Training Grounds

“Yesterday, we may have troubled you and for that I am sorry.” [Chie]

It was the day after the discussion of the kidnappings.
Currently, I am in the training grounds standing in front of the soldiers and giving my greeting.

“Once again, I have been appointed Knight Commander and exclusive knight to the Imperial Family. As I am new to this, I thank you ahead of time for your understanding.” [Chie]

I say and lower my head.
As I raised my head and looked around… …All the soldiers present expressed silent astonishment.

“Conrad, was that strange?” [Chie]

I became concerned and asked Conrad who was to my right.

“….Well…” [Conrad]

However, only a vague reply came back.
Is it, or is it not?

“Black Knight-san, because all of them are your subordinates, you should behave more like a leader…”

As I was at a loss, Celes responded from the left.
So she says…

“No, if I were to act better than another I think it would leave a bad impression. Furthermore, since I am a suspicious looking person, I already give off the impression of a not-so-trustworthy individual.” [Chie]

The soldiers, “(So conscientious….).”

At this time, the voices of the soldiers’ hearts had synchronized together, but n.o.body would know.

“Commander….perhaps you have something else to say….” [Conrad]

Conrad said while troubled.

“Haa~….Well then….” [Chie]

I looked towards the soldiers again.
Standing next to the two Captains, I took a deep breath.

“……Thank you~.” [Chie]

—Zuten~tsu

Everyone fell to the ground.
After a few minutes, training started up.

“Commander! What are you doing!?”

Conrad got mad at me.

“Even if you tell me to act more leader-like, I don’t know how to.” [Chie]

I told him while pouting.
It’s not my fault~.

“Hmph! After saying ‘shut up stupid swordsman!?’ all the time. Hey! Why are Celes and Conrad called by their own names!?” [Adelbert]

Celes and Conrad retort to the words said by the stupid swordsman.

“ Doesn’t Stupid Swordsman fit?” [Conrad]

Conrad says as he looks at the stupid swordsman.

“Stupid Swordsman fits perfectly.” [Celes]

Celes also mercilessly spits out.
It seems that everyone is in favor of his nickname.
At the words of those two, the stupid swordsman drops to the ground on his hands and knees, hanging his head.
Serves you right.

“Don’t be depressed Adel. I’m the Muscle-Brother……” [Brandon]

The muscle-brother tried to encourage the stupid swordsman.

“At least you know the meaning of yours! I don’t even know what my nickname means!!” [Adolf]

The blue long-haired «ikemen» appealed to the two.
Oh, that’s right; this world doesn’t have a translation for ‘«ikemen»’ in its language.

“Hey, blue long-haired «ikemen»!” [Chie]

“Agh! I told you…” [Adolf]

“The word ‘«ikemen»’ in my country means ‘a good-looking or cool man.’” [Chie]

“….Huh, so it was only you guys who had such nicknames.” [Adolf]

“This traitor!” [Adelbert & Brandon]

I was back in a good mood so I explained his nickname while I moved us a little bit away from the stupid swordsman and muscle-brother. I said this while looking down on the two.
It enraged the muscle-brother and stupid swordsman.
The blue long-haired «ikemen» is simple.

“Black Knight-san, forget what I said just now.” [Adolf]

The long blue-haired «ikemen» acted as if nothing had ever happened and was talking to me in a rather good mood.

“Didn’t you hate me?” [Chie]

“Hahaha! What are you talking about?”

“…..” [All]

We were all shocked by the speed of his change in att.i.tude.
Yesterday, he even said I was “repulsive”….

“Adolf….” [Conrad]

Conrad mutters the name of the blue long-haired «ikemen» while trailing off.

“Haa~, let’s get back on topic.”

Conrad sighs while steering the topic back on track.

“Please realize that you are this country’s greatest knight!” [Conrad]

“Not interested.” [Chie]

“Why you!” [Conrad]

Conrad looked troubled.
Even though I’m told that, if I’m not interested in it, I’m not interested; it can’t be helped.

“Ok, listen. What do you imagine when one says ‘greatest knight’?” [Chie]

I asked everyone to get an idea.

“Someone who is….. strong, kind and dignified as a knight?” [Adolf]

The blue long-haired «ikemen» says.
He’s all of a sudden friendly now….

