An Ominous Aura in the Academy

With less than a week remaining until Princess Ditrua's entrance ceremony, students had begun arriving at the dormitories as the new semester approached. Today was the day the most talked-about new student of all was scheduled to arrive. A little past noon, a large, ornate carriage pulled up before the main gate. It was the Third Princess of the Solentia Kingdom, Ditrua. She stepped down from the carriage with elegant grace, her golden-blonde hair tinged with red fluttering in the breeze.

The academy staff bowed in respect at the sight. Among them, of course, was Chancellor Theodore.

Her image is quite different from what I expected.

Among the princesses, those who walked the path of the sword were extremely rare. Most delved into magic or busied themselves with the humanities. Unlike them, Ditrua had chosen the sword. So when Theodore had first pictured her, he had imagined someone strong, stubborn, and decisive.

But seeing her dressed like this, Ditrua looked no different from any other princess—elegant and gentle.

Could the wrong princess have shown up?

He quickly realized how wrong that thought was. Incongruous with her lavish dress, a sword sheath rested at her waist. Its plain design clashed with both the clothes and their owner. There wasn't even a tiny decorative pattern. At first glance it seemed like an ordinary sheath. Of course, since it belonged to a princess, the blade inside was surely a masterpiece and the sheath worthy of it.

Honestly, it didn't match the outfit at all. Yet from that single detail Theodore could read her tenacity. Every swordsman he had ever met had been stubborn to a fault.

“Welcome to Delphiana Academy, Princess Ditrua.”

At Theodore’s greeting, Ditrua offered a soft smile.

“A pleasure to meet you, Chancellor. I am Ditrua.”

“I’ll escort you inside.”

After a brief chat over tea with the chancellor, she was guided to the dormitory where she would stay. Naturally, the room prepared for her was the most luxurious and spacious in the entire academy—a residence set aside for royalty who enrolled. Of course, most royals invited instructors to the palace instead, so actual enrollment was extremely rare. Still, as the kingdom’s foremost academy, they could not neglect to maintain such quarters.

“Please rest for now. You have a special half-day leave.”

After practically shoving her reluctant escort knights outside, Ditrua was left alone with her maid, Lily. She immediately set her tiara on the table and stripped off the dress in one swift motion.

“My lady, you’ll ruin the fabric.”

“It’s suffocating! Thank goodness I won’t have to wear anything like that for a while.”

Ditrua flashed a refreshed smile.

“This feels so much better. Lily, pass me the negligee, would you?”

“It’s still broad daylight!”

Lily quickly folded the discarded dress and brought over the next outfit. A negligee was nowhere to be seen.

“Hmm. I’ll be on my own for a while anyway. Can’t I just wear that?”

“You must uphold your dignity! Put this on at once.”

Lily, who had served her for nearly ten years, was one of the few people allowed to scold the princess.

“Dignity my ass. You’ve been nagging nonstop lately, Lily. Hit puberty or something?”

With a pout, Ditrua took the clothes Lily offered. They were better than the extravagant dress, but nowhere near as comfortable as a negligee.

“It’s not as good as ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I thought?”

“The clothes?”

“No, this place.”

“Isn’t this level perfectly acceptable?”

Ditrua shook her head.

“It’s too flashy. I was hoping for something modest and cozy since it’s an academy dormitory. Maybe my expectations were too high?”

She had wanted an atmosphere completely unlike the stifling palace. This was better, but still left something to be desired.

“Shall I request a different room?”

After a brief pause, she shook her head again.

“No. There’s no need to trouble anyone. They probably spent ages just cleaning this one.”

She flopped onto the bed. Only then did the reality of having left the palace truly sink in.

I feel like I can actually live.

Here she was alone. No one whose face alone made rage surge inside her. No younger siblings, older brothers, or sisters. The four years at the academy would be peaceful.

Yet suddenly an ominous aura drifted in from somewhere. Ditrua shot upright and snatched up her sword.

It’s not my imagination.

What was this energy? Demonic power? In an academy of all places?

The source seemed distant—the feeling was faint—but it could not escape her sharp senses.

“What’s the matter, my lady?”

“Good thing I skipped the negligee. That’s my Lily.”

“Pardon?”

“I’m stepping out alone for a bit.”

In the blink of an eye Ditrua had her shoes on and was ready to leave.

