09. Protagonist Transfer
09. Protagonist Transfer
Just as everyone was settling in, buzzing with conversation, the door opened and someone entered.
It was Andy Robinson, the instructor assigned to the class.
His face was familiar enough, but his unusual outfit drew every eye in the room.
Even the students who had been utterly unimpressed began to murmur at the sight of the splendid uniform.
But I, knowing exactly what he was wearing, could only clutch my throbbing forehead.
'Wow... is he bold, or just stupid...'
He had strutted in wearing a resplendent uniform adorned with decorations and medals—a garment that was the Imperial Knights' ceremonial dress, worn at most five times a year.
For a retired officer to show up in his full uniform on the first day of class just to throw his weight around... it was a blatant violation of military discipline. What kind of nerve did he have, knowing the Director would kill him if she caught him?
Judging by his expression, he was probably thinking that no one from the Imperial Knights would ever find out anyway.
"I am Instructor Andy Robinson, and I will be in charge of you for the coming year. Before coming here, I served in the Imperial Knights."
Oblivious to my headache, Andy introduced himself with great pomp, and on the surface he certainly looked impressive.
As soon as he laid down the fact that he had belonged to the Empire's strongest military force, the Imperial Knights, the eyes of the students who had been watching indifferently sharpened with interest.
"Ooooh..."
"The Imperial Knights...!"
"I've seen that uniform before..! He really is from the Imperial Knights."
Their reaction was understandable.
There had been almost no precedent for someone leaving the Imperial Knights while still in good health to retire and go somewhere else.
Look at him, getting all smug. The corners of his mouth were twitching up.
"Students walking the path of the sword are fortunate. I will teach you according to the Imperial Knights' curriculum. Follow me well, and you are guaranteed to see noticeable improvement in your skills this year."
The Knights' traditional training method... he must have meant that, the one where even five out of ten active knights drop out...
But there was no way he could actually do that here.
If he ran them through it the way the Imperial Knights did, how many here could endure it? Not even five.
Would he really do it, or just conduct ordinary training while calling it the 'Imperial Knights' method'...
If he actually went through with it, I'd have to applaud his nerve for being willing to face the faculty evaluations.
"Just trust me and follow my lead!"
When I glanced to the side, Amy was watching Senior Andy with sparkling eyes.
It was a gaze of pure admiration, completely oblivious to the fact that his words were just hot air.
Sensing my stare, Amy turned her head and our eyes met.
"...!!"
The moment our eyes met, she flinched in surprise and immediately turned her head back toward her desk, playing innocent.
That ambiguous sense of distance still lingered.
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Even after that, Amy continued to avoid me.
She deliberately tracked my movements, kept her distance, and made sure she didn't run into me.
Had I made some kind of mistake yesterday?
When we parted, I had thought the distance between us had closed, that we could grow closer. It was bewildering.
But I didn't try to force the gap shut.
I had a feeling that if I pushed too hard now, her rebellious streak would make things irreversible.
I didn't know for certain, but that was my sense of it.
And then an incident broke out.
"I-I'm sorry...."
"Is saying sorry enough?! Do you know how much this costs?"
Right from the first day, Amy found herself in a difficult situation.
While walking down the hallway, she had bumped into a student who darted out from a corner. When he fell, the expensive fountain pen he had tucked in his pocket was broken.
Of course, 'expensive' was only by the standards of ordinary commoners; to the nobles qualified enough to receive a recommendation letter for the Academy, it was nothing.
'He knows Amy isn't a recommendation admit, so he's running a scam.'
The Academy was incredibly cruel.
The brooches used to distinguish students alternated between three colors—red, blue, and yellow—depending on their year of admission. However, the brooches for students admitted by recommendation and those admitted by exam were slightly different in shape.
Recommendation admits had a small wing ornament added to their brooches, while the exam admission brooches did not.
This served as the primary way to classify people.
Recommendation admits were regarded as those with the minimum background acknowledged by the Headmaster, while exam admits were seen as people lacking even that—and treated with open disdain.
Exam admits might have outstanding basic abilities, but things like the excellence of one's skills didn't matter.
After all, upon graduation, most students admitted through the exam track were fated to work under those admitted through the recommendation track.
