WeTried Translations

Translator: Coughing Baby

Editor: Coughing Baby

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◈ Reformation of the Deadbeat Noble

Chapter 21

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Sword in Hand (1)

Krono Fencing Hall existed to raise swordsmen.

Its curriculum was harsh and grueling, so the mood was never exactly relaxed, but that didn't mean it demanded constant strict discipline either.

It wasn't the army.

Still, given all that, the atmosphere among the prospective trainees right now was far brighter and livelier than usual.

It was thanks to what Instructor Ahmed had said in the auditorium.

'I'll give you the chance to swing your swords freely, within reason. Don't hold back, swing to your heart's content.

And feel it. The power of a blade coming from a body that's changed since four months ago.'

For children who hadn't so much as touched a sword, let alone a stick, in over a hundred days, no words could have been more thrilling.

The roughly hundred prospective trainees made their way toward the main training grounds, chatting easily with friends, humming to themselves, or wearing faces flushed with excitement.

Among them, one stood out as the most excited of all, the red haired girl, Judith.

"Turtle, oh turtle, hand over your treasure sword. If you don't, I'll roast you up. If you don't, I'll roast you up."

"..."

"What? Why are you looking at me like that?"

"...No, it's just, I've never heard that song before. It's a little violent, too."

"Really? Where I grew up, everyone used to sing it."

Judith tilted her head at Airen Farreira's baffled expression.

Not that it was worth dwelling on. The girl broke into a smile again and hummed a new tune.

"Toady, oh toady, take my old sword, give me a new one. If you don't, I'll fry you up..."

"..."

Airen was still thrown by Judith's singing, but he didn't let it show anymore.

The real reaction came from behind them instead.

"Has she finally lost it? Don't you think so, Lord Lloyd?"

"Hm."

At the words of Lance Patterson, one of the Family's members, Brett Lloyd gave a small nod.

Even to him, Judith's mood seemed different from usual.

The girl he knew never let anyone close, always bristling like a hedgehog with every nerve on edge.

'No, hedgehog's too cute a word for that woman. Call her a snake full of venom instead.'

Whatever the case, the girl who'd always been that way was now acting cheerful as if none of it had ever happened.

Lance Patterson spoke up again.

"Maybe something happened to her head after she fell in the water?"

"Well, guess she's not crazy enough to snap even at the person who saved her."

"That's true, but ugh, still completely ridiculous. Does she really think that kind of act suits her?"

"Exactly. Gives me chills just looking at her."

"Right, right."

The other two members of the Brett Family echoed Lance Patterson's words.

They mocked Judith's changed, cheerful, lively mood for quite a while.

All the while, they kept watching Brett Lloyd's reaction.

They were hoping that if they tore down their leader's rival with words, he might react favorably.

But Brett's thoughts weren't on Judith at all.

The boy was watching the figure walking a row ahead of her, Illia Lindsay's silver hair swaying as she walked.

'Airen Farreira and Illia Lindsay... did something happen between the two of them?'

Most people wouldn't have noticed, but he had.

The way Illia, who'd always shown special warmth toward only Airen, was acting differently today.

If anything, she seemed to be keeping more distance from him than from the other trainees.

Nothing was certain. All he had to go on was a moment of awkwardness when the two of them had passed each other in the auditorium.

Still, it was an interesting development.

'I'll know more if I keep watching a while longer.'

Brett nodded and filed the matter away in his head.

He didn't dwell on it for long, though.

What was coming up in just a moment was far too exciting to think about anything else.

The boy clenched his fist tight.

A strength he could never compare to before surged through him.

Brett smiled, pleased, and looked toward Judith, no, toward the lazy lord standing beside her, thinking.

'That one barely trained with a sword at all, from what I heard.'

Then he wouldn't know. The frustration Brett had felt for the past four months. The excitement Brett felt in this very moment.

Which was exactly why that boy could never be his rival. Not even after the outstanding performance he'd shown at the Mid-Term Evaluation.

'At least, not while we're still at the Fencing Hall...'

Brett was still turning these thoughts over when it happened.

The main training grounds opened up before the prospective trainees' eyes.

A completely different sight from the one during the Mid-Term Evaluation.

Instead of scattered physical measuring equipment, a much cleaner, much more open clearing greeted them.

But that wasn't what caught the children's eyes.

In one corner stood a countless array of wooden swords of every shape and size.

Fire lit up in the trainees' eyes.

"As I said before, I'll give you two hours to handle a sword to your heart's content. Under the assistants' supervision, pick whichever wooden sword you want!"

"Yes, sir!"

"Yes!"

Instructor Ahmed gave the go ahead. The assistants guided the prospective trainees to the weapon racks. The whole process moved smoothly and fast.

They knew better than anyone.

These were children talented and passionate enough about the sword to have earned a place at Krono Fencing Hall, the finest institution on the continent, children who had surely walked the path of the blade since they were very young.

Making them wait any longer would have been torture.

So the process of choosing wooden swords went by in a flash.

And a moment later, the sound of fierce shouts and blades cutting through the air rang out across the training grounds.

"Haap!"

Fwoosh!

"Tahat!"

Fwooosh!

"Hhup!"

Shweeek!

Each trainee gripped the wooden sword of their choice and swung as if entranced.

