Pieces and Notices

Chapter Twelve: Pieces and Notices

Instructor Krudd hurried into the headmaster's office, his face full of anxiety.

Headmaster Levens, who was reading a document behind a large desk, looked up curiously. "What is it? Where's the fire? What happened to get you so worked up?"

"No, nothing's on fire. Um, Headmaster, I just wanted to ask... are you really not going to do anything? Three more Silver Tier instructors resigned today," Instructor Krudd replied.

"Oh, I know." Headmaster Levens nodded and rose to his feet. "Tea? Or Maikesi?"

Maikesi was a drink similar to cocoa, with a sweet, rich flavor after being ground and brewed. It was said to be the favorite beverage of the elves, and was once a luxury drink reserved for mages thousands of years ago. It was quite expensive.

"No need to trouble yourself. Water will do. But the Silver Tier instructors at the academy are all panicking now. Every one of them is worried that Instructor Locke will come knocking to challenge them. At this rate, it'll be hard to guarantee the quality of instruction. And the students love the spectacle—they'd love nothing more than to see Instructor Locke challenge every Silver Tier instructor in the academy. Every day after classes end, crowds gather to watch Instructor Locke's challenges. The challenged Silver Tier instructors are like meat roasting over a fire. It's pitiful to watch," Instructor Krudd said.

Headmaster Levens picked up a silver pitcher from the table beside the fireplace, poured a cup of water into a silver goblet, and handed it to Instructor Krudd. Calmly, he asked, "Has Little Locke lost?"

"No. Today was already his twenty-eighth match. He hasn't lost once, and he couldn't possibly lose. I watched several of the challenges. Those Silver Tier instructors were no match for him. They couldn't even last ten exchanges beneath Instructor Locke's sword," Instructor Krudd answered.

"Then what are you worried about? It won't be too late to discuss this after Little Locke gets the Ikado Badge."

"But, Headmaster, thirteen of the twenty-eight challenged Silver Tier instructors have resigned because they felt humiliated after losing their duels before so many people. And the Silver Tier instructors who haven't been challenged feel the same way. Another five or six have left as well."

"If they don't even have the courage to face defeat, then let anyone who wants to leave, leave. Dawnlight Academy has no need for such cowards."

Instructor Krudd gave a bitter smile. "Headmaster, that sounds impressively forceful. But think about it. Losing more than twenty Silver Tier instructors at once will cause enormous difficulties for our course arrangements. Three classes have already been unable to hold swordsmanship lessons because their Silver Tier instructors resigned. The students are running wild all over the academy."

Headmaster Levens slowly walked to the window and gazed outside. "Krudd, haven't you ever felt that our academy has been like a stagnant pool?"

"Huh?" Instructor Krudd froze, unable to understand what Headmaster Levens meant.

"In fact, Dawnlight Academy has thirteen Gold Instructors and one hundred twenty-nine Silver Tier instructors. The remaining Black Iron rank instructors, together with student teaching assistants, number only forty-two. There are also thirty-one academic professors, forty-five administrative staff, sixty-eight Enforcement Department personnel, seventy-six hired workers and servants, and nearly five thousand students. With such a ratio, don't you think the Silver Tier instructors have a little too much power and influence?"

Headmaster Levens turned around with a faint smile. "Dawnlight Academy has always chosen its instructors based on talent. Since when did it become a matter of Battle Qi strength? If that were the case, shouldn't I, a disabled headmaster who knows nothing of Battle Qi, step down and make way for someone more worthy? As Silver Tier instructors of the academy, they refuse to improve themselves. All they know is how to form cliques, rank themselves by seniority, throw their weight around, envy the capable, suppress newcomers, and even band together to pressure the academy into abandoning management measures that inconvenience them."

"Little Locke's challenges this time were encouraged behind the scenes by Shredder of the academy's Enforcement Department under my instructions. It's time the Silver Tier instructors woke up. Whether someone is an instructor at Dawnlight Academy isn't determined by whether their Battle Qi has reached the Silver Tier, but by their actual ability. If anyone else wants to resign, let them all go. There's no need to keep them."

Instructor Krudd wiped the sweat from his forehead. "Then what will we do about the vacant instructor positions? Should we recruit externally?"

"There's no need. I've already made arrangements with General Buto of the City Defense Army. At the end of this month, more than a dozen retired officers will come to our academy as instructors. Their Battle Qi is all at the Gold rank. If that still isn't enough, promote a batch from the students serving as teaching assistants, though they must have a certain level of ability."

"Mm, understood. Then I'll take my leave." Instructor Krudd set down the silver goblet and turned to go.

"Wait." Headmaster Levens stopped Instructor Krudd. "There are two more things. First, after Little Locke achieves thirty consecutive wins, hold a small ceremony and pin the Ikado Badge on him. Second, issue a notice at that time. As instructors of Dawnlight Academy, they cannot refuse challenges from students or other instructors. Anyone who dares not fight should leave the academy early. Hmph. Flowing water does not rot. If we don't do this, they won't know how to strive forward. They have to be pushed."

"Yes, Headmaster. I'll see to it."

"Oh, right. You said three classes have been left to run wild?" Headmaster Levens pondered for a moment before immediately making a decision. "Once Little Locke gets the Ikado Badge, give all three classes to him. Those students lost their swordsmanship instructors because of him, so he must take responsibility. That settles it."

"Ah, that works too?" Instructor Krudd stood at the doorway, dumbfounded...

Three swords. Lorist had used only three strikes to force the Silver Tier instructor in the duel to throw down his sword and admit defeat.

