The Genius At The Swordsmanship Academy

Chapter 10

If You’re Aiming for My Spot

—

“God damn it…”

Schmitz was sitting in a corner of the training ground, feeling humiliated.

“How could I lose like this…?”

If he had been defeated after giving it his all, he might have been able to accept it.

But Schmitz hadn’t even had a chance to properly swing his sword.

He was caught off guard and defeated in an instant without even getting into a proper stance.

“Did he plan this from the start?”

Schmitz didn’t want to fight like this in the first place.

Out of nowhere, Ernas had suggested they fight for the position of class representative and forced conditions in his favor.

In the end, everything went just as Ernas wanted.

“That damn… crafty bastard!”

As Schmitz gritted his teeth in anger, a shadow approached him.

“Schmitz Hartmann.”

“…!”

Ernas had somehow appeared and was looking down at Schmitz.

“You don’t look so good.

Are you alright?”

“No…”

Schmitz turned his head, avoiding eye contact.

But Ernas spoke to him calmly.

“You shouldn’t be so cold to me, Schmitz.”

“Huh?”

“Wasn’t it a condition that you’d obey me without question?”

“…!”

Schmitz’s eyes widened, and Ernas chuckled.

“I’m just messing with you.

I don’t actually think of you as a slave.”

“Ernas, what the hell…?”

“Let’s talk for a bit.”

Ernas plopped down beside him, massaging his right shoulder with his left hand.

“Schmitz, there’s only one thing I’m asking from you.”

“What is it?”

“Don’t form any factions.

I won’t forbid you from hanging out with the other Southern students, but don’t let you guys stick together and break the unity of the Black 6th class.”

“…!”

Schmitz looked at Ernas in surprise at the unexpected request.

“In two weeks, there will be a competition with the other classes.”

“A competition? In two weeks?”

The new students in the academy weren’t just from the Black 6th class.

There were students from the Red 1st class, Blue 2nd class, Yellow 3rd class, Green 4th class, and White 5th class, all of whom were receiving training separately.

The first time they would clash with each other would be in this competition.

“I thought it was in a month…”

“It used to be like that, but this year, it’s been moved up.”

How did this guy get that information?

Schmitz was impressed by Ernas’s intelligence network.

“I plan to lead the Black 6th class to victory in that competition.”

“Ernas…”

“That’s how we’ll get the Elixir.”

“…!”

The Elixir.

A magical potion that instantly grants immense power, saving years of effort.

The academy provides it to help students reach the level of graduates.

“The class that wins the competition gets enough Elixir for everyone to use.”

“Ernas…”

“It’ll bring us all one step closer to graduating.”

Schmitz was caught off guard.

He never imagined he’d hear such words from the man he thought was just a crafty opportunist.

“Schmitz, there’s no time for power struggles.”

“…!”

“If we keep fighting among ourselves, we won’t be ready for the competition.

That’s why I wanted to settle things quickly.”

As Schmitz listened, he was completely confused.

So, Ernas’s proposal for a fight on the first day… was it to resolve their conflict early so they could focus on preparing for the competition?

“Schmitz, it seems like you’re well-liked among the Southern students.”

“Well…”

“If you help create a good atmosphere, it’ll help unite the whole class.”

“…”

“I’m asking for your cooperation.”

Ernas stood up as he said this.

“And one more thing.”

“Huh?”

“When you charged at me earlier, there was an opening on your left midsection.”

“…!”

Schmitz flinched and touched his left side.

That was exactly where Ernas’s wooden sword had hit him.

“There’s a weak spot there.

If you fix that, your Hartmann style swordsmanship will be even better.”

“Ernas…”

“Check it out in a mirror later.”

With those words, Ernas left, still massaging his right shoulder.

“Who the hell is that guy…?”

As Schmitz watched his back, he clenched his fist.

He had never even considered the weakness on his left side.

Ernas had seen it in an instant and attacked that spot.

“Have I been misjudging that guy’s true ability?”

Schmitz had thought of Ernas as a fake genius.

But that might have been a mistake.

“If he’s a real genius…”

A genius whose talent far surpassed his own.

Seeing the true back of a genius, Schmitz clenched his fist even tighter.

—

‘There’s a gap in my left midsection, just like it was mentioned in the novel.

It’s probably true.’

After the afternoon class ended, I walked alone, deep in thought.

‘Well, now that he’s tasted defeat, Schmitz will probably calm down.’

