Chapter 14: Many-on-One Duel (2)
“I’ll face every cadet here.”
Everyone who heard Evan’s declaration reacted the same way.
“What did he just say?”
“Fight us?”
“No way…”
They all thought they’d misheard.
Fighting not one or two, but hundreds of cadets?
In a duel?
“No, he really said he’ll fight us.”
“He’s insane…”
But they’d all heard the same thing, and Brook understood Evan perfectly.
“Evan, there’s a limit to bluffing. Even leniency has its bounds.”
“I’m serious. I need a lot of free time.”
Evan responded with a sincere expression.
“I’m serious, too. If that’s what you want, you’ll face every cadet.”
This was Brook’s final warning.
Back out now if you want.
But Evan was already loosening up.
“That’s exactly what I want.”
“…All cadets, stand!”
Even at Brook’s shout, the cadets hesitated.
“What? He’s serious?”
“No way.”
They were confused if this meant accepting Evan’s crazy idea.
To their lukewarm response, Brook shouted louder.
“Stand! Are you defying an instructor’s order?”
At his roar, all cadets, except the injured, stood.
At the same time, the priestess treating cadets in the corner approached Brook, startled.
“Are you insane? Even if you’re tired of running duel tests, how could you allow this?”
To the priestess, it looked like a one-sided group lynching.
A reasonable many-on-one duel could be managed, but this was different.
“I don’t know how much Instructor Brook overestimates his authority, but what if Evan gets seriously hurt?”
“What? He wants to do it. Priestess, just set up your healing circle if you’re so worried.”
Ultimately, the instructor was in charge of today’s duels.
The priestess, merely an assistant, had no choice but to comply.
“Do whatever. I’m not responsible.”
“I never asked you to be.”
“What’s this, bickering with a cadet younger than you…”
Grumbling, the priestess returned to her place.
Meanwhile, Brook’s eyes blazed.
It was a do-or-die attitude, ready to see it through.
“Pick your weapons from the rack. Assistants, bring more if needed.”
“Yes, sir.”
At Brook’s command, the assistants exchanged glances.
Still, they went out and brought back more racks.
“Instructor, we’ve brought everything.”
Meanwhile, the priestess, sighing, cast a golden magic circle over the entire arena.
“I’m ready, Instructor~”
The cadets chose their weapons and distanced themselves from Evan.
This naturally formed a circle surrounding Evan in the center.
All preparations were complete.
The chaotic atmosphere calmed, like the quiet before a storm.
The duel was about to begin.
“I’ll say it again: don’t kill each other. Now…”
All eyes were on Brook’s mouth.
In that tense moment, his mouth finally opened.
“Begin.”
At the signal, a bold cadet charged.
“Raaah!!!”
“Nice spirit. You’ll need at least that much to take me down.”
Evan extended the chain toward the approaching cadet.
Instead of pulling, he used the momentum to strike the cadet’s solar plexus with his elbow.
Pow!
“I went easy on you. Respect for being the first to charge.”
The blow, enough to cause breathing difficulty, left the cadet unable to respond, collapsing forward.
“Next. No time to waste.”
Beckoning with his hand, taunting,
Several cadets rushed at once.
“Hah!”
“Move if you’re not fighting!”
Each swung their weapon with confidence.
Evan wove the chain into a noose.
And threw it.
Thud.
Then pulled.
“Huh!”
The cadets were entangled in an instant.
Evan used his charging momentum to deliver a kick.
“Gah!”
“Ugh!”
The stacked cadets flew far from the impact.
Four down now.
One-strike knockouts.
Taking down three or four at a time instead of one.
By this calculation, Evan believed he could defeat hundreds of cadets.
And his strategy didn’t stop there.
“Don’t push!”
“Move! I’m going in!”
These were first-year cadets, barely a year into the Academy.
Some had learned to fight in their families or on the streets, but most hadn’t.
Plus, they’d only received basic training.
Training for individuals, not group coordination.
Brook realized this and watched Evan closely.
Did he calculate this, too? If so, it might be better than facing ten or twenty vaguely… But this number is still impossible.
Even as an instructor, Brook couldn’t guarantee victory against such numbers.
Yet he decided to watch until the end.
To gauge Evan’s true potential.
Pow! Pow!
Meeting his expectations, Evan toyed with the cadets using the chain freely.
He wielded it like a whip or noose, moving dazzlingly.
Dash!
His swift movements were a bonus.
If Jack showed precarious dodges, Evan was ruthless, giving no chance to attack.
