Chapter 216 -----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 216
Chapter Title: Forging Knights
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The Jerdinger trainees start their day in the early dawn.
Being chosen as a Jerdinger trainee was proof enough of one's considerable aptitude and talent as a knight.
But no matter how talented, falling behind was easy if one didn't strive in a place full of peers of similar skill.
That was why Martina started her day even earlier than the other trainees.
Martina rose with a disheveled face, letting out a long yawn as she got out of bed.
Then, she shook her soundly sleeping roommate, Carin, awake.
"Hey, Carin. Wake up."
"Uungh?"
Carin, who had been burrowed in her blankets, poked her head out and stretched like a cat.
Then, she shot up, washed her face, and finished getting ready to leave.
Outside, Austin, Julan, and Valerie were waiting.
They were all members of Leo's knighthood.
After becoming Leo's knights, these five trainees began waking up a little earlier than the others to train.
It was a natural decision for the five, who keenly felt they were lacking what it took to be Leo's knights.
Especially since yesterday, they had been burning with even more motivation.
'Young Master Leo accepted us.'
There were plenty of trainees more skilled than the five of them.
They had tried to leave the knighthood, worried they would tarnish Leo's reputation, but he said he would keep the five who had chosen him.
Martina clenched her fists.
'Let's work harder and become knights worthy of Young Master Leo.'
Just as Martina was steeling her resolve.
"Oh, look at them. Off to train, are they?"
"Hero candidates are just different, huh?"
"Hehe. They must be pretty desperate, seeing what they said to Young Master Leo."
Other trainees, who normally wouldn't be awake, snickered at Martina and her group.
"What's with them so early in the morning?"
Carin grumbled.
"Ignore them."
Austin said calmly.
"That's right. They're the top-ranked ones. The very fact they're up at this ungodly hour means they're just trying to get on Young Master Leo's good side."
Julan agreed with Austin, a faint smile on his face.
And so, Leo's knights headed to their designated training spot.
There, they found Leo already waiting, and the five of them looked utterly bewildered.
"Young Master Leo?"
"Ah, it's still earlier than the time we agreed to train, isn't it?"
Austin and Carin wore flustered expressions.
"You're here?"
A puff of white breath escaped his lips, perhaps due to the cold air of the early winter morning.
The five trainees hurriedly stood before Leo.
Looking at them, Leo spoke.
"Starting today, I'm going to awaken your abilities."
At Leo's words, the trainees snapped to attention.
"Yes, sir!"
"You said you wanted to become skilled enough to be my knights, right? Then just follow my training."
"Understood!"
Leo's knights replied powerfully.
"The goal is to pass this year's Lumerne entrance exam."
"Yes, sir! We'll do our best—!"
The trainees, who had been shouting enthusiastically, faltered.
They then stared at Leo with bewildered faces.
"L-Lumerne entrance exam?"
"How are we supposed to get into Lumerne?"
It was an impossible task.
The students who entered Lumerne were, quite literally, a chosen few.
The bar was so high that only a tiny fraction of even the top-ranking Jerdinger trainees could pass.
And yet he was talking about entering Lumerne!
Seeing their confusion, Leo spoke.
"You can all use Aura, can't you?"
"Yes."
"I passed the exam without even being able to use Aura."
'That's because you're special, Young Master Leo!'
All the knights found themselves internally rebelling against the words of the Leo they so admired.
But he wasn't wrong.
Leo himself knew his words sounded absurd.
Even so, Leo shamelessly used himself as an example.
"Do you know this saying?"
"What is it?"
"If you can't, make it happen."
'Those are some terrifying words.'
Martina and the other four knights shuddered.
Leo's eyes held a look that could truly make the impossible possible.
Of course, they all had a premonition that they would be the ones dying in the process.
As they all swallowed dryly, Leo crossed his arms.
"Of course, if you don't have the confidence, you can quit. Even so, I won't abandon you who chose me."
Leo continued calmly.
"I will guide you to become stronger. But if you enter Lumerne, you'll be able to climb even higher."
The trainees flinched at his words.
"I made the offer because I believe you have the potential."
Watching the calmly speaking Leo, the knights felt their hearts tremble.
Just becoming Leo's knights had made them ecstatic.
But now, Lumerne.
This was the age of heroes.
Thus, everyone dreamed of being a hero at least once.
The five of them were no different.
But as they trained as Jerdinger trainees, they naturally came to a realization.
That they could never become heroes.
Yet Leo's words felt like they were reviving a dream they had long since abandoned.
"I'll do it."
Martina said forcefully.
"I will follow you, Young Master Leo."
Starting with Martina, the other trainees also ignited their resolve.
"I'll do it too!"
"Me too!"
"Please train us!"
"We beg you!"
Seeing this, Leo smiled.
