Chapter 93. I Want an Opponent Other Than a Bunch of Brats (3)

The other professors took a step back.

Now that the man who was like a boar struck by lightning had stepped forward, the only options were to yield or to clash.

And they desperately wanted to avoid the latter.

However….

“Professor Baroq, are you planning to fight with that, not a wooden sword?”

“Of course.”

Professor Baroq was stepping onto the training ground not with a wooden sword, but with his beloved weapon, a halberd.

A professor hastily spoke.

“The opponent is a student.”

“But he is much stronger than I am.”

“No, that is….”

Professor Baroq smirked at the dumbfounded professor and said.

“Do I look like an opponent who would face that monster with a wooden sword?”

“……”

There was nothing to say.

Hadn't seven professors already been crushed while fighting with wooden swords?

And one-sidedly at that.

Professor Baroq spoke to him.

“I will do my best. And for that, I need this.”

And before the other professors could stop him, he strode to the center of the training ground.

Then he spoke to Patrick.

“Patrick Schneider. I wish for your guidance.”

“Hooo…. With that, you say?”

As Patrick pointed to the massive halberd, he said without changing his expression.

“Please, I beg of you.”

There was no hint of shame.

No feeling of insolence.

There was only the pure desire of a challenger to try something, anything, with all his might.

Patrick smirked and said.

“Well, that’s not bad.”

Then Patrick spoke to the attendants on the outskirts of the training ground.

“Ace!”

“Yes, Young Master.”

“Bring me my sword.”

“Yes. Understood.”

From the group of waiting attendants, April, dressed in a butler's uniform, came forward with a sword.

Normally, attendants were not allowed to approach the training ground during class, but today's exam was an exception.

They were all on standby with simple first-aid kits, just in case the one they served got injured during the exam.

From among the huddled group of attendants, a man(?) of exceptionally radiant beauty stepped forward.

And at that moment….

“Ooh…. Who is that?”

“I’ve never seen a man that pretty before.”

“There was a lot of talk among the attendants. That there's a butler as beautiful as an angel.”

“Wow…. His beauty is… insane. Insane.”

“He is a man, right? He is a man, isn't he? Damn it, why is he a man? Why?”

Everyone's attention was drawn to him.

The gallery, which until a moment ago had been captivated by Patrick's miraculous winning streak, was now completely entranced by April's beauty.

“Here you are, Young Master.”

“Oh, right. Thank you for your trouble.”

“Is there anything else you require?”

“No. Go back quickly.”

“Yes. Understood.”

At Patrick's sullen command, April obediently returned to her place.

The people couldn't take their eyes off April until she returned to the group of attendants, and even after she had.

“Wow, a human can be that beautiful.”

“Why was he born a man with a face like that?”

“I know, right.”

“Honestly, with that face, shouldn't he be the noble and the one named Patrick be the attendant.”

“Hmm, this certainly isn't right.”

“Highly unfair.”

“He was a man with no conscience.”

“His skills are good, but he has no conscience.”

Listening to the gallery's murmurs, Patrick frowned and then stomped his foot forcefully.

Kuuuung!

The ground trembled slightly, and everyone's attention shifted back to Patrick.

And Patrick spoke to Professor Baroq.

“Well then, shall we begin?”

“Let’s. But may I say a word before we start?”

“Go ahead.”

“Does that butler friend of yours have a sister, a younger sister, or perhaps an unmarried aunt?”

“…Professor.”

“No, it's not that I have any ulterior motives, I was just curious…. One can be curious, can't they?”

“Do you want to die?”

“Ahem, khm…. Ahem, ahem….”

A student was threatening a professor, yet no one questioned it.

Professor Baroq feigned ignorance with a cough, then bowed his head deeply to Patrick.

And what he said was….

“It is an honor to receive guidance from one who has reached a high state.”

“Only now?”

“I was a bit flustered after seeing something so surprising, but this is my sincere feeling.”

“……”

Patrick wore a sullen expression.

But on the other hand, he understood.

‘Right. The beauty of the Nine Yin Severed Meridians is indeed cheating.’

In fact, in the martial world, people had killed and been killed over women with Nine Yin Severed Meridians.

So, he decided to be magnanimous just this once.

He spoke to Professor Baroq.

“Raise your head. How can a professor bow his head so carelessly to a student?”

“Right now, in this moment, I am not a professor but a single knight who wishes to seek guidance from one stronger than myself.”

“……”

“In fact, considering the state you have achieved, this is rather insufficient.”

“Well, I understand. Being polite is good. It's good.”

Why does a guy who knows that live the way he does?

Patrick took his stance with his two twin swords and said.

“I am Patrick Schneider, a first-year at the Academy.”

“I am Marox Baroq, a professor at the Academy. In the world, I am known as Baroq the Crusher.”

“Your moniker is brutal. Isn't that unbecoming of a knight?”

“…You do not know?”

“Know what?”

“The origin of my moniker. I thought it was quite famous?”

“Well, do I really need to know that?”

At that, Professor Baroq said with a smile.

