I’m an Appraiser, But What the Heck is a [Divine Eye]? ~I Want to Live Freely as the World’s Best Beginner Class~ - Episode 213: Hot Springs, Hospitality, and Trouble 14

Episode 213: Hot Springs, Hospitality, and Trouble 14  

“Alright! Next up is Haku!”  

Contrary to my expectation that he would take a break, the Knight Commander immediately requested a mock battle with Haku without any rest.  

“Are you sure about this, Knight Commander?”  

“Of course! On the battlefield, enemies won’t wait for you to be in perfect condition! Training must be treated as real combat, or one will never grow stronger!”  

He’s not wrong, but this is a mock battle. If you’re not at your best, wouldn’t it be hard to gauge the actual skill differences?  

While I had my doubts, Haku seemed eager. So I didn’t intervene.  

I figured Haku would win anyway, and I hoped the Knight Commander would be satisfied after this match.  

I just didn’t want him dragging me or Sunny into this anymore.  

“At this point, doesn’t the Knight Commander have some sort of mock-battle syndrome?”  

“That’s not quite right.”  

“Really, Yuria?”  

“What he has is strongman syndrome.”  

“St-strongman syndrome? Well… it’s not entirely inaccurate.”  

If it were mock-battle syndrome, he’d probably be sparring with his knights every day. Especially with the Vice Commander, who’s second only to him in skill—what a hassle that would be.  

“It’d be perfect if he just passed out here.”  

“You’re pretty ruthless, Mihiro.”  

“Hey, I just don’t want to get dragged into this. Right, Sunny?”  

“Pikyah!”  

Arata looked exasperated. But for me, avoiding involvement was all that mattered. So I hoped he’d let me off the hook for thinking that way.  

Meanwhile, Haku stood face-to-face with the Knight Commander in the center of the training ground.  

Fosse seemed conflicted. It was unsure whether to cheer for the Knight Commander, who had fought valiantly, or for its companion, Haku. Its gaze darted back and forth between them.  

These two really seemed to have developed some kind of mutual understanding.  

“The mock battle will now begin. Ready————start!”  

“Woof!”  

“Nuoh!”  

At the signal to start, Haku immediately lunged forward. It swung a sharp strike with its foreleg.  

The Knight Commander managed to react just in time, blocking it by the skin of his teeth while staggering backward.  

Seeing him off balance, Haku pressed forward for a follow-up attack.  

“Hmph!”  

“Grrrah!”  

To counter, the Knight Commander slammed his greatsword into the ground, kicking up a cloud of sand as a smokescreen.  

However, this wasn’t nearly enough to make Haku lose sight of its target. Instead, Haku seemed to assess that the Knight Commander wouldn’t be able to see through the sand cloud and moved calmly.  

“Haku’s moving without making a sound.”  

“Yes, it’s probably planning to attack from behind.”  

“But don’t you think Vigul-sama has already anticipated that?”  

At my comment, both Yuria and Arata shared their thoughts.  

And they were both right.  

Haku swiftly maneuvered to the Knight Commander’s rear, aiming to strike through the sand cloud. But as it leapt in, a sharp slash tore through the cloud, scattering it and forcing Haku to halt its advance.  

Had he continued, the Knight Commander’s blade would’ve caught it. But Haku seemed to have anticipated even that.  

“Impressive!”  

“Grrr… Grrrah!”  

Timing its dodge perfectly with a small backstep, Haku avoided the upward slash. Landing gracefully, he immediately surged forward again. It was accelerating faster than ever before.  

With blinding speed, Haku aimed a headbutt directly at the Knight Commander’s chest.  

“Guhah!?”  

The sheer force of the impact caused the Knight Commander to let out a pained gasp as he was slammed against the wall of the training ground.  

The match was decided.  

“Winner——Haku!”  

Cheers erupted from the knights watching near the wall, while the Vice Commander hurried over to check on the Knight Commander.  

“Good grief, Vigul-sama is unbelievably sturdy.”  

“Haha… GAHAHAHA! That was an incredible charge!”  

Wow, his laughter reached all the way over here.  

“If this weren’t a mock battle, I’d be dead!”  

“Indeed. Instead of a headbutt, Haku’s fangs would’ve been at your throat.”  

…Scary! But yeah, in a real fight, it probably would’ve gone straight for the neck.  

Despite overcoming the level gap and defeating Fosse, the Knight Commander just couldn’t best Haku.  

“That guy is seriously amazing!”  

“You mean being strong even in defeat?”  

“Exactly! I never thought he’d hold his own so well against Haku! That’s not just the effect of his Overthrow the Strong skill—it’s strength he’s earned through relentless training!”  

I hadn’t seen Moriya this excited in a long time.  

For someone like Moriya, who has lived for centuries, to acknowledge him………. the Knight Commander really is a monster.