“See, Conrad fits those words more so than I.” [Chie]

I said while pointing to Conrad.

“There is no such thing!” [Celes]

Celes clearly denies.

—kok kok

Amy also nods.

“….But for one to be dignified, does one also have to be arrogant? Can you imagine His Majesty being arrogant?” [Chie]

Someone who listens to everyone.
I can not imagine it.
Rather, he gave off the image of someone who spoke to the people freely.

“….(Indeed!)…” [All]

Although it’s not said, the four people probably reached the same opinion.

“Compared to that, dignity with arrogance would be the same type as the stupid swordsman.” [Chie]

“Ah~….” [All]

“What! Even Brandon!” [Adelbert]

Muscle-brother also seemed to share the same opinion.
Stupid swordsman is crying.

“….However, Commander.” [Conrad]

Conrad frowns and says.
I imagined myself with the arrogance similar to that of the stupid swordsman.
It wasn’t very pleasant.

“Let’s do this. If there is a critical moment, I will switch over to ‘work mode’.” [Chie]

“….Haa~. I understand.” [Conrad]

Conrad reluctantly agreed.
A wry smile presented itself on the faces of everyone present except for the stupid swordsman and muscle-brother.

“(Truly, it will be our people who will be troubled).” [Conrad]

“More than that, is it always independent training?” [Chie]

I asked Conrad while we stood and monitored the training.

“Yes, it has always been this way.” [Celes]

Celes says.
While inquiring, I looked at the soldiers who are training once more.
Each person is training by their own thoughts and commitment.
Speaking clearly, this method is ineffective.
Because of the combat knowledge that was given to me about this world, I can observe and understand their methods very well.
The number of people who would become strong using this training method would be very few.

“….Alright.” [Chie]

I have decided.

“This training method needs to change.” [Chie]

“What!?” [All]

Conrad responds to the words I said with a quizzical face.
I’ll just ignore him.

—Pan Pan!

I clap my hands together and the soldiers turned their attention to me.

“Attention! Training is to stop at once!” [Chie]

I said in a loud enough voice that the whole training ground could hear.
My voice traveled pretty well across the training ground.
Making sure everyone is paying attention, I spoke.

“I’ll be blunt! Your training methods are not very effective at all.” [Chie]

Everyone is dead silent.
Then, voices of criticism were raised.

“You! What are…” [Adolf]

“Shut up!” [Chie]

Blue long haired «ikemen» tried to protest, so I silenced him.
The soldiers who were also making noise all fell silent.

“For example….Archer-kun over there!”

“Uh, me?” [Archer-kun]

I called out to a young male archer who had short brown hair with gentle and docile looks.
His eyes were brown and he stood at a height of 170 «kaumeito» (cm).
Brown padded armor on top of light brown skin with black knee high boots.
He looked nervous, seeing as how he had become rather rigid.

As for where Archer-kun stood, there were targets a few dozen meito (meters) away from him.
I walked over to where he was standing.

“Hey, try pulling the bow and arrow.” [Chie]

“? Yes….” [Archer-kun]

Archer-kun gave a puzzled face as he drew the bow and arrow.

“Stop there.” [Chie]

“Yes.” [Archer-kun]

I approached him and adjusted his body by dropping his shoulder a little and raising his arm a bit.
The surrounding soldiers looked on curiously.

“Alright, now aim at the center of that target.” [Chie]

“Hah!? No, that’s impossible!” [Archer-kun]

Archer-kun displayed an expression that said it wasn’t possible.

“It’s impossible for that guy!” [Archer](EDN: Another archer, if you don’t get the memo)
{Should we do Archer A, Archer B, etc like in last chapter?(Leo)}

Taunts came flying from behind.
Several people had gathered around with nasty expressions as they pointed out at Archer-kun, grinning and laughing.

“That person has never hit the target until now.” [Archer]

One of the rude archers said.

“Oh yeah, to enlist some like him, with his talent in the bow, the army must have been desperate!” [Archer]

—-Gahahahaha!

The other soldiers rudely started to laugh at what the other soldiers said.
Listening to the other soldiers talk down about him, Archer-kun appeared frustrated with clenched teeth, lacking the courage to retort them.
I am amazed by his ability to tolerate their abuse.
While the whole army was looking down on him, his problem with the bow was solved by me.

