A Subtle Jab at the Hero
I had a special cheering squad(?). And they began shouting at the top of their lungs.
“Grand Mercenary King!! Please take first place!!” “Grand Mercenary King! Fightiiing!!”
The moment I appeared, the Steel Mercenary Group members scattered among the crowd started cheering for me.
‘Seriously, I told them to get back to work!’
They must have been waiting just to watch my entrance ceremony. I shot them a glare.
“Eek!”
“C-Commander Jerome, sir! Let’s hurry back to work!”
“R-Right!”
Their figures quickly disappeared into the distance. They sure were fast when it came to running away.
Of course, just because they were gone didn’t mean the problem was solved. Soon enough, the rest of the crowd noticed my presence as well.
“H-Huh! It’s the Mercenary King!!”
“That’s right! I heard the Mercenary King got accepted too!”
“Unbelievable. A mercenary actually getting into the Royal Academy…!”
“Mercenary King, you’ve got this!”
A small number of people were even cheering me on. Most of them were mercenaries who had come to watch, shouting with genuine enthusiasm. A few women were mixed in as well.
“He’s surprisingly handsome, isn’t he?”
“Right? I thought he’d be all rough and burly, but he’s nothing like the rumors.”
“Mercenary King, do your best!”
I walked in, receiving their cheers. But perhaps the noise had been too loud.
The Hero, who had been walking ahead, suddenly stopped. When he halted, the Saint beside him stopped as well. The cheers must have reached the Hero’s ears clearly—his senses were far too sharp for him to miss it.
I had wanted a quiet entrance, but the mercenaries had ruined that plan too.
The Hero turned around. The Saint followed suit.
‘Haah, seriously…’
When the Hero saw me, his eyes widened slightly in surprise. He clearly hadn’t expected this. The Saint’s reaction was even more dramatic—her beautiful eyes flew wide open, and her face quickly flushed red.
‘Still turns red the moment she sees me.’
Her lips parted, and my name slipped out.
“J-Jace.”
The Hero’s expression twisted beside her. It was the look of someone remembering something he had tried to forget. To me, it was just absurd. If anyone had the right to be angry, it was me—I had been unilaterally expelled, after all. Yet the Hero was the one frowning.
‘Of course you are.’
The relationship between me, the Hero, and the Saint was complicated. In my judgment, the Hero definitely liked the Saint. He just pretended otherwise, acting as if he had no romantic interest in any of his party members. But my eyes weren’t so easily fooled.
If the Saint had liked the Hero instead, everyone would have been happy. Instead, she liked me—almost to the point of obsession. Even I found it hard to understand.
‘It’s not like I was particularly nice to her…’
Back then, I hadn’t been interested in women at all. Still, this situation had made life in the party difficult. The Hero, as the leader, had disliked me intensely. He never showed it in front of others, but he would subtly harass me, and in the end, he expelled me. A truly hypocritical bastard.
Anyway, I furrowed my brow and put some distance between us. I had no desire to talk to them—especially not the Hero.
But just because I didn’t want something didn’t mean it wouldn’t happen. The Saint began approaching me. The Hero followed right behind her.
Thud. Thud.
I had no choice but to walk toward them as well. The three of us met in the middle.
“……”
“……”
“……”
None of us spoke at first. It was only natural—we hadn’t exactly parted on good terms.
But the Saint was there. She immediately spoke with a bright expression.
“Jace! I never thought I’d run into you here! Did you get accepted into the Academy’s Special Class?!”
Her eyes sparkled as she looked at me, her flushed cheeks clearly visible even up close. She really was beautiful—flowing golden hair, fair skin, large eyes, a high nose. It was like an elf standing right in front of me. Of course, all I felt was pressure.
I nodded slowly.
“Yes. I passed.”
“Oh my! I knew you would, Jace!”
The Saint’s expression grew even more excited. The Hero’s, however, grew even more twisted. It had been a while since I’d seen him make that face. Still, he was the Hero—he quickly composed himself. Too many eyes were watching.
He spoke to me in a friendly tone.
“Jace Allen. It’s been a while. Good to see you.”
Anyone could tell there was no soul behind those words. I greeted him back in the same manner.
“Likewise. Good to see you too.”
Unlike before, I used informal speech. His eyes twitched.
In the past, I had spoken respectfully because he was the party leader and the Hero. But there was no need for that now. I had secured a considerable social standing of my own—leader of a mercenary group and the Mercenary King. Even if it wasn’t on the same level as the Hero, I wasn’t far behind.
