The Academy is Doomed

Chapter 10

Early in the morning Amon found a letter addressed to him.

‘What? A letter from my father?’

He hurriedly opened it.

[Amon, how are you, it’s been a month since you left for the academy.]

The letter began as usual, saying that everything was fine at the manor, and that I should show my face when I was settled in.

And the date at the end.

‘Two months ago? Our manor is far away. It took two months for a letter to come?’

That means it’s been three months since Amon left the estate.

No, more like 100 days, considering it took him about two weeks to get here.

“100 days……has it been that long already?”

The competition is just around the corner.

‘I’ll have to take some time off after the tournament to visit the estate.’

Amon thought as he headed to the training grounds for his morning class.

One hundred days.

It had been an eventful 100 days.

‘Headmaster, I heard the first quarterly dividend from the investment came in. How much?’

‘…… Phew, it’s less than I thought.’

‘Give me the paperwork.’

Anar’el was quick to tell the truth.

‘Why in the world would you tell a lie that’s going to be found out……?’

‘Boo, the vice-principal wants me to siphon off money for the cafeteria equipment somehow…….’

‘You said you were going to stop her! You said you wanted me to trust you!’

‘So, honestly, I’m scared to death of Brestle!’

It seems that Anar’el’s power was not enough to stop the Vice Headmaster’s ambition.

I confronted her about it.

‘If you have the money, you should be working on improving the food!’

‘We only have 10 people in total, including the chef and the janitors, and the building is just gathering dust. How can we improve the food?’

‘Then we’ll just have to hire more cleaners!’

It doesn’t make sense.

So Amon took out his hostage.

‘Do you see him?’

‘King of Mango……!’

‘The farm sent it to me with the dividends, and the principal said she had it hidden.’

‘How dare that damn principal……!’

I took the King of Mangoes hostage and destroyed the Vice Principal’s dreams!

And his fellow teachers!

‘Ms. Sloth, I’ve been thinking you’ve been a little more conscientious for a while, but this?’

‘What did I do?’

‘Why don’t you just get out of your sleeping bag and talk?’

For Marion.

‘Gosh darn it! Uh, it tastes good, hence the fireball!’

Marion was drunkenly giving a lecture while Sloth is ‘briefly’ sincere!

It’s a good thing the lecture itself is still intact.

‘They say you die when you change, but these damned people live for a thousand years.’

It’s the worst teaching environment ever but Amon had a ray of hope.

“……guys.”

Amon burst into tears and hugged Boris and Chloe, who had shown up for class as usual.

“You’re the only ones I can count on…….”

“Ooh, don’t cry.”

“We’re the only ones who are normal in this crazy den of devils…….”

Boris and Chloe patted Amon’s back quietly and Amon smiled broadly.

“Yes, you can look forward to special lessons today.”

Boris’s eyes lit up.

“A break?”

Chloe’s eyes lit up too.

“A break!”

Amon said, his eyes shining too.

“No! We’re going to the arena! We’re going to try our hand at being a fighter there!”

“You’re not normal…….”

“What? Why me?”

* * *

It was lunchtime.

Marion jumped up and down.

“Letting kids fight in the arena, what kind of crazy idea is that?”

“No, listen.”

“Okay, let’s hear what’s crazy.”

I began to explain.

“You do realize that they’ve both gained a lot of strength and skill, right?”

“Well, a little bit.”

To begin with, Boris and Chloe were strong and hardworking.

They trained so hard for 100 days that they could run dozens of laps around the practice field without stopping.

Their swordsmanship is also much better than it used to be, thanks to Sloth’s diligent teaching.

“The problem is, they’re both so overconfident.”

“……Hmm, that’s true.”

“Boris is better, because he has a goal of making it big, but Chloe’s gotten a little better in the last few months, but she still can’t hold eye contact for more than three seconds, and she averts her eyes whenever her face gets too close.”

Marion shook his head.

“Uh, um……was it that bad?”

“Yeah. Anyway, Boris was the only one who said he was better, but to be honest, I don’t think he’s very confident either.”

“Well, he’s not……much for a guy!”