“After all….” [Archer-kun]

“To believe a thing impossible is to make it so.” [Chie]

“….huh?” [Archer-kun]

I interrupted his words of resignation.
However, the soldiers throw taunts after my words.

“What stories you have heard!” [Archer]

“It’s impossible for him…” [Archer]

“Shut up, worm.”

I said in a very low and deep voice that interrupts their taunts.
I thought about the voice changing yesterday, but didn’t think I could put out this kind of voice.
Bloodthirst seemed to come out with it, so of course, all the men around had pale faces.
I spoke to Archer-kun who has the same pale face as those around us.

“It’s okay, concentrate and aim while remembering your posture a moment ago. It will absolutely hit.” [Chie]

He looks at me for a moment.

“Do not worry about what those around you say. You can do anything that you set your mind to.” [Chie]

“….” [Archer-kun]

Upon listening to my words, Archer-kun nodded and tightened his face.
Once again, he drew the bow, looking straight at the target.
He adjusts into the corrected posture.
The surrounding soldiers looked on.
The bow made a ‘dou’ sound as it was being pulled back.
He aimed, then released.
The arrow, flying in a straight line,…………hits the middle of the target.

“…………..lies.” [Archer-kun]

He leaked out a small voice as he wore an incredible expression.

—ton ton

I tapped his shoulder.

“Hey, it hit.” [Chie]

I tell him.

“It….Yes!” [Archer-kun]

To my words, Archer-kun replied happily.

“H-How!?” [Archer]

The offensive archer raised his voice.

“Why? How do you not know?” [Chie]

I said to the offensive Archer.

“Look, the shoulder was raised and the hand was lowered, which resulted in too much power. If those are fixed then isn’t it natural that the arrow would fly straight?” [Chie]

“…..” [Archer]

The offensive archers give a look of discomfort.

“Though some people may hit the target, there are others who may not. By doing independent practice, which is a practice only the individual does, the people who are doing something incorrectly won’t understand what they are doing is wrong and will, therefore, be unable to fix it.” [Chie]

Upon saying so, everyone seemed to catch my drift.

“Identifying whether someone is doing something incorrectly, while they practice, is also good training. You understand why you have to do this, right? Especially being a soldier of the Empire like yourself? When it is your job to protect the other people of this country, you’ll encounter many critical situations, and with such disjointed teamwork, it becomes even more dangerous. Training yourself more efficiently is a matter of life or death.”[Chie]

I appealed to them.

“Soldiers have a very serious responsibility. If there is no clear and definite cooperation, then the circ.u.mstances of the country will become dangerous! Which is the present situation!” [Chie]

Everyone seemed taken aback.
The people of this country already know what the Empire’s current situation is.

“And that’s why the military isn’t effective as it should be. The training is ineffective from the start! So, training methods need to undergo a dramatic change!” [Chie]

First, I called out to the soldiers with weapons.

“Knight Corps, Swordsmen Corps, Spear Corps, and Fighter Corps, practice swings 1000 times! Start from the basics!”

“—-Yes!” [Soldiers]

The soldiers vigorously reply, beginning to swing their weapons while s.p.a.cing themselves out between each other.
Their faces appeared earnest and they gave off a feeling of motivation.

“Archers form pairs and work together to point out the flaws in your forms!” [Chie]

“—-Yes!” [Archers]

Similarly, the archers respond vigorously.

“Lastly, Mage Corps! Most of your problems are yourselves! From a single look, I can see that all you do is just practice magic! Certainly, mind and spirit are indispensable in magic and one may think physical prowess is unnecessary. But, as one would say in my country, ‘To strengthen one’s mind, one must first strengthen the body’. In other words, by strengthening your bodies, your minds and spirits will also be strengthened! Not only will you train your magic but also your bodies! Start by stretching your muscles, then start running laps!” [Chie]

“—-Eh~!” [Mages]

The Mage Corps raised voices of reluctance and loathing.

—Buchi-tsu!

“Get moving, quickly begin or —–!” [Chie]

“—-Y-Yes!” [Mages]

The mages screamed in fear as they cut off my warning and began to stretch.
Although some of the soldiers were not convinced, everyone seemed to exude a lot of motivation.
Alright! I’ll do my best in building this army!

