After one rotation, it was Reinhardt’s turn again.
Despite being covered in dirt and drenched in sweat, his stance didn’t waver for a moment.
It was the solid posture I’d drilled into him countless times, with his center of gravity firmly on his lower body.
“Ho, not bad. Looks like you haven’t slacked off on your training?”
“Thank… you.”
As he caught his breath, I pointed my wooden sword at Reinhardt.
There was no doubt about it – his skills were outstanding.
Even without using aura, his rock-solid defense against my attacks…
And the mental fortitude and stamina to maintain that posture…
He was a different type of genius compared to Ariana.
At this level, I could probably recommend him as an officer without any issues?
Thinking about it, I asked him,
“What do you want to be when you grow up?”
“Huh? What’s that supposed to mean all of a sudden?”
“No, I was just thinking if you don’t have anything specific in mind, joining the military might be good. If you want, I can write you a recommendation letter. I could even get you placed in the Capital Defense Force. The commander there’s an old friend of mine, you know.”
I never thought I’d be saying this, but the Capital Defense Force wasn’t half bad.
Good pay, relatively safe work, and decent social standing too.
Not to mention, since he’s a commoner unlike some noble brats…
Seeming to grasp my intention, Reinhardt shook his head and replied,
“I truly appreciate the offer… but I’m fine. I have something else I need to do.”
The determined look in his eyes suggested it must be pretty important.
“Well then, let me know if you change your mind. And whatever it is you’re doing, come to me if you ever need help. You’re my student after all.”
“… Yes. Thank you…”
“Opening!”
Before he could finish bowing, I swung my wooden sword at him.
There simply wasn’t any gap in his defense unless he used aura.
“Oof!”
“The lesson’s not over yet. I told you not to let your guard down, didn’t I?”
“That’s… completely unfair…!”
As he lay sprawled on the ground sending me an aggrieved look, I declared proudly,
“If you’re upset, why don’t you teach the class then?”
“… If only you weren’t my professor…!”
I could hear him grinding his teeth.
I understand that feeling – when the sage did the same to me, I cursed him out left and right.
Impressive restraint from a student who’s learned well.
Alright, that’s enough for now…
Let’s check on Earl, shall we?
Turning my head, I saw he was currently teaching Amy.
Though they were siblings, Earl had set aside personal feelings and maintained a serious expression.
“More delicately. Enough control to fold paper with your mana.”
“How am I supposed to do that?!”
“Why not?”
To demonstrate, Earl spread out his palm.
His mana transformed into flame, then flattened out into paper.
It was so realistic that anyone watching would think it was real paper.
“!”
Amy’s eyes widened in shock.
Among all types of magic, fire attribute was particularly difficult to handle.
Most people just cast spells using raw elemental form like campfires.
Yet here he was showing such intricate control…
Even I found it impressive, so how must it look to the students?
“This is how it’s done.”
Nonchalantly speaking, Earl proceeded to show off his paper-folding skills.
Amy was so stunned she couldn’t close her gaping mouth.
Why isn’t someone with these skills already an Archmage?
“Hey, how do you do that? Teach me!”
“Please teach me.”
“… Huh?”
“You need to use honorifics. You’re the student, and I’m the professor.”
“Professor title or not…!”
“So? Can’t say it? Then I’ll just teach the others…”
“Grrr…! Fine, please teach me.”
Hmm, looks like she’ll break her molars at this rate?
Doesn’t she realize what’s coming next?
Ignoring my concerns, Earl smiled brightly and replied,
“Great! Of course I’ll teach my lovely student. First, focus your mana…”
He seemed completely oblivious to the murderous intent growing on Amy’s face.
My dear subordinate’s fate was clear as day.
I bowed my head solemnly and looked for Black Wolf.
Is he teaching properly? Not being too harsh like Blackwater, right?
“There. That’s your weakness. Focusing only on the enemy in front will get you killed.”
“Understood!”
“Relax your wrist more. You’ll get injured fighting someone stronger.”
“Yes sir!”
Contrary to my worries, Black Wolf was doing an excellent job.
Standing back, he pointed out flaws in the student’s posture while they practiced against wooden golems.
A model instructor indeed.
The students’ reactions were positive too.
“Decided what to ask after class?”
“I wonder~ Can I touch your tail?”
“Hopefully he’ll allow it.”
… Isn’t he focusing too much on cuteness?
This guy’s an assassin trained by Blackwater, you know.
Difficult to reconcile with how he’s being treated.
Knowing his skills, his current behavior is hard to accept.
Guess appearance really does matter.
Still, seems I don’t need to worry.
He’s sharp, so I thought he might have trouble fitting in, but he’s doing great.
With skilled talent like him around, my workload decreases – bonus!
Smiling happily, I clapped my hands.
Clap clap!
“Alright, not much time left. Let’s wrap things up. Everyone attack together. If you hit me once, I’ll end the lesson early.”
“Yahh!”
No sooner had I finished speaking than Reinhardt charged forward.
The faint energy surrounding that sword… is that sword qi?
The manifestation of sword qi, which comes right before aura, means what exactly?
That he’s stepped into the Expert realm commonly referred to.
“Ho, congrats. Still, charging recklessly isn’t good for a defensive specialist like you.”
Dodging Reinhardt’s sword easily, I poked him in the ribs.
“Kyaagh…! Now’s my chance!”
“Hmm?”
Whipping around, I saw Ariana approaching with a triumphant smile, her sword enveloped in chilling sword qi.
“When…!”
The other students hadn’t been idle either.
They’d positioned themselves perfectly, cutting off all my escape routes.
So Reinhardt’s sudden charge was bait, huh…!
By the time I processed all this, my body reacted reflexively.
Swoosh!
