Ryuu Kusari no Ori

This chapter was brought to you by the collaboration between PolterGlast and Saekano Translations.

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Volume 1 Chapter 4.4

The Realization of the Escapism, and the First Step Part 4

Translator : PolterGlast

A week has passed since the battle with Tiamat. Nozomu had been undergoing treatment under her master's care and was somehow able to resume his daily life.

The potion that Shino used to treat Nozomu was her original, and although it lacked the rapid recovery power of commercially available potions, it did enhance the body's ability to heal itself with ease.

It had been used in his previous training sessions with Shino, and Nozomu was quite grateful to her for it.

On the other hand, it was Shino's behavior that puzzled Nozomu. Usually, whenever he expressed his dissatisfaction, he would receive a barrage of abusive words and the finest martial arts in the name of punishment, but lately, there was a strange wavering tone at the end of her words.

She also began to show a strange, anxious demeanor, and even began to act in ways she had never shown before, such as accompanying Nozomu to town when he returned to Arcazam after he had regained his mobility.

"Shisho, we have arrived at Arcazam."

Nozomu and Shino stopped as they arrived just before the city gates.

"U-, umu, I see ......"

"Thank you for escorting me."

"W-, well. I am your mentor after all. It is only natural for me to be concerned about my injured disciple."

Shino nodded in a good mood at her disciple's auspicious courtesy.

"But then again, when you see it again, it's indeed a big city ......"

Looking up at the gate of Arcazam, Shino muttered to herself.

The gate where Nozomu and Shino currently stand was one of several gates on the outer perimeter of Arcazam, and in terms of size, it was half as small as the main gate on the south side.

Nevertheless, the gate, which is nearly ten meters high, is majestic enough to interest even someone like Shino, who once held a respectable status.

"Shisho, have you ever entered Arcazam? ......"

"No, I never. I didn't want to go near this city when it was being built, or even after it was done ...... Maybe it was a bit of a waste on my part."

"Shisho, would you like me to show you around the city for a little bit?"

"...... No, thanks. You have a school, no? You've been absent without prior notice for more than a week. Isn't that causing you a lot of trouble?"

"Well, that may well be the case ......"

"Right? Let's hurry up and get out of here."

"...... I understand."

Following Shino, who entered the city first, Nozomu also went through the gate.

They walked together along the street leading from the gate to Central Park and then to the Soluminati Academy.

The sun was already rising and many stores were noisily starting their day's business on the street leading to the central park.

In front of the stores, people were bargaining with the shopkeepers over the prices of the goods they were about to buy.

"Hoo, what is that bright red powder? This one is ...... a seed that looks like a cat's claw. I wonder what kind of seed this is."

Shino's curious eyes wandered from one place to another as she looked at the goods on display in the stall.

Nozomu was surprised by this unexpected reaction, but at the same time, he felt nostalgic. When he first came to this town, he, too, had been surprised by the variety of goods lined up in the stores, many of which he had never seen before.

Walking along the street, the two of them eventually arrived at Central Park.

Beyond the green-covered park, the huge white building of Soluminati Academy peeked out from the trees and looking around the vast park, students in white uniforms could be seen on their way to school.

"Hmm, this is as far as I go. Nozomu, I am going back to the forest."

"I understand. Thank you, Shisho."

As Nozomu bowed his head to his master who had escorted him here, Shino shrugged her shoulders as if she didn't mind.

At that moment, the bell on the school's steeple, the tallest in the school building and clearly visible from where Nozomu and Shino were standing began to chime throughout the city with a *gong, gong, gong!* sound. It was time for the morning assembly to begin.

"Oh no, I'm going to be late!"

Hearing the bell chime to announce the start of the morning assembly, a look of frustration came over Nozomu's face. The reason for this was that his grades were at the very bottom of the class and he didn't want to get any negative marks because of his conduct in school.

"Since you have already been absent without notice for almost a week, I don't think you need to worry about it now ......."

However, as Shino said, Nozomu had already been absent without notice for a week, so there was no doubt that he had a very bad reputation in terms of his classroom conduct.

In this case, the decision was either to accept the fact that he was going to get a bad impression anyway or to keep on persisting.

In Nozomu's case, it was the latter. He was about to run toward the school building to avoid any more negative points, while his master was spouting off nonsensical remarks.

