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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Chaos
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After the Former Emperor’s speech, which was far too intense to be called a principal’s address, a few more formalities followed.
As I was thinking, ‘This is the same in every world’, the male emcee spoke.
“Ah, the scheduled entrance ceremony proceedings have concluded. Following this, we will provide information and announcements regarding Academy life, so we ask that audience members who are not students please leave.”
As the audience members filed out, the students were left alone in the auditorium.
Istal, the alluring woman with blood-red hair, appeared on the stage.
Holding a magic tool with an amplification effect, she spoke.
“Hello everyone. It’s our first meeting since the entrance exams at the end of last year. I am Istal von Levenstein.”
The students, who had been tense, remembering her demeanor during the entrance exam, looked surprised by her unexpectedly friendly and gentle greeting.
Her tone itself wasn’t that different, but her first impression, suddenly knocking out an examinee, had been too strong.
“I will now explain about life at the Academy. If you have any questions, please raise your hand and wait to be called on before speaking.”
As everyone silently gazed at the stage, she continued.
“From now on, as students of the Academy, you will live in the dormitories. Each of you will be assigned a room, and meals will be provided free of charge. There’s also a shopping district on the outskirts of the Academy, so feel free to use it.”
One of the students raised their hand.
After Istal nodded, the student, who appeared to be of noble birth, spoke.
“Are we required to live in the dormitories? Living without any servants is a bit…”
“Yes, everyone must live in the assigned dormitories. There are no exceptions, at least not yet.”
Subtly hinting at the possibility of exceptions later, she added,
“Oh, and we don’t care about your status outside the Academy. Whether you’re a noble or a commoner, or what you did in the past. Naturally, there will be no special treatment. So don’t bother trying to use your family name to gain any advantages.”
At this blatant disregard for the social hierarchy, several students raised their hands at once.
Some looked quite displeased, but Istal silenced them with a single phrase.
“It’s an Imperial decree.”
In other words, if they had any complaints, they should take them up with the Emperor, or rather, the Former Emperor who had likely issued the order in the first place.
Naturally, that was impossible.
Some of the students were royalty or high-ranking nobles from other kingdoms, but even for them, the Imperial family, the de facto rulers of the continent, held absolute authority.
Even without that, those who had experienced the Former Emperor’s overwhelming presence just moments ago felt hesitant to voice any objections.
They would hesitate even if they had a perfectly valid reason, so how could they possibly complain about wanting a better room or servants?
Smiling at the students who quietly lowered their hands, Istal continued,
“The first week will be a trial period. You’ll experience each of the three combat subjects—’Martial Combat,’ ‘Magic,’ and ‘Support’—for one day each, and the remaining three days will be spent experiencing the seven auxiliary subjects.”
Adding that Sunday was a rest day, she gave a brief overview of each subject.
I listened carefully, comparing her words to my memories from my past life.
‘There aren’t any major differences from what I remember.’
A curriculum focused on practical combat, with students choosing one main and one sub-subject.
Most students reacted with, ‘That sounds manageable’, upon hearing that they would have a full day of rest and only two subjects per day for the other six days.
They had been worried about a grueling schedule, considering the terrifying entrance exams, but the proposed timetable was unexpectedly relaxed.
Quite a few, especially those who had received strict education as noble heirs, smiled confidently, thinking ‘this is nothing’.
And it didn’t take long for their happy delusion to shatter.
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Monday
The instructor for ‘Martial Combat’ was Istal von Levenstein.
Since she had mentioned it at the entrance ceremony, none of the students were surprised.
As soon as class began, Professor Istal spoke.
“Those of you who are not confident in close-quarters combat, please step back.”
About a quarter of the students, including Fiore, stepped back, and I joined them.
Fiore asked,
“Oppa, you seemed quite skilled with weapons. Wouldn’t it be alright for you to stay?”
I replied,
“I don’t want to get beaten up when the outcome is obvious.”
“Huh?”
While Fiore looked puzzled, Professor Istal spoke again.
