Sword, Magic and Academic Society

"What's the matter, Cecilia? Aren't you back a bit too fast? Even if Allen got eliminated in the preliminaries, it shouldn't be this early, right? Did something happen?"

Viscount Bellwood said in surprise, seeing his wife's sudden homecoming. Though he was befuddled, he didn't stop watering the eggplants that he himself had grown, which was his hobby.

"Allen passed and was put in Class A. However, he's being suspected of cheating so we might be visited by an investigation team from the Royal Capital. Of course, the cheating allegations against Allen must be groundless.

I was worried you might worsen the situation in confusion at the sudden visitors, so I took a bit of a shortcut through the mountain road. I don't want either of us to become a burden for Allen. Please call in Grim and Schord."

"W-W-What!? That Allen cleared the exams!? And he even got into Class A?! B-B-But the cheating allegation?? No, wait, by taking a shortcut through the mountain road, you're not saying you charged straight through that old road which is now under the jurisdiction of Dosfarnus, right!?"

That day, the Viscount was shaken to the core.

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"Sir Godorfun."

Hearing Mujikka calling out to him, Godorfun turned around, but seeing her sad expression, he deduced that whatever reason she had to come to him, it was anything but good news.

The location was the staff room.

He was currently sitting on the leather sofa placed beside his glossy single-piece wooden table. The sofa was quite stiff, just to his liking.

"I apologize, but we failed to scout Schord Bainfause."

"I see. I had guessed it wouldn't be smooth sailing... So which side managed to secure him?"

Mujikka's expression further scrunched up.

"Actually, none of the scouts managed to secure him. All the factions have failed to draw agreeable conditions to get him."

After saying that, Mujikka placed a piece of paper on the table. Its content was as follows—

ーーーーーーーーーー

Schord Bainfause

Ability (S)

Personality (S)

Recruitment Difficulty (S)

ーーーーーーーーーー

Holding the bulky documents in her hands, Mujikka started her report.

"Where should I begin..." Mujikka muttered with a troubled look.

◆◆◆

First of all, it took 13 days for Sciszor of the intelligence department, tasked with investigating and scouting Master Schord, to arrive at the Viscount Rovenne Estate after receiving the order.

Their late arrival was due to several factors. There was basically no serviceable station for the magic train to the Kragbeer Fort City from Dragried, with just a remote town in between the two. Even by taking the rural highway, the place happened to be in such a remote region that they had to cross multiple mountains. And there was no other means of fast travel other than a carriage.

Upon our arrival, we were personally welcomed by Viscount Rovenne. When we congratulated him on his son's result, he simply accepted it as an obvious outcome without looking the least bit surprised.

When asked for the reason, he replied 'Well, Allen had been taking things more seriously recently'.

From this, we could conclude that at the very least, his family was sure of his potential to rank high enough to get into Class A. After they explained the circumstances, he showed full cooperation regarding our investigation of Master Schord. We also asked him about Allen's sudden improvement, which was apparently the 'Absolute Success Plan' created by Master Schord. The curriculum obtained was as follows:

—No break from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.

—At lunch, they had portable emergency rations which they ate while studying in the afternoon, a challenging regime for a boy of that age.

When asked how he managed to endure such a grueling schedule, he answered 'Young Master voluntarily set the schedule and we just followed it'. And the details of the lectures were truly remarkable.

This was the result of the kingdom-wide mock theory exam, and this was the result of the Royal Academy's theoretical exam.

We had the person who created the exam questions analyze the lectures, and he concluded they were completely tailored for Allen Rovenne. They believed that there shouldn't be any more efficient curriculum to improve his exam scores than this. The areas in which his scores had improved and the contents of the curriculum seemed to align well.

According to Master Schord, 'It was the curriculum Young Master himself had devised by analyzing his past exam question papers'.

It was really hard to believe that a 12-year-old had come up with such an elaborate self-study plan, but Master Schord insisted 'It was a matter of the individual's seriousness'.

From all this, we believe Master Schord places a strong emphasis on fostering self-reliance and doesn't just provide a curriculum but guides individuals to find and solve problems on their own. However, it remained unclear how Allen was able to solve those advanced mana conversion mathematical problems that became a topic among the examiners with this curriculum.

