Chapter 97: Second Year (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 97: Second Year (4)
Perhaps I returned to the academy too early.
Despite having spent a considerable amount of time back at the academy, there was still more than a week left before the start of the semester.
The RoFan party that headed to the Holy Kingdom had yet to return, and perhaps because of that, the academy was peaceful—not even a common(?) Dark Mage in sight.
The only thing left to do was designate which of the admitted freshmen required extra caution, but...
“Your skills have improved significantly.”
“...?”
For some reason, I had become a sandbag.
“I’ll go next.”
“Indeed.”
“...?”
And I wasn't just a sandbag for the Sword Emperor alone. I had become a piece of communal property, passed around by the professors.
“No, wait.”
“Do you need a break?”
“Well, yes, but...”
“Then take a short rest.”
Seriously, is it okay for academy professors to gang up on a single student like this?
Even as these thoughts crossed my mind, I couldn't bring myself to run away.
“By the way, a student I know is enrolling as a freshman this year.”
“Is that so? A disciple of a friend of mine is also coming...”
It was because the professors' idle chatter often contained surprisingly useful information.
“I heard that Rizel Dersian is quite promising among this year's freshmen.”
“The Dersian family? Haven't they traditionally commanded a knight order for the Jeyka Duchy?”
“That’s right. Even within that Dersian family, he’s highly regarded...”
...Maybe the information wasn't that useful after all.
My trust in the information plummeted the moment I heard the high praise for Senior Loreliya’s cousin.
“What is it?”
Suddenly, the Sword Emperor, who I thought had gone to rest, approached and asked.
The professors were the ones chatting away, so why was he talking to me?
“I was just taking a break.”
“Not that. You looked like you’d chewed on something bitter the moment the name Rizel Dersian came up.”
He saw that? Is this man actually stalking me?
I was starting to fear he might ask me to become his grad student after I graduate.
“Ah, well.”
It wasn't exactly a secret, so I told the Sword Emperor about my encounter with Rizel Dersian during the Founding Festival.
Before I knew it, the other professors had gathered around and started whispering.
“I suppose expecting as much as last year was asking too much.”
“Didn't I tell you? Last year was just an unbelievable Golden Generation. It’s greedy to expect that level every time.”
“Honestly, it’s a problem if they keep coming like last year. Several students have already surpassed my teaching. Since there’s nothing left to teach them from the first year, I’m starting to feel a sense of professional shame as a professor...”
Leaving the whispering professors behind, the Sword Emperor, who had been lost in thought with his eyes closed, opened them.
He looked at me with a peculiar expression and asked.
“So. How skilled was this freshman named Rizel?”
“I won.”
“That’s a given. We haven't trained our students so poorly that they’d lose to a fresh-faced newcomer. And even before that, weren't you skilled enough to win easily even before coming to the academy?”
“I suppose so.”
The gap between Rizel and me was too large for me to feign humility.
“Then give me a cold assessment. How much of a difference is there between Rizel and the other students?”
I didn't even need to think about it. I had judged him the moment we clashed.
“By the standards of that time? Lower-tier in the academy. Just about that much.”
My assessment visibly shocked those around me.
“By 'that time,' you mean during the Founding Festival. What if we don't use that as the standard, but rather the beginning of last year?”
“If we use the Swordsmanship Department at the start of enrollment as the standard...”
It pains me a bit as someone from the Leon Kingdom, but the educational standard of the Imperial Academy is truly exceptional.
Even Prince Ellen and I were able to learn and realize things here.
...Well, most of those realizations were physical rather than spiritual, though.
Still, the fact that people at our level could gain something was significant.
If even we could, the growth rate of other ordinary students was bound to be even faster.
Depending on individual effort, those who grew significantly had become more than twice as strong.
Comparing a prospective freshman to other students at the point of the Founding Festival might have been too harsh.
So, if I were to coolly compare him to when I first enrolled...
“Mid-to-upper tier? He definitely didn't feel like he belonged in the top tier.”
“By mid-to-upper tier, you mean he’s definitely not top-tier.”
“Correct.”
“What is your criteria for top-tier? You’re not talking about yourself, Ellen, or my grandson, are you?”
“Of course not. I mean he definitely wouldn't make it into the top five.”
“Would he be within the top ten?”
“Not necessarily, but maybe if he works hard?”
“Hah...”
The Sword Emperor let out a hollow laugh at my explanation.
If he were the only one reacting like that, I would have thought he’d gone senile. But since the other professors also had grim expressions, I couldn't help but swallow hard.
“What’s wrong?”
When I cautiously asked a nearby professor, he replied.
“Rizel Dersian is the salutatorian of the Swordsmanship Department.”
“Wow...”
An answer that made me understand everything instantly came back.
If that level is the salutatorian, the Swordsmanship Department is doomed.
Furthermore.
“I heard the Princess of Dale enrolled this year, didn't she?”
I already knew through Uncle Aeryun that the Magic Spammer prince had summoned his younger sister, apparently satisfied with the magic education here.
It’s over.
Even if that Magic Spammer’s sister is only half as good as him, she’ll absolutely wreck the Swordsmanship Department’s salutatorian.
I can't say for sure since I haven't checked who the valedictorian is, but if someone like Rizel is the runner-up, I can't expect much from the top student either.
Is the future of the Swordsmanship Department, which had been so brilliant (for one year), about to turn dark?
Are we about to experience the humiliating history of being pushed aside by those Magic Spammers!
