BXBX NOVEL Chapter 98 - The Competition (1)
Chapter 98 - The Competition (1)
Unfortunately, Kirrin’s competition pep rally party, meant to encourage everyone, was called off.
It was due to Knightley’s strong objection.
“With the competition starting tomorrow, having a big meal doesn’t seem right, does it?”
“Knightley’s right. What if something goes wrong and we end up with an upset stomach? All our efforts would go to waste.”
Listening to Merilda’s reasoning, I had to admit it made sense.
Even athletes don’t eat special foods before important matches. They stick to their usual routine and eat simple meals.
It’s true.
“Headmaster Kirrin seemed really disappointed.”
Olysia, who had gone to relay the message to Kirrin, returned and reported.
“When I went to her office, she was all dressed up in a beautiful outfit and had even done her hair.”
“What, was she preparing for a noble’s party or something?”
“It’s not about what kind of event it is, but who you’re sharing it with. You are the academy’s representatives for the competition, after all.”
Olysia added with a smile.
“After the competition, why don’t we invite the headmaster? I’ll make sure to properly prepare for it.”
“Yeah, let’s do that.”
And so, the party was canceled, and we had a simple dinner like usual.
With the competition starting tomorrow, Knightley was incredibly tense.
It was a complete contrast to her usual confident demeanor.
She kept tapping her fingers nervously on the table, biting her lips anxiously—it was unsettling.
I understood, though.
Top students always get worried before exams, stressing out over the possibility of not getting perfect scores. And if they miss even one question during a preliminary grading, they lose their minds.
On the other hand, Hindrasta didn’t seem to care at all that the competition was tomorrow.
“Ah, the day before an event is for resting. If you push yourself too hard, you might get injured.”
She was sprawled on the sofa, lazily scratching her belly. Well, she is a dragon after all.
For a dragon, a human competition doesn’t really mean much.
Still, Hindrasta had worked hard enough during training.
It was her idea to carry Merilda in the device they got from Kazadar because of her slow mobility.
“If we don’t win first place, you’ll probably try to kill me, right? Aargh?!”
That’s why Hindrasta was so motivated.
Meanwhile, Merilda looked calm on the outside.
It could be because of her usual composed personality, or maybe it was her confidence in her field of expertise.
She had Hindrasta’s help with infiltration, and killing people wasn’t really her thing anyway.
It’s certainly better than being so nervous that you start shaking.
But then, there was Ismera…
“Haa…”
Ismera, sitting at the table and explaining things to the students, let out a shaky sigh.
Right now, we were reviewing potential questions for tomorrow as part of our final preparation.
Everything was related to espionage. The combat section had already been covered, so we were focusing on this until tomorrow.
“Sorry… Where was I…?”
Ismera, who had become completely worn out, forced a tired smile as her dark, shadowed eyes blinked heavily.
For the past month or so, Ismera had been coming to my house every day to teach the students.
Her routine went as follows:
She arrived around the time the students finished lunch and taught them until dinner.
After that, when the students went out for physical training, she reviewed the lesson by herself and prepared for the evening study session.
While the students were washing up and eating dinner, she would quietly sit in a corner, poring over books and making further preparations.
As for dinner, she would only nibble at a small salad Olysia had made for her.
Then, she would teach the students until almost midnight before heading back to the main building alone.
Other professors said the lights in Ismera’s office stayed on until early morning.
It seemed she only managed to catch a few hours of sleep in the morning, between dawn and lunchtime.
Repeating this schedule for a month—of course, she was exhausted.
What’s more, this competition was extremely important to Ismera.
It was a chance to prove her abilities.
Up until now, she had been extremely unlucky and kept getting overshadowed by me, but this time was different.
If the students won first place, Ismera would share the spotlight with me as a co-director, not hidden in my shadow.
For Ismera, this was a matter of life and death.
I, too, wanted her to be recognized. In fact, I hoped she would become the headmaster.
Ismera is a smart and capable elf. If she became the headmaster, she could advance the academy far better than Kirrin or I ever could.
But there are complicated factors beyond her control, which makes that difficult for now.
If we win first place in the competition, I’ll formally recommend her to the Second Princess.
“Oh?! There’s blood!”
Suddenly, Hindrasta shouted.
I turned to see Ismera hurriedly tilting her head back, covering both her nose and mouth with her hand.
A few drops of blood had fallen onto the test papers she was holding, and blood was now trickling down her cheek.
Olysia quickly fetched some tissues, and I helped Ismera sit upright again.
“The blood could flow down into her airway. Let’s stop the bleeding here.”
“Please, remove your hand.”
Once Ismera moved her hand, I passed her the tissue, and she plugged her nose.
