Episode 5
The trainees of the Cradle gathered in the central training ground for their swordsmanship evaluation.
“Line up, everyone!”
Over a hundred trainees arranged themselves in rows, their faces tense with anticipation.
While pankration was also part of the evaluation, swordsmanship was undeniably the most crucial aspect.
Despite being only twelve years old, the trainees already bore the fierce gaze of warriors.
Chief Instructor Pan Mark and the other instructors began inspecting the trainees.
As Pan scanned the lineup, his eyes suddenly sharpened.
“Zeke! Where is Zeke?”
No matter how hard he looked, Zeke was nowhere to be seen.
The other trainees exchanged nervous glances and murmured among themselves.
“Silence!” the instructors barked.
“Who dares to chatter before a sacred evaluation?”
The trainees snapped back to attention, their eyes fixed forward.
Just then, a clattering sound echoed from the far end of the training ground.
Clang! Clang!
Someone was trudging toward them, a claymore slung over their shoulder.
It was none other than Zeke.
Arriving late, Zeke walked with a nonchalance that left everyone speechless.
He casually took a spot at the back of the line.
Pan’s eyes narrowed as he glared at Zeke.
“Zeke Draker. Late and can’t even find your place?”
For most trainees, Pan’s low, menacing voice would have been enough to instill fear.
But Zeke was a man who had survived countless battles across the continent for twenty years.
He wasn’t about to be intimidated by Pan’s presence.
Zeke glanced around and moved to an empty spot in the front row.
Thud!
He planted his claymore into the ground and looked up at Pan.
‘Zeke Draker. What on earth happened to you?’
Pan was irked by Zeke’s behavior, but there was nothing he could do at the moment, so he decided to proceed with the evaluation.
“Now, we will begin the most important part of the Cradle’s graduation evaluation: the swordsmanship duel.”
Though called a duel, it was a brutal test with real swords, where fatalities were not unheard of.
Pan continued slowly, “The scores from this evaluation, combined with the results of the aura awakening ceremony next month, will determine your academy admission and class assignments.”
All the trainees, except Zeke, swallowed nervously.
While the others were focused on academy admission, Zeke’s mind was elsewhere.
‘Aura awakening, huh.’
In his previous life, it was one of the main reasons he was deemed worthless.
The problem was that in this life, Zeke was still a healer class.
Without the talent of a swordsman, aura awakening was impossible for him.
His heart pounded in his chest.
‘I refuse to be treated like trash in this life as well.’
He needed to prove himself before the blessing ceremony.
After the tedious explanation of the Cradle’s graduation procedures, Pan surveyed the trainees and spoke.
“We will now begin the final evaluation test, the swordsmanship duel.”
Pan’s gaze landed on Zeke in the front row.
“Zeke, step into the arena.”
Though called first unexpectedly, Zeke silently stepped forward.
Pan frowned at the sight of Zeke with his claymore.
“Are you really going to use that sword?”
Zeke met Pan’s gaze and replied, “Is there a rule against it?”
There was no rule against using a claymore, but in the prestigious Draker lineage, no one carried themselves like a mercenary.
The other trainees snickered at Zeke’s appearance.
“Does he think a bigger sword makes him stronger?”
“His pankration win must have been a fluke.”
Pan, too, clicked his tongue inwardly at Zeke’s appearance.
‘Was I expecting too much?’
Just as he was about to call Zeke’s opponent, someone spoke up.
“Instructor.”
Pan turned to the trainee who had called him.
“Reina Turn.”
A prodigy who had already awakened her aura before the blessing ceremony.
A talent even the Draker family had their eyes on.
“Please allow me to duel Zeke Draker.”
Pan hesitated slightly at Reina’s request.
He was curious about Zeke’s skills, but he wasn’t sure if Reina was a suitable opponent for him.
‘How many trainees could withstand even three of Reina’s strikes?’
While Pan hesitated, Zeke, already in the arena, spoke up.
“What’s there to think about? She wants to duel me.”
Pan addressed Zeke, “Are you sure you want to duel Reina Turn?”
Without a word, Zeke raised his sword.
With the situation as it was, Pan couldn’t refuse.
He nodded at Reina.
Thud!
Reina stepped into the arena opposite Zeke.
Unlike Zeke with his claymore, she wielded a standard arming sword.
Zeke felt a strange thrill as he looked at Reina.
‘A duel with the Flash Knight. What an honor.’
Reina silently drew her sword.
Zeke followed suit with his claymore.
Reina noticed something odd about Zeke’s stance.
‘It’s different.’
They had trained together at the Cradle for five years.
She was familiar with Zeke’s awkward grip and swing.
He had struggled so much with the weight of a sword that he had a lighter practice sword made.
But now, he was handling a claymore, larger and heavier than a standard sword, with ease.
‘He’s grown and gained muscle in just a week.’
Such a dramatic change in physique in a week was impossible by conventional standards.
‘I’ll know once our swords clash.’
Reina took a step forward.
Despite his calm exterior, Zeke was inwardly tense.
‘Reina Turn. The pure-blooded prodigy of the Draker lineage, awakened at the blessing ceremony.’
In his past life, he couldn’t even come close to her level at the Cradle.
But now, things were different.
Zeke felt the heat coursing through his body.
Pan shouted, “Begin the duel!”
At his command, Reina moved first.
Whoosh!
She charged at Zeke, swinging her sword with fierce strength.
Clang!
