NOVEL NEXT Volume 8 Chapter 27: What Is The Meaning Of Life?
Volume 8 Chapter 27: What Is The Meaning Of Life?
"...What is the meaning of life, everyone?" Herrick muttered; his eyes were lifeless as he sprawled on the table, looking soulless. It was quite the demoralizer. He wasn't the only person; Melor leaned on his chair as he stared at the ceiling.
"Don't you think it's a dark day today?"
"Guys, it's bright and sunny outside." Today wasn't even dark; it was bright with the sun in the air. Keith tilted his head, "Why are you guys acting like this?"
"So many tests." "Ugh," The number of tests they had to do today was absurd. It was piled into one day.
"Everything was something we knew."
"Surprisingly so," Gabriel nodded. Looking down at the exam, he was genuinely surprised by the questions. It was literally the things they were taught. He was able to finish them 10 minutes ahead of time.
"..I feel like I screwed up." Herrick groaned.
Keith shook his head, "I think you guys did fine. Also, you shouldn't forget about the others." The written portion of the test was only a piece. There was also the magic and combat test.
"Those two are your strong suit." Fighting was their bread and butter.
"Of course!" Melor's eyes brightened; he was right. He would just need to beat them up even more!
"Why are you still acting like a cat?" Alfia noticed the beastman's expression had stayed the same. The man was still moping on the desk.
"Shouldn't you be happy?" Scarlet questioned.
"Of course, I would be happy. But why should I be when I know I will do well?" Herrick knew he was going to pass the other tests. With how hard he trained, he wouldn't be defeated.
"I want to pass something that I had trouble with before." Studying wasn't his strong suit. Despite all of that complaining, he still studied hard. That was why he wanted to pass; it would have given him a strong sense of fulfillment.
“…” The others really didn't know what to say about this. Herrick is really growing up. Keith smiled. They might have thought it was a joke if it was another time. He and the others may not say it, but they saw this lionman working hard late at night while everyone was asleep.
"Come on, let's go have our lunch. I made a lot today so we can recharge ourselves." Breakfast wasn't the only thing Keith went overboard with; lunch was the same.
"We have normal classes as well," Even if they had midterms, they still had regular classes.
"Thank goodness!" The others were quite excited about this as they headed to the cafeteria.
...
"Hmpf!" Keith waved his sword at Tennol. However, the moment he did so, Tennol pushed him away with his sword. It was such a swift motion that caught Keith off-guard.
"You lost,"
"And here I thought I could land a blow." Keith groaned. He thought for sure that his blow would have taken him down.
"You really think that could have taken me down?" Tennol chuckled, "But your movement with the shield has improved for the most part." In the beginning, Keith's movements were quite awkward with the large shield. Now, his movements were swift and standard, like a tank.
"Thanks for the praise."
"Are you sure you should train like this before your next midterm?" There was a break between the written portion and the combat ones. Most students try to rest and not get injured during that time. Yet, his student was going hard as he sparred against Tennol.
"No, if I'm going to fight someone, then I will need to have my body at its optimal level." Resting his body would just dull his movements. He wanted to have no lag as he fought.
"That's true," Tennol laughed.
"Also, can you spar with Herrick and Melor when you have the time?" Even though they needed to move, they also held back against one another. The two knew that would hurt the other if they went all out. So they should have a non-student to fight against.
"...You want me to be a punching bag?"
"No, you can fight against him. But please go easy on them."
"...Fine." Tennol sighed, "But if you're taking the midterm with the large shield, you should change your equipment."
"Eh?"
"I could see how hard you're practicing with the two weapons." Heck, he was the one who trained him.
"However, the pairing you have doesn't make sense." What Keith used was a large shield and a regular sword. He could tell the boy used this combination because he was used to it.
"You should either change the shield's size or the weapon entirely."
"I see. Then I will need to change my weapon." Keith thought about it; a large shield was something he had been working with for some time. Getting a new weapon should be interesting.
"Then you should try to use an axe or hammer. Try these." Tennol took some weapons from the rack.
"Understood." Keith waved the hammer around, prepared to fight. But Tennol raised his hand, "You should deal with that first,"
"Krystal, please! I give!" "You need to get better!" On the side were Krystal and Jack. The latter was running away from the girl.
"...Yeah, Krystal isn't that good of a teacher." She was pretty brutal, for one.
...
"Thank you for your time," Keith bowed as he left the training field.
"No problem, Kid. Just remember the lunch."
"Mmhmm." Keith nodded as he left.
"How did he do?" Behind Tennol was Aidiun,
"If I have to say, no one is going to beat him in the close-combat exam." Tennol grinned. That was something he knew for sure.
"That's good." Aidiun nodded.
"That kid really hits like a monster. Is that really the first time he's using a mallet?!" Tennol raised his fist in the air. Even when he blocked Keith's hits, those things packed a wallop! His entire forearm was bruised beyond belief!
"Tsk."
"And Herrick and Melor are going to go crazy as well."
"..."
