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HEL SCANS
[Translator – Kie]
[Proofreader – Kawaii]
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Chapter:236 The Unbreakable (4)
***
Damien stared intently at the man who had appeared out of nowhere. Delong Muller did the same.
The students swallowed their dry saliva and looked at the two men. Both of them were Master Class. They didn’t know what would happen if a clash broke out here.
Then, all of a sudden, Damien gestured towards the direction where the students were standing.
“Oliver, come over here.”
Oliver looked puzzled and walked over to Damien. Damien whispered in Oliver’s ear.
“Who the hell is he?”
His voice was low, but everyone could hear Damien’s question because they were so close.
Oliver, as well as the other students, and even Delong Muller, all had incredulous expressions on their faces.
“You really don’t know who…that man is?”
Damien asked again, marveling at Oliver’s audacity to call the instructor ‘that man’ right in front of him.
“I’m not here to make friends. So, who is he?”
“His name is Delong Muller. He is the head instructor who oversees all of the first-year swordsmanship classes… or rather, all of the first-year classes at the Academy.”
In fact, this alone was not enough to explain what kind of person Delong Muller was. So Oliver quickly added.
“Before he came to the Academy as an instructor, he was called a hero of the Empire.”
“A hero?”
“He didn’t accomplish great feats, but he was a very famous consultant.”
Damien focused a little more on Oliver’s words.
“I heard that he was in charge of going around knight houses, finding problems with their swordsmanship techniques, and helping them improve them. They say he was very skilled. I heard that there are even houses that produced Master Class knights thanks to his guidance.”
“Is that so?”
“I heard that he was invited to be an instructor at the Academy because of his achievements.”
Damien looked at Delong Muller with an intrigued expression.
Even for someone who had reached the Master Class level, it was not easy to help other houses with their techniques.
However, unlike his great past, Delong Muller’s own swordsmanship was not that great.
He was a Master Class, but he had not broken through any walls.
‘There are people like that sometimes.’
The talent to accurately identify and analyze the problems of others, even though their own abilities are not that great.
People with that kind of talent were naturally gifted at teaching others.
“An instructor of the Academy doesn’t know me! This is ridiculous!”
Delong Muller said, his face flushed with anger. Damien asked Delong Muller, who was like that.
“So, what brings you here?”
“What brings me here? That’s a very good question! I came to question your misconduct!”
“Misconduct?”
“Don’t tell me you’re trying to pretend you don’t know what happened yesterday? You’ve been causing a commotion all over the Academy!”
“Oh, is that what you’re talking about?”
Damien said nonchalantly. Delong Muller became even more enraged.
“That’s all you have to say after doing such a thing? This is the first time I’ve seen such a vulgar man! That’s why we didn’t bring in a knight from outside the Empire as an instructor!”
Damien looked at Delong Muller with a somewhat bored expression. Since he had entered the Academy, everyone had been making an issue of Damien’s origins.
“That’s not all! A man who is a Master Class is bullying the students! I was lucky to see this happen! Otherwise, something big could have happened!”
“I was only disciplining these two as an instructor because they were behaving inappropriately.”
“Discipline? What did these two do to deserve that?”
“If you knew how harshly these two spoke to Class 13, you would understand my actions.”
Since Damien arrived late, he couldn’t hear everything the two said to Class 13.
However, even from the last part, he could tell how much these two were openly looking down on and ignoring Class 13.
“You’re making a false accusation.”
However, Delong Muller did not believe Damien’s words.
“Emilio and Gelliver are children who are so skilled that they can represent the first grade! Not only that, they are from a prestigious family that represents the Empire! You’re saying that those children are talking shit to Class 13?”
“Well…”
Damien opened his mouth to defend Class 13, then closed it again.
In fact, it was understandable that Delong Muller didn’t believe Damien’s words. After all, Class 13 was a notorious class.
If the situation were reversed, Damien wouldn’t have believed it either.
“And even if that’s true, what’s the problem?”
A deep frown creased Damien’s face as he heard the following words.
“What did you just say?”
“If there is trash lying on the street, it is inevitable that you will be offended, and if you are offended, it is natural that harsh words will come out. You’re bullying those two for that!”
It’s not that Damien likes Class 13. He was only in charge of them because of the conditions of the headmaster.
But anyway, Damien was in charge of Class 13 now. And now Damien had a duty to take responsibility for Class 13.
And even though the students of Class 13 were not good students, they were not responsible for this incident.
“Not only are you not from the Empire, but you can’t even judge right from wrong as an instructor! Someone as unqualified as you can’t be in the Academy any longer! Know that I will call a meeting tomorrow to raise the issue!”
Damien stared at Delong Muller silently.
