24. For my sister (3)
#24
Kratir pulled at the air. The space that formed the background was torn away like a curtain.
The empty landscape disappeared and a large plaza filled with people appeared. The crowd that came face to face with the freshman cheered for the sky to go away.
“nice to meet you! Juniors!”
“Is there anyone interested in sky alchemy?”
“If you’re a martial arts major, please join the jousting club!”
They were all wearing school uniforms. Fileon 786. They were second-year seniors at Phileon Academy who entered the school a year before Ronan’s rider.
Ronan frowned upon seeing the bustle of students.
“Are all those people our seniors?”
“There are a lot…”
Asher opened his mouth in admiration. I was told he was only one rider, but there seemed to be hundreds of them. Perhaps because the number of wizards was small, most of them were wearing martial arts school uniforms.
“Let me explain in case there is someone who doesn’t know. The face-to-face ceremony is an opportunity to greet and exchange friendly greetings with seniors who you will see most during your future school life.”
Kratir stroked his beard and continued his explanation. It was said to be a place for friendship between seniors and juniors.
After exchanging light greetings, it was said that events such as awarding awards to outstanding students and a banquet were being prepared. At that time, a loud voice rang out from the second-year student camp.
“Haha! I heard there’s a guy who beat the Empire’s Morning Star in this race? “Let’s have a game!!”
The group of second graders split to both sides and a boy who looked like a bear stepped forward. Currently ranked 2nd. It was Braum Biodan, the head of the martial arts department last time.
“Braum! Braum! Braum! Braum!”
Martial arts students chanted his name. Braum, who appeared in the front, posed by flexing his forearms. The muscles, which were reminiscent of tree trunks, seemed ready to tear through the school uniform at any moment.
Kratir touched his beard and laughed.
“Haha, Mr. Braum is still the same. Are you increasing the weight of your sword properly?”
“yes!! Thanks to everyone!! “I successfully increased my weight to 120kg!!”
“Good. “Then, shall we set the stage for a light greeting?”
Kratir gestured into the air again. This time it was a movement that seemed to be grabbing and pressing something.
– Coo coo coo coo coo!
Suddenly, the plaza trembled as if there had been an earthquake, and the floor began to sink around Kratir. The professors were also caught up in the erosion, but they remained in their seats without changing their expressions.
Soon, a huge circular space with a radius of about 200m was created. The freshmen who were watching were amazed at the appearance of the arena that appeared in an instant.
“W-what is this?”
“It’s awesome···!”
On the other hand, the second graders were not that surprised. It was a scene I had already seen last year, and I was bound to see many more scenes while staying at Phileon.
“Ugh. “We did that too last year.”
“Don’t be too surprised, friends!”
Rather, for them, the wide-eyed freshmen were a much more interesting sight to see. Kratir shouted.
“In that case, I will proceed with the greetings from the martial arts department first. We will call the top 10, so please come down to the arena. First, the top freshman martial arts major! Schlieffen Sinivan de Grancia!”
“Waaah!”
The crowd of freshmen parted and Schlieffen walked out. Cheers erupted from all riders. It was indeed popular enough to be the rising star of the empire. Ronan’s name was called next.
“Next time! Freshman martial arts department valedictorian! Ronan!”
“Waaaa!!”
“Hey fuck, be surprised.”
A cheer that was not much different from before erupted. Ronan, surprised by the unexpected reaction, bit her tongue. He muttered as if he was in a daze and climbed onto the arena.
“···Nimi, are you saying it’s a light greeting?”
Although he had no idea, he was popular among students, especially second graders. There was no student who did not know the story of the boy who appeared like a comet and took first place in the practical exam.
“Hey, hey, look at his jawline. “I will also peel apples.”
“Wow… he’s handsome. “You don’t even kneel next to Mr. Schlieffen?”
“Are you from a commoner background? “You don’t have a last name.”
