Chapter 115: Dissolution of the Female Knight Training Grounds (2)
At that moment, all 150 of us burst out with curses that couldn't be contained, but seeing the guilty and helpless look on the senior knight's face, we swallowed our complaints.
After all, it wasn't this senior knight discriminating against us. He might have been overseeing the Magic Knight Order's trainees, but we all knew well that budgets and personnel placements were dictated by higher-ups meddling from above.
"Ha! I'd better start looking for another job before I get axed too!"
Half-elf Artan openly mocked the situation, turning his head in disgust. The senior knight couldn't even lift his gaze, as if he'd committed some grave sin.
The other hybrid trainees wore disgruntled expressions too, but they knew the senior knight wasn't to blame. While they muttered low curses about the royal family, they quickly restrained themselves. Outright criticism of the royals could easily drag the entire Magic Knight Order into trouble.
"Can't we just not go?"
Dane, furious, demanded an answer from the senior knight, but Jake, the eldest son of a noble family, intervened to stop him.
"That's not an option. The king personally selected each individual for the invitation. Refusing without a valid reason—like being bedridden or dead—simply isn't possible."
As Jake said, we had no right to refuse. Even if another noble house invited us, etiquette dictated we attend unless a war broke out. And here, the king himself had issued the invitations—not generically to the Magic Knight Order, but specifically to individually selected members.
Not going would practically be treason.
Of course, they wouldn't execute us for treason over this, but technically, with enough insistence, they could frame it as such. In other words, we had no escape.
"When is it?"
"Tomorrow evening. Today's training is canceled, so rest up, prepare your dress uniforms, and assemble in the training grounds by tomorrow afternoon."
The rapid scheduling felt deliberate, as if to minimize the time we had to dwell on this injustice and stir up further complaints.
"But tomorrow... that's the day Vanerim is leaving for her hometown. We were supposed to have a farewell gathering."
Wade, president of the Vanerim fan club from the 7th dormitory, lamented. But the king's command was absolute, and only hybrid trainees were exempt from this summons.
Not just Vanerim—most of the female knight trainees were leaving tomorrow, either returning to their hometowns or starting new jobs.
'So we don't even get to say goodbye?'
Was this deliberate? Did they isolate us to prevent us from growing angrier by talking to the female knights? Or did they simply not care to allow us even a minimal gesture of farewell?
Either way, the resentment was unavoidable, but we were knights. When the state called, we had no choice but to assemble and play along, even for something as trivial as a party.
"Gather by tomorrow afternoon. Until then, you're free. Dismissed."
---
I later learned that one of the senior female knights who taught the female trainees was married to our senior knight.
Perhaps already aware of tomorrow's royal banquet, the female knight seniors tore down the wall between the training grounds in one dramatic motion.
Crash!
"My dear—no, senior! What the hell are you doing?"
"It's going to be demolished by workers tomorrow anyway, so why not save them the trouble?"
'Whoa, they're married? Seriously?'
That explained why they seemed unusually close. And now it made sense why this workaholic man had seemed oddly cheerful when he was with the senior female knights before—it was workplace romance!
"I'm off to drink with my husband. Everyone, have fun, party hard! Burn the place down if you want! It's not like you'll still be knights tomorrow!"
"Yaaay!!"
The bold declaration from the fiery senior female knight immediately lifted the spirits of the otherwise gloomy Magic Knight Order and female knight trainees.
Not that this sparked some wild and raunchy party. Instead, we all hit up nearby taverns, brought back drinks, and spent the evening venting. "Damn the king!" "The royal family is trash!" Complaints like that filled the air.
Our female knight peers had impressive resumes, so most had lined up jobs with merchant guilds or mercenary groups. Vanerim, on the other hand, was returning to her hometown, smiling as she braided her beard.
But as the drinks flowed, one by one, people started crying about not wanting to say goodbye. Soon, the place was awash with tears.
'It's mostly the guys bawling their eyes out…'
The female knights, meanwhile, consoled the crying men, saying everything would be fine. Still, the thought of parting from their neighbors, comrades, and closest peers clearly weighed on everyone. It probably didn't help that Dane started sobbing first, setting off a chain reaction.
"Tsk..."
I felt a sting in my nose, but no tears came. It wasn't like they were dying—we could meet again if we wanted to. Once the training period was over, we'd all be busy with our own lives. That's just how it was.
'Still… it doesn't feel great.'
Thunk!
A battle axe slammed into the ground threateningly beside me, startling me. I turned to see Erin in her black armor, holding two mugs of beer, sitting down beside me.
"Crying?"
"I'm not crying."
"Your eyes look teary, though."
"No, it's just the alcohol. I've got a crying habit when I drink."
I couldn't read her expression through her helmet, but Erin didn't seem interested in arguing about my drinking habits. She simply nodded and sat beside me.
"Sorry about earlier. I didn't expect to run into a peer there. It was embarrassing, and…"
"It's fine. Everyone has their own sexual preferences."
