The Academy’s Ankle Reaper – Chapter 71

As soon as the exchange meeting began, the waiting room of Clover Academy turned into a scene of utter despair.

The two consecutive defeats were hard to believe, especially since their opponent had knocked them down with just a single finger, without even wielding a weapon.

Though they didn’t want to admit it, the moment their front-line fighter fell to that single finger strike, they found themselves in a situation they couldn’t handle.

They wanted to come up with a plan, but there was nothing they could do.

There seemed to be no visible weakness, and their opponent merely dodged their attacks while effortlessly delivering a counter that ended the bout each time.

The students who had gone out as the front-line and rear-line fighters were nursing their wounds where Atlas’s finger had struck.

Although the buffs inside the arena meant they were not actually injured, the pain they felt made them believe they were wounded.

They couldn’t even lift their heads.

Like a troupe of condemned criminals, they crouched in a corner, out of sight, like garbage bags.

“This is not going to work..!!”

Margaret Alban, selected as the captain for Clover Academy, was trembling with fear at the horrific scene.

She distinctly remembered the small dwarf who had come out as the front-liner for the academy.

He was definitely one of the students who had been with the Sword Master’s fiancée, Shimoa, just yesterday.

How could such a thing be possible if there was no underhanded trick involved?

Her trembling came not only from the disdain felt towards that dwarf who dismissed them with a mere finger, but more importantly, from the fear of disappointing that person who expected nothing less than their victory.

It wasn’t merely the fear of losing without having a chance to fight back.

This exchange meeting was a place they absolutely could not afford to lose.

It was not merely an embarrassing situation or a disgrace.

It was led by none other than that person.

At that moment, a low voice was heard from outside.

“Excuse me.”

“?!!”

Before they could react, the door swung wide open and someone barged in.

A red cloak billowed as it entered.

It was undoubtedly Sword Master Adolf Roang, who should have been in the VIP Room.

“Sword Master?!”

“No, no, just relax. Don’t stand up.”

As soon as they recognized the sword master was entering, everyone tried to jump up and salute, but he stopped them.

The students who had been about to rise instead knelt down.

The Sword Master looked pleased at that sight.

But he didn’t look happy.

As he entered the waiting room, he wore the same friendly smile that he had shown from outside, stroking his chin beard.

“Yeah, just stay like that. If you stand up, the smell of trash will float up and it’ll be unpleasant.”

At his words, delivered with a cheerful grin, the Clover Academy students broke out in cold sweat.

If the academy students heard his scathing commentary, it would certainly be shocking.

No one could have imagined that the Sword Master, who had always presented himself as a moral, gentle, and stylish gentleman since arriving at the academy, would say something like that.

“What kind of pathetic match was that? Am I being tested for my patience?”

“I’m sorry…”

“No, no… I’m not here to receive an apology. You know that much already… Or do you have nothing else to say besides an apology?”

With no plans even set in place, what could they possibly say?

Captain Margaret could only sweat nervously, not able to speak, while the one sitting beside her, bowing their head, murmured.

“Um… The dwarf must be up to something…! Otherwise, we couldn’t have been knocked down by just a finger…!!!”

Margaret felt a chill run down her spine.

“Don’t make excuses.”

The moment the captain’s words dropped, they felt as if a knife had pierced through their bodies.

“?!!!”

No, there was no actual knife; they were merely struck by the suffocating killing intent that the Sword Master emanated, mistaking it for a physical blow.

“Ugh…”

Some couldn’t endure it and collapsed.

Margaret had anticipated such a situation, so she remained silent.

The Sword Master looked down at the students with a very cold gaze.

Upon seeing the students who were convulsing and foaming at the mouth, the Sword Master’s mood lightened, and he smiled again.

“Ha… If you’re this weak, then it’s no wonder you lost to that behemoth… Don’t disappoint me. Remember that I personally came here leading this exchange meeting.

I trust you won’t tarnish my name anymore.”

Placing a hand on Margaret’s shoulder, who silently endured the killing intent, the Sword Master spoke.

“I have high expectations of you, Alban… You won’t disappoint me, will you? Right?”

“I’ll live up to your expectations…”

“Good… I believe in you.”

With those words, the Sword Master disappeared again.

Yeah, we can’t lose like this.

“… Losing anymore would be truly dangerous. Do you understand?”

After the Sword Master vanished, Margaret spoke, and a deep silence enveloped the waiting room.

“We just need to win. Right?”

At that moment, someone sprang up.

It was Payton, known for his snake-like presence, who was in charge of the middle ranks of the exchange meeting.

“Exactly.”

“I suspect that guy is up to something too… There’s no need to hold back. I’ll use ‘that’.”

Upon hearing Payton’s declaration, Margaret clenched her fist tightly.

What he had declared to use was a self-enhancing item passed down secretly within the Clover Kingdom.

