Chapter 10: Akina Crowflin (3)

‘What in the world…’

Akina Crowflin couldn’t believe the situation unfolding before her eyes.

When she first heard the story from Instructor Jackson, she hadn’t thought much of it.

After all, there had been precedents.

In the long history of the Tristan instructor exam, there had been quite a few candidates who received perfect scores in various categories, and among them, there were indeed candidates like Edgar who achieved full marks in the early rounds.

And most of them failed to live up to expectations in the third practical test.

It was only natural.

No matter how perfect their theoretical knowledge or physical abilities were, if they couldn’t handle a sword properly, they wouldn’t receive good marks.

From the third practical test onward, the candidates demonstrate their swordsmanship, and after that, they are subjected to rigorous evaluations in categories like teaching demonstrations and interviews.

The sections where they truly needed to score well were still to come.

For that reason, some of the examiners didn’t even pay attention to the scores from the first two practical tests.

‘I’m sure it was the same this time…’

Akina had approached the role of examiner for this test with a similar mindset.

As always, she intended to evaluate the candidates with fairness and impartiality.

But when Edgar Mulick, the second son of Brandon Mulick and the “stormy” candidate that Instructor Jackson had spoken of, entered the exam hall—

When he glanced at the other candidates and began to demonstrate the Tristan swordsmanship—

Akina felt her preconceived notions completely shatter.

Whoosh—

Thud!

Swoosh!

Unlike the other candidates, no loud, flashy sounds came from his sword.

He slashed, stabbed, turned, and executed the basic movements with thorough precision.

His movements were without excess, and his transitions were flawless.

It was textbook, clean.

His level of skill was the closest thing to perfection.

If a hero had accidentally obtained the Tristan Swordsmanship, this was the level of performance they might display.

There wasn’t a single flaw in Edgar Mulick demonstration of the swordsmanship.

‘Is that really the notorious Edgar?’

Akina’s mind was thrown into confusion.

Edgar Mulick.

The black sheep of the Brandon Mulick family.

The layabout of the Tristan Academy’s magic department.

Arrogant, self-centered, and a noble who looked down on commoners.

Such negative descriptors always accompanied any mention of Edgar.

It had gotten to the point where even his father, Brandon Mulick, was rumored to have given up on him.

He was infamous, so much so that even though Akina was from a different department, she knew of him.

And yet here he was now.

Demonstrating a near-perfect execution of the Tristan Swordsmanship.

Could any other candidate show such mastery of the Tristan Swordsmanship?

No, even among the instructors in this exam hall—

Could any hero demonstrate the Tristan Swordsmanship better than he did?

“Applicant number 118.”

So when the third practical test ended, and the swordsmanship demonstration concluded—

Akina, without realizing it, called out to Edgar.

She had always been the type of person who had to satisfy her curiosity.

“That swordsmanship, where did you learn it?”

Edgar Mulick was a hero destined to be a magician.

In fact, he was a graduate of the magic department, having completed three years at the academy.

Although he hadn’t fully learned the art, and his chosen path was still that of an apprentice magician, the fact that he came from the magic department didn’t change.

Yet here he was, applying for the swordsmanship department’s instructor exam.

And he was shocking everyone with his outstanding performance, overwhelming the other candidates.

On top of that, he had demonstrated the Tristan Swordsmanship so perfectly that one might believe he had accidentally acquired it.

There was no way she wouldn’t ask about this in the interview.

“……?”

However, Edgar’s expression seemed strange.

Even though Akina had asked him a question, he didn’t answer.

Instead, he wore a peculiar smile.

And Edgar stared directly at Akina’s face.

A couple of nods and eyes that seemed pleased for some reason.

It was as if…

Like a senior in a certain field, looking at a well-performing junior with satisfaction.

In short.

It was an expression full of mystery.

‘…What kind of person is he?’

Not just Akina, but all the instructors in the examination hall had dumbfounded expressions at the scene.

“…Ah.”

I immediately realized that the atmosphere in the room had turned odd.

All the evaluators before me were staring at me with strange expressions.

The reason was simple.

I, the examinee, was staring at the female instructor in the room, quite intently, and with a face that looked somewhat pleased.

On top of that, I hadn’t even responded to her question.

A complete madman, no doubt.

Feeling flustered, I quickly offered an apology.

“I’m sorry. You just reminded me of a junior…”

“Pardon? What did you just say…”

“No, it’s nothing.”

Ugh.

What am I even saying?

I barely stopped myself from hitting my own head in frustration.

Even if she is a senior instructor, telling her she reminded me of a junior was an absurd slip of the tongue.

Fortunately, it seemed like my quiet voice had kept the latter part of my words from being heard properly.

“Candidate 118 is quite peculiar.”

Suddenly, the bearded instructor let out a laugh.

“I wasn’t planning on mentioning it since this is a practical interview, but you feel quite different from the rumors surrounding you.”

Rumors?

Ah, he must be referring to things from before my return.

I quickly understood the topic the instructor was bringing up.

Me, from 10 years ago, before I went to the other world.

Back then, I was entangled in all sorts of bad rumors, the worst kind of hero.

The delinquent of the Mulick family.

The slacker of the magic academy.

The arrogant noble who looked down on commoners.

Those negative labels always clung to me like a three-piece set, tarnishing my reputation.

I wasn’t that interested in women, so I hadn’t completely hit rock bottom, but if the instructors had heard those rumors, they’d surely think of me as a conceited, morally corrupt individual.