"Anyway! I'm gonna go now. Shisho, see you- ......."

"Oh, right. After class today, come back to my hut. We still have a lot to talk about ......"

The end-of-year examination at Soluminati Academy is an important test that will determine the ranks to which students will be assigned in the following year.

Since the results of the practical and written examinations determine the next year's treatment, all students take the examinations very seriously and put in their best effort.

Even students in the higher ranks are dropped to a lower rank if their grades are unsatisfactory, and if their grades are below the standard, they will be failed without question, or in the worst case, be expelled from the school. This is a big problem for Nozomu, whose grades have been stagnant.

However, he was not sure if he should ignore the offer of his master, who had been a great help to him.

Moreover, he felt that he could not ignore his master's words, and more than anything else, there was a certain sense of camaraderie between the two of them now, so he really felt that he could not ignore it.

"What is it that you want to talk about? Do you still have something to tell me?"

"I'll tell you about it later. Look, the bell has chimed. Aren't you running out of time?"

"Wasn't it Shisho who stopped me!? Oh, Gosh!"

This time, Nozomu shook off his master and ran off toward the school building.

After watching her disciple disappear behind the school's main gate, Shino began to turn back in the direction from which she had just come.

"A new and foreign city. I'm quite disappointed that I don't have my disciple to guide me around, but let's take a short walk."

For a start, she peeked into a nearby stall, and for a while, she enjoyed walking around the city for the first time in decades.

◆

Nozomu's absence without notice was left unexplained because his homeroom teacher, Caskell, did not specifically ask him the reason for his absence.

The teacher, who originally had no interest in tenth-class students, left Nozomu completely on his own. He finished filling out the attendance sheet and started the morning class without asking the reason for his absence.

The other students also did not ask for the reasons for his absence. Because they were also the ones whom Caskell despised as being at the bottom of the barrel, they didn't want to be noticed by the sarcastic teacher as a result of asking a question. So they seemed to have taken the liberty of assuming that it was not something serious anyway.

The morning class ended in this manner.

In the classroom, everyone was able to leave the matter in the background, but Nozomu was persistently being questioned outside of the classroom.

"Nozomu-kun, I know you are hiding something~. It is certainly unusual for you to be absent without notice for an entire week~!"

The only one who couldn't be fooled was Anri Var, the assistant to the homeroom teacher.

When she learned that Nozomu was coming to school for the first time in a week, she called him to the staff room during lunch break and began questioning him.

"I-, It is nothing to be concerned about. I was simply attacked by a demonic beast when I entered the forest and was injured ......"

"It's obviously a big deal! What kind of demonic beast attacked you~? Certainly, powerful monsters are unlikely to appear in the vicinity of the main road, but even so, it's by no means a certainty~. We need to know where and what kind of demonic beast attacked you~."

"Umm, I don't remember exactly where it was, but I'm pretty sure it was a Mad Bear ....... I don't remember exactly where it was, but I think it was on the east side of the Spasim Forest ......"

"Is that ...... one of the three brothers?"

"Eh? Yeah, that's right ......"

Nozomu tried his best to smooth things over, but the suspicion in Anri's eyes gradually deepened.

"What about your injuries?"

"I had a fever and had to stay in bed, but I'm fine now."

"Then, let me ask you one more question. Why did you go AWOL (Absent Without Leave)~? Nozomu-kun, you live in a dormitory, so you can contact the school, right?"

"The fever was worse than I thought and I couldn't move. Besides, there are no classmates at this school who would care about me ......"

Nozomu himself was quite sad to be saying this line himself, but it was completely true, because in reality Nozomu was literally at the bottom of the barrel among the second graders and was not even partying up with any of them.

As for Nozomu, he felt some guilt for lying to Anri, but he couldn't tell the truth either. He tried to keep a lid on the tingling guilt inside and somehow managed to talk his way out of it.

"...... *hic*."

"Eh?"

But at that moment, Anri suddenly began to cry. The abruptness of the situation caused Nozomu to voice his bewilderment.

"W-, what is going on all of a sudden?"

"E~~~n! Nozomu-kun doesn't trust me ~~! Such a half-assed reliance~!"

"E-, eh? N-, no, it's not like that. Why are you making such a big deal about it!"

