The Tin Knight-Chapter 61: The Tin Knight and The City of Clockwork — Act 3 (3)

The final list of candidates was as follows:

Under René von Lennart: 25 people.

Under Gerhardt von Lennart: 18 people.

Under Adelaide von Lennart: 7 people.

In René’s case, he was already known as an influential figure in Tik-Tok, and the dojo he ran was highly accessible to the public, so many people chose René’s side without hesitation. Abundant rewards and friendly service were basic elements in attracting people.

In Gerhardt’s case, despite his scary and strict impression and reputation, his overwhelming display of martial power more than made up for it. Moreover, among the youths in their prime, there were quite a few who admired Gerhardt’s rough and violent demeanor, finding it cool.

As for Adelaide? No special explanation was needed. Sometimes, a face was the answer to everything.

Ernest, one of the vassals of the Tik-Tok family, thought.

My lord has started a dangerous game. This is troublesome.

Certainly, the letter sent by Duke Lennart stated, “I leave the decision of appointing the representative instructor to Count Tik-Tok.”

If interpreted literally, the count had the authority to appoint whomever he pleased.

However, in letters between nobles, the context before and after was often more important than the simple content.

Inserting a third party other than René and Gerhardt, who were the parties involved in the incident, could potentially be seen as a provocation against the Lennart ducal family.

It was fortunate that Gerhardt and René showed willing reactions to Adelaide’s participation in the match; otherwise, the conflict between the Lennart family members might have escalated into a fight between Lennart and Tik-Tok.

While Ernest thought as a subordinate that his lord should refrain from dangerous antics, he also realized his hopes were futile.

His lord was a man who couldn’t resist interesting things.

And now, before Ernest’s eyes, was that “interesting thing”.

“I’m Ernest, assigned to be Lady Adelaide’s assistant for the next week, starting today.”

Bowing in greeting towards Ernest, the golden-haired girl responded with a flustered greeting, “Ah, yes! I’ll be in your care!”

Ernest inwardly smiled bitterly at the freshness emanating from every expression and action.

No matter how he looked at it, she seemed more suited to the role of a disciple than an instructor.

Considering the status of the Lennart dojo, the fact that such a small girl was participating in a competition to gain the representative qualification was even comical.

“You can use the lodgings, practice weapons, and training grounds within the castle. They’re what the domain’s soldiers use for training, so there shouldn’t be any major issues with quality. Of course, if you have your own preparations, you’re free to use those as well.”

These were facilities originally prepared for René and Gerhardt, but since both declined this offer, they had been left unused.

While it was half-expected for René since he had his own dojo, it was somewhat surprising that even Gerhardt refused.

Gerhardt was living with his subordinates in a huge mansion on the outskirts of the city, so it seemed he intended to use that.

“Ah, then I’ll take you up on that offer. We’re staying at an inn, so it might be a bit difficult to bring everyone there.”

“Understood. Is there anything else you need?”

“Um. Not particularly—“

In the middle of speaking, the girl’s head suddenly turned to the side.

After briefly looking at the magic doll beside her, she turned her gaze back and said, “Um, would it be possible to bring in food or medicine from outside?”

“Medicine, you say?”

Ernest’s expression became puzzled.

If this were the Tin Knight’s homeland, it would be like a national team coach asking the organizers, “We’re planning to dope our players, is it okay to bring in performance-enhancing drugs?”

At first, they would doubt their ears or think something was lost in translation. But once they realized it really was about “drugs”, they would point fingers asking if they had gone mad.

Faced with such an absurd request, Ernest opened his mouth, “Do as you please.”

There was not a trace of disapproval in his expression.

Quite the contrary, there was even a slight sense of approval, thinking, “So she’s trying to do something after all.”

It was the limitation of an era where not only was there no World Anti-Doping Agency, but even the concept that “doping is bad” was vague.

Thus, the “witch’s mysterious medicine” was brought into the training grounds.

***First day of training.

“Ahem. Well then, everyone. I’ll explain the training content now, so please listen carefully!”

“Yes, Master!”

