Standing Out (1)
Classes at Lutra generally began early in the morning.
And Eli, even when class started at such an ungodly hour, always attended with an unruffled air.
The reason was simple. In today’s class, Practical Monster Studies, Eli was always among the top students.
There was no cadet in Lutra who surpassed her in overall physical ability or in swordsmanship, and even when all the students from every major were taken into account, there were very few whose combat ability as a whole could rival hers.
In truth, that was only to be expected.
As far as talent related to the sword went, Eli possessed a gift that came along maybe once in a hundred years, and on top of that, she had learned the mana circulation method and swordsmanship personally passed down to her by Duke Orphega, the very man who had recognized that talent.
Although she still had not yet inherited the Space-Time Sword, the swordsmanship that symbolized the duke himself, the style Eli had learned was nonetheless an impressive technique created by the duke with his own hands.
To master such a style almost perfectly in only half a year was proof enough of Eli’s talent, and for a mere cadet to face her as an opponent was all but impossible.
As Eli walked toward the lecture hall with her usual easy stride, she suddenly sensed something off.
“…Huh?”
The lecture hall was noisier than usual. That had not happened even once in recent memory.
Eli did not care much for anything that made her surroundings feel hectic.
And although there was no formal hierarchy among cadets, all the students taking the class unconsciously acknowledged Eli as above them, so they generally kept their mouths shut out of respect for her wishes.
There was no chance the other cadets were suddenly trying to challenge her position, so something must have happened.
“Oh? You’re here at last? Did you know? The other cadets already arrived ages ago and took their seats. You were the last one to show up.”
Then, inside the lecture hall, someone she had never expected at all was there to greet Eli.
“…Oppa?”
It was Sian.
“Why are you here, Oppa?”
“Why? Am I not allowed to come to class anymore? And you knew damn well I was taking this course, so why are you acting surprised now?”
That… was true.
Half a year ago, when he first entered Lutra, Sian had arranged his timetable so that the lectures he took would overlap with his younger sisters’ as much as possible, because he was worried about them.
So it was nothing strange at all for him to be taking Practical Monster Studies, the very class Eli was attending now.
But if that was the logic, Eli had something to say as well.
“You hadn’t just been skipping class lately—you hadn’t even been showing up to the lecture hall at all. I thought you’d just given up on this year’s classes, and now you’re suddenly trying to act like a model student?”
To be more precise, he had stopped coming to the lecture hall after the strange rumors surrounding Sian had begun to spread.
At the time, Sian had avoided attending class as much as possible, worried that the rumors would draw unnecessary attention to him and end up harming his younger sisters. But the current Sian was different.
He was no longer a man who went out of his way to be considerate of his sisters.
“I thought about it, and I couldn’t think of any reason I needed to avoid taking classes just because of you. Besides… even if I had missed a few lectures, I was confident I could still get a high grade.”
Sian flashed Eli a crooked grin as he spoke.
“Because at the very least, I figured I could beat you without much trouble. If there’s one person I can keep under my heel, then I won’t have to worry about ending up at the bottom, right?”
For a moment, even knowing full well it was provocation, Eli couldn’t help bristling at Sian’s words.
“W-What did you say? Oppa, you really—”
But then it happened.
“Everyone, be quiet. Class is about to begin, so why is everyone still out of their seats? Enough with the chatter. Return to your places.”
Before they knew it, the class had begun, and Professor Drosel, the instructor in charge of Practical Monster Studies, had entered the lecture hall.
“…Tch.”
No matter how irritated she was, she couldn’t very well argue with her brother right in front of the professor, so Eli returned to her seat for the time being.
Professor Drosel stared at Sian, who had finally come to class for the first time in a long while, for just a moment before speaking in a quiet voice.
“Sian. It’s been quite some time since I last saw your face. Let’s see… is this the first time since you stopped attending class without permission?”
“…I’m sorry, Professor. I promise this won’t happen again.”
When Sian lowered his head and said that, the professor answered with the same stern expression.
“There’s no need to apologize to me. I’ve heard a rough version of what happened around you, and I’ve also received several instructions from above concerning you.”
“…Instructions concerning me, sir?”
“Yes. An official notice came directly from the imperial family. It asked that whatever the reason for your absences and lack of diligence in class may have been, it be treated as a private matter and not pursued further.”
“…!”
At that instant, every cadet gathered in the lecture hall widened their eyes without realizing it and turned to look at Sian.
So the imperial family had personally stepped in to make excuses on Sian’s behalf?
