The Academy Entrance Ceremony
The day of the entrance ceremony at the Imperial Academy. Even the academy's usually strict security loosened up a bit on a day like this. While it wasn't open to just anyone, if you were related to a student, they let you in without much of a check. As a result, the academy today was bustling with activity.
“Mom! Look over there! The buildings are super pointy!”
“Hey! Watch where you're going!”
“So this is the Imperial Academy? It's quite lively.”
“It's a special day that only happens once a year, so please bear with it, my lady.”
From commoner families to noble young ladies. People who would rarely even breathe the same air under normal circumstances were all gathered together, chatting noisily. Amid all that, there was one man standing alone, completely detached.
“His name is Theo. A gloomy man who feels uncomfortable around people.”
“…What the hell are you saying the moment you see someone?”
“Ah. You heard that?”
“You spat it right in my face and hoped I wouldn't hear?”
Theo asked back, looking utterly dumbfounded. Why did my ears have to be so good? If he was supposed to be the protagonist, shouldn't he come equipped with the basic trait of going 'Huh? What was that?' or something? Whatever, never mind.
Still, it wasn't like I'd just thrown out a random diss.
“What's with those tacky sunglasses?”
Theo was wearing sunglasses that completely covered his eyes. In the middle of all this noisy, energetic crowd, a guy standing a step apart in silence while wearing sunglasses—who wouldn't think it was anything but chuunibyou syndrome? Or that he was suspicious. A few guards who had been patrolling nearby had already stopped in place and were staring straight at Theo.
Even in that situation, Theo casually touched his sunglasses and said,
“Oh, these? I'm trying out an experiment. My ability only works if I make eye contact, right? So if I walk around with my eyes covered like this…”
“Your power will get stronger when you take the sunglasses off later?”
“Exactly!”
Theo snapped his fingers with a tick and struck a pose.
“…Sure. Try out whatever comes to mind.”
I strongly doubted it would actually work, but I didn't show it on my face. Still, the attitude of trying to strengthen his own ability was admirable.
“So. You planning to stay here? I'm heading to the ceremony hall now.”
“I have to go too. Let's go together.”
“Whatever.”
There was no particular reason to refuse, so I accepted. We walked while maintaining a suitable distance. Distance. Yeah. Distance was important.
Being Theo's companion as the protagonist without becoming one of his heroines and getting all tangled up with him—that level of distance was best. A bit closer than now, but not too close. I'd make sure to keep it at that sweet spot.
The people who came to watch the entrance ceremony weren't allowed inside the hall itself. At best, they could only wait outside until it ended. That's why only this year's new students were seated in the ceremony hall. It was a monumental day marking the start of their four years at the academy. An atmosphere of anticipation swelled among the freshmen.
“It's finally starting, right?”
“After the ceremony ends, or is it right now?”
“I've only heard rumors, but I'm super excited!”
However, it wasn't so much anticipation for the future as it was excitement for the event that was about to begin right now. Just as the anticipation in the ceremony hall reached its peak—
- BOOM!
- GRRRROOOAAAR!!!
One of the walls of the ceremony hall collapsed, and a massive roar pierced through the thick cloud of dust. What slowly revealed itself was… a wolf. Flames blazed along its back and it spewed fire from its mouth. Of course, it wasn't an ordinary wolf—it was a demonic beast known as a Flame Wolf.
Back when this was a game, users had roasted it for looking like a bad coloring book page, but it was still a fairly strong demonic beast you'd only encounter in the later regions. It definitely wasn't something that should be showing up at an academy entrance ceremony.
“Kyaaak! A monster appeared!”
A scream burst out from somewhere. A natural reaction. Wait, no—it's not a monster, it's a demonic beast. They're clearly different. But that scream only happened once. The other new students' reactions were completely different.
- Wooooooah!!
Cheers erupted.
“Whoa! It looks so real!!”
“So this is the entrance ceremony I've only heard about!”
“Look at those fierce eyes! It's gotta be fake, right?”
Just like the last student who shouted, that Flame Wolf was indeed fake. The fake demonic beast event. It was a tradition at the academy's entrance ceremony.