'If it were Hayden and not Amy... that bastard's skull would be smashed into the floor.'
That nameless noble brat was probably rejoicing inside.
Most exam admits were people who struggled financially.
He was trying to use money as a pretext to enslave Amy.
Amy's anxious gaze darted around.
She glanced at me once, then her eyes dropped back to the floor.
There were too many eyes around.
If I slammed that guy into the ground right now, it would cause a huge commotion.
It hadn't even been a day since I resolved to keep a low profile, but knowing it would cause a stir, I still stepped forward.
"Cut it out. She clearly doesn't like it."
But before I could get close, someone blocked Amy's path.
"And who the hell are you?"
"If you're a noble meant to shoulder the Empire's future, you should show the dignity befitting that role. Aren't you ashamed, trying to deceive people by spouting nonsense?"
Riber Simoa stood protectively in front of Amy with a resolute expression, confronting the man head-on.
Having lost the initiative, I halted my awkward advance, unable to do anything but observe the situation further.
"Nonsense? That bitch broke my precious fountain pen... is it wrong to demand compensation?"
"That's a cheap brand. I have plenty of them myself. I'll give you one, so just shut up."
It wasn't exactly 'cheap.' It was a brand nobles often used when gifting a pen to a child just starting to write with one. Not a major luxury item, but still a luxury good.
"No..! M-My fountain pen was from my father..!"
"Did your father teach you to invoke his name to threaten people? I'd like to meet him one day."
'Wow, that was harsh.'
As she landed a blow that made you wonder if it was even allowed, the man's face flushed bright red.
"You... you...!! How dare you insult my father...!!"
Unable to contain his anger, the man ripped the glove from his left hand and threw it at Riber.
"Step outside... it's a duel!!!"
"Losing a war of words so you turn to violence? Fine, that suits me just fine."
Riber accepted the man's glove and smiled confidently.
I felt a sense of déjà vu.
A duel event occurring on the first day of enrollment was a good device to make the protagonist stand out.
It was the event where the ignored protagonist showed their true worth, becoming the center of attention.
This was supposed to be an incident that happened to the original protagonist, 'Hayden Parker.'
And now that same event had happened to Riber?
Could this... perhaps...
A protagonist switch... be possible?
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"Get out of my sight."
"Hiiiiik..!!"
The moment Riber's sword touched the nameless man's neck, he let out a pathetic squeal.
The duel ended quickly.
Excluding me, Riber was an honor student ranked within the top ten among the new students.
Her opponent, on the other hand, was just a student with some training.
He had enough skill to talk big, but he was merely a decent fighter who couldn't even imbue his sword with aura.
He was no match for Riber, who had reached the entry level of an Expert.
"Th-Thank you."
"I simply did what a noble ought to do."
Look at her—even her words were cool. I wanted to make most of the nobles here listen to that line.
As I approached, Amy, having just finished expressing her thanks, scampered away.
"Simore."
"...I didn't expect you to talk to me first."
When I addressed Riber, she looked at me and her eyes rounded.
"You said you wanted to spar with me once, right? Clear your schedule this evening."
"What? What's gotten into you?"
"I'm not doing this for nothing. There's a condition."
"What kind of condition?"
This condition was crucial.
If I believed she had inherited Hayden's fate... this was absolutely necessary.
"If I win... become my disciple."
"That's... incredibly cheeky of you...?"
Riber grinned at my proposal.
She was undoubtedly thinking of it as some kind of mischievous joke.
But I wasn't joking.
If Riber had inherited Hayden's fate, she needed to grow under my hellish training.
That was because, at merely the entry level of a Sword Expert, she was certain to die during the first invasion.
I had to teach her no matter what and raise her to at least the upper ranks of Expert.
Unaware of my thoughts, Riber just laughed.
"You saw my duel just now, right? I'm pretty strong. Are you confident?"
"It was no big deal. Just rest and replenish your stamina. Don't make excuses after you lose."
"No, if that's the condition when you win, then there should be one for when I win too. You're the only one benefiting here."
"...Tch, you won't just let it slide."
I tried to subtly slip in only my condition, but it wasn't going to be that easy.
"If I win... let's train together."
"What??"
Then isn't it the same thing no matter who wins?