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Azur Lane: Episode of Belfast Volume 1 Chapter 2 Part 10

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Translator: Kurehashi Aiko

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PART 10

 

[Ahh, the amount of life energy that I can feel from those words! I knew it! There is nothing better in this world that……!]

 

[H-Hey! Your face! It’s too close! Personal space! Give me some personal space!]

 

While York was leaning forward in excitement more and more towards Niimi, she finally snapped and pushed her away from her, since the distance between their faces was clearly way too close for Niimi’s comfort.

 

Cygnet, who was staring blankly at the two of her colleagues from her own seat, suddenly raised her hand as if she had suddenly come up with something that she wanted to ask about.

 

[S-Sensei! I would like to learn some more of Iron Blood’s words, if it’s not a problem!]

 

[Huh? Huh!?]

 

Niimi, who up until now had been busy dealing with York, began to panic when she heard Cygnet’s words.

 

[I want you to teach me more and more words! Niimi-sensei! I envy you so much for knowing something like that!]

 

At that point, Javelin seemed to sense Cygnet’s intentions, and with a huge smile on her face, she raised her hand straight up in the air and said that.

 

[Javelin, too! I want to learn more words as well! Especially the ones such as “Destroyer”, since those relate to us in a way!]

 

[E-Even you too, Javelin……!?]

 

Unable to hide just how perplexed she was about the fact that her students were finally showing interest in her lecture and were asking her questions of their own volition, she scratched her cheek with her finger in a gesture of embarrassment.

 

She then coughed profusely as if trying to clear her throat, and began to behave in the same manner as before in front of the ever-eager students.

 

[E-Ekhem, Ekhem! W-Well, I guess it really cannot be helped, then! But let me warn you now, I am going to be writing a whole lot, so be sure to take your notes diligently!]

 

She then turned her face to the blackboard and started writing the words from one edge of the black board to another one.

 

Even without looking at her expression, it was clear that Niimi was happy and was really enjoying herself.

 

At the same time, at the back of the classroom, Belfast smiled with relief.

 

For about thirty more minutes after that, Niimi-sensei’s fun foreign language class continued uninterrupted like that.

 

* * *

 

[Next is going to be my turn.]

 

Just like that, it was finally time for Enterprise’s class.

 

She came over to the teacher’s podium with a dashing gait, flipping her long overcoat, and spoke in a smooth tone as she looked around at the students from the classroom.

 

[As for the contents of my class, I am going to have you all go outside for now, guys.]

 

Not only the students alone, but also the instructors were all dumbfounded by that remark of hers.

 

[Umm…… I thought that today’s lessons are going to be classroom exclusive ones?]

 

Even though she knew that she should not get in the way of someone else’s lecture, Belfast could not help herself but to go and ask about that.

 

[That’s true. But at the same time, there is no rule that dictates that the classes need to be taught exclusively inside of the classroom.]

 

For the first time in a long time, Enterprise made a bold statement like that.

 

[In the first place, the battlefield that we face every single day is not something that is so simple that it can all be explained verbally alone!]

 

But if that was supposed to be true, then what was the coursework up until now? Was there any sense to it at all?

 

Belfast was not really convinced by that answer, but at the same time she knew all too well that arguing here would only end up further restricting the students’ time for the actual class activities.

 

[Alright, then. Let’s go outside and follow me.]

 

Following Enterprise’s words, the students have left the classroom.

 

After that, the other lecturers also went out into the hallway and followed right after Enterprise outside.

 

The place that the entire classroom group arrived at was a sandy beach near the great pier.

 

[What the…… What is this……?]

 

Surprised, Javelin raised her voice without thinking.

 

What was right in front of them on the beach was a mud pool with a diameter of ten meters or slightly bigger. Nobody was able to tell how deep it was just by looking at it, and everyone was wondering what they were going to do in such a bizarre place.

 

[From now on, you will have to jump over this mud pond. Of course, if you fail to do that and fall right in, your bodies will be covered in mud from head to toe.]

 

Enterprise explained so in an emphatic tone, as if it was the most natural thing in the entire world.

 

Because the way she speaks is always way too serious, even Belfast had the illusion that right now the Destroyers were about to take part in a genuine military exercise, but that was not the case here right now.

 

[Is an exercise like that really going to be useful for doing commissions in the future?]

 

Yuudachi was actually the one who went forward and asked the question that must have been stuck in everyone else’s minds, but no one else was brave enough to actually ask it.

 

[Once you are going to be able to perform it well, you will know.]

 

It seems that the Destroyers would not get the answer that they were hoping to hear from Enterprise before they would actually start doing the assigned exercise. But in that way, they had no idea what Enterprise’s intentions actually were with this.

 

With a confident expression on her face, Enterprise walked over the pond to the destination at the other side of it.

 

[It doesn’t matter who you are, or who goes in first! The important thing here is to have the courage to actually jump straight in! Of course, those who can successfully cross to the other side without falling into the mud pool can go and have their lunch break early!]

 

The four students that were left behind looked at one another.

 

[And there you have it. This will probably be as much explanation as we will get here……]

 

The way in which she said that, it seemed that Javelin was already pretty low on motivation to get this exercise all done before it even managed to properly start.

 

Everyone present must have been wondering who was going to be the first one to jump right in, and at the same time they were all glancing at one another in curiosity.

 

[Fufu. I see that all of you are still little children. No, little cowards, I say!]

 

Then, for some reason, York was the very first one to take a step forward, a look of total confidence written all over her face.

 

[No! No, no, no, no! No matter how you look at it, it’s just impossible! That jump is over ten meters long!]

 

It was actually just as Yuudachi said just now. Ten meters was way too long of a distance for any of them to traverse in one go. Heck, even the world class athletes would be unable to do it.

 

[Even if you were to get a pretty good running start, a long jump like that is just impossible to perform~.]

 

[And who said anything about doing a long jump here?]

 

York then pointed her finger straight towards the mud pool.

 

Everyone squinted their eyes and looked towards the place where York was pointing her finger at, cocking their heads in puzzlement. If you were to look really closely, you could see that there were small poles sticking out of the pond, barely visible.

 

[Ah! Hmm, I see, so that’s how it is? I see that nothing is the way it seems at first glance, huh?]

 

Signet said that while clapping her hands together.

 

[Does that mean that we are to just jump over the pond with the use of those sticks?]

 

[–––––– Yes! Exactly!]

 

The four students could then hear Enterprise’s voice calling out to them from across the mud pool.

 

[This right here is based on a sport called “Fierwappen”. This sport is said to have originated from the use of poles to cross waterways in order to cross water-filled canals. It may look simple, but it is actually quite difficult to pull off! Not to mention that the pool itself is surprisingly deep! It requires a whole lot of skill to handle the pole properly and traverse your way through the pool in a quick fashion. Also, landing from a sufficient height without losing your balance also requires you to possess a great deal of fitness and agility!]

 

Hearing that explanation, the four students started to nod their heads in agreement.

 

But this is this, and that is that. Even though they just received some explanation, they still had no idea just how that was going to become useful in the commissions and exercises that they would be bound to do at some point.

 

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