Most of them wore looks of surprise soon after.

They'd expected their movements to feel rusty, given how long it had been since they'd held a sword. But that wasn't what happened.

Not only had their power increased, but every stance, every motion, flowed more smoothly than it ever had before.

"Whoa, this move actually works now? Before, I'd get it right maybe once out of three tries..."

"I can swing way harder now and my balance doesn't break!"

"Even for a wooden sword, was it always this light?"

Some of them didn't even realize they were talking to themselves, and even the calmer children couldn't hide their flushed faces as they kept swinging their swords over and over.

Ahmed and Instructor Karaka watched the scene with satisfied expressions.

'Of course. It's not like we only built up their strength and stamina.'

It wasn't simply about grueling effort.

Krono's systematic and effective training and recovery system had pushed every aspect of the trainees' physical abilities upward.

Not just the intuitive things, strength, endurance, speed, but also the parts harder to measure quantitatively, coordination, balance, precision.

Of course, just because those things weren't obvious to outsiders didn't mean the trainees themselves couldn't feel them.

The prospective trainees showed off their swordsmanship, checking every part of their bodies, delighted. Elated.

But that joyful mood didn't last long.

As time passed, a heavy tension began to settle over the children.

'That one's not going to be easy...'

'No one. There's no one here I can look down on.'

'Damn it! Everyone else grew just as much as I did!'

That was the truth of it.

They'd briefly forgotten, caught up in the joy of holding a sword again, but they were still caught in the middle of a competition.

The situation didn't allow them to simply celebrate their own growth.

Not a single weak person stood among them here!

That uncomfortable truth sharpened the trainees' eyes bit by bit. And made them restless.

They poured every bit of focus into gauging each other's level more precisely.

"..."

"..."

One by one. Then another. And another.

As the children focused on their peers' every move, their attention eventually converged on one person.

Illia Lindsay, the top scorer of the Mid-Term Evaluation?

No.

Not Judith, who had stood out since the very start. Not Brett Lloyd. Not any of the other top ranked trainees.

Airen Farreira.

Someone watched him standing there blankly, still not holding a sword, and thought.

'That guy's never trained with a sword before, right?'

No, wait, maybe a little.

Even so, they'd heard it wasn't much. A month at most. The children who recalled that information nodded to themselves.

He wouldn't understand. He couldn't possibly know how long they'd been waiting for this moment.

For those who'd never let go of a sword for years, how agonizing the past four months of waiting had been, how burning the thirst.

That overage brat couldn't possibly understand any of it.

That was probably why he looked so relaxed about the whole thing.

"Oh."

"He's moving."

Had he felt the eyes on him?

Airen Farreira, who had stood still until now, finally moved.

Watching him stride toward the weapon rack, some felt goodwill, others hostility.

And then, the boy took hold of a sword.

Thud.

Larger and heavier than an ordinary blade.

A greatsword, hefty enough that an average person would struggle just to lift it.

But for Airen now, it wasn't a burden at all.

Feeling his body, so utterly different from before, he quietly closed his eyes.

"Hoo."

The lazy lord had wasted his life away.

The lazy lord had lived an idle life.

The lazy lord had trained with a sword for an extremely short time.

He didn't even have any great ambition when it came to the sword.

All of that was true. Every bit of it, undeniable fact.

'Even so.'

Even so, the lazy lord had longed for this moment more desperately than anyone else here.

In a hunger so sharp it felt like it might tear him apart, one that watching the man's sword in his dreams alone could never satisfy, he'd had no choice but to steady his heart with nothing but the little sword ornament hanging from his neck.

That was why he hadn't moved right away.

Even with the chance finally given to him, this wasn't a feeling light enough to act on the instant it arrived.

But now, there was no need to hold back any longer.

Having barely settled his heart, Airen let out another breath.

Amid the surging excitement, he felt something steady take root inside him.

"Hoo."

He honestly didn't know.

Whether this feeling, this emotion right now, was his own, or that of the man who appeared in his dreams every night. He had no way of telling.

Not that it mattered right now.

Clearing his mind, the lazy lord raised his sword high into the air.

And then.

Fwooooosh!

He brought it down harder than anyone else there.

* * *

"Huh?"

Judith let out a dumb sound.

It was because of Airen Farreira.

The one strange classmate she'd let her guard down for had just swung his sword.

What he'd shown was a Vertical Strike.

One of the most basic motions in swordsmanship, barely different from a Diagonal Strike falling from right to left.

The heavy greatsword had come down fast, so there was some power behind it, but nothing special about it otherwise.

And yet something felt off.

'What is this?'

A strange sensation, like her brain itched.

Unable to explain the odd feeling washing over her, Judith looked around.

Most of the other children were already turning away from Airen, faces saying, "figures."

But a few weren't.

"...!"

"..."

"..."

Instructor Ahmed's face had gone even stiffer than usual as he watched the boy.

Instructor Karaka watched the boy with an expression completely unlike his usual one.

Among the trainees, Illia Lindsay showed a different reaction than the rest.

Her slightly widened eyes said she was feeling something other than her usual composure.

And then, someone stepped forward past all the others, right in front of the boy.

"Airen Farreira. I'm challenging you to a duel."

Brett Lloyd, more serious than he'd ever looked before, took his stance in front of the lazy lord.

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