Chapter 57: New Courses

Hulim entered her fourth year at the Preparatory School, which was also the final year of the Preparatory School curriculum.

Normally, this would be the time when many students started to consider their futures, but this year seemed a little different…

“A new course? Are you serious? What’s that about? I’ve never heard of it.”

“How would I know? My family’s just ordinary merchants. If you want that sort of news, you should ask someone who’s well informed.”

“Then how did you find out?”

“Lots of people are talking about it, and this morning I even saw someone who looked like a new teacher.”

“… …”

On the first day of the new school year, this topic was all the rage among the classmates.

It was about the addition of a new course to the Preparatory School starting this year.

“Hulim, you already know about the new course, right?”

Fran sat down next to Hulim, beaming with happiness. As for the seat’s original occupant, she had already driven them off to her own spot.

Leaving aside this girl’s overly intimate and hands-on behavior, Hulim had already heard about this matter from her father, Lezelyan, a few days ago.

“… …They say it’s an order from the upper echelons of the Empire. Starting this year, all Preparatory Schools must open a combat course, and the final grades for the combat course will be recorded in a unified archive and preserved officially.”

“That’s right, but it’s not just an imperial order~!”

Fran’s father, Baron Benton, was a trusted confidant of the influential Count Leicester, so his information was far more up-to-date than the Hayelar family’s. That was why Fran knew more details.

And now, the news that was only circulating among the nobility was coming into Hulim’s ears through Fran.

“The order to add the combat course in the Preparatory School came jointly from the Seven-Day Church, the Adventurer’s Guild, and various nations of multiple races. It’s said that the main goal of this course is so that, when the next wave of Demon King invasions arrives in the near future, they can skip the training phase and directly conscript large numbers of people who are already battle-ready.”

“… …I see, that is indeed a more efficient approach. Since the Demon King invades roughly every four hundred years, starting now to train young warriors on a large scale means that by then, they’ll be in their physical prime.”

“Exactly, that’s the point. But according to my father, a lot of people were already proposing this course ten years ago. The problem is, many countries thought it was too soon to let the populace have military skills—makes ruling harder—so they refused, and both sides just argued back and forth until now.”

“… …It’s impressive they could drag out such an important matter for ten years. Aren’t they afraid the Demon King might show up early? No one ever said the Demon King has to arrive right on the dot, every four hundred years, right?”

“Haha~! Just as you guessed, now even the most stubborn conservatives are getting nervous. If they keep opposing, they’re risking their own necks, so this year the plan got approved at lightspeed~!”

Ding-a-ling-ling~!

“Everyone, please return to your seats, class is about to begin!”

With the ringing of the bell and the arrival of the teacher, the previously noisy classroom quickly quieted down as students returned to their seats. As for Fran—

She was still sitting right next to her. Apparently, she didn’t plan to go back, or maybe she intended to stay here from now on?

… …

“Students, I’m sure many of you have already heard about the combat course~?”

Just as last year, the red-haired, short-haired Colette stood on the podium, hugging her magic staff as she spoke.

“Now, let me introduce to you your combat course instructor—Teacher Kunon! Everyone, please welcome him~!”

Applause rippled through the classroom.

As the clapping continued, a robust, black-haired middle-aged man walked in.

He swept his gaze around the classroom, then smiled slightly and introduced himself:

“Hello, students. I am Kunon, a retired officer from the Imperial Army, C-rank in strength, and I’ll be your combat course instructor for this coming year.”

“Since this is our first meeting, I’ll be gentle with you, but—!”

Kunon’s tone suddenly turned severe,

“Open your eyes and remember this—this is the first, and will also be the last time you’ll ever see me smile!”

The smile on Kunon’s face turned as cold as steel, and with his sharply defined features, he looked every bit the devil drill sergeant.

“I’ll make sure you learn, through pain, what real combat means! This isn’t a joke, and it’s not some game of make-believe! Anyone who thinks they’ll wet themselves and cry for mommy at the sight of a green-skinned goblin can get out of my class right now.”

“… …”

The classroom fell into dead silence. Nearly everyone was scared stiff, and a few timid ones were already sending tearful, pleading glances at Colette, who was watching the show from her seat.

However, Colette kept smiling cheerfully, as if she hadn’t seen any of their silent cries for help.

Kunon appeared slightly disappointed by the students’ reactions, but inside he was very satisfied. After all, when he first joined the army, his drill sergeant had done the same thing.

It was a tradition in the Imperial Army—if a drill sergeant didn’t scare the recruits half to death on their first day, he wasn’t considered qualified. What, these kids aren’t soldiers?

Heh~. Do you think the Demon King’s army will care if you’re a civilian or a soldier?

In a world overshadowed by the Demon King, there’s no such thing as civilians—anyone who can still move is a warrior!

That was Kunon’s philosophy. Somewhat extreme, but not uncommon among those in the military and higher-ranked adventurers—only those who face monsters day after day truly understand just how precarious this world really is…

Mm, these kids’ reactions are decent enough, but… there seem to be a few tough ones here, which is a bit of a problem for me~!

In this classroom, the vast majority had been frightened by Kunon’s display, but there were a few students who didn’t show a hint of fear.

That girl with her nose in the air and a look of defiance—definitely a noble, right? Nobles and their tempers, huh? We’ll see if you still have that temper when you’re in my hands.

As for that boy, oh~! He actually has an eager look in his eyes—not bad, that’s a promising seedling!

The problem is that last one…

From the moment he walked in, her expression, her eyes, even her breathing hadn’t changed at all—completely unreadable! What’s worse, he could even feel a faint threat coming from her?!

That sensation—just like when he faced the Legion Commander who had slaughtered countless monsters…

“… …”

Hahaha~! As if! I must really be out of practice after retirement, getting jumpy enough to mistake a harmless little girl for that demon Legion Commander.

Kunon laughed at himself inside.

Glancing around the classroom once more and seeing the mood was right, he continued, “Of course, there’s no need for any of you to be afraid of the future. Over the next year, as a retired Imperial officer, I’ll teach you all some real skills!”

“Just imagine, a year from now, drawing your swords with style and trampling monsters like goblins beneath your feet!”

Of course, Kunon was deliberately exaggerating—a year wasn’t enough to turn kids into battle-hardened warriors…

But his words were effective; many students’ eyes immediately brightened. At this age, being a hero was every child’s dream, and if someone told you that you could be one too?

In an instant, the gloom over their futures vanished, and the students all grew excited.