Chapter 47
Chapter 47
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 47
Chapter Title: First Class
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"Equality, my ass... Of all the rooms, why did I have to get the one at the northernmost end?"
Everything Hol Shivas said with such gravitas was complete nonsense.
If all students were truly equal, my room wouldn't be shoved into a corner like this.
'What was that principle called? A mountain behind and water in front?'
The dormitory was located in the northeastern part of the Venderford grounds.
It bordered the western edge of the Desser mountain range, making the north-facing rooms on the first floor the epitome of a sunless pit.
It certainly had a mountain behind it and a view in front.
The problem was that the shadow of the sheer cliff completely covered my window.
Still, considering the students were the children of the most elite nobles from various nations, the room itself was quite nice.
The fact that every student got a single room was a plus.
But this damn orientation is the problem.
When I closed the window against the biting winter wind, the room transformed into a pitch-black darkroom.
It was so dark I didn't even need curtains.
"Should I ask for a different room?"
Any other available room had to be better than this one.
I slammed the door to room A01 and stepped into the hallway.
And of course, the room number had to be symbolic and sound important.
Did they give it this number on purpose to hide how crappy it is?
As I walked down the first-floor hallway, I heard the chattering voices of female students.
The sound seemed to melt the ice that had formed around my heart in that sunless room.
'This part is nice.'
At first, I was furious, but now I felt like I should be bowing in the direction of Black Scale Island.
They were letting me legally slack off. What could be better?
It was far better than having to grind out achievements through all sorts of missions.
Lost in thought, I left the dormitory and headed straight for the administration building near the back gate.
The grounds were so vast that finding a single building wasn't easy.
But I used my assassin's instincts to master the geography of the place...
...not really. I just guessed the general location from a signpost in front of the dorm.
"I might as well take a look around while I'm at it. I need to know where everything is."
Besides, I didn't bring much with me, so I didn't need time to unpack.
To the west of the dormitory stood two large, identical buildings.
One was the administration building, and the other was the liberal arts faculty.
I decided to head to the academic affairs office first to see if there were any spare rooms.
Surely a school this large had to have more rooms than just that one, right?
'They look busy.'
Perhaps because it was the beginning of the term, the academic affairs office was in a state of utter chaos.
It reminded me of the central imperial branch back when Wendy failed her mission.
The staff were rushing around so frantically that I felt bad about interrupting them.
But I'm a man with the gall to approach anyone, no matter who they are.
I grabbed a staff member who was passing by and boldly asked my question.
"Excuse me."
"Yes? How can I help you?"
"What do I need to do to change my room?"
"Change your room, all of a sudden?"
"Yes, the condition is quite poor."
"That can't be right... Could you tell me your room number? I'll check on it and arrange a change for you."
The staff member nodded readily, agreeing to my request.
But his next words made me freeze.
"...We're short on rooms as it is. If you cancel this one, you'll have to wait until the second dormitory is completed."
"Excuse me?"
"A few of the late arrivals have had to find lodging in Troven and commute to school. More people accepted the invitation to enroll than we expected. If you just wait a few months..."
"No, never mind! I'm good!"
I scrambled out of the academic affairs office.
Not telling him my room number beforehand was a stroke of genius.
I almost lost the only room I had.
The distance from Venderford to Troven was a full eight kilometers.
The thought of having to ride a horse to school every morning made me shudder.
Sunless or not, there was no way I was going to commute from the capital.
You think I'm going to give up the sweet bliss of 'just five more minutes'?
And so, my attempt to change my godforsaken, sunless room ended in failure.
"Since I'm out, shall I look around a bit?"
South of the liberal arts faculty was a large plaza with a fountain, and west of the administration building seemed to be the knight faculty.
Beyond the two training grounds in front of the building, I could see the auditorium and banquet hall where the entrance ceremony had been held.
'It's closed.'
The building was locked, probably because classes hadn't started yet.
But I wasn't one to be stopped by a mere locked door.
Like the other buildings, the knight faculty building was covered in various magic circles.
But with Soul Shadow Evasion, an advanced stealth technique, I should be able to bypass most standard magical wards.
I immediately gathered my aura and took a step forward.
Just then, someone burst out of the knight faculty building.
*Click!*
It happened at the exact moment I was about to activate Soul Shadow Evasion.
Since I was near the entrance, our eyes met.
'That startled me. Why is this guy walking around without a presence? Did the magic wards block it?'
The man, a handsome middle-aged fellow, was dressed in a simple tunic made of high-quality fabric.
The man, who had casually swept back his stiff blond hair, looked vaguely familiar.
'I've definitely seen this guy somewhere before. But what was he doing in a locked building?'
