Chapter 27: Provocation
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 27: Provocation
"Join my house after you graduate."
"Excuse me?"
A rather blank sound escaped my lips at Johanna’s sudden declaration.
I downed the cold water sitting next to me to clear my head. Drinking it all in one go gave me a slight brain freeze, but it did the trick.
"What on earth do you mean by 'joining your house,' Senior?"
"The man who picked a fight with you earlier—he’s a prince of the Archen Kingdom."
Only then did it click. I finally remembered which kingdom that vermin belonged to. The Archen Kingdom... if I recalled correctly, it wasn't a nation that played a major role in the original story.
"What does that have to do with me joining your family, Senior?"
"Once you graduate from the Academy, he’ll use the power of his kingdom to come after you."
I finally understood why Johanna was telling me to join her household.
"Because if I’m under your protection, he won't be able to touch me easily? In that case, when you say 'join the family'..."
"Will you join as a knight of the family after graduation?"
Even if that vermin was royalty and Johanna’s family was a ducal one, this was the Empire. Even they wouldn't be foolish enough to recklessly provoke a Ducal House of the Empire.
"Aha! Is that all? You startled me. I completely misunderstood when you suddenly told me to join your family!"
"······!"
Johanna seemed not to understand what I meant at first, but after a moment of thought, she realized how her words could have been misconstrued. Her face turned bright red.
"Your offer is more than I deserve, Senior, but I don't really have any intention of becoming a knight!"
"But..."
Johanna seemed worried that the kingdom would target me, but I was truly fine. Even if I wasn't in a position to take on an entire kingdom right now.
"Don't worry. You said it yourself, Senior. They won't touch me until after I graduate."
As long as I was within the Academy, the kingdom could never lay a finger on me. At most, that vermin prince would try to bully me a bit.
"Senior, I believe there are three things a person looks at before they decide to mess with someone: Power, Military Might, and Wealth."
I spoke to Johanna, who was still looking at me with worried eyes.
"If I possess even one of those to an overwhelming degree, the kingdom won't be able to touch me. And I plan to acquire all three before I graduate."
This time, it was Johanna’s turn to look stunned.
"How?"
"That, of course, is a secret."
But it wasn't a lie. I truly intended to obtain all three before graduation.
"You can look forward to it. I'll give you a special view from the closest spot possible. You just have to sit in that front-row seat and watch how I claim all three."
"······ Okay."
Johanna finally seemed relieved.
Her face had been red—was it still because of what she said earlier? It seemed even redder than before.
When I stared intently at her, Johanna turned her head away for some reason. With her face still turned, she asked another question.
"Then what do you plan to do after graduation?"
After graduation, huh? Up until now, I’d only focused on life within the Academy; I hadn't given much thought to what came after.
"I haven't really thought about it. Hmm, traveling doesn't sound too bad."
"You're not going to the Adelian Family, are you?"
I wasn't sure why the Adelian Family was suddenly being brought up.
"I'll probably stop by, won't I?"
"Why?"
When I said I’d visit the Adelian Family, Johanna’s voice turned cold. She even seemed slightly angry.
Is there something between Johanna and the Adelian Family? As far as I know, there isn't any specific history there.
"Well, because I owe them a lot."
Even though I had treated the Duchess of Adelian, the family had given me much more in return. If I hadn't stopped by the Adelian estate back then, I might not even be here right now.
"If you're going to the Adelian Family, then stop by the Freya Family as well."
"Pardon?"
At my response, Johanna spoke with a look of disappointment.
"Are you not coming?"
Seeing that expression, I couldn't possibly refuse.
"I will definitely go!"
For the rest of lunch, I listened to Johanna go on about how wonderful the Freya Territory was.
* * *
After finishing lunch and parting ways with Johanna, I headed toward the Special Class in the basement.
Unlike the bustling first floor during lunch hour, the basement where the Special Class was located was silent. Walking through the quiet corridor, I soon arrived at the classroom. I opened the door and stepped inside.