“One-on-one mock battle with me for one of the seven! The other six will observe! Ah, those who finish the mock battle will have their postures corrected by the knight beside me, so you should receive his guidance as well! When we finish one round, we’ll start over from the beginning! Does everyone understand?”

“Yes, Mas... ter?” they answered, but the students’ voices trailed off uncertainty.

There were two main reasons.

Updated from freewёbnoνel.com.

...Are we supposed to swing weapons at this innocent-looking kid?

More importantly, isn’t this training too lax?

Well, it wasn’t the outrageous demand of attacking 7 vs 1—at least in their minds—but repeating one-on-one battles like a rotation still seemed rather unsightly.

Moreover, at this rate, they could rest while waiting, but Adelaide’s side would have to keep fighting continuously.

It was an inefficient method where the instructor’s side unnecessarily exhausted themselves, while the disciples’ side had to feel bored while waiting.

While feeling that some other training method might be necessary, the students initially raised their weapons as instructed.

The youth selected as the first batter quietly composed his breathing.

He was a man faithful to his desires, choosing his master based on looks alone, but that didn’t mean he was a complete dunce.

That young lady must have confidence in her skills to take this format.

Preparing for nimble attacks taking advantage of her small build, the youth gripped the wooden sword handle tightly.

The match began.

– Thwack!

The match ended.

From the whistle, signaling the start of the match, its conclusion was reached in roughly 2 seconds.

Leaving behind the youth who had fallen while spectacularly spraying a nosebleed, Adelaide declared, “Next person, please come.”

The disciples’ eyes collectively shook in alarm.

Thwack!

“W-wait a moment! I’m not ready yet—“

Thwack!

“W-whaaaaa!”

Thwack!

“No, but this training seems a bit strange—“

Thwack! Thwack!

“Hii, hiiieek!?”

Thwack! Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!

“That’s it for today’s training! Good work everyone!”

“Good, work, ugh.”

After squeezing out the final greeting, the last disciple standing on his own two feet collapsed as if fainting.

The Tin Knight silently approached the seven corpses—no—disciples sprawled on the ground.

Feeling the touch of cold metal hands and the ointment on their bodies, the disciples thought.

This is impossible.

They were knocked down dozens of times by Adelaide’s wooden sword.

At first, they were caught off guard. Then, they fought with determined resolutions, and after that, they charged in anger, but the results were all the same.

They cursed their own thoughts from before the match began.

What? The training is lax? It’ll be boring during the breaks?

Watching the people in front fall one after the other, waiting for their own turn that was gradually approaching—it was nothing short of an unparalleled experience of terror.

If only their bodies were damaged, they could at least rest using injuries as an excuse, but even that was impossible due to the effectiveness of that damned ointment.

What was even more frightening was that this was only the first day of training.

“You all worked really hard today! Get plenty of rest, and tomorrow’s training will start at 9 o’clock!”

Adelaide, greeting them with a bright smile.

That appearance, which at first had seemed cute and pretty, was now terrifying beyond comparison.

The disciples exchanged glances with each other.

It seemed “drastic measures” were needed.

***That night.

“The master has left, right?”

“She was assigned a separate room inside the lord’s castle, so she won’t come near our area in the middle of the night.”

“If we can just somehow relay a message to the lord, no, to the vassals nearby. If we say we absolutely can’t endure the training, the lord won’t force us to continue.”

“I feel a bit sorry for the master, but...”

“Hey, are you the only one pretending to be nice?”

“We need to survive too, you know.”

“You woman-crazy bastard. I knew it from the way you kept drooling every time you were near the master.”

“Aish, you’re really nagging. As if you guys are any different.”

Annoyed by the murmuring behind him, the youth at the very front snapped, “Ah, shut up, you bastards. You wanna announce we’re sneaking out as a group?”

For a moment, silence fell.

Seeing his companions suddenly stiffen and turn pale, the youth felt awkward and said in confusion, “No, I just meant let’s be quiet. Why are you all so serious? Huh?”

Only then did the youth realize that his companions’ gazes were directed not at him, but behind him.

With movements like an old wooden puppet creaking, the youth turned his neck to look behind.

