Chapter 58: Practical Training (1)

Bayern, Week 5 — the long-awaited day when practical training would finally begin.

To get ready for departure, Carl finished his meal earlier than usual and returned to the dormitory.

His luggage had already been packed the previous day, so his plan was to simply wait until the assembly time.

However, when a familiar shadow tapped at the window, he allowed himself a faint smile.

"Seolbaek."

The bird fluttered in and landed on his desk.

Beep, bee-eep.

When Carl stroked its head, it shook slightly and let out a pleasant cry.

Taking out the food and water he had prepared beforehand, Carl read the letter from NOX that Seolbaek had brought.

"…No problems over there, it seems."

It was nothing more than a routine report.

From the edges, the letter turned to ash and scattered out the window with the wind.

Carl would be away from here for three full days for practical training.

That meant that even if something happened to NOX, he wouldn’t be able to respond right away.

It was easy to say nothing would happen in those three days, but in this world, nothing was guaranteed.

So I did consider sending the Substitute…

But the Substitute still wasn’t perfect.

Even with other members assisting, nine times out of ten, someone would sense something was off.

So he decided to proceed as planned.

NOX needed to function as a self-sustaining collective.

He couldn’t watch over every single thing forever.

The larger the organization grows, the higher the skill ceiling demanded of its members.

Carl believed the ones he had personally taught and trained would manage just fine.

Thunk.

It was about time, so he slung the backpack he had left beside the bed over his shoulder.

Bayern would provide essentials like food, but everything else they might need had to be prepared individually.

"This part really is nice."

Carl shook the backpack lightly — it felt weightless.

Magical backpacks with spatial expansion were commonplace in this era.

Back in the Central Plains, he would’ve had to hire a porter or cut his load to the bare minimum just to manage the weight.

If only the Central Plains had such things.

Beep, bee-eep.

After watching Seolbaek leave from its meal, Carl also stepped out of his room.

When he went down to the men’s dorm lobby, he found familiar faces waiting.

"Has Maxim arrived yet?"

"He came earlier but said he was going to the bathroom."

"…I thought he ate more than usual."

Carl gave a wry smile at Gale’s words.

Maxim had insisted on eating his fill before they left — since they wouldn’t have decent meals during training — and now it seemed his stomach was paying the price.

"He just had to wait a few days."

"That’s a fitting end for a self-proclaimed gourmet."

"A true gourmet should be able to find flavor in even the plainest food."

"That’s true."

Even Pozers chuckled at Maximilian’s antics.

"Ah, sorry!"

Before long, Maximilian came rushing in with his belongings.

They still had plenty of time before the meeting, but since they had gathered early, the others wasted no chance to tease him.

"You washed up properly, right?"

"You didn’t just eat again after going, did you?"

"No way… then again, since it’s you, Gourmet, who knows."

"Alright, alright, enough teasing. Others are waiting, so let’s go."

Grumbling, Maximilian quickly tried to shift the topic and moved toward the exit.

When they stepped down to the dorm entrance, the waiting female students came into view — Amy, Lien, Yuria, and Laysis.

Not long ago, they had still been awkward with each other, but now they chatted warmly as though they had been friends for ages.

Even Yuria, who had often seemed apart from the group, now looked noticeably brighter.

Spotting Carl and the others, she turned her head and widened her eyes.

"You’re here."

"What took you so long?"

"…There’s still some time before the assembly."

"Still, you should come early and wait."

Their groups naturally merged.

As they exchanged greetings, Carl gave a polite nod to Yuria and Laysis.

Yuria brushed her bangs and cast him a sidelong glance, while Laysis smiled and waved.

"A man’s preparations always take longer, you know. Scolding someone for being late is so tactless."

Maximilian crossed his arms and replied proudly.

Gale, from behind, waved and spoke up.

"We were late because of Maxim."

"He said eating too much at breakfast ruined his… balance."

"I wonder if he’ll be alright during training."

"…You bastards, not sparing a thought for your friend’s image."

"Don’t worry — your image hasn’t changed one bit anyway."

"That’s true."

Amy and Lien stifled laughs as they offered lighthearted comfort.

Then, someone entered through the dormitory doors.

"Hmm."

Already fully geared, Brother Darius scanned the younger cadets with the crimson-tinged gaze characteristic of the Leipzig bloodline.

Behind him stood Luna, a third-year who would serve as their group’s assistant, and Ivan, a second-year.

"…"

Luna gave Carl a discreet wink, making sure no one else noticed.

Unfortunately, Yuria caught it, leading to some needless suspicion.

"Everyone’s prepared, right?"

"Yes, sir."

"Absolutely, sir!"

At Darius’s words, the cadets responded in perfect discipline — the result of the past few weeks of rigorous training.

"Then I won’t bother with a check. We move out immediately."

With a sweep of his robe, Darius turned on his heel.

