The Princess's Bombshell Announcement
I trudged up the steps to the platform, internally groaning. 'Ugh… I'm gonna die.' As expected of Enya, the future Grand Swordmaster. I was pouring every ounce of strength into running, yet she maintained that exact pace without showing the slightest sign of strain. She even wore an enigmatic little smile the whole time. The Cruel family's genius really did think on a different level.
Anyway, we managed to reach the academy's main building without being late. We paused to catch our breath before opening the doors and stepping inside.
The main hall was already packed to the brim with people. Enya glanced at me and said,
"…Well, being a little late would've been fine anyway. The first part is just playing a video for about an hour."
"Yeah. Some kind of promotional thing. Supposedly to inspire a sense of duty or whatever. Honestly, it just looks like the faculty showing off to me."
I already knew the entire schedule for the entrance ceremony. After all, I'd been working as a junior assistant blacksmith here. Even though I was technically an incoming student, I still handled all the miscellaneous chores as the academy's technician. They really squeezed every drop of labor out of me.
"…Uh, yeah. Something like that. I guess you could say that…"
It seemed Enya had completely misunderstood me. Probably because I hadn't revealed my full name yet. Come to think of it, we hadn't even properly introduced ourselves.
"Lady Enya."
Just as I was wondering how to properly introduce myself, a man suddenly called out to her. It was one of the staff members standing by the entrance.
The staff member asked us to sit down. Now that he mentioned it, the two of us had been standing there awkwardly. Every other new student was already seated in their assigned spots.
The staff member then turned to me and said,
…You. The tone was clearly dismissive. Since half the staff here were nobles, this guy must have been one too.
Enya immediately took offense at the staff member's tone. She thought I was someone important.
"…? No, that's not—"
Enya pressed the staff member with a sharp voice before I could even explain. I appreciated her standing up for me, but this was the perfect setup for a massive misunderstanding. I was just a regular blacksmith's son.
But the situation had already been settled. Unable to withstand the pressure from the Archduke's daughter, the staff member bowed his head to me—a commoner. That just showed how immense the Cruel family's influence was. He didn't really have a choice.
This was a disaster. She was even offering a handshake before I could clear things up. Still, it wasn't too late. I could just tell her my full name and fix the misunderstanding now.
I took her hand and said, "I should have introduced myself first. Things were so hectic that you ended up hearing my name from someone else."
"Haha, right. So… actually, about my family. Or rather, my family name—"
"No, that's not what I—"
"Um, excuse me, you two. Sorry to interrupt."
Right then, the staff member cut in again. He gestured toward the darkening interior and whispered,
The princess was here. At those words, Enya's expression hardened and she nodded. Then she whispered to me,
"Ah, I'm in Row H, Seat 17. And my last name is—"
"Wait—"
With that, Enya turned and gracefully walked away.
…And just like that, I'd become Professor Schneider's son.
Unfortunately, I couldn't fully enjoy the entrance ceremony. I had duties to fulfill as the junior assistant at the academy forge. After parting with Enya, I headed backstage and began assisting with the 'video playback' magic.
Since it was a complex spell combining mechanical devices and magical formulas, the 'projector technician' needed my help.
"Hmm. There shouldn't be anything else that needs adjusting now. As long as you keep supplying mana steadily, it'll play through the full hour without needing to swap out the mana stone."
The projector currently running the video had just been improved by my hand. Originally it required swapping mana stones every twenty minutes, but I'd modified it so it could run a full hour without interruption.
"Sure. Anytime."
The projector technician had been hired from outside for the ceremony. Backstage, various technicians were collaborating like this. I was giving them technical advice and racking up a nice amount of experience points in return.
'The experience is pretty decent.'
At first glance, it might look like I was doing free volunteer work. After all, I was offering technical consultation without any compensation. But giving technical advice was still a task that required 'engineering thinking.' It let me gain experience for the relevant skill.
So I wandered around backstage, raising my reputation among the technicians and building connections.
"Um, Technical Advisor?"
Right then, one of the staff members called out to me in an urgent voice. Apparently one of the sound amplification devices was malfunctioning. It needed immediate repair, but even the audio technician couldn't figure out the cause.
"Got it. I'll take a look."
I stored my toolbox in my inventory and headed straight for the stage.
