WeTried Translations

Translator: Coughing Baby

Editor: Coughing Baby

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ Reformation of the Deadbeat Noble

Chapter 112

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Frightening, Vicious Bunch (1)

"What in the world is this...."

Zet Frost blinked at Hyram's words.

Then he turned his head back toward the young swordsmen.

Three figures approached, hiding none of their presence, walking with unmistakable confidence.

He knew it right away.

All three of them were Experts.

'Insane... does that make sense? At that age? All three of them Experts?'

What kind of talent was this? The words nearly slipped out loud.

He wasn't exactly lacking in talent himself, of course. He'd reached Expert at twenty-two, and pushed to the edge of Expert rank by thirty-five.

But the level he sensed from their stances...

'These aren't ordinary Experts.'

As if reading his mind, the blue-haired young man at the center, Brett Lloyd, introduced himself.

"Good day, senior. We've heard a great deal about your reputation. Allow us to introduce ourselves properly. I'm Brett Lloyd, a trainee of Krono Fencing Hall's 27th Cohort."

"Judith, trainee of Krono Fencing Hall's 27th Cohort."

"Airen Farreira, trainee of Krono Fencing Hall's 27th Cohort."

"...!"

"Thank you for so readily accepting what might have been a rude proposal. Now then, we'll give this our best."

"W-wait a moment...!"

Fwoooosh!

Zet Frost shouted, his face flustered, but Brett Lloyd didn't stop, only raised his presence higher still.

That wasn't all. Judith and Airen Farreira, standing on either side, also drew their presence up to full strength.

Watching the two of them creeping to claim the left and right, Zet Frost thought to himself.

'Damn it all!'

He'd been set up.

Who would have guessed that Krono's so-called Golden Generation, the entire 27th Cohort, would descend on him all at once.

And they were far stronger than the rumors said, too!

But he couldn't afford to voice any of that.

Before he could, the three Experts were already closing in on him.

Fwip!

Kwaang!

"...!"

A blond young man barreled in like a boulder.

The attack carried real weight. The explosive force behind the strike sent a sharp ring through the hand gripping his sword.

Of course, Zet Frost wasn't the type to be rattled by something like this.

Force met with greater force!

He drew up his Aura and shoved the opponent back with raw strength.

Then, just as he moved to thrust his sword at the off-balance opponent again.

Thunk!

He couldn't.

The blue-haired one, Brett Lloyd, had already closed in to check him.

And the one named Judith was already circling swiftly toward his back.

He bit down on his lower lip.

'Get boxed in from behind and this turns nasty fast!'

Realizing it was time to fall back, he kicked hard off the ground.

"Whoa!"

Judith let out a pure exclamation of admiration.

Zet Frost's single backward step carried him gliding away, fast and impossibly smooth.

She paid special attention to footwork, so his movement caught her eye all the more.

Committing the motion to memory as if branding it into her mind, Judith worked her feet hard to claim a favorable position.

Brett Lloyd and Airen also pushed forward at speed to keep the pressure on.

And so the relentless chase continued.

Kwang!

Kang!

Thunk!

Shweeek!

Kwaang!

Caught, then slipped away. Caught again. The Krono trio kept driving Zet Frost into a corner.

It wasn't without its close calls, of course.

There was no way to block a sword with that much precision, power, and speed all alone.

Zet tried again and again to force a one-on-one, hoping to slam down hard on one of the three in a single decisive instant.

But the other two closed in too fast every time, and he couldn't finish anything.

These three weren't soft enough to be put down that easily.

Zet Frost nearly laughed out loud at the absurdity of it.

'Would you look at these lunatics.'

Each one of them individually stronger than Hyram. Sorry to his old friend, but the comparison itself felt almost insulting.

At this level, they could hold their own on the King-tier stage of the Land of Proof without breaking a sweat.

And these monsters were twenty years old?

It wasn't fair.

Even he, who'd grown up hearing the word genius applied to himself, couldn't accept talent like this.

'No, genius or not, I absolutely cannot lose here!'

Anger rose in him.

Irritation too.

He wanted to stop the fight right there, grab them by the collar, and demand to know what they'd eaten, what they'd studied, to get this strong this fast.

But he couldn't do that.

These three were dead set on stripping him bare right now.

And he was just as set on not letting that happen.

'A month playing master to these three? Absolutely not!'

Volunteering was something he did only when he felt like it, on his own terms.

Doing something you hated because you were forced into it wasn't volunteering. That was slavery!

Sparks flared in his eyes as he pictured that miserable future.

Along with it, a terrifying pressure shot forward.

Sensing the shift in mood, Airen stopped in his tracks, and Judith too widened the distance to assess the situation.

Brett Lloyd went the opposite way.

Judging that momentum still favored their side, he pushed forward instead, pressing the attack even harder.

With the three of them now split in approach.

Sensing the flow had turned in his favor, Zet Frost let out a shout and hurled his sword.

"Haap!"

Shweeeek!

"Ugh!"

Judith's eyes went wide at the sight of the blade flying straight at her.

She hadn't imagined he'd actually throw his sword.

Startled as she was, her body still moved on instinct.

Dropping her center low, she batted the blade away with a solid stance.

In that instant, Zet Frost drew a fresh sword from his hip and charged straight at Brett.

He'd been counting on the spare sword all along!

