The Academy's No.1 Instructor (4) - Your Recommendations Boost Consecutive Update Chances
The lecture hall was unusually rowdy.
Leticia Santander, arriving late, frowned at the sight of her excited classmates. She asked one she occasionally chatted with, though they weren't close.
The high elf girl flashed a venomous grin.
"We're all gonna put Alonne in her place today. She's been getting on my nerves lately, right? That mana-blind failure acting all high and mighty just 'cause she's decent with a sword—it's so infuriating."
"Alonne?"
"Yeah. We're dealing with her right now. Stripped her clothes off and hung her from a tree. Everyone rushed over to watch her beg and cry for mercy. Wanna come, Leticia?"
Leticia grimaced at her classmate proudly boasting such a vicious plan. Low-class. And cowardly. Resorting to servants because they couldn't beat her themselves—it was revolting. If they wanted to win, they could challenge her to a sword duel like she bragged about. Their actions were basically admitting they couldn't face her head-on.
"Where is it happening?"
"Alonne? She's probably getting a good beating by now. I'm heading there myself."
Her classmate giggled, clearly hoping to see Alonne humiliated and broken.
Jealousy and envy. They resented Alonne as the esteemed daughter of the prestigious Valencia family. Her sister being the undefeated Ardena Valencia only fanned the flames.
Mana insensitivity? They didn't care. They just wanted to crush their target completely, turn her into a wreck. Only then could they vent the jealous knot in their chests.
Of all days...! Leticia regretted not bringing her escort knight to the academy today. She couldn't stop them alone. Most of the class—about seventeen students—had gone after Alonne. Assuming one servant each, that meant seventeen attendants tormenting her.
"Finally, that bitch Alonne won't show her face here anymore. Ahaha!"
Her classmate hummed cheerfully, trotting down the hall toward the scene of Alonne's humiliation.
Even if she ran now, stopping the frenzied students and their servants was impossible. Blinded by jealousy, they were little demons bent on socially burying one high elf. Giving skilled attendants swords was like arming those imps.
Filthy scum... Leticia bit her lip. She too resented and envied Alonne. But that didn't mean she'd condone her classmates' brutal, dirty violence. It was petty and vile—beating someone down instead of beating them fairly.
"Over there. But... something's hanging from the trees? Not Alonne, though..."
A classmate who'd arrived first muttered. The outcome wasn't what they'd expected.
Something dangled from the branches. Up close, they were elves—servants assigned to guard high elf heirs. They hung limp from vines, eyes rolled back white.
"Gack... hack...!"
A female elf coughed raggedly, phlegm mixing with blood. She'd been thoroughly beaten; her face was swollen puffy. The once-beautiful elf knight looked like a bloated mess.
That human...
Leticia, arriving late, realized Yushin Gilliard had taken down all these skilled servants. His hands were stained red—their blood. Beating Valencia family representatives unilaterally wasn't a lie; he'd bested Ardena in a duel. And he stood there utterly composed, without a hint of disarray.
"Who the hell is that human?!"
"Where'd this trash come from, crawling into our academy?!"
The high elf students shouted. The ones who'd plotted to bury a fellow high elf now vented their outrage at Yushin.
Everything was ruined. None cared for their beaten, unconscious servants. Instead, they screamed about losing to a mere human, vowing to fire them upon returning home.
High elves were arrogant and haughty. They looked down on humans, half-elves, even regular elves. That's how their parents raised them.
"Yushin Gilliard."
Leticia spoke up, announcing his name to her classmates.
"Yushin... Gilliard?"
"Sounds familiar..."
The academy students tilted their heads. Sheltered in their bubble, they knew nothing of outside events.
"Ah!"
A high elf boy shouted, piecing it together. Staring at the battered servants in shock, he explained to the others.
"One of Valua Kingdom's Kingdom's Seven Swords, Yushin Gilliard! The human who beat Warrior Captain Ardena Valencia! I heard he became a slave in Valencia Forest..."
That human. The one who'd defeated the undefeated Ardena. The high elves who'd schemed to trample Alonne paled, boys and girls alike stumbling back, shoulders trembling.
"Whoa, one of the Kingdom's Seven Swords..."
"They're the champions guarding the human kingdom!"
And he'd beaten Ardena Valencia in a duel. Unbelievable. They pestered the boy for confirmation, but it was all true. Otherwise, who else in Valencia Forest could unilaterally crush Valencia-representative servants besides Ardena herself? Such strength was rare. But if the black-haired human was Yushin Gilliard of the Kingdom's Seven Swords, it all made sense.
"B-but he's still just a human!"
"We're high elves! Descendants of the prophets who nurtured the World Tree Bria—a mere human can't touch us!"
The high elves cried out, touting their superior bloodline. No human could harm them. That's why they'd planned to teach this "safe" human a lesson. No matter what they did, he couldn't retaliate. Even a Kingdom's Seven Swords would be a punching bag they could topple.
"Don't you touch my master!"
Alonne sprang into action. Kicking off the ground, she launched a dropkick straight into a high elf girl's face.
Crack!! Blood sprayed. Teeth shattered, fragments flying from her mouth.
"Leave the rest to me, Master. These losers aren't even my match anymore."
High elves could attack high elves. Discipline might follow, but it'd end in a slap on the wrist. They'd held back direct harm till now because Alonne was strong—in swordsmanship and hand-to-hand. Cracking her knuckles for payback, she closed in on her classmates.
Bria Academy staff bustled in panic. An unprecedented incident: seventeen high elf students carted to the infirmary.
What to tell the parents? What to report to the principal? They tore at their hair. Even in Liberia Elf Kingdom's premier academy, they were just wage slaves.
"You did great, Master."
"I handled the lackeys, you took the high elves. Not bad teamwork."
"Yeah!"
Alonne beamed. Turning her persistent tormentors into infirmary cases felt amazing.
Skipping first period, she'd lounged on the lecture building rooftop—a secret spot she knew well, undiscovered by staff.
"You okay with this?"
"With what?"
Alonne asked cautiously. Yushin replied.
"Skippin' class."
"I did it tons in school. You're better than me—I straight-up refused to go sometimes."
After flattening seventeen classmates, Alonne requested early dismissal from her homeroom teacher, which was approved. Attendance counted, so she could chill on the roof guilt-free. She'd hunker down till end of day, then slip out via warp gate to the castle.
The incident would reach her family, but she'd claim self-defense—spotless.
"Back in school, I skipped lunch 'cause no one to eat with. Eating alone? Classmates'd whisper."
"I get it! Ate bread in the bathroom sometimes."
"Field trips?"
"Hid till roll call, then snuck back in."
"Nice."
They had tons in common. Yushin and Alonne felt an odd kinship. She no longer saw him as "just a human." He'd given her potential, saved her this time. He understood pains she hid from everyone—even family. She could tell him everything.
"I'll stick with you from now on, Master. With you here, they won't dare bully me. I can actually attend properly."
Accompany her. Eat together. Chat. Even bathroom breaks. The last was weird, but Yushin accepted all her requests. Only someone who's endured the pain truly gets it. He knew her struggles, the silent sufferings. So he promised to stay by her side.
"Drag a few classmates here, make 'em fetch snacks?"
"Genius, Master."
"Roof's sunny, breezy—perfect, but vending machine's a hike."
"Give 'em 10,000 aether, tell 'em to bring 100,000 back as change."
Payback time. Yushin didn't stop her—encouraged it, even.
"Feels super secure with you here. Sis really scored a gem."
"I know, right? Best bang-for-buck slave ever."
Yushin and Alonne chatted amiably, enjoying a lazy rooftop afternoon.