TLN: I make it a rule to not translate on the weekends. I need to work on other projects and I think I"ve made good progress so far. I"ll be looking to translate either different world orphanage or sword sorcerer.
The failure swordsman and the swordsmanship academy – 3
Immediately after the match between Bubble and Allen.
The sword festival operation committee had become noisy.
The reason was that Princ.i.p.al Reia Rasunoto of one of top the five schools in the capital - Senjin School, had come to visit.
(TLN: Senjin is written as thousand blades)
「To think senjin"s Princ.i.p.al would come and visit our region"s sword festival personally….! I"m very grateful…」(???)
The elderly man who was the chairman of the sword festival managed to say those words whilst trembling.
On the other hand, Reia scratched her cheek apologetically.
「Ano….you don"t have to bother preparing VIP seating. I"m ok with just the general seating….」(Reia)
In fact, this was her true intention.
She originally came here to inspect the sword festival.
The chairman had also noticed this and tried to prepare some VIP seating as others looked on in amazement.
「No no! To not have a VIP s.p.a.ce prepared for you! I am very sorry….」(Elderly Man)
The elderly man said as he apologized.
There were obvious reasons as to why he was frightened like this.
This director has extensive social influence and power.
If Reia"s mood suddenly changed, this entire sword festival could disappear.
So it was reasonable that the chairman would get frightened like this.
「Please don"t mind it so much. I only came here to see the compet.i.tors of the sword festival this time, rather than the festival itself」(Reia)
Reia spoke up in order to ease the tension of the other members of committee.
She wanted to refrain from watching the match with such a tight atmosphere surrounding her.
「Recently I"ve been trying to find new students for the Senjin school in order to further develop it. Well, you can think of it like scouting」(Reia)
In the past Senjin school was extremely prosperous, but in recent years the quality of the students had declined and it"s status as one of the top 5 schools was in danger.
The former director resigned after taking responsibility and Reia became the new princ.i.p.al by an election afterwards.
She was inspecting promising swordsmen in an attempt to reconstruct the school. Any talented individuals she finds would be allowed into the school with a recommendation and tuition fees exempted.
It"s difficult to improve the quality of the students quickly. For that reason, she had embarked on a mission to find excellent students in order to improve the quality that way.
「I see….so is your target for this time is last year"s winner, the 『Bounty hunter』?」(Chairman)
The chairman asked Reia, full of tension.
「Ee, of course. The『Bounty Hunter Rose Valencia』I"d like to see her fight at least once」(Reia)
If her rumored ability is true, then she would like to meet with her to talk about a recommendation.
「Is that so? I remember my first time seeing her win the prize last year…it was certainly a hair raising fight!」(Chairman)
「I"m glad - but I have not only come here to inspect just Rose」(Reia)
「…is that right?」(Chairman)
「I"m expecting I might find some hidden gems here」(Reia)
Saying so, Reia"s eyes sharpened as she gazed onto the stage.
After beating Bubble with First Sword - Flying Slash, I kept up the momentum and continued winning my matches one after the other.
Ten matches, ten matches - I never thought I"d get this far even in my dreams.
Without noticing it, I had ended up in the finals where victory hung by a thread.
When the preparations for the final match was completed, the presenter began to speak.
「I have kept you waiting! Well then, we will now start out final match of the day! The match is - Rose Valencia vs Allen Rhodes. Partic.i.p.ants please come up to the stage!」(Presenter)
Bounty Hunter Rose Valencia.
Her name was familiar. A genius female swordsman about the same age as me.
However, since the prize money was within my grasp, I have to prepare myself to win against her.
Apparently, Rose received the t.i.tle bounty hunter after capturing a thief who had a bounty.
I"m not certain on the specifics, but she is reputed to be quite strong.
Me and Rose walked on to the stage.
She had a dignified face, with striking red eyes and beautiful pink hair that stretched down her back. Her upper clothing was completely black, other than a red accent. A large portion of her stomach to the lower part of her chest was exposed, I was troubled as to where to place my eyes. Her lower half was covered with black low-rise hot pants.
Her battles had been the most eagerly antic.i.p.ated out of them all.
Indeed, for such a delicate body to toss these strong big men around like beanbags was worthy of watching.