At the front of the stage where the video was playing, seats A-1 through A-4 were occupied by the children of Archduke families. On the surface, they appeared to be watching the twenty-minute-long 'Significance of the Academy's Founding' video with rapt attention. In reality, they were completely absorbed in discussing an entirely different topic.
The topic was 'Edgar Schneider.'
And here, Claire of the Bernhardt Archduke family was also showing strong interest in Edgar. After all, he was the man who had made the famously prickly Enya smile. It was impossible not to be curious. Especially since he was supposedly the youngest son of Count Schneider, who had been suffering from a rare disease.
Enya was completely convinced that Edgar was the youngest son of the Schneider family. He was handsome, handled special-attribute spells, and no one had seen his face before.
Claire smirked as she watched Enya thinking about Edgar. Whether she knew it or not, this one-sided friend of hers seemed completely smitten with the youngest son of the Schneider family. The idea that Enya could actually show interest in a man made her think that life was truly unpredictable.
At that moment, Isabella, the second daughter of the Graham Archduke family, spoke up. Her violet eyes curved into crescents, and her cat-like gaze sharpened.
Isabella and Enya were already bickering. The two had been at odds like mortal enemies since childhood. Their personalities were polar opposites, so conflicts were inevitable.
The handsome blond young man who spoke up was Lucas of the Elmar Archduke family. He'd been silent until now, but the moment he sensed Isabella and Enya were about to fight, he stepped in to mediate as usual.
Creeeeak—
That was when it happened. A door at the far left of the stage opened carefully, and a man walked out.
It was Edgar Schneider—the hot topic of this entrance ceremony.
Claire, who spotted him first, quickly tapped Enya's shoulder. The bickering Enya and Isabella both turned their gazes toward Edgar. Lucas also watched Edgar's stride with his arms crossed.
Why isn't he sitting in his seat? What's he doing over there?
Claire was the first to voice her confusion. While everyone else was sitting in their assigned seats watching the video, why had Edgar been backstage?
Isabella immediately pounced on the opportunity to attack Enya. Enya's chilly green eyes turned toward her.
Once again, Claire pointed at Edgar. He was fixing the malfunctioning sound amplification device.
The children of the Archduke families continued their bickering while offering various opinions. Yet even as they argued, all four of them kept their eyes fixed on Edgar.
When Edgar used his inventory to pull an item out of thin air, Isabella's eyes widened dramatically.
The three of them marveled at Edgar's masterful technique. Enya straightened her shoulders with a satisfied expression. As expected, he really was the 'friend' she had her eye on.
After the one-hour screening ended, the usual formal proceedings continued. The academy headmaster's encouraging speech. Congratulatory addresses from various high-ranking guests invited from outside. And finally, the freshman representative Lucas's oath.
They were all typical events that followed the standard format, but Lucas's oath was actually worth watching. His face, the very definition of a classical handsome man, set the hearts of many female students ablaze.
Though to the three young ladies who had known Lucas since childhood, it didn't stir any feelings at all.
However, the moment the princess's address was announced, the atmosphere changed instantly. Everyone grew excited at the chance to see the princess, who was rumored to be the empire's greatest beauty.
When the princess finally stepped onto the platform, everyone stared at her with their mouths agape. She truly possessed an overwhelming beauty worthy of being called the empire's finest.
The princess began her speech. The content was predictable, but most people were satisfied simply by the chance to hear her beautiful voice.
Then, just as the speech was reaching its conclusion—
…A special admissions student for the technical track?
The students had never heard anything like this before, and a small commotion rippled through the crowd. But compared to the chaos that was about to unfold, this noise was nothing.
The princess raised the corners of her mouth in a delighted grin and said,
A commoner. An academy student… a commoner?
The academy interior instantly descended into pandemonium.
The princess chuckled softly and glanced at Elena. She was clearly enjoying this situation. Elena glared back at her, mouthing the words 'Just you wait.'
Even if Elena saw her as a troublesome disciple, the princess was still the princess. At her authoritative voice, silence quickly fell over the hall.
The princess continued,
The hall, which had been noisy just moments ago, froze solid. A commoner… had awakened… his own mana?
The absurd statement caused a cognitive dissonance in everyone's minds.