Allen looked around at the stack of books.
A record of numerous master knights who appeared during the thousand-year history of the empire.
Some will see this and say that the empire is great, but to Aslan, all of this took on a completely different meaning.
“For a thousand years, none of them has seen the next of Shim Gum.”
A memoir left by the only person who reached the horizon in such a thousand years of stagnation.
The nameless swordsmanship was the only clue to reach the horizon.
“I revealed the sword in the hope that it might be stored in the Purple Sector. If that’s the case, it’s back to square one.”
How to check the emperor’s private collection?
That too without being noticed by the emperor.
“In the end, is there only one answer?”
I had to join the Imperial Knights.
* * *
A few days before the end of the third semester.
“I can’t either… … .”
Noah was moving up the ranks at breakneck speed, but so was Felix.
While the rankings are being raised here, the other side is also raising the rankings, so you can’t meet them.
In addition, the higher the ranking, the more difficult it is to catch a ranking match.
“It would be nice if we could get a good match.”
“It’s easy to go from 1,000 to 900 because you’re looking for someone out of 100 to do the ranking match, but going from 100 to 90 is like finding out of 10 people, so there’s no help.”
“Shiba-senpai?”
Sitting next to Noah, who was regretting it, was Shiva, the senior of the Black Moon.
Shiba was in a state where he regained his position as a high ranker amidst the frenzy of ranking matches in this third semester.
However, after restoring the rankings, he did not bother looking for additional ranking matches and was only carrying out the weekly ranking match schedule.
“Are you looking for someone today?”
“Because if you want to play an extra match outside of the mandatory matching, this is the only way.”
“Do it in moderation. Then you get sick.”
As the ranking match was not a life-or-death decision, it wasn’t so bad, but looking at Noah’s daily routine, I couldn’t help but say something like that.
one week.
In just one week, it fell to the 900th place and entered the double digit ranking.
That meant that they played ranking matches dozens of times a day.
No matter how strong the body was, there was a limit to it.
The stronger the body, the longer the period of rest, not the need to rest.
“Noah, you are still in your first year. There is no need to be impatient.”
“Yeah, it is.”
The bet I made with Regina in the second semester was to become a high-ranker within this year.
Noah, now ranked 86, had already achieved that goal, but he wasn’t going to rest on his laurels.
“Also, since there are only a few days left, I want to test how far I can go, so that’s why.”
To put it bluntly, Felix, who is currently ranked higher, is still running, but it was a bit like taking a break first.
“Ranking is also ranking, but fundamentally, building skills is more important.”
“that’s right. After all, rankings are just a measure of skill.”
As the two were talking in the dormitory, Tiu, who was passing by, helped out.
Tiu also had a low ranking at the beginning of the third semester, so the number of games needed to raise the ranking was too many, so after achieving a high rank, he was adjusting his pace moderately.
“Getting busy in the 4th semester is also the story of seniors, you and I are not going to go to school the same. You don’t have to suffer so much.”
“I can’t stand it because they persecute me as a group.”
There are only two days left until the end of the third semester.
You can’t catch up with Felix in two days.
From noble mtl dot com.
I just didn’t have enough time because I started too late.
“Still, it’s quite useful for practicing the intangible sword, so I’ll try to finish the few days left.”
On this day, Noah went to the stadium right after class.
As usual, Yuna appeared as I was killing time nearby after registering for matching.
“Is it a ranking match today? You are really poisonous.”
“You?”
“I-I did it because I had to raise my ranking for the prestige of my family!”
Yunia, who entered this semester, has risen in the rankings at a tremendous speed throughout the semester, but has not yet reached the upper ranks.
It was a day or two to play dozens of ranking matches, not something that could last for months.
Thanks to that, Yunia, who entered the end of the semester, is adjusting her pace appropriately by playing only the basic ranking matches.
But even on his day off, he came to see Noah play every single day.
‘The person himself came to play, but I don’t know.’
I came and watched Noah’s game, and went back saying, “Oh, there’s no suitable opponent.”
“At this point, aren’t I starting to feel trustworthy?”
“Your swordsmanship skills are definitely worth recognizing, but… … .”
Yuna seemed to think that acknowledging Noah would be a loss.
‘Excellent knights have a strong desire to compete, so is it natural?’
It wasn’t that he hated Noah from the beginning.
Even before I met him, I had been doing some research on him.
I guess it was because I was embarrassed to suddenly become siblings after being an only child for a decade or so.
‘I think it will be resolved on its own with time… … .’
Apparently, Yuna needed an excuse to acknowledge Noah.
‘Then I’ll just have to beat Felix in the ranking match.’
Felix was the descendant of the Mayer family, possessed such skills, and was recognized by everyone for that fact.
If Felix was defeated, Yunia would no longer be able to say that Noah was lacking in the 8th family, the Lichtenauer family.
A guest came to Noah, who was using his younger brother to recharge his fighting spirit.
“Hello.”
“Mr. Kuina?”
A faculty member from the intelligence department who joined Nightray around the same time as Noah.
She was a person belonging to ‘Regina’s person’.
“For some reason, you look good. Every time I saw something, it seemed like he was half dying.”
“That’s right, since the principal has done a lot of things since I came in. Would you believe me if I said that thanks to this, I was able to earn three years of operating expenses for Nightray this year?”
Nightray was a school corporation owned by the imperial family.
For that reason, it was difficult to do anything at school, even if it was something I wanted to do, because I had to cover the operating expenses only by dropping it off from the imperial family.
“I heard that they originally tried to raise funds by selling unnecessary land, but they heard that it was fun to see the ticket profits between you and the princess.”
As with the recent 1st place match, there were several more high-ranker matches made publicly available after that.
Regina was using the operating funds in the process.