When they further inquired about this, it came to light that the secret was in Master Schord's lecture format. Instead of explaining things to his students during lectures, he actively engaged in debate with them to find the answer together.

Even the said mana conversion mathematical problems were once a topic of heated debate between them. The person himself brushed off that matter with a laugh, saying 'Young Master and I had delved deeper into similar problems while arguing with each other like children. So there's no way for such questions to pose a problem for him'.

From a glance, he looked nothing more than a mild-mannered old man, but there was also a passionate side to him. However, when questioned about Allen's seemingly futile actions before the exam, he replied, "You're right, but 'we shouldn't confuse short-term goals with long-term goals' were the Young Master's words."

It can be interpreted that he focused on nurturing the very character of a person, rather than tying them with the shackles of the exam.

They further asked to clarify our doubt as to why Allen suddenly showed such explosive growth when there were just 3 months left, to which he simply said, 'It was just the timing when the Young Master had mentally prepared himself'.

As long as the heart was prepared, he was confident that even 3 months were enough to grow to that extent. He was not fixated on immediate success but was always focused on nurturing his students' minds— that was what we took out of it.

Based on these aspects, we concluded that his abilities as a private tutor were among the best in this country.

This was the report so far about the sudden growth in Allen Rovenne's abilities. Next, about the person himself.

They also asked 'Did you really wear a diaper to save the time it takes to go to the toilet?', which sounded more like a comical story. He straightforwardly acknowledged the fact, saying 'In a battlefield of life and death, who would care about the toilet?'

It was really hard to associate the image of the <Unceasing Prudence> Master Schord Bainfause with the old man who looked like an unremarkable mild-mannered person at first.

After that, Sciszor deliberately provoked him by talking about the cheating allegation put on Allen Rovenne. Sciszor here reported his negligence and asked for forgiveness.

Hearing this, the smile on Master Schord's face disappeared and with a fierce glint in his eyes, he declared 'Young Master would never cheat. By chance, if this allegation was proven to be correct, this old warrior would immediately commit suicide.'

"His words carried an overwhelming murderous intent, signifying he was dead serious," these chilling words were written in the report.

Finally, the attention-grabbing gesture of bowing. It seemed that such a form exists.

The form is called 'Ojiki'.

The particular details were unclear, but that form had been divided into many segments like how to lower your head or when to stop, like bowing while standing 'Ritsurei', bowing while sitting 'Zarei', and to further show sincerity depending on the sentiment, slight nod 'Eshasku', salute 'Keirei', and a respectful bow 'Saikerei'.

However, the focus should not be on the 'Ojiki' itself, but on the profound philosophy behind it.

'Ojiki' was nothing more than a form to convey 'gratitude'. That 'gratitude' is an attempt to systematize an immensely profound theme, the 'Path that a Person Should Tread'.

Allen Rovenne and Master Schord never failed to do that 'Bow' at the start and end of each lecture.

◆◆◆

"Even in other reports, Master Schord's explanation is simply 'All of it was drawn out by the Young Master'."

Mujikka said, ending the report.

Godorfun had been silently listening to all this so far, but finally couldn't remain calm at the ending remark.

"What? No matter how great of a heart was cultivated, this is just too much to come from a kid..."

"I have the same thought. Master Schord is undoubtedly aware that we don't believe in everything he has said. We can interpret it as him saying 'I'm but a background character and will not be taking the limelight. Everything was done by Allen Rovenne'.

From this, we can assume that Master Schord has an upright and honorable character. Let alone money, it's within expectation that he cannot be swayed by status or any kind of honor.

In fact, it's reported that he declined all the cards I offered, including the prestigious position of an honorary professor at the Royal Academy, peerage, and medals from the king, stating, 'I'm not worthy of such things'."

"...People are complex creatures."

Godorfu shook his head.

"Indeed. The world is a vast place, there's no other way to put it. Depending on the circumstances, I might consider involving my father (His Majesty)."

Godorfun nodded.

Editor Note - Hahaha! The assumptions and misunderstandings in this chapter. So good 😂

T/N - This was a interlude chapter, renamed it to 25.1 to not mess up chapter numbering. And lol, so his mother is definitely someone well versed about the situation huh.