The Imperial Supreme Commander Has Returned - Chapter 9

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The Imperial Commander’s Return — Episode 9

The Training Director’s Conference Room.

……
……

The three men gathered in the conference room sat in silence.
There was nothing strange about their silence.
Anyone who had ever wielded a blade—sword, spear, or anything sharp—in pursuit of becoming a Knight would have reacted the same way.

It was that extraordinary a sight.
A mere thirteen-year-old child had brought down seventeen adult men.

“Surely it would be possible if he possessed Mana? Wouldn’t that explain it?”

The Senior Instructor asked with difficulty.
He himself was the one who had praised Delram as a prodigy, but even so, the strength displayed fell far outside acceptable parameters.
Reality seemed beyond belief.

In any case, the Senior Instructor’s question was reasonable.
If Delram had accumulated Mana at the level of a lower-ranked Knight, such a feat would indeed be possible.
But the Training Director and Obern shook their heads.

“Had he used Mana, I would have sensed it—I’m a Knight, after all. Unless his Realm surpasses mine. What of you, Obern?”
“I detected nothing either. Besides, the trainee’s strength did not stem from Mana at all. Both his spear technique and close combat prowess—you won’t believe it even hearing this—were feats of someone who had reached the Realm in both disciplines.”
Hm.

The Senior Instructor pressed further.

“Then he must be a scion of some renowned house? A fallen noble, you said—perhaps the Mana Technique was lost, but the spear art remained intact?”
“What the trainee employed adhered strictly to the Imperial Spear 12 Forms. No traces of any other spear technique appeared.”
“And the close combat?”
“The close combat… there was nothing deserving of being called a ‘technique.'”
“Right. He simply moved fast and struck chins—but he maintained distance well…….”

The Senior Instructor posed many more questions after that.
But the Director and Obern denied each one.

In the end, the conclusion was singular.
Trainee Delram was the genuine article!

“Remarkable. It’s almost as if we’re witnessing the childhood of some legendary hero from the myths, isn’t it?”
“Which is precisely why it’s lamentable. At only thirteen, he hasn’t even begun to study the Mana Technique.”
“The Mana Technique requires training from a young age to be effective. No matter how excellent one’s technique, without sufficient Mana…….”
“A pity. Had he been born into a renowned Knight household, his name would surely be known across the entire continent by now.”
“But it’s not too late even now.”

The last remark came from Obern, who had remained silent until then.
The Director looked at him in surprise at the weight of his words.

Every Knight possessed certain rights.
The right to serve his lord, the right to restore tarnished honor—
And finally, the right to take on an Apprentice!

An Apprentice was a Knight’s disciple.
Yet it was never an easy position to hold.
To remain at a Knight’s side every moment of every day, absorbing everything from his Swordsmanship to his Mana Technique—that was what it meant to be an Apprentice.

The same was true when it came to honor.
An Apprentice’s failure reflected on the Master’s failure.
And at the same time, an Apprentice’s achievements became the Master’s achievements as well.

Naturally, a Knight chose their Apprentice with extreme care.
The damage a betrayal could inflict was catastrophic.
Or worse—the Apprentice might simply steal the teachings and flee.
For this reason, Apprentices were usually chosen from the children of distinguished families.

“Surely you don’t mean to take him on as your Apprentice?”
“Regrettably, I’ve already passed my Swordsmanship to my son. So I have no wish to take on a formal disciple.”
“Then what?”
“The Academy. I plan to send him to the Knight Academy and develop him into a fine Knight in service to the throne. And fortunately, I have a recommendation letter to give.”
“Remarkable! So there is such a path.”

The Training Director nodded in agreement, as if approving a sound method.
A commoner to the Knight Academy!
The Senior Instructor, who had dreamed of such a place in his youth, trembled with nervous excitement even as he rejoiced as if the achievement were his own.

“Then I shall fetch the trainee at once.”
“Yes, we must deliver this gracious news to him without delay.”

The Training Director urged him to hurry.
If Delram became a renowned Knight?
Then his own contribution in recognizing such talent would be no small matter.