When the academy had first been established, a demonic beast suddenly appearing during the entrance ceremony was truly shocking. Even if they'd passed that difficult entrance exam, these were kids who'd only just become adults. A demonic beast snarling right in front of them, swinging sharp fangs and claws, was bound to be terrifying. On top of that, getting attacked by a demonic beast in the academy they'd believed was safe—it left an unforgettable, intense impression.
Through this single entrance ceremony event, the academy could shake the new students out of their elitist mindset, make them realize how threatening demonic beasts truly were, and motivate them to become even stronger. Since the demonic beast was created with illusion magic, it was a wonderful event with nothing but advantages—no one got hurt.
…At least for the first ten years or so.
There are no eternal secrets. No matter how thoroughly you try to keep it hidden, when every new student experiences it every year, word is bound to leak out somewhere. Over drinks, in bed, in old war stories told to children. Little by little, the demonic beast event at the academy entrance ceremony stopped being a surprise and became nothing more than an annual tradition.
Even if a demonic beast suddenly appeared, the new students already knew about the event, so it was only natural that no one was surprised. The first scream had been planted by a plant. It didn't have much effect, though.
Still, it wasn't a completely meaningless showpiece event.
“A demonic beast appearing in a place like this!”
A man stood up, drawing his sword.
“H-how dare you set foot here…!”
A woman wearing a cloak stood up, gripping her staff. Her lines were thick with awkward, overacted delivery.
“…….”
There were also people who stood up without saying a single word. While everyone knew the demonic beast was fake and no one even pretended to run away, the people who stood up had one thing in common.
They were confident in their own abilities.
The effect of heightening the new students' sense of caution during the demonic beast event had vanished. Instead, it had become an event where skilled new students showed off their abilities against the fake demonic beast. The academy didn't give any official rewards for it, but in this medieval fantasy world, fame and honor held more value than you might think.
People who wanted to raise their family's honor, people who loved standing out, people who just thought it looked fun and jumped in—everyone had their own reasons for standing up.
I stood up along with the others.
“Huh? Luna. You're doing it too?”
Theo, who was sitting next to me, looked surprised when he saw me stand.
“You're not?”
Instead of answering, I asked him back. Thinking back to when this was a game, stepping up here was a good move. It was a great chance to make an impression on the named characters.
But Theo just shook his head.
“Nah. I don't like standing out.”
“Really? Suit yourself.”
Well. I guess some protagonists are like that. But as they say, the nail that sticks out gets hammered down—since Theo was the protagonist, he'd stand out eventually whether he wanted to or not. That's what protagonists do. And even if he didn't like it, I'd make sure it happened. I was a little curious what kind of reaction he'd show when that time came.
“…? Why do I suddenly feel a chill?”
I left Theo, who was looking puzzled, and stepped forward. In front of the new students and facing the demonic beast, students who had stood up before me were already holding their weapons, confronting it. Even though it was a fake created with illusion magic, they couldn't let their guard down and treat it like a game. If you got hit by that demonic beast's attack, you'd get sent flying like it was real. That was because a hidden mage would time a shockwave spell to match it—a ridiculously detailed setting.
Since they'd stepped forward with confidence, getting hit by mistake and sent flying would be the most embarrassing thing imaginable. I had to be more careful with my dodging so I wouldn't end up like that.
And after a short battle, the fake Flame Wolf finally fell. Its form shimmered like haze and scattered apart.
- Clap clap clap clap….
Applause poured down on us for our impressive performance. Now that the fake demonic beast event was over, the real entrance ceremony would finally begin.
…That's how it usually would have gone.
“Huh? There's another one?”
Someone let out a puzzled voice. Through the hole the Flame Wolf had smashed when it appeared, a new demonic beast revealed itself. No—it wasn't a demonic beast. Its appearance was similar to the Flame Wolf we'd just seen. But its body had rotting flesh in places, exposing bone, and instead of flames, a dark, murky aura of death flowed from its mouth. It was an undead.
The black mage's attack that occurs during the entrance ceremony. It was the signal flare announcing the start of the game's main story.