?
“I am sorry for behaving like that.”
In front of the stall, a senior was bowing his head down to a freshman, and it was an unbelievable sight for most passersby.
Since they had never expected the members of the proud, if not egoist Archery Club would behave like that.
“It is fine,” I answered, looking at the senior. He probably asked Instructor Ethan about me and then learned that he really invited me here.
“Thank you. I have already registered you as one of our members. Congratulations.” He said with a smile, trying to look good to me.
“Is that so? I will be taking my leave then.”
But I simply nodded and left. I knew what kind of person he was and what kind of role he was going to play. Thus there was no need for me to look at him with a favorable expression.
I could easily see the distorted expression on his face. He is probably mad at what I have just done. It was a simple and small act, but it was this easy to anger him.
Humans were creatures with fragile egos. Easy to control and shape as you want.
‘I will make sure you take the same path in the game…..You will be the route for me to reach that demon and kill it.’
With that thought, I left.
To explain what happened, simply I was on my way back to the room, and I passed by the Archery Club’s stall, and there this senior stopped me, and here were we.
In any case, since today’s classes were canceled, I could use this time to train. The sense of urgency was also approaching since, with the start of clubs, the events of the story would also start, which meant I needed to be strong enough for those events.
The events did not only contain demons but also contained villains and humans at the same time.
As you must have already noticed, the students inside the academy were no angels. Some of them liked to bully others, some of them wanted to be better but were crushed and etc.
And the Academy’s harsh types of approach made it a lot harder and easier for students to fall into the pit of despair, which made them vulnerable to whispers of demons and villains.
For now, things would be quiet as not many fractions inside the academy would occur, which is until the first mid-term exams and the following festival.
In any case, now that I was free, I needed to make the most of my time…..
*******
<Tuesday’s first practical lesson.>
As I was standing before the boy, I couldn’t help but shake my head.
“Your pairings have changed.” Eleanor White said with her gaze looking at me. “Student Sylvie requested the change of partners.”
It seemed Sylvie herself requested it. I was sure normally, instructors would not comply with such a request, especially Eleanor White, but it seemed she did it probably because she both didn’t like me, and she also went a little easy on Sylvie.
“Ethan and Astron. You will train together from now on.” And the one I was left with was this righteous protagonist.
The one that I didn’t want to involve myself.
‘It makes sense that she paired him with me.’ I thought. Since Ethan’s ranking was also low, it was normal for him to match with me.
“You can begin now. I will be watching, so no slacking off.” With her serious tone, she spoke and left both of us looking at each other.
As Eleanor White’s departure left Ethan and me facing each other, I couldn’t help but feel a sense of apprehension. Ethan was the embodiment of the word protagonist, which I also didn’t dislike personally—righteous, idealistic, and always eager to prove a point. He was not a bad guy but rather an innocent cub that would grow to be a hero.
However, him not being a bad person or being a good person did not mean I needed to be happy with this situation. There are things that heroes also lacked.
First and foremost, it is their beliefs. As players, readers, or viewers, we could tolerate how did they follow their beliefs to the end, but from a different perspective, what made their opinions better than others?
Why the opinions of heroes are the ones that should be followed? When such questions are asked, the answer will come on its own.
It is the strength.
If a hero doesn’t have the strength to back up their own beliefs, then those beliefs are bound to be forgotten.
If they had the strength, then those beliefs would become the beliefs of those weaker….At least, that will be on the surface.
And now, thanks to Sylvie’s intervention, we were thrust into a partnership neither of us seemed thrilled about.
Ethan cleared his throat, his gaze fixing on mine. “You know, Astron, I can see you’re not too pleased about this arrangement. But I believe there’s some merit in working together.”
It seemed he wanted to change his approach. My attitude of last time seemed to remember in his head, which was good.
I exhaled audibly, my patience wearing thin. “I don’t see how being paired up with you benefits either of us.”
In a way, Ethan was the protagonist; I would benefit from sparring with him for sure. But why did he think so was the question in my mind.
Ethan’s tone remained calm, undeterred by my lack of enthusiasm. “We might have different approaches, but that doesn’t mean we can’t learn from each other.”
He started speaking with the same tone, and I once again remembered the game and why I liked playing it.
“Strength isn’t just about physical prowess. It’s about understanding, adaptability, and using your power responsibly.”
It was because his beliefs would change as time went on, and he would graduate from being a bright and righteous brat to a person who had seen countless things in his life.
This was one of the things that made me like the game.
Though right now, he was sure irritating.
I shook my head, the frustration bubbling up within me. “Look, Ethan, I respect your perspective, but don’t waste your time on me. Our world doesn’t work the way you think it does.”
For some reason, I wanted to speak those words and show him my standing, which I would not normally do. It was probably because this nature of his made me irritated.
Though hearing me, Ethan’s lips curved into a small smile, one that reflected his unwavering belief in the inherent goodness of people. “Maybe I won’t change your mind today, but I won’t stop trying. And who knows, maybe we’ll find some common ground.”
I could see he was excited about this, and that made me more and more irritated.
‘Nobody cares about your beliefs…’ I wanted to say, but I closed my eyes and calmed the slight annoyance inside me.