“I know!”

Amon thinks of monsters as nothing more than wild boars and deer that break down potato fields and fences and Marion, a battle mage who has fought countless battles as a soldier, standards for self-confidence were high.

“A man should have at least had a dog fight with an orc with his bare hands!”

“Sure. Orcs, they’re nothing!”

“Have you……really done that?”

“You haven’t?”

“…….”

Marion coughed, suddenly regaining his composure.

“But now that I think about it, an arena seems a little harsh…….”

“Oh, the arena is……there, isn’t it? There.”

“There? You don’t mean that bar……?”

Over the next few months, they got a little closer.

Marion likes to drink, and Amon is not averse to it, so they often go out for a drink after class.

And in the center of the “bar” as they call it, there is a cage, and fighters fight in it!

The patrons bet money and dream of winning a fortune!

The place is!

“……It’s a gambling parlor.”

“But it’s an arena, isn’t it?”

“Well, yes, but…….”

“Well, it has three advantages: the fighters there are of a low standard.”

Marion, a regular there, nodded.

“They’re definitely low-level there.”

“Yeah. Boris and Chloe should be able to beat them if they’re not nervous, which means they’ll be confident that they’re much stronger than they were before. And secondly, it’s in the center of attention.”

“It’ll also prepare you for the weight of the gaze of the audience at the……tournament.”

Amon smirked.

“And thirdly, since Senior Marion is a regular there, you can give them a little tip to be gentle.”

“Hmm, I see.”

Marion, a battle mage who once belonged to the army and a war hero!

Plus, he’s a regular at the tavern, so he knows everyone there.

That means he can ‘threaten’ to roast them with fire magic if they don’t behave!

“What about my plan?”

“It’s a better plan than I thought, but is there a downside?”

Amon smirked.

“There is only one minor and unlikely downside.”

“Hmm? What?”

“If trauma occurs here, it means that it will be a total mess.”

“……Are you sure it’s minor and unlikely?”

“……I’m hoping so.”

But every plan has its risks!

The two of them headed to Sloth to review the plan with her.

And then he got kicked in the shin.

* * *

Sloth completely revised the plan.

Since Amur is not a small place, the number of troops stationed there for security purposes is around 100.

There’s also a knight of the order, though not of the highest rank.

“Wouldn’t it be more presentable to have authorized soldiers teach us, rather than letting us fight with such backstreet brawlers? This is an academy, after all, and it’s important that we look the part.”

She couldn’t be more right.

Of course, there’s the question of whether the soldiers will help, since they’re not exactly idle, but Sloth finishes her answer by showing them the Marquis of Pid’s mark.

As a teacher at the academy and a scion of the Marquis, they’re not going to argue with that.

“Well, this is a good way…….”

Marion was impressed, and Amon was convinced.

“That takes care of one of the smallest and most trivial drawbacks to my plan.”

Soldiers defending the city are more familiar than back alley brawlers, so the kids are less likely to be traumatized!

“You’re both teachers, aren’t you? Trying to push students into gambling.”

“Ugh, disgraceful.”

“Whatever,” said Sloth, shrugging and tossing me the Marquis’s signet ring.

“You go on then. I’ll be resting.”

“What do you want to do while you’re resting……and I can just borrow this?”

“Yes, you can run away with it.”

“Hoooo…….”

Maybe the road to riches is closer than I think?

“Just make sure you don’t go around using the Marquis of Pid’s name or impersonating him, otherwise you’ll have to deal with the consequences.”

“……Eh, I won’t.”

I said, gathering up my credentials.

“Are you sure you don’t want to come with me, please?”

“I think I’ve done my part by lending you the stamp.”

“But…….”

Just then, Marion tapped me on the shoulder.

“Never mind, Amon, we’ll go on our own.”

“Um……okay.”

Sloth slipped away.

A few moments later, I dragged Boris and Chloe, who were shivering from the news that they were going to the arena, out of the academy like cattle being shoved into a slaughterhouse.

* * *

When they arrived at the guardhouse, Boris and Chloe’s faces were rotten.