"Because you won't tell me the truth~! The three Mad Bears were defeated by Irisdina-san about ten days ago, and although I can't see them clearly, it looks like you were wounded, and the scent of the medicine used to treat them is not one that is available in this town ~~!"

Nozomu involuntarily paled upon hearing Anri's point. Although his wounds were already healed, the lingering aftereffects of his injuries still left a subtle discomfort in Nozomu's body.

Anri had noticed that Nozomu had been subconsciously making a protective gesture in response to the wounds.

She also noticed by the smell alone that the medicine used to treat Nozomu was not the kind of medicine that was commonly available on the market.

However, since Nozomu's lie was also quite full of holes, it was impossible he could get away with it in the first place.

However, he still could not tell the truth. The battle between Nozomu, who tried to deceive somehow, and Anri, who cried and tried to question Nozomu, continued for a while.

"Nozomu-kun, tell me ......"

Anri stared at Nozomu with tears welling up in her gentle eyes.

Nozomu, too, was at a loss for words as he was being pressed by the slightly older, stunningly beautiful woman, while at the same time saying, "Uuu ......."

The sight of a beautiful woman, desperately and sincerely concerned about her student's well-being, could bewitch all men and women, young and old.

Especially when young men saw her face, they would listen to whatever she said.

(She is the type of person who naturally makes men fall in love with her. And it's worse because she doesn't even realize it!)

Nozomu was no exception, and Anri's seductive gaze stirred the guilt smoldering deep in his chest.

"Nozomu-kun ...... won't you tell me about it?"

"U-, umm ......"

Speaking of the outcome, Anri's teary-eyed attack in the name of questioning ended with the bell for the start of class. Nozomu quickly left the staff room as if to escape.

◆

While Nozomu was being pursued by Anri, Irisdina was having lunch in Central Park with her best friend, Tima, and her sister, Somia. The three of them were on a bench in the lawn area, where they could see all the stalls in the park.

"So, Ane-sama, have you and Nozomu-san cleared up the misunderstanding?"

"Misunderstanding?"

"We met Nozomu-kun here a little while ago and we had a talk, briefly."

Irisdina gave a brief explanation to Tima, who tilted her head in response to Somia's statement.

While looking for Somia in Central Park to have lunch together, she ran into Nozomu, who was talking with her sister. After talking to him, she heard that he had helped her sister catch a cat that Somia was looking for a short while ago.

As a token of their friendship, they decided to have lunch together.

At the same time, Irisdina mentioned that she had made an inappropriate remark to Nozomu at that time. While she was explaining, Irisdina's eyes kept glancing at the stalls lined up in Central Park. Apparently, she was wondering if Nozomu would come out to buy lunch.

"Is that why Ai has been missing during lunch and after school lately?"

"Yeah, I thought it would be bad to suddenly barge into class, so I waited for him at the main gate, but I couldn't see him.  I wonder if he's at the school today ......"

While she was chatting with her best friend, Irisdina was checking the faces of the people lined up in front of the stalls.

Tima was inwardly surprised at her behavior. As far as she knew, Irisdina had never shown this much interest in a single male student.

In the end, however, Nozomu did not appear at the main gate, and lunch break ended. While Irisdina was putting away her lunch bag with her shoulders slumped, Somia suddenly made a suggestion.

"Ane-sama, would you mind inviting Nozomu-san to my upcoming birthday party?"

"...... Eh?"

Irisdina was taken aback by her sister's sudden suggestion. The birthday party originally planned for Somia was a private occasion, and the guests invited were only Somia's friends from Ecross, who were particularly close to her.

"Nozomu-san is a friend of mine. He helped me retrieve this bracelet that Ane-sama gave me. That's why I've been wanting to thank him."

"Somia ......"

"Nozomu-san, even when he smiled, he looked somewhat lonely. I don't know what happened to him, but I-, I want my friends to have a smile on their faces, even if it's just a little ......"

Somia also knew about the rumors regarding Nozomu that were spreading in the school. But regardless of that, she wanted Nozomu to smile from the bottom of his heart.

"Indeed. I also want my friends to be smiling. That's the way it is ......"

The innocence of her younger sister pushed Irisdina to take a step forward.

Irisdina did not know about Nozomu's past. She could only imagine how much he had been cornered.

Originally, he was only someone she was curious about. However, having sensed glimpses of the efforts he has accumulated, Irisdina has also come to sympathize with him without realizing it.

