The first lesson of the Swordsmanship course.
One by one, the Magic Department students were being ruthlessly beaten down by their Knight Department counterparts. Each time another classmate fell, Rest stepped in to provide medical care.
"Hey, Rest. Is your mana holding up okay?" his friend Luid Gistal asked, looking worried.
"I'm fine. Don't worry about me—I've got plenty to spare," Rest replied.
He had already treated over a dozen students, but with his infinite pool of mana, his reserves hadn't dipped in the slightest. If anything was reaching a dangerous low, it was his patience.
"Still... those Knight Department guys are really taking it too far. What do they have against the Magic Department, anyway?"
Watching his classmates get humiliated was pushing Rest to his limit. He was struggling to keep himself from reflexively firing off a spell of his own.
"Yeah... I'd heard they had a weird sense of rivalry toward us, but I didn't think it was this intense," Luid agreed, his face twisted in anger.
Among the Knight Department students, many harbored a deep-seated complex regarding those in the Magic Department. Most people who aimed for vanguard roles like knights or warriors did so because their mana capacity was too low to make it as mages. Those born with abundant mana almost always chose the path of the wizard. Consequently, many knights viewed themselves as "the ones who couldn't become mages," fueling a rivalry that bordered on sheer resentment.
Of course, not everyone felt that way. Some possessed high mana but chose the sword out of passion, and many loved their craft without comparing themselves to mages at all.
But it seems like this instructor, Oddman, isn't one of the good ones, Rest thought.
"Alright, next! Bedley from the Knight Department. Luid Gistal from the Magic Department. Step forward!"
"It's my turn... Watch me, I’m going to get some payback," Luid said, his fighting spirit flaring as he walked onto the field.
He picked up a wooden sword and faced his opponent. To Rest's eyes, while Luid wasn't exactly frail, his physique was clearly underdeveloped compared to the robust Knight student.
With magic restricted, he's at a total disadvantage... What's his plan?
"Match start!"
"Hyaa!"
The moment the signal was given, Luid moved. In a move no one expected, he hurled his wooden sword directly at his opponent.
"What—?!"
The Knight student was caught completely off guard. He reflexively raised his arms to guard his face against the incoming projectile.
"Physical Enhancement!"
Taking advantage of the momentary blindness, Luid kicked off the ground and sprinted. He circled behind the Knight student and locked his arm around the boy's neck in a tight chokehold.
"Gugh... You... Let go...!"
"Not a chance! You think it's that easy?"
Luid bolstered his strength with magic, wrapping his legs around his opponent's torso to secure the lock. The Knight student thrashed desperately, but he was in a losing position. No matter the difference in raw muscle, the Magic Department students had the edge when it came to the precision and efficiency of their magic.
Unable to break Luid's magically enhanced grip, the Knight student eventually collapsed onto his back, his eyes rolling into his head as he lost consciousness.
"...Match over," Oddman announced, his face sour.
Luid exhaled sharply and stood up, stepping away from his fallen opponent.
"Whew, that was close. I barely pulled that off."
"Really? It looked like a pretty decisive win to me," Rest said.
"Hardly. That guy was digging his nails into my arms... I was terrified he was going to tear me off."
Looking closer, Rest saw bloody scratches marring Luid's forearms. He cast a quick Healing Magic spell, and the injuries vanished instantly.
"Thanks, Rest. You're a lifesaver."
"Don't mention it. That’s the first win for our class."
After seeing over ten of their peers lose, Luid had finally broken the streak.
"Alright, who's next..."
"It's my turn."
Yuri Catreia, who had been helping Rest with the injured, stepped forward.
"They're calling us by attendance number, so I'm up. Correct?"
"Uh... are you sure you're okay, Yuri?"
"Oh, I'm fine."
Surprisingly, Yuri was smiling. Rest had assumed she was seething with indignation like Luid, but come to think of it, she hadn't shown much of a reaction at all as their classmates were being pulverized.
"If I'm strong, I win. If I'm weak, I lose. It's as simple as that. It's not like our lives are on the line, so don't worry about me."
Yuri spoke with a casual, airy tone as she picked up a wooden sword. Despite her bright and innocent appearance, her outlook on combat was remarkably cold.
I suppose she is the daughter of the Knight Commander... She must have been raised with a very pragmatic view of winning and losing.
She likely viewed the Magic Department's losses as a natural consequence of the "survival of the fittest" nature of competition. Rest watched her walk toward the center of the field, feeling like he'd just discovered a new facet of her personality.
"Hey, Lyubase..."
Meanwhile, Oddman beckoned one of the Knight students over, whispering something in a low voice.
Curious, Rest subtly activated a spell to sharpen his hearing and caught their conversation.
"You must win this match at all costs."
"I've been ordered not to let that person wield a sword..."
"However, do not injure her. Under no circumstances are you to hurt her! Do you understand?"
".........?"
What a bizarre set of instructions. Rest understood the command to win, but the part about not letting her wield a sword and ensuring she wasn't harmed was confusing.
Actually... many of the Knight Department instructors are retired members of the Knight Order.
The instructor had referred to "that person," suggesting that perhaps Marquis Catreia, the Knight Commander himself, was the one pulling the strings.
Is this related to why Yuri ran away from home? Well, there's no way for me to know for sure.
It was a family matter, and there was no point in speculating. For now, he would just have to wait and see how the match unfolded.