13. There Are Too Many Eyes Watching, So I'll Endure It for Now
13. There Are Too Many Eyes Watching, So I'll Endure It for Now
About six freshmen spots had become vacant, but the academy continued to bustle with energy as if nothing had happened.
It seemed that Riber and Amy had, little by little, divided up the fate of Hayden, the protagonist of this novel... Academy's Devil Slayer.
The minor events happened to Amy, while all the major combat events occurred around Riber.
Events like showcasing one's skills through a spar in the first class happened to Riber, while events like discovering a special item while chasing a cat happened to Amy.
"In that situation, it might have been good to pretend to come in and then swing late."
"Showing a feint and then transitioning into a real attack... That's difficult."
"If it were easy, it wouldn't be an advanced technique."
I had developed a friendly relationship with Riber.
I had been worried because she felt a strong aversion to my scent at first, but she got over it quickly.
We exercised together every morning and practiced swordsmanship, and while I gave her various pieces of advice, it wasn't really a master-student relationship.
This morning too, we sparred briefly with wooden swords, and the level of advice I was giving Riber was gradually rising.
Riber, who had outstanding talent, worked hard, and enjoyed fighting, grew noticeably through her spars with me.
Thanks to that, the minor events that appeared in the early stages did not feel like crises at all.
As the spar was coming to an end, Riber wiped the sweat from her forehead with a towel and spoke.
"Atlas, why don't you fight properly during class?"
"I have personal circumstances... And there's no need to stand out."
During class, I pretended to fight as minimally as possible.
Since I was in a position where nothing good would come from causing a ruckus and becoming known... I tried to restrain myself as much as possible.
It wasn't like I enjoyed hearing brats coo over me... But Riber, who couldn't understand those circumstances, tilted her head.
"Being strong isn't something to be ashamed of. It's unconditionally a good thing. It bothers me when the man who beat me is groveling during class."
"Alright, I'll consider it."
"Miss Simore, here's some water."
"Thank you, Amy."
"You're welcome!"
As the spar finished, Amy, who had been stretching nearby, trotted over and handed a water bottle to Riber.
She followed us every morning to exercise and looked after us like this.
"Do you have another one?"
"Yes, here... Hot?! Y-yes...!"
As I took another water bottle out of the basket, she flinched in surprise when she saw my face.
After that day, Amy had gotten closer to Riber, but she still maintained a strange distance from me.
Seeing how she treated me normally, it wasn't that she disliked me, but at some point, she would suddenly distance herself as if she had remembered something.
Had she heard someone badmouthing me?
I wanted to ask her about it later, but I had done so many things in the past that if that were truly the reason, I would have nothing to say.
————————————-
It was the period when class factions were settling into place to some extent.
Most people tried to attach themselves to a major faction centered around one of the Five Pillars, but in this class, Lucia Russell, who was one of the Five Pillars, was avoiding people...
"Good morning, everyone~."
"Good morning to you too, Miss Woodville."
When the tiger had no intention of climbing onto the throne, a fox sat upon it.
The cute beauty with brown twin-tails who came to school receiving everyone's attention in our class was that very fox.
The representative of the most famous self-made success story in the Empire, the eldest daughter of the Woodville family—a bourgeois family that owned the Woodville Trading Company, the largest in the Empire after the Phrygia Trading Company—Dorothy Woodville stood at the top of this class in Lucia's stead.
More than one or two people had challenged her for that position... but Dorothy quickly seized control of the class with her characteristic silver tongue that could manipulate people.
Even though the nobles would not have welcomed a self-made commoner bourgeois, her eloquence was tremendous.
Everyone seemed to have gained some leisure as their factions gradually stabilized.
"Oops, sorry. Didn't see you there."
As I walked down the hallway, someone intentionally bumped my shoulder and passed by.
Now that their own positions were gradually solidifying, I started noticing bastards looking for toys.
Since bringing slaves to the academy was prohibited, they tried to make students weaker than themselves into slaves.
Infuriatingly, there were a few lunatics who had targeted me.
They probably planned to poke and prod at me until I threw the first punch, then use a duel or some other method to subjugate me and make use of me.
I had coasted through classes, so I seemed to be greatly underestimated.
Their sly, testing jabs felt extremely unpleasant.
'Should I just crush them?'
But I could endure it for the moment.
Charles, whose ankle was broken on the very first day, might feel wronged, but the current situation was special.
Firstly, there were quite a few eyes watching.
'If I do something here, the cleanup will be a pain.'
And... whoever ordered these guys, they were merely hands and feet.
Crushing these types would only complicate future matters, while the head that ordered them would remain untouched, making things even more bothersome.
'Once I find out who it is, I'll crush them immediately.'
I was investigating whenever I had time, so the ringleader would soon show their face.
"Is this also a personal circumstance?"
"Yes."
Riber spoke as if she couldn't understand why I was leaving those bastards alone.
"It seems like it would be fine to just take them down one by one through duels... If you're not going to do it, should I?"