“Ack!”
Ariana lost her balance from my kick.
Simultaneously, I grabbed her and launched her towards another student.
“Kyaak!”
“Grr, this won’t work?!”
The male student who caught Ariana clenched his fists angrily.
Wasn’t his name Jonathan?
Looks like he has quite the competitive spirit.
“Haha! Finally got me once.”
Ariana grinned triumphantly.
“What?”
“How?”
Jonathan and Edmund beside him raised their voices in surprise.
Ariana pointed at me.
“Look at the sword.”
“Eek!”
“…?!”
“The professor’s sword…?!”
Seeing their shocked faces, I gave a bitter smile.
Just as Ariana said, all that remained in my hand was the hilt of the wooden sword.
Naturally, when sword qi clashes with an ordinary sword, this is the result.
“Finally!”
“About time!”
“Defeated the evil one!!!”
Th… I get they’re happy, but is this cause for celebration?
Anyone watching might think we defeated a demon king.
I could feel the gazes of other students far away.
Hey kids, can’t you sense your teacher’s embarrassment?
“How’s that! Told you I could do it!”
“Dang…! Ariana, I like you!”
“You’re the best!”
“Ariana! Ariana! Ariana!”
Now they’re chanting Ariana’s name.
Nothing more to say at this point.
Might as well let it slide this one time.
“What’s up?”
Feeling smug, I noticed Black Wolf approach.
“Got taken down by them.”
Showing him the broken hilt made him blink.
“Ki? Impressive.”
“That’s right. Scary talent, isn’t it? At this rate, he might master aura soon.”
Proudly speaking, Black Wolf shook his head looking at me.
“You’ve gotten rusty.”
“… What?!”
“Master beaten by an Expert. Pathetic.”
“Damn brat…?”
While it’s true I let my guard down, even then, I shouldn’t lose to a student!
Grr, every counterargument feels like an excuse…
This indignity will be repaid during next class!
“… Guess I’ll have to keep an eye on you.”
“Huh? What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Nothing. Is today’s lesson over?”
Tsk, wanted to tease him a bit more, but promises are promises.
Had to keep my word.
“Today’s lesson ends here!”
Normally, students would disperse instantly once lessons ended.
But not today.
“Professor Earl! I have questions about what you taught earlier!”
“Do you have a girlfriend?”
“Are you a soldier?”
“Sorry, but I only have one mouth. Can you take turns asking?”
Some students swarmed Earl with questions,
while others approached Black Wolf with potentially dangerous inquiries.
“Favorite food?”
“How do you do that stealth technique?”
“What do you do in your free time?”
“Can I… touch your tail?”
Black Wolf received some alarming questions too.
Come to think of it, I did say they could ask after class.
But why not me…?
Feeling slightly disappointed, familiar faces approached.
“How was my sword qi?”
Watching proud Ariana made me think – who cares? I have excellent students like her.
“Perfect strategy. Didn’t see it coming at all.”
“Hehe, kept my Expert status secret for this moment.”
“Right right, with this level, Grand Competition should be no problem.”
Ruffling Ariana’s hair approvingly, Senna blinked.
“Eek! Professor’s sword! Was it Ariana?”
Realized now, huh?
“Yeah. Amazing, right?”
“Waah~ How did you do that?”
“As it goes…”
While Ariana recounted her heroic tale, Amy and Lux approached.
Smiling gently at the two who surely learned a lot today.
“That Earl kid’s pretty good, huh?”
“Annoying as it is… gotta admit he’s skilled.”
“Best mana control I’ve seen from any professor.”
“Except for that ‘Helerele’ nonsense, which is irritating.”
Casually glancing at Earl, he definitely wore a pleasant smile.
Tsk, need to catch him later for a duel.
Amy asked with a sour expression,
“Do we have to keep learning from Earl?”
“For now, bear with it. Haven’t seen anyone as obsessed with fundamentals as him. Before the preliminary rounds of the Grand Competition, I’ll switch to practical combat training with you guys. Make sure you learn thoroughly by then. Need to hit me like Ariana did.”
“Yes.”
“Tch, understood.”
Lux nodded calmly while Amy clicked her tongue.
Still, by the time of the Grand Competition, these two will likely achieve another evolution.
“Ah! That’s right!”
Senna, who’d been nodding along to Ariana’s story, suddenly shouted.
Wondering what it was, I saw her charging towards me with incredible momentum.
“Professor!”
“Why, why…?”
“What’s your relationship with that person…?”
Quiet all of a sudden, Senna whispered.
What kind of question is this…?
Decided to answer anyway.
“An old comrade from previous battlefields. We worked on missions together, though I can’t go into details.”
“Could it possibly be… romantic…?”
“…? Why are you asking that?”
“But yesterday, you entered the dormitory with that person…”
“…”
Ariana too, and these kids’ sneaky skills have improved unnecessarily!
Though nothing inappropriate happened, the situation could easily be misinterpreted.
Struggling to think of how to explain when…
“Yep. Slept with Allen yesterday.”
“!!!”
“Hey…!”
Before I could cover his mouth, Black Wolf dropped another bomb nonchalantly.
“And he bathed me too.”
“!!!!!”
“H-Holy…!”
Expressionless as ever, what is he even saying!
Attempting to clarify, but…
“It’s not like that. This guy refused to bathe until…”
“Slept… together…?!”
“Bathed him? That’s totally…”
These kids aren’t even listening to my explanations.
Thought about yelling at Black Wolf to explain himself,
but he’d disappeared somewhere along the line.
“Where did this guy go…!”
“Professor! Is this true?”
“You have that preference?”
“Didn’t seem like it…”
As the horde of hyenas sensing blood in the water charged at me, my vision went blurry.