* * *

“A Knight? I… don’t want to.”
…….

Delram scratched his head as he spoke.
The faces of the three men sitting across from him froze.

Then they looked at one another’s faces.
Each wore the expression of someone who wondered if he’d heard correctly.

Especially the Training Director’s face had gone crimson.
A mere commoner daring to refuse such an offer!

“Why do you refuse? Do you not know what a Knight is? You could command battlefields just as your ancestors did!”
“Of course I understand. My father has spoken of it until my ears went numb with hearing. But you see…….”

Delram met Obern’s gaze and asked quietly.

“Then who will protect my comrades?”
“Hmm?”
“In the Eastern Region, those who share meals are called family—literally, kin. If that is so, then my fellow trainees, with whom I have eaten and slept for more than a week, are my family. And there are my people from home as well.”
“They will protect themselves, and their other comrades will protect them. Isn’t that why they sweat and train?”
“It’s still not enough. If I’m attending classes at the Knight Academy while I hear news of their deaths in battle… I don’t think I could ever stand before my sword again with a clear conscience.”
Mmmmph!

This time Obern’s face flushed red.
But unlike the Director, his anger had not seized him.
He was facing a true Knight.

The position of a Knight guaranteed wealth and renown.
Of course, it would not be an easy path—but his talent was more than sufficient.
And yet he would abandon it all for his comrades!

It was Obern, cast out after exposing the embezzlement of the Knight Commander.
His entire life as a Knight had been negated.
And now, all at once, it was being affirmed again.
By nothing more than a single trainee.

But this might all be theater.
Obern asked one final question.

“There’s something you should understand. We’ll discuss your answer after you’ve heard everything I have to say.”
“I’m listening.”
“Training is normally six weeks. But the situation at the Northern Front is dire, so you’re scheduled for deployment in two days.”
“That’s dangerous.”
“It is! A cliff edge where death looms far larger than survival. No matter how exceptional you are, on the battlefield you’re just another soldier. If you entered the Knight Academy instead, the training would be brutal, but you’d live. Yet knowing this—will you still go to the front with your comrades?”
“Of course.”

Obern trembled, as if overcome by a chill.
So moved was he that he seized Delram’s hand and cried out.

“Magnificent! That you volunteered, that you chose to stand with your comrades. You alone are worthy of this!”

With that, Obern removed his cloak.
When he unfastened the chain mail beneath, what lay revealed was Hoshim Armor.
The moment Delram saw it, he nearly cried out in shock.

‘Insane—that’s made of mithril alloy, isn’t it?’

That distinctive swirling pattern.
It was unmistakably a high-purity steel alloyed with mithril.
One piece of this was enough to purchase an estate, if not a province.

And it was worth every coin.
It could withstand even a Knight’s Aura.

Effectively a second life granted.
And he was giving it to a mere trainee?

‘No, I just thought he looked stubborn, so I said a few impressive things to charm him. That’s all…’

Obern unfastened the Hoshim Armor and handed it to Delram.

“This will protect you. Become a worthy talent of the kingdom, and let us meet again someday. Can you promise me that?”
“Absolutely!”

Delram, overwhelmed with emotion, put on the Hoshim Armor on the spot.
A legendary treasure had appeared before his eyes!

* * *

‘Damn. That was close.’

The atmosphere in the barracks had grown tense.
Delram hadn’t been training with the others, disappearing on his own instead.
He’d actually been doing separate practice to recover his old senses, but to the other trainees it must have looked like he was out playing until late at night.
Under the protection of the Senior Instructor, no less.

Because of that, whether awake or asleep.
He could feel hostile gazes fixed on him from all sides.

Of course, they were only raw trainees.
He felt no fear, but something inside him seething with indignation.
It wasn’t a lack of mental discipline—it was an occupational habit.

Do you know what’s most feared on the battlefield?
It’s not a Knight of high realm, nor even a mage of devastating power.
It’s the traitor’s blade driven in from behind.

