Chapter 93: Training!
The school has been quiet lately. The students are noisy as usual… but it’s quiet around me… I’ve been able to lead a peaceful school life…
But it’s only yesterday and today that I’m talking about, but it seems that the five of them have been a little reluctant to get involved with me since I intimidated them. They’re still not ready for it if they’re still shying away from being intimidated by the people they’re bullying instead of being intimidated by their own threats and bullying. I don’t care if Mr. Mastermind gets angry with you for that.
I’m not supposed to worry about those five guys, so it doesn’t matter. I feel a little better now that they’re gone.
So I’ve had a peaceful school life and I’m taking a detour on my way home today… It’s not often I go straight home.
I’ve been mostly a boxed-in girl, so I’ve rarely been able to walk around freely like this. I’ve been able to go to Khan’s territory relatively freely since I was banished from Carruthers, but there were still restrictions on where I could go and when I could return.
I can’t go out and do whatever I want, but I can stop off somewhere on the way home and they won’t get mad at me. My mom and dad know I’m not playing with them because I have things to do.
Today we head for the royal castle. Unfortunately, today is not my day to see the king. I’ve already made an appointment to talk to him about Alexandra and the Lingerburgs, but that can wait. As you can imagine, a king doesn’t expect to see you right away just because you’ve asked for an appointment.
I’m here today at the battlements which are just inside the castle grounds but around the gateway towards the gardens. I’m still a member of the Kingsguard so perhaps I should have come earlier. I’ve been putting things off for a long time now.
Anyway I entered the castle and went through the passage I used to take when I was knighted to the drill hall. I changed into my knight’s regalia at the academy on the way home. I’m not Flora of the House Caruthers here today but the knight Karn. You mustn’t make the mistake of using that.
“You’re all working very hard.”
“Flotto?”
I looked into the drill hall and saw Claudia, or rather Claudio the knight, resting. It’s been a long time. That’s where Claudio and I crossed swords when I first came here. The walls are lined with swords for the members of the Kingsguard.
They’re all practice swords with milled blades, of course, but the members have their own swords lined up against the wall. If you’re in a rush, like I was that time, you’re supposed to borrow an old sword that’s been sitting on the table in front of you.
The area is also used as a resting area where the group members can leave their belongings and take a rest while drinking. I went over to Claudio, who seemed to be in the middle of a break, and sat down beside him.
Is Claudio taking a break?
“What? Oh! Huh? Huh?”
“Oh… Your Highness, I’m so honored that you’ve come to visit such a place…”
Commander… I’m knight-baron Flot von Kern, a member of the Kingsguard. Did you forget?
I’m going to stop Commander Horst from giving that unflattering speech we’ve seen before. I don’t know what he’ll say if we let him talk like that. As far as I’m concerned.
“Mm! You’ve been in King’s Landing for a long time and you show up for training now? I’m going to have to give you some hard training!”
Horst is changing as fast as ever… he suddenly said something like that. You know I’m in no position to show my face so casually just because I’ve come to King’s Landing… This old man doesn’t have much to say when he talks…
“Geez! Floto… You should run. It’s hard training even for me and you don’t look like you’ve done much training since the last time you trained with the Kingsguard.
Hmm? Well, I certainly haven’t shown up for Kingsguard training since then. I don’t feel like I’m getting any stronger, so maybe it’s time to try something other than my mother and father’s Spartan training.
Then I’ll take care of it.
“Well said! Let’s do the Hundred Man Brawl. Hey! Listen up! This is the knight Baron Frodo! He’s going to train with us for a hundred combatants. Who wants to be first?
When Horst called out like that… and the knights shouted. What is the 100-man team?
“Oh, no… I don’t know.”
“What’s a hundred man team?”
I’ll ask Claudio. There was no such thing when I was in the last training. Maybe they didn’t have it then, or maybe it just didn’t happen. Well, we were kids then… and it smelled dangerous… so maybe they didn’t want us kids.
“Let’s see… It’s a hell of a training exercise that doesn’t end until you’ve had a hundred people in mock combat.”
“Heh…”
It was more normal than I thought it would be. It’s just as they say… I thought it would be something like that since it’s called Hyakunin Kate, but I was surprised that that’s all it really was.
Against a hundred knights. But they’re supposed to come in order, not at the same time. Which is harder? When I was a kid in training, the curriculum was for kids, but they gave us pretty simple drills. You might learn a lot this time.
“Those fools who won’t even show up for the Kingsguard Division’s hellish training should be kicked out~!”
“Go for it! Beat them up!”
“Baptize him~!”
There’s a lot of noise from the others. It’s like they’re jealous that I didn’t participate in training. They’re saying what’s a member of the Imperial Guard doing not participating in training?
You’re right. you’d have to train from morning till night every day to make yourself a true knight. a half-breed like me who just happened to be knighted and joined the Kingsguard by word of mouth would be looked down upon by the regular members.
“Let me do it first!”
“Whoa~! It’s Adon~!”
A-don’t~! A-don’t~! Yeah!””””””
