The Failed Swordmaster - Chapter 24

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 24 12. New Ace (1)

“When will it start?”

“It should begin soon. I should loosen up my body a bit more.”

“Do you need to warm up? Aside from Teoro, there’s nothing worth seeing anyway.”

“Still, if I want a good evaluation, I need to crush them thoroughly.”

“True, you’re right.”

The top-tier students who were considered 2nd and 3rd place in Class B muttered while looking toward Class E.

Given the nature of the exchange match, if one performed poorly, it would harm the entire class. While such a situation should be burdensome, the two showed no signs of tension whatsoever.

It couldn’t be helped. They were confident they could beat anyone who came out except for Teoro Shutgarn.

That Teoro guy would surely be handled by Bairen Sigal, Class B’s top student, so they just needed to secure their predetermined victories.

“I should finish within 20 exchanges.”

“Ah, I’m not in good condition today. What if I lose…?”

“Will you be okay? Grades aside, if you lose to a Class E kid, you’ll get teased endlessly.”

It wasn’t just the top-tier students who felt relaxed.

All the children in Class B felt the same way.

The exchange match rule was for students of the same rank to face each other – 1st place against 1st place, 10th place against 10th place, and so on. With such rules, they had an overwhelming advantage due to their superior average abilities.

Knowing this, the Class B students had fairly bright expressions despite this being a midterm evaluation.

Of course, there was one exception.

Bairen Sigal, Class B’s strongest student and the grade’s 4th place, was staring at Class E with eyes full of fighting spirit.

“Bairen, you can win, right?”

“Hey, ask something worth asking. Of course I’ll win. Whether it’s Teoro or Bumer, they’re both beneath Bairen now.”

“Crush them!”

Several students offered words of encouragement to Bairen.

Bairen grinned at them before turning his gaze back toward Class E.

‘Their atmosphere looks surprisingly decent.’

It was a phenomenon difficult to understand.

Class E’s strength was the lowest among the six classes.

While they had an outstanding student named Teoro, one person alone couldn’t overturn the class’s fate.

In other words, those guys should normally be feeling dejected right now.

However, Class E’s current atmosphere looked much better than Bairen had expected.

‘Though they are quite tense.’

They didn’t look as relaxed and confident as his own class.

But he could sense fighting spirit and determination within their taut tension. It was completely different from simply being frozen with fear.

‘Even that guy?’

Even Lumian, the second year’s greatest underachiever, had changed.

His delicate-looking face remained the same, but his physique had changed. His sturdy-looking body and confident attitude made him seem like a different person.

Seeing him standing amicably with the other children was also a first.

The sight of Lumian neither being teased, bullied, nor cowering was extremely unfamiliar to Bairen.

‘Has the class’s unity improved? This might not be as easy as I thought…’

Having thought this far, Bairen let out a chuckle.

He felt his worries were excessive.

He turned his head to look around at Class B’s students. Every one of them looked confident.

‘There’s no way we’ll lose.’

Everyone had worked hard. They had attended classes more diligently than anyone else.

To protect their pride as the second year’s strongest force, they had continued training more intensely than any other class.

He was just slightly surprised that Class E didn’t seem as hopeless as expected, but the outcome wouldn’t change at all.

Class B’s victory was already a foregone conclusion.

‘Besides, I’m going to win today too!’

Bairen Sigal steeled his resolve.

Teoro Shutgarn!

Though he had never beaten him before, this time would be different.

Hot flames flickered in his eyes.

“Hmm, everyone’s gathered.”

While Bairen Sigal was burning with fighting spirit, Professor Karin appeared.

He swept his calm gaze over the Class B and Class E students before speaking with a stern expression.

“No one should be unfamiliar with the rules, so we’ll start immediately. Since time is limited, we’ll initially proceed with three teams simultaneously. Aaron, Steve, Bianca, Cairo…”

The called students quickly ran forward to the professor.

The six students faced each other at appropriate distances and glared at one another. It felt as if sparks were flying in the air from their clashing gazes.

Professor Karin smiled with pleasure, feeling the heat of youth.

He spoke quietly.

“Everyone, begin!”

The midterm evaluation had started.

* * *

“This is…”

“We lost again.”

“What’s the current score? Isn’t this dangerous?”

“Uh, we’re winning by exactly 1 point…”

“What? If we’re not careful, we might actually lose?”

Panicked voices flowed from various parts of Class B.

It was all due to Class E’s unexpected strong performance.

The opponents they thought were far beneath them were now pursuing them right up to their chins. While they were still at an advantage, they couldn’t help but feel more fear than joy.

That was exactly how the Class B children felt now. They were experiencing confused emotions as they watched the Class E students who had changed dramatically from last year.

“No way, that bastard was definitely super weak…”

“That one was terrible too. I really almost lost.”

“I lost… because sand got in my eyes…”

“Damn, I made a mistake too… But even considering all those variables, he should have been someone I could definitely beat…”

If only one or two had gotten stronger, they might have accepted it.

Cases of rapid growth during vacation weren’t unheard of.

But the current Class E wasn’t at that level.

The majority – no, all of Class E’s students were showing vastly improved skills compared to before.

‘What on earth happened?’

‘They did seem to be training harder lately, but even so, is this possible?’

‘Did they all take elixirs together? Or did they receive special tutoring?’

“Damn it.”

“…”

The Class B students’ expressions darkened.

At first, they thought it was just a brief struggle, but not anymore.

Whatever the reason might be, the Class E guys had gotten stronger. To a level comparable to themselves.