This was the thirtieth challenge. A small platform, nearly the height of a person, had been set up beside the field. As though he already knew Lorist would win, Instructor Krudd stood waiting solemnly to one side. Beside him was a very pretty female student holding a foot-long mahogany box in both hands. The Ikado Badge was presumably inside.

Lorist licked his lips with lingering satisfaction. The challenges over the past ten days had been exhilarating. Smacking one Silver Tier instructor after another in the face had felt incredibly good. If possible, he wanted to discuss with Instructor Krudd whether he could keep challenging people and rack up fifty or sixty consecutive victories, set another academy record, and perhaps even rename the Ikado Badge the Locke Badge.

Unfortunately, Instructor Krudd rejected Lorist's suggestion without hesitation. He practically forced him onto the platform, then pinned the Ikado Badge on Lorist amid the cheers of the students.

Krudd took out two notices. The first congratulated Lorist on receiving the Ikado Badge, then rambled on at length about the badge's origins and commemorative significance, making Lorist feel like his balls were aching. Only after a long while did he hear something relevant to himself: from that day onward, Lorist would become a Gold Instructor of swordsmanship at Dawnlight Academy and receive the benefits of a Gold Instructor.

The second notice announced an academy decision. From that day onward, any instructor of Dawnlight Academy was forbidden from refusing challenges initiated by students or other instructors without cause. Duel records would be included in each year's instructor performance evaluations. Those who refused to fight without cause more than three times, or who suffered too many losses in duels, would be considered for dismissal by the academy. It then listed detailed rules for challenge duels, such as instructors being forbidden from challenging students and higher ranks being forbidden from challenging lower ranks...

However, none of that applied to Lorist. As the recipient of the Ikado Badge, since he had won thirty consecutive matches while challenging Silver Tier instructors above his rank, he would have to accept challenges from Silver Tier instructors from then on. It did not matter that his Battle Qi was only at the Black Iron rank; the rule against higher ranks challenging lower ranks did not apply to him. As long as he lost even once in a duel, he would lose both the Ikado Badge and his position as the academy's Gold Instructor of swordsmanship.

Lorist did not know that he was merely a chess piece laid out by Headmaster Levens, a whip meant to change the academy's atmosphere and spur the Silver Tier instructors onward. He only instinctively felt that something was off, because the academy's second notice had come far too promptly—right after he received the Ikado Badge.

Lorist had originally wanted to achieve fifty consecutive wins through cross-rank challenges. But once this notice was issued, it was easy to imagine that students and Silver Tier instructors wanting to challenge him, seize the Ikado Badge, and become famous in a single battle would swarm in. He would be overwhelmed. Looking at it positively, he would never lack duel opponents again. Still, he had needed thirty consecutive cross-rank victories to obtain the Ikado Badge, while anyone else only needed to defeat him once to take it away. That did not seem very fair, did it?

Before Lorist could sort it out, Instructor Krudd was already standing before him with a very friendly expression. "I have good news and bad news, Instructor Locke. Which would you like to hear first?"

Lorist carefully looked Instructor Krudd up and down, front and back, left and right, confirming that nothing seemed abnormal. "The good news first. At least it'll give me something to be happy about."

"The good news is that more than a dozen retired City Defense Army officers will come to the academy at the end of this month to serve as Gold Instructors."

"Mm, that's certainly good news for the academy. But what does it have to do with me?" Lorist asked in confusion.

"The bad news is that because of your challenges, the students of three classes have lost their swordsmanship instructors. So you must take responsibility for teaching swordsmanship to those three classes until the retired officers arrive at the end of the month. This is the academy's decision. There's no room for bargaining. It also counts as punishment for causing such an uproar in the academy with your cross-rank challenges."

Lorist was on the verge of collapse. "Where am I supposed to find a classroom that can hold so many students?"

"The main training field has been empty all this time."

"Damn it, weren't there supposed to be three classes? Why are students from five classes here?" Lorist stood on the stone platform in the main training field, staring at the more than two hundred noisy students below who had come for swordsmanship instruction. He frowned as he complained to Fatty Shi beside him.

Fatty Shi was smiling bitterly too. "How can you blame me? You beat their Silver Tier instructors in just a few moves. Now these students are making a fuss, saying their swordsmanship instructors are too weak and refusing to accept instruction from Silver Tier instructors. So they were all sent here to you."

"I need to go down there. Why does it take them so long just to line up? What kind of discipline is this?"

Lorist went down to make a round, and when he came back, he was holding a stack of challenge letters. "I got more than twenty challenge letters just from teaching a swordsmanship class. Are they trying to kill me?"

Fatty Shi looked deeply sympathetic. "Did you think our Enforcement Department had nothing better to do than come observe your swordsmanship lessons? That's exactly why the academy sent us here to maintain order. You're now the academy's key watch target. We have to prevent any crowd-crushing accidents."

"I can't live like this! Other instructors have nothing to do, while I've received more than a hundred challenge letters in less than three days. Even students who just advanced to the Black Iron rank are joining the fun. I really don't know what goes on in their heads. Fatty, I'm starting to regret listening to you. Getting this Ikado Badge is more troublesome than not getting it." Lorist was somewhat dispirited.

Fatty Shi hurriedly comforted him. "Brother, pull yourself together. Don't be fooled by how many people have challenged you these past few days. They're just following the crowd and trying their luck. They don't truly want to challenge you. They're no threat to you. After class, you can send each of them packing with two or three strikes. Twenty-odd people aren't even enough for a warm-up. The opponents truly capable of challenging you will come later. None of these are it. By the way, the students below have lined up. What are you going to have them practice?"

Lorist looked at the dozen or so crooked lines of students on the training field below, then viciously forced out a sentence through clenched teeth: "The eight basic swordsmanship movements, one thousand times!"