‘He’s really getting on my nerves.’
Everything about him was annoying, from the way he popped up out of nowhere and made a fuss to his words and actions.
Of course, Delong Muller wouldn’t be able to kick Damien out with his power. Damien had been hired to the Academy by the Emperor’s decree.
But it was sure to be a hassle. Damien already didn’t have time to educate the Class 13. So he couldn’t waste his time on that.
“Well, why bother calling a council?”
I had to make this go away somehow.
He wanted to smash that asshole’s face.
“Just test my qualifications right here.”
“Test you? How?”
“I came to the Academy as a swordsmanship instructor. So there’s only one way to prove my qualifications, isn’t there?”
“…Are you suggesting a duel?”
A moment of hesitation crossed Delong Muller’s face.
Delong Muller was not only excellent at teaching others, but also not very skilled himself.
Moreover, Damien was the winner of the Helian Tournament. The gap between the two was clear.
“Only then can you say that you have proven your qualifications.”
It would be easy to defeat Delong Muller. But winning a fight where the outcome was obvious would not give Delong Muller the proper humiliation.
“How about we spar only with the Imperial Swordsmanship?”
At those words, Delong Muller’s eyes lit up.
“…Only with the Imperial Swordsmanship?”
“As far as I know, all swordsmanship classes at the Academy are based on the Imperial Swordsmanship. So wouldn’t it mean that you are qualified if you prove how well you understand it?”
Delong Muller’s expression changed strangely at Damien’s suggestion.
“Can you promise that you will leave the Academy without a word if I win?”
“I promise. But in return, Mr. Muller, you must acknowledge my right to be an instructor if I win.”
Delong Muller thought for a moment and then said with a confident face.
“Alright. Then let’s start right now.”
***
And so, Damien and Delong Muller’s duel was decided.
The two stood opposite each other and prepared for the duel. Damien began flipping through the Imperial Swordsmanship book he had brought with him.
“instructor, why don’t we change the rules now…??”
Oliver said cautiously from beside Damien.
“Oliver is right. To duel Delong Muller with the Imperial Swordsmanship… It’s too reckless.”
Penelope also stuck close to Damien’s side.
“instructor, that man is a man with an extraordinary mind, enough to touch the visions of other houses swordsmanship.”
“Not only that, but he has been an instructor at the Academy for a long time, so his understanding of the Imperial Swordsmanship must be beyond imagination.”
Oliver and Penelope talked incessantly.
Damien looked at them with a dumbfounded expression.
“Why are you suddenly pretending to be worried about me?”
At those words, both of them turned their eyes away with embarrassed expressions.
“Uh, anyway, no matter how great you are, it’s going to be… difficult to beat that man in the field of Imperial Swordsmanship.”
“It’s not that I’m disrespecting you.”
“Well, that man knows more about it than I do, I just learned it yesterday.”
At those words, their expressions turned blank.
“What did you just say?”
“I said I just learned the Imperial Swordsmanship yesterday.”
“And yet you challenged that man to a duel?”
“Are you in your right mind?”
Oliver and Penelope shouted without realizing it. But when Damien stared at them silently, they immediately buried their heads in the ground.
“I’m so sorry! I made a slip of the tongue!”
“I’ll let it slide just this once.”
“T-thank you!”
The two of them breathed a sigh of relief and stood up.
“Watch carefully from behind. This is also part of the lesson.”
Just then, as Delong Muller walked out to the center of the training ground, Damien also took a step forward.
“Are you really that confident, Damien?”
Delong Muller said with a confident face. Damien chuckled.
“I think I know what you’re thinking. You think the Imperial Swordsmanship is just a basic swordsmanship, so you’re underestimating it.”
As Delong Muller said, the Imperial Swordsmanship was considered a basic swordsmanship in the Empire.
Many knights in the Empire considered the Imperial Swordsmanship to be a stepping stone to be overcome.
“But that’s a big misconception. The Imperial Swordsmanship is a swordsmanship technique that was personally created by His Majesty the Founding Emperor. The more you learn it, the deeper it becomes.”
Delong Muller drew his training sword. As he twisted his wrist, the sword gracefully sliced through the air.
“Now I will show you that… Wait! What are you holding? Where is your sword?”
Delong Muller asked, pointing to Damien’s hand. The weapon Damien was holding was none other than a club.
“It’s not a duel, so weapons don’t matter, do they?”
“Well… that’s true, but…”
Delong Muller looked at Damien with a skeptical expression.
“Let’s see how well an Apple Kingdom native handles the Empire’s swordsmanship!”
With those words, Delong Muller closed the distance in an instant.
***
Imperial Swordsmanship.