And then, two names were called that raised the tension to its peak.

“Next. Teoro Shutgarn and Bairen Sigal, prepare yourselves.”

The two called by Professor Karin walked out to the center.

Unlike the early rounds with three teams proceeding simultaneously, there were no other students around them.

It was thanks to Karin’s consideration. If there was sufficient time, there was no need to run multiple teams simultaneously.

‘The students would also want to focus entirely on these two’s duel…’

Wasn’t this a battle between the grade’s top prodigies?

Karin smiled briefly before announcing the start of the duel.

Immediately after, Bairen Sigal shot toward Teoro at a terrifying speed.

Crash!

The wooden swords filled with aura collided. A sound incomparably louder than the previous duels echoed through the air.

But this wasn’t the end.

Bairen’s sword continued to swing, again and again.

As if he would die the moment he stopped moving, he poured everything he had into his movements!

His storm-like attacks wildly tore at Teoro’s lower stance.

‘A prolonged battle would only be disadvantageous for me!’

It was different from before. Bairen now clearly understood his strengths and weaknesses.

Defense, tactical exchanges, balance—he no longer needed to think about such things.

Instead, he focused on his greatest weapon: consecutive attacks. Without thinking about the consequences, faster and stronger!

With this strategy of discarding weaknesses and embracing strengths, his win rate would surely increase dramatically. Bairen Sigal truly believed this.

‘I also know that your weakness is your lower stance!’

On top of that, he had coincidentally discovered his opponent’s weakness!

The corners of Bairen’s mouth curved slightly upward.

He would win. He would win. This time, he could finally distort that indifferent-looking guy’s face.

Muttering to himself like a mantra, he continued his attacks even more rapidly. Until it broke, until it collapsed, until he completely destroyed Teoro Shutgarn!

But Bairen’s confidence vanished instantly after the tenth exchange.

Thwang!

A completely different feeling from before. It felt like striking the surface of water, causing Bairen’s eyes to widen.

Swoosh—

Seeing Teoro flow in like water immediately after finishing his defense, Bairen’s expression twisted with shock.

“Ugh!”

Bairen belatedly pulled back his sword and took a defensive stance, but it was already too late.

Confirming that Teoro’s sword had reached his neck, he made a frustrated expression.

Then he hung his head low.

“Teoro Shutgarn, victory!”

“Waaahhh!”

“He won! Now it’s tied!”

“We can win! We can win!”

As soon as Professor Karin finished speaking, the Class E students erupted in cheers.

Teoro had won. And much more easily than expected. The score was now tied.

For those who just ten days ago were worried about complete defeat rather than victory, the current situation felt incredibly moving.

“Damn it.”

“That bastard Teoro got stronger too.”

“Seriously, what happened to Class E? They weren’t this strong before…”

In contrast, Class B’s atmosphere was miserable. It felt like being at a funeral.

Of course, among them all, Bairen Sigal felt the most miserable.

He spoke with an expression of incomprehension.

“What happened?”

“What do you mean?”

“Wasn’t your lower stance a weakness? Why was your response so smooth?”

“I trained.”

“Ha, really… Fine. Setting that aside, what was that movement?”

“What. This?”

Teoro smoothly flowed toward Bairen. Bairen, startled belatedly, frowned and said.

“Yeah, that. It’s a movement I haven’t seen before. Who did you learn it from? Or did your entire class receive special lessons during the break?”

“Special lessons… Right. Not during the break, but I suppose you could call them special lessons.”

Teoro said with a slight smile.

Indeed, this could only be called ‘lessons.’

The swordsmanship that Lumian had taught him.

And the utilization of Aura that allowed him to move and defend as smoothly as water.

These couldn’t simply be treated as advice from a fellow student. What he had gained was too significant for that.

It wasn’t just about himself either.

All the Class E students probably had similar thoughts.

‘If it weren’t for Lumian, we wouldn’t have been able to win today.’

Teoro smiled again and continued speaking.

“Anyway, those special lessons were quite effective. As you can see, our entire class has become quite strong.”

“I don’t know who you received those lessons from, but they must have been incredibly effective. I can tell from how excited you are and how much you’re talking.”

“Right. I’ll stop here and head back. Our class ace needs to come out anyway.”

“Ace? What are you talking about?”

“You two, stop chatting and go back. The evaluation isn’t over yet.”

There was no defying Professor Karin’s words. The two finished their conversation and returned to their respective classes.

But Bairen Sigal’s curiosity remained. He frowned deeply like a child given an unsolvable homework problem.

‘That guy is the strongest in Class E, but he says the ace needs to come out… What does that mean?’

Could it be that among those who haven’t appeared yet, there’s someone who’s become stronger than Teoro?

Shocked, Bairen looked toward Class E. It seemed absurd, but he thought Teoro wouldn’t have spoken empty words.

But no matter how hard he looked, he couldn’t see anyone who fit that description.

No, to begin with, there was only one student in Class E who hadn’t been evaluated yet.

‘Lumian Calard.’

The second-year dead last.

The worst underachiever.

That frail guy who failed as regularly as eating meals, who couldn’t even guarantee advancing to third year.

Bairen Sigal shook his head.

‘Surely he couldn’t have meant that guy?’

While he was thinking this, three names flowed from Professor Karin’s mouth.

“Lumian Calard, Daeren Duncan, Sam Marchal.”

“…”

“It’s a 2-versus-1 duel. Prepare yourselves.”

“…!”

The Class B students’ eyes widened simultaneously.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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