Reborn Soul Master: The Rogue's Counterattack

This meant that under normal circumstances, no one would enter the dungeon that Belid was talking about, and it also meant that Cardan had plenty of time.

"Okay, when should I finish this task?"

"There's no rush, right? You're still only three stars, aren't you?"

"Yes, that's right."

"Anyway, it's not possible to go on weekends because of the long distance. I suggest you use the break to complete it." This is a one-month break given to students at the end of the first semester and the beginning of the second semester.

"It's probably the concept of summer vacation." Belid hopes that Cardin can use this rest time to complete the commission.

"I understand. Then I will come to see you again on the day the break starts." Hearing Cardin's answer, Belid smiled cordially and extended his hand to shake hands.

"Then I'll leave it to you. I'll do my best to support you, but please make sure you reach four stars before the break."

"Okay," Cardin replied briefly, squeezing her hand and Belid chuckled.

"My goal has been achieved, how about we start today's lesson now?"

"course?"

"Aren't we going to have a consultation?" Belid let go of his hand and took a nearby chair and sat in front of Cardin.

"So, Cardin, are you having problems with your life at the academy?"

In the morning, the first-year students gathered on the training ground as usual.

Unlike usual, they did not run on the training ground for physical training, but stood quietly and looked at Chris.

"As I said yesterday, we will conduct combat training today." Instructor Chris looked at the students with a serious expression and continued.

"Why do we need to train in bare-knuckle combat?"

"Because weapons can get damaged in combat."

"A fight might suddenly break out in a noble residence or royal palace without weapons!" Students taking the close combat course raised their hands to answer Chris' question.

"That's right. Besides that, we may face various situations where we have to fight with our bare hands." Survive even without weapons.

The Academy hopes to teach would-be heroes how to survive in any situation.

"First, in order to confirm your strength, we plan to have a duel." Hearing the word "duel", the students looked at Chris in surprise.

"Of course, weapons, magic and arcane are prohibited. Magic is not allowed either." A pure bare-knuckle duel.

"This isn't a formal duel. This is training for survival, so please give it your all."

"Yes!" Although it was a bare-handed duel, it was the first duel since entering school.

The students who took the close combat course were happy to finally have a chance to show off their strength, while the other students all frowned, looking uncomfortable.

"You can choose your own opponents. Time is short, and only students who have reached an agreement can stand in front of me." Chris could have chosen students of similar strength to compete, but he chose to give them the right to choose.

The students hesitated for a moment, then began to look around, looking for a suitable opponent. Naturally, the students who were good at close combat and ranged combat looked at each other.

"This will be interesting." On the contrary, Cardin smiled confidently despite being a necromancer. He seemed curious about the situation.

When he looked around curiously, strangely, some students avoided his sight. They were students who were not good at close combat and were learning long-range combat.

They seemed to be afraid of facing off against Cardin, who was like a monster with extraordinary physical strength. However, the students who took the close combat course were different.

"Although I have outstanding physical strength, I am still a necromancer. I am far more experienced in close combat."

"I think we should be able to defeat Cardin easily."

"If I can defeat Cardin, my reputation might improve." Although this was just an informal duel, Cardin was the one who defeated Branch, the strongest first-year student.

Even though it would be difficult to defeat Cardin in a formal duel, it is still possible if it is a bare-knuckle fight.

Perhaps this was the only chance to defeat Cardin. Therefore, the students who took the close combat course stared at Cardin eagerly. Just then, someone walked towards Cardin.

"Hmm? You've come just in time."

"Tsk, it's too late." The students who missed the opportunity felt sorry for Cardin. In the surrounding atmosphere, Cardin also noticed the person walking towards him.

"Leyden?" The person who walked towards Cardin was the blond noble Leyden who had been picking on Cardin since the entrance exam. He seemed to be planning to use this opportunity to avenge his previous humiliation.

"If you can't find an opponent to fight, how about trying with me?" When he heard that Cardin had defeated Branch, Leiden tried to avoid Cardin. Cardin also noticed Leiden avoiding his sight and sometimes laughed.

"Do you want revenge?" Cardin asked with one corner of his mouth raised.

"I was going to allow you to keep your self-respect to the end. If you are afraid, it's okay not to fight me. Don't worry, I won't let the rumor of 'you avoiding my proposal' spread." Leiden finally felt that he had the upper hand and chuckled.

"Are you sure? Is it okay to embarrass yourself in front of everyone?"

"what?"

"If you don't mind being the butt of a joke, I'll take you up on your offer."

The first-year students' hand-to-hand combat sparring began. The students chose opponents they thought were equally strong, and Chris naturally arranged for them to spar with them.

"Those who use swords or spears are the best at fighting."

"Basic combat skills are already excellent, and with the rich experience in close combat, hand-to-hand combat skills must also be excellent." The battles between students in close combat courses were very fierce. Although there were no weapons such as swords or spears, the battle scenes were tense and exciting, making people sweat.

"But wouldn't it be more interesting for wizards to fight with their bare hands?"

"Group fights are the most fun." On the contrary, the fights of the magicians who had no close combat experience seemed a little funny. Waving fists and continuous feints. The magicians' bare-handed fighting looked terrible.

"Blanche is such a surprise. I thought she was just good at magic."

"Yeah, she is not only agile, but also seems to have some close combat experience?" Although she is the darling of the magician family, her close combat ability is also quite good. Her physical strength is about the same as other magician students, but her fists are quite sharp and her reaction speed is also very fast, easily avoiding the opponent's attack.

"My opponent is a magician. If I learn some boxing, it will be easy to dodge his soft attacks." If my opponent is a student of melee-related courses, Blanche may not be able to show his strength. Blanche only showed his talent in melee among magicians.