“Those of you who don’t know how to use magic, please step back.”
This time, a significant number of students stepped back, leaving about fifty around the professor.
Most of them were nobles who had received magic training since childhood, with only about ten, including Regret, being exceptions.
Looking at the remaining students, she said,
“Alright, everyone who’s left —come at me.”
Confusion flickered across the students’ faces.
Alphonse, a handsome young man with blond hair and blue eyes, stepped forward and asked,
“So, you mean… we spar with you one by one, Professor?”
The look she gave him wasn’t that of a maiden admiring a handsome youth, but of someone looking at an idiot who couldn’t understand simple instructions.
“No, I said all of you at once. Are you deaf?”
Alphonse, who probably had never been looked at like that by a woman in his life, looked momentarily flustered but quickly regained his composure and shook his head.
“I understand that you are highly skilled, Professor, but even so, having this many people attack you at once is—”
“Oh, you’re so damn chatty.”
A frivolous-looking young man with two swords interrupted Alphonse.
“Hey, Professor, are you sure we can all attack at once? Don’t regret it later.”
“Your manners are lacking, but your comprehension skills are good. It’s fine, so hurry up and attack.”
The frivolous young man said to Alphonse,
“The Professor said so, so as students, we should comply, right?”
Alphonse frowned.
“It’s dishonorable.”
“And disobeying the Professor is honorable?”
“Don’t twist my words. What’s so exciting about ganging up on a single woman?”
“Huh? And what makes you so special that you can act so high and mighty—”
As I watched the two of them bicker, ignoring the professor, I thought,
‘They’re playing with fire in front of a powder keg.’
And sure enough, the powder keg exploded.
-Thwack!
A short, sharp sound echoed, and the two young men, their jaws askew, collapsed like limp rags.
As the students’ eyes widened, Professor Istal, with a smile that seemed cheerful yet menacing, said,
“Excuse me, you clueless pieces of trash? Let me tell you the rules of my class, so listen carefully.”
The ground shook as she stomped her foot.
“…When I tell you to do something, just shut up and do it. Don’t make me repeat myself.”
And the massacre began.
-Crack.
A seemingly high-quality, heavy suit of armor crumpled like paper under a single punch, sending its owner flying.
-Clang.
A blade, swung down with all the force a slender body could muster, snapped without even drawing blood, let alone piercing her skin.
-Thwack. Thwack. Thwaack!
A giant over two meters tall was sent sprawling with a single kick, and a sharpshooter, who had tried to take advantage of the chaos to fire an arrow, was taken out by a pebble.
“Ugh!”
“Your physical abilities and weapon skills are passable, but your magic control is severely lacking.”
After incapacitating even Regret, who had held out the longest, with a single kick, she looked at the pile of bodies(?) scattered on the floor and the terrified students cowering in the back.
“‘Mana’ is commonly found everywhere in the world, and all living beings possess it to some extent. Those who pride themselves on close-quarters combat, such as knights, warriors, and fighters, have researched ways to strengthen their bodies with mana or imbue their weapons with it, gaining an overwhelming advantage over those who cannot use magic.”
But, she continued, running a hand through her crimson hair,
“Even these magic users were often pushed back in battles against the beings known as demons. The purity of mana was the problem. Unlike demons, who refined and wielded mana specialized for a single function, the mana used by humans was chaotic and disorganized.”
Each word, clear and distinct, was delivered as if in response to the glares of those who, despite being on the ground, had not lost consciousness.
“To solve this, the Barhardt Empire gathered secret techniques passed down through prominent families and developed methods to specialize mana for specific purposes, just like the demons. One of them is this.”
A visible energy began to surge around Professor Istal.
Vivid red mana, the color of blood, flames, and roses.
“Mana specialized for strengthening, protecting, and healing the user’s body. It is called, ‘Red Light’.”
Let me introduce myself again, she declared to the students.
“I am Istal von Levenstein, the ‘Red Light’ instructor. If you wish to learn the new ‘Martial Combat’ that will change the coming era, please choose this subject.”
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