That was why she grew impatient at the fact that the misunderstanding had not yet been cleared up.

"Somia, I will talk to him properly and clear up the misunderstanding. At that time, I will invite him to your birthday party."

"Yes! Please, Ane-sama!"

The curiosity and sympathy that had been building up in the depths of her mind. And upon the urging of her beloved sister, Irisdina promised to invite him to the birthday party that would celebrate her beloved sister.

◆

Nozomu managed to escape from Anri's pursuit during the lunch break and went straight to his afternoon practical class.

While working on his body in the training ground, he let Caskell's condescending words pass over his head.

However, he felt a chill run down his spine at the stares he was receiving from the other side of the training ground.

*Stare~~*

There was Anri, who participated in the practical training class as an assistant to Caskell.

As an assistant homeroom teacher, she often participated in classes and directly assisted the homeroom teacher in this way.

However, in the tenth class, there could be only one assistant instructor in the class at most. Nothing like the first class to get several instructors to come along.

On the other hand, Anri kept staring at Nozomu so intently that it was as if he could hear the SFX sound, and Nozomu let out a deep sigh hoping that he would not be noticed. Aside from these two, the class itself went on without a hitch.

After a demonstration of the ritual magic that was practiced in the previous day's class, combat training was held at the end of the class.

Nozomu's opponent for the combat training was, of all people, Mars, another tenth-class problem child.

"You're out of luck. I'm your opponent for the second time in a row. Well, you can't win no matter who you fight, so why should you worry about it? Hahahahahahahaha!"

Ignoring Mars, who kept provoking him as usual, Nozomu picked up a dummy katana on the edge of the training ground and checked his own condition as he regulated his breathing.

His injuries were fine. Even though he still felt a little discomfort, his body was able to move as he wished.

He took a swing with the dummy katana in his hand. The feel of the katana in his arm wasn't that different from that of his own personal katana.

And his biggest concern was.

He looked down at his own body and scrutinized his eyes. The invisible chains wrapped around his body appeared in his vision, and when he reached out and grasped them, they jingled and gave him a solid touch.

It could be disarmed .......

The feeling of having ripped off the invisible chains that entangled his body in the sealed world still lingered clearly in Nozomu's arms. He was convinced that if he wanted to, he could unleash everything that was being suppressed.

(But I shouldn't release it ...... for now.)

But even if it were possible, Nozomu was determined not to break this chain right now.

The Tiamat he had seen in his dream and a sense of anxiety he had felt at that time. And the feeling that something in him might be broken if he were to break the chains now. These factors made him hesitate to release it.

(What's left is ...... )

While muttering to himself, Nozomu glanced at his personal katana, which he had placed at the edge of the training ground in exchange for a dummy katana.

What came to mind was his master's words, "If you want to get out of the bottom of the barrel, you should use the techniques you have learned properly".

Shino was right, Nozomu had never used the Qi-jutsu he had learned in the academy.

(Should I use it?)

Hesitation arose in his mind, and countless reasons for affirming or denying it passed through his mind.

But his homeroom teacher, Caskell, did not wait for Nozomu's doubts to be cleared.

"Well then, let's begin!"

Simultaneously with Caskell's shout, the combat training began.

Without even waiting for a moment, Mars stepped forward, and at the same time, the ground beneath his feet cracked with a thunderous explosion.

Mars, who used his [Flash Step], approached Nozomu with an acceleration that was hard to believe that he was carrying a heavy greatsword.

This time, it seemed that he had intended to crush Nozomu from the very beginning. Not only did he use his [Flash Step], but he had already used Qi-jutsu to strengthen his body, and even from the side, his entire body was clad in a remarkable amount of Qi.

Nozomu let out a small exhale, "huff ......", in front of Mars, who was rushing forward.

His jumbled thoughts cleared in an instant, and his consciousness snapped back into focus.

Before he knew it, Nozomu was already preparing to intercept, his entire body moving at an astonishing speed.

"Be crushed!"

The greatsword that Mars swung from above immediately shifted to a side cleave.

His first strike was a feint, a strike that was made to look as if it was coming from above, but instead, it was a cleave from the side.

