#109
Helmut
Episode 109
Helmut studied all day and fell asleep late at night. The late-night snack time disappeared, and the study room was quiet.
Because Asuka, Area, and Xian all looked at the book in silence.
‘I guess I’ll have to stop training during the written exam period.’
It’s especially annoying that Asuka is working so hard. She was much more motivated after taking the practical test.
I don’t know if it’s because he wants to beat Helmut or if he wants to make Area run around the playground.
Helmut, who had finally given up his morning training and entered the study room, noticed someone.
‘It was here as expected.’
“Today is the ‘Understanding Magic’ test, right?”
Area asked after seeing him come in.
“that’s right.”
“Would you like me to take a last look at it? “I think it would be a good idea to be sure.”
“How are you studying for your exam?”
“I finished studying for exams a long time ago. I was just reviewing. Repeat what you already know until you get sick of it before the test. “I have time to look after yours.”
This is a remark worthy of a head of the magic department. Helmut nodded his head.
“okay.”
Helmut solved Area’s problems for about two hours starting in the morning. Area looked somewhat satisfied after seeing the answer.
Area also did not expect extremely high standards from Helmut. In the first place, there are few people in the magic department who can write answers that meet his standards.
“At this level, as long as you don’t make any mistakes, you will be able to get good results no matter what problem comes up.”
The tone of voice was that it must be so. I feel some kind of pressure.
Area stared at Helmut with clear eyes. ‘Do well on the test, you must do well. I had an auditory hallucination that said, ‘If I don’t see it, I’ll die.’ Even more so than extreme parents.
However, Helmut, who received that look, was not the type of person to be conscious of such things.
“What about making mistakes?”
“This is what a mistake is by the standards of a criminal. “Spilling ink and ruining the most written answer sheet, dropping a writing utensil, or losing the flow of logic due to tension.”
“iced coffee.”
“I’m sure you’re feeling okay, right? Don’t drink water. You might suddenly feel like going to the bathroom. “Get into the exam room early.”
Area’s nagging continued.
“You might fall asleep while solving exam questions, so eat just enough breakfast so you aren’t hungry. “Because my mind is clouded.”
“… … okay.”
Only then did Helmut realize. The reason why Area helped Helmut prepare for the exam in the study room in the morning.
Area was becoming increasingly anxious. I wonder if I will actually run 100 laps around the playground.
Even if you are confident in the test you take yourself, you will not be confident in Helmut’s test.
‘Although Asuka studied less than me, her test is easier.’
Asuka said she did well on the practical exam. He wasn’t even with Helmut, so he would have gotten the highest grade.
The swordsmanship sparring, which cannot be scored individually like a multiple-choice question, was therefore a loss for Helmut.
“Do good on the test.”
“you also.”
Helmut said hello, took his textbooks, and stood up.
There isn’t much left now. The week was almost over. That meant that the first exams at the academy were coming to an end.
*
“Ah, it’s finally over.”
Asuka breathed a sigh of relief as she finally took the practical exam for the swordsmanship department. It looks like he did well on the test.
Helmut was like that too. I took the test calmly. It was one of the easiest exams he had ever taken, so there was no need to be nervous. Because he doesn’t have to risk his life.
“Now you just have to hold out for half a second longer. As long as I don’t get suspended for half a semester… … .”
“What if I don’t get hit?”
“Your pocket money will increase.”
It was Asuka who tried to hide his family background. It was noticeable enough that even Helmut noticed it.
Even now, I flinch when I say something trivial.
Sian would have been very curious, but Helmut was not that interested. Asuka’s existence was enough as long as she didn’t cause any inconvenience.
“You studied so hard, are you confident that you’ll get first place on the midterm exam?”
“of course.”
The ‘Understanding Magic’ test, for which I had prepared the hardest, came up with quite an interesting question. That was the only problem that Area could not have predicted. The points allocated were small.
‘You accidentally gained forbidden dark powers. If you lose your strength, you die. What would you do in this situation? Please write freely regardless of the content of the class.’
Helmut wrote down his answer without any hesitation. He knew the problem the moment he saw it.
There will be no one who can answer that question more confidently and firmly than you.
‘It wouldn’t have been obvious.’
Because I didn’t even take out the ‘green onions’ from the Forest of Dig.
It was a sensitive topic, but there would be nothing to pry into his answer. Asuka asked Helmut, who was lost in thought.
“Wizards are a group of people who are obsessed with grades, and Areya is just a bit harsh. That guy aside, why are you working so hard? I get extra pocket money, but you don’t have anything like that. “What can Instructor Ethan do for you?”
Helmut answered simply.
“I like being above others.”
In the forest of Pahe, I lived lying flat on my stomach. A very long time. He was just prey among powerful monsters.
As I learned the sword from Darian, I gradually became stronger and rose above the lowest level, but I still could not raise my head above ground with pride.