Maximilian clenched his fists, eyes shining at the sight.

As expected, so cool.

To Maximilian, this was the ideal senior he aspired to be.

Would he look that way to juniors one or two years from now?

Someday, he wanted to inherit Darius’s legacy and stand just as tall.

"Maxim, we need to go."

"…Ah, right."

At Carl’s prompting, Maximilian snapped out of it and started walking.

Over five hundred cadets were participating in the fifth-week practical training.

If all of them left Bayern and traveled at the same time, chaos would be inevitable.

So they were split into separate groups, each departing in staggered time slots.

The time slots ranged from dawn until midday, and Carl’s group was assigned a comfortable time just after morning.

Of course, there was an unspoken story behind that — Darius had used his influence to push aside the other group leaders and secure the better schedule.

Clatter, clatter.

The cadets boarded the carriages waiting at the academy gates and rolled through the streets of Beatrice.

Their destination was the Teleport Gate located in the central plaza of the capital, Polfoardel.

Normally, traveling even to the nearest neighboring city would cost dozens of gold per teleport.

But Bayern had reserved the gate for the entire morning, allowing all the cadets to use it without issue.

"Confirmed: Cadet Darius and ten others. You may proceed inside."

At the staff member’s words, the cadets stepped onto the gate platform with practiced ease.

Most were from noble families — among them was even a member of royalty, Laysis — so no one was flustered by something as simple as a Teleport Gate.

Woooong—!

For an individual to use teleportation magic required being at the highest class of mage.

That was why large cities built Teleport Gates as facilities for long-distance travel.

Spatial travel, huh.

From the rear of the group, Carl watched the surroundings dissolve into light.

He had seen techniques in the Central Plains that folded the ground to cross distances — somewhat like this.

Looking at it this way, perhaps magic and Taoist arts originated from similar principles.

Woooong!

The teleportation ended.

They had arrived in the Erendal region, at the eastern border of the Empire.

Disembarking from the gate, the cadets boarded the prepared carriages and traveled out of the city.

True to Bayern’s reputation, everything proceeded smoothly without a single delay during the trip.

"…There are so many."

Upon entering the subjugation zone, countless military camps came into view.

The cadets, who had been chatting away during the ride, gradually fell silent, a slight tension creeping in.

The heavily armed soldiers and knights everywhere made them realize they had come to a battlefield.

They said a subjugation campaign is a major event for the Empire.

Carl also quietly gazed out the window.

Tens of thousands of people gathering at the border — if there had been another country sharing the frontier, they might have worried it would seize the chance to invade.

Fortunately, the eastern border was guarded by a long mountain range, beyond which lay a vast sea.

"I think this is the first time I’ve seen so many soldiers."

"That just means this subjugation is that important."

"Look over there — that’s the emblem of Rundell Academy."

"Zamora’s here too. Guess the other academies that are joining got here earlier than us."

This subjugation included academies other than Bayern.

As part of a program to build cadets’ experience, several top academies from the capital had been selected to participate.

"I wonder what kind of people the other academies sent."

Maximilian murmured with curiosity.

Without question, Bayern was the best of all academies.

Though other academies had occasionally produced prodigies that briefly stole the spotlight, Bayern’s claim to first place had been solid throughout its long history.

Especially this generation — from Nerian, who received the Dawn Medal directly from the Emperor during the entrance exam, to Yuria, named heir to the Gray Magic Tower, to Carl, who topped the theory exam of Bayern’s notoriously difficult entrance test — there were many remarkable figures.

People even called it a golden generation.

"I’ve heard rumors that the other academies are no pushovers either."

"What did last week’s newspaper headline say again? ‘Who will challenge Bayern’s throne!’"

"Well, we’ll see in the second semester. In theory at least, we’re fine — we’ve got Carl."

Maximilian reached out and pulled Carl by the shoulder.

"You’ve got this, right? Carl, you’re Bayern’s hope."

"…I’ll do my best."

Carl nodded with a faint, bitter smile.

From the latter half of the second semester onward, there would be exchange events and competitions with other academies across the Empire.

These were annual events, hosted in rotation — and next year, it would finally be Bayern’s turn.

"Exchange events, huh."

"What was it like in your time, Senior Darius? You entered the martial tournament, didn’t you?"

"Seventh place."

Darius nodded calmly.

"…Seventh."

"That’s amazing."

Everyone clicked their tongues in amazement.

Placing in the single-digit ranks among so many cadets was proof of unquestionable skill.

"There were monsters everywhere. I could’ve gone further, but… an injury cut me short."

Darius frowned faintly at the memory.

Then he turned to Carl and gave a confident grin.

"Carl, I trust you’ll clear away the regrets your older brother couldn’t."

"If it’s a theory-based competition, I’ll consider it."

Naturally, Carl neatly rejected his dear brother’s request.

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