In the novel, Schmitz realizes his limitations and changes his attitude.

He throws away all his useless ambition and transforms into a hard-working character, eventually becoming good friends with the protagonist, Arkandel.

‘Schmitz is one of the strongest in the Black 6th class, so I need to slowly make him an ally.’

Aside from me, the strongest in the Black 6th class right now is Serine , and then comes Schmitz.

Schmitz is a character who grows stronger after experiencing defeat, so he’ll likely grow even more from this incident.

‘That said… my shoulder really hurts.’

It’s because I had to awkwardly imitate Chloe’s Yusbruck Swordsmanship.

Since Ernas’s physical abilities are not as good as Chloe’s, it was inevitable that I’d feel the aftereffects.

‘I should rest.’

Thinking this, I was walking toward the dining hall when suddenly, I heard Serine ’s voice from the side.

“You weren’t just boasting that you could handle it on your own, huh?”

Serine was standing there, arms crossed, looking at me.

“I didn’t expect you to wrap it up that quickly.”

“I just wanted to finish it quickly.”

“What happened? You didn’t seem like the type to act like that before.”

“Well, maybe it’s because I got dumped from my engagement.”

“Wha-what are you saying?!”

Serine ’s voice raised in shock.

“You agreed to it too! You signed the papers without hesitation!”

“Well, it hurt my feelings a bit.”

“Now, of all times, you’re saying that…?”

It seemed like she was more embarrassed than I expected, so I quickly added,

“I’m just kidding.

Don’t take me seriously.”

“Ugh, you’re impossible!”

Serine blushed and got mad.

“Teasing people… I was a fool to worry about you!”

“You were worried?”

“Take this!”

Suddenly, Serine threw something at me.

“I saw you rubbing your right shoulder, so it looks like you hurt your muscles… put this on.”

It was a square-shaped patch wrapped in thick paper… basically a pain relief patch.

Like the pain patches in the real world, it had a menthol smell.

“Alright, I’m leaving now!”

Serine quickly turned and walked away.

Left alone, I could only stare at her back in a daze.

“A heroine who gives a pain patch as a gift…”

If I were the author, I never would have written a scene like this.

I thought to myself, smiling wryly.

“Well, I’ll make good use of it.”

She went out of her way to be kind, so I should make sure to use it properly.

Hopefully, this will help with the pain…

—

The next morning, however…

I woke up groaning from the shoulder pain.

“Ugh… this is awful.”

Last night, when I put the pain patch on, it felt like it eased the pain a bit.

But maybe it was just the temporary pain relief, because when I woke up, my shoulder was aching again.

“Why am I such a weakling?”

I grumbled as I got up.

It was probably all because of Ernas’s lousy physical abilities.

“Today’s combat class… what should I do?”

Right now, my right shoulder isn’t moving properly.

I can’t attend class in this state—what should I do?

“Even if I go to the infirmary… they’ll probably just put on another pain patch.”

Unfortunately, this world doesn’t have healing magic.

The best they can do is use the body’s mana to enhance natural healing.

“Oh, wait.”

Then, an idea crossed my mind.

A scene from the novel flashed through my head.

“I really don’t want to do this, but… I have no choice.”

I left my room and went down a floor.

‘Room 304, right?’

I walked down the hallway and reached the door of room 304.

After knocking, I heard rustling and a voice.

“Who is it…?”

A purple-haired girl, Viola Orishius, opened the door.

She was probably just waking up, rubbing her eyes, but when she saw me, she flinched in surprise.

“E-Ernas? What brings you here so early?”

“Viola, can you come to my room for a second?”

“Yes, of course?!”

Viola’s eyes went wide.

“Now?”

“Yeah, now.”

“W-wait, why…?”

“You ate the steak I was going to have for lunch yesterday.”

“…!”

“You need to pay me back.”

With my firm tone, Viola looked like she was about to cry.

“W-what do you want from me, so early in the morning…?”

“No more talking, just follow me.”

“Alright, alright…”

I dragged a hesitant Viola to my room.

After closing the door behind us, I immediately took off my top.

“Eeek?!”

Viola screamed and covered her eyes with her hands.

“What the hell are you doing?! We’re not like that!”

“Can you see the pain patch on my right shoulder?”

“Yeah?”

“Press on it.”

“…”

In the novel, Viola is described as being very skilled in acupressure.

Actually, it’s because Viola’s finger strength is stronger than anyone else’s.

