Chapter 32: First Examintaion, Character

“Then, the problem is coming!”

It wasn’t exactly a problem, but her face appeared.

Rine glared at me and gave me the exam question.

“You’ve been assigned a monster hunting mission and entered a remote mountain alone. The day is coming to an

end. As you’re looking for a place to camp, a girl who was gathering medicinal herbs for poison comes across your

path, lost.”

“At that very moment! A monster, the Mountain Bear, arrives in front of you, having caught your scent! What will

you do in this situation?”

The key points are four.

Alone, Mountain Bear, remote mountain, and a lost girl.

If the purpose of this exam is to assess chivalry, protecting the girl safely is the most important. However, to show

one’s qualifications as a knight, you must also deal with the Mountain Bear.

‘In an ideal situation, I would first take the girl and run, then after ensuring her safety, return and hunt the monster…’

But if it were that easy, it wouldn’t be an exam.

“From just the problem, I can’t understand the full situation. May I ask a few questions for clarification?”

“Of course!”

“How many monsters are there in front of me?”

“One.”

“But there’s no guarantee that there is only one Mountain Bear in the mountain, is there?”

“Heh, sharp.”

The personality test is entirely subjective. What’s more, the grading and progression are entirely up to the examiner’s

discretion.

This means the examiner, much like on certain weekend entertainment shows, could throw in a “but” or “actually”

and try to make things more difficult.

In fact, there could be monsters where the girl was, or during the escape, there might be a commotion that attracts

more predators, causing an escape failure.

Didn’t I myself once get surrounded by Mountain Bears when I visited a cave during a past expedition?

“If this is a monster hunting mission in a remote mountain, then I would be unfamiliar with the terrain.”

“That’s right.”

“But a guard would always familiarize themselves with the terrain before a mission. Even if unfamiliar, I should be

somewhat accustomed to it.”

“…!”

Rine’s expression, which had been smirking, immediately stiffened.

Got her.

“Are you trying to play word games with me now?”

“If it seemed that way, I apologize. I believe a knight must always be able to accurately assess the situation.”

“Even if it’s reckless, the ability to charge ahead with one’s own body is also a knight’s quality.”

“Your words are correct, Deputy. If I had known the girl was there, I would have done the same. But since it was a

monster hunting mission, I thought it was necessary to prepare thoroughly to hunt it.”

Rine stared at me silently, then suddenly let out a chuckle.

“Heh, I guess these debates aren’t really my style.”

“Is that so?”

“I prefer charging in with my body, but for now, you’re right.”

“Thank you. Then, while we’re at it, one more question. Is the girl from a nearby village? Has there been a missing persons report?”

“Aah, forget it! Yes, the girl is from the village. If you had tried to save her without confirming her identity like that

other guy earlier, you’d have fallen into a trap where the girl controls the monsters. But that won’t work on you. I’ll

acknowledge your search abilities, so keep answering.”

In the end, Rine backed down.

Now, what if you’re cornered while running away?

What if the girl turns out to be the master of the monsters and she’s the one causing trouble for the village?

I stopped all those traps.

I gained the upper hand, but winning an argument with Rine wasn’t the point.

This was a chivalry test, not a reasoning test.

What we just did was just a series of questions that wouldn’t matter much either way.

Rine had picked on trivial things, complicating the situation, but I had prepared to make things simple.

Now that Rine had stopped nitpicking, the real test was about to begin.

“The village girl must have been frightened. If she starts crying, a commotion could spread. First, I would push the

Mountain Bear back with a full-force attack, creating some distance, and in that time, I would reassure the village

girl.”

“……”

“Once the girl calms down, I would lift her and carry her. She must have been so shocked that her legs gave out, and

she would be frozen in place out of fear that she wouldn’t be able to run on her own.”

“Mm-hmm.”

“To increase the distance from the Mountain Bear, I move along a narrow path. While doing so, I ask the village girl

for directions.”

“Are you asking a frightened child for directions? I thought you already knew the map.”

“Staying still and being held will only increase her anxiety, so it’s a temporary measure to redirect her focus. She’s

confident enough to go up the mountain alone to pick herbs, so she’s probably knowledgeable about the area. I

believe she’ll regain her composure by using the knowledge she knows.”

“Alright, go on.”

“While running away, I check to see if any other monsters are following. If they are, I continue fleeing. If not, then

the Mountain Bear is the only threat for now. I’ll hide the village girl in a safe spot out of sight and go to confront the

Mountain Bear. To conceal my presence, I take off my outer garment and drape it over her.”