"Who do you think has left the most impressive impression on you among the people you have sparred with so far?" The three students who had been chatting together since they entered school looked at the student who had finished the sparring at the same time.

Heuman, Brent, and David seemed troubled, stroking their chins with serious expressions.

"I think Kalia left the deepest impression on me." Hughman first pointed at Kalia who was resting in the corner with a red ponytail.

"Isn't it because she's beautiful that I'm impressed? When she waved her red ponytail and dodged punches one after another, I was frankly mesmerized."

"Kalia is indeed beautiful. If she wasn't from a commoner family, I would have proposed to her a long time ago." Brent and David said in a teasing tone, and Heuman nodded in agreement.

"That's right. She is indeed beautiful, but to be honest, she scares me the most." Xiuman seemed a little scared and nodded.

"Agreed. How is she so good at fighting? Kalia is also formidable in sword fighting, but fighting with bare hands seems even scarier."

"Where does a commoner get such power? I also want to learn from her." Then, Brent and David also seemed to be frightened and answered with trembling bodies.

The strength that Kalia displayed was truly remarkable. Even when facing an opponent who was bigger than her, she was not afraid and attacked without hesitation, making the people watching sweat.

Some students even cheered as she dodged all the attacks and landed effective blows.

"Isn't there only one person who can rival Kalia in sword fighting class?"

"Leyden?"

"That's right. To be honest, I really want to see Leiden and Kalia fight." The three people shifted their gazes from Kalia to Leiden.

Lydon found a spot on the side of the playground and stretched out leisurely. Three students sat next to him, looking like they were cheering.

"Although I don't want to see him being constrained by authority, his strength is indeed good."

"How can the bloodline of the Montclair family, known as the Kingdom Sword, be bad?"

"But why did Leiden choose Cardan as his opponent?" Their eyes moved away from Leiden and found Cardan this time.

Cardin sat with Alvis and Kalia, who had finished their sparring earlier, and watched the other students' sparring.

"Because Cardin defeated Branch, if you beat Cardin here, will you think you are the strongest in the first grade?"

"If that's true, then that's too naive. The opponent is a necromancer who is vulnerable in close combat?"

"Even if we defeat the necromancer who can't use undead creatures, there's nothing to gain." Even if we win, it's natural. Why choose Cardin? Heuman, Brent, and David all shook their heads in confusion.

"Cardan does have good stamina."

"Last time I saw him, his strength was also remarkable. He could handle heavier objects than a swordsman like me."

"His reaction speed is also very fast. I thought that guy was not a necromancer?" Thinking back to what he saw during the physical training time, Cardin's athletic ability was obviously closer to that of a swordsman than a necromancer.

Since Cardan has never been seen using necromancy, it is currently doubtful whether he is actually a necromancer.

"However, Leiden will definitely win this sparring match."

"Nothing will change. If it's a formal sparring without restrictions, it's hard to say, but if it's a bare-handed fight, it will be hard for Cardin to defeat Raiden."

"A necromancer defeats a swordsman in a fighting match? That doesn't make sense. There's no chance that Cardan will win." The three of them said this and nodded.

Recognizing that this time, Leiden has an absolute advantage. Cardin seems to be unaware of this fact and happily watches the students' sparring.

"Fighting is really fun. It also reminds me of the past. It feels good?" Watching the students fighting one-on-one with bare hands, Cardin recalled the memories of his previous life.

"It's also fun to have the kids fight one-on-one to determine their rank." The excitement that can only be felt in bare-handed combat. Cardin seemed happy to be able to feel the long-lost emotions up close, and a smile appeared on his face.

"Olk wins. You all worked hard." Not long after, the winner of the previous sparring was decided. The winning student stretched out his hand to the losing student, as if to say thank you for your hard work. The losing student shook his hand and nodded to show that he acknowledged the victory.

"This sparring was also very interesting. As expected, the academy where only those with the best talents gather is the best." Cardin applauded the two people who showed wonderful sparring.

At this time. "Cardan." Chris turned his gaze to Cardan and immediately called out Cardan's name.

Cardin realized that it was finally his turn and calmly stood up from his seat.

"Yes!"

"And Leiden, come here." Leiden was called next, and he raised his hand to the three students next to him and responded.

"Yes!" The two people who were named stepped forward and stopped in front of Chris. Chris stood between the two of them, and they looked at each other without avoiding each other's sight.

"He has the pride to stick to the end. He is so arrogant despite his commoner background. I'm going to give him a good beating for his arrogant attitude." Leiden smiled easily, as if he had anticipated victory.

"There are such self-righteous guys everywhere." Cardin was unmoved by his provocation, his face expressionless and he appeared very calm.

"The rules are the same as explained before. No magic or Aurora. There are no other rules, even if you bite or scratch, as long as you survive."

There are no fouls in sparring, and survival rather than honor is emphasized. As long as magic and Aoli are not used, any attack is allowed.

In fact, in the first sparring match, one student won by attacking his opponent’s vital parts and biting off his ear.

Instructor Chris once said that survival is more important than honor and self-esteem, and the students followed his words in their sparring.

"Let's start." Chris said, and stepped back. Although there was a signal to start, Cardin and Leiden did not move. They just stared at each other as before.

The students who were watching the sparring held their breath in the brief silence. It was Leiden who broke the silence.

"I have a conscience, so I'll let you make the first move." Leiden flicked his fingers, provoking Cardin.

"You don't know what's good for you. Do you really think you're Popeye who ate spinach?" Facing the next provocation, Cardin still maintained a calm expression. Leiden's provocation did not seem to cause any harm to Cardin.