There’s Something Special About Her - Chapter 64

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

Episode 64.
‘Top Graduate of the Martial Arts Exam?’
I tilted my head, studying Maximilian Degrave standing across from me.
That soft-looking young master?
Huh. There’s more to him than I thought.
He had a solid build and handsome features—which is why, from the moment we met, he’d been barking at me so loudly that I’d simply assumed he was a typical pampered aristocrat. Though I suppose if he were truly that shallow, he wouldn’t have made it through admission in the first place.
Still, a mediocre fool wouldn’t have been allowed to enroll at all.
“Why are you staring at me like that?”
I’d been lost in thought, gazing blankly at him, but apparently my attention had offended the young master.
“You don’t need to glare. I’ll pound you to dust soon enough.”
He was trying to sound menacing, I’ll give him that.
But no matter how sharply he narrowed his eyes, he was still just a young master.
To me, he looked no different from a young wolf, all fluffy and trembling.
“No, I wasn’t glaring.
“Always making excuses? Is lying a habit of yours?”
“I’ve never lied to you.”
We’d only crossed paths briefly on the first day of the exam. Where did he get lying from?
Besides, if I actually set my mind to deceiving him, he’d never know the difference.
“How pathetic. Are you seriously telling me there’s someone in Nox who eats bread and doesn’t know who Maximilian Degrave is?”
“I’ve heard the name before. I just didn’t know it was you.”
It seemed I’d inadvertently wounded the young master’s pride.
I was about to follow the Action Corps’s golden rule—’apologize quickly to troublemakers and move on’—when something occurred to me.
“If I offended you, I’m sor—”
“You interrogated me several times, and you didn’t know my name?”
“Oh.”
So he must have been caught trying to smuggle in prohibited goods before.
No wonder he’d jumped straight into an argument.
“Someone like you will never become a trainee. I’ll have you sent back to that shabby Guard Post.”
I didn’t want to become a trainee anyway.
All I wanted was to return to the Action Corps and live a simple life.
But I couldn’t refuse when he offered to send me back to where I came from.
“That’s going to be a problem.”
I’m on a leash held by a real monster, after all.
To catch the spy hiding in the Training Facility and hand him over, I had to become a trainee.
Fadila Bondayz, who had been watching me take the blazing gaze from Maximilian Degrave with interest, stepped in.
“Enough posturing. I’m distributing weapons—now fight properly. Stop wasting breath on words.”
The weapon he handed me was a wooden sword.
It was similar to the ones I’d gathered one by one before and stowed in a box.
‘Ah, so that’s what he meant by beating, not stabbing.’
Now I understood the young master’s threat.
Even for a sparring match, they weren’t using real blades.
The Training Facility was surprisingly humane about these things.
It wasn’t as systematic as Nox, but Wickes also had a period to educate new recruits.
On my first day there, I’d been issued a dagger with a wickedly sharp edge.
Whoosh, whisk—
I lowered the tip of the wooden sword toward the ground and gave it a light swing.
‘Heavy.’
It seemed to have a thicker iron core than a practice weapon.
The balance was so much better that it even reminded me of my original blade.
“Runelk Ainse, Maximilian Degrave. Take your positions.”
Following Fadila Bondayz’s instruction, I moved toward the center of the Training Grounds.
The moment Maximilian Degrave and I faced off, the trainees who had been quiet until now raised their voices.
“Maximilian! Don’t go easy!”
“Show him what a Mid-term Admission is worth!”
“Break that bastard in one move!”
Bolstered by his classmates’ cheers, the young master grew even more confident.
It was clear that quite a few of them had taken a disliking to me.
I wasn’t bothered by it.
I could understand their feelings.
I was simply relieved to see that not everyone agreed with them.
Several trainees were watching this situation with genuine interest.
Some were casting disapproving looks at those cheering for Maximilian.
‘So factions have already formed in here?’
Once my admission was finalized, I’d need to take a closer look at that side of things.
In a short timeframe, the best source of intelligence was always the opposing faction.
“The rules are simple. No Aura. Pure strength and technique only. Victory goes to whoever declares defeat, steps out of bounds, or drops their weapon and can’t attack. Otherwise, just fight your best. Begin!”
With Fadila Bondayz’s rather irresponsible declaration, the sparring match began.
But neither I nor Maximilian Degrave moved immediately.
I was gauging how much of my true strength to reveal, while the young master—
“I’ll let you have the first move. Come at me.”
—was being arrogant.
In sparring matches and duels, it’s customary for the weaker fighter to attack first.
The advantage of the opening strike is considerable, and showing mercy to the underdog is the strong’s privilege.
In short, Maximilian Degrave was looking down on me completely.
Did that annoy me? Not in the slightest.
“Much obliged.”
Of course, if we were fighting at full strength, the young master should be the one charging at me ten times over, twenty times over.
But if he was offering an opening, I’d take it.
Thud!
I charged forward and thrust the wooden sword with the weight of my body behind it.
In my attack aimed at Maximilian’s solar plexus, I tested him with only a third of my actual strength.
Crack—!
With a solid metallic ring, he knocked my blade away.
Seeing his eyes widen slightly in surprise, I thought to myself,
‘He didn’t get the top spot on accident.’
I’d controlled the speed of my blade deliberately, but by putting my weight into the final step, the attack had been quite heavy.
Yet Maximilian had parried it well.
The angle at which he met my wooden sword was perfect, and he showed good reflexes backing up a half-step to maintain distance.
“You bastard—!”
The young master seemed about to say something, but my second attack followed immediately, forcing him to grit his teeth.
Thwack!
A rougher impact rang out than before.
This time I’d put more force behind it.
But Maximilian didn’t just stand there either.
Slip—!
He angled his blade and let my sword slide past.
Rather than blocking or pushing back, he could turn my downward force into his own momentum.
Whoosh—!
The wooden sword swept from upper left to lower right, laden with a fierce arc.
“Hup!”
I backpedaled to dodge Maximilian’s counterattack.
The grass beneath my deliberately heavier footfalls tore away in patches.
“For someone from the Action Corps, you’re not bad?”
Maximilian Degrave scoffed at me with a slight stumble, his eyes shining.
I bit my lip, indignant, and thought,
‘The Degrave Family’s sword instructor must be a knight.’
Just two exchanges were enough to read the young master.
His low center of gravity overall, his simplified footwork—these were nearly exclusive to knights.
Even the way he was mocking me now while giving me time to correct my stance spoke to that.
Whether it’s wooden swords or not, soldiers, mercenaries, and back-alley blade workers are different.
They’re trained to press their advantage the moment they spot an opening in their opponent.
Only rigid knights show that kind of restraint in actual combat.
“My turn now.”
Maximilian charged forward eagerly.
Swoosh, swish!
A precise thrust aimed at a vital point in my chest.
Maximilian had chosen the same method as my first attack—his intention was clear.
He wanted to prove he was superior.
Seeing the young master’s eyes gleam, convinced victory was in his grasp, I felt curiosity stir.
Just how far could this young master go?

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