Nozomu, using his strengthened physical abilities to the fullest, rotated his body to gain momentum, and then struck the cleaved greatsword from below. The swung katana struck the belly of Mars' greatsword, and then the counter-force transmitted from both of his stomping feet deflected Mars' greatsword upward.

"Huh?"

Mars frowned for a moment in response to Nozomu's swift and skillful response.

But he, too, responded immediately to Nozomu's interception.

He adjusted the trajectory of the greatsword that had been leaped up, and this time he swung it down toward Nozomu's face.

Nozomu turned his wrist and held his katana diagonally to the line of Mars' attack, and at the same time, he relaxed his right leg and let the impact of the downward strike flow diagonally toward the ground.

Mars' eyes widened in disbelief upon seeing his most powerful strike being parried by Nozomu.

Until now, the effects of [Ability Suppression] were too significant for him to deal with this blow, even if he had strengthened his body with Qi.

However, the physical ability that had increased, albeit slightly, as a result of becoming a Dragonslayer made it possible for Nozomu to parry Mars' powerful blow without losing his stance.

Moreover, Nozomu was now beginning to use the techniques he had learned under Shino's tutelage, albeit gradually.

Having finally found a place he could call home, his consciousness as he faced the combat training was no longer that of the school life he had spent like a puppet until now.

It was a clear sign of change.

Little by little but surely, Nozomu's mind was beginning to change, just like a seed that had been sleeping under the ground for several years cracked open the frozen ground and sprouted.

"Tch!"

Mars' mouth twisted into a smile as Nozomu stepped to the inside of the greatsword's range of attack.

Nozomu jumped into the gap and swung his katana in a single strike at Mars' torso.

Realizing that there was no time to draw his greatsword back, Mars repelled Nozomu's attack with his gauntlet, just as he had done in the previous combat training.

But Nozomu had already anticipated that, too. The moment his slash was repelled by the gauntlet, he took another step forward, shifted his body, and struck Mars in the abdomen with a powerful elbow strike to one of the vital points of the human body, the solar plexus.

"Gah!"

Mars' face contorted in anguish, and his body bent over.

The impact on his diaphragm, which controls breathing, hindered normal breathing and slowed down his very movements.

Nozomu held the back of Mars' head as he leaned forward, and then he slammed his knee into his face. Mars could feel the bone of his nose get hit by the knee, and he staggered back, his nose spurting blood.

Nozomu tried to pursue Mars further as he stumbled backward, but .......

"Tch, you're getting on my nerves!"

Along with Mars' shout, a large amount of Qi erupted. As a result of the excessive amount of Qi that was released, Nozomu was temporarily pushed out of the way.

"Damn, how much Qi does he possess? ......"

While Nozomu complained about his opponent's gifted disposition, Mars glared at Nozomu with an indignant expression on his face.

He was completely pissed off, having received an unexpected counterattack from a weak man who should have just crawled over to him.

"I'll crush you! You son of a bitch, I'll shred you into dust and pulverize you!"

Mars, in a rage, began to pump Qii into the greatsword. The Qi that was gushing out, swirled around the blade and cloaked it in wind.

"...... wind?"

After the Qi that contained wind was poured into the greatsword, it coated the thick blade and turned into a blade of raging wind.

[Qi-jutsu・Wind Blade]

A Qi-jutsu in which a blade of wind wraps around the body of the sword and shreds any approaching object. The densely compressed wind is accompanied by a powerful pressure that unilaterally blows away any poor defenses or attacks.

Furthermore, the wind also accelerates the speed of the slash, further increasing its power.

To withstand the blow of the wind blade and the slash of the greatsword, the defender must have sufficient physical strength and a strong defense, however, since Nozomu lacks both of these, he has no other means of defending himself than to evade.

Mars' great sword, swung diagonally from the shoulder, closed in on Nozomu.

Nozomu saw the trajectory of the blade and avoided it by stepping back, but Mars stepped forward to close the distance between them and unleashed a barrage of attacks.

The wind blades struck with barely a moment to catch a breath. Nozomu kept moving backward, dodging the oncoming barrage of attacks.

Thanks to the [Qi-jutsu・Wind Blade], Mars' slashing speed as well as his returning speed were accelerated, and Nozomu could not find an opportunity to counterattack.

However, now that he was being controlled by his anger, Mars' swordsmanship was more monotonous than during the previous combat training, and there was no difficulty for Nozomu to read two or three moves ahead.