Kratir called the students of both martial arts departments in order of grades. A total of 20 students went up on stage.
Ronan looked around. He could easily spot Iril sitting in the front seat, waving his hands. At that time, a familiar voice was heard from the side.
“hey! A long time!”
“Marya.”
“If you cut your hair, you should have told me that you cut it. “I was shocked while watching it.”
Among the students named was Marja, who ranked 9th. It was her first time in a long time. She had lively ponytail hair. Marja spun around in her spot and said,
“How about school uniform? suited?”
“huh.”
Ronan nodded. Thanks to her superior physique, her clothes came out well. Marja let out her cheerful laugh and slapped Ronan’s forearm.
“Your hair looks great on you too! “They should have been doing that a long time ago!”
“I hate it because it’s awkward.”
“What did you do while you couldn’t see? “Is there any reason why you suddenly decided to decorate it?”
Marya asked, narrowing her eyes. Ronan recalled what had happened over the past fifteen days.
One branch of the poacher organization was virtually destroyed, and Sita, a strange creature of unknown origin, emerged from the egg. Schlieffen became infatuated with her older sister, whom she brought along as her friend, and she heard information about the Grancia family’s secret blacksmith shop.
Ronan shook his head.
“hmm. “Nothing happened.”
“Hmm? “It’s even more suspicious…?”
Marya tilted her head as if questioning. Ronan said.
“But what are you doing now? “They suddenly called me out and told me to fight.”
“What, it’s one of the regular face-to-face events. “You don’t know about ‘light greetings’?”
“It’s not light at all.”
Marya closed her eyes and shook her head. I had long since become accustomed to Ronan’s ignorance. She explained her ‘light greeting’ by gesturing with her hands.
“In short, this is hazing.”
“Well, you could say so. “It’s rare for a freshman to beat a sophomore.”
A light greeting was the main event of the entrance ceremony. This is a place where freshmen and those with the highest grades in the class just above them spar and show off each other’s skills. Ronan nodded.
“It’s not bad. “In the first place, you have to cross swords to become friends.”
“i think so too. By the way, really… you just cut your hair because it was time to cut it, right?”
“That’s right.”
Marya sighed. She returned to her seat without dissolving her doubts until the end.
Ronan shrugged. I didn’t understand why I was so obsessed with her hair.
First and second graders stood facing each other. Kratir said.
“Alright, first year students, please start nominating! From Schlieffen County!”
Without saying a word, Schlieffen stretched out his finger and pointed at the young man in front of him. He was Nasudo, who was currently ranked first in the second year.
Nasudo calmly nodded as if he had expected it. It was Ronan’s turn to nominate. A bear standing in front of him laughed heartily.
“Haha! You are the second person in that rumor! Nice to meet you Ronan!!”
Second place in the 2nd year martial arts department. It was Braum Biodan. Ronan shrugged his eyebrows in interest. On Braum’s back was a greatsword almost as big as Ronan’s.
“Knife is killing me.”
“Oh oh! You can recognize this guy’s awesomeness at a glance! As expected, I thought I could communicate with you!! Come on, nominate me!”
Ronan nodded. Braum screamed and raised both his arms. Cheers erupted from the audience again.
‘I think I was expecting a lot from this guy, but it’s a shame.’
Ronan smiled bitterly when he saw Braum’s excited face. The match, no matter who the opponent was, would be over in a few seconds. When a shock occurs, it snaps. That was Braum’s future.
Ronan was about to turn around.
“Well, there is such a big difference in physique…is it okay?”
“hmm?”
My sister’s nervous face came into view at the front of the audience. Come to think of it, she had never shown Iril how she wielded her sword.
‘hmm. ‘It’s worth worrying about.’
Iril goes back to Nimburton today. Given her affectionate nature, she was sure to worry. Ronan, who was pondering something about her, raised her hand.
“Principal. “I have a suggestion.”
“hmm? “Something, Ronan?”