‘What are you doing, Astron?’ I asked myself. ‘Why are you wasting your time pointlessly?’ With that question, I raised my head and looked at him.
“Let’s start. I don’t want to discuss philosophy right now.”
Ethan’s persistence shone through his smile. “Is that so? But I will never give up, you know?”
I dismissed his statement with a simple response. “I don’t care about your determination. Let’s focus on the task at hand.”
“Okay.” As he nodded, he also took his stance with a serious expression on his face.
Right now, we both entered our combat mode waiting for each other. We circled each other, the tension between us palpable. Despite my irritation, there was a hint of curiosity about how this would unfold.
I wanted to see where did I stand in terms of close combat and my physical prospects.
SWOOSH
Ethan initiated the exchange with a quick jab aimed at my abdomen. His posture was not of a veteran, but it was enough to say for an amateur.
THUD
I parried with a swift block, and the impact resonated through my arm, and it slightly pained me.
‘He is strong. As expected.’
Ethan’s strength was apparent even in his unarmed strikes, a testament to his training and status parameters. That was expected since even if he was recently awakened, his talent showed no bounds at all.
But I wasn’t about to let that deter me.
SWOOSH
I retaliated with a calculated hook to his ribs, testing his defenses.
THUD
He deflected it with practiced ease, showcasing his ability to read and respond to my movements.
SWOOSH
I followed up with a roundhouse kick, which he ducked under, showing his stance as a spear user’s effectiveness, closing the distance between us.
SWISH
Ethan’s fist shot forward in a straight punch. I leaned back, narrowly avoiding the blow. His knuckles grazed my chin, a reminder of his talent at combat, even if he was not experienced in unarmed combat.
It was not his basic strength but rather his talent at simply general combat. I could see why he was the protagonist, as he seemingly moved instinctually and made incredibly precise decisions, probably without even knowing how he did do it.
But that also gave me an opportunity to learn and improve myself. By observing how he did those natural moves and picking up his special talent, I could simply improve myself.
I focused on his stance, the subtle shifts in his weight, and the tension in his muscles. It was as if time slowed down, allowing me to perceive the minute details of his movements. My brain worked rapidly, registering every bit of information into my brain.
‘I see. So, he uses his body in such a manner to put more strength onto his core, making it a lot easier to recover from his attacks.’ I thought.
SWOOSH
As he followed up with a left hook, I sidestepped and countered with a swift elbow strike to his side.
THUD
“Kurgh-!” 𝑂𝚟xt.𝒞𝓞𝐦
His grunt of pain was evidence that my technique was effective. Our sparring intensified, a dance of dodges, blocks, and strikes.
Ethan’s determination was evident in his eyes, and despite my initial annoyance, I found myself drawn to this sense of fighting and improving myself.
For some reason, it felt a lot better than practicing with random dummies. It felt like I was improving myself faster with that now.
As we exchanged blows, I could feel his energy and dedication driving him forward. His punches were becoming more controlled, his movements more deliberate.
His natural way of learning was showing itself as he was moving in a more refined way. Of course, just one session of fighting and sparring didn’t make him an expert, but he was still improving rapidly.
Ethan’s inexperience in unarmed combat was evident, but his willingness to learn was undeniable. He wasn’t just throwing punches; he was studying my movements, adapting, and evolving with each exchange.
But I was also doing that.
Simply put, in turn, I was also benefiting from our sparring. My [Perceptive Insight] allowed me to identify flaws in my technique, areas where I could improve. The feedback loop between us was unexpected but effective.
I adapted my strategy, using my agility to my advantage. I weaved around his attacks, exploiting openings in his defenses.
But each time I landed a hit, he countered with renewed vigor. Our clash was a symphony of grunts, impacts, and the rustling of leaves beneath our feet.
And amidst the physical exertion, Ethan spoke.
“You know, I wanted to ask you this for a while, but why are you still ranked last? With your skills, you can rank higher.” It seemed he was curious about why I was still ranked last. He must be aware of my nonarmed combat skills now, though it didn’t matter.
“None of your business.” I cut him off as I threw a quick uppercut to the right side of the navel.
THUD
Though, he blocked his with his elbow, which was something I was expecting him to do. It was his natural reflex to do it, after all.
“Heh….I am really intere-”
THUD
As he was about to speak, suddenly, a fast crochet that I had masked with my uppercut appeared before his eyes and knocked him out from the spar, making him lose his balance and fall to the ground.
SPIT
As he spit the blood in his mouth, he raised his head and looked at me.
“You really are ruthless.”
“Shut it.”
DING
Just as Ethan was about to stand up, the sound of a bell ringing was heard, and following that was the announcement of the finish.
“STOP!” Eleanor said with her hands raised, making everyone stop in their tracks. Her mana was covering everyone, showing her precise mana control, befitting to her title “Invoker.”
“The class is finished. You are dismissed now.” With those words, everyone stopped what they were doing.
“You have a cranky personality, but you are still good. I will look forward to our next spars.” With those words, Ethan stood up and made his way towar his group….
————————————
You can check my discord if you want. You can see the illustrations of characters there.
The link to the discord server is in the description of the book.