I Became a Crazy Swordsmanship Instructor in the Game - Chapter 43:

The afternoon sun shone gently as the swordsmanship class came to an end. Lua was accompanied by Olivia Nuez and Anise Praline, and sat in the lounge, sipping on refreshing cups of lemon tea.

They indulged in the sweet taste of relaxation.

“Lua, you look absolutely radiant these days,” Olivia exclaimed, her eyes filled with admiration as she gazed at her friend. It was as if a subtle, radiant glow emanated from Lua’s skin, and she seemed somehow transformed.

“I’ve noticed it too. My skin feels unusually good,” Lua replied with a smile.

Anise was sitting beside them, and playfully reached out to gently pinch Lua’s cheek. Knowing Lua’s easygoing nature, both Olivia and Anise knew she wouldn’t mind such antics.

“Are you serious? I don’t get it,” Anise teased, and Lua responded with a soft, muffled sound.

Having moved past the heartache of parting ways with her twin brother, Lua had blossomed into a lively and endearing young girl.

Despite her youthful appearance, even among her female classmates in the swordsmanship department, Lua was considered to have no rival. Olivia and Anise, in particular, treated her like a cherished doll.

“No, there’s definitely something going on. Didn’t you say you live with an instructor? How can someone change so much in just a few months?” Anise asked, running her fingers through Lua’s hair.

Olivia chimed in with a supportive nod.

“You’re right. And your swordsmanship skills? I’ve been learning swordsmanship from my family since I was nine, but now, seeing you, it seems like you’ve surpassed me. Did the instructor give you special training?”

Olivia inquired with genuine curiosity.

“Yes,” Lua confirmed simply, acknowledging her friends’ queries.

“If you’ve improved this much, you must have been training hard, even on weekends. I should push myself too. To become a knight and support my family, I need to give it my all.”

Olivia declared with determination. She was the only one among her siblings deeply immersed in the art of swordsmanship, which meant she would eventually have to lead her family’s knights.

Lua chuckled, amused by her friend’s enthusiasm. However, she couldn’t recall doing any specific training on weekends. Her time was usually spent playing with Tania or Philip.

Although unaware of the complexities of the world, Lua possessed a basic sense of discretion and chose not to disclose this fact to her friends.

Anise playfully linked her arm with Lua’s and joked, “Who knows, Lua might even surpass Hailey Baroun at this rate. If your skills keep improving so rapidly!”

Suddenly, a voice chimed in from somewhere, “Well, that might be a challenging goal to achieve.”

Hailey Baroun joined in with a laugh.

“Hey, you know something interesting? Lua was clueless at first, but now she moves like a kid who’s been mastering martial arts since childhood… By the way, who was it that just answered?”

Observing Lua and Olivia’s gaze elsewhere, Anise turned and followed their line of sight, feeling a bit sheepish. There stood Hailey Baroun, the heir of the influential Baroun family, casually leaning against the table with his arms crossed.

“Oops.” Anise Praline hastily hid behind Olivia.

Hailey Baroun held a high status among the first-year students. Anise, the daughter of a Baron family, and Olivia, the daughter of a merchant, would never have crossed paths with him if not for the Academy.

The Academy had even recruited Felicia, a member of the prestigious Oswald family, as an instructor to oversee students of such esteemed backgrounds.

Hailey calmly smiled as he observed the three girls.

Among the first-year students, factions were already forming. The girls gravitated towards Elizabeth Coomier, daughter of the Marquis Coomier family from the Western Song District, while the boys were divided between Chapelie Bellinger, the son of the renowned Count Bellinger family with its prestigious knight order, and Harold Brider, known as the “Black Lion” and the son of the inspector Houlson Brider.

Hailey wasn’t particularly fond of engaging in such group dynamics. No one dared to challenge someone of his status, and he found little interest in anything other than martial arts.

He couldn’t help but consider the students who prioritized building friendships over personal growth as somewhat foolish.

“We didn’t mean to taunt or criticize you. It was just a harmless joke between us.”

Olivia Nuez said, placing her hand reassuringly on Anise’s shoulder. She had no intention to appear hostile to Hailey Baroun.

“Don’t worry, I won’t get angry just because you guys teased me. Besides, that wasn’t my intention at all when I joined the conversation after hearing my name.”

Hailey smirked and casually waved his hand. He felt a faint sense of camaraderie with the girls, who, like him, didn’t belong to any specific clique.

“Hello!” Suddenly, Lua waved at Hailey.

Hailey knew Lua’s name and face well. She was the only first-year student with better stamina than him, a fact that caught his attention.

“Are you saying hi to me?” Hailey inquired, raising an eyebrow.

“Why not? Can’t I say hi?” Lua replied with an infectious smile.

He was taken aback because commoner students usually made an effort to avoid him. Hailey didn’t want to act superior due to his status, and shook his head in response.

“No, not at all. I’d like to say I’m glad to meet you too.”

Witnessing this, Olivia and Anise exchanged surprised glances.

They were all astonished at how casually Hailey, the son of the Northern King, interacted with Lua, and equally surprised at how she embraced it.

With a beaming smile, Lua appreciated Hailey’s acceptance of her greeting.

“Now that we’ve exchanged greetings, let’s be friends from now on. Sounds good?”

Hailey Baroun flinched for a moment at her straightforward proposition but found no reason to decline, so he nodded with a hint of relief.

Rejecting Lua’s offer would have seemed like putting on airs among peers, and that felt odd.

“Yeah, sure. I look forward to it.”

As Hailey unexpectedly made his first friend at the academy, he gazed at Lua with a mix of surprise and curiosity.

She seemed unlike anyone he had encountered in his 14 years of life.

* * *

‘Where am I, and who am I?’

