Hero
Hero
It was only by piecing together how passing professors and students greeted him that I finally learned his name: Jideulli Sansi.
And among Radnelbandes's many disciples, Jideulli was one of the very few battle mages—few enough to count on one hand.
Just because Radnelbandes was one of the continent's most powerful battle mages didn't mean all his disciples were battle mages.
He was a superhuman among superhumans who had literally mastered both magic and swordsmanship, so he had warrior disciples, mage disciples—they came in every variety. And since he hadn't achieved such greatness through sheer genius alone, his teaching ability was said to be exceptional as well. I simply didn't see him often, but the truth was that he was a remarkable old man, so extraordinary that calling him a treasure of the kingdom would not have been an overstatement.
"Today we have a guest from Itisel, which is on the front line against the Demonfolk. Some of you may already have heard, but she'll be staying with us for the next week, so mind your manners."
Even Radnelbandes first checked for talent when applicants came in wanting to become battle mages, and Jideulli had not only passed that test but had been invited to the Empire to work as a star instructor—which meant that despite his grinning face, he had to be a formidable expert.
"Especially you, Ethenera. You. I'm talking to you."
When Jideulli singled out just one person among the more than thirty students gathered on the training grounds, laughter erupted from all around. Radnelbandes had excused himself because he had matters to discuss with the dean, leaving only Jideulli's thirty-odd students and us on the grounds. There were occasional people coming and going, but most appeared to be professors or administrative staff.
"Hey, come on. I'm still better at socializing than you are, Professor."
Even if it cost him some dignity in front of the students, that is. Whether Jideulli didn't want to or couldn't refute the slick student called Ethenera, he simply continued speaking with an indifferent expression. But just from that, I understood in an instant what kind of atmosphere drove this academy.
This was just a school, wasn't it? Not even some fantasy-world school—a school straight out of my previous life.
It was an extraordinarily incongruous sight in this fantasy world where differences in status and class were obvious. And above all, this warm and friendly atmosphere... it really felt alien.
"This is Ragnis Lien da Levien, Margrave of Itisel."
Maybe I wasn't the only one who found the atmosphere strange. Ragnis had gone subtly stiff, but at Jideulli's introduction she stepped forward and offered a slight greeting. She had changed out of her splendid red dress into something closer to riding clothes, yet she greeted them exactly as she had while wearing the dress. As someone who'd spent so much time beside Sheryl, whose greetings changed with her clothes, I found that a little odd.
Fortunately, the students didn't seem to have the spare attention for that. Especially the male students.
"A m-margrave?"
"Whoa... just what kind of country is Itisel?"
"How can she be so young, what on earth happened..."
"She's that beautiful and she's talented at magic too? The world's unfair."
They were all entirely reasonable expressions of admiration, but the last one nearly made me burst out laughing before I knew it.
Pfft. Sure, Ragnis did have a cute face. Even those faint freckles suited her. But isn't it a little early to be calling her such a beauty, kid?
"It is a pleasure to meet you. Though our stay will be short, I look forward to our time together."
Unlike her usual self, it was a rigid greeting that felt almost chilly. When her bowed head came back up, the Ragnis standing there was the same noble who had forcibly loaded me into the carriage back in Ogwen.
But she seemed subtly, just a little irritated...?
"This is my attendant and secretary, Eldmia Ega. Though he serves as my attendant, he will also be observing as a temporary student like me. I hope this becomes a good opportunity for all of you to learn from and sharpen one another."
Ah. So that was my role here? Suppressing the urge to demand why things kept proceeding without my knowledge, I rendered a light gesture of respect, and this time, it was the female students who reacted.
"How old is he? Same age? Or older?"
"He's seriously so tall..."
"Hey, do you get a wild sort of charm from him...?"
"He's kind of cool too, maybe..."
Heh. Yes! That's it! Now that's a normal assessment of Eldmia! I knew I was on the handsome side in this life.
Compliments like these had been so rare throughout my life that I'd practically had to beg for them, and now my grin threatened to reach my ears. I forced it down into the most polite faint smile I could manage and slowly made eye contact with the students. Even the tallest male student looked under 170 centimeters, so I could sweep my gaze over everyone without trouble. For the week I'd be attending the academy, I decided to put every ounce of acting skill I had into the role.
"My name is Eldmia Ega. I look forward to your kind cooperation."
I would become the courteous knight and lady-killer Eldmia Ega straight out of a fairy tale. When I spoke, even adjusting the tone of my voice in a way I never normally did, the female students stirred once more.
"D-did you hear that voice? That's insane. Seriously!"
"He's a temporary student, so I suppose there'll be time to talk later?"
"Look at how composed his posture is... he's a real knight, isn't he?"
Their average age was probably higher than mine, but that didn't matter. What mattered was the image of me they'd formed from this superficial first glance.
Feeling like it wouldn't be too hard to coax out information here and there if I talked to them right, I let my eyes sweep casually over the people who couldn't tear their gazes away from me and smiled faintly.
"Tch, tch. Quiet! Like I said earlier, don't be rude. The academy may ignore differences in status, but that applies among regular students. Remember that temporary students stand one step outside that rule."