The middle-aged man saw me and gave a slow nod.
He seemed to recognize my face.
"Hoh? Right. You were that friend from back then."
For a first meeting, his opening line was rather strange.
I didn't react, just stared at him blankly.
His expression subtly changed.
My calm response seemed to be a breath of fresh air for him.
"Ah, you probably don't know who I am. Allow me to introduce myself. I am the dean of the knight faculty and a professor of swordsmanship, Jerome Klevitz."
The commander of the Luminous Knight Order, the Wings of Radiance.
Jerome Klevitz had quite a few titles to his name.
'To think I'd meet him here. If he ever finds out who I am, he's going to lose his mind.'
To save Wendy, I had interfered with the search conducted by the Luminous Knight Order and the capital's security forces.
My diversionary tactics had allowed the assassin to escape, so he must have been incredibly pissed.
He had successfully thwarted the assassination attempt, but he'd found no evidence.
If he couldn't uncover who was behind it, his efforts would have been for nothing.
"Why the silence?"
I must have been lost in thought for too long.
At Dean Klevitz's prompting, I offered a polite greeting.
"It's a pleasure to meet you. My name is Ray."
"I know. I hear you've already made a name for yourself."
What the hell is he talking about?
I hadn't even been at Venderford for a full day. How could I have possibly made a name for myself?
As I just stared at him blankly, Jerome Klevitz gave a casual wave of his hand.
"It's nothing. Don't worry about it."
Thinking about it for a moment, I realized I hadn't done *nothing*.
There was the incident at the entrance ceremony where Hol Shivas had unleashed his aura.
The professors were probably watching from somewhere.
It was the simplest way to separate the wheat from the chaff.
I had only stood my ground because I could handle it, but perhaps I should have pretended to struggle a bit.
The assassin's blood in my veins recoiled from too much attention.
"It is an honor to meet you, Commander of the Luminous Knight Order."
"The identities of the faculty were supposed to be top secret, so you couldn't have known beforehand. I take it you've had an interest for some time?"
"Yes, sir. There isn't a single person who trains with the sword who doesn't know of the Wings of Radiance."
"Haha! I suppose that's true."
I played along, stroking his ego a bit.
The commander of an imperial knight order was a man of considerable fame.
It was just lip service, but don't they say even a whale will dance for a compliment?
The dean, smiling pleasantly, quickly bid me farewell.
"The conversation was so enjoyable, I almost forgot I had somewhere to be. I'll see you in class."
"Yes, sir. Take care."
Jerome Klevitz gave a light wave and walked off toward the stables.
I had wanted to look around, but it seemed I couldn't enter the building now.
Not after running into the dean right at the entrance.
'Ah, screw it. So much for that.'
I immediately returned to the dormitory and holed myself up in my cozy (?) sunless room.
* * *
After the entrance ceremony, a chaotic atmosphere settled over Venderford.
Since this was the empire's first attempt at a university system, it was inevitable that preparations would be a bit lacking.
They hadn't even predicted the number of incoming students correctly, which was why they were hastily building a second dormitory.
Classes were postponed until the administration, drowning in a flood of work, could get back on its feet.
Three days passed like this.
Finally, the students were able to attend their first class.
The first lecture to be held was swordsmanship.
The students gathered at the first training ground in front of the knight faculty building.
With no one directing them, they clustered in their own groups, chatting amongst themselves.
"Silence."
Then, a low voice cut through the noise.
It wasn't loud, but surprisingly, the training ground fell silent.
He must have used his aura; the sound waves he projected were as clear as if he had spoken right next to my ear.
'Oh. Not bad.'
As I was marveling at his delicate control, the owner of the voice strode into the training ground.
He scanned the students and continued in a stiff tone.
"Let me introduce myself. I am Erich Hoth, the associate professor of swordsmanship in the knight faculty."
Professor Hoth was the vice-commander of the Tropeum Knight Order, a middle-aged man with short, reddish-brown hair.
His muscular body, sturdy build, and towering height were the very picture of a classic knight.
But the sharp glint in his eyes, which held a strange coldness, made him stand out.
Erich Hoth glanced around the assembly, then gestured behind him with a nod.
*Clank. Clank. Clank.*
Men clad in light leather armor filed into the training ground in a line.
Every single one of them had an imposing presence.
"The students gathered here are of a similar age, but your individual skills and levels likely vary. Therefore, today, we will begin by dividing you into classes."
Professor Hoth gestured to the ten teaching assistants standing in a neat line.
At his signal, they drew their swords with a rough flourish.
*Shriiiing!*
Their auras were so menacing that the students sitting in the front rows jumped back in alarm.
"The test is simple. If you want to be in the advanced class, show me what you've got."