Chapter 48

Chapter 48

***

Between the Inner Castle and the female student dormitory, there was a clearing made by pushing back the forest. Although no one had officially decided it, it was a place that only the so-called popular students within the Academy used.

In that place, Bori-bori was squatting near a patch of thick grass, looking at something with an expression of pure delight.

There were pine nuts and beans on Bori-bori's palm, and a squirrel was eating them. To be precise, it wasn't eating them but storing them in its cheek pouches.

Bori-bori cautiously stroked the squirrel with just a thumb. Building trust and communing with an animal that couldn't speak was truly a touching experience.

However, a sudden metallic sound rang out, startling the squirrel, and it ran away.

Clang!

Bori-bori also flinched and looked back. Rickart and Marie were visible, along with the scene of other students watching them.

Rickart lightly caught Marie's practice sword, which had flown into the air, with a thud. Holding two swords in his hands, he twirled them playfully and spoke to Marie, who was clutching her wrist in pain.

"Do you really have to take 1st place?"

Over the past month or so, it seemed they had done this over forty times already. Even combining the number of sparring matches with Ice, Bolka, and other students, the number of times he sparred with Marie was higher.

In the past, he used to let it go in one ear and out the other, but taking 1st place seemed to be a really important matter to Marie.

"Ugh... I told you. I came to the Academy for that."

"Hmm... Then do you just want to act like you're 1st?"

"I hate that."

"Then how about aiming for it after I graduate?"

"I hate that even more."

What on earth was he supposed to do? Rickart had no intention of losing, and losing intentionally was something he couldn't do to Marie even more, so he was in a difficult spot.

One thing that weighed on his mind was that he hoped Marie would learn something, but that wasn't going as Rickart wanted.

Marie had a plain and kind personality, but she had a strong will and knew how to resist injustice. Moreover, she had a certain pride or stubbornness when it came to swordsmanship.

Should he break that stubbornness to make her come to her senses? Rickart had such thoughts.

"Abandoning what you've done so far and starting something new won't be easy, but it's better to start even if it's slow. You can never beat me with attacks that are only fast and strong. Why are you in such a hurry?"

At the question of why she was in such a hurry, Marie bit her lower lip tightly. It seemed there was a story she couldn't tell, which Rickart couldn't know.

"Do it again."

Marie opened her characteristically fierce eyes and said.

Rickart tossed the practice sword Marie originally used, among the two in his hands, whoosh. Marie caught it lightly with her uninjured hand thwack.

Then she took her stance again, and Rickart also took a proper stance. At that, Marie felt her heart stop for a moment.

Because usually, Rickart just stood awkwardly as if he were a layman when it came to swords.

Now it was definitely different. He spread his legs front and back, angled his upper body toward his opponent, and held the sword beside his face.

Above all, his cool eyes seemed to possess some magical power; looking into them made one feel as if they would be sucked in, or as if their body was freezing.

And along Rickart's body lines, a blazing energy could be felt.

Marie bit her lip almost to the point of bleeding. Doing so, she drew up her mana to the limit. Her heart beat powerfully, and her blood moved violently along her vessels, carrying power.

Mana reached her fingertips, and the sword also began to hold mana like a limb in the extension of her body.

But mana was a power that needed to be handled carefully. It was like rushing water, and also like fierce fire. If handled incorrectly, blood vessels could be damaged, and even organs could be injured.

For stronger power, it had to be handled roughly, and to not hurt the body, it had to be handled carefully. Hitting that balance point was truly hard work.

So it was even harder to handle in actual combat where life and death came and went.

Marie drew up her power to the limit of limits and rushed out as if exploding, swinging her sword from below to above toward Rickart. It was truly like lightning, and the power loaded in it was like a rock.

However, Rickart moved slightly to the side in that short moment and struck down with his sword like a thunderbolt toward Marie's sword. It was a sword without mana loaded.

Clang-!

"Kkyak!"

As sword and sword collided, sparks flew. And the practice sword without an edge split in two. The shock transmitted to her hand was so strong that Marie closed her eyes tight and fell to her knees with a thud.

"Wow!"

"Heok!"

The watching students unknowingly burst into admiration or inhaled sharp breaths. It was hard even with a bladed weapon, but he had split it in two with a bladeless practice sword.

But surprisingly, Rickart lightly caught the broken sword flying swish swish into the air without even looking.

And looking at Marie kneeling, he said.

"In the past, there was a kid called Ice. Marie, you seem to be exactly a lower-level version of him. Because Ice realized immediately that attacking solely fast and strong isn't everything. He just couldn't find the answer after that."

He spoke like this, but his inner thoughts were different. Actually, in Rickart's view, there wasn't much difference between Ice and Marie. It was just that the current Marie seemed to be chased by something.

Being compared to someone else hurt Marie's pride as much as it could be hurt. She lowered her head, covering her face with her long hair, and spoke.

