I Became the Academy’s Defensive Swordsman-Chapter 22

Chapter 22
‘Will I really be able to do this?’
Standing before Lisa, all sorts of thoughts crossed my mind.
‘Can I really block that greatsword?’
Doubt toward myself crept in, but I quickly brushed it away.
There was no turning back now.
All I could do was trust the effect of the potion I had taken — and myself.
With this level of doping, I could probably overcome most situations, but the problem was… this wasn’t one of those “most situations.”
Even this much enhancement seemed lacking to block Lisa’s sword.
“Phew—.”
I drew Mistcatcher and took my stance.
No matter what happened, I had to block that greatsword.
“Ready?”
“…Yes, I’m ready.”
I forced myself to relax as much as possible.
To become a knight, the fastest and simplest route was through the Disciplinary Committee, but not getting in didn’t mean I couldn’t become one.
There were other ways.
So even if I failed here, it wouldn’t be the end of the world.
‘But still, I have to fight with the mindset that failure isn’t an option — that this is my only chance.’
To become a knight just a little more easily, I steeled myself as if there was no way back.
After solidifying that resolve, I looked at Lisa.
‘To think I’d see that skill with my own eyes.’
Blood pooled around Lisa’s hand gripping the greatsword,
and the sword’s handle seemed to absorb it little by little.
A faint crimson aura shimmered around both Lisa and her blade.
‘Right. That’s the true source of the Balmuth family’s power.’
As expected from a family descended from vampires, they used blood as the medium of power.
Well, that aside—
“Then, let’s begin.”
Lisa raised her greatsword over her shoulder.
At that very moment, a red point appeared before my eyes.
But this time, my Attack Prediction Skill was useless.
I could see exactly where her sword would strike even without it.
‘…Here it comes.’
The greatsword came flying toward my left shoulder.
I gripped Mistcatcher even tighter.
And when my sword collided with Lisa’s—
“Urgh?”
A massive impact crashed into my body.
‘What the…’
The force was far greater than I had anticipated.
It felt like being hit head-on by a truck.
“Ugh.”
Honestly, it wouldn’t have been strange if I had been sent flying backward.
Normally, I would have been — but perhaps thanks to the doping, I wasn’t immediately blown away.
And besides…
‘Do I still have some kind of protagonist buff or something?’
Whether it was that or not, for some unknown reason, I didn’t collapse in one blow.
I had managed to block Lisa’s strike — at least, for the moment.
That was the problem.
‘Damn it, that hurts like hell.’
I screamed internally.
My muscles were no exception.
Even though I had only held out for about one second, it felt like the muscles from my palms to my entire body were tearing apart.
I wanted to give up, just fall backward and let it go—
‘No. Endure it. You can hold on. Endure it!’
I immediately forced myself to focus again.
Mental strength.
No — maybe it was the potion and the so-called protagonist buff(?).
Thanks to those two factors, I somehow managed to withstand Lisa’s blow.
What mattered now was willpower.
I had to endure this pain through sheer mental strength.
“Urgh, uuugh—.”
One second… two seconds… three seconds…
Never before had such a fleeting moment felt so unbearably long.
My whole body trembled; it felt like my insides were being shredded apart.
“…Ah.”
My legs gave out, and I found myself kneeling on one knee.
But even then, I didn’t let go of my sword.
Lisa silently watched me — then smiled.
“Impressive. You didn’t disappoint my expectations.”
With those words, Lisa lowered her greatsword, and I collapsed onto the spot.
“Huff… huff…”
“You’ve done well.”
Her usual expressionless face had disappeared; instead, she looked at me with a satisfied smile.
Whatever the case, it seemed I had succeeded in joining the Disciplinary Committee.
“Wait a moment.”
Lisa went off to fetch something, and in the meantime, I looked around.
“……”
The other students who had applied to the Disciplinary Committee stared at me — some dumbfounded, some horrified.
I had only blocked Lisa’s strike for about three seconds, but anyone familiar with this world would know just how absurd that feat truly was.
“Here. Take this.”
Moments later, Lisa returned to her usual expressionless self and handed me a small pill.
“What is this?”
“A stamina recovery pill. Hurry and take it.”
“Yes.”
I popped the pill into my mouth and swallowed it.
A few seconds later, the effect kicked in.
The exhaustion that had drained me completely began to vanish rapidly.
“How is it? Working?”
“Yes.”
I stood up, brushing off the dirt.
It was hard to believe that just moments ago, I hadn’t even been able to stand.
“Good. Then…”
Lisa turned her head toward the other students.
