novelraw Chapter 105 : Chapter 105
Chapter 105 : Chapter 105
105
The lord of the Akarind territory was what one would call a figurehead lord.
And for good reason—the Belmein Kingdom was already a barren land, and among its territories, the Akarind territory where Akarind Academy was located was a remote, rugged countryside teeming with monster habitats nearby.
Moreover, due to the long history of Akarind Academy, the academy held a firm grip on the entire income of the territory.
A lord with a low title could not overcome the chairman, and a lord with a high title did not want this land.
In the end, the king repeatedly dispatched single-generation nobles who had achieved meritorious deeds here as temporary assignments.
The current lord of the Akarind territory was Murray Taylor.
As his surname suggests, he had no connection whatsoever with the Akarind territory.
“Me, not the Chairman?”
“It seems he's heard that you, teacher, are at the center of all the recent incidents, from the demon situation to Aura.”
No matter how powerless and a mere figurehead he was, a lord was still a lord.
It seemed he had checked the situation right after the demon appeared.
‘He’s a bit late, though.’
A year had already passed since Avril made a large-scale investment in the academy and the entire Akarind territory.
His decision to invest here was solely because of me.
A normal lord would have summoned me several times by now.
‘No matter how much Avril cuts off all the stories in the middle…… no. Is it because both Avril and the Chairman are gone that he's finally calling for me?’
I washed my face dryly once to clear my multiplying thoughts.
I had helped the townspeople and offered various pieces of advice, but I had never met the lord in person.
The lord was cooped up in his castle and rarely came out.
I heard that he was despondent about being stuck in such a rural territory and spent almost every day drinking.
‘I'll find out why he's calling when I get there.’
My mindset seemed to have changed a little after meeting the demon.
“Is there anyone else he has summoned besides me?”
“No. It seems he specifically called for only you, Teacher Cassian. Oh, and there's something else unusual.”
“Unusual?”
“The number of applicants for next year's admission is already overflowing. There are even nobles who are contacting us directly through the Goldline Scroll.”
It seemed the powerful figures from all over the world who had received reports from their spies were starting to pay attention to this place.
“There are rumors that the Imperial Academy might fail to meet its freshman quota for the first time ever.”
That was rather surprising news.
And for good reason—the Imperial Academy was, in name and reality, the best academy in the world, selecting and admitting 100 elites every year.
Therefore, the competition rate was almost 100:1.
For such a place to have a shortfall…….
“For now, if you add up all the inquiries about enrolling next year, it's about 280 people.”
“Even though it's not even the mid-term exam season for the second semester yet?”
“Yes. At this rate…… it might well exceed two thousand.”
Two thousand.
That was a number of students I had never even thought of.
The total number of students at Akarind Academy right now was barely a thousand, if that.
And now two thousand.
We might have to hold an entrance exam for the first time.
“Keep that in mind. If we really do have an entrance exam, I'm going to entrust it to you, teacher!”
“……To me?”
“Because your eyes are the most accurate in our academy! Just by watching the students swing their swords, won't you be able to see their potential? This one passes, this one fails…….”
“No. It would be better if I didn't go.”
For that reason, I would surely be a completely delinquent teacher.
If a student's skills were lacking, I would ponder how to teach them and think about pulling them along.
If a student's skills were good, I would think about what areas to supplement.
Above all, the very standard of dividing pass and fail by judging their current abilities didn't suit me.
I might get lost in my indecision and end up focusing on passing all the students.
Hearing my words, Gwen furrowed her brow.
She truly had the expression of a chairman.
“I don't dislike that side of you, teacher, but it's too old-fashioned!”
“Then how about I go in, and you listen to my story and decide on the pass and fail next to me?”
My suggestion made her frown deepen.
“I'll look for another teacher to go in.”
As someone who cared for her students, she would not want to take on such a villainous role.
After finishing my meeting with the chairman, I immediately walked towards the lord's castle.
“Oh, Teacher Cassian, I heard something big happened!”
“Teacher! Are you okay? I heard there was a fight, you didn't get hurt, did you?”
As I walked down the street, the townspeople all greeted me and asked about my well-being.
Since the territory's town was small, the rumors seemed to have spread everywhere.
I gave them appropriate responses and slowly made my way towards the lord's castle.
‘This is my first time going to the lord's castle.’
Perhaps because of that, the surrounding scenery felt quite unfamiliar.
It wasn't just because it was a path I was walking for the first time.
‘Ultimately, the plan was to abandon the academy and use this place as a fortress.’
Since the town was small, the castle was also unimpressive.
It was closer to a large mansion than a castle, and although there was a boundary separating the mansion and the territory like a castle wall, its defensive effect was not great.
However, the ramparts around the lord's castle now had the feel of a proper castle wall.
A moat had been dug between the walls and filled with water from the river, and it seemed one or two crocodiles had been released into the water.
On the castle walls, there were points here and there where soldiers could hide and shoot arrows.
Above all, the castle had also been transformed into a more practical and splendid appearance.
‘If the front wall is destroyed, it's designed with an intersecting layout to make it difficult to get inside.’
I could feel details everywhere that would be difficult for demons or monsters to grasp at a glance.
As I got closer to the castle gate, a soldier approached me.
