Cornflower Witch

Chapter 27 Sweat on the Training Ground

In the study, Yero stood beside Hyde, listening to him recount the situation of this cohort of students.

"Yero, you've been with everyone for almost a month now. Who do you think will get the top three spots in next month's assessment?" Scholar Hyde asked, leaning back in his chair.

“I think…” he hesitated for a moment.

"First of all, Iona's strength far surpasses that of the others, and she should be the undisputed number one."

"Among the other trainees, Thorin and Baron are both very strong in both the study of secret history and combat, and they are likely to win second and third place in the overall score."

"The remaining trainees, although they have some advantages, only excel in one aspect. For example, Ray and Karen are strong in combat, but much weaker in secret history."

"Although Miss Tia is very good at studying secret history, she is far inferior in combat. Komia is also good at secret history, but unfortunately her advantage is not obvious. In terms of combat, she is only slightly better than Miss Tia."

"Is that so?" Maester Hyde gave a cryptic smile.

"This... I would appreciate your guidance, teacher." Yero bowed and asked for guidance.

"I won't tell you the answer in advance, but you might be mistaken this time."

"It's alright. Anyone else would probably have misjudged him, after all, that child is too low-key."

Yero didn't know which student Maester Hyde was referring to, so he could only go through those names in his mind again and again, searching for the possibility.

Tos? He's also the son of a nobleman, and the nephew of Viscount Schefeng. Could he be a dark horse? No, given his flamboyant personality, he'd never be low-key.

Valerie? Even less likely. That girl is just Iona's shadow now and hasn't inherited the physique and skills of Knight Levin at all.

Mick? His fighting skills are all self-taught, and he's been forced to correct them by his instructors lately, training until very late every day. Could it be him? But his grades in the Secret History class are really not good, unless he improves in other areas and gets extra points.

Miss Tia is very knowledgeable and intelligent, but unfortunately she has been weak since childhood. I have never seen her hold a sword, so I guess she is completely incapable of fighting. After a few thoughts crossed his mind, Yero decided to cross the girl with glasses off the list.

There's not much chance for anyone else; they're either too stupid or too mediocre.

So, Mick is the most likely one to be overlooked. He has indeed been working hard to catch up during this time, and he is the most active in training every day, Yero thought to himself.

……

A week later, there were only three days left until the assessment.

In the training field, a boy with slanted eyes vigorously swung his iron sword, sweat dripping from his body and soaking into the dust on the ground.

After practicing the sword techniques taught by the instructor once again, his movements were already exceptionally skilled, forming a kind of muscle memory.

'Basic Swordsmanship Lv.3', that's roughly his current skill level.

After wiping away his sweat with a towel, he went to the well, lifted a bucket of well water, poured it over himself to dissipate the heat, and let out a satisfied roar.

"Hey, Mick, training again today?" A tall figure walked over. His name was 'Ray'. He was the tallest of all the trainees, about 1.9 meters tall and weighing over 200 kilograms.

"How about we spar today?" Lei asked, somewhat eager, as he brandished the large hammer in his hand.

Even if it's wrapped in several layers of soft cloth, a single blow can cause indescribable internal injuries, which is why other trainees are unwilling to spar with him.

"Phew, okay, but I need to catch my breath." Mick took a deep breath and composed himself.

"Okay, I'll wait for you." Lei scratched his head a little sheepishly, and the two went to sit in a corner of the training field.

……

On the other side, Baron also sparred with another noble student, practicing his newly learned swordsmanship.

In just a few moves, Baron easily defeated his opponent.

"Although Instructor Burke always has a grumpy face, the swordsmanship he teaches is indeed very practical." He sheathed his sword and struck a rather elegant pose as he commented.

Baron was already quite talented, and with the rigorous training he underwent recently, his strength improved significantly. Even Thorin occasionally lost to him. "Baron, you're going to come in second place now," another noble student joked.

“Second…” Baron nodded slightly.

"As the closest score to Miss Iona's, it should change her opinion." Everyone already knew that he was pursuing Iona.

“Of course you will. You are the rightful heir to the baronship. Although Iona was prominent in the past, she is now…” The student shook his head as he spoke.

There are also social strata within the nobility. The eldest son, who is the heir to the title, usually holds the highest position. Next are the second sons of great nobles, and then those who have noble blood but cannot inherit the title.

"Alright, let's not talk about that anymore. I heard that Thorin has been practicing a special ability recently. Do you have any information about it?" Baron asked directly.

"I don't know about that; you'd have to ask the commoner students." Nobles and commoner students rarely interacted with each other, creating an invisible barrier between them.

"Thorin's father was a 'Second-Tier - Blood Law' warrior, so it must have been taught to him by his father."

"However, Thorin has not yet been able to condense a 'first-order' nature form, and the abilities he can cultivate are also very limited."

“Blood law nature…” Baron thought for a moment, then shook his head.

"Aside from breathing techniques, I will not practice blood-related abilities, as that would be inconsistent with my family's tradition." He is destined to become a knight, and he cannot afford to go astray.

"Unfortunately, most of the abilities of the 'Castle' attribute can only be learned after condensing the 'First-Order Castle' attribute." Is there no other way? Baron wondered.

He didn't want to be defeated by Thorin. After all, he was a nobleman, and to lose to a commoner in the assessment would be utterly humiliating, especially since this was a highly publicized assessment. The results would immediately spread throughout the noble circles of Scorched Stone City, not only disgracing his family but also potentially causing embarrassment if Iona saw it...

Thinking of this, Baron felt a surge of irritation.

No, I have to go back and ask my dad if he can help me. I'm his heir, and if I lose face, he loses face too.

……

After resting, Mick and Ray went to one side of the training ground and each took their weapons.

"I'm here, Mick." Ray swung the sledgehammer down, creating a whooshing sound.

Such a massive hammer… Mick glanced at it, then leaped away quickly, creating distance to avoid the opponent's attack.

"Don't run." Ray swung his hammer again and followed, but fortunately he wasn't fast, and Mick was always able to dodge.

However, simply dodging wouldn't lead to victory. Mick stared intently at his opponent's movements, trying to find a weakness.

After Lei swung the hammer again, he suddenly charged forward, his sword blade piercing the opponent's waist and abdomen. The specially made wooden sword pressed into Lei's training leather armor, causing the opponent to clutch his body in pain and squat down, eventually sitting back on the ground.

"It hurts, let's do it again." Lei rubbed his hand and got up again.

“Heh, sure,” Mick laughed, the two of them sharing a mutual respect.

Because they both came from humble backgrounds and had low starting points, and both worked hard to improve themselves, their relationship gradually grew closer.

The two practiced back and forth on the training field until the sun set and darkness fell.

……

“That’s all for today.” Mick, covered in sweat, washed himself with water and said to Ray, who was doing the same thing next to him.

"it is good."

After saying that, the two walked towards the training field exit in tacit agreement, and once again they were the last to leave today.

Looking at the dark red, fiery clouds on the horizon, Mick felt a surge of emotion.

Perhaps, living like this all the time wouldn't be so bad.

(End of this chapter)