His physical ability, which had improved, albeit slightly, also greatly broadened the range of Nozomu's fighting style.

Nozomu was preparing for his next move, feeling a definite growth from the fact that he could see five moves ahead of his opponent's swordsmanship and the fact that he was now able to fight the way he wanted to.

◆

Mars was voicing his confusion and exasperation in the face of the fact that his attacks were not landing at all.

"What exactly is going on here? ......"

Mars' slashes were all cutting through empty air, as Nozomu's technique was clearly different and more precise than ever before.

"Why can't my attacks hit him!"

Nozomu, until now, had never been able to move in such a way. He would stagger when he parried the blows, and he would roll on the ground helplessly if he tried to evade. Even if by chance he could handle a few blows, the result would be the same, and he would eventually fall down.

However, Mars could not see such a result in Nozomu's current movement.

The movement itself was slow, but the way he evaded was extremely precise. Not only the sword's line, but also the way he saw through each blade of the wind surrounding it.

Mars had not only an abundance of Qi, but also possessed a particularly high aptitude for wind elemental Qi-jutsu and magic.

His ability, called [Blessing of the Wind Spirit], is limited to the wind attribute and greatly increases the power and accuracy of magic and Qi-jutsu.

Therefore, the power and the swiftness of the slash by using [Wind Blade] could not be underestimated, not even by an opponent of the same rank.

At that moment, Mars' vision happened to catch the face of the opponent in front of him. There was no trace of impatience in his expression. Mars was convinced. He was sure that this man had completely seen through all of his attacks, which were supposed to be strengthened by the [Wind Blade].

"It ain't possible ...... No way, that's impossible!"

Nozomu is at the bottom of the second year. His opponent is Mars, who is at the top of his class in terms of practical skills, with a rank of B. He was confident that even fighting against the highest rank, the first class, he was confident that his attacks would work.

At that moment, Mars suddenly remembered again the ability of the opponent in front of him.

[Ability suppression]

An ability that limits a person's ability to a certain level. The man in front of him must have had his strength, Qi, and magic restricted by this ability.

How much power would this person originally possess, having been able to see through his attacks while being restrained by such shackles? And how much training did this man have to go through in order to break through that limitation?

(............ I won't acknowledge him. There's no way I'm acknowledging him!)

The ability of a man who had not been visible until now. Emotion painted over all his reason, which warned him to judge it calmly. The pride that Mars had in his own strength clouded his own judgment.

Nozomu finally became slightly unstable in the face of Mars' continuous slashes.

Mars, who had become impatient in the face of Nozomu's struggle, took this opportunity to swing his greatsword down with all his might.

But it was Nozomu's trap.

Nozomu instantly regained his stance and leapt backward. Mars' greatsword slammed into the ground, and the blade of wind that had been enveloping the blade sent up a cloud of dust around him, blocking his vision.

"Damn you!"

Getting impatient, Mars unleashed the blade of wind that had been enveloping his greatsword, pointing it in the direction where he thought Nozomu might currently be.

Qi-jutsu・Rift Wind Hammer.

A Qi-jutsu derived from the [Wind Blade].

The blades of wind released from the blade become a cluster and rushes forward in a straight line like a battering ram.

The clusters of wind that rushed straight ahead gouged the ground deeply, and blew away the clouds of dust that had been billowing up.

But beyond the clear vision, there was no sign of Nozomu.

"Damn, where is he- ......!"

An intense chill ran through Mars' frustrated body as he wondered where Nozomu had gone.

Mars shifted his gaze to the right side and saw Nozomu, his katana already sheathed and at the ready at his hip.

The moment the cloud of dust covered his vision, Nozomu instantly put his Qi into his legs and kicked the ground.

He then bent the trajectory of his [Flash Step], which could only move in a straight line, and in an instant, he circled around to Mars's flank.

[Flash Step・Curved Movement]

A technique that combines linear [Flash Step] with complex curved movements.

At close range, their gazes intersected. Nozomu was already in a ready stance to draw his katana, while Mars was left wide open.

Mars judged that evasion was impossible. He quickly tried to defend himself with his gauntlets, but before his body could move, the mouth of Nozomu's sheathed katana was unlocked.

In a place where a wild storm was raging, a tranquil tone of sound echoed, *Shiing*.......