“Oh, isn't it the teacher!”
“Ah……!”
It was a friendly face.
He was probably one of the guards who originally stood guard at the town's outer boundary.
The last time I saw him was on the day Rozalin regressed, when we were catching orcs.
“It seems you're working here now.”
“After Advisor Avril's investment, all the existing guard personnel were moved to work inside the castle walls. We got a lot of new recruits, and they're in charge of the outside posts!”
“You must have hired a lot of new people.”
“Of course! There were a huge number of settlers coming in from outside! Ah, come to think of it, the reason the lord called you today is probably because of that.”
“Immigrants?”
“Yes. The number of immigrants has exploded recently. And among them, quite a few pointed to Teacher Cassian as the reason for their move. It was a hot topic among us.”
So that's what happened.
“I understand. Should I go in right away?”
“If you go inside, the butler will guide you.”
Indeed, when I entered the castle, a butler in a tailcoat came out to meet me.
I followed him to the second floor of the castle.
The inside of the castle was more splendid and complex than it looked from the outside, with curved corridors in a winding structure, designed to make it difficult to get a proper sense of direction.
‘It's a structure prepared for the certainty of an invasion.’
The place I finally arrived at was a smaller room than I had expected.
Wide chairs like sofas faced each other with a table in between, and empty liquor bottles were scattered messily on the table.
Including the bottles rolling on the floor, there must have been several dozen.
“You're here.”
The man who had destroyed all that liquor was none other than that man, Lord Murray Taylor.
“I am Cassian. You called for me.”
“Yes, Teacher Cassian, I know you well. I've heard enough to make my ears bleed for the past year. Sit, sit.”
I pushed aside the liquor bottles scattered on the guest chair and sat down, carefully observing Murray.
Murray looked to be in his early forties, a man with semi-curly hair parted 5:5 and grown messily down to his jaw.
A messy beard that looked like it had been trimmed but not really, a red nose and cheeks as if he had been drinking until just now, and the smell of alcohol.
It didn't seem like he was pretending to be drunk for bravado, as his speech was slightly slurred as if his tongue was stiff.
“They say you have a great ability? That's why everyone is looking for you. Ah, look at my mind. I haven't even introduced myself, have I?”
“I know who you are.”
“No! You wouldn't know. Of course, this is our first time meeting, isn't it? Look closely. My name is Murray Taylor! I was once a successful knight who served as the vice-captain of the great Belmein Kingdom's knights.”
I observed Murray again.
I could find almost no traces of his knightly days on his body.
His entire body was flabby with alcohol fat, and his eyes were glazed over from being soaked in alcohol.
The calluses on his hands were all gone, suggesting he hadn't held a sword for a long time.
As if sensing my gaze, he let out a self-deprecating laugh.
“Once upon a time, that is, once upon a time. I was injured in a fight with the damn Empire. It was my left wrist.”
He held up his left hand as if to show me.
There was a long gash on his wrist.
With a scar like that, there could have been damage to the muscles or nerves.
He picked up a liquor bottle with his left hand.
His index finger and thumb moved properly, but the other three fingers barely bent.
Murray, who had gulped down a couple of mouthfuls of liquor, looked at me.
“So, what I'm saying is. They say you're such a famous instructor? The countless people who want to settle in our territory, and the countless nobles who have inquired about admission, are all looking for you.”
“You flatter me.”
“So, what I'm saying is. Can you make it so that I can return to the Royal Knights again?”
Thud, Lord Murray placed the liquor bottle on the table.
He couldn't even place it properly, and the wobbly bottle tipped over and spilled onto the table.
The liquor in the bottle sloshed and spilled onto the table.
It was easy to find stains from the table to the floor, as if this had happened many times before.
I looked at Murray's dazed figure again and replayed his brief movement.
When he reached for the liquor bottle, his hand had slightly missed the target.
If moving his own hand was that difficult, his accuracy would be even worse when swinging a sword.
His hand trembled slightly, perhaps due to his long-term drinking, and his eyes were blurry, so there was no way he could endure a long battle.
His breathing was labored, perhaps due to his size, and his muscles were similar.
I hadn't seen his swordsmanship firsthand, but even with this much, the answer was clear.
“I think it depends on you, my lord.”
“Me?”
“I know a swordsman who lost one of the arms he used.”
“Hmph, I have a finger, and that person has an arm, so he must have become even more of an idiot.”
“So, for seven years, he created a swordsmanship that he could fight with using his remaining arm. And he finally reached the position of Great General.”
“A one-armed Great General. Although I was in the knights for a short time in my youth, I've never heard such a story.”
Murray seemed to think I was making it up.
“I am a person who teaches swordsmanship to students who wish to learn it. If you need it, please prepare yourself and come find me again.”
Murray lay back in his chair as if disappointed.
He waved his hand as if he didn't want to talk anymore, gesturing for me to leave.
I got up from my seat without a word.
From behind me, a disappointed, murmuring voice followed me, mocking me.
“I thought you were an all-powerful instructor, but you're just a fraud. Everyone's so pitiful. To be so bewitched by such a person and come all the way to this countryside.”
Was that pitiful remark really directed at me, or was it something he was saying to himself?
I left him behind and walked out of the lord's castle.