No one was there except for Clara.
"Miss Clara, did you have a nice lunch?"
I spoke to Clara, who was reading a book. She shifted her gaze from the pages to me.
"Why are you so late?"
Clara closed her book and asked. It sounded like something someone would say to a person they’d been waiting for.
But she was likely just asking out of pure curiosity. When I had left the cafeteria, Clara was still eating. She was probably wondering why I took so much longer.
"Ahaha, I got caught up in a conversation. By the way, where did everyone else go?"
To be precise, I’d spent the time after lunch listening to Johanna praise the Freya Territory. I only managed to escape after promising I would definitely visit later.
"The others went out to explore the Academy."
It made sense. Since they’d be attending this Academy for a long time, it was only natural to want to look around.
"Why didn't you go, Miss Clara?"
"I already looked around this morning."
I wasn't sure why, but Clara seemed different. Should I say she was being a bit kinder? I wondered what was up with her.
As I was pondering the reason, someone opened the classroom door and walked in.
Clack.
"I see you two are together. Perfect."
The person who entered was Professor Elicia, the silver-haired instructor in charge of the Special Class.
"Professor! Did you have a good meal?"
"Yes. I heard about the commotion in the cafeteria. Is there anything you need help with?"
"Not particularly!"
Unless the entire kingdom went mad and brought an army to capture me, I wouldn't be asking Professor Elicia for help.
"But Professor Elicia? What did you mean by it being a good thing that the two of us are together?"
"You two will be taking the afternoon class together. Take this note and head to the location."
Come to think of it, they did say the Special Class students would be split up for afternoon lessons.
After finishing what she had to say, Professor Elicia left the room.
"Why didn't you say anything?"
As soon as the professor left, Clara spoke to me.
"Pardon? About what?"
"Why didn't you ask the professor for help?"
I finally understood. The reason Clara was being kind was that she was worried about me being targeted by that vermin.
"Hahahahahahahaha!"
"W-what? What's wrong with you?"
When I burst into manic laughter that filled the classroom, Clara took a step back.
"Miss Clara, are you really that worried about me?"
"I am not."
Clara replied instantly, but I could tell it was out of embarrassment.
"Oh, come on~ Don't deny it. Just how much were you worrying about me?"
"I said I wasn't."
As I spent time teasing Clara, the other students who had been exploring the Academy began to trickle back in.
Lucas also approached me, looking concerned. The other students gave me similar worried glances.
"Loki, are you okay?"
"Mr. Lucas, do you really think I'd be scared of a mere prince?"
When I spoke with a grin, Lucas seemed to relax a little.
"Ha, right. You're not the type to be."
I waited for all the Special Class students to gather. After a short while, everyone was present.
"Everyone!"
I moved to the front of the room and called out to them. The students all turned to look at me.
"It's not that the Prince has marked me."
I decided to speak up so they wouldn't worry.
"I'm the one who has marked the Prince. So, you don't need to worry about me. If you're going to worry, worry about the Prince who ended up on my bad side."
When I spoke as if it were truly no big deal, the worried looks in their eyes faded slightly. Not entirely, of course, but they would disappear completely soon enough.
* * *
"Miss Clara, who couldn't sleep a wink because she was so worried about me, shall we go?"
"······"
Clara ignored me completely and began walking toward our class. I followed behind her.
Thump.
As I was following her, someone slammed into my shoulder.
"Watch where you're going, you piece of shit. If you can't even see what's in front of you, take that mask off."
"Seriously, what a nuisance."
I had definitely been looking where I was going. The only reason we collided was because the man had bumped into me on purpose.
These men were likely from the Archen Kingdom. That vermin prince had probably ordered them to harass me.
Unless I went to him personally, bowed my head, and apologized, he would keep sending people to bother me.
Thinking about what was to come, I covered my mouth, my body trembling.
"······ Pfft."
If I didn't do this, I wouldn't be able to hold back the laughter that was threatening to burst out.