Using it would definitely strengthen the body, but… without caution, one could become an invalid—a double-edged sword.

It was something to be used only in life-and-death situations, not in this kind of exchange meeting.

“… If you use that, it won’t end without consequences. Can you handle that?”

“Just losing like this means we won’t see good days either; isn’t it worth taking a shot at?”

Margaret couldn’t rebut Payton’s words, which he delivered with a glint in his sharp eyes.

———————————

The mid-ranked fighter, suspected of being a demon, confidently dashed out and raised his sword.

“For insulting the Clover Kingdom…!! I won’t forgive you!”

Although he wasn’t using the power of a demon directly—otherwise, he would attract the principal’s attention above—he was able to let out just enough magic that it was hard to detect unless one was paying close attention.

‘… No. The magic is too weak to be a demon’s presence. Is it something different?’

It was naturally possible for demons who made contracts with devils to hide their magic, but the slight leak was abnormal.

It should either be completely undetectable or feel stronger than this. This ambiguous feeling was wrong somehow.

“You’re wielding your finger as a weapon, so your range is very limited… So you waited until I got close and countered accordingly.”

As he swung his sword, the blade shattered into segments, transforming into a long whip.

It was more accurately described as a whip than a sword; this Tachi sword was different.

“I won’t fall for such tricks..!!!”

The mid-ranked fighter whipped the Tachi sword.

The structure involved a strong steel wire with sharp blades, and with a hissing sound, it flew like a snake toward me.

I intended to step back moderately to dodge it, but for some reason I couldn’t comprehend, the moment I started to move back, the Tachi sword lengthened just barely more than what was visible.

It was a sword that wasn’t very long to begin with, and the wire was hidden inside.

It could extend at will, and that shape didn’t seem to be its maximum length either.

-Whiiiisssh!

Immediately changing direction, the sword sent sharp slashes through the air where I had been standing just moments ago, sending up clouds of dust.

It was extraordinarily destructive, looking as it did.

“How about that? You can’t even get close..!! This isn’t all there is!”

The wire, which had extended to where I once stood, then suddenly shrank back immediately.

Even the blade fragments of the Tachi sword… began to glow with a bright azure flame.

He had activated Aura Blade.

“Take this..!!!”

Once again, he swung the Tachi sword.

An overwhelming attack that swept across in all directions, so much that it was hard to avoid; I checked briefly just in case, and it seemed not only was it shortening, but the trajectory could be altered midway as well.

The glamorous movements of the Tachi sword stirred the dust all over the arena, while I managed to dodge the rapid attacks in my limited line of sight.

Unlike before, as I started my own moves, cheers erupted from Clover Academy as I didn’t end it immediately.

What an irritating attack.

The aura-enveloped blade made it difficult to block, and since it could change paths randomly, it would be nearly impossible for an ordinary swordsman to respond.

But I’m not an ordinary swordsman.

‘I’m getting the hang of this.’

Once again, the Tachi sword swept toward me fiercely.

As I prepared to dodge it to the left, the aura surrounding the sword flashed, altering its attack trajectory to the left.

But my body was not facing left.

The Tachi sword struck the ground instead of me, having been deceived by my basic feint.

And as he pulled the wire back again, I had already reached right in front of the mid-ranked fighter.

-Wham!!

The mid-ranked fighter didn’t fall immediately after taking the hit.

He grinned, his eyes flickering with black smoke, and he stared at me, still smiling.

“That attack was trivial…”

“Is your head supposed to have a hole in it now?”

It seemed he couldn’t see well.

My finger penetrated his temple, even though the magic hadn’t been dispelled.

The hologram confirmed his head was marked in orange.

It was working as intended.

Seeing my finger lodged in his head, the mid-ranked fighter’s expression rapidly soured.

“The place I just stabbed is known as the Demon Blood, a blood point known only to Inquisitioners.”

“Inquisitioners… You say?”

Upon mentioning the Inquisitioners, noted for their extraordinary ability to identify demons, he began to fidget nervously.

To the audience, there was no commotion, as it was likely hidden from them that my finger had penetrated his temples.

He probably didn’t envision an attack penetrating with buffs active.

“The effect is quite simple. If I twist my finger while in this state, nothing will happen to a normal person.

But if you’re a filthy demon harboring magic within you, you’ll instantly bleed from every orifice and die.”

“That’s a lie..!!! There’s no way something so convenient exists!”

The mid-ranked fighter denied it, but the effect was real.

It was an incredibly delicate technique that very few among the Inquisitioners could employ, but I had learned it during a prior hunt against demons.

Ah, whether it ends in death depends on the demon’s strength.

Some powerful demons can survive even after bleeding profusely.

“Yeah, that’s right. If you were an average person, nothing would happen. Right?”

What do you think will happen if I twist this finger?

I was deeply curious.