“Everyone except Gideon, leave. I’ll reward you later — for now, take the unconscious ones to the infirmary.”
“Y-Yes, ma’am!”
“C-come on, let’s go!”
At her words, the students all hurried out of the Disciplinary Committee room.
But before leaving, I made brief eye contact with Rick Wifred, the male student from the House Wifred.
“……”
He said nothing, but his gaze didn’t seem friendly.
Still, I had no time to dwell on it.
“Looks like they’re all gone now. First off, good work passing my unreasonable entrance test. I’d hoped you might block my attack, but to think you actually did.”
“I just did my best.”
“Your best, huh… Then, could you tell me what kind of preparation you did for that ‘best’?”
“That is…”
“If possible, be honest. Like I said before I prefer honest people.”
Just as she said, lying before Lisa was pointless.
So I decided to tell the truth.
“I drank a potion beforehand.”
“What kind of potion?”
“Strength Enhancement and Defense Enhancement potions.”
“Triple strength and reduced impact received. Right? Huhu. I see. Well, don’t feel discouraged. My evaluation of you hasn’t changed.”
Lisa gently placed her hand on my shoulder and continued speaking.
“Normally, even after drinking those kinds of potions, no one can block my sword. Any other student could’ve drunk every potion they could find and still wouldn’t have managed it.”
“…That does sound likely.”
“Hehe. Gideon, I truly think you’re remarkable. To block my—no, the Balmuth family’s—sword for three seconds, even after using potions, is no easy feat.”
“I think I was just lucky.”
“Luck is also a skill.”
But come to think of it, I really didn’t know how I managed to block her.
It wasn’t like I had an especially strong willpower or anything...
‘Could it be because of this body I’ve transmigrated into?’
That was the most plausible hypothesis.
The body I had taken over possessed exceptional physical ability, potion-brewing skill, and mental fortitude.
That must have been why I somehow endured it.
“Anyway, what I’m trying to say is that I don’t plan on criticizing you for using potions.”
“Thank you.”
“Good. Also… speaking of potions, where did you get the ones you drank? The purchasing procedures for potions are quite complicated, aren’t they?”
“Would you believe me if I said I made them myself?”
“…You’re not lying… Are you serious? You actually made them yourself?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“You’re more talented than I expected.”
Lisa nodded with a look of satisfaction.
“Your potion-making skills will definitely come in handy during our Disciplinary Committee work later on.”
“If I can be of help, I’ll gladly use my skills.”
As Lisa said, my potion-making knowledge and ability would surely be useful later.
The difference between being doped with potions and not was enormous.
“Let’s leave that topic for now. Gideon, since you passed the test, you’ll be working with me in the Disciplinary Committee from now on. No objections, right?”
“None. I’ll do my best.”
“Good attitude. And just out of curiosity — how did you know about my entrance test and prepare in advance? I never told anyone what kind of test it would be.”
“Well… I just had a feeling that you’d prepare a test like this, Lady Lisa.”
Most lies wouldn’t work on Lisa anyway.
And I obviously couldn’t tell her I’d transmigrated into a game, so I simply gave a vague answer.
At least it wasn’t a lie, but I wasn’t sure how she’d react...
“Hm. So that’s how I looked to you? Like someone who only relies on brute force?”
“N-no, that’s not what I meant…”
“I’m joking. Don’t worry about it.”
“Uh… yes, understood.”
When someone with that kind of terrifyingly blank expression says it’s a joke, who could believe it?
But I decided to just let it go.
Sometimes, silence really was the best answer.
“Anyway, as I was saying you’ll have to work hard on your Disciplinary Committee duties. The things you’ll be doing from now on won’t be easy.”
As Lisa said this, she suddenly gave me a meaningful look.
It felt like she was planning something.
“But aside from your joining the Committee, there’s something I want to try.”
“Ah, is that so?”
“Yes. About those potions you said you drank — their effects are gone now, right?”
“Pardon? Ah, yes. The effects are starting to fade.”
It had already been about thirty minutes since I drank the potions, and I could feel their strength leaving my body.
But why was she suddenly asking this…?
“Good. Let’s try something.”
The moment Lisa said that, a red point appeared near my right waist.
I instinctively raised Mistcatcher—
Clang―!
I barely managed to block Lisa’s greatsword.
No — I blocked it, but couldn’t withstand the force and was pushed back.
“Lady Lisa? Why all of a sudden—”
“As a swordsman, I was curious.”
Lisa spoke in her usual expressionless tone, as if it were nothing.