“Why on earth would you lie about going to the arena…….?”

I replied thoughtfully.

“……because it’s fun?”

“Sir!”

“Kidding, kidding. Actually, I didn’t lie, I just changed my plans along the way.”

“…… So you were originally going to the arena?”

“Yes.”

It was a much more human truth than a lie.

Amon spoke next, his face serious.

“Anyway, once you’ve fought against the soldiers, you’ll realize that your skills have improved. You’ll feel more confident.”

“…….”

“If you don’t think you can, say so now.”

When they both hesitated, Amon spoke in a soft voice.

“I don’t blame you if you don’t think it can be done. But I assure you, it’s the only way to go right now.”

“…….”

“I don’t think a duel between the two of you will inspire confidence, and I don’t think a duel with Ms. Sloth will either, since there will be no ‘victory’ that will convince you that you have defeated the other.”

“…….”

“What are you going to do?”

It was Chloe who broke the silence first.

“Look, if you say so, I’ll give it a try.”

“Oooh! Chloe!”

I patted Chloe on the head.

“Thank you for being so brave! I’m so proud of you!”

“…….”

“Okay! And Boris?”

Seeing Chloe’s courage, Boris finally answered.

“Yes, I’ll try.”

“Very good, my proud pupil!”

A few moments later, Marion returned with the off-duty soldiers and the captain of the guard.

“I suppose it went well?”

“At Sloth’s request, and in the interest of the student’s education, they were happy to oblige. After all, our academy is a specialty of the city of Amur.”

“Though that specialty has long since been lost.”

“Haha, you always have a lot to say! Is this your big mouth?”

As if it had been agreed upon beforehand, a soldier stepped forward.

He had a strong physique and an intimidating appearance!

He seemed to be the strongest of the soldiers.

“Okay, Boris. Chloe, who wants to go first?”

This time, Boris stepped forward, thinking he couldn’t lose to Chloe, who had the courage to go first.

“I’ll go first.”

“Good! Do your best!”

Amon looked at the soldier.

“What is your name, sir?”

“Brad, sir.”

“Yes, Brad. Be careful, please.”

The soldier chuckled.

“Haha, don’t worry. I’ll use moderate force.”

“Hahaha! No, I meant to be careful.”

“……yes?”

Amon grinned and waved his hand in the air.

“Then let’s go!”

The moment the signal dropped.

BANG-!

Boris hit the ground and shot toward the soldier like an arrow.

“……Fast!?

This acceleration was created by the lower body running dozens of laps without stopping through the training field!

Brad swung his wooden sword in a panic, but Boris’ sword changed its trajectory in midair.

‘What, what!’

He used the Marquis of Pid’s swordplay, as taught by Sloth.

Of course, all the core elements and vision are missing.

But the tricks of the eye, the attacks, and so on, she’d taught him quite well.

-Bam!

Boris’s attack landed on Brad’s chest arm.

Amon snapped his fingers.

“Once. Right in the heart.”

“……cough!”

Brad said, his face stiff.

“Man, I’m going all out now.”

“You should have done that already.”

The duel soon resumed.

Bam-!

“Twice.”

Bam!

“Three times.”

Pavabak-!

“Oh, back to back!”

And by the time Amon’s hands were outstretched, Brad was down and out.

“That’s it, I lose!”

The soldiers watching the duel cheered as Brad admitted defeat.

“Wow, student, that’s awesome!”

“Brad, go die!”

Admiration for Boris and insults for Brad!

Boris, standing in the center of it all, gasping for breath, shuddered.

“I won against a grown man, and a soldier at that……?”

First duel. First victory.

As he mulled over the excitement, Amon tapped him on the shoulder.

“What do you think? Does that give you some confidence?”

Biting his lip, Boris nodded vigorously.

‘Yeah, one win changes a man.’

Amon grinned at Boris, who was bouncing up and down with excitement.

“Chloe, it’s your turn!”

At Amon’s shout, the soldiers’ gazes turned toward Chloe in unison.

And Chloe, who received countless stares…collapsed.

Seeing that, Amon had a hunch.

‘I’m screwed.’