Chapter 8: My Life Was a RoFan (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 8: My Life Was a RoFan (1)
It goes without saying, but a medieval fantasy world is fundamentally a class-based society.
Well, if you think about it, my previous life felt similar to a class-based society, just without the formal titles.
Officially, it wasn't one, and though it was difficult, you could obtain an unofficial status based on your abilities.
Of course, it’s not like you can’t overcome the walls of status here either.
It’s just harder than in my previous life. If you smash everything through sheer skill like the Sword Emperor, status will find its way to you on its own.
The Sword Emperor even rejected the very status that others would die for, but the vast majority of commoners don't miss that chance.
Take the Sword Emperor’s children, for example; his eldest son reached the level of Sword Master and received an earldom from the Empire.
Conversely, that meant an earldom was the limit of what one could achieve in a single leap.
Even then, they don't just hand out an earldom for nothing.
It’s only possible if you reach the minimum requirement of being a Sword Master or a 7th-circle mage—the level of a Tower Master.
And that only applies to the individual; from the next generation onward, the title is downgraded to a viscountcy.
Of course, if the next generation also becomes a Sword Master or a 7th-circle mage, or maintains achievements worthy of the title, they might keep the earldom.
But a family that maintains an earldom is a rarity—maybe one in ten.
Most families fail to maintain what a single genius achieved and gradually fall into ruin.
That is how unforgiving noble society is.
That was the nature of a class-based society, where one's status was determined from birth.
In such a world, the existence of royalty carries immense weight.
They are beings who can become kings and rule a nation.
The Leon Kingdom already had a settled line of succession, and Prince Ellen was the 5th Prince, far removed from the throne.
However, that didn't mean his chances of becoming king were 0%. No one knows how the world will turn.
History is full of cases where the direct royal line was wiped out by war, leading to a distant collateral noble family inheriting the throne.
And even without considering the worst-case scenarios, a royal's romance is no trivial matter.
Even if the couple claims their love is pure and selfless, the royal family has no choice but to investigate the partner’s background from birth to the present.
Unfortunately, however, this was not the Leon Kingdom.
Therefore, as a Royal Instructor, I had to conduct the preliminary investigation.
“Tell me everything, from the first moment you met. Don’t leave out a single detail.”
“I-I first met her... a little while ago, when I got lost on the Academy campus.”
They say all geniuses have a screw loose, and in that sense, Prince Ellen was definitely a genius.
A natural-born directionally challenged man.
No matter how vast the royal castle of the Leon Kingdom was, it was his own home.
Yet Prince Ellen was someone who frequently got lost even there.
I had returned ahead of him to speak with the Commander, and it seemed he had managed to get lost again in that short window of time.
“I was standing there blankly after losing my way, but everyone just pretended not to see me.”
I could understand why.
It hadn't even been a full day yet, but rumors about Prince Ellen must have spread through the Academy.
Even for me, just stepping out to grab a meal, I could hear the surrounding whispers.
An unknown swordsman from the Leon Kingdom thrashed the Minor Sword Emperor.
That alone was shocking enough, but then someone appeared who easily wiped the floor with that swordsman?
And that person is a Prince of the Leon Kingdom?
If I were an ordinary Imperial Academy student, I wouldn't have approached a foreign prince standing around blankly either.
In fact, if that prince was Prince Ellen, who had reigned as the undisputed number one of the Swordsmanship Department from the very first day of classes, I would have run away immediately.
So, I couldn't blame those students.
If anything, I wanted to praise them for not running away.
“To someone like me... she approached.”
That’s why I was certain.
This is suspicious as hell.
I was convinced she was either a total airhead or a gold digger.
“Her name was Daisy.”
Shit, even her name is a flower.
“And her family?”
“I-I don’t know that yet.”
How frustrating.
I mean, Daisy isn't exactly a unique name.
If I looked through the freshman class, I bet at least a dozen girls with that name would pop up!
“You should at least know her surname.”
“I-I was too shy.”
Well, he might look like a supreme overlord when holding a sword.
But usually, he was a timid soul who could barely strike up a conversation with anyone he wasn't close to.
“Keep going with the story.”
“Well, you see...”
This timid man, unlike his usual self, began to chatter away with sparkling eyes about his encounter with the woman of his destiny.
Prince Ellen spoke as if it were a beautiful, fateful meeting.
“There’s not much to it, is there?”
The Prince had dressed it up with all sorts of flowery language, but if you summarized it in one line, she had simply been kind enough to give directions to the lost Prince Ellen.
“W-Well, I suppose.”
“And if we’re being objective, wasn't she just promoting her club?”
She hadn't even hidden her ulterior motives.
It wasn't like she was flirting with the prince of a nation.
Nor was she trying to make a good impression on the center of the storm in the Swordsmanship Department.
It was absurd that she was just promoting a Flower Arrangement Club that was on the verge of being disbanded.
Well, I suppose that’s why she could naturally strike up a conversation with a foreign prince—someone who might be the most famous student in the Academy today.
There was a high probability she didn't even know who Prince Ellen was.
She probably just saw him as 'Prospective Member #1.'
“S-So, that’s why!”
Prince Ellen spoke while gulping nervously.
“I’m not going.”
I cut him off immediately, having already guessed what he was going to say.
“I-I haven't even said it yet.”
“You’re going to ask me to go to the Flower Arrangement Club with you.”
Come to think of it, even the club activity is a flower.
Her commitment to the concept was flawless.
“That’s true, but...”
He looked at me with shimmering eyes as if asking if I really wouldn't go, but I really wasn't going.
“I’m not joining any clubs.”
No, to be precise, I couldn't.
Club activities.
They were considered the highlight of Academy life, a meeting ground where various students interacted, transcending status and academic standing.