The excited students barely bothered responding while Jideulli thumped the ground with his sword to get their attention. Unlike Ragnis, I was tall enough to take the whole group in at a glance, so I leaned over and whispered to her.
She'd stiffened even more than before and looked even more irritated—honestly, I was scared to speak to her—but I was a man who could distinguish public from private. Work had to be done.
"I don't see anyone resembling the Hero."
"...Is that so?"
"Their gazes and reactions are all about the same. I don't see anyone clustering around one person either."
If the Hero wasn't attending incognito, you'd normally expect a faction to form around him, or at least a noticeable group of people to gather near him whether deliberately or not. I couldn't see anything like that.
"Professor Jideulli? Now that I think of it, I heard there's someone here who was designated as a Hero by the Imperial Divine Council..."
But at Ragnis's question, Jideulli let out a very awkward laugh and answered.
"Ah... well, sometimes he comes late."
"Is he receiving supplementary instruction?"
"Well... something like that..."
I almost swore out loud even though I still wasn't certain of anything.
Even at a glance, Jideulli looked like someone evasively trying to gloss over an embarrassing sore point. Ragnis only tilted her head, and I didn't think she'd get us an answer that way, so I put on a cheerful but courteous manner and addressed the students.
"I apologize for this amid such a warm welcome, but having been born where one constantly clashes with Demonfolk, I can't help my curiosity. I've heard that the Hero chosen by the Imperial Divine Council is among you... might I ask who he is?"
Back when I was getting discharged from the army, we'd gone from calling guys in other companies "comrade" to being told we should call them "heroes" by the end, so the form of address didn't exactly roll naturally off my tongue. Still, a Hero was a Hero. I asked confidently and swept my gaze over the group, only to click my tongue internally at the response.
Not one reaction was friendly.
"Sometimes he comes late like this. Well, maybe he went to the toilet or something."
Responses brimming with wariness, regardless of gender. Among the men, I could read hostility and ridicule; the women gave off only the subtlest sense of distance. This didn't seem like a reaction born merely from envying a Hero, a peerless genius.
Strange. Publicly, he was supposed to be perfectly respectable. Was this bastard only a disaster behind closed doors?
"Well, sometimes it looks like he drags a toilet around with him."
"Ete. Watch your mouth."
It was only after the sharp-featured male student next to the jovial Ethenera—who had been joking with Jideulli earlier—quietly warned him that I understood the whole situation, despite not wanting to.
And at the same time, I was impressed.
Nobles and commoners could grin and laugh together inside the academy despite the Empire's social hierarchy, and the dumbass who acted on whatever his dick pointed at and got isolated as a result was the Hero?
No. The alternative was that they were simply blinded by jealousy and envy and not properly assessing the circumstances. As expected, you can't know until you meet someone in person. Yeah, yeah.
"Well, that's a common sight by now, so shall we start the lesson, Professor?"
Ethenera acted and spoke like a commoner through and through, but he had conviction and initiative in spades. Even the students I assumed were nobles showed no particular ill will toward him, so his relationships with people were clearly solid too. Wait, was he actually the Hero and everyone was secretly pulling some hidden-camera prank on us?
"Huh? There's a face I haven't seen before."
Just as my suspicion was deepening like that, a voice came from the rear.
From the single fact that a genuinely late arrival existed, I understood that he was the Hero.
"Now that I think about it, was today the day an exchange student from some kingdom was coming?"
"Spouting incomprehensible nonsense again... I told you, they're observing as temporary students. What exchange, what are you even on about?"
When I turned my head to look, a group straight out of a clichéd novel setup was walking over.
The red-haired man strolling toward us had an elf, a woman who looked like a priestess, and another who looked like a noble beside him. His clothes were visibly disheveled. I didn't want to know, but I could tell at a glance that they hadn't ended up that way because he'd been rushing to class after realizing he was late.
All three women's faces were red clear to the ears. How was I supposed not to figure it out? The reality that the Hero had spent the short break between classes diligently doing whatever his erectile tissue told him gave me a sharp headache. Before it could turn into a pounding migraine, I hurriedly organized my thoughts and tried to stay positive.
Right. In the end, a Hero just had to fight well, didn't he? I probably would've been busy chasing women around too if I'd been strong and well-off with leisure to spare. And above all, according to the intel Ragnis had gathered, wasn't that guy engaging in sufficiently productive activity and demonstrating his abilities?
They say heroes are fond of women. It happens.
While I was convincing myself of that, the Hero ignored me as if I didn't exist, drifted up just behind me, and held a hand out toward Ragnis.
"Heh. Can't resist the transfer-student cliché. Nice to meet you. I'm the Hero, Siegfried."
But as a fucking reincarnator, I could forgive him for acting like a dog in heat. What I couldn't stand was watching him pull that shit on someone I knew.
I grabbed the Hero's wrist with the most smiling face I could manage and said,
"You reek. Please wash your hands before requesting a handshake."
"...What?"
"I said get that hand away from her. It reeks of cum."
Ethenera burst out laughing behind me, while the Hero's expression rapidly curdled. Naturally, I kept the same faint smile as I met his eyes.
What of it, you motherfucker.