And not only that, but the imperial family—the very picture of authority—had gone so far as to use the word request in an official document sent to Lutra?
That’s insane! Who the hell is that guy?
Is Sian some hidden member of the royal family or something? Why would the imperial household go this far for him?
As a rule, the imperial family positioned itself as a patron of Lutra, but it generally refrained from interfering too much in the academy’s internal affairs.
They knew all too well that once political issues seeped into the environment in which cadets were educated, the results were rarely good.
Of course, Ricardo had once tried to pin the charge of assaulting imperial blood on Sian, but that had been entirely Ricardo’s own reckless, unilateral action—not something done directly by the imperial family itself.
If the imperial family were to interfere in matters within Lutra, it would only be for one of two reasons.
Either some incident involving royalty had occurred, or something tied to the imperial family at a level they simply could not afford to compromise on was involved.
And now, Professor Drosel was saying this:
The imperial family had asked Lutra to treat everything related to Sian as a private matter, even using the word request.
It made no sense at all. Why on earth was the imperial family paying so much attention to someone like Sian, who had no backing whatsoever?
“However, whatever the reason may be, your absence from class until now was your own matter, so I have no reason to make special allowances for you. Catch up on the lectures you’ve missed on your own.”
“…Thank you.”
Though the words were blunt, they carried consideration beneath them, and Sian bowed his head to Professor Drosel once more.
“Then let us begin today’s lesson. As I mentioned last time, this class will be devoted to practical field experience.”
Practical field experience was a class Lutra had created by placing monsters inside a dungeon of their own making, allowing cadets to gain experience that closely resembled real combat.
Of course, the monsters inside the dungeon were normally prevented from killing the cadets.
Every single cadet at Lutra was a precious talent; they could not afford to lose them over something as simple as training.
But in other words, aside from the possibility of death, anything else could happen in this class.
In fact, among Lutra’s many classes, practical field experience had the highest rate of injuries.
“This class is generally conducted in teams of two. Also, because each cadet can bring out different levels of combat power, you’ll be entering dungeons suited to the difficulty you each want. But hunting stronger monsters doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll receive a higher score. We want to see how you handle the various obstacles inside the dungeon.”
As he spoke, Professor Drosel turned his head and looked carefully in Sian’s direction.
“The kinds of monsters that will appear in today’s dungeon, as well as their weak points… if you paid close attention to recent lessons, you should be able to figure them out easily. If you can’t remember, then remember that it is your own responsibility.”
Whoever heard that would know he was clearly speaking directly to Sian.
“Then from this point on, we’ll form pairs of two. After you’ve chosen your partners, tell me the level of dungeon you want to attempt.”
So Eli stood beside the cadet she usually partnered with, then casually shifted her gaze toward Sian.
Just as expected, she saw Sian pairing up with Cartesia without any hesitation, and Eli snorted inwardly.
I wondered if he had something impressive going on, but that was all?
She had been mildly surprised to see the imperial family backing him, but it seemed she had worried over nothing.
Seeing him trail after Cartesia like a chick following its mother, Eli was certain the two of them must have grown close, with Cartesia treating Sian like some amusing little toy.
If he had come here and declared war on her with that sort of pitiful resolve, then he wasn’t worth her attention—
With that thought in mind, Eli spoke confidently to Professor Drosel.
“I’ll be challenging the highest-difficulty dungeon.”
“Very well. I’ll prepare it for you. Then, Sian, what will you do? You haven’t attended class recently, so if you want, you may simply observe today.”
At the professor’s consideration, Sian gave a sidelong glance toward Eli, then suddenly said something completely out of nowhere.
“Professor, before that, I have a question.”
“What is it?”
“If someone who missed the previous class and showed up today with no information at all were to challenge a dungeon at the same difficulty as the top student in the grade and clear it, what would happen?”
“Why, they’d receive a score close to perfect. If they possessed that level of skill and improvisational ability, it would be no different from saying they hardly needed to take this class at all.”
At Professor Drosel’s answer, Sian smirked and spoke.
“Then I’ll challenge the highest-difficulty dungeon as well. Moreover, I promise I’ll easily surpass whatever record Eli sets here today.”
“…What?”
Ignoring the faint surprise that showed on Professor Drosel’s face, Sian shrugged as if he were stating some self-evident truth.
“If it’s only a record set by someone like Eli, I’m confident I can break it without fail.”
“…Ha.”
And the moment Sian said that, the expression on Eli’s face was something truly worth seeing.