“This is probably half of the reason why closed ranking matches were abolished this semester. Apparently, the school wants to set up its own revenue model.”
“Is the money given by the imperial family insufficient?”
“It’s not to the point of being particularly lacking, but money is something you can spend as much as you want. Rather, I think they want to make it a financially independent institution.”
If Regina was doing it, there must be a reason of its own.
Noah, a student, didn’t care.
“Anyway, that matter is aside. You know that this Friday is the day of the ranking match, right?”
“yes. The last Friday of every month is the ranking match day. It’s the day of the last ranking match in the third semester.”
The Rank Match Day event, which has been established since the beginning of this semester, has been held twice so far.
The first was a group exhibition held as a test.
There was a problem with the existing ranking match method that only one-on-one matches were possible, so the team match I tried received quite good reviews.
Regina also said that after additional testing and verification, she would set up a team event for the general rankings, so you can look forward to it.
The second was the first place match.
There was nothing more to explain, since a new Master Knight popped up here and it is still a hot topic.
And this is the third time to come.
“This ranking match day is going to be a match for high rankers, so I’m looking for the kids and asking them if they want to participate. Noah, are you going to do it too?”
“Of course I do. I’m still waiting for the ranking matches.”
If it was a job with high rankers, it would be nice to see the skills of other high rankers.
“Okay, I knew you would. I was wondering what to do if there aren’t enough kids who want to participate, but that won’t happen.”
Kuina checked Noah’s name on the list she was carrying as if she knew it.
Noah was also a high ranker now, so he was able to participate in this event as well.
‘Then will Felix participate?’
As I thought about it, another question came to my mind.
“Wait. You said it was definitely a match for high rankers, right?”
“huh. however?”
“Then, will the 15 immovables also participate?”
The immovable 15 were classified separately because they were extraordinarily strong, but they were definitely the top 15 high rankers.
If the match is for high rankers, it means that they are also eligible.
“huh. The reason why they are classified separately is because of their skills, but also because of their influence. You should treat them the same as other students.”
The 15 immovable members were obviously great people even with the background removed.
Still, as long as you are the same student, you must follow the bachelor’s degree.
“Excluding Aslan, Allen and Fernando, 12 out of 15 will participate.”
Aslan was at the Stellarium and Allen was closed, so it was natural for him to leave.
On top of that, since Fernando was from the Narvaez family and only took classes this semester and didn’t show his face anywhere else, it was worth falling into.
Excluding those three, virtually all 15 people participated.
“Are you planning on doing something as big as last month?”
“The idea itself was a deal made by Guy Jack. That’s why Anis, who didn’t even aspire to be a knight, participated in something like this.”
“If it’s Guy Jack, is that Anis senior’s younger brother?”
Noah had never met Guyzak face-to-face, but he had seen Anise care for her brother.
“I’m following the ranking list all the way from the top, confirming my intention to participate, but if this is the case, I’ve already passed the minimum number of participants.”
“Because I’m thinking of taking up to 15 immovable people and doing something… … .”
Having a minimum number of participants meant that it wasn’t just one-on-one.
However, Kuina’s answer was beyond Noah’s imagination.
“chess.”
“yes?”
“We will play human chess using the vast site.”
* * *
An upscale restaurant located in Sanctum Keep.
Theodore and Cocoa were staying at the Sanctum Keep as guests of Arni’s father and master knight, the North Sea Sword King.
“This mission seems to be taking longer than I thought.”
“I didn’t think it would end soon from the beginning. It’s beyond imagination that even a disaster-level demon will come out.”
The reason why the Luminous Emperor sent two Master Knights to escort Arni was to investigate Tara, that is, the Precursor.
However, when I arrived at the Sanctum Keep, I was preparing to attack it because I had recently discovered a disaster-level monster here.
Theodore and Cocoa decided to participate in the raid, thinking that the appearance of this disaster-class monster was also related to the Precursors.
“Usually, disaster-level attacks take months of preparation. You can’t be ignorant like in the Crescent Islands.”
“At that time, if left alone, the Crescent Islands would be destroyed, so there was no choice. There was also Regina.”
If it hadn’t been for Regina at the time, things would have been complicated.
If the Witchbeast had started attacking from below the surface using the sea as a shield, it would have been difficult for both Theodore and Cocoa.
“If I jumped in to die, I could have evaporated the sea instantly. I wasn’t sure if I could kill him. Also, with my ability, it was difficult to chase after the Witchbeast made up her mind and ran away.”
“There is no need to blame yourself. The compatibility of mind swords applies not only to master knights, but also to demon beasts.”
If you are not compatible, you must prepare well.
Unless a disaster-level demon is heading for a densely populated area, it is normal to spend half a year trying to attack.
One by one, it was impossible to randomly replace articles that required a lot of effort to develop.
“It looks like preparations for the attack will continue until the end of the year.”
“Thanks to that, we have more time to investigate the Precursors.”
It was expected from the time they brought in Benjamin, second in the line of succession of the 8th family, but these guys were larger than expected.
“It looks like you’ll need an assistant.”
“Do you have any local collaborators at Sanctum Keep?”
“I am not a local, but I do have a friend who is familiar with overseas affairs. Just coming. Say hello.”
A fine dining restaurant that provides a private space.
As soon as the new guest entered, he sat down on an empty chair in the room.
“Long time no see, sir.”
“you are… … !”
The Empire’s highest-ranking wanted man.
A person who had escaped from the intelligence department and escaped appeared in front of them.
Cocoa stopped Theodore from reaching for her sword.
“Greetings. They are our local collaborators.”
“Nice to meet you. My name is Cain Vagrant.”
When Theodore looked back at himself with an expression asking what the hell this was all about, Cocoa smiled.
“Now then, shall we check how open our little executor’s mind is?”