The Academy’s Ankle Reaper – Chapter 62

Time passed, and before I knew it, the day of the Exchange Meeting had arrived.

I really didn’t want to attend, but after hearing Shaara’s report the day before, my mind was changed.

I received information that someone who shouldn’t be among the participants was mixed in.

No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t believe it, so I wanted to see it with my own eyes.

Students gathered at the port while waiting for the regular ship.

This time, it wasn’t that we skipped class; it was an official event organized by the Academy itself.

“Still, at least today is all free periods, so it’s comfortable.”

“Seriously, it’s not even visible.”

“That’s… not true.”

River stopped mid-sentence, likely thinking something sneaky like whether he should just go ahead and lift it up.

Even if he said that, he certainly wasn’t considering the simplest method of just pushing forward.

Doing that felt like somehow losing to me.

Though few truly welcomed Clover Academy, we still had to keep up appearances, so the welcoming ceremony had to be grand.

They were putting so much effort into it that even the Principal was directly present to oversee.

However, just that seemed off.

Over there, it should be mostly students and supervising teachers, so why was someone like the Principal directly waiting?

“Wow, the Student Council President is here…”

“This is our first time seeing each other, right?”

“How can this guy be harder to see than the Principal?”

Behind the Principal stood a man quietly holding his ground—he was the Student Council President, spoken of only in rumors until now.

Only after confirming that did I become convinced that everything Shaara told me yesterday was true.

“The rumors are true, I guess…”

“Rumors…?”

Amy tilted her head in confusion, but the answer came as soon as the regular ship carrying the students from Clover Academy arrived.

“Why aren’t they coming out…?”

In the unbearable silence, someone uttered those words.

According to the original plan, as soon as the regular ship docked, about 120 students bearing the Clover Kingdom flag were to enter in three rows.

But while the students who were supposed to come had yet to emerge, someone stepped forward.

Even just a foot was visible, but he didn’t look like a student at all.

That was because of the outfit he wore, which was completely unstudent-like.

– Dun dun dun!

Then, from within the regular ship, someone shouted loudly.

“Adolf Roang! Duke of the Fiearn Plains, Guardian of the Clover Kingdom, one of the Supreme Masters, the ‘Sword Master’ has arrived!”

The announcement sent ripples among the students.

A robust man adorned with a brilliantly red cloak and a dark navy uniform emerged.

At his waist hung a jewel-encrusted sword, and his hair was slicked back, white as snow. He had a grand beard connecting his sideburns to his chin.

His face was lined with deep wrinkles, looking much older than the ‘Master’ who should have undergone a slowdown in aging upon reaching a high level, but his appearance instead lent him an air of wisdom.

That imposing man was none other than ‘Sword Master’ Adolf Roang.

The Master of the Kingdom had set foot in the Empire.

This was the moment when one of the eight Masters currently existing on the continent stepped into the Academy of the Empire.

“…!!”

Many students were astonished.

Seeing the professors wearing expressions as if they’d eaten something bitter, it seemed most of them were already in the know, and even Hera, the focal point of the Exchange Meeting, appeared to be aware.

I wasn’t too surprised either.

I had already heard about it from Shaara yesterday.

I was notified that the Sword Master was coming along as an adviser from the Clover Kingdom, and the Empire had accepted it, which was shocking.

Generally, it’s very difficult for a Master to enter another country.

Considering it’s like allowing a living nuclear bomb into the nation’s heart, how many countries would allow that?

Masters like me and my Master, characters shrouded in mystery, tend to receive a lot of criticism from the citizens of other countries.

Particularly, my Master gets most of it.

I had at least sent a letter for entrance.

Normally, it would’ve never been permitted, but what made them change their minds?

Following the Sword Master, the students began to enter in their three rows as originally planned.

It was an unbelievable scene, even witnessing it with my own eyes.

The Academy students welcomed them with cheers.

Most of the cheers were aimed towards the Sword Master who was smiling and waving from the front, rather than the actual students.

However, not everyone was welcoming the Sword Master.

“River… are you okay…?”

“Uh? Y-yeah, I’m fine…”

River paled.

Just a moment ago, he looked perfectly fine, but his expression soured upon seeing the people from the Clover Kingdom entering.

Could it be that his fiancée was among the procession?

Shaara had found out nothing about River’s fiancée.

The fact that the Shimoa family had arranged an engagement with another family had never been known.

I whispered softly into River’s ear as he looked really bad.

“… Want to head back to the dormitory?”

“No… I want to stay longer. If we move now, we’ll just draw attention… Let’s try to endure a bit more.”

He didn’t seem to want to move immediately.

She focused on the event, and I too focused on the Sword Master.

After a bit of walking, the Sword Master reached the Academy’s entrance and faced the Principal.

“You still like to surprise people, don’t you, Sword Master?”

“Thank you for the warm welcome, Archmage.”

“Using a title from decades ago… At the Academy, Principal would be sufficient.”

“Haha, to me, you’re still the Archmage who swept the battlefield.”

After exchanging trivial formalities, a few procedures for inter-Academy exchanges were followed.

“Hmm… let’s see…”

While carrying out those procedures, Sword Master Adolf scanned his surroundings.

Was he looking for someone? His gaze didn’t just skim; it scrutinized stubbornly.

As he directed his powerful gaze toward the students, River grabbed my hand tightly.

Our joined hands trembled slightly.

“…”

I didn’t need to speak to understand what that meant.

River was afraid of that man.

“… I want to go back…”

“… Understood.”

I didn’t question him further about why he wanted to leave.

There was no point in prolonging the conversation.

River wanted to leave, so I should get us out of here quickly.

With a crowd around, even if we were spotted, it would take time to navigate through it.

I held River’s hand and slowly moved backward through the crowd.