After the presenters had confirmed the partic.i.p.ants had walked onto the stage, they began to recite a brief explanation as per usual.
「Rose Valencia - the legitimate successor of the Sakura Flower One Sword School! Allen may have some trouble this time!」(Presenter)
The presenter who spoke up to this point inhaled a long breath before continuing.
「–but, we can"t say that! I"m sure no-one will ridicule Allen"s sword anymore after seeing his previous matches!」(Presenter)
As the presenter said, there was no-one who mocked me after my first game against Bubble.
Rather it was the reverse.
They all started to pay me some respect.
There were people who wanted to shake my hand and even those who wanted to be my apprentice.
I responded to the handshakes, but I had to refuse the apprentice requests.
I"m still learning myself.
I"m in no position to teach people about swordsmanship.
Just before the start of the match, I lowered my head as usual.
「Please treat me well」(Allen)
Then.
「Nice to meet you, please treat me well」(Rose)
An answer came back with a clear voice not unlike the ringing of a bell.
When our greetings were over.
「Both of you, are you ready? Well then, final match - start!」(Presenter)
The presenter announced the start of the game.
At the same time, me and Rose pulled out our swords, took a stance and locked eyes with each other.
In the same Kamae stance, we stared at each other for a while.
(Judging from her previous battles, her battle style is the counter type)
A defensive sword that finds the small gaps in an opponent"s attack and exploits them.
It would be bad if I attacked her recklessly without a plan.
(Well, let"s shoot a『Flying Slash』to test her response…）
Then, the moment after I had decided what to do.
「!?」(Allen)
Rose"s appearance was already before my eyes.
(In one breath, she had gotten this close….)
She approached in an instant, causing my mind to go a little blank.
Extraordinary body handling skills.
「Sakura Hana Itto-Ryu - Sakura Blossoms」(Rose)
She lowered her centre of gravity and released thrust containing all her weight.
But I"m not so weak to be defeated by such a sudden attack.
「—!?」(Rose)
From her thrust aimed at my body, I slashed my sword to strike exactly on the tip of her sword.
As a result, the sword tip of her sword and the sword tip of mine collided.
Iron and Iron clashed violently, causing a metallic ringing to sound out.
「No way!?」(Rose)
To the situations that she did not expect, a slight gap was created as Rose"s eyes opened in shock.
There was no way I was going t overlook this opportunity.
I instantly dropped my centre of gravity and accelerated, appearing in front of her within a single breaths time.
「–!」(Rose)
「!?」(Allen)
My thrust that I had timed to perfection - was stopped at her flank.
From her previous shocked state, she had managed to forcibly twist her body to avoid a direct hit.
This must surely be due to her genius talent.
「Kuu…..Not yet, it"s not over yet….!」(Rose)
Rose, who had recovered after being struck on her flank, immediately responded with a slash.
「Sakura Hana Itto-Ryu - Evening Sakura!」(Rose)
Then she slashed repeatedly many times over.
Meanwhile, the arena had been shrouded in a strange quietness.
There was no cheers or shouts.
Whilst occasionally speaking their impressions, they were otherwise silently watching.
「Oi oi, isn"t Bounty Hunter Rose being treated like a child…」(???)
「As expected…..I"d really like to be his apprentice after all….」(???)
「Don"t be silly. As if Allen has the time to teach a fool like you」(???)
Every time we crossed swords, a fresh wound appeared on Rose"s body.
「Haa haa….who trained you in swordsmanship!?」(Rose)
「No…that is…self taught…」(Allen)
Well she may be too prideful to accept that.
Which was why I didn"t want to talk much.
「Don"t lie! I can feel traces of it in your sword - it"s the acc.u.mulated weight of long years of trials and training!」(Rose)
She turned her sharp eyes to me and announced so.
(Sh, sharp….)
Certainly, my sword has been packed with the『Weight』of hundreds of millions of years of training. The『Weight』she"s talking about is probably that.
「….that…must be your imagination」(Allen)
I murmured and turned by eyes away.
To be honest, I don"t want to talk about the 100 million years b.u.t.ton.
Even if I talk about it, she likely won"t believe me.