The Hero’s face showed he was barely holding back his anger. It must have been an incredibly frustrating moment for someone as authoritarian and hypocritical as him.
We couldn’t keep standing here talking forever. After landing a light jab on the Hero, I turned to leave.
“I can’t be late for the entrance ceremony, so I’ll head in first.”
“Wait! Where are you going?”
“Ah! You’re leaving already?”
I answered the Saint’s question with formal speech—on purpose.
“Yes. Then, I’ll be on my way, Saint.”
“Ah… O-Okay…”
It was, of course, to irritate the Hero further. From the corner of my eye, I saw his face darken. He clearly didn’t like that I only responded to the Saint—and with formal speech, no less. He would definitely feel that I was ignoring him.
Of course, there was nothing he could do about it. Countless people were watching us right now. Even the Hero couldn’t afford to lash out here. No—because he was the Hero, it was even harder for him to get angry.
‘He has to maintain his saintly image in front of others.’
I smirked and quickened my pace, putting distance between us.
“……What an unpleasant guy.”
I heard the Hero’s voice cursing me from behind. He had spoken in a whisper, but it reached my ears clearly. He had done it on purpose, of course.
But I wasn’t the type to take it lying down anymore. I whispered back just as quietly.
“Idiot.”
“What…?”
The Hero reacted instantly, but we were already quite far apart. The Saint was standing right beside him, too.
“Hm? Did you say something?”
“N-No, it’s nothing…”
The Hero had no choice but to swallow his anger. It was a satisfying sight.
Meanwhile, I walked ahead, lost in thought.
‘In the end, conflict with the Hero is inevitable.’
It might have seemed like I provoked him on purpose, but there was a reason for everything.
‘The Hero is a strong candidate for top rank.’
The Hero possessed everything—skill, fame, popularity, even a good reputation. If things continued like this, I would have to watch him take first place. But I couldn’t let that happen. I had to stop it.
And as everyone knew, the Hero’s personality wasn’t exactly stellar. Publicly, he was known as a good person, but in reality, he wasn’t. I intended to exploit that.
‘I’ll expose the Hero’s ugly true nature to everyone.’
Anyone whose mental state took a hit wouldn’t be able to perform at their best. That was exactly what I was aiming for. And more than anything, I hated losing to the Hero.
‘I’d rather die than lose to him.’
The shock of being expelled by him still lingered. I could never forget it. I had to pay him back.
Before I knew it, the auditorium where we had taken the exam came into view. The entrance ceremony would be held here today. I opened the door with familiarity.
Creak.
Inside, countless eyes turned toward me. Many new students were already seated, and every single one of them was staring.
“So that’s the Mercenary King.”
“He’s younger than I expected.”
“And handsome, too.”
“I didn’t know he was a noble.”
Their reactions were different from the commoners outside. These were people with high status, position, and ability within the kingdom. Perhaps because of that, their responses were rather subdued. I was satisfied with that.
‘Good. Standing out too much from the start isn’t ideal.’
If I drew too much attention early on, I might end up targeted. I walked slowly, observing my surroundings. The auditorium was filled with luxurious chairs, and everyone was seated, waiting for the ceremony to begin.
‘They’re all young.’
Most of them were young or even children. A few older individuals were present as well. There were also some unusual ones—elves, dwarves, beastkin. Each of them was considered a hero within their own race.
‘Not easy opponents.’
I took an empty seat near the back.
Thud.
‘Hm?’
At that moment, I happened to glance at the person sitting next to me—and my eyes widened slightly. He showed no interest in me, simply reading a book. But I was very interested in him.
‘Constantine Verno!’
He was known as a genius archmage, recognized across the continent, not just within the kingdom. Reaching the rank of Grand Mage at only twenty years old was proof enough.
‘He’s someone I need to be just as cautious of as the Hero.’
In the Special Class, it would likely come down to a battle of power and knowledge. And a Grand Mage was an extremely threatening existence. Of course, I was confident as well. My combat ability was a given, and I had graduated from university back on Earth— from a fairly prestigious one, at that.
Still, he didn’t seem particularly interested in me. He continued reading his book.
‘Tch. So mercenaries aren’t even worth worrying about, huh?’
Just then, the door creaked open again. Two figures stepped inside.
The Hero and the Saint.