Judith realized her mistake, but her rhythm had already been stolen.

She wasn't too worried, though.

Airen was still there, even if he'd fallen a step behind.

Given how slippery Brett's defense could be, holding out until Airen joined in should be manageable...

The instant that thought crossed her mind, Zet Frost's sudden move struck.

Kwaaang!

"...!"

He kicked the ground hard.

The smooth stone floor of the training hall cracked open with a deafening roar.

Debris scattered through the air, and the largest chunk shot straight toward Airen Farreira at a terrifying speed.

Throwing a sword was shocking enough, but nobody could have predicted an attack like this.

Airen was no exception, and his reaction came a beat too late.

In that gap, Zet Frost closed the distance to Brett and swung his sword with ferocious intent.

'Stay calm. Just block it twice, no, once is enough!'

He didn't even hope to deflect it cleanly. Brett knew himself, and he knew his opponent.

Given the gap between them, even blocking it would be an achievement.

But he didn't think it was impossible.

Hadn't he faced down countless senior knights of Krono before this?

Setting his face with resolve, he took a defensive stance. His steady eyes tracked the opponent's blade, then his eyes.

"....."

And that was how he knew.

The killing intent held in Zet Frost's gaze.

The will to cut down anything that dared stand in his way, without mercy!

"Ngh...!"

Overwhelmed by the pressure, Brett Lloyd stepped back.

It looked smooth, as though he'd planned to retreat from the start, but for Zet Frost, it made things far easier to handle.

Taking one large step forward, he flicked his wrist.

The blade shifted from a slash to a thrust, tapping Brett lightly in the solar plexus.

"One down."

The words had barely left his mouth when Judith came charging in from the side.

Airen, too, closed in late, but he came.

Still, it was fine. Managing two opponents while also watching for a third waiting to strike from behind was worlds apart from facing just two head-on.

After roughly a minute of fierce exchanges, Zet Frost kicked Airen away.

Then he drove his sword into the opening Judith left when she found herself alone.

Tap.

"Two down. Whew..."

By the time Airen recovered his balance, Judith had already been dealt with.

Her face was flushed red and blotchy where the opponent's gentle blade had touched her. She hadn't imagined losing three against one.

Brett Lloyd looked just as stunned.

Watching his grim expression, Zet Frost caught his breath and offered some advice.

"Brett Lloyd, was it? You."

"Yes."

"Your swordsmanship's stable. That kind of polish at your age is genuinely impressive. But your judgment of the situation is lacking. Or maybe you just play it too safe."

"Wasn't that a blow I couldn't have taken?"

"No. I had a bet riding on this that I refused to lose, sure, but I still stayed true to a proper teaching bout. I swung with just enough force that someone at your level could barely manage to block it. And yet you pulled back. That says you lost the mental battle, and maybe lost your composure too."

"....."

"Anything to say?"

"No, sir. Thank you."

Brett accepted the verdict cleanly.

Satisfied, Zet Frost turned his head toward Judith.

"Your attacks are too one-note."

"Excuse me? What part of..."

"Where'd your thrusts go? You're not even using a saber, and if you're wielding a sword but only ever slashing with it, you're wasting half the weapon's potential."

"But..."

"Enough. Explaining this properly would take too long, so it can't be helped. Think it over seriously, come back with your own answer, and I'll spar with you again sometime. I'm doing this as a favor because I liked your footwork, so be grateful."

Zet Frost spoke firmly, as if he had no intention of hearing any rebuttal.

Judith had nothing left to say to that.

In the end, they were the ones who'd lost.

Airen Farreira was still standing, sure, but there was no way he could handle alone what the three of them together hadn't managed.

Zet Frost knew that too, which was why he was already handing out advice as if the bout were over.

And yet.

Something unexpected happened.

"You... right. Since you're the last one standing, I'll play with you a little longer."

"Excuse me?"

"I'll let you go first. Your attacks looked fairly heavy, so come at me with everything you've got."

"...!"

"After that, I'll show you the same style right back, done properly, with all the weight a greatsword's supposed to carry. Come at me without holding back."

"Puh, puhahahahahahaha!"

"...?"

Hearing Zet Frost's words, Judith burst out laughing like someone gone mad.

Her laughter rang out so loud and unrestrained that the enclosed training hall seemed ready to shake apart.

Watching her, Zet Frost's face twisted with confusion.

"Ha, hahaha, hahahahaha!"

Judith wasn't the only one laughing.

Even Brett Lloyd, who'd been standing there with the gravest expression in the world, broke down laughing like he couldn't hold it in anymore.

Seeing someone so unlikely to laugh doing exactly that left Zet Frost with an uneasy feeling he couldn't shake.

He looked over at Hyram.

"These two, what's gotten into them?"

"No idea myself."

The master of Hyram Fencing Hall looked just as baffled.

Then.

Airen Farreira, who had stayed quiet through all of this, raised his sword.

An utterly terrifying presence began gathering around him.

"...!"

"...!"

Hyram's eyes went wide. He looked more shaken now than he had been even after his own crushing defeat to Airen.

He wasn't the only one.

Zet Frost, too, stared at the blond young man, unable to figure out what was happening.

Judith and Brett Lloyd were still laughing.

Under the weight of everyone's gaze, Airen Farreira spoke quietly.

"You said you'd let me go first, didn't you?"

"....."

"No take-backs."

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