As I turned my gaze to the Sword Master briefly while moving back… suddenly, River’s hand was lifted up.

“Haha, there you are! You’ve grown so much, I barely recognized you!”

“!!”

Amid the crowd, the Sword Master spotted River and swooped in, lifting her into the air.

In a flash, our hands were separated as we were grabbed and lifted skyward.

“Please… put me down…!!!”

“What are you embarrassed about! I’m just so glad to see you! It’s been a while since we met, so this makes it our second meeting!”

As River, with her feet off the ground, panicked, the Sword Master genuinely seemed overjoyed.

“Hmm, Sword Master… even so, it’s an event; can’t you save the flirting with our student for later?”

The Principal, startled by the Sword Master’s sudden action, used flying magic to chase him down.

Realizing his surroundings, the Sword Master smiled sheepishly with a pleasant expression.

“Haha, I’m sorry. It’s been so long since I saw my fiancée, so I got a bit too excited…”

Hearing his words, the Principal tilted his head in confusion.

Though he heard it, he probably couldn’t ever imagine it to be true.

“Fiancée? Your fiancée?”

“Yes, River Shimoa… my fiancée.”

In that moment, the identity of the Sword Master’s fiancée, unknown to anyone, was revealed.

The Academy was in uproar.

If this fact got out, the entire Empire, not just the Academy, would be shaken.

“The two of us need to catch up on some old stories; I’ll excuse myself for a moment. Let our student representative handle the rest of the event.”

—————————————————————

The announcement from the Sword Master during the event shook the entirety of the Academy.

The fiancée of the Sword Master, previously unknown to the masses, had been disclosed.

Adolf, who had been a Master for a long while, had promised to marry someone after living single until now.

This was not only a hot topic at the Academy but a significant incident that could rattle the entire continent.

Both Linda and Adolf, along with many Masters, surprisingly had a high rate of being single, leading to analyses that perhaps their love senses dulled upon reaching such high levels.

It was no wonder Shaara couldn’t find out.

Who would have imagined that the Sword Master would be the one?

“River… are you going to be okay?”

“I think I’ll be fine.”

After the event concluded, Amy and I sat on a bench, nervously fidgeting our feet.

The event came to an abrupt end just like that, as after dropping the bombshell, the Sword Master flew off somewhere to chat with River, leaving everything hanging.

“To think your fiancée is the Sword Master… how did that happen?”

“It’s strange, isn’t it? The Sword Master hasn’t had any recorded activity outside of the Clover Kingdom since reaching the level of Master.”

To anyone passing by, it must have looked like a funeral.

As I contemplated chasing after River, she insisted she was fine, but the concern wouldn’t leave my mind.

Waiting with no end in sight felt like my mouth was going dry.

At that moment, I heard River’s voice from a distance.

“Did you wait for me?”

Feeling foolish for my earlier worries, River appeared vibrant, running towards us just as she had days before without a care in the world.

It seems like things went well for her.

“River..! Are you okay??”

“Sorry to worry you. Nothing happened.”

“Was the fiancée really the Sword Master?”

“I didn’t know… I thought he was just a noble from Clover Kingdom. I was surprised he looked the same as ten years ago when I first saw him.”

River smiled sheepishly.

Ten years ago, there probably wasn’t a huge difference in appearance.

Masters age slowly over time.

Just by looking at the official records, the Sword Master of Clover Kingdom must be over 70 now.

“He said he would wait until I graduate. After all, I’ll be back in two days…”

Though River spoke casually, given her attitude until just yesterday, it felt very unnatural.

An uninvited engagement, with the other party being a man over 50 years older than her.

It seemed true that she didn’t know who the Sword Master was.

Her goal appeared to be to become strong by the time she graduated, not to be forced into a marriage she never agreed to.

“Yeah, I’m fine now.”

“You’re really okay, right?”

“I promise I’m okay. We agreed not to meet again until before I leave since it’ll be awkward.”

She was smiling like her usual self.

She really did seem fine.

It looked like they managed to communicate and came to a gentle agreement about things.

If what she said was true, then there shouldn’t be any encounters with the Sword Master until it’s time to return.

Even as I kept reassuring her everything would be okay, a feeling of unease lingered in the back of my mind.

Perhaps it was because of the reaction River had right after meeting him,

At that time, she clearly seemed frightened of the Sword Master.

Not hatred or disgust, but fear… She said she’d seen him just once.

Could that memory still be governing River?

I couldn’t easily shake off the image of River trembling, a girl who was usually so bold.

“Are you truly okay with being engaged to an old man close to 80?”

“That’s… a family matter! It’s not a problem for an outsider like you to interfere. Especially if the other party is the Sword Master.”

At my remark, River raised her voice.

“I really wish we wouldn’t talk about it anymore. Anyway, I probably won’t run into him again after this… I can somehow handle the engagement until graduation.

Even if things don’t go as planned, it’s not entirely bad, right? He’s a Master after all… I thought he would be a complete doddering old man by now, but it seems that’s not the case.”

River rejected any further interference.

Yeah, she might be right.

In the end, it is a family matter.

If she marries a Sword Master who holds a position higher than a king in the Clover Kingdom, the Shimoa family will surely take a unique status in the Empire.

Compared to other insignificant noble families who can’t even resist who they are sold to, this situation is quite favorable.

Considering only the small glimpses we’ve seen, he doesn’t seem to be such a rotten personality and can hold a decent conversation as well.

In the end, am I just an outsider who cannot intervene in her family issues?

Especially when I couldn’t even handle my own affairs properly and fled from them?

“….”

“Alright, let’s stop this conversation here, and now that the Sword Master has come, we have three days of classes canceled! Let’s have some fun! Come on!”

Is this really going to be okay?

As my worries deepened, River happily linked arms with both me and Amy and moved forward.