The New Special Cadet (2)

That utterly absurd spectacle sent Kirlin clapping a hand over her mouth and dropping into a tight crouch beneath the window.

What was that? What did I just see? Did I imagine it?

Just in case she'd been mistaken, Kirlin peeked over the windowsill.

She had not been mistaken.

Professor Lina and Dian were strolling down the night street together, chatting away in the most cheerful, laughing, perfectly amicable fashion.

What is this? What is this...? What on earth is this...?

Crouching back down beneath the window, Kirlin rapidly ran through the possibilities.

Professor Lina had been working late, and she'd run into Dian on her way back. That sounded plausible enough.

Professor Lina and Dian had both been working late and come back together. But looking at Dian's clothes, that didn't seem right.

Professor Lina had called Dian out for a nighttime stroll. Hmm... that was possible too...

Dian had called Professor Lina out for a nighttime stroll. Surely Dian wouldn't...?

Professor Lina and Dian had gone out somewhere and were only just now coming back. Urgh...

No matter how she turned it over, her thoughts kept sliding in the worst possible direction.

What is it, what is it... What are those two actually doing...?

When she cautiously poked her head out again, Dian was already walking off into the distance, and Professor Lina was heading into the dormitory alone.

If there was a silver lining, it was that they were parting ways here instead of going off somewhere together.

All right. Let's think this through one more time.

Assuming Lina and Dian were... involved.

It was only natural for a handsome man and a beautiful woman who worked at the same place to take a liking to each other and for that liking to grow into something more. Professor Lina and Dian were both unmarried, both of an appropriate age — there was nothing particularly strange about it.

But she couldn't just smile, call it a good thing, and let it slide. That would throw her entire plan into chaos. This was a real problem.

The most important variable here was Dian's heart.

It still wasn't clear what the two of them actually were to each other. They might have simply run into each other on the way. Professor Lina might be the only one with feelings.

All right. For now, Dian might like Lina — or he might not.

Then what about Dian's feelings toward her?

That, she couldn't know.

What she did know for certain was that when she'd pressed herself against him in the elevator at ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Ivronik Castle, he hadn't seemed to mind. If he'd been uncomfortable, he would have pushed her away or stepped aside — but he hadn't. And even though she'd stuck to his side throughout the entire field trip, he hadn't shown any particularly negative reaction.

Which meant, at the very least, he didn't dislike her.

She was at neutral. Lina was at neutral, or perhaps a little more favorable.

Then again, who knew? Unlike her, Professor Lina had such a lively personality — she might have just linked arms with Dian out of habit.

First, she needed to get a clear picture of their relationship. Then she would figure out how to respond.

If Dian's feelings toward Lina were neutral, she would make the first move. If they were favorable... well, she would still have to make the first move.

Either way, the conclusion was the same: she had to make the first move.

So how was she supposed to do that?

Kirlin hugged her knees and sank into quiet thought.

The moment Dian had arrived, he'd torn the academy apart and rebuilt it, and he'd secured the Imperial Palace's full-throated support. In that sense, Dian was a long way from some idle playboy who did things halfheartedly or just wanted to have fun.

With a temperament like that, an emotional approach out of nowhere would be less effective than producing results as Principal. A diligent, capable man like Dian would feel more affinity for a woman of the same type.

If she tried to raise his affection using the "dark elf racial characteristics" she'd been planning all this time, she might just get herself branded as a vulgar woman.

What Kirlin meant by "dark elf racial characteristics" were physical things — silk-smooth black skin, a beautiful face, and so on. From the perspective of a Dian who was working himself to the bone day and night for the academy's development, it could easily look like: I'm working this hard, and this so-called Principal has what, exactly, going on in her head?

To roughly sum it up: Dian was a man it wouldn't be strange for someone to snatch up at any moment.

To see her plan through, she had to reel Dian in first — and to do that, she had to win his favor. To win Dian's favor, she had to conduct herself properly as Principal and produce results.

That would also leave a good impression on the Second Princess, which would work in her favor later when she stepped down from Principal and took a professor's post.

All right, Kirlin. Let's do this...!

"Chief Professor. The Principal is calling for you."

A few days later, a teaching assistant came by the faculty office to tell me Kirlin was looking for me.

"Did she say what it's about?"

"She only said it was related to academy operations."

Academy operations, huh. What could it be?

I ran through the Combat Department's current projects and status reports in my head as I headed for the Principal's office.

"Oh? Hello."

I spotted Ismera standing in front of the Principal's office and raised a hand.

The moment she saw me, Ismera's face twisted. She wasn't even bothering to hide it anymore.

Ismera, who had consistently disliked me since I took the post, had been this blatant ever since the Ivronik Castle field trip. She was working herself to the bone, and she thought I was just goofing off — her patience had finally snapped.

But I wasn't goofing off. I'd just been late getting back because of a reunion with fellow veterans.