"It's not the right time yet."
"Fine. You'll handle it well somehow... But as I said earlier, it bothers me when the man who beat me acts like that. If you're going to do something, resolve it quickly."
"Are you worried about me?"
"It bothers me."
Riber said that and then left to prepare for class.
I had intended to stay quiet, but the fact that I had been targeted like this meant it was already a situation where I couldn't stay quiet.
Beating up each troublemaker one by one would cause too much of a ruckus... Quietly, one by one...
Suddenly, I felt a gaze on me.
It was Lucia Russell.
She still had an enormous build.
Every time I saw her, I thought how great it would have been if I were like her.
"Do you have some business with me?"
Lucia, who had been quietly staring at me, moved her lips.
"...I'm sorry."
"Suddenly?"
"I'll... try..."
Having said only that, Lucia turned around again and disappeared somewhere.
What was she suddenly talking about?
—————————————————————
Stomp, stomp. Walking quickly, Lucia arrived at a lounge where plush sofas were tastefully arranged under soft lighting.
It was a space like a private bar.
One of the secret spaces created within the academy, it was a place made for the Five Pillars to use.
As soon as Lucia Russell entered, she spoke to the man who was already nursing a drink.
"Lemnos, don't touch that person."
"Oh~~ What's this, Russell... You could speak after all. You didn't say a single word before, so I thought you were mute."
At Lucia's words, the man sipping whiskey cocked his head.
Edgar Remnos, the legitimate son of the Lemnos family known as the Red Dragon of the Empire, had dark brown short hair and a solid build that was visible even over his clothes.
He was even larger than Lucia, who had a big frame compared to men.
"...I said don't touch him."
"Don't touch, you say? Who would I be touching?"
Even though he knew everything, Lemnos asked back nonchalantly.
The students who had begun persistently messing with Atlas since two days ago were all in the same class as Lemnos... and the fact that they were his close associates within his faction was known to all of the Five Pillars.
"Atlas Nemea, the Halfling in our class. He's not someone you can mistreat carelessly."
"And what if I refuse?"
"If you refuse...!!"
Lucia flared up at Edgar's words.
"Are you finally going to give me a duel?"
"..."
Lucia's rising hand stopped.
Lemnos and Russell, the two families of the Five Pillars responsible for military force.
While they appeared to cooperate externally, behind the scenes, the families were constantly engaged in hidden strife to establish their hierarchy.
Dueling was not difficult.
But... Lucia had been forbidden from dueling by her father.
Fighting was fine, but it seemed she could not disobey her parent's orders, as Lucia's expression hardened.
"Haha, it's a joke, a joke. Atlas or whatever... I don't really know about that, but since it seems like my classmates are acting that way, I'll have a word with them."
Seeing Lucia's expression, Lemnos laughed.
But his eyes were not smiling at all.
—————————————————————
There was no need to deliberately seek out the ringleader.
The head who had been using those limbs to continuously mess with me boldly revealed himself directly.
"Hey, Halfling...! Duel me."
I wondered where his confidence came from, but upon seeing his face, I could tell where it originated.
"Edgar Remnos... Why would one of the Five Pillars want me?"
It was far too sudden.
What business on earth could Lemnos, who ranked in the top two for martial power even among the Five Pillars, have with someone like me who lived like a runt?
"You're the bastard who forced Charles Frazier to withdraw through a duel, aren't you? I think that's reason enough."
"I don't know what you're talking about...?"
How did that bastard know about that?
The faculty wouldn't know.
Because the students didn't know that Charles's withdrawal was connected to me, a small commotion began to spread.
"This duel isn't something like a request."
As Lemnos spoke, his minions swarmed from behind and surrounded me.
The atmosphere was menacing, with each of them carrying a weapon at their waist.
'If you come out like this... I'm rather grateful.'
Breaking through directly from the front—what a man, indeed.
Having them whisper behind my back and poke at me was more annoying, so having them come like this was deeply appreciated.
I should take this opportunity to annihilate them all at once and establish some discipline.
I inwardly rejoiced and prepared for the duel.
"Fine... a duel..."
"What do you think you're doing!"
At that moment, someone broke through the crowd and blocked my path.
It was Riber, who looked quite angry.
"Ganging up like this... Aren't you ashamed, as the one who will succeed the Five Pillars!"
There was no need for that, but Riber, who must have thought I was in danger, was scowling deeply.
"Simore, it's fine so..."
I was fine.
Riber might end up in danger, so I had to make her back down first.
Just as I grabbed Riber's shoulder to pull her back, a shout rang out.
"Third party, get lost!"
-Peok!
Something red splattered before my eyes.
Blood.
Whose blood had splattered?
I traced it back to its source.
I saw Lemnos's thick arm swinging through the air.
I saw Riber's face, blood spurting from her mouth, her lip torn from being struck by that arm.
Riber had shed blood trying to protect me.
Sparks flew in my head.
-Ppajiik
I heard the sound of something snapping in my forehead.