“……”

“Fighting the Mountain Bear will take time, and the girl hidden nearby might either get hurt or become scared again.

As the bear charges through the narrow path, I take advantage of its excitement and target its legs to cripple its

mobility.”

“Afterward, I’ll safely escort the village girl down the mountain, then return to fight and defeat the Mountain Bear.

That’s all.”

“……”

Even after I finished my answer, Rine stared at me silently.

After about 10 seconds, she spoke.

“I hear you. It’s an impressive answer. But there’s a prerequisite for it that you must understand, right?”

“To drive off the Mountain Bear, move quickly while staying aware of my surroundings, aim for the bear’s legs in a

short amount of time, and defeat the Mountain Bear. Those are the four conditions.”

As I mentioned the parts where she had been silent, she nodded as if to say I was correct.

“Exactly. In the end, the answer you gave can only be realized if you have that level of skill. Without the skill, it would

just be an ideal theory, and you might end up increasing the anxiety of the one you’re protecting. In fact, it’s close to

an ideal theory for an ordinary soldier to even attempt.”

“I answered at the level of a knight since I’m being evaluated on my knightly qualities.”

“Heh, you’re good with words. Then, let’s see if you really have that level of skill.”

Rine bent down and rummaged through her desk drawer.

I was curious about what she was doing and watched her.

“Here, take this.”

“???”

Rine handed me an egg.

An egg?

“The girl’s name is ‘Egg.’ Say hello.”

“Eh?”

“And take this too.”

This time, it was a short wooden training sword.

In my left hand, I held the egg, and in my right hand, the wooden sword. What could this mean?

The question didn’t last long.

Whoosh.

“1”

As Rine swung her fist toward me, I instinctively twisted my body while still holding the egg.

When I dodged her punch, Rine smiled and said, “I’m a bear right now, so I won’t use weapons. Fair enough?”

Without answering, I aimed a knee strike at Rine.

She blocked it with her palm and then swung her arm at me again.

With muscles swinging threateningly, I lowered my body to avoid it and quickly pulled back.

While doing so, I checked to make sure the egg was intact. It hadn’t broken.

“Whew, your reactions are quick. Did you predict that?”

Rine whistled in admiration, and I tightened my expression before replying.

“Anyone who didn’t predict that would be a fool.”

As I waited for my turn, a loud crash echoed in the room.

Rine, who admired the evaluation style of the squad leader, had become an examiner herself, even though she wasn’t

fond of these kinds of discussions.

She had always disliked such debates, but here she was, in charge of evaluating my character.

‘So you want me to prove that I have the skill to carry out my plans.’

If the egg broke or if I got distracted and failed to dodge Rine, I would lose.

It was an incredibly difficult condition.

‘This is the real test.’

If the examiner were just judging by words, it would have been easier. But no, I had to face an examiner who made me move.

But the situation was already upon me.

Regardless of the outcome, I wanted to walk out through that door on two feet, so I prepared myself.

“Here I go!”

With a thud, Rine charged toward me.

‘Focus!’

The approach of the muscle-bound Rine was terrifying, but I forced myself to stay calm, circulating my mana.

Thanks to Elaine’s teachings and Sophia’s lessons, my mana control had become more refined since the Crystal Lake

incident. I quickly channeled it into my arms and hands.

Whoosh.

It was a wooden sword, not metal, but as heat gathered in the wood, flames ignited.

“What’s that?”

Rine, the vice-squad leader of Squad 3, had been with me during the Silver Sabertus expedition.

She recognized the flames I had created and hesitated for a moment.

‘Frozen Sword, First Snow!’

I aimed a fast thrust at Rine.

“Oops.”

The first snow had become sharper and clearer, but the opponent was the sub-leader of the 3rd Guard Squad.

This level of thrust was easily dodged.

But when I saw her avoid the thrust, I couldn’t help but smile.

‘No matter how strong the muscles are, the fire will still be hot!’

When Rine opened her arms to grab me after dodging the thrust, I immediately twisted my body.

Seolhangeum, Sarragi Snow.

With a high-speed slash, I attacked Rine once more.

Faster than her arms, my sword forced Rine to retreat as she gave up on attacking.

Taking advantage of the opening, I closed the distance and unleashed Sarragi Snow three times in a row.

“Tch! That fire is really annoying!”