"Good. That's the right attitude."
Leo nodded and said.
"Then, shall we all start with body modification?"
"?"
At the words "body modification," the five looked at each other with puzzled expressions.
They should have realized it then.
That they should have run away.
***
Two weeks had passed since Leo's training began.
And Celia was climbing a mountain on the Jerdinger family estate.
"Just how much does he plan to torture his knights, coming all the way to this back mountain to train?"
Celia clicked her tongue.
On the day the five had ignited their will to enter Lumerne.
Leo packed his bags and left the Jerdinger castle.
The reason was simple.
For training.
He had gotten permission from Jis, the head of the trainees, and left on a training journey with the five.
Following behind Celia was none other than Niel, a fourth-year student from Lumerne's Knight Department.
As Celia's knight, she had followed to assist her master who was leaving the main castle.
She was also intrigued by the story that Leo planned to make all of his knights into Lumerne entrants.
"But no matter how great Young Master Leo is, can he really turn five mid-ranked trainees into Lumerne entrants?"
Niel tilted her head.
In truth, Leo's deeds were the stuff of legend even among the upperclassmen.
The unprecedented All-Class.
His performance during the Gigantes subjugation in the first semester.
On top of that, he had confidently secured the position of student council president in the second semester.
But even so, this latest declaration was too absurd.
Having been a Jerdinger trainee herself, Niel knew well.
Just how vast the gap was between mid-ranked trainees and those who could enter Lumerne.
It might be different for Leo himself.
But Niel thought it was impossible to raise others to that level in just a few months.
"Besides, I doubt this training is more efficient than what they do at the Jerdinger training grounds."
Hearing Niel's words, Celia said.
"Niel, you still don't know him very well."
"Pardon?"
"He's the type who does what he says he'll do."
Celia shuddered.
Celia knew all too well how harsh Leo's training was.
For the past year, she and Chelsea were the ones who had suffered the most under him.
Of course, recently she had more or less adapted to the intensity of his training.
But in the beginning, she had to endure muscle aches every single weekend.
And thanks to that, Celia had been able to maintain her first-place position in the Knight Department for a year, despite having powerful rivals like Chen Xia and Duran Moira.
As the two were searching the mountain, a scream—'Kuaaaaaaaah!'—rang in their ears.
Hearing the sound, they exchanged glances and quickened their pace.
Celia and Niel ran toward the source of the sound and were left speechless by the scene before them.
"Swing. If you can't, you die."
Leo, speaking with a terrifyingly expressionless face.
And Austin, shouting 'Uooooooh!', swung his bastard sword.
A massive boulder that was falling toward his head was sliced cleanly in two.
Julan was trapped in a giant water bubble, choking and sputtering.
Carin, trapped in abyssal darkness, was letting out a piercing scream, while Valerie, bound in chains, was being pummeled by a golem Leo had created.
Lastly, Martina was being crushed by immense gravity, crawling on the ground.
".... What is this? This is hell."
As Niel muttered in a dazed voice, Celia covered her face and shook her head.
"I knew it."
To Niel, it was a scene beyond imagination, but for Celia, it was entirely predictable.
And Celia grew to hate her own imagination.
It was because she had suffered so much under Leo that she could imagine such a thing.
As Celia let out a sorrowful laugh, Leo, having spotted the two, approached them.
Even so, the trainees' training did not stop.
".... I don't want to know, but I'm curious, so I'll ask. What in the world are you doing?"
To Celia's question, Leo replied.
"Body modification."
Celia narrowed her eyes at the incredibly odd term.
"Why are you modifying their bodies?"
"To awaken their individual talents."
"Talents?"
"Yes."
Leo himself knew better than anyone that getting into Lumerne wasn't easy with effort alone.
In Leo's judgment, all five would have a hard time passing the Lumerne entrance exam with their current abilities as 'knights'.
But Leo was still confident that the five could pass the entrance exam.
The reason was simple.
Leo had the eyes of a Great Hero and an All-Class.
And with those eyes, he could see that his knights had other talents besides their aptitude as knights.
"Austin has talent as a mage."
Leo pointed to Austin, who was swinging his sword in a near-death state.
That sword was one that sealed the user's Aura ability.
"The sword is inscribed with a cutting magic formula that Austin created himself."
That's why, for ten of the past two weeks, Austin had done no other training and had instead studied magic formulas until his head spun.
And now, on the brink of death, he was being forced to awaken his magic power.
"Julan and Carin have talent as spirit contractors. So they're trapped in water and darkness to awaken their innate spirit affinity."
Of course, he hadn't simply trapped them in water and darkness.
Those were spaces created by the power of spirits, brimming with spirit energy.
They were optimal for awakening dormant spirit powers.
".... What about Martina and Valerie?"