"I don't know who he is."

"Even if you don't know, it can't be helped. Because you are much worse than him."

Rickart spoke coldly on purpose. Inwardly, he was sorry. But he just hoped to soothe that impatient mind a little even by doing this. Only then would there be progress.

Rickart threw the practice sword and the broken sword on the floor, turned his back, and walked away.

Clatter.

"Marie..."

As Rickart left, Bori-bori approached Marie, who was still kneeling.

"Let me see your hand for a moment."

Marie powerlessly entrusted her hand to Bori-bori with her head bowed.

Bori-bori examined Marie's wrist more carefully than handling a squirrel. Fortunately, it didn't seem broken or anything like that.

Bori-bori took out a herb good for bruises from his bosom and chewed it munch munch with his mouth. And he applied it carefully to Marie's wrist.

However, water fell drip drip onto Marie's thigh. It was tears. It seemed the wound in her heart was more painful than the pain in her wrist.

Bori-bori couldn't do anything about that.

"Do you really have to be 1st? Giving up on a vain dream quickly is also a method."

Whether this was meant as comfort or realistic advice in his own way, Marie, shedding tears, burst into laughter because it was absurd in the midst of her sadness.

"Kukuku... Don't make me laugh, Bori."

"Hehehe."

Bori-bori, seeing that Marie didn't seem too heartbroken, entrusted her to her female friends and followed Rickart.

Thanks to that, Marie could also soothe her bitter mind and barely stand up. Looking at the sky, it was full of gray dark clouds.

Spring rain fell. Marie sat by the window resting her chin, just watching the Academy's inner courtyard raining calmly.

Streams of water formed and flowed gurgle into the drain, and energetic male students laughed loudly and ran around, not caring about their clothes getting wet.

But soon, those kids also entered the Inner Castle, and the raining inner courtyard was full of loneliness.

Some people said their mood came and went depending on the weather, but Marie wasn't like that.

But now, it seemed like it was raining in Marie's heart too, just like the cloudy sky.

Old memories she disliked recalling rose like smoke inside her head creep creep.

'You must become a useful person. If not, there is no difference between a beggar on the street and you to me.'

Her great-grandfather's cold words seemed to linger in her ears. Actually, such treatment didn't hurt much, but there were words she truly wanted to erase from her memory.

'I live like this because of you. You shouldn't have been born in this world. No one wanted you.'

To young Marie who had no fault, her mother used to say that like a habit. Whenever she heard those words, it felt like stabbing her chest with a knife.

So maybe, she devoted herself to the sword so much to become a useful person, to become a necessary person.

Emperor 'Energy' Claudius was famous as a vigorous man, so he had many children under his knee, and many illegitimate children too.

It wasn't known accurately how many illegitimate children there were; some said 150, some said up to 400. Marie was one of them.

Both her father and mother were of noble bloodlines, but it was an unblessed union, and moreover, her mother was unmarried. It was a birth no one wanted.

Marie grew up entrusted to her maternal family, a sword family. Perhaps because she felt her position was unstable since she was young, Marie made more effort than anyone else, and polished her skills day by day without wasting time even for a moment.

One day while doing so, in the midst of being acknowledged for her skills in her own way, she heard the news that her father, whom she had never seen once, had entered her into the family register. Thus she finally obtained a name and became a member of the Imperial Family.

Martelia von Nivelinger. That was Marie's full name, and her real name.

So was Marie's mood good? It wasn't. Anyway, being a tool of the family didn't change.

The higher the noble, the more thoroughly they handled family people like tools, without blood or tears.

The reason she was entered into the register was nothing special. It was to show that the Imperial Family also enters to encourage nobles' entrance to the Academy. Just that only.

Only then did one thought occur to Marie. I want to escape. I want to escape from all this.

When she begged her Great-grandfather, he laughed as if it were fun and said.

'There is one genius in Beringen Academy. If you defeat that child and take 1st place, then do as you please. Conversely, if you cannot defeat that child, you must marry that child. That is the way helpful to me, the family, and the Empire.'

"......"

The sound of rain falling patter patter, Marie watched the raining Academy with half-closed eyes. However, even that falling rain couldn't wash away her gloomy and complex mind.

Rickart's cold eyes seemed to glimmer in front of her eyes. Whenever she recalled those eyes, her chest ached.

Rickart was a close friend to Marie, a swordsman worthy of respect, and also a wall she couldn't cross.

It wasn't simply a problem of talent or effort. It was a strength that seemed to deviate from the human realm. Defeating him seemed impossible.

Moreover, the fact that Rickart couldn't handle mana completely destroyed Marie's stereotype, approaching her more despairingly.

Then what does all my effort until now mean? I should avoid fast and strong attacks? What does that mean?