"It's not about that!"
My teasing seemed to lighten the mood, as her tone turned a bit huffy, like before. Even amidst the somber atmosphere, conversations like this with Erin felt natural.
Clank.
"This armor… today's the last day I'll wear it."
'I have to return all the equipment, huh.'
When Erin removed her helmet, designed with a space to accommodate her horn at the center of the forehead, her face emerged with tears glistening around her eyes.
Her gaze, a gift from her nocturnal ogre lineage, burned with a blue light that resembled a flaming aura, not merely mana gathered in her eyes. She looked around at her comrades, her expression betraying a deep sadness.
It seemed like she was crying more than I was, but I didn't want to point it out and make her feel worse.
"How did the interview go?"
"I'll pass, don't you think? You know my skills."
"All I remember is beating you."
At that, Erin downed her beer in one gulp and put her helmet back on.
"Actually, now that I think about it, you were strong."
"Was?"
"You are strong. You were strong!"
But Erin was already standing, gripping her battle axe, and the commotion between us had drawn the attention of our still-crying peers. All eyes turned to us.
"Let's spar. This time, I won't let my guard down."
"Woooooo!!"
At Erin's declaration, our clueless male peers and the female knights cheered us on, clearing away their drinks to create an impromptu dueling arena.
"Ban! Ban! Ban! Ban!"
"Erin! Erin! Erin! Erin!"
Unlike before, when the male knights cheered for me and the female knights for Erin, the roles were now reversed. The guys were rooting for Erin, while the female knights, perhaps pitying me, cheered on my behalf.
"Is this really necessary?"
"There won't be another chance like this."
"Sigh..."
As Erin stood waiting, I quickly finished off the rest of my beer and drew my mana saber.
"Erin, you might want to keep your limbs intact if you're planning to get hired."
"Funny, because I was just wondering how you'll manage if your arms and legs are smashed."
Knights—male or female—always let their pride get the better of them. That was the problem.
Though I could feel the buzz from the alcohol, it didn't affect my ability to channel mana or wield my saber.
"Start!"
At Vanerim's shout, I charged at Erin, aiming my mana saber at her.
Though it was a sparring match, knight-level duels are fierce—fatal injuries are avoided, but damaged limbs are fair game. So, I saw no need to hold back the saber's output.
'No openings. She's gotten better.'
But if there were no openings, I'd just create one. I deliberately drew her attention by angling the saber's blade to reflect the moonlight, causing it to gleam silver.
During the day, mana scatters light, giving the blade a blue hue. At night, it absorbs moonlight, making the blade appear thinner than it is—though it's merely a visual trick.
Of course, Erin was a knight too, so she wouldn't fall for such a simple deception.
Slash!
I feinted with a horizontal slash, gauging her slower movements. She tried to block with her gauntlet, raising her arm to intercept. But I shifted my attack trajectory, thrusting the blade toward her thigh.
'If I'm lucky, she'll get a burn; unlucky, she might lose a leg. But with her armor, a mild burn should be the worst of it.'
As expected, Erin wasn't so easily caught off guard. She had already planted her boots firmly into the ground. As my saber thrust toward her lower body, she kicked up a spray of dirt into the air.
Crackle!
The sound of sand sizzling in midair disrupted the blade's stability. My otherwise precise thrust faltered and only succeeded in heating the skirt of her armor, leaving a faint scorch mark.
Whoosh!
Abandoning the idea of swinging her axe blade, Erin swung the long haft of her axe toward my head. But I was already reacting—I released my saber, letting the strap snap back as I redirected my hand mid-motion. Gripping the saber in reverse, I slashed toward her chest plate.
The chest plate, the thickest and sturdiest part of a knight's armor, wouldn't melt easily even under the saber's heat. But if it overheated and burned through to the vital organs beneath, the sudden shock would likely stagger her.
I had already landed three attacks: a feint, a thigh thrust, and this chest slash. Seeing no way to avoid the saber, Erin decided to take the hit head-on and—
Swish!
Threw her axe at me.
'Damn, didn't expect that...'
Slash!
The saber struck her chest plate, leaving a deep mark and heating the metal, but it didn't incapacitate her. By then, Erin had closed the distance and grabbed my right wrist with her left hand.
Crunch.
"Tch!"
Her half-ogre strength sent cracks through the bones in my wrist. I switched to hand-to-hand mode, rotating my mana circuits through my body. A quick knee strike to her armor forced her to stumble backward.
Thud!
Though the kick didn't damage her armor, Erin's smaller frame and lighter weight sent her flying much farther than I slid back.
'Time to switch the saber to my left hand.'
I didn't have time to remove the strap, so I left my dangling right hand strapped and drew the saber into my left hand, reigniting its blade. Erin, meanwhile, retrieved her axe and put some distance between us.
"Not bad."
"Same to you."
'This is bad.'
Maybe it was the buzz from the alcohol, or perhaps the thrill of the fight, but I could feel my lower body reacting.