*********(Conrad POV)**********

The Captains and I watched in astonishment as we observed the soldiers reacting to the instructions of the Commander.

“That Black Knight dude~…” [Adolf]

The first voice that leaked out was Adolf.
This guy, just from hearing the meaning of the nickname given to him, had a sudden change in his att.i.tude.
He is a self-interested fellow.

“Hoh~ It seems only Adel has yet to admit it?” [Brandon]

Brandon admitted to recognizing the Commander and said as such to Adelbert.

“…..” [Adelbert]

Adelbert pouts with a grimace while glaring at the Commander who is running behind the Mage Corps members.
This guy, is he a kid?
Just how exactly did he become Swordsman Captain….

“Adelbert, you understand already don’t you?” [Adolf]

Adolf called out to Adelbert.

“We can’t even compare to that Black Knight. His Majesty and Conrad made the right choice. It is our loss.” [Adolf]

“You acknowledge the ‘Black Knight’ because of the nickname given to you, but the ‘Black Knight’ did not grant such a good nickname to me.” [Adelbert]

Adelbert yelled to refute Adolf.
Certainly, most of the things he said were true.
Though, I didn’t want to admit it.
Adolf said with a wry smile.

“See, the ‘Black Knight’ was meant to be born with a sword in hand. I absolutely cannot compete against that innate talent.” [Adolf]

Adolf continued.

“After listening to the ‘Black Knight’s’ reasons as to why we got into that fight, I felt regret. I doubted Conrad as a Knight like a fool. Well, the joke is annoying but…” [Adolf]

Adolf wore a wry smile.

“I was wrong Conrad in insulting the Black Knight whom you had acknowledged.” [Adolf]

“….Only this time will I forgive you.” [Conrad]

Adolf apologized and I forgave him.
We had come to an understanding.

“…..Still, I don’t accept this.” [Adelbert]

“Adel, you….” [Celes]

Celestia raised her voice in amazement.
We were all in the same situation.
What childish things are you saying?
This guy has some strangely high pride….

“Not yet! Not until the kidnapping case that we talked about yesterday is resolved!” [Adelbert]

Listening to his words, we were surprised.
To think this guy would say such a thing, I never would have thought it.

“…I will apologize to the Commander when everything is taken care of.” [Adelbert]

“Understood.” [Conrad]

I reply to a face that was much smaller than expected.
It was quite an entertaining face and I laughed a little bit.

“Hey—–Shii! You guys don’t sit down–a–Hey!!” [Chie]

The Commander’s voice was heard from far away and we turn to look at the sight.
Looking over there, Mage Corps members were all sprawled out on the ground desperately trying to catch their breath while the figure of the yelling Commander stood over them.

“Hahaha! The Black Knight sure is fired up!” [Brandon]

“Demon….” [Adelbert]

Brandon laughed as he watched them while Adelbert gave off a discomforting look.

“Amy, why are you stretching?” [Celes]

Looking in the direction where Celestia’s voice had come from, Amy was nearby and working hard at stretching her muscles.

“I….also….run.” [Amy]

After saying so, she went running after the Commander.

“Amy? Is she gonna be okay?” [Adolf]

Adolf asked out of concern.

“Ah, me too!” [Celestia]

Celestia quickly stretches before chasing after Amy.
She seemed more like the Commander.

“Even Celestia….” [Adelbert]

Adelbert said while sounding depressed.
What are you, an abandoned puppy?

“Well, I’ll be training with my men.” [Adolf]

Adolf said and walked over to the archers.

“I also want to practice my swings. What about you?” [Adelbert]

“I’ll mix it up.” [Conrad]

“…..No choice. I’ll mix it up too.” [Brandon]

“Shall we?” [Adelbert]

Smiling wryly at the words of Adelbert, we headed towards the soldiers.
I think to myself as I walked.
The army had been disjointed, but with the help of that person we may become united.
The Commander who can do that is just that great, even if the person in question doesn’t know it yet.
But, that is why everyone is attracted to that person.
That person is the greatest knight in this country…no, the whole world.
Although it hasn’t been three days since we met, I want to work next to that person, now and in the future.
Yes, that is my strongest desire.