Chapter 88 - Hoist by One's Own Petard

“Hey, that guy is the real deal, I’m telling you.”

Those were the words Pleta Templeton heard from Acaite when she came to her alma mater, Archenia Academy, as an invited examiner.

To be precise, it was an evaluation of his disciple… a student named Rain Enlight.

As the two had built a strong friendship while rolling in the front lines, Pleta could not help but feel puzzled.

‘This person took in a disciple, and is even praising him…’

That Acaite, who had a nonchalant and crooked disposition.

Wasn't it truly a world-changing event? Pleta might have thought so.

“……Is he that good?”

Pleta, not hiding her surprised expression, adjusted her glasses once and asked again.

Pleta's reaction was extremely common-sensical. Think about what kind of knight Acaite was.

A knight was a position that only the best martial artists in the empire could barely qualify for.

And among them, wasn't the position of Master Knight the pinnacle where the top-tier monsters were located?

But, for such an Acaite to praise a student who was just beginning to sprout like this? No matter how she thought about it, it was an impossible thing.

‘……He was also a person who lived on his own self-importance.’

If he had that much talent, his name would have been widely known in the knight society—the Knights League—long ago. Just like Serene of the House of Salvation, the Stellia family.

‘Honestly, from Mr. Acaite’s perspective, I don't think anyone less than Miss Serene would satisfy him…’

To Pleta's question, Acaite answered refreshingly.

“It’s not a matter of strong or weak. That guy is… properly messed up. That’s the fun part.”

“……Messed up, you say?”

An incomprehensible statement. But Acaite continued to speak as if he had said something obvious.

“Yes, to the point of being heterogeneous.”

“It’s hard to understand……”

“You’ll know when you see him later.”

“Though I don't know if I'll be in charge of him this time.”

It was just a passing conversation, but Pleta could definitely remember the name Rain Enlight.

And, at the same time, her curiosity about the student that Acaite praised so highly was engraved in her mind…… but.

‘He’s really in my charge?’

Seeing Rain Enlight was not a matter of the distant future.

Coincidentally, Rain Enlight was included in the exam she was in charge of as an invited supervisor.

And Pleta's first impression of Rain was.

‘He looks more neat than I thought.’

Since he was a student that the eccentric among eccentrics, Acaite, favored, she had thought that a strong personality would be revealed at first glance.

But, the Rain she actually met was… a handsome and neat young master type. That's what Pleta thought.

Though a somewhat, no. A lot of gloomy energy was swirling around him.

To be honest, she didn't think Acaite would like such a model student type at all… but thinking about it the other way, it also meant that within that neat face, there was something that Acaite would like.

During the strategy session, Pleta's impression of Rain was as follows.

‘He’s trying hard.’

Rain was trying his best to rationally stop the absurd strategy proposed by the team leader.

Somehow, her own image of struggling to get good grades during her student days overlapped, and it felt like tears were about to come out…….

Since he was young, his emotions could get the better of him, and that was a point for deduction… but she didn't feel such a sign from Rain.

Pleta laid out such an evaluation to the other supervisor, Hugo. While sitting in the supervisor's office and grading the students.

“It’s a bit unfortunate.”

“Ahem… is that so?”

“That student named Dejan seems to have… honestly neglected his tactical studies, but the part where the student named Rain tries to persuade him is a bit.”

“Hmm, but still, it’s not that there aren’t any valid points at all, so to speak…”

“……”

Seeing Hugo's reaction, Pleta could not help but sigh inwardly.

It was because Hugo's characteristic noble-friendly disposition, which he had shown even when Pleta was enrolled in the academy, was still the same.

Though he no longer treated Pleta, who had established distinguished military service and had her status elevated to that of a noble, with disrespect.

Anyway, even after that, Rain showed several impressive aspects, and the representative scene was the confrontation and disturbance with a student named Theodore.

It was the brilliant strategic insight he showed after that.

***

Theodore went to protect the base, but in fact, Rain had joined the main force at that time.

“Hahaha, it seems student Theodore made a mistake. Oh dear……”

When Theodore lost Rain Enlight, Hugo said so with a forced good-natured smile.

However, Pleta's thoughts were different.

“……No, it seems like student Rain was the one who made a good judgment.”

“Yes?”

“Rather than it being student Theodore's fault, should I say student Rain did too well?”

Certainly, Theodore's judgment was rational. It was a fact that the base was currently empty.

“If the main force's fight had dragged on for a long time, student Rain would have captured the flag and brought it to Team A's base, and student Theodore's side, Team B, would have been defeated.”

“But…… didn't the main force win overwhelmingly? If student Theodore had just stuck to the main force and blocked student Rain, Team B would have won.”

Hugo's words were not wrong either. In terms of distance, Team B was closer to the flag, so if they had just blocked Rain, it would have been Team B's victory.