A guy comes out, a lot bigger and more muscular than me. The crowd around me is getting crazy excited. I guess his name’s Adon from the cheering. That’s weird. I don’t remember seeing knights like this when I was a kid…
I’m sure it’s been a long time since some of them left and some of them joined. I looked at Horst and he pointed to the center of the training grounds with his chin without saying anything, so I guess he wanted me to grab my sword and go over there.
I’m gonna borrow this.
I looked at some of the swords that were lying in disarray on the table, and they’re all rickety. The ones here are the remnants of swords that are still usable, but no longer needed because they’ve been replaced. When the swords on the wall are worn out, new ones are made and the old ones are left here.
Unlike the old days, you don’t have to worry about the weight of the sword… Well, there are still some, but your options aren’t as limited as they used to be. I’m strong enough to wield a normal sword… so I pick one that looks like it’s in good condition and head for the center of the training ground.
Adon! Get him!
“Let’s get the hottest guy in the world!”
Hmm? What’s wrong with the way I look? But I’m not good-looking. I’m a woman.
Then let’s begin!
Horst stands in the center of the ring and signals for the start of kumite. Adon is a muscular man and uses a large sword. But it’s still a small sword compared to his father’s, which is as big as a man.
“Whoa-ohh!”
Adon came running slowly and swung his great sword at me from the top. But this… I wonder if he thinks I’m an amateur and is going easy on me… He’s too slow. It’s easy to dodge or avoid him… He seems to be holding back, so I’ll just take it.
Gakiin!
The two of us are not the only ones who have been in the same position for a long time, but the two of us have been in the same position for a long time. It looks like it, but the force is light. I only raised my sword with one hand and it caught it. I guess he was going easy on me.
“Well… I’ve trained you well, so don’t be afraid of me, okay?”
“Whoa! You idiot!”
“I caught Adon’s stupid power with one hand!”
What the fuck is that?
There’s a lot of noise out there. It looked like a full-on blow, but it wasn’t. It was a soft blow, a perfectly timed blow. If I’d hit my father or mother with such force they’d be more than blown away. I’d probably lose my sword and my arm.
But I wonder if the sword I borrowed is too fragile or if it’s nearing the end of its life… I can hear the metal clinking. It won’t last much longer.
“This sword is going to break, so I’m going to use my own.”
Once I’m away, I pull my sword out of its wrapper just in case. It’s heavy. The blade’s been milled for training purposes, but it’s probably many times heavier than the sword I borrowed earlier.
The swords here are for children… and they’re light. But a sword that light won’t stand up to my mother and father’s attacks. They’re so light and fragile they cracked under Adon’s blow earlier. My own sword will withstand their attacks a little better.
“Shall we go this way next?”
“Damn! You licked me! You little shit!”
but Adon keeps his eyes fixed on the ground. It seems he’s ready to receive my blow.
I’ll be right there.
Run lightly and hit Adon head-on with the sword he’s holding. That’s it. That’ll show him he doesn’t have to go easy on me. That’s what I thought.
Oh…
And then he fell to the ground with a thud. Oh no… And Adon isn’t getting up… What’s wrong?
Floto the Winner!
Horst declares as he goes to look at Adon. Voices gradually begin to leak out from the silent surroundings.
Did you see that?
“No…”
“How much of that giant Adon floated up now?”
“I can’t believe you snapped that thick great sword…”
“No, look how thick his sword is. How heavy is that sword…”
All I can hear is the rustling. Why was that the end for Adon? He hasn’t even started and now he’s backing down?
Who’s next?
“I’ll avenge you, brother!”
“Whoa! It’s Samsung!”
“Here comes Samson, whose monstrous strength alone surpasses even Adon’s!”
Now you’re gonna make mincemeat out of me!
Oh, come on… What are you gonna do… mince them in a simulation? This Samson guy’s got some weird weapon… He’s got a stick with a chain on the end and a spiked ball at the end of the chain. Yeah, that’s right. Everybody loves the Morningstar.
But it’s more like a steel ball hammer than a regular morningstar. And doesn’t it matter that the needle crushes the blade? It’s gonna go right through you, right? It’s impossible to stop it before it hits you, and I’m pretty sure it’s going to kill you.
Die!
Oh, he’s still saying “die”. And he didn’t even give the signal to start. What’s this? Bullying the new guy?
“It’s gonna hurt when it hits you.”
So I hit back with my hammer. The ball hit me back and stopped against the wall of the barracks. Samson, who had the chain, was sent flying with the ball to the wall and lay down when it hit the wall. And he hasn’t moved since. I didn’t think he was…
Floto the Winner!
Horst waited about five seconds to make sure Samson didn’t move, and then he called my win. Is this how it’s supposed to be?
So who are the other ninety-eight?
“Hi!”
Run!
“You’re a monster!”
I looked around and asked, and everyone was trying to get out like spiders. But the gates were closed and Horst was standing there.
“Don’t run away! Let’s continue with the 100-man fight! Adon, follow Samson!
“Whew!”
I spent the rest of the day enjoying the Kinki Division’s Hundred Man Defense.