That’s why Delram harbored an extreme revulsion toward traitors.
He despised allies who secretly sharpened their knives.
Exactly like these dogs.

‘So I was grinding my teeth to make them pay for it.’

But what was this?
The Training Director had graciously stepped forward and arranged the setup.
And every volunteer was someone he’d had his eye on beforehand.
Delram had poured out his honest joy at this unexpected bounty.

Not that he wouldn’t admit it.
Yes, there was an emotional reason, but there was something else too.
His body had moved with such unrestrained freedom.

‘It felt like riding the wind itself.’

On the Training Center’s second day.
Delram had felt Wind Sense in his thrust.
And he’d succeeded in recreating it.
Then he’d even heard that strange voice.

From that moment, the sensation in his body began to change.
Strangely freer, softer.
And at other times, it would surge boundlessly wild.

Wasn’t it just like wind?
As a gentle breeze becomes a chill, and then a typhoon.

That sensation had translated perfectly into his body.
His body moved as his mind willed, stopped as his mind commanded.
With that as his foundation, he’d wielded the spear and moved his feet.

After he’d rampaged with such exhilaration and came back to himself.
All seventeen of them were crumpled on the ground.

What if he hadn’t had this power?
The fight would have been far more grueling.
Even for Delram, a thirteen-year-old body had its obvious limits.

‘Maybe I should have held back a little.’

Delram clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth.
He’d thought they might grant him early promotion with praise for his excellence.
He never expected them to recommend Knight Academy enrollment.

‘I’m grateful, certainly…’

On the continent, a Knight was no mere strong individual.
The term was synonymous with nobility.
In other words, becoming a Knight meant becoming a noble.

But the world’s resources were finite, and if just anyone could become a noble, the existing elite would inevitably lose their slice of the pie.
That’s why the path to becoming a Knight or mage was strictly controlled.

[Mana Technique]
[Circle Magic]

The nobility kept both of these under strict control.
The Knight Academy was one of the rare opportunities
for commoners to learn the Mana Technique within that controlled society.

‘But the limits are far too obvious.’

As he’d said before, a Knight was essentially a nobleman.
Which also meant they were a political faction.

Therefore, ability alone wasn’t everything.
Without backing, climbing beyond a certain rank was extraordinarily difficult.

But if Delram were to attend the Academy?
Then that nobleman would naturally become his backing.
Yet looking at the fact that he’d been demoted to a conscription officer—
his political skill was frankly nonexistent, regardless of his competence.

Besides, Delram had spent his entire life on battlefields.
So what he did best was war.
Effort spent anywhere else would be wasted.

‘And for rapid advancement, nothing beats warfare.’

Every founding hero was born in war, after all.
It meant opportunity was abundant in such places.
Where lineage and birth meant nothing—only skill and merit mattered.
If you could survive, it was the fastest path to promotion.

‘Though surviving is the hardest part…’

Still, Delram was confident.
How many years had he spent grinding through warfare?

Of course, nothing in the world was absolute.
He could die from genuinely terrible luck.
If a stray arrow suddenly struck him, what could he do?

But still, he intended to do his very best and struggle through.
It was penance for his past, for the way he’d inadvertently
influenced the fall of mankind—

‘And if it still doesn’t work out, so be it.’

Then he’d curse whoever it was that sent him back in time.
After all, the regression wasn’t something he’d asked for.

Having shaken it all off, Delram returned to the barracks.
But the atmosphere felt strangely unsettled.
His friend from home hurried him to a seat and spoke urgently.

“Delram, an instructor’s coming soon! Hurry and straighten up your clothes and shoes.”
“But the training period just ended—oh, I see.”
“You know something?”
“Mm… I’ll tell you right away. Listen and you’ll understand.”

Delram spoke, glancing sideways toward the barracks entrance.
At that very moment, the instructor was entering.

‘So they did say they’d end training early.’

The unusual rigidity of his face today made it certain.
The time had come to return to the battlefield once more.

To that place where the fate of all mankind hung in the balance―
where the stench of blood felt like home.

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