Today was Friday, and my only lecture was 'Martial Arts'.
On Monday, I also only had one lecture: 'Ether Meditation Art', a training session similar to the 'breathing control' found in martial arts novels.
Since all the students would simply be sitting quietly and practicing Ether cultivation, there was no chance for any incidents to occur.
'In other words, it's scheduled to be skipped without any special description.'
So once this martial arts lecture ended, I could safely say I had passed a chapter... no, a hurdle.
But the world of 《NaSE》 was not that easy.
To think that three named characters would take this unpopular course, which was considered inelegant because it involved throwing punches.
"Th-this semester, w-we seem to have a lot o-of overlapping lectures. I-including the required course, it's th-three in total..."
As you could tell from that line just now, one of the three named characters was Ríolíkin.
And the other two were Reisir and Vigdís.
In other words, most of the original characters whose names had already appeared, including the protagonist, were taking this lecture.
To make matters worse, the martial arts professor's gaze toward me was far from friendly.
'But... learning hand-to-hand combat is essential, not optional, for dealing with emergencies where you can't draw your weapon. Since dagger techniques and introductory swordsmanship don't include sparring, I need this course for actual combat experience.'
Whether against a monster from the Demon Realm or another person.
Fighting against a living, moving opponent was never easy.
Even more so when life and death were on the line.
I wondered how much exchanging punches with ordinary students would really help in a real fight.
Still, having done it was better than not having done it.
'The only fortunate thing is that Tryggdrik, who seems likely to cause trouble sooner or later, isn't here, I guess?'
Ríolíkin might be large and intimidating in appearance, but his personality was timid, so he would never be the first to pick a fight with Reisir or Vigdís.
And Vigdís, who had suffered under this possessed body's obsession, would never approach me first either.
As for Reisir... I wasn't sure.
When we spoke in the hallway outside the library before the semester began, he had acted as though he might suggest becoming reading companions at any moment.
But from what I briefly observed during the 'History and Ethics' lecture a few days ago, he seemed to be avoiding me.
Had he finally realized that it would be difficult for him and Karvaldr to become friends?
'If so, can we just remain complete strangers and avoid interfering in each other's lives?'
...It was while I was holding onto that hope.
Then the martial arts professor called my name with a visibly irritated expression.
"Young Master Karvaldr, my course syllabus includes sparring. Did you enroll knowing that?"
The original protagonist was staying quiet, so why was a side character the one picking a fight?
Suppressing the urge to let out a heavy sigh, I answered, "Yes, I did."
I thought it was a perfectly ordinary response.
Nevertheless, in that moment, I saw the martial arts professor's lips twist strangely.
It looked like a sneer, while at the same time he seemed to be gritting his °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° teeth as though suppressing anger.
What was that expression supposed to mean?
"Have you ever learned martial arts before?"
"No."
Not only had I never learned martial arts after possessing this body, I hadn't learned any before that either.
My family's financial situation hadn't been good, so I couldn't even afford to attend an ordinary Taekwondo academy.
And because I had been continuously serializing a web novel, I hadn't enlisted in the military yet either.
Now that I'd died and possessed someone else's novel, should I consider that postponement fortunate?
"Hmm... Even so, I need to see your skills, so let's begin with a sparring match. Come over here."
Correction.
If I had gone to the military and learned Taekwondo or bayonet fighting instead of postponing it, it would have been useful now.
I never imagined a professor would have the insane idea of calling a student who had never even learned the basics of martial arts to the front for sparring.
"What skills can I possibly show when I've never learned anything?"
"You've been using your arms and legs your whole life, haven't you? Then you should at least be able to throw a punch and a kick."
It was such an absurd statement that it made me want to scoff.
If I just swung my fists and kicked around wildly without training, what kind of sparring would that even be?
It would be nothing more than a street brawl.
And on top of that, I was a complete beginner while my opponent would obviously be an experienced martial artist.
At that point, all I would accomplish would be making a fool of myself by flailing around helplessly.
"No matter how much of a child of the Austri Ducal Family the young master may be, I cannot give you special treatment during class."
The martial arts professor wore a stern expression as he spouted nonsense.
I had read all the course syllabuses before enrolling.
According to the syllabus, sparring in this lecture was supposed to begin after the midterm exams.
And even that schedule had been planned with students in mind who had already taken the course in the first semester and were continuing it.
So I had expected this lecture to be difficult for a beginner like me.
But doing this on the very first day was beyond anything I had imagined.
"Your opponent will be... let's see... Student Reisir. Come forward."
And on top of that, my opponent was none other than the protagonist of the original novel that formed the basis of this world.
The same Reisir whom this possessed body had diligently bullied throughout the previous semester.
Out of all the extras standing around, it had to be him.
I couldn't help but wonder.
'No matter how much of a coincidence this may seem... no, wait. Is this really a coincidence? Of course, he doesn't know Reisir is the protagonist of this world, but isn't there a high possibility he knows Reisir was bullied by Karvaldr?'
The professor's tone was irritating as well.
Why was I being called Young Master Karvaldr while Reisir was simply Student Reisir?
And why was he using honorifics only with me?
It was hard to see this as mere caution toward the son of a ducal family.
If that were the case, he never would have arranged this situation in the first place.