However.

“That's something student Theodore wouldn't know from his position.”

This was a matter of a dilemma for Rain and Theodore.

Would Rain trust that his allies were holding on and run to the opponent's base?

Or would he assume that his allies were being pushed back and go to reinforce them?

Would Theodore assume that his allies were still in battle and go to protect the base?

Or would he believe that his allies had achieved a landslide victory and go to reinforce his allies to check Rain?

Theodore's mistake was only one thing. He just didn't expect his allies' landslide victory.

And that judgment was certainly rational. The landslide victory that the main force had achieved was abnormally easy.

If one were to think normally, it would have been a time when the battle was in progress.

But. Rain was different.

“Student Rain…… went to reinforce his allies without a moment's hesitation.”

It was a story that he had seen through the entire battlefield, as if he naturally knew that his allies had been defeated.

If Rain had run to the base at that point, even if he quickly defeated Theodore who had gone to protect the base, Team B would have captured the flag first.

The moment that happened, the exam would have been over.

“……Huh.”

Pleta could not help but purely admire this young boy's tactical ability.

Was this the judgment ability that a boy of only 17 could show?

‘There was a reason why Mr. Acaite said that.’

A wide field of vision as if looking down on the battlefield from the outside.

Even among veteran knights, it was rare to find someone with this level of strategic ability.

“Ahem. But it is still a fact that Team B has the advantage.”

But as if he didn't like that atmosphere at all, Hugo threw in a tackle.

“You're right.”

It was a fact. Excluding Shasha and Theodore who had virtually withdrawn from the battle, Rain would now have to win in a 1 vs 4 situation to barely grasp a chance of victory.

That's why Pleta was expectant.

‘I wonder how he’ll be in battle?’

This student, whose physical abilities were not outstanding according to his profile. No, rather, he was below standard. What kind of performance would he show in battle?

What kind of battle did he fight, to have fascinated that Acaite?

Pleta purely harbored such expectations.

***

“Attack!!”

The battle that began with Milo's typical line was, of course, a 4 vs 1 situation.

‘One mage. Three knights…’

I quickly identified the enemy's specialties. That Dejan fellow must have taken down one of the mages with weak durability.

Thrust-!

Three students, including Milo, rushed at me at the same time.

Generally speaking, it would be hard to say that it wasn't a disadvantageous situation.

However.

Clang-!

Clink-!

I deflected the attacks of the three rushing at me one by one.

‘This is not even child’s play.’

Three people were clearly coordinating their attack on me, and there was even the support of a mage, but… the coordinated attack they were launching was utterly sloppy.

My supervising professor, Acaite, had said this once.

-A coordinated attack is only meaningful when the attacks connect organically. Of course, in a street brawl or at the level of ordinary people, pushing with numbers might be effective… but at the knight level, it's out of the question.

He had taught me how to coordinate attacks while saying that. Damn hard.

‘I remember not being able to move my body properly the next day…’

Anyway, putting aside such idle talk, they really weren't utilizing the advantages of a coordinated attack at all.

Originally, in a coordinated attack, when one person attacks, the inevitable opening that is created is covered by another person's attack. That was the basic framework.

However, they were just rushing in all at once.

‘It looks like they’ve never practiced together at all.’

As a result, they ended up obstructing each other's paths, and this created a result where the flow of the attack was tangled.

What I had to do was simple. Accelerate the tangling of their flow, and land effective hits in the openings.

Screech-

For example, by parrying a recklessly incoming sword strike…….

“Ugh…!”

Thud-!

Making the sword strike miss, and making the enemy who had stopped and the enemy rushing at me collide and fall.

“Magic, what are you doing not using magic!!”

As the battle situation turned unfavorable, Milo's urgent voice was heard.

The mage was certainly not able to exert any power in this battle. Because they couldn't even dare to cast magic.

However, that was not the mage's fault, but rather… because there was no angle to use it.

Goooo-

“Yes, yes sir!!”

When the mage showed signs of using magic.

Clang-!

I would stick to the enemy. Especially to Milo, to induce a misfire of the magic that would fly at me.

“Kugh…!”

Because of this, the enemy couldn't use magic on me. It was because they were afraid of a misfire, which would get their allies caught up as well.

Of course, if they used magic while risking a friendly fire, it wouldn't have been impossible to hit me as well.

But the enemy mage couldn't shoot. Why?

‘Because it’s Milo.’

According to the documents Regina gave me, Milo's team was all made up of Milo's lackeys.

But for such guys to attack Milo as well to get me?

There was no way that was possible. Milo wouldn't have allowed it either.

For these reasons, I tenaciously stuck to Milo and sealed off the enemy's magic attacks.

Filling the team with his own lackeys for his own good had, on the contrary, turned into poison and come back to Milo himself.

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