“A-alone?! Please take the knights with you!”

“Come on, I just gave them special leave. I can’t cancel it right away, can I?”

She dashed out, sword in hand.

“Princess Ditrua! Lua!”

As an ordinary maid, Lily’s physical ability was nowhere near enough to chase a trained swordswoman. She watched her mistress’s back with a helpless gaze, then hurried outside to find the escort knights who had left on their short vacation.

“Professor! Does this make any sense!”

Marius barged in without knocking, grinning from ear to ear. Dean Lopez was about to sigh but stopped himself and covered his face with one hand instead. Every inch of Marius’s face was bruised and swollen. The sight made laughter bubble up despite himself.

“Ahem. What seems to be the problem this time?”

“It’s that new instructor!”

Lopez let out another sigh. “Who?”

He already knew exactly who Marius meant, but he asked anyway.

“That instructor called Altair or whatever! How could someone like that possibly become an instructor at Delphiana Academy!”

“Well…”

“Never mind her skill—how is a person radiating that kind of ominous aura in every direction supposed to guide students properly? It’s obvious nasty rumors will spread among the students and their parents! What are you going to do when the academy’s reputation crashes into the ground?”

The reason Lopez felt flustered was that, unlike Marius’s usual drivel, there was actually some substance to his complaint this time. Parts of it even matched Lopez’s own thoughts.

Hmm.

Lopez fiddled with his bangs. “Why on earth would they choose someone like that…”

“Theodore.”

“Pardon?”

“It was an order from the chancellor himself. If you have complaints, take them up with him.”

“The… chancellor?”

Even Marius couldn’t maintain his arrogant attitude toward Chancellor Theodore.

“Hmm… If the chancellor ordered it… Uh…”

Marius scratched his head, seemingly unsure which emotion to settle on.

“Why in the world did the chancellor pick someone like that as an instructor!”

Marius’s shout echoed through the room.

Oh, he’s really furious.

Normally the mere mention of Theodore’s name would make him tuck his tail. Then again, with his face looking like that, it was understandable. Especially after he’d been beaten senseless without landing a single proper counterattack.

“Ask the chancellor for the details. Truth is, he told me to appoint Altair Auvergne as a full professor. I shared some of your concerns, however, so I suggested the instructor position instead… ugh…”

Lopez’s face twisted as he spoke. Admitting he agreed with Marius was painful.

“Speak clearly, Professor!”

“Shut up! Never mind that—how are the preparations for the placement exam coming along, huh?”

He had been trying to hold his temper because anger was bad for his health, but in front of this idiot it was impossible.

“It’s proceeding perfectly. So perfectly that you needn’t worry at all, Professor.”

Lopez ground his teeth. “Is the personnel lineup finished?”

“Is there even anyone to select? Just borrow a few teaching assistants from the other professors. And maybe pull in some instructors… Ah.”

A dark smile spread across Marius’s face.

“So that’s an option.”

My dormitory sat in a secluded corner of the academy, far from both the student housing and the other staff quarters. The reason was obvious: the curse.

It’s surprising there was even a place like this to begin with.

In truth, calling it proper housing was a stretch. It seemed to have been a spot where maintenance staff took short breaks. As a result, it was rather inconvenient as a living space. The dean had offered to remodel it, but I turned him down.

Too much hassle to go find an inn.

If I stayed at one, the place would probably earn a haunted-house reputation overnight. The owner’s tears would never dry.

Can’t let that happen.

It had been a little uncomfortable at first, but after fixing up a few spots here and there, it became livable.

This is the last of it.

After tossing out the final piece of scrap, I habitually pulled out the contract and started reading it over again.

It was my first contract like this, so I kept checking it, worried I’d been taken for a fool.

It’s basically a new associate professor’s salary. They say it’s the best treatment among the instructors, at least.

I scratched my forehead. I was starting to regret stamping my seal without negotiating harder, just taking their word for it.

Maybe I should have demanded a highest-salary guarantee clause. Five years stuck in the forest left me completely out of touch with how the world works.

Still feeling uneasy, I shoved the contract into a drawer and opened today’s newspaper. The front page featured a massive picture of the Demon King’s spokesperson.

A bald old man with two large horns sprouting from the sides of his head. My face crumpled the moment I saw him.

Erich…

Erich von Müsel. The bald man commonly known