“Can I deal with all the second years by myself?”
The tone was calm, but the content was not. A terrible silence fell on the plaza.
****
In conclusion, Ronan’s opinion was accepted.
Kratir had a short discussion with the professors. He and the judges who were in charge of Ronan’s interview at the time said, ‘Well, as long as the parties involved are okay, it doesn’t really matter, right? ‘I think it’ll be fun.’ concluded.
“I also wanted to know more about Ronan’s skills.”
It was surprisingly not difficult to persuade 19 candidates, including classmates and seniors. They already knew that Ronan had won first place in the practical exam, beating Schlieffen.
“Can I handle them all? “If you don’t like it, tell me.”
“Oh, no… ! It’s a form of reporting anyway. “If you win, it’ll be exhilarating and good for us.”
“me too. But it’ll be okay… ?”
His classmates wondered what kind of technology Ronan had shown to be able to achieve such results.
“Does not matter. “Do it yourself.”
Schlieffen also accepted Ronan’s argument. He thought that the simple greeting event itself was a waste of time. However, unlike the classmates who expressed favorable views overall, the second graders’ reaction was different.
“Hey junior. “What were you thinking when you did something like this?”
“Hahaha! “He was absolutely crazy!”
“Do you think we are easy by giving us the second seat? Smash it, Braum!”
Ronan’s remarks were an act that went too far in trampling on the pride of his seniors. They came together as one and were burning with passion to help their arrogant junior.
Braum stood up and shouted.
“Ronan!! My passion! Deceive me like this! “I won’t leave you alone!!”
Of course, such pride was none of Ronan’s business. He intended to put Iril at ease. It was much better for him to show me once than to tell me not to worry.
“Okay then, let’s start with a ‘brief greeting.’ To the power location!”
Kratir said. Ronan and her ten second-year students stood facing each other, about 50 meters apart. The students wearing blue ties were all glaring at Ronan with murderous intent.
“Ro…Ronan! “Why did you do something like that?”
Iril was contemplative and was looking at Ronan. She was the first to recognize her sister’s talent, but this didn’t seem real.
-pop!
At that time, a magic firework was triggered to signal the start. Ten boys and girls rushed towards Ronan. The honest Braum took the lead, followed by first place Nasudo.
‘Hmm… aren’t there any fancy techniques?’
The gap could have been closed in just a few seconds, but it was enough time for Ronan to think about it. Suddenly, I remembered the swordsmanship Nabiroze demonstrated during the practical test interview.
‘Yeah, that was kind of cool.’
A swordsmanship performed by rotating the entire body along with the sword. I became interested in the strange sword method and tried following it for a while. Ronan nodded her head.
“Okay, I’ve decided.”
“Take it!!!”
At that time, Braum arrived in front of me and swung his great sword. A sword body shining with golden light flew sideways.
Whoa! The wind pressure that came from earlier pushed Ronan’s bangs back. Ronan spun twice in place and struck with his great sword.
bang!
“What?!”
Braum grabbed the hilt of his sword. If he had relaxed just a little, he would have lost his sword. He had incredible strength coming from a small body. Braum’s eyes widened when he saw the familiar sword.
“Yes, how can you use instructor Nabirose’s sword skills…!”
“Oh, you know?”
“Where did you learn that!”
Instead of answering, Ronan stepped on Braum’s great sword and jumped up. He swung his sword in three vertical rotations.
“Ugh!”
Braum hurriedly raised his greatsword horizontally and took a defensive stance. The 120 kg greatsword reinforced with mana was no different from a large shield.
However, what Ronan was aiming for was not a head-to-head match. The trajectory of the black iron sword was slightly distorted.
Suddenly! The hilt of the great sword was cut off and the heavy body of the sword fell to the floor.
-thud!
“Huh!”
The cut cross section was clean. Braum looked in vain at the great sword with its severed leg. Ronan answered dryly.
“I just saw it once and copied it.”
