I looked at Alleus and she gave me a nod. We then continued our pursuit of following.
As we walked down the hall, countless students came up to Incus to shake her hand. But then someone stood in her way.
"Well well. If it isn't my rival. You've come back, have you? I would've finished much faster than you have..!" said a young woman with red tied back long hair, which was complimented by her freckles, as her golden pupils looked down on Incus.
The air around us then shifted. What seemed to be a more frail looking Incus was looking down at Radeius.
"What's going on?" Alleus whispered.
"It's a flashback."
The air then went back to normal, and Incus pushed the red haired youth to the side.
"Move out of the way, fat-eius. I need to go to practical combat."
"What a coincidence, that's my next class too. Hey, my name isn't fat-eius, it's Radeius..!"
"Whatever," said Incus, walking past her, as Steinen looked down on the red haired youth.
***
In the next class, a muscular man with a bald head covered in scars stood in front of an empty slate made of smooth stone.
"Hello class. Today I'll be assessing how much your combat prowess has grown." He grinned menacingly before continuing.
"Against me..!"
The class then murmured in fear.
"No, not again. Last time, people laughed at me for looking like a grape!"
Soon, the instructor, who I then learned was named Distal, went on a rampage with a wooden sword.
"Fail! Fail! Fail!" He spat, beating the students to a pulp.
Stepping forward, Incus whispered:
"Check status."
A status window then appeared. However, it didn't belong to Incus. It was Professor Distal's.
====[Status Window]====
「Information」
[Name: Distal]
[Class: Warrior]
[Equipment]
◈ Professor Battle uniform
[Weapons]
◈ Wooden training sword
「Stat points」
[Strength: 81]
[Agility: 77]
[Vitality: 88/88]
[Mana: 43/43]
[Intelligence: 39]
「Skills」
[Mastered Sword Technique]
[Advanced Practical Martial Arts]
[Advanced Limit Surge]
[Mastered Sword Aura]
[Advanced Pain Tolerance]
=======
Looking at the instructor with a smirk, she lunged forward.
Blocking her attack, he smiled proudly.
"Good! You're a far cry from what you used to be!"
They then clashed their wooden blades against each other. A gust of strong wind would hit my face every now and then.
After their clash, Instructor Distal commented:
"You passed!"
Incus then dropped the wooden sword and sat on a chair by the wall.
Looking in my direction, the bald man with scars then lunged at me.
"Shit!"
Raising the wooden sword in my hand, I barely blocked it, but the sword shattered and I was sent flying.
I needed to get stronger. It was unavoidable, since I only had basic swordsmanship.
Looking up, I saw Alleus barely dodging the attacks. She used a short wooden sword to block, as she didn't get any opportunity to attack.
"…Must continue."
I couldn't find any other opportunity to increase my skills.
Even if I didn't have a weapon, I had to fight.
Seeing me running towards Instructor Distal, Alleus decided to move out of the way.
Raising my fist, I punched at the manic instructor.
However, he slammed my forearm with his foot, sending my arm flying in the air.
"Aurgh!"
Gritting my teeth, I punched again.
But each time, I was met with a counter. I couldn't just stop now, because I would lose my chance, and there were other students lined up. Not only that, but Steinen was slowly making his way in my direction. I had to at least get a pass from Instructor Distal.
An aching sensation covered my upper body, my arms rendered immobile.
Widening my feet apart, I did the best that I could in kicking Distal. But I was again met with a ruthless counter, as he blocked the kick with his forearm and kicked me in the face.
[You acquired skill: Practical Martial Arts]
Before I could continue, Steinen had already stepped up.
"Damn it…"
There was no point in sulking now. I was simply too slow.
Picking up my body, I carried myself to sit near Incus.
Walking towards me, Alleus sat next to me as well.
Looking at Alleus, I mumbled:
"Check status..?"
====[Status Window]====
「Information」
[Name: Alleus Fineblue]
[Class: Rogue]
[Equipment]
◈ Academy uniform
[Weapons]
◈ Wooden short sword
[Description]
「Attributes」
[Physical | lvl: 3.5]
[Stamina | lvl: 4]
[Intelligence | lvl: 3]
[Mana | lvl: 2]
「Skills」
[Advanced Short Sword Technique]
[Adept Stealth]
[Adept Evasion]
========
"Check what?" Alleus tilted her chin.
Compared to my stats, Alleus' were definitely much higher. Although I was a bit jealous, I could always catch up if I worked hard enough.
Her skills were great. Not as good as the main characters or Professor Distal, but much higher than mine.
***
Soon, the day was over. Incus went back to her dorms, and Alleus and I decided that we would share the room.
The author published the chapter.