TRSM 10

chapter 10

The next day, early in the morning.

Noah was meditating with the knights as usual. When the meditation ended, he gave a simple order to the knights.

“Go to the storeroom and bring ten wooden swords per person.”

The knights of the Veratan family looked puzzled at Noah’s words. After all, there were already wooden swords in the training grounds.

“What’s the reason for this?”

“Just something I want to do.”

Noel, still reeling from his defeat in sparring, asked Noah. But the answer he received did nothing to satisfy their curiosity.

“The person who brings theirs last… will do 100 push-ups.”

Noah glared at the hesitant knights as he spoke. At that moment, the knights dashed out to the training ground in a flurry. Everyone knew that Noah always kept his word.

“Move!”
“I’m first!”

Even knights who were usually like brothers didn’t care about such distinctions when their lives—or something akin to them—were at stake. In the midst of it, Noel, who had questioned Noah earlier, had already left the training ground.

Not long after.

Crack!

In the middle of the training ground, 200 wooden swords were lined up.

“Gard. You’re last.”

Noah looked at the stacked swords with a pleased smile. Then his gaze shifted toward the knight who had arrived last.

The last knight was Gard. Gard was the one who had bet gold that Noah wouldn’t finish the obstacle run.

“Yes.”
“Then you know what to do, right?”
“…Do 100 push-ups.”
“Mm.”

Noah nodded at Gard’s response, then raised his eyebrows slightly and said:

“Begin.”

Gard started doing push-ups at Noah’s command, thinking to himself how unlucky he was from the very morning.

“All… done!”

It took Gard five minutes to complete 100 push-ups. Noah looked at him with a satisfied smile.

“At first, it took over ten minutes… now it’s down to five.”

It was a clear difference from four weeks ago.

And it wasn’t just Gard; the other knights were the same. Yet Noah thought there was still a long way to go.

“We’re even worse than the Bismarck knights nearby. Being satisfied here is unacceptable.”

Come to think of it, the Bismarck knights weren’t particularly skilled either. Compared to the Empire’s knight corps, they were still amateurs.

So Noah planned to push his knights even harder. That way, they wouldn’t fall behind when facing the Empire’s knights later.

“What do you intend to do with the wooden swords?”

Gard, having finished his push-ups, asked Noah. The other knights also looked at him curiously.

“We’ll spar.”
“Then we don’t need ten each, do we?”
“For normal sparring, that’s true. But the sparring we’re doing now isn’t normal.”

Noah answered Noel’s follow-up question with a calm voice, leaving the knights even more puzzled—they didn’t understand what “not normal” meant.

Swish.

Noah picked up one of the stacked wooden swords, examining it from every angle.

“These wooden swords are made pretty sturdy.”
“?”
“Breaking these will be tough.”

He looked at the knights with an almost pitying expression. They could feel the chill down their spines at his words.

“What do you mean by ‘breaking’ them?”

Another knight asked, and Noah smiled. In a calm voice, he said:

“From now on, pair up in twos. Spar until all ten wooden swords are broken. If you fail, you’ll spar continuously until evening.”

The knights were struck with despair at Noah’s words.

“He’s… a demon!”
“God, why such a trial…?”

For a moment, Noah seemed like the embodiment of a demon to them. Then Noel spoke in a clear voice:

“D-did the head of the house authorize this?”

At Noel’s question, the knights’ eyes sharpened. If the head hadn’t approved it, they would have run to complain immediately.

However.

“Oh, I haven’t told you yet. My father gave me the authority to train you all. So follow orders without complaint.”

Noah had anticipated this reaction and had already secured the authority. Upon hearing this:

“Ah…”

The knights sighed.

Thud! Thwack!

The dull sounds of strikes echoed through the training ground—the knights were sparring with the wooden swords.

“Ugh!”
“Break!”

Additionally, they made grunting sounds they hadn’t before. Noah watched with satisfaction as the knights swung their swords and shouted.

“This is the perfect training method for making knights grow.”

Sparring until the wooden swords broke—this was the training method of Noah’s former master. Noah knew very well how difficult and strenuous this was.