Rine clicked her tongue in frustration.

If I only had a wooden sword, blocking this kind of attack would be easy, but being unarmed, it was difficult for her to do anything.

‘Then why not use a weapon?’

Unlike the cautious Rine, I attacked recklessly.

If she were in full armor, this wild attack would be madness, but right now, Rine was mostly exposed, only covering her chest.

Any hit would surely burn her skin, and it would feel exhilarating.

With my wide-range attacks, Rine couldn’t even properly defend herself and was constantly pushed back.

If it were just a wooden sword, I’d let her hit me once, but if I’m not careful, I could end up hurt. A burn would cause

muscle loss if I fell down.

“Ahhh! If it’s come to this!”

Reaching her limit, Rine leaped backward, distancing herself and lowering her body to prepare for a sprint.

Bang!

Rine’s legs tensed with muscles and exploded as she leaped toward me.

Was she planning to win with sheer speed?

At that speed, even with my Heat Blade, it would be hard to land a solid hit.

What kind of examiner would push a test taker this far?

Grumbling inwardly, I drew my sword with my right hand while pulling my left arm to my chest protectively.

Seolhangeum, Snowstorm!

Instead of dodging, I swung the Heat Blade straight at her.

Bang!

A loud explosion echoed in the room.

But there was no sound of something flying through the air or the sizzling of flesh being burned.

Rine stopped just in front of me, and I halted the sword just before touching her skin.

Rine, now calm, saw that I was holding a dagger with both hands and asked.

“Did you drop the egg?”

“Sometimes sacrifices are necessary for victory.”

“…That’s true. But a knight must always protect the people. Your skills are impressive, having slain a monster alone,

but a poor village girl died in the process.”

“I was fighting based on the assumption that I was hiding the village girl. Also, what bear moves like that?”

“As a knight, you’ll often face unreasonable situations. You tried to avoid every possible one from the start, choosing

the easier path. This kind of force was needed. I expected a solution from you, but unfortunately, there’s a deduction.

Don’t try to finish with words.”

Rine, coldly evaluating, straightened her posture as if the examination was over. She began to pick up the egg I had

dropped, but…

“Huh? Where is the egg…”

Whoosh!

At that moment, the still-glowing wooden sword swept across Rine’s neck.

“What are you doing? Are you protesting?”

“Yes, I’m protesting.”

“What insolence…”

“A knight should protect the people at all times, so why did you kill a perfectly healthy village girl? The poor Egg-chan.”

“What?”

Rine turned her head, confused, and there it was.

“Ta-da!”

I shook the undamaged egg in my left hand right in front of her eyes.

“An egg? How…?”

Rine’s eyes widened in surprise as I smiled and answered.

“You never said I had to hold it in my hand.”

“Huh?”

“Why did I waste energy slashing aimlessly? It was all to keep you distracted.”

“You… didn’t…?”

When I made the attack earlier, my lower left side was hidden, you see? I had turned my body to the left.”

Rine’s fingers trembled as she realized what had happened. She’d figured out that I had slipped the egg into my

pocket when she was busy dodging my Sarragi Snow.

Yes, from that moment on, my left hand had been empty.

When Rine charged at me, I had pulled my left arm toward my chest to make her believe I was still holding it.

“Hey! Then why did you talk like that at the end! You confused me!”

“As a knight, you often face unreasonable situations. Like a test taker who deceives the examiner.”

“A knight is supposed to be judged, not tricked. How does that even make sense…!”

“I erased the civilian’s presence from the monster’s view and took on all the risks myself. Isn’t that also part of being

a knight?”

“Ugh!”

“And there was a sacrifice. What else could I do? The poor charred wooden sword. Right now, you were the best

sword ever. I’ll remember you.”

“Brat!”

“So how many points did I get? I protected civilians and defeated monsters.”

Rine’s face turned red from the heat manipulation, probably from embarrassment.

“Full marks, you little bastard!”

She screamed, as I had tricked her with my lies, and feeling thoroughly humiliated, Rine shouted loudly.

I could tell I was pushing her temper too far, so I sent the egg back home and rushed out the door.

Bang!

The door swung open loudly, and as I ran out, I saw the next contestant’s face turn pale.

It was Jimmy.

“Sorry, Senior. You’ll have a tough time next.”

But as I said, the knight’s exam is based on an absolute score, not a relative one.

If Jimmy does well, he can score high too.

Good luck.