“Over there!”
He anticipated attacks, tripping cadets by snaring their arms or legs with the chain.
It was like an adult playing with children.
“Don’t push…”
“Argh!”
With such threatening movements, the cadets’ already shaky formation began to collapse.
They tripped over each other, creating a pathetic scene.
Ugh, if they fall on their own, it doesn’t count as me beating them.
Seeing cadets trip, Evan wrapped the chain around his arm.
Using that arm as a shield to block attacks, he targeted vital points with his other hand in close combat.
Pow!
As Evan switched to an invasive fighting style, the arena became even more chaotic.
“Waaah!”
It was pandemonium, like a beast dropped into the center.
Already, dozens had fallen.
Fifty… fifty-one…
Yet Evan showed no signs of fatigue.
Then, an unexpected figure joined.
“Evan!”
Jaina charged, her red hair flowing.
Evan deflected with his chain-wrapped arm.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Sparks flew from the chain in the fierce exchange.
Of course you’d join.
Jaina pressed with a murderous intensity.
When Evan blocked her swordsmanship, she paused her breathing, then slammed her sword down with force.
Crack!
A strike strong enough to break the chain.
Finding her strength lacking, Jaina had used Qi to amplify it.
Using Qi? That’s cheating.
Evan stepped back, subdued a cadet, and took their sword.
He faced Jaina, sword against sword.
Clang!
“Using Qi isn’t a bit unfair? I’m already facing hundreds alone.”
“It’s not against the rules.”
“Fair enough. I won’t use Qi, though.”
Evan grinned, stepping back.
He charged again, spinning his body.
Jaina flinched, frowning.
“You!”
What Evan performed was the Vaberin family’s swordsmanship, The Ritual of Bloodstorm.
“Think you can master it just by copying?”
With high pride in her family, Evan’s act was another provocation.
Jaina, easily provoked, countered with the same swordsmanship.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
A whirlwind erupted in the arena’s center with sharp clangs.
No one could approach the storm, and cadets instinctively backed away.
Clang! Clang! Clang!!!
The clamor grew, and dust rose thickly.
Then, one side was flung out.
“Ugh!”
It was immediately clear who.
That red hair was too distinctive.
Jaina lost?
Brook and the cadets were in unison.
The lofty Jaina had been pushed back by her own swordsmanship.
And with cuts all over her limbs.
Meanwhile, Evan stood unscathed, not even sweating.
“I can’t accept this!”
Unable to accept defeat by her own swordsmanship, Jaina gripped her sword again.
As she prepared to clash once more, Instructor Nell Verind appeared at the arena’s entrance.
“What the hell is this!”
He’d returned early from his trip.
“Brook, you lunatic! Have you finally lost it completely?”
“No…”
“No, my ass! Everyone, stop the duel! What are you all doing! And you, Priestess, why didn’t you stop this?”
The blame unfairly fell on the priestess.
She scowled, spitting curses.
“That maniac did whatever he wanted, and you expect me to do what? This is bullshit!”
Kicking the air, the priestess stormed out.
As the atmosphere turned hostile, the cadets murmured and lowered their weapons, And Jaina, fuming, threw her sword to the ground.
“Uh, Instructor. You’ll keep your promise, right?”
Evan reminded Brook of the reward for the many-on-one duel.
“Absolutely.”
That day, Evan defeated 89 cadets.
Thus, he earned roughly three months of free time.
***
The duel that took place that afternoon.
Among them, Evan’s duel was undeniably the most memorable.
Those who witnessed it couldn’t stop talking about it, and by the next day, the story had snowballed, spreading across the entire Academy.
—Evan Lafard challenged all the cadets.
—He fought everyone and didn’t get a single scratch.
—Actually, Evan only used a fraction of his strength.
The rumors grew, becoming more exaggerated.
While Evan was writing a new legend at the Academy, he wasn’t there.
Thus, those who heard the rumors all asked the same question.
“So, what’s Evan doing now?”
No one could answer properly.
Not even Jack, who served as Evan’s attendant.
“I don’t know…”
“That makes no sense! Aren’t you Evan’s attendant?”
“I am, but I was training with the other cadets.”
“Oh, right… Got it.”
Watching the questioner leave, Jack tilted his head.
Why is Lady Jaina looking for Young Master Evan? Is she planning revenge?!
Seeing her fiery eyes, Jack panicked.
He wanted to find Evan before her and warn him.
But where is he, really?
The problem was that Evan hadn’t told Jack where he was going.