Hailey Baroun pondered as he strolled through the shopping district. It was his first time walking around with three girls, whom he had just met today.

“….”

Olivia and Anise’s expressions were noticeably awkward, mirroring Hailey’s own feelings.

“I’m really happy we could all hang out together!”

Lua was the only one beaming with excitement. Observing the other kids, she prompted Olivia and Anise to nod in agreement, albeit hesitantly.

“Yeah, it’s great. Anise, you feel the same, right?”

“Absolutely. My heart is racing with excitement.”

Although Anise’s tone resembled someone reciting an uninteresting piece of literature, Lua nodded as if content. Soon, her gaze turned towards Hailey.

“And what about Hailey?”

“… I’m fine too.”

Hailey didn’t want to admit that he felt awkward and embarrassed, so he mustered a smile and replied.

Anise couldn’t help but wonder, “What on earth is happening?”

“I have no idea. I can’t fathom why we’re here with Hailey Baroun.”

The reason for their visit to the shopping district was straightforward – Olivia’s practice sword broke, and Anise wanted to buy new pajamas.

While Lua, with her limited social skills, suggested they all go together. Anise and Olivia couldn’t outright refuse, so they reluctantly agreed.

‘Where does she get such a friendly vibe from, though?’

Olivia was intrigued by Lua’s social skills. She doubted whether she could handle someone like Hailey, who could even be considered a prince in the northern region.

‘… He seems like a decent guy, though.’

Apart from the challenges of dealing with their different social statuses, Hailey’s character didn’t appear to be problematic. He wasn’t authoritative or domineering, which was a relief.

“Where should we go first? The weapon store? Clothing shop?”

Asked Lua, as Olivia was usually the leader when the three of them were together.

“Let’s visit the weapon store first. It’s closer.”

After a moment of thought, Olivia responded. She hoped that their shared interest in martial arts might ease the awkward atmosphere.

Hailey walked alongside the girls toward the weapon store.

“Welcome! Oh, Academy students, aren’t you? Are you first-years?”

The friendly store owner, a man in his 40s, greeted the students warmly.

“Hello!”

“Yeah, take your time and look around. Our store’s items are well-known for their quality.”

“Okay!”

Lua cheerfully replied, earning a proud smile from the owner.

“I’m looking for a sword I can use for training.”

“If that’s the case, they’re over there. They are sturdy with a well-balanced weight, so you could use them until you graduate.”

The displayed swords indeed looked of good quality. Olivia carefully inspected them.

“… They seem quite decent.”

They fit well in her hand, and the weight distribution was good, just as the owner had mentioned. Observing Olivia’s actions, Hailey couldn’t hold back and took a deep breath, looking a bit frustrated.

“Wait, that’s not how you inspect a sword.”

Unable to contain his annoyance, Hailey decided to offer his advice.

“Huh…? Oh, if you want to take a look, sure. Uhm…”

Olivia handed the sword she was holding to Hailey, who proceeded to lift it up and down several times before shaking his head.

“The weight distribution will get off-balance the more you use it. It’s not poorly made, but the craftsman lacks skill, and the metals aren’t properly blended, with impurities not completely removed. You might not notice at first, but after a few impacts, the blade will start to wobble.”

As Hailey discussed the sword, he appeared entirely different from his usual quiet self. His detailed and convincing explanation made it easy for Olivia to understand.

“I see, I get it now.”

Hailey didn’t stop there; he examined several other swords one by one. “… Other places are the same; it’s hard to find a proper sword here. Since that’s the case, we should go somewhere I know.”

As Hailey tried to leave the weapon shop, the shop owner hurriedly shouted, “Wait, what makes you think you can speak so recklessly?”

Hailey replied with a smirk, “At least as a blacksmith, you should know that my point isn’t wrong.”

The owner chuckled in disbelief and said, “Look here, first-year customer. Your point may not be wrong, but do you have any idea how much it costs to meet all the conditions you mentioned? You can’t just pay a few coins for a practice sword like that one, which costs three silver coins. How is that reasonable?”

Anise and Olivia nodded in agreement. The owner was right.

“What? Are you saying you have no pride as a blacksmith? If you make swords, you should always dedicate your life and soul to creating the finest works… Wait, why is it like this?”

Olivia couldn’t bear it anymore and grabbed Hailey’s arm. “Hey, isn’t it better to stop here? Sorry, sir, we’ll come back another time. Lua, come on, let’s leave quickly. Okay?”

As a trained knight, Hailey couldn’t push the girls away roughly, so he obediently let himself be led out.

“Am I really wrong? It would be quite displeasing if I’m not understood properly without proper explanations.”

Hailey said confidently, making Olivia a little scared. Instead, Anise stepped forward.

“Um, that’s… There are students like you who only consider quality, and there are students like us who have to consider performance relative to the price. The weapon shop we went to is for those kinds of students.”

Anise’s explanation was quite lengthy, but fortunately, Haley wasn’t foolish and soon nodded in understanding.

“I must have been rude. It’s because I’ve never been to such a place before. I should apologize when I visit next time.”

‘Certainly not a bad kid. There’s something intriguing about him.’

Olivia thought as she blinked her eyes.

“I also made you uncomfortable. I’m sorry. As a gesture of apology, let me buy the sword you need,” Hailey said, stepping forward. He was heading to the weapon shop he was looking for. Anise and Olivia exchanged glances and shrugged before following him.

Among them was Bleuhan Eloy, the son of the Count Eloy, belonging to the newly risen noble family.

“Oh, look who’s here? The prince from the North, aren’t you? Even though you’re just a 1st-year, you’ve already defeated several people, I can’t count. Your abilities are truly impressive. Huh? 1st-year girls, isn’t Hailey a charming young lord?”