On the contrary, it felt more like he was looking down on me with contempt.
"Hurry up. Both of you, come forward."
As Reisir and I stood rooted in place, the martial arts professor urged us forward.
His voice was lowered in a feigned seriousness, but I could see anticipation gleaming in his eyes.
It was a gaze that brought back unpleasant memories.
'I don't know why he's doing this to me, but I can roughly guess what he's aiming for.'
I discreetly turned my gaze toward Reisir.
He also seemed to sense something strange and glanced at me from the corner of his eye, so our gazes met.
He didn't look like someone thinking, 'I'll use this chance to settle the score from last semester!'
If anything, he looked deeply uncomfortable with the entire situation.
Relieved, I took a step forward.
"Isn't student Reisir coming?"
"...I'm coming."
Once again, I found myself facing the original protagonist.
And now we were supposed to exchange blows while surrounded by watching extras.
This happened less than ten minutes after I had hoped we could remain complete strangers.
"It's only sparring during class, so don't feel too pressured. No matter how spoiled the young master may be, surely he wouldn't use his family's power to retaliate just because he got hit during a sparring match, right?"
The martial arts professor had essentially told Reisir:
'Don't worry about the consequences and feel free to beat him up.'
That was nonsense too.
Given the original Karvaldr's personality, he would have tormented him regardless, so there was no need to use sparring as an excuse.
Of course, I had no intention of doing that, but how could the professor be so certain?
"Then prepare yourselves... Begin!"
The moment the professor gave the signal, I saw Reisir lower into a stance, kick off the ground, and rush toward me.
So did I dodge?
No.
I simply stood there.
'I'm going to get knocked out anyway, so it's cleaner to end it in one hit.'
If I rolled around trying to dodge and swung wildly in retaliation, I would only make myself into a laughingstock.
And if I assumed a proper stance as though I intended to spar seriously, my opponent would naturally respond with multiple strikes.
But if I stood there completely defenseless, the situation changed.
Because Reisir was a lawful good protagonist.
He might hit me once because of what he had suffered at Karvaldr's hands during the first semester, but he wouldn't be able to strike me a second time.
'At most, he might not even hit me at all, considering my apology...'
Thinking that, I squeezed my eyes shut and waited.
But only a faint breeze brushed past my face.
The sound of approaching footsteps stopped, and no impact struck my body.
It happened exactly as I had expected.
'The martial arts professor probably assumed that Reisir, who harbored resentment toward this possessed body, might use sparring as an excuse to hit me. But I know Reisir's personality better.'
When I slowly opened my eyes, I saw a fist halted directly in front of my face.
I gently pushed the side of that fist aside with my palm and moved it out of view.
Then Reisir's displeased expression came into sight.
"You stood there on purpose and didn't dodge just now, didn't you? Why?"
"Why did you stop? If you had followed through, you could have gotten a little revenge for last semester."
"That's... it's fine now. I received an apology."
Reisir answered as he fully withdrew his fist and straightened his posture.
Hearing that made me want to ask whether the bullying he endured was really something that could be resolved with a simple apology.
If I were him, I would never have forgiven it.
"Is that why you didn't dodge? Were you planning to let me hit you on purpose because you felt sorry for bullying me last semester?"
As I stood there speechless and momentarily dazed, Reisir said something completely absurd.
I let out a scoff without meaning to.
It's not like I was the one who did it, so how could I possibly feel guilty?
"It's not that."
"Then why did you just stand there?"
"I figured out the professor's intentions in making us spar."
Web novel protagonists couldn't be stupid.
Readers would only grow frustrated if they were.
Especially when someone was trying to manipulate them, it was unacceptable for them to remain oblivious to the other person's intentions.
So Reisir must have sensed something too.
"The professor probably wanted to see whether I could endure being hit one-sidedly in front of others without losing my temper. If I couldn't even do that, then taking this class would only create problems later anyway."
"...That's how you interpreted it? I thought there was another intention behind it."
Of course, I thought so too.
But pretending not to understand, I tilted my head in confusion.
"Another intention? Don't tell me you think the professor paired me with you, someone who has never learned martial arts, because he wanted to humiliate the son of a high-ranking noble family. And that he chose you as my sparring partner because he believed you would have no hesitation about using violence against me. And even if I held a grudge afterward and retaliated, since you're a student I bullied before anyway, he rationalized it as giving you a justified chance to hit me."
As I deliberately played dumb, I saw Reisir's face gradually turn pale with confusion.
I turned my gaze away from him and continued speaking while glancing toward the martial arts professor from the corner of my eye.
"Wouldn't that be malice rather than intention? Surely a professor wouldn't harbor such ugly thoughts toward a student and deliberately create such a despicable situation. If that were really the case, then he wouldn't be qualified to teach at the Academy and should be expelled immediately."
I wondered whether Hárðr would even intervene, but even if he did as a duke, he couldn't pressure the Academy into dismissing the professor.
After all, Valhalla was an academy established by the Imperial Family.
But what if the professor wasn't acting out of personal dislike toward 'Karvaldr,' but rather out of malice toward 'the son of a high-ranking noble family'?
Most noble parents who had sent their children to this Academy would never tolerate that.
In that case, the professor would have no choice but to be dismissed.