But.

“It also allows you to grow faster.”

The effect was that guaranteed.

Thwack! Thunk!

Noah smiled as he listened to the strikes, arms crossed, observing the knights.

The Veratan knights swung their swords diligently. Yet the swords were tough. Even after more than two hours of sparring, none of them had broken a single sword.

Zero.

Out of twenty, not a single sword had been broken. Even two hours into the sparring. But Noah felt no frustration or impatience.

“That’s normal for the beginning.”

It took a long time to break the swords, but Noah had no intention of telling the knights this.

“Swing with everything you’ve got!”

Noah commanded loudly, and the knights gritted their teeth.

“That demon!”
“Is this what happens to someone who loses their memory?”
“I’ll get revenge… I will!”

And they vowed to one day return the suffering they endured.

“You look great when you’re driven by anger.”

Noah knew the knights were sharpening their will for revenge, but he didn’t plan to reprimand them for it. He wanted them to try, if they could.

“A teacher’s joy is in seeing their students grow.”

To Noah, the Veratan knights were like his disciples. They were also the secret weapon capable of striking the Empire.

“Hah!”

At that moment, Noel, sparring in the right corner, sighed and spoke irritably:

“Is it really possible to break these?”

Noel’s question made the other knights stop and focus on Noah. They too were unsure whether the wooden swords could actually break.

“What if it is possible?”

Noah responded indifferently, causing Noel to flinch instead.

“…”

It didn’t seem possible. Why was Noah so confident it could be done? Noel’s mind raced.

But.

“I can’t keep doing this inhuman training!”

Noel didn’t want to do it—breaking ten wooden swords through sparring. It seemed absurd.

“Ridiculous.”

Noel judged the command unreasonable, which is why he had questioned Noah.

Thud, thud.

Noah picked up one of the swords from the middle and approached Noel, who had questioned him.

“I’ll show you. Get into position.”
“Huh?”
“I’ll show you that my command is completely reasonable.”

The knights murmured in surprise, and Noel swallowed hard, taking a stance.

“Really?”

Noel’s heart raced. His mind was chaotic, and cold sweat ran down his back. One wrong move could get him crushed, he thought.

“…Understood.”

But apologizing was impossible—Noel’s pride wouldn’t allow it. So he reluctantly assumed a sparring stance.

“I’ll break the sword within ten strikes. If I fail, today’s training ends.”

Noah spoke, watching the tense Noel. Noel nodded in response.

“Ten strikes.”

He braced himself to withstand Noah’s blows as much as possible. No matter who Noah was, if he didn’t strike properly, the sword couldn’t break.

“Then I’ll show you.”

Noah finished speaking and charged at Noel.

Thwack!

On the fifth strike, Noah shattered Noel’s wooden sword. The knights’ faces turned to shock.

“Training ends here for today. Don’t be discouraged if you can’t break the swords in one day—it usually takes about a week.”

The early morning training finally ended in the evening. The knights, hearing that it was over, collapsed where they stood.

Noah left them and returned to his room.

“Hah…”
“Huff.”

Even though Noah had disappeared, no one spoke ill of him. Their earlier complaints had vanished.

The reason was simple.

Noah had shattered Noel’s sword in just five strikes.

“…”

Noel stared at the broken wooden sword in the corner. It had perished during sparring with Noah.

And it had been destroyed in just five strikes.

“Let’s rest.”

A knight rose from his spot and said this. The other knights immediately followed suit. Yet Noel remained motionless.

“Noel… aren’t you coming?”
“Go ahead.”

Gard asked, and Noel waved his hand dismissively. Gard’s eyes widened in surprise.

“The one who always ran ahead…”

After training, Noel was usually the first to return to the dormitory. Seeing him stay behind shocked Gard.

“Don’t overdo it.”

Gard smiled gently at Noel and left with the others.

“…”

Alone, Noel approached the shattered sword. He ran his hand over the cleanly split blade and made a vow:

“In a week… no, in five days, I’ll succeed!”

He would succeed in breaking ten wooden swords within five days, just like Noah showed today.