However, it seems my reply was not satisfactory.
「I see…..we"ll see how long you can keep up that façade」(Rose)
She returned a slightly irritated look.
「If that"s what you want. Then, I as the seventeenth generation of the Sakura Hana Itto-Ryu. As the legitimate successor - will win this match」(Rose)
At that moment, Rose"s air clearly changed.
It was much sharper than ever before, it was if she herself had become a sword.
「Sakura Hana Itto-Ryu Secret Sword - Mirrored Sakura Slash」(Rose)
Four sword shadows appeared like mirror on my left and right - eight consecutive blows attempted to strike me.
I was momentarily dazzled by her elegant and beautiful appearance.
In the meantime, the eight slashes bore down on me.
But - at the end of the day, it"s just a『Consecutive Slash』
There is a small gap between every strike.
Confirming that, I responded with my own technique.
「Eighth Sword - Yatagarasu!」(Allen)
(TLN: Yatagarasu, also known as the three-legged crow. It"s name also means eight span crow in j.a.panese)
It was a technique that slashes eight times using only one swing.
Though I say it slashes『Eight』times, it is not a consecutive attack - it instead literally『Cuts』at the same time.
There are no gaps between each strike. It is a genuine 『Eight Slash Strike』
Although it was delayed by 1 breath, my Yatagarasu still managed to break the Mirrored Sakura Slash perfectly.
「Impossible….!?」(Rose)
Rose, who"s secret technique had been broken, exposed her torso.
「– This is the end」(Allen)
To her body - I released a slash.
「Bu, but….」(Rose)
She slowly fell to her knees and collapsed.
The arena was still deathly quiet.
「Wi, winner! Allen Rhooooodes!」(Presenter)
The presenter immediately announced the result.
At the same time, the arena erupted in cheers.
Since I claimed the victory at the sword festival, I received 1 million gold as the prize money.
Two days had pa.s.sed since the sword festival had ended.
As usual I was swinging my sword in the schoolyard, when the intercom rang out - calling a single person to the princ.i.p.al"s office, me.
Somehow, I had a bad feeling about this.
(….Maybe that rumour?)
It was the rumour that I used some underhanded method to win against Dodriel in the duel.
In a duel, such cowardly methods are illegal.
Of course, I did not do such a thing, but the academy might not accept that.
(Haa….maybe this time I"m really going to be forced to drop out….)
It may be that some external pressure has been applied on the school by Dodriel"s house - Baron Barton.
(No, in the first place my grades are at the bottom of the school anyway. At this point I can be kicked out due to poor performance)
Perhaps, even if I didn"t fight Dodriel I would be sent out of the school. The only difference is it happening sooner or later.
(Well, fortunately thanks to the 100 million years b.u.t.ton. I gained a suitable amount of power)
Since I have enough power to win the sword festival, I should be able to get a job as a local knight.
If you belong to a knight order, you can become a holy knight and get a suitable amount of pay.
If I do that, I can let my mother have an easy life.
(That might work…)
Whilst thinking about such a thing, I walked towards the princ.i.p.al"s office.
As I arrived, I knocked on the door that looked more exquisite than the ones on the cla.s.srooms and stated my name.
「Oh, Allen. I"ve been waiting!」(Vice-Princ.i.p.al)
The door was opened vigorously, a teacher who seemed to be in good shape appeared from the inside.
(Not only the princ.i.p.al, but the vice-princ.i.p.al as well…)
There is no doubt now.
Unfortunately, it seems like they will force me to leave today.
「We shouldn"t have a conversation in such a place. Please come in!」(Vice-Princ.i.p.al)
「…Excuse me」(Allen)
Ushered in by the vice-princ.i.p.al, I entered the room and was immediately met with the princ.i.p.al, who seemed to be in a good mood.
「Oh Allen! You glad you"ve come!」(Princ.i.p.al)
「Th, thank you」(Allen)
For some reason, they were both in a good mood.
Probably….they are pleased that they can finally get rid of me.
I sighed in my heart.
「Actually….a school has offered you an entry recommendation」(Princ.i.p.al)
What the princ.i.p.al said was outside of my expectations.