“Hahaha. Right. There is no need to know. In the end, does a knight not speak with his skill?”

“That's right. So, shall we stop talking now?”

“From here on... out!”

The moment he said 'out', Baroq's massive frame shot forward.

Reaching Patrick's immediate vicinity in a single step, he brought down the blade of his massive halberd.

Kwaaaaaang!

The solidly packed ground of the training ground exploded.

‘He's intense.’

Patrick dodged the opponent's attack but was still slightly surprised.

Certainly a heavy weapon.

In terms of simple destructive power, it was far superior to a sword.

And this was not the end.

The consecutive attack that flew in immediately after the first blow missed was a thrust.

Following the downward strike using the axe blade, a sharp thrust using the spear tip flew in.

The sound of the thrust cutting through the air, coming right after the massive attack just moments ago, was quite sharp.

Patrick tilted his head to the side and narrowly dodged the attack.

Then….

“Hup!”

Professor Baroq's wrist rotated halfway, and he readjusted his grip on the halberd.

And his halberd was quickly pulled back.

The hook on the opposite side of the axe blade was aimed to precisely snatch Patrick's neck, but….

Shiiik!

Professor Baroq's confident attack unfortunately only cut through the air.

Patrick was already at a distance, bouncing lightly on the ground and performing his steps.

And Patrick's face held an expression of considerable interest.

“This is something new.”

Professor Baroq's martial prowess itself was not special.

It was juuuust a little better than the other professors, but it wasn't overwhelming.

He seemed to be at the very edge of 5-star, but from Patrick's perspective, it was like comparing the heights of acorns.

However, what piqued Patrick's interest was….

“Haaaaaaaap!”

Whoosh! Kwang! Shiiiiik!

It was Baroq's mastery in handling this weapon called a halberd.

Thrusting, cutting, hooking, smashing….

It was the first time he had faced such a variety of attacks with different textures while fighting someone who wielded a single weapon.

‘Come to think of it, this is the first time I've fought against a weapon like that halberd.’

The soldiers of the newly reborn Schneider fiefdom did not use halberds.

Why?

Because they were expensive.

They were more difficult to make than regular spears or swords, and they required more iron.

The halberd was a rather expensive weapon.

Only wealthy fiefdoms could afford to arm their soldiers with such weapons.

He had seen soldiers and knights from other fiefdoms equipped with them a few times.

At that time, Patrick had thought.

‘Why do they use that?’

That's what he thought.

From Patrick's perspective, that weapon called a halberd seemed too messy.

Spear, axe, hook.

A weapon that combined all three of these characteristics into one?

He had never even considered such a thing in his past life.

There was a weapon called the Sky Piercer Halberd that Lu Bu was said to have used, but he had never seen a martial artist actually use it.

‘There were also talks that it was a fictional weapon.’

Originally, the more diverse a weapon's functions, the lower its strength and the more difficult it became to handle.

One had to focus on one thing.

The sword, delicately.

The saber, powerfully.

The spear, sharply.

A weapon had to have a clear direction so that the user could focus on it.

In the martial world, such a crude weapon was used by the Unorthodox Faction.

And among them, it was something that second-rate practitioners with low states would use after racking their brains.

However….

“Haaaaaaap!”

Right now, before Patrick's eyes, was a knight who had pioneered his own state by wielding that halberd his entire life.

Marox Baroq.

He was certainly quite a unique case.

‘Amazing. Nothing…. Nothing is getting through.’

Professor Baroq's body trembled with thrill.

How long had it been?

He didn't know how long it had been since he had the opportunity to attack his opponent with all his might.

He used every technique he had learned in his life to attack Patrick.

Of course, his attacks never reached Patrick.

But the very fact that he could attack with all his sincerity was a joyous thing for him.

Yes. It was just enjoyable.

To face an opponent against whom he could pour out everything he had without any distractions.

The fact that his opponent was a student didn't matter at this moment.

This moment of being able to fight to his heart's content was just so good.

After more than 30 exchanges, Patrick, who had been receiving Baroq's attacks, began to counterattack.

Kwaaang!

“Ugh….”

It was just a lightly swung attack.

Professor Baroq raised the shaft of his halberd at a perfect angle to block it, but he couldn't help but be pushed back by the impact of the attack.

And Patrick slowly turned his neck and said.

“For a self-taught style, this is quite impressive.”

“What….”

“You're self-taught, aren't you?”

“……?”

A look of astonishment appeared on Professor Baroq's face as he heard Patrick's words.

His opponent did not know his moniker, "The Crusher."

‘A person of that state wouldn't tell a shallow lie. He really must not have known.’

This was a misunderstanding.

Skill and character were not necessarily proportional.

But it was true that Patrick did not know his past.

He had grasped the root of Professor Baroq's skills just by exchanging a few blows.

‘Is this even possible? No matter how much of a genius he is? How is that possible? Isn't insight something that can't be cultivated without rich experience?’

Professor Baroq might not have understood, but Patrick smirked.

‘This young brat is overthinking things. My experience is ten times greater than yours. If we only count actual combat experience, it's probably over 100 times greater.’

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