The clash of their swords rang out like a giant bell.
Zeke was pushed back, holding his claymore.
Reina quickly shifted to the side and struck again.
Clang!
Once more, the sharp sound of their swords meeting echoed.
Zeke stood his ground, blocking Reina’s attacks without countering.
Among the spectators, Leon, one of Zeke’s cousins, spoke first.
“Zeke’s done for.”
Leon sneered, twisting his lips.
Sitting beside him, Jaken watched Zeke silently.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
As Reina’s relentless attacks continued, Zeke only retreated, never striking back.
Leon shouted at Reina from the stands.
“Reina! Stop playing and just finish him off!”
At that moment, Jaken, sitting next to Leon, interjected sharply.
“Fool.”
Leon glared at Jaken.
“What did you say? You little…!”
Jaken turned to glare at Leon.
Leon flinched and backed down, knowing he couldn’t match Jaken’s skill.
“Do you really think Reina is toying with him?”
Leon finally noticed something was off.
The expressions of Owen, the instructors, and especially Chief Instructor Pan were tense.
No, they seemed more astonished.
Jaken drove the point home.
“Zeke… he’s the one toying with Reina.”
Leon’s face turned pale.
In reality, Zeke was calmly deflecting Reina’s strikes.
‘So this is the sword of the Flash Knight during her Cradle days.’
Her strikes were precise and powerful, unbelievable for a twelve-year-old.
In his past life, Zeke couldn’t wield a sword like that at the same age.
But after twenty years of a harsh, unimaginable life and returning, Reina’s sword felt like child’s play.
The initial tension and excitement had long faded.
He was now guiding her strikes, leading her to better sword paths.
‘Fast and strong, but that’s it. Too textbook, lacking individuality.’
While sticking to the basics was good, her moves were too predictable.
Reina, following Zeke’s lead, seemed to realize something was amiss.
She stepped back, lowering her sword.
“Huff… huff…”
Reina steadied her breathing, glaring at Zeke.
She had never been out of breath in a duel with her peers.
But the Zeke before her felt nothing like a peer.
It was like sparring with an instructor.
Seeing Reina hesitate, Zeke lowered his claymore further.
‘Let’s break the mold a bit.’
Suddenly, Zeke moved swiftly, closing the distance between them.
Swoosh!
His footwork, gliding smoothly, startled Pan.
‘Is that quickstep? How does he know that technique?’
In truth, quickstep wasn’t much of a technique.
It was a basic move to quickly close the gap and bring the opponent into one’s attack range.
However, it required the experience of crossing life-and-death situations to truly master it.
At that moment, something flashed before Zeke’s eyes.
Even as he closed the distance between himself and Reina, Zeke read the message that appeared.
[Active skill ‘Rapid Step’ has been registered.]
“So, skills can be registered like this too.”
Zeke’s Rapid Step was unlike anything ordinary.
He closed the gap in an instant, leaving no trace, like a ghost.
It was a technique only possible for Zeke, whose muscle fibers were several times denser than others.
Whoosh!
Zeke seemed to fold space itself as he suddenly surged forward.
Simultaneously, his claymore came flying at Reina.
She hastily assumed a defensive stance.
Clang!
The claymore struck her sword with tremendous force.
“Ugh…”
Blocking the blow without a proper stance made her wrist throb.
But it wasn’t over yet.
Zeke’s claymore traced an unusual trajectory, striking her sword repeatedly.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!
Zeke wielded the massive, heavy claymore as if it were an extension of his own hand.
The unexpected angles and directions of his attacks left Reina flustered.
Before she knew it, she had lost her rhythm.
Whoosh!
Zeke’s claymore came at her head-on.
“No!”
Instinctively, Reina summoned the power of her aura.
Clang!
Her aura-infused sword deflected Zeke’s claymore.
Clang!
Unable to withstand the aura-charged strike, Zeke lost his grip on the claymore.
Whirl!
Thud!
The claymore spun through the air and embedded itself in the training ground floor.
Seeing Zeke disarmed, everyone assumed his defeat.
But then, something astonishing happened.
“This is…”
As soon as he lost his claymore, Zeke charged at Reina.
Closing the distance with Rapid Step, he struck her throat with a swift chop.
“Gah!”
Reina clutched her neck and staggered back.
Even Jaken and Leon gaped at the scene.
They had been taught that a knight should never let go of their sword, even in death.
Indeed, Reina held her sword tightly, even as she grasped her neck.
Leon jumped to his feet and shouted.
“This is insane! This is supposed to be a sword duel! I can’t accept this brawl!”
Zeke turned his head and glared at Leon.
Under Zeke’s fierce gaze, Leon flinched and stepped back.
Even Pan, the head instructor, was at a loss on how to judge Zeke’s unconventional attack.
Then, Reina lowered her sword with a resolute expression.
She spoke slowly.
“I concede.”
Reina Turn admitted her defeat.
Despite using her aura, which she had vowed not to use against trainees, she couldn’t bring Zeke down. But that wasn’t the only reason she conceded.
‘If it had been a dagger instead of a hand…’
It was a complete defeat.
The trainees and instructors evaluating the match were left speechless.
Zeke picked up his fallen claymore, slung it over his shoulder, and left the training ground just as he had entered.
Finally, Pan regained his composure and announced the result of the duel.
“Z-Zeke Draker wins!”
Everyone in the training ground was stunned by Zeke’s victory.