When Niel asked with a hesitant expression, Leo shrugged.
"They don't have talent as mages or summoners. So they're awakening their Aura traits."
"Aura traits?"
"Yes. Valerie's Aura trait is very rare. It's 'Accumulation,' just like senior Harke's."
Leo grinned.
Hearing that, Niel looked surprised.
"Really?"
"Yes. The only difference is that senior Harke accumulates power through 'sleep,' while Valerie accumulates it through 'impact.' That's why she needs to build her resilience, so I've tied her up and am having her beaten."
"Simple and brutal."
"Simple and brutal is the best way to train. You know that well, don't you?"
Watching Leo's wide grin, Celia hugged herself and shuddered.
"What about Martina?"
"Martina is purely strengthening her physical body."
She doesn't have magical talent like Austin, nor does she have talent in spirit arts like Julan and Carin.
Nor does she possess a special Aura trait like Valerie.
She only has the talent of a pure knight.
".... She must not feel very good about that."
Niel wore a sympathetic expression.
Others have hidden talents, but she has none.
Niel, who had lived as a Jerdinger trainee and a Lumerne student, knew well how great a shock that realization could be.
Because it meant you alone weren't special.
At Niel's words, Leo chuckled.
"Yes. But she'll be fine."
"Why are you so sure?"
Leo smiled at Celia's question.
"Because she knows how to overcome her limits."
Overcome your limits.
That was also Lumerne's motto.
She was different from the other trainees.
Austin, Carin, Julan, and Valerie were discovering new abilities thanks to Leo's insight and were rapidly developing them.
As a result, they were showing rapid growth.
But Martina was different.
She had no other way but to strengthen her existing abilities.
However, Martina was keeping up with Leo's hellish training without falling behind.
When faced with a wall, she grits her teeth and doesn't hesitate to crash into it.
"That's the greatest virtue for becoming stronger."
Leo said, watching Martina grit her teeth, overcome his gravity magic, and shakily raise her body.
"She's going to get stronger. That one."
At his words, Celia went 'Hmph' and looked at Martina.
Celia and Martina were the same age.
So they had been trainees together.
'She certainly is a hard worker.'
She hadn't known that such a hard-working trait would blossom after meeting Leo.
"But if they focus on these other abilities, won't their skills as knights stagnate? They're Jerdinger trainees, after all."
As Niel made a regretful face, Leo picked up a stone lying on the ground.
"Don't worry about that."
Then, he dispelled the spirit arts and magic that were tormenting the trainees.
The trainees, momentarily freed, flinched and trembled.
Toward them, Leo unhesitatingly threw the stone he had picked up.
Shwaaaaa-!
Thwack-!
"Gyaak!"
Carin, hit in the shoulder by the stone, shrieked and rolled on the ground.
She had defended herself with Aura instinctively, but it hurt like hell.
"I launch surprise attacks like this to build their Aura control. Carin! You can take it, right?"
"You! I'm going to kill you someday!"
Despite Carin's venomous shout, Leo just smiled and threw another stone at her.
"Kuaaack!"
'He's a devil. This man is a devil.'
Niel was convinced.
"So, what's the reason you came looking for me? I told you not to for about a month."
Leo asked while throwing stones at his knights.
Amidst the echoing screams of the trainees, Celia spoke.
"An announcement came from Lumerne."
"From Lumerne?"
"Yeah. Some of the students scheduled to advance to the second year have been summoned to the Rodren Empire."
"I assume you and I are included?"
"That's not all."
Celia handed Leo a list.
Taking it, Leo scratched his cheek.
"A joint exam... And they're gathering these members?"
"Yeah."
Leo saw the name of the exam's supervising professor and muttered.
"Looks like we're the exam assignment."
"Huh?"
"I think they're planning to have us catch the prospective students."
"Nah. Even for a Lumerne entrance exam, they wouldn't do something like that, would they?"
"Right, right."
Niel said with a laugh.
Watching Niel, Celia nodded.
It was no exaggeration to say the skill gap between entrance exam takers and second-year students was like heaven and earth.
Especially since the current second-years at Lumerne were a golden generation, one of the best in the academy's history.
Even excluding Leo.
The top class of second-years, led by Leo and Celia, was not something the entrance exam students could handle.
"The supervising professor for the exam is Professor Halind."
Leo said with a nonchalant expression.
"If I were Professor Halind, this is what I'd do."
Lumerne's Wailing Wall.
The absolute terror of the students.
Having experienced Halind for a year, Leo was certain.
Hearing Leo's words, Celia and Niel looked at each other.
"In that case, what will you do if you meet your knights during the exam?"
To Celia's question, Leo replied calmly.
"I'll crush them with everything I've got."
There was no such thing as 'holding back' in Leo's dictionary.
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