“I wanted to see for myself the swordsmanship that supposedly blocked all of Sara’s strikes. Now that the potion effects have worn off, and it’s just the two of us here… there’s no reason not to try, is there?”
“W-wait a moment—”
“No. Let’s do this quickly. Don’t worry about the Committee room getting wrecked.”
With that, Lisa swung her greatsword again, and I barely managed to deflect it.
‘I have to avoid or deflect her attacks. If I clash swords or even get hit once, my body won’t hold up.’
Even Luke said it was best to dodge the Balmuth family’s sword.
If one of Lisa’s strikes landed, my body wouldn’t survive it.
‘She’s said to have a slow, straightforward sword style — but that’s easier said than done. In such a confined space, I’ve got no room to maneuver.’
I narrowly avoided and deflected her greatsword, waiting for an opening to counterattack.
Since her swings were slow, I could see chances forming.
But the relentless barrage of heavy strikes left me no time to regain proper footing.
Whenever I tried to counter, her greatsword came crashing in again, breaking my stance.
‘Her sword might be “slow” compared to other ducal families, but honestly, it’s still faster than average.’
Lisa’s blade kept coming, and I desperately maintained my defense.
I couldn’t form a proper attacking stance, but at least my defensive and evasive posture held firm.
‘…Now.’
After constant defense, I finally saw an opportunity.
A strike with far larger movement than before.
Using my Attack Prediction Skill, I dodged Lisa’s sword and swung Mistcatcher toward her wrist.
This time, I was sure I had won—
Clang―!
“…Huh?”
My sword bounced off.
The crimson aura surrounding Lisa’s body had deflected the blade.
I barely had time to process what had happened before—
“Khugh!”
Lisa swung her greatsword again.
I instinctively blocked, but the swords clashed, sending a tremendous shock through me as I was thrown backward to the ground.
“Ugh, uugh…”
“This is your victory.”
“…Pardon?”
“In terms of swordsmanship, you won. If I hadn’t used my family’s power, my wrist would’ve been cut like Sara’s.”
“Ah, by family’s power, you mean…”
I had completely forgotten in the heat of battle.
The Balmuth family’s power — Blood Energy.
That vampiric heritage technique, used almost like a passive skill.
“Thanks for humoring my sudden whim. Are you alright?”
Lisa sheathed her sword, then reached out her left hand toward me.
I took her hand and stood up.
“Thank you. But Lady Lisa, your right hand…”
“Don’t mind it. That’s a side effect that appears when our family uses its power.”
Lisa pulled a bandage from her pocket and expertly wrapped her bleeding right hand to stop the flow.
Then she looked around the wrecked Committee room before walking over to the sofa and sitting down.
“Come. Sit.”
“Uh, where…”
“Next to me.”
“Ah… yes, understood.”
I quickly went over and sat beside Lisa.
She silently stared at me for a moment.
“……”
“……”
No, not just a moment. Quite a long time.
“Um, Lady Lisa. Is there something on my face…”
“You’re rather handsome, now that I look again.”
“…Sorry?”
“Exactly what I said.”
“Uh… th-thank you?”
“How cute.”
Lisa replied with a faint smile, then returned to her usual expressionless look.
“Anyway, I’ve seen your skills clearly now. Your mental endurance against my strike, and your swordsmanship especially that swordsmanship. Most knights can’t even maintain their stance before me. They usually faint or get blown away after a couple of hits.”
“I see.”
“But you didn’t lose your stance. You broke form when attacking, yes, but your defense remained firm until the end. Honestly, you might already be better than most knights.”
“You flatter me.”
“Maybe it’s not flattery. At least when it comes to defense, yours might be the greatest I’ve ever seen.”
Lisa nodded slightly, paused, and then spoke again.
“You said you wanted to rise in the world, right? So your goal is to become a knight?”
“Yes, for now, that’s my aim.”
“And you plan to use my connections to get there?”
“To be honest… yes, that’s correct.”
“Hehe. Good. Don’t hesitate to be honest with me. I like honest people.”
“Yes, understood.”
“Good. So, a knight, huh?”
At the word knight, Lisa smiled again.
“Your skill is more than sufficient. As long as you continue meeting my expectations like this, becoming a knight won’t be difficult. With my help, you might even aim higher.”
She was right.
After all, joining Lisa’s Disciplinary Committee wasn’t just to become a knight — it was to reach that goal faster and climb even higher.
“So let’s do well together from now on. Help out with the Committee work, and after graduation, I’ll make sure to support you fully.”
“Yes, understood. I’ll do my best.”
Joining the Disciplinary Committee.
The road ahead was long, but the start was promising.