Even though it got stronger, if Elaga hit it with its tail, it would fly away and land on the ground.
I have never defeated Darian, who is nearing the end of his life and losing all his energy. That was Helmut’s position. bottom.
But it was different in the human world. He was strong enough to save the people of the Face Mercenaries, and strong enough to kill two second-level mercenaries sent by Black Hawk.
Helmut was on the ground, or above it, and there were countless people under him.
Helmut, who had lived in a world of law and order, liked that. This changed situation, my own position has changed.
Although they say they still have to hide themselves, the reality is that they have risen to the ranks of the powerful.
The academy’s system blatantly discriminates between students. In the way of grades.
If so, I want to get good grades and stand at the top. It was a natural desire for Helmut, but more intense than others.
Asuka stuck her tongue out.
“It’s a dangerous thing for a commoner to say. “If I keep a guy like you as a knight, I’ll have to worry about treason.”
“I have no intention of becoming a knight.”
Helmut spoke clearly. He observed what the knights were doing while escorting the writer’s Xenia after Cheringen.
The basics were similar to mercenaries, but I didn’t like the idea of trying to please the owner and acting around her. It felt like a much more subordinate job than being a mercenary who was tied down to a brief request.
“Well, it’s too early to talk about career paths, but after graduating from the academy, commoners become knights or mercenaries. I heard it’s mostly articles. No matter what, the skills of those who graduated from Greta Academy’s swordsmanship department are recognized. Helmut, I heard you were a mercenary, but you’re not even thinking about becoming a knight?”
It was a serious question, uncharacteristic of Asuka.
“For now, yes.”
“If you are a high-level mercenary, you will make a lot of money, but as a knight, you will receive not only wealth but also honor. “Even nobles who are commoners and look down on them cannot behave carelessly because when they become knights, they become quasi-nobles.”
“Even when I was a mercenary, I never met a noble who behaved particularly carelessly.”
Xenia had little interest in Helmut. The butler was kind enough and didn’t ignore him just because he was a knight. The Black Hawk thugs may have ignored him, as they did before he came to Baden.
‘Is this Baden the problem?’
“I guess I was lucky. It’s normal to act like the nobles here. “I heard that I have many noble clients who cherish my knights but use my mercenaries as shields.”
“Maybe so.”
I have taken on only two requests, no, three times including the one I received when I came to Baden, so I have nothing to say.
“If you’re skilled enough, you’ll be able to look up to nobility after becoming a knight. That’s a pretty high noble. “A good prosecutor is a rare thing.”
Helmut looked at him strangely because he felt like he was trying to trick him.
“So you want me to become a knight?”
“No, of course the choice is yours, but I don’t think you are thinking about becoming a knight too early. In my opinion, both mercenaries and knights have clear pros and cons. It depends on which country and family the knight is from, but it means that being a knight is okay.”
Helmut listened carefully to what he said. I was a bit skeptical about whether Asuka would be right, but she might as well keep her options open.
Asuka thought deeply and continued speaking.
“No, you don’t seem like the type to serve anyone, so it would be better to become a monster hunter or something.”
That was a job that Helmut should not have chosen, as he had to stay away from Magi.
‘After graduating from the academy.’
It was a story from a very distant future. The future Helmut envisioned was not about graduating from the academy. It wasn’t about finding his mother or avenging Darion.
Helmut was startled when he realized that. The latter is true, but it is also strange that the former is blurry.
He wanted to find his mother. Obviously, I wanted to find my roots. However, it was true that it was not so desperate that there was a great hurry.
In fact, Helmut began slowly adapting to the human world. Helmut left the Forest of Pahe, and because of that, his desire to return to the human world was largely satisfied.
The rest was a gradual process. That’s not the goal.
‘My goal, what I hope for… … Becoming stronger. More than anyone else in this world.’
So that no one can throw him into the forest of Pahe again. So that no one can stand above him. As much as Darian, no, more than that. To have the power to fear no one.
To reach the highest level as a swordsman and to dominate even the buds of darkness wriggling within me. Become the complete master of your own life so that no one can force you to do so.
Helmut wanted it. He was eager.
It was a story I couldn’t tell anyone. The person he can tell his true feelings about is either dead or in the Forest of Pahe.
As long as Helmut was born with the original sin of darkness, he had to keep this deep, dark secret to himself. He will have to endure solitude for a long time.
Until one day, someone who will understand and accept him will appear, a future whose existence is unknown.
The good news is that Helmut is strong enough to endure loneliness.
Helmut asked after a while.
“So what are you going to do when you graduate from the academy?”
If that’s his goal, then what about Asuka’s goal, who is still an average person?
“me? I am… … .”
Asuka blinked in embarrassment.
“What should I do? “I’ve never thought about it.”
It was an absurd thing to say, considering they had been preaching as much as they could about mercenaries and knights.