But, that despair made Marie infinitely gloomy while strangely happy, her heart fluttering. Because, she didn't want to be connected in such a way. In such a way...

Her pride in the sword, her desire to escape her fate, and her feelings for Rickart became chains that each bound Marie.

The weight of the truth she couldn't speak pressed on Marie, so maybe the innocent Rickart was cruel and resentful too.

Even unhappy days didn't make her cry, but if she only recalled Rickart, her chest felt stuffy and throbbing, and tears seemed to fall by themselves. However, Marie didn't know what this feeling meant.

The sky was cloudy and the day darkened early. The dormitory room became dark quickly, and other female students started lighting lanterns one by one.

Marie also tried to leave the window side and go to bed, but suddenly something brushed the corner of her eye.

She saw two shadows passing the gate and entering the Academy. Who is it at this time?

Wearing cloaks that reached their toes and hoods pulled deep, it was hard to recognize who they were, but they were a man and woman pair, and judging by their height and physique, both seemed to be adults.

Wrapping their cloaks and facing the rain, they looked around the Academy's inner courtyard once, then went to the Inner Castle side.

At that time, Rickart was giggling preparing to sleep with Bori-bori and other kids in bed, when suddenly someone pounded on the Inner Castle door bang bang.

The sound of another student running barefoot slap slap was heard, and soon as the door opened, the sound of an outsider entering was heard.

And, that outsider shouted loudly.

"Ricky! Ricky!"

The kids gathering in Rickart's bed all looked back at Rickart simultaneously. And once again a shout was heard.

"Ricky! Come out, you bastard!"

Who on earth? Rickart went out to the outside with light attire, bewildered. Then, he saw two people standing soaked in the Central Hall.

They looked back at Rickart, and as one person took off his hood, a big smile spread on Rickart's face.

"Bolka!"

With that sound, Bori-bori also ran out quickly, and other students knowing Bolka also ran out in droves. Students who didn't know Bolka were just bewildered.

Rickart ran barefoot and hugged him. Not caring about his body getting wet.

Bolka laughed loudly and said. Originally his physique was big, but he seemed to have grown much in the interval they hadn't seen each other, seeming to overwhelm a decent adult.

"Hahaha! Hey, you're not a kid, why rush?"

"Doesn't Rickart seem to have grown a little?"

The person beside him was Delphi. Now she was a lady whoever saw her, and a composure that seemed like dignity attached was felt.

"What brings you here? Aren't you a bit busy these days?"

Rickart asked hanging a smile on his full face continuously. But at that question, Bolka made a reluctant expression.

"It's nothing different, but we seem to be in the same clan."

"Right."

"Somehow I need your help. Sooner or later Academy students might be drafted a little too. Before that we intend to take you."

"......Ah."

It seemed to be due to the Guild War. From the guild's perspective, there was no reason to leave a power called Rickart playing. But the Viola Clan was also at a point where Rickart was desperate.

With Bolka and Delphi alone, it was too insufficient to do something in the war. They couldn't be stuck as so-called sidekicks in other clans, getting hit here and there.

"Sorry it's not good news. I should have told you tomorrow. No, now is a bit, urgent? It's raining and night, but we seem to have to go."

"No, fine. Wait a moment. Bori, let's pack our luggage."

"Ung."

Without saying many words, Rickart went to his room immediately and packed his luggage. Wrapping his red cloak, he carried the Meteoric Iron Sword on his shoulder.

And with Bori-bori, he followed Bolka and Delphi out to outside. Students didn't know the reason and just stood vacantly watching.

But when Rickart crossed the inner courtyard and almost reached the gate, someone called from the back.

"Ricky!"

Rickart looked back, and sure enough, it was Marie in pajamas. She was standing facing the falling patter patter spring rain.

"Marie?"

"Where are you going!?"

"Uh... Seems I have to use the sword somehow. Sorry about today. Next time I'll do it gently. Sorry."

"......"

At the word saying sorry without big meaning, Marie felt her stuffy mind washing down refreshingly. Her chest hurt at his one eye light, but it seemed a nasty disease was healing at one word.

Marie stood vacantly facing the rain unknown to herself. Doing so, suddenly she recovered her mind and shouted.

"Wait a moment! I will go too!"

Then she entered the female dormitory again.

"Who?"

Bolka asked not knowing the reason.

"Ah, a kid who entered newly this time, her sword skill is useful but actual combat is, well."

"I know just by seeing."

Delphi said.

"Ung? What?"

"Done. Such a thing is not for speaking. Likewise you were a bad man, Ricky."

"Eoeong? Me?"

Hearing the bad guy sound unexpectedly, Rickart was dumbfounded. Anyway, after a while, Marie packed her luggage and came out.

Don't know if they can do like this, five people including Marie left the Academy.

Spring rain fell. Rain fell in the mind too. However, the world didn't give a gap to be gloomy or sad.