‘She may look small and fragile… but she’s from the Northern Orishius family, which values absolute physical strength.’

Not just her fingers, but her whole body strength is remarkable.

If we had an arm wrestling match, Ernas would lose every time.

“Did you hurt yourself yesterday?”

“Yeah, don’t tell anyone.”

“Got it… then…”

Viola removed the patch from my shoulder and started feeling around.

Her fingers were cold, and it felt nice.

“Ernas, can you move your shoulder?”

“It hurts if I move it.”

“We need to know what angle it hurts at, so try moving it.

Start by moving it horizontally.”

I moved my shoulder as Viola instructed.

“Hm… it doesn’t seem like a tendon is torn or anything.

It’s just a knot.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, I’ll help loosen the knotted parts.

Lie down on your side and keep the painful spot facing up.”

Following Viola’s instructions, I lay down, and the acupressure began.

“Just hang in there… Hee-ya!”

“Gahh!”

Hellish pain shot through my shoulder.

Viola was using her incredible finger strength to loosen the pressure points in my shoulder.

“Isn’t this going to break my bones?”

“It’s fine, just stay still! Hee-ya!”

“Ugh, ugh, heeek…!”

As Viola mercilessly pressed on the pressure points, I clung to the bed sheet, groaning in pain.

—

“Chloe Yusbruck?”

“Oh, Schmitz.”

As Chloe and I ran into each other in the dormitory hallway, Schmitz frowned.

“What are you doing here? This hallway only leads to Ernas’s single room.”

“I’m here to meet Ernas.”

“In the morning?”

“Yeah, I wanted to have breakfast with him.

What about you? What are you here for?”

“I came to invite Ernas to go to the cafeteria together.”

As the class representative, Ernas often eats later than others, but for breakfast, it’s fine to go together.

“I thought you were hostile toward Ernas until yesterday, but it looks like your opinion has changed today.”

“Shut up, Chloe Yusbruck.”

Schmitz responded gruffly.

“I discussed it with the others last night, and we decided to support Ernas from now on.”

“Ah, I see.”

Chloe smiled.

Ernas’s ability to win over Schmitz’s faction so quickly was beyond what Chloe had expected.

“Well, I guess it’s better for me to get along with Schmitz.”

“I don’t particularly want to be friendly with you, though.”

“Oh, come on.”

While having this conversation, the two of them walked toward Ernas’s single room.

“Ernas-nim, Schmitz Hartmann…!”

“Ugh, ugh, haah…”

Just as Schmitz was about to knock, strange sounds came from inside the room.

“Ah, no, please, save me…”

“Don’t even think about running away! It’s almost over!”

“Ugh! Please… aahhh!”

The screams from inside the room made Schmitz’s face go pale.

“Is Ernas being attacked?!”

“Wait, the voice we just heard…?”

“Could it be that another class sent an assassin before the battle…?!”

Despite Chloe’s warning, Schmitz kicked the door open and rushed inside.

He ran straight toward Viola, who was pinning Ernas down on the bed.

“What the hell are you doing?!”

“Eh?! Schmitz?! W-Why…?!”

While Schmitz grabbed Viola by the collar, Ernas groaned and struggled to sit up from the bed.

“Ah, that feels good, I feel like I can breathe again.”

“What’s going on…?”

Chloe made a puzzled face as she watched Ernas move his shoulder with a relieved expression.

—

Thanks to Viola’s pressure point therapy, I was able to recover enough to join the physical training class.

Maybe because I was sweating so much during the massage, I felt lighter than before.

‘Not that my stamina has improved, though.’

The physical training class includes strength exercises too.

There’s running around the island multiple times, and honestly, with Ernas’s stamina, I’ll always fall behind.

*Sigh…*

I lazily glanced toward the lake.

In the distance, I saw another island.

Unlike this island, which only has buildings with black roofs, the island over there only has buildings with red roofs.

‘That’s the island where Class Red 1’s dormitory is…’

Class Red 1.

It’s the class where the

heir of the Ignis family, one of the six great swordsmanship families, belongs.

‘If things go the same way as the novel, Class Black 6 will first clash with Class Red 1.’

Honestly, Class Red 1 is a formidable opponent.

In the novel, the protagonist, Arkandel, also struggled against them.

And right now, Class Black 6 doesn’t even have Arkandel… if we fought now, Class Black 6 would likely lose.

‘But…’

I stared at the island where Class Red 1 was located, a smile forming on my face.

I already had a plan to take them down.