The Unwanted Encounter
Rogelos Clifoid.
He was a mage who had been part of the Royal Magic Division.
Starting from a noble family, he had slowly progressed through the academy and into an elite course.
Of course, our relationship was the worst possible one.
He had been the one to express the knights' disdain for mages in the most blatant way possible.
He had clashed with knights many times, openly ignoring them during meetings, and we had even fought a few times.
Naturally, Rogelos hated me to an extreme degree.
We would pass each other on the road without even making eye contact.
'Why is he here...'
Separately from that, it seemed like his entry into the Royal Magic Division hadn't been in vain.
He was producing results, after all.
Even while submitting papers at the mage academy, he frequently went to the battlefield.
Based on his ability and achievements, I thought he was likely aiming for the position of next head of the magic division.
He was said to have a strong desire for status as well.
Why had he left the Royal Magic Division and come here?
With his personality, he would never have come to an academy like this.
I frowned.
Seeing that guy here at the academy—unwanted, no, something I couldn't even call an unwanted encounter.
At least the faculties were different, so it was fortunate there wouldn't be many encounters.
I'd feel awful if we ran into each other occasionally... but that was unavoidable.
On the podium, Rogelos Clifoid cleared his throat and began to speak.
"As you have heard, I am Rogelos Clifoid, a former member of the Royal Magic Division, and I have come to Farnike Academy thanks to fate."
Whoa, putting on such airs?
Hearing that polished tone of his, the one he used to mock me, now directed at the higher-ups, I couldn't help but laugh.
"I look forward to meeting excellent mages here.
"I will do my best to improve the students' magical abilities throughout this year, and I will devote all my energy to magical research."
That was the end of Rogelos Clifoid's turn.
His words had been the usual formalities, but with his 'knights' disdain for mages, there was one part that left a lingering unease.
In a place with a knight faculty as well, saying "meeting excellent mages" sounded like a dismissal of the knights.
No, it was clear.
With his personality, he was obviously only interested in the mage faculty right now.
Just looking at him ignoring the knight faculty made that obvious.
"...An unexpected person has arrived.
"It is fortunate that you brought in a real talent from the mage faculty."
As I was frowning, a soft male voice spoke from beside me.
When I turned my head, a platinum-haired youth who looked as though he was emitting light even in the dim lecture hall was gazing at the podium.
'What's with this guy...'
Seeing the red mantle, he must be a mage faculty student.
If he knew who this guy really was, could he really say that?
The words almost slipped out.
As I knew it, Rogelos was so stern even within the Royal Magic Division that many people watched him with concern.
Given his unique combination of sternness and unrestrained actions, he was bound to have many enemies.
- "Then, finally, the dean’s address to the students..."
As that voice rang out, I crossed my arms and leaned back, preparing to fall asleep.
The dean's address was the perfect sleep time.
......
How long had it been?
Umm, um. Umm.
Even now the address was still going on, yet my body felt as lazy as if I had slept for a long time.
I had woken up.
Seeing how drained of energy my body was, it felt like I had slept for a while.
Was the address still not over?
And even after waking, the address had continued for at least another thirty minutes.
***
"Haaa... Hooouu... Hoo."
Since I had only lived an urgent life, sitting still for an hour or two was enough to make my body feel like it was crawling with bugs.
In the battlefield, there had never been time to sit idly.
There was no time for sleep or meals, and even pre-battle briefings or speeches before combat were done in a hurry.
So I had to speak as briefly and quickly as possible, and when handling affairs, I ran around busily.
Moreover, when entering the battlefield, I couldn't even rest or eat comfortably.
I had to crawl on the ground half a day and stuff the crumbs of broken bread from my pocket into my mouth.
...Thinking about it, it was really terrible.
How had I survived nearly ten years in such a place?
Anyway, I stretched my arms wide, exhaled, and let all the strength drain from my body in one moment.
Even though it was the first class at the academy, my energy was already disappearing.
"Huaaa..."
Because I had yawned, tears gathered in my eyes.
I wiped them with my palm and looked around, revealing the academy scenery that I hadn't noticed before.
Most of the academy buildings were old.
But they were well-maintained, and their unique old-fashioned charm remained intact.
The path and planted trees blended beautifully.
Under the large canvas of a clear sky, the old-fashioned yet pristine buildings.
Along the path, the leaves of the bank trees had turned yellow, coloring my vision.
Looking at that sight, the sounds of new students laughing and chatting drifted from the corner of my ear.
Now, in this slightly cool wind, the sun was warming me.
I stood there, feeling that sensation.
'...It's peaceful.'
There was no trace of war.
The students looked completely natural in this situation.
They reached out to the fluttering yellow leaves and laughed.
But between the overflowing peace and the flowers of laughter, I couldn't fully enjoy that feeling.
It felt awkward.
Having lived my entire life in a harsh and urgent place, such peace was too unfamiliar to me.
When I lived alone, I hadn't noticed, but the sight of hundreds of people enjoying peace leisurely together here made me uneasy.
Any moment, subordinates might tap my shoulder with a frantic voice and report on the battlefield situation.
Or, perhaps gates would open with demons and monsters bursting out from this very academy.
Instinctively, my hand went to my waist, but of course there was no sword there.
No potions, no pocket on my thigh.
Nothing.
Startled, I felt unease at the lack of a sword.
And other thoughts began to flood in.
'Is it okay for me to be like this?'
The thoughts about subordinates and the knights still in the battlefield had already been cut off.
But even without that, the ingrained habits and daily routines from long years made me uneasy.
Why now, of all times?
Up until now, I could have played around at home without any problem.
Why was my hand trembling only now?
Standing quietly, I scraped the tips of my nails with the other hand and let out a deep sigh.
'Calm down. I am no longer related to the knight division.'
I brushed back the hair that had spilled down my back and lifted my head.
Gazing at the large clock on the wall of the lecture hall, there was still quite a bit of time until class ended.
"Looking at someone standing alone like that, are you a commoner?
"You look frozen stiff... that must be a commoner."
A voice came from beside my ear.
I turned in the direction the voice came from.
Two students with red markings were staring at me.
When our eyes met, they quickly looked away.
But their chattering mouths didn't stop.
The two in red mantles kept giggling to themselves and spouting words that didn't make sense.
"As expected, the knight faculty has many commoners.
"Well, since only nobles can inherit mana... we educated ones should lead the knights."
Whoa.
Look at these guys.
Saying something like that in a place like this, with so many people around?
At the same time as my head cleared from all the worries and unrest, my focus shifted entirely to somewhere else.
"Hah."
I let out a sarcastic laugh and walked straight toward the two of them.
The surrounding students, who had heard the words, suddenly fell into silence around me and them.
I narrowed my eyes and approached the two.
I looked up at the two who were a bit taller than me.
"What were you trying to do by saying that?"
As I said that, the two stepped back slightly, as if they thought they had accidentally revealed something.
But they didn't step away completely and spoke in a flustered voice while keeping some distance.
"...What do you mean? It is a fact that there are many commoners in the knight faculty, so as nobles, we should lead them...!!"
Yeah, that was true.
But your tone wasn't like that.
You were trying to belittle the knights.
Thinking yourselves as the chosen race.
I kept walking and grabbed the collar of the square-jawed guy at the front, pulling him toward me.
And whispered into his ear.
"Say something like that one more time.
"I'll cut the mana line right here."
Thud.
And I let go.
Because of my words, because of all the gazes, I glared at the guy's face as he wore an anxious expression and turned my body.
"If you want to guide my actions, follow along."
I raised my voice so that at least everyone around could hear the words.
No matter what, I couldn't tolerate mocking the knights, even if I had quit the knight division.