“Let’s call it a day. The competition is tomorrow, so everyone should get to bed early.”
At my suggestion, Ismera silently nodded.
She hadn’t lost that much blood, but her complexion was terribly pale.
Now that I looked closely, her hair was a tangled mess, as if she hadn’t washed it in days.
But being a pureblood elf, she didn’t smell bad—on the contrary, she had a fresh, grassy scent.
From what I know, elves don’t even have the concept of regular bathing.
Their bodies don’t produce odors at all.
Back when we rescued prisoners from the Demon King’s army, the humans and dwarves who had been held for a long time reeked of rot, but the elven prisoners smelled clean, as if they had just bathed that morning.
Honestly, I’m a little envious.
“Everyone, get some rest.”
After stopping the bleeding, Professor Ismera packed her things and stood up.
“Shall I walk you home?”
“No need.”
Ismera rejected my offer flatly, but as she turned to leave, she suddenly lost her balance and staggered.
I rushed to support her, but Ismera pushed my hand away, braced herself against the wall, and squeezed her eyes shut. She seemed to be extremely dizzy.
“Professor, why don’t you stay here for the night? We’re all leaving together tomorrow anyway.”
“I said I’m fine.”
She struggled to push herself off the wall and staggered out of the house.
“I’ll follow her and make sure she’s okay.”
Merilda, who had been watching worriedly, offered to go with her, and I told her to go ahead.
After Ismera left, we all got ready for bed.
We had to leave early tomorrow morning for the competition venue.
Knightley was still anxious, her leg bouncing nervously as she frantically flipped through the summary Ismera had prepared. Hindrasta, meanwhile, lay back, looking up at me upside down.
“I bet there’ll be a funeral soon.”
“What are you talking about?”
“That elf.”
Hindrasta pointed her chin toward the door where Ismera had left earlier.
“She looks like she’s on the verge of death. Her face is covered with the shadow of death.”
“She’s just sleep-deprived from teaching you. And it’s not the shadow of death—it’s called dark circles.”
“What’s that? Whatever. If we leave her like this, she might really die. Elves are only strong in the forest; outside, they’re weak and die quickly.”
“If you’re that worried, win first place in the competition and give her some relief.”
“Is there even a chance we won’t win first place?”
“We’ll find out tomorrow. Now go to sleep. Knightley, you too.”
After pulling Knightley away from the table, I stepped outside.
I was waiting for Merilda to return after seeing Ismera off.
As I paced along the road in front of the house, I soon saw Merilda approaching from a distance.
“How was it? Did Professor Ismera make it home safely?”
“Yes. She was headed to the main building, but I forced her into the dormitory instead.”
“Well done. Let’s head inside.”
“Professor, by the way.”
Just as I opened the door, Merilda called out from behind me.
“What is it?”
“After the competition, should I continue taking private lessons from Professor Ismera?”
“That’s up to you to decide, but I’d recommend it.”
“I suppose that would be best. I’m more suited for theory than combat.”
“Someone like you is better off in a support role, and that benefits the Empire, too.”
“And Professor Ismera as well.”
Merilda nodded in agreement.
“Professor Ismera cried a lot earlier.”
“She cried?”
“She asked us to win first place in the competition, and after that, to continue taking private lessons from her.”
“I see…”
For her to cry in front of a student…
She must be incredibly exhausted from the lack of sleep and the overwhelming pressure.
After the competition, I’ll definitely have to take some action.
# # # # #
The next morning, at dawn.
Before the sun had even risen, we set off from the academy in a carriage.
The carriage was a four-seater, so Ismera and the students rode in the passenger cabin while I took the reins.
By the time the rising sun cleared the morning mist, we arrived at the designated gathering place.
The competition venue wasn’t in the Imperial Capital, as we’d been informed, but at the Capital Defense Headquarters.
Let’s see… Is the commander still that guy from back then?
There was already a long line of carriages in front of the headquarters, filled with participants for the competition.
Judging by the crests and flags on the carriages, there were participants from all sorts of places.
There were academies scattered across the Empire, military academies, mercenary bands, adventurers’ guilds, noble private armies—you name it.
The scale of the participants was just as diverse.
Some people were riding open carts pulled by donkeys, while others arrived in luxurious six-horse carriages, or towering caravans that looked like something desert tribes would live in.
And as expected, there were the Leblanc Mercenary Corps.
Instead of a carriage, they had come on warhorses, loitering around outside the main line, smoking cigarettes with a swagger.
From their builds and armaments, they didn’t seem like rookies. It looked like they’d sent their most seasoned veterans, as long as they were still within the age limit.
At that moment, the gates of the headquarters opened, and the participants began entering the venue.