‘Well, they weren’t wrong…’

If it’s about before my return, those rumors weren’t far from the truth.

But right now, this was the practical interview for the instructor exam.

It wouldn’t help me at all for those stories to be brought up now.

So I kept my mouth shut and endured.

“It’s not common for noble candidates to apply for the instructor exam, but this is the first time I’ve seen a noble apologize and use honorifics during an interview.”

Since the rise of heroes in this continent, the boundaries between nobles and commoners had blurred significantly.

Many common-born heroes had stronger powers, and there were cases where outstanding commoners were granted titles and became nobles.

Social status was largely determined by what kind of hero one was destined to be and how much that potential was realized.

This trend was especially strong in the Kingdom of Kleppe, known for its meritocratic values.

‘…Back then, I didn’t acknowledge that.’

In the past, I hadn’t accepted that easily.

—Only nobles are noble and honorable!

—There can be no commoners equal to nobles!

I had been stuck in that mindset, engaging in arrogant behavior, and my contempt for commoners knew no bounds.

That’s why no one around me had liked me back then.

Commoners hated me for looking down on them, and nobles hated me for being incompetent yet loud.

…Looking back now, I was really trash.

The person I was 10 years ago had nothing to boast about.

The bearded instructor was probably pointing out how I resembled the self-absorbed nobles from back then.

“Oh, I don’t mean to disrespect noble bloodlines. I just found Candidate 118’s attitude peculiar.”

“I understand.”

I nodded at the instructor’s explanation.

And at that moment, a model answer flashed through my mind.

I quickly gave it to him before I forgot.

“At least within the academy, we are all equal under destiny. Under that banner, I simply displayed the proper etiquette.”

“…Impressive.”

It never hurts to be prepared.

The book Ray had given me last night.

“101 Model Answers for Success in the Instructor Exam Interviews.”

I hadn’t planned on reading it since we were still in the practical portion, but I skimmed through about three chapters just in case, and here was a question straight from the book.

‘Ray is a genius.’

Listening to my all-knowing butler always pays off.

“Candidate 118. Why haven’t you answered my question?”

Just when I was basking in the satisfaction of my answer, a cold voice pierced my ear.

It was the female instructor from earlier, whom I had momentarily forgotten about.

Without panicking, I responded to her.

“I hesitated because I thought it would be difficult to give you a clear answer.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“I meant exactly what I said. As you know, I spent three years in the Magic Department of the academy and graduated from there.”

Though it was an answer I made up on the spot, it came out smoothly.

All those arguments I had with old nobles in politics before my return were paying off now.

“But later on, I discovered that I had the destiny of a <swordsman>. Embarrassing as it is, I realized I had some talent in that area. So I studied the sword on my own and applied for the instructor exam. That’s why I hesitated to answer where I learned swordsmanship—because it wasn’t learned anywhere.”

A clean, straightforward answer.

The female instructor’s expression became even more peculiar.

“So, you’re saying… you taught yourself?”

“Yes. I studied using Tristan’s swordsmanship books that are available to the public.”

And then, the female instructor and all the other examiners fell silent.

Their faces mostly looked like they couldn’t believe what I said…

What was going on?

Did I say something wrong?

Just as I tilted my head in confusion, the female instructor asked again.

“Candidate 118. Are you really the second son of the Brandon Mulick ?”

“Instructor Akina.”

When that question was raised, the male examiner seated to the right interrupted her.

He had a small scar on the right side of his forehead.

Despite his fierce appearance, his aura was just as intense.

With him, the bearded examiner, and the female instructor, I could tell these three were the strongest heroes among the examiners.

“…I apologize.”

At the male examiner’s interruption, the instructor called Akina slightly shook her head.

She seemed to realize that her question had little to do with the instructor exam and that I wasn’t the only candidate undergoing this practical interview.

“That question dragged on a bit. I’ll ask the next candidate now. Candidate 112?”

“Y-Yes!!”

And just like that, my interview was over.

It ended much faster and simpler than I expected.

I briefly listened to the other interviews and noticed that most of them were being asked about Tristan’s swordsmanship techniques and moves.

In other words, the fact that my interview ended so quickly meant that my performance in this evaluation was perfect.

It was a very positive sign for my test results.

‘Akina…’

But my mind was elsewhere.

The name the scarred examiner had called the female instructor.

Instructor Akina.

It was a name I knew all too well.

And only now did I realize why her face had seemed so familiar.

‘Akina Crowflin.’

The eldest daughter of the Duke of Crowflin.

A swordsmanship prodigy known as the “Star of the Kingdom.”

She had bloomed into her “fourth path” in her twenties, and there was no one her age who could match her in swordsmanship theory—a genius hero.

She was a young hero that the Kingdom of Kleppe was proud of, and the star instructor of Tristan’s Hero Academy.

That was Akina Crowflin.

In fact, it would have been strange if I hadn’t recognized her.

Among the candidates here, I was probably the only one who didn’t know who she was.

But for me, she was familiar for a different reason.

‘My father’s comrade will become my senior.’

She had fought alongside my father in the Great War five years ago.

After the war, my father often spoke about Akina, so I knew her well.

I had once thought it would be nice to meet her someday, but I never expected it to happen like this.

Akina Crowflin.

If I passed this exam and became an instructor at Tristan’s Swordsmanship Department, she would become my direct senior instructor.