“We’ll have to prepare thoroughly.”
It seemed I wasn't the only one thinking this, as a look of grim determination appeared on the faces of the Swordsmanship Department professors, including the Sword Emperor.
I decided I should do more than just check identities; I’d have to ask Uncle Aeryun to check on the high-ranking students as well.
...That thought and determination vanished the moment Daisy returned.
And for the record, I wasn't the only one whose resolve vanished.
The same went for the Swordsmanship Department professors, and even the Sword Emperor, the head professor.
That was because...
“I’m transferring departments!”
Daisy transferred.
She might not be able to beat the Magic Spammer’s sister’s grandfather—who was a legend treated as a Grand Sorcerer beyond a Grand Mage—but she could certainly handle anyone below that level.
What did Daisy’s return signify?
It meant that the satellites orbiting her—the so-called RoFan male lead candidates—had all returned as well.
“You son of a bitch.”
“You bastard.”
And the other satellites orbiting those satellites—the shadows of the RoFan male leads—had also returned.
However.
“Why are you swearing the moment you see me?”
“Do you have any idea how much we suffered?”
“Why only us? Why only us? Why only us...?”
Taylor jumped up and shouted, while the Fire Spammer muttered like a curse, her head buried on the desk.
“Well, you should have managed things better.”
“...You call that management? Wasn't that a kidnapping?”
“It was management at the royal level. If you had a problem, House Rias should have been like us... Ah, come to think of it, seeing how Dark Mages wander around your place like it's their own home...”
“Wh-what! That only happened when the academy came for the field trip! Nothing happened once the academy people left! At this point, isn't the academy the one that's cursed?!”
Damn, following Uncle Aeryun, even Taylor was starting to approach the truth.
Of course, they didn't yet realize that Daisy was the root of all evil.
“Including the Holy Kingdom, isn't Daisy just the root of all evil?”
...Or did they?
I briefly looked at the Fire Spammer after her comment that pierced through the core of the RoFan plot.
“Yeah. To you, Daisy probably is the root of all evil.”
Thinking about it, even excluding the RoFan elements, Daisy was indeed the root of all evil for the Fire Spammer, so I decided to let it slide.
In terms of a past life, she was the promised losing heroine. The type who would only receive a 'concubine' emoticon.
“...That’s not what I meant?!”
The Fire Spammer, who had been momentarily stunned by my remark, jumped up and shouted.
With this, I had succeeded in making everyone except myself stand up.
“Anyway, did you hear the news? Not just your country's prince, but they sent the princess too.”
“If you mean Lady Ruelle, I found out after I arrived. Erika told me she’d be visiting soon.”
“Who’s Erika?”
“Lady Ruelle’s guardian.”
“The name sounds like a girl's?”
“Of course. She is a girl. It’s only natural for a princess’s guardian to be a woman, right?”
Usually, that’s the case.
While it can change depending on talent, usually male royals are assigned men, and female royals are assigned women.
You could see that just by looking at Senior Lucia, who is in charge of Princess Hestia, or me, who is in charge of Prince Ellen.
However.
“Since you were assigned to the prince, I thought Dale used male-female pairs.”
Unlike the training officers, Dale had a slightly more complex system called 'guardians,' so I had assumed as much.
“Because I’m special!”
The Fire Spammer got all puffed up and started acting out at that, but...
“You’re special, yet you lost...”
“......”
A single remark thrown out made a few tears leak from his eyes.
“...Sorry. It just came out.”
Since the comment came from Taylor’s mouth instead of mine, the damage seemed doubled.
If I say it, it’s like the WWE.
But if someone else says it, it can't help but feel like the UFC.
“Sniff! Anyway. Hic. Lady Ruelle... followed Lord Arwen well...”
Everyone pretended not to notice the Fire Spammer sniffing and acting like nothing was wrong.
The Fire Spammer then gave a brief explanation about the princess.
“Lady Ruelle... like all Dale royalty, is assessed to have the talent of a Grand Mage. But unusually, she’s also interested in the sword...”
“Oh...”
So there was someone in Dale who had opened their eyes. Ruelle, huh.
Paying my respects to that, I decided to make a special effort to remember her name despite her being from Dale.
“So. Her department is Magic, but she’s planning to join the Swordsmanship Club. Please keep an eye on her club activities.”
“Well, I can do that much.”
It’s not like he’s asking me to clean up after her; just checking in on what she’s doing is easy enough.
“And teach her a bit when you have time.”
“I’ll have to think about that.”
This body is busy.
Besides, as someone from Leon, teaching the sword to someone from Dale...
Depending on the perspective, it could become a very complicated matter.
“That’s unexpected?”
The Fire Spammer, who had finally succeeded in swallowing her tears, looked at me with a puzzled expression.
“Why?”
“I thought you’d be thrilled, saying, 'The day has finally come when Dale royalty learns from Leon!'”
“I suppose I could think of it that way.”
When he put it like that, it was a bit tempting, but since it felt like it would lead to something bothersome, I decided not to give a definitive answer.
Instead.
“If push comes to shove, I’ll just toss her to the Minor Sword Emperor.”
When I said I could find a substitute anytime, he replied.
“I guess that works.”
Perhaps recognizing Asran’s skill, the Fire Spammer nodded, but...
“Sorry. I don't want Daisy to get the wrong idea.”
“Am I okay then?”
“You’re two-timing anyway. One more wouldn't hurt...”
“You little...!”
Being rejected for such a reason was a story for the somewhat distant future.