Well, it wasn't like I couldn't understand Ismera. Honestly, she really did work incredibly hard. In this world she held a High Master's Degree — the equivalent of a doctorate or better — and she was involved in nearly everything at the academy.

If Ismera hadn't been here, the academy would have collapsed. It should have been Ismera as Principal, not Kirlin. If not for that mule-headed Emperor, the Second Princess would have appointed her a long time ago.

On top of that, Ismera was a pureblood elf, so even that face full of loathing was beautiful — it didn't even particularly bother me. Elves had rock-bottom birth rates, tiny populations, picky temperaments, and underhanded natures, and yet they still hadn't gone extinct. That absurdly gorgeous appearance was clearly doing a lot of the heavy lifting.

It was like how cats, despite their utterly insufferable personalities, still won humanity's love on cuteness alone.

"Do feel free to look even more contemptuous, Professor."

"I beg your pardon?"

"Nothing at all."

I walked into the Principal's office with a smile, and Kirlin greeted me warmly.

"Come in, Dian! And Professor Ismera..."

But the moment her gaze reached Ismera, Kirlin's voice shrank rapidly.

"Everyone sit. I have something to discuss."

Ismera sat across from me, and the instant our eyes met, she looked away.

"So, um. I had an idea."

Kirlin opened her mouth, glancing at Ismera for her reaction.

"What if we... tried entering a contest or something?"

"A contest? Is there such a thing?"

What kind of contest exists in a world that's supposed to be JRPG-flavored medieval fantasy?

I shot her a questioning look, and Ismera let out a deep, pitying sigh before explaining.

Apparently, the Imperial Palace and various other institutions occasionally hosted contests aimed at academy students. Just like in my old world, there were all sorts of themes — literature, research, and so on — and winning an award was a big help later on. It was a good event for padding graduates' credentials and raising the academy's prestige, so there was no reason not to participate.

"Sounds good. Let's do it right away. Which contest, though?"

"That's what we need to decide now. I already asked the Imperial Palace in advance and got a list of contests currently running in the Empire."

Kirlin handed a sheet of paper to me and Ismera with a somewhat shy air.

"Would you take a look?"

As I scanned the list, Kirlin's ears flicked and she stared at me intently. It felt like a puppy waiting to be praised.

"Wow, how did you even get ahold of this? That's impressive."

I praised her as intended, and Kirlin's face flushed a deep, dark red. Ismera's eyes filled with contempt, disgust, and every other negative emotion imaginable as she watched the whole thing.

All right, that's enough of the Kirlin-confidence-boosting, you-can-do-it-Principal, head-patting routine. Let's take a closer look.

The Imperial Literary Association's literary award contest. Not this.

The Imperial Palace Magitech Engineering Department's innovative magitech research contest. We don't even teach magic.

The Arts and Culture Guild's painting and sculpture contest. That's for the kids at the art academy.

The Chamber of Commerce's startup idea contest. Not applicable.

Nothing but junk... Isn't there anything?

I kept reading down the list and found something interesting.

"This one. The one hosted by the Continental Adventurers and Mercenaries League."

"Have you ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠lost your mind?"

Ismera immediately objected.

"You're suggesting we send our students to a contest like this? I am opposed."

"Huh? Why? What's the Special Operations Academy supposed to enter, then — a book club discussion?"

"That is not the issue. This is a truly barbaric tournament. Honestly, has the Combat Chief Professor been living in Brunswell with his ears stopped and his eyes shut?"

According to Ismera, the tournament involved releasing ogres into a massive circular arena, and whoever killed them in the most brutal fashion won.

In other words, it was basically like bullfighting from my old world. Yeah, this one was definitely a no.

Hmm, so is there anything suitable...? Not really.

When Kirlin and I stayed silent, Ismera spoke up.

"Not every contest has to involve the use of force. Whatever it is, placing in one would be beneficial, so let us select a few of the larger ones, post a notice, and take volunteers."

"Yes. Professor Ismera is right. We should do that as well. But I keep thinking it would be good to have something that actually fits a 'Special Operations' Academy."

"If you are so determined to do something of that nature, why don't you go to the Imperial Security Office and beg them to give you something?"

"Oh, that's a great idea!"

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

Ismera had clearly meant it as a jab, but for me it was actually the seed of a good idea.

I'd heard something once from a special ops member from another unit I'd briefly worked with during the war. Apparently, some organization under the Imperial Security Office regularly held some kind of competition or tournament as a way to maintain staff standards and justify performance bonuses.

If we could just get them to open that up to outsiders, it would align with our academy's founding purpose — and with the Imperial Security Office itself as the host, placing in it would look pretty good.

"Principal. I'd like you to go to the Imperial Palace and request an audience with the Second Princess."

"Eek?!"

Kirlin looked ready to faint on the spot, and Ismera stared at me with a mix of suspicion and curiosity.