Kays Translations

Chapter 43: When It Ends, It Begins

"You seem to have won, Gulf."

"Yeah, it was close though."

(Close, huh... From the looks of it, he still seems to have plenty of room.)

Gulf made it through the second round.

Upon hearing this report, not only Philip and Michela but also others who are still remaining celebrated Gulf's victory, regardless of the fact that he is a commoner.

"Who was your opponent?"

"It was a female student named Maisel from Rizard Academy."

"Maisel, huh... You managed to avoid her Issuing Power well."

Michela is also familiar with Maisel Tracy.

Among the noble ladies, she is unusually skilled in hand-to-hand combat, specializing in close-quarters combat within the melee profession.

While Michela, who uses dual swords, has a longer reach with her weapons, she recalls being surprised by Maisel's reaction speed several times.

"...It's all thanks to someone Michela doesn't like."

With Gulf's words, Michela's face contorts in a way that a noble lady shouldn't.

"Hahaha! Michela... you're way too twisted!!!"

"Ugh!!!"

With Philip's words, Michela suddenly realizes and quickly returns her expression.

However, from those who know Michela's usual self... they direct curious eyes toward her, as if witnessing something unusual for her to make such a face.

"Well, thanks to Ishud's advice, I barely managed to dodge the Issuing Power and win."

"Issuing Power, huh. I hate it because if you take that head-on, it's guaranteed to reverse your breakfast."

Philip had little interest in training until he met Ishud and Gulf, but when he was still relatively serious as a child, he once took it in the stomach and ended up vomiting thoroughly.

"...I can relate to that."

In Michela's family, there is a knight who can use Issuing Power. When Michela challenged him to a serious match, following the knight's request without any ill intentions, the result was having Issuing Power slammed into her stomach.

And beautifully, Michela exposed an unbecoming spectacle for a noble lady.

Understanding that it was unavoidable to become stronger and that she had requested it herself, Michela still couldn't change the fact that it was a bitter experience for her.

"With this, you can participate in the third round... in that case, it's the beginning of the struggle."

"Huh?"

The struggle.

The meaning of that word is clear.

However, Gulf didn't immediately understand who or what would be contested.

"That's right."

"Um... Who or what is going to be contested?"

"It's obvious, isn't it? It's you."

"..."

Even though he heard from his friends that he would be contested, Gulf, the person involved, still couldn't quite understand... his brain couldn't process it.

"Hey, hey, Gulf, isn't it obvious? Why are you so surprised?"

"That's right. A commoner who has only been in the academy for a few months advancing to the third round of the fierce battle festival. There's no knightly order that wouldn't want that."

"Huh...?"

There are knights of common birth. 

Some even transition from adventurers to knights.

While it's a rare case, it's not an unattainable miracle no matter how much progress and effort are put in.

"As both of them say, Gulf-kun."

"S-Student Council President."

"Entering the fierce battle festival as a first-year student. If there's a keen-eyed scout, they would have taken notice at that point. However... you, through your unwavering efforts, have made it to the third round. As Michela says, any scout who doesn't approach you now is just a fool."

"Um, thank you very much."

He was praised.

At least, he understood that he was praised.

(Me... scouted by the knightly order... scouted... really?)

His friends told him so.

The Student Council President, who is the leader of the students, also conveyed the same thing with an admiring smile. However, he had no time to be captivated by that smile; he was desperately trying to digest the information that was conveyed.

"Anyway, if you join, you join... but what's it like in reality?"

"...I don't know the details, but if possible, it would be better to join a knightly order of noble warriors who specialize in combat."

"?????"

Gulf, who couldn't keep up with what Philip and Michela were talking about, wore a somewhat foolish expression.

"Ohhhh, I see, Gulf. Maybe spending time with us lately, the Student Council President seems normal, so your sense might be starting to go haywire."

"I don't think I've gone crazy or anything... Umm... Is that what you're saying?"

"Oh, looks like it got through. As Michela said, it might be decent to join a knightly order of noble warriors who specialize in combat, but if scouts come from the kingdom... or even more specifically, from knightly orders owned by the royal family, I think it would be wise for you not to join, you know?"

"...That makes sense. I agree with this guy's opinion."

Gulf, who advanced to the third round after clearing the second round.

Now, in the waiting room, there are only those who made it to the second round.

While they may have differences in strength, big or small, they all recognized Gulf's abilities as representatives of Flaveld Academy.

However, if he were to join a knightly order, there would be those with foolish thoughts like, "I can't tolerate a commoner being stronger than me, a noble!!!!" It's not uncommon.

Without allies, connections, or a supportive presence... to put it simply, bullying could easily occur.

"In this world, there are a lot of people who look down on others just because they're commoners... Honestly, Gulf, if you keep rising just based on your combat abilities, I think it could get dangerous."

"Is that so... th-thank you."

Given that Philip has a higher record in simulated battles during training, being praised genuinely makes Gulf happy.

"Foolish people can't tolerate that kind of power dynamic, right? Right now, with Ishudo around, it seems unlikely that fools would act recklessly, but who knows what will happen if you're apart."

"...I'm sorry, but I can't deny Philip's words."

Christille has no need to apologize to Gulf.

Certainly, it might be true, but as a member of the Duke's family standing above many nobles, the current situation was not something easily accepted.

"W-Student Council President, there's no need for you to apologize."

However, the fact remains that he was confronted with the reality by those who knew and felt more than he did.

Gulf had originally entered Flaveld Academy with the dream of becoming a knight and making a name for himself.

From the first day of school, he underwent such an ordeal.

He was immediately helped by Ishud, a noble friend he made for the first time, but even so... there was no denying that he had glimpsed hell in the future.

(...That's right, it doesn't matter now. I just need to focus on winning.)

It may not be ideal to keep pushing problems aside, but even so... Gulf, at this moment, didn't have the luxury of delving deeply into anything beyond the immediate battle.

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