「Entry recommendation…?」(Allen)
「That"s right! It is one of the few prestigious schools that can be counted on one hand - Senjin School!」(Princ.i.p.al)
Senjin School - I know this name. No, every swordsman should know it, it"s one of the most prestigious swordsmanship high schools in the capital.
Swordsmanship Schools are divided into 3 categories. Elementary School, Middle School and High School. The grand inst.i.tute of swordsmanship can be cla.s.sed as a middle school, where the students range from 13 to 15 years old. The Senjin School is a high school, where people are aged from 16 to 18.
「For my grand swordsmanship academy to produce a student scouted by one of the five top high schools - this is a tremendous honour」(Princ.i.p.al)
「It"s unclear why Allen was specifically chosen by the Senjin school….but it doesn"t matter! The important thing is that you came from this school! 」(Vice-Princ.i.p.al)
The princ.i.p.al and vice-princ.i.p.al have been talking in excited tones from the beginning.
「Really, you did really well Allen!」(Princ.i.p.al)
「As expected of a student from our school! You did a fine job!」(Vice-Princ.i.p.al)
The two people grasped my hands and shoulders.
「Ha, haa」(Allen)
I sighed in return.
「You know Allen, I actually had high expectations of you from the beginning!」(Princ.i.p.al)
「That"s right! I hope you will be our valedictorian. Of course, you will receive appropriate treatment!」(Vice-Princ.i.p.al)
The two eagerly praise me over and over.
I looked at them with somewhat cold eyes.
(Even though they neglected the bullying until now…they responded this positively to a recommendation from the Senjin school)
Evidently, they want me to accept the recommendation.
The prestige for『Finding』me will naturally go to the grand swordsmanship academy.
However, what to do about the recommendation is not something I can decide so quickly.
「–Excuse me. Can you please give me time to think it over?」(Allen)
I conveyed my will to the two.
「Wh, what is there to think about!?」(Princ.i.p.al)
「You don"t want to receive the entry recommendation!?」(Vice-Princ.i.p.al)
They immediately changed their att.i.tudes.
「To go to the Senjin school, join a knight order and become a holy knight, or do requests for people as a travelling swordsman–I have honestly not decided yet」(Allen)
That"s right.
This choice will greatly influence my future.
「I need to consult with my mother who I left in my hometown. I can"t give you an answer just yet」(Allen)
Once again, I should return home soon and talk with my mother.
「Ar, are you stupid! Why don"t you s.n.a.t.c.h this opportunity right away!?」(Princ.i.p.al)
「If you graduate from one of the top five high schools in the capital, you can even become a senior holy knight. Don"t you know what a brilliant career that is!?」(Vice-Princ.i.p.al)
「…Sorry. I don"t know what I want to do just yet」(Allen)
After that, they kept trying to convince me to go to the Senjin school — but I never agreed.
Eventually, the two people gave up and said 「We"ll await a positive reply」and that was that.
「…now then, if you"ll excuse me」(Allen)
When I left the room, possibly drawn by the intercom announcement. I was immediately surrounded by teachers.
「Allen! I always knew you had talent! Why don"t you study my Shinmei swordsmanship」(???)
「No no! My Shinku school matches him better! I"ve already prepared the rank of vice-master 」(???)
「What are you saying!? For an excellent swordsman like him, Fugestu swordsmanship matches better! Right!?」(???)
Apparently, the teachers seem to have already heard about my recommendation.
Three years ago - when I was a first grader, I had asked「Please teach me swordsmanship」to each one of them and they had refused me.
They looked blatantly disgusted when I asked them to teach me the sword.
…yet now.
（I guess this is how the saying goes『To turn over a palm』）
Of course, I would never study under such disgusting teachers.
They probably just want to say that「The person who received an entry recommendation for the Senjin school is my disciple 」。
In other words, they are only going to use me as a tool for their own gratification.
「….please excuse me」(Allen)
「Oh, Allen wait a moment! At least listen to my story!」(???)
Escaping the teachers, I quickly walked back to the dorms.
(Haa….I have to go back to my hometown on the weekend)
Regardless….I got to see the dark side of humanity today.
Mother and Paula - I feel blessed that I"ve met human"s that are good natured.
For the time being, I returned to the dormitory.