In Mars' mind, he could clearly see the silver flash that passed from his right flank to his left shoulder.

But Nozomu's katana was not drawn out.

Immediately after, the bell for the end of the class chimed in the training ground.

"The combat training is over. The final exams are coming up, so this is the end of today's classes."

With Caskell's command, the students, freed from the tension of the lesson, exhale loudly, put away their respective weapons, and return to their classrooms.

Nozomu, too, sheathed his half-drawn katana and turned on his heel.

"Nozomu-kun, may I have a word with you?......"

"A-, Anri-sensei, I'm sorry, I have some business to attend to today. Excuse me!"

"Wa-, wait ~~!"

Despite being stopped by Anri, Nozomu retrieved his personal katana from the edge of the training ground and then quickly sprinted off to leave the training ground.

Mars just watched his back without saying a word.

(He is definitely getting stronger. No, maybe he is strong to begin with and we just didn't notice it?)

Suddenly, he felt a burning sensation in his nose and wiped it with his finger, and found the blood that had flowed out when he was kneed earlier.

The blood that flowed out of his hand reminded Mars that what had happened in front of him was real.

(What's up with this fuzzy feeling? ......)

He felt unsettled. Anger welled up from deep within his chest.

(Why? Why did he have to hide his ability?)

No, it wasn't anger. At least Mars did not feel anything like anger toward Nozomu right now. If so, then to whom is all this irritation being directed at?

"I see, it's directed toward myself ......"

Mars' mouth, being lost in thought, naturally uttered such words.

If he had no anger toward Nozomu, then there was only one other possible target.

Mars had never been so angry with himself.

He was proud of his strength. At the very least, those who were weak and incapable of doing anything but secretly sneak around in the shadows were the ones he strongly despised.

But even more than that, those who would accept being tormented without resisting were the ones he despised the most.

This was exactly what Nozomu's behavior had been up to now. Even when he was treated as the lowest student in his grade, he accepted it without changing a single expression on his face. This was precisely the type of person that Mars detested the most.

But what was the reality?

Mars and the others just didn't realize it, in fact, Nozomu was more determined to resist it than anyone could ever have been. He was always struggling to become stronger.

And he was now being made aware that his efforts were at a level that Mars could not even imagine.

He had never heard of a person with [Ability Suppression] going beyond the limits of his abilities.

To a man who was making such extraordinary efforts, all he had done was to curse and ridicule him out of spite.

"Hey, Mars. How's it going with the outcast today?"

"From the looks of it, he's safe for today. Hey, Mars, just because it was too much of a hassle to deal with, you're cutting corners a little too much!"

Two of his cronies approached from behind and burst into deafening laughter.

However, Mars did not even pay attention to the two cronies who were making noise behind him.

While his cronies shrugged their shoulders and looked at each other upon seeing Mars' unusual behavior, Mars kept staring at the exit of the training ground where Nozomu had disappeared to, while feeling a strong sense of indignation toward himself.

◆

As the bell chimed, Irisdina was running quickly throughout the school.

Her goal was to find a boy who had not been coming to school for the past week or so.

"No one is here. Is the tenth class have practical classes?"

After checking the empty tenth-class classrooms from the hallway, Irisdina headed for the main gate.

Since he was not in the classroom, the main gate was the most likely place she could find him.

She was looking for Nozomu in order to clear up the misunderstandings.

She also wanted to apologize for the rudeness of having meddled in a part of his life that he did not want to be mentioned.

Irisdina's eyes caught sight of the school's large main gate.

Solminati Academy is divided into various buildings, including the main building where the students take their classes, the faculty building, and other various facilities.

As she exited the main building and walked out onto the street leading to the main gate, she saw a male student running out from the training grounds towards the main gate.

The student carried a very unique, eastern katana at his waist. It was no doubt the person she was looking for.

"Ah, Nozomu-kun, can you give me ...... a minute, please?"

Irisdina raised her hand and called out to him, but Nozomu, oblivious to her call, went through the main gate and out of the school premises.

Why was he in such a hurry? Before that question could even cross her mind, a crumpled and dejected expression appeared on Irisdina's face.

"I couldn't speak with him again ......"

As she lowered her hand, which she had raised, in an absentminded manner, she let out a disappointed voice at having missed the opportunity to apologize.

◆

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