Despite its simple name, it was a swordsmanship technique with a formidable history, having been created by the Founding Emperor of the Empire himself.
Today, it was considered a basic swordsmanship in the Empire, but in reality it was quite deep.
There are five movements in the Imperial Swordsmanship.
The movements themselves are simple, but all the movements are interconnected.
Therefore, the number of possible attacks is endless. The power of the technique varies depending on how it is combined.
‘How dare you challenge me to a duel with the Imperial Swordsmanship!’
The Imperial Swordsmanship was exactly what Delong Muller emphasized whenever he taught knights. This swordsmanship contained all the basics that a knight should have.
So a knight from another country challenged him to a duel with the Imperial Swordsmanship?
“Let’s see how well an Apple Kingdom native handles the Empire’s swordsmanship!”
Delong Muller swung his sword with a burst of anger.
The first form of the Imperial Swordsmanship.
A one-hit kill technique designed for close combat, the sharp sword slashed through the air.
At that moment, Damien struck down with his club. Seeing this, Delong Muller sneered.
‘A trajectory like drawing a circle… Are you planning to counter my attack with the fourth form? How dare you try to defeat me with such a textbook method!’
The moment Damien blocked his attack, Delong Muller intended to continue with the third form.
The third form was a technique to parry the enemy’s attack and stab the vital point. If he tried to dodge this, then this time he would use the fifth form…
At that moment, the club and the sword collided. In that moment, Delong Muller managed to deflect Damien’s attack.
At the same time, he twisted his waist. Rotating his body, he thrust the tip of his sword towards Damien’s vital point…
At that moment, Delong Muller saw it. Damien was staring at him with emotionless eyes.
“You’re full of tricks.”
Damien struck down the sword that was aiming for his vital point with the handle of his club. The sword bounced down.
“What?”
A look of bewilderment appeared on Delong Muller’s face. He had never calculated that his third form would be blocked in this way.
“M-my th-third form…! In this way…!?”
The moment Delong Muller was shocked, Damien Haksen struck his head with his club.
Bonk!
With the intense pain, Delong Muller’s vision turned black.
***
“It’s nothing.”
Damien said, looking down at the unconscious Delong Muller.
“The two of you over there.”
Damien spoke to Emilio and Gelliver. The two of them looked at Damien in surprise.
“Take him away. Understand?”
But the two of them looked at Damien with trembling eyes. Then Emilio asked in a questioning tone.
“T-this is invalid!”
“Invalid?”
“H-hitting an attack with the handle is a form not found in the Imperial Swordsmanship! You broke the promise of the duel!”
Damien clicked his tongue at Emilio’s protest.
“When that man wakes up, ask him. Whether or not what I used was the Imperial Swordsmanship.”
“O-of course it’s not…”
“It seems that you won’t be able to reach a high level by sticking to formalities.”
Damien tsked. Then he suddenly distorted his expression.
“But did you just talk back to me?”
Emilio and Gelliver’s faces turned pale. The two of them hurriedly picked up Delong Muller and disappeared.
As the three of them left, the training ground was filled with silence.
“Oh my…”
“A Master Class like that so easily…”
Class 13 muttered in astonishment. Damien looked around at Class 13 and said.
“Now that the troublemakers are gone, shall we start training again?”
The faces of all the students in Class 13 contorted. There were even those who looked like they were going to die.
But there were also those who didn’t.
Oliver and Penelope.
The two of them looked at Damien with determined expressions.
***
That night, Damien found himself receiving unexpected visitors.
“What brings you here?”
Damien asked Oliver and Penelope, who were standing in front of the faculty dormitory.
With determined expressions, the two shouted at Damien.
“I want to beat my brother Gelliver in this year’s exam!”
“And I want to get revenge on that damn Emilio!”
The two simultaneously knelt on the ground. Then, with earnest faces, they shouted.
“We’ll endure any training! Just let us win!”
Damien bent his knees. He leveled his eyes with the two.
“Does that mean…… you want to give up physical fitness and swordsmanship and focus on dueling?”
“Yes!”
“That’s right!”
“Alright, alright. I understand your intentions perfectly.”
Damien said as he patting their shoulders.
Oliver and Penelope smiled brightly and looked at each other’s faces.
“No, you can’t.”
However, at the following words, the smiles that had appeared on their faces couldn’t help but disappear.
“Are your minds gone crazy? There’s not much time left for the exams, and do you want to change the exam’s subject in the meantime? And the reason is to beat the top and second-place students of the first grade?”
Damien said, taking out his club from the subspace.
“I can’t. It’s been a long time since I’ve had a chance to ‘convince’ you.”
***
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HEL SCANS
[Translator – Kie]
[Proofreader – Kawaii]
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