Each person could join up to three clubs, and most students either delved deep into one or filled their schedule with three.
The former was for those truly devoted to an interest, while the latter was for those looking to expand their network or participate in various events.
“I’m going to focus on my personal training.”
I was serious.
It wasn't that there were no sword-related clubs, and many said interacting with seniors there helped their skills.
But I realized something from today’s duel with the Minor Sword Emperor.
The Prince Ellen before my eyes was something beyond a monster.
In the world of swordsmanship, he was practically a cosmic horror.
To be honest, I felt like Prince Ellen could probably gain enlightenment even while arranging flowers.
It was a thought I had just to amuse myself, but the moment it crossed my mind, it felt so plausible that it sent a chill down my spine.
I had to face such a monster; I couldn't afford to leisurely arrange flowers.
Unlike Prince Ellen, I wasn't someone who could gain enlightenment through flower arrangement.
“Flower arranging... is fun.”
“You haven't even tried it yet.”
I’m sure it would be fun.
Looking at Prince Ellen now, he’d probably say anything was fun as long as he could look at that woman named Daisy’s face.
“Do you like her that much?”
“...Yes.”
His shy response made my head spin.
No, at this point, I was actually curious.
Just how beautiful was she that he fell for her this hard after such a trivial encounter?
“T-Then... I’m going to apply for the club tomorrow.”
Since he couldn't even find the dormitory or the cafeteria, he must have been worried about finding the club room.
“I am only taking you to the club room. That’s it.”
As he glanced at me tentatively, I nodded with a resigned expression.
“W-What about coming back?”
“Find your own way back.”
Or ask that kind Miss Daisy to walk with you.
After I said that, I took the Prince—who was startled and blushing—to the cafeteria for a meal.
Then, I returned to the dormitory and dropped a bombshell on the Commander, who had said he’d see me in a week.
The royal family went into emergency mode, and I heard they were conducting a background check on this Daisy person—that was yesterday.
Since then, I slept.
I woke up at dawn for morning training.
I attended two relatively unimportant lectures.
And as soon as the lectures ended, I led the bright-eyed Prince Ellen to the corner of the old building and opened the door to the Flower Arrangement Club room.
Shit.
“……”
With superhuman patience, I managed to swallow the words that were about to burst out of my mouth.
“Oh.”
To be honest, I had wanted to see her once.
I wanted to see what kind of face could make Prince Ellen—whose looks and swordsmanship were among the best on the continent—fall head over heels at first sight.
But the face I encountered when the door opened was a very familiar one.
Even though it had only been a day since we met, he was someone who had left a huge impression on me.
“Minor Sword Emperor.”
“……Call me Asran.”
Unlike yesterday, he responded curtly, which bothered me, but I couldn't focus only on Asran because the other faces present were also far too familiar.
“……”
What the hell is this?
I took a step back and looked up at the classroom nameplate.
—Flower Arrangement Club
I had expected flowers like roses or chrysanthemums.
Apparently, this place intended to collect flowers that grew in an inhuman realm.
It goes without saying, but the only reason I was attending the Imperial Academy was for Prince Ellen.
If I added a bit of personal desire, it was also for my own improvement.
Furthermore, this was not the Leon Kingdom where I was born and raised, but the Elleras Empire.
Even in the Leon Kingdom, I didn't know many people, so there was no way I would know people from the Empire.
Therefore, familiar faces should not have been gathered in one place.
To be precise, even if they were gathered, it should have been at a major Academy event, not in a tiny room of the Flower Arrangement Club.
The faces I recognized were individuals investigated by the Royal Intelligence Bureau, people who could significantly influence the affairs of the continent.
“……”
First, there was the bastard glaring at me, the Minor Sword Emperor.
“An applicant, I see.”
Then there was the prince of the magic-spammer country, who had only just applied himself and wasn't even a formal member yet, but was acting like a senior member, pondering whether he should accept us.
“……”
And there was the child of the Border Count, who was responsible for the border between the Empire and the Demonic Realm, leaning against the wall with his eyes closed as if he couldn't care less.
“There are many applicants; she will be pleased.”
I had no idea why the 1st Prince of the Empire, who had joined a day earlier and was the only formal member here, was present.
Shit, no. I think I do know.
This is a total RoFan intro.
Miss Daisy, were you the RoFan heroine?
Suddenly, dozens of reasons why I should join the Flower Arrangement Club flashed through my mind.
At the same time, dozens of reasons why I shouldn't join also appeared.
The former was out of my responsibility as a Royal Instructor to observe and report everything that happened in the club.
The latter was because I remembered the incidents and accidents from the fantasy and RoFan novels I had read in my previous life.
Wow, should I join this? Or should I run?
Just as I was agonizing over the decision...
“Oh?”
With a creak, likely due to the old door, two women and one man appeared.
I guess it’s the heroine’s friend and another male lead candidate.
With that thought, I checked the man first, and as expected, it was a familiar face.
The heir to one of the three great merchant guilds on the continent.
I wondered why a guy like that would enroll in the Academy instead of doing business.
He was here to join the ranks of the RoFan male leads.
“……”
Then I turned my gaze to the two women.
One had a bright, blonde appearance, fitting the image of a RoFan heroine.
The other had long purple hair and looked like the heroine’s friend.
Shit, I’m doomed.
No matter what happens, I’m going to think of it as a RoFan.
“Are you new members?”
Then, the woman presumed to be the RoFan heroine...
No, the woman presumed to be Daisy, spoke.
“Ahem, that’s right.”
“A moment ago...”
“From yesterday...”
The moment the Minor Sword Emperor, the Magic Spammer, and Prince Ellen all answered at once...
The voice in my heart screamed.
“Ah, I am not.”
Run away.
With the answer that surged from deep within my soul, I quickly bolted out of the club room.