And the youth saw.

In the dark night.

The figure of the Tin Knight looking down at him, scattering blue eye-lights like flames.

With a soft sound, the Tin Knight quietly drew his sword.

The disciples’ faces turned ghostly white.

***The three vassals gathered in the lord’s office were each giving their reports.

“On Lord René’s side, all students have instructors attached to them one-on-one. They’re conducting classes where students gain practical experience against low-level magic dolls, while the instructor beside them corrects detailed postures and combat techniques.”

“On Lord Gerhardt’s side, they’ve devoted the entire day to basic physical training. It’s difficult for physical abilities to increase dramatically in a week, but it seems they’re trying to make them learn the knack of moving beyond their limits and gain fighting spirit in extreme situations.”

“I see. It’s interesting how their individual characteristics are shown. Ernest. How was your side?”

At Count Tik-Tok’s question, Ernest hesitated for a moment as if choosing his words, then answered, “...It’s difficult to report anything yet. Training is still ongoing.”

At that moment, as if to prove Ernest’s words, wails began to echo from the direction of the training ground.

“Kyaaaaaah!”

“Spare me! Please spare me!!”

“I want to escape from here, ack, aack! Aaaaargh!”

The vassals’ expressions twisted in various ways.

The lord let out an exclamation, “Oh? Even though the moon is brilliantly shining, they’re all working very hard.”

“Yes, should we try to dissuade them?”

At Ernest’s question, the count waved his hand dismissively.

“No, there’s no need for that. While we prepare the stage for the match, it wouldn’t be fair to interfere with the match itself. As long as it doesn’t pose a great danger to this domain, let’s refrain from intervening.”

“Understood.”

“It seems the young lady is overly enthusiastic. If she pushes too hard from the beginning like this, won’t her disciples be too exhausted to perform on the actual day of the match?”

“Even the strict Lord Gerhardt showed signs of adjusting to not cross truly dangerous lines. I guess lack of experience is unavoidable after all.”

The vassals chatting back and forth didn’t notice.

Ernest, who had taken a step back, was wearing a very complicated expression.

***The next morning. After finishing her grooming, Adelaide headed to the training grounds with a sense of unease.

Was I too harsh yesterday?

Adelaide was not a sociopath, incapable of empathizing with others’ pain.

Although she showed such tendencies at the Lowefelt dojo, that was the result of her violence threshold becoming too high after being influenced by the Tin Knight, a stagnant water-like veteran, in a state of extreme lack of practical experience.

However, now that she had gained some experience of her own, at least rationally, she had realized that the Tin Knight’s philosophy of “if the skill isn’t cracked, its training, not actual combat”, was extremely problematic.

Note, she only understood this rationally. Emotionally, she had yet to fully grasp this concept. This just goes to show how crucial one’s choice in teacher could be.

Although she had swung her sword without hesitation because the Tin Knight said she should show an unwavering appearance for the sake of the students and herself, Adelaide wasn’t so dull as to not notice the subtle shift in atmosphere among the disciples.

Today, let’s conduct the training a bit more gently and leisurely.

With that thought in mind, Adelaide stepped into the training ground—only to be met by an unexpected scene before her eyes.

“Welcome, Master!!”

“Welcome!!”

All seven disciples, without a single exception, were waiting for her with eyes full of determination and their bodies at attention.

Adelaide opened her mouth, a bit flustered.

“Ah, hello everyone. You all seem very energetic. Are you feeling alright?”

“We’re fine!!”

“It’s thanks to you, Master!!”

“Please give us another vigorous training today!!”

“We really want to become strong!!”

The disciples’ voices resounded loudly.

If a man from the Tin Knight’s homeland had seen this, they might have felt a sense of déjà vu, recalling a repertoire like, “Recruits, haven’t you eaten? Is that all the voice you can muster?” “No, sir!!” but of course, Adelaide had no way of knowing such things.

Therefore, she said with pure joy, “Alright! I’ll do my best too! Let’s work hard together!”

“Yes!!”

At one side of the training ground.

The Tin Knight was watching this scene with satisfaction.