her.

Her leaf-like green hair swayed slightly.

I guess I should try to get along with her too. It’s a long road ahead.

Still, it’s a relief she doesn’t seem to hold that much hostility toward me.

I did kind of wreck her right arm. Surprisingly, she’s not holding it against me.

Did Damien talk to her?

“That’s right. It’s been a while, Damien. And Milia, right? It’s been a while for you too.”

I tried to strike up a conversation.

Even if it’s forced, talking might give us a chance to get closer.

Milia reluctantly turned to me and gave a slight nod.

“…Hi.”

“Are you okay from the injuries? I think I went a bit too hard.”

I scratched the back of my ear and glanced at Milia’s right arm.

The wounds seemed to have healed completely, as she wasn’t wearing any bandages.

In this world, healing is far superior to the original world, at least in that regard.

Though, many still die before they can get treated.

“I’m fine now… And since I agreed to the spar, you don’t have to feel too sorry.”

Milia nodded, lightly holding her right shoulder.

Her personality is good, after all. She still seems a bit wary of me, though.

If it weren’t for issues related to Damien, she’d be a really nice person…

Her skills aside.

“Well, in that case, let’s consider this a truce.”

I casually extended my right hand.

Milia hesitated for a moment before reaching out her hand.

Our clasped hands trembled slightly.

Still, this is a good start, right?

We can slowly get closer from here.

Once things improve, I might casually suggest that a bow suits her better.

After the greeting, I stepped outside into the hallway for a quick smoke before the lecture started.

Since it’s indoors, it’s a bit awkward to smoke during the lecture.

Plus, Damien and Milia were sitting next to me.

“…See? He’s not as bad as you thought, right?”

“Well…”

I could hear Damien and Milia whispering inside the lecture hall.

They tried to lower their voices, but unfortunately, my hearing is too good.

Leaning against the windowsill, I tilted my head back and watched the clouds drift by, adding a puff of smoke to the sky.

It’s peaceful.

People passing through the hallway glanced at me and whispered as they walked by.

It didn’t seem worth listening to, so I ignored them.

Not long after, Professor Kal-lain entered through the front door of the lecture hall.

I put out my cigarette and returned to my seat.

—

“Last week, we covered the results of the sparring and the characteristics of magicians. Today, we’ll discuss the characteristics and countermeasures for priests.”

The results of the sparring and the characteristics of magicians? I regret skipping that lecture.

Come to think of it, was I mentioned?

“…Hey, Damien. About that result evaluation, was I mentioned?”

I lowered my voice and asked Damien.

“Uh… yeah. A freshman asked how to deal with someone like you, Hasarl.”

How to deal with me? It makes sense that question would come up since I wasn’t there.

If I had been there, they might have been too shy to ask.

Well, that’s good. This could be useful to know.

“So, what did the professor say?”

Damien tilted his head slightly and then spoke.

“First… you instinctively respond to attacks, so you can’t distinguish between strong and weak ones. So, if fighting from a distance, they should use weak feints to distract you and mix in strong attacks to disrupt you… And in close combat, they should avoid direct clashes and try to deflect your attacks.”

“Hmm… really? Not a bad judgment.”

*Totally wrong, though.*

A satisfied smile crept onto my face.

If the professor thinks that way, then Knut probably thinks the same.

And so do the others in the academy who hold a grudge against me.

Everything’s going according to plan.

They think I can’t distinguish the strength of magic?

I know all about a magician’s main techniques.

Thanks to my anti-magic sensitivity, I can immediately sense the power level of each spell.

They think they can deflect my attacks with techniques?

Go ahead and try. That’s why I’ve been hiding my swordsmanship training.

The special class students might know since they’ve seen me train, but they’re not the type to blab about it.

All that effort to show mediocre skills is paying off.

*So, you better keep thinking that way.*

I glanced over at Knut.

—

The lecture continued.

“Magicians’ magic and priests’ miracles operate in completely different ways. A magician’s power is free, but it has clear limits. Once they exhaust their mana, that’s it. No matter what they do, they can’t use magic beyond that.”

Kal-lain made a gesture of slitting his own throat.

Does that mean you can just kill a magician once they’re out of mana?

“On the other hand, a priest’s miracles can be used endlessly as long as their body and mind can endure. It’s just that the human body struggles to withstand divine power for long. Ultimately, it means that willpower and endurance are far more important for priests than for magicians.”

In other words, once a magician runs out of mana, they’re done, but a priest can keep fighting by burning their life force.

That’s why, when facing a battle priest or a paladin, you can’t let your guard down even if they seem exhausted. You have to finish them off decisively.

If you leave them alone, they’ll sacrifice their life to deliver one last attack.

Kal-lain continued his explanation.

“However, the powers they can wield are limited to the divine authority granted by the god they serve. Their versatility is low. Some gods don’t even grant the common blessing of healing.”

As he said, for priest-type characters, which god they serve is crucial.

Usually, characters serving Elpinel of Grace or Shaulite of the Sun and Life are popular.

Buff specialization and healing specialization. They’re the most useful church orders for priest characters.

“Ni.”

“For details on the attributes and powers of each deity, refer to the faith-related lectures.”

“I already know that part, so I guess I don’t need to attend.”

“After that, the content shifted to general methods for dealing with priestly roles.”

“In the case of combat priests, their offensive capabilities aren’t particularly high, so in one-on-one situations, you should hold your ground and push forward.”

“For paladins, they enhance themselves with blessings, fight like knights, and endure by healing, so prolonged battles are not in your favor. However, their close combat skills are often lacking, so exploit that.”

“The explanation generally emphasized short-term battles.”

“What if our skills are similar?”

Someone asked Kal-lain.

“Then you die. If someone who has only trained in swordsmanship for the same amount of time surpasses a paladin who has also mastered blessings, then they deserve to die.”

It was a firm answer with no room for rebuttal.

—

After the morning lecture, Damien and Milia talked about the upcoming outdoor training in three days. Neither seemed to know much about it. Like Asha, they expected to face kobolds or trolls.

“I caught a troll a few days ago, and it wasn’t much. They heal quickly, but if you tear out their throat, they die. Damien, you should be able to handle it easily.”

“Really? I’ve never seen a troll, so I’m not sure.”

Damien scratched his head and laughed. He looked like a boy his age, but there was something subtly unsettling about him.

“…What about me?”

“With a dagger, it would be tough. Piercing wounds heal instantly.”

“That sounds difficult…”

Milia looked a bit downcast, her round eyes drooping slightly. I thought about comforting her.

“The academy wouldn’t throw all new students against trolls right away. At most, it’ll be two or three. And you, well, your boyfriend will help you out.”

Milia’s face turned bright red. It was kind of cute. She flailed her hands in embarrassment.

“B-boyfriend?! That’s not it! Damien and I are just childhood friends!”

“In situations like this, it’s better to just brazenly agree. If you act so timid, someone else might snatch him away. That guy, he’s got decent skills and looks, so he’s pretty popular.”

“Ugh…”

Milia hung her head low. Damien just stood there, awkwardly smiling. He seemed to take our conversation as a joke.

…Milia, you’ve got a long way to go.

—

Over the next two days, we leisurely prepared for the training.

I also visited Asha’s room, which was cluttered with mysterious gears, tools, and mechanical devices. There was barely any space to step.

Asha gave me an awkward smile when she noticed my gaze.

On the desk was a large blueprint, and next to it, a ticking clock. I also got to see Asha’s escort automaton.

It resembled a knight’s full-body armor, with countless gears, pipes, pistons, and power lines inside. It had flight devices on its back and legs, similar to Asha’s, and its arms ended in large cannons instead of hands.

It was said to be made by the elders of her tribe. I wondered if it was stronger than Asha…

Calix was away on a mission. No wonder I hadn’t seen him lately. Freide, as usual, was eating alone without any friends.

It was starting to look a bit pitiful, but since she always got annoyed when I approached, it was awkward for me to initiate anything. I figured an opportunity to get closer would come later, so I decided to leave her be for now.

I also sparred with Nigel using the fake Ice Blade I was given.

The only difference was that it added attacks like grabbing the enemy’s sword or stabbing and slashing with the fingertips. But it would probably break soon if used properly.

Still, compared to the old method of just tearing things apart with fingers, the attacks were bolder and faster.

“Not bad. It could be quite useful for surprise attacks,” Nigel said, with a faint scratch on his cheek.

I also received a new longsword. I had complained that the academy’s longsword was too weak, so they gave me a slightly better one.

Just in case, I also took Ai-mel-ra’s sword and the Ice Blade, but I planned not to use them unless it was an emergency since they were too conspicuous.

Additionally, I packed about twelve daggers for throwing. Nigel gifted me a leather belt to hold them.

“It’s not that expensive, so it’s fine,” he said.

—

Finally, the morning of the outdoor training arrived.

The atmosphere among the students lined up in front of the inspection stand was quite chaotic. A mix of tension, anxiety, excitement, and anticipation filled the training ground.

Due to various circumstances, about 11 students were absent, leaving a total of 140 participants.

The professor on the inspection stand announced the details of the training.

The destination was the Gray Forest in the southwest of the capital. It was said that knights had released captured kobolds and trolls there for the training.

There were only four trolls, and most were kobolds.

The training involved surviving in the forest for five days in groups of four while hunting monsters. The primary goal was survival, with bonus points awarded based on the number of monsters defeated. We were told to collect evidence of our kills.

The academy would not intervene during the five days, and even if someone died there, they would not get involved. I guess they figured anyone who could die to trolls or kobolds in a group of four had no future.

Soon, 35 groups were announced.

Knut and Ophelia were placed in different groups, while Damien was grouped with Edgar.

My group consisted of Milia, Hans, and Rana. Two people I had beaten up and one religious kid who probably didn’t like me… Was there a bit of malice in this group assignment?

Seeing the trembling eyes of the three looking at me after the group announcement, I already felt exhausted. I had to spend five days with these guys.

And I had to be wary of Knut, who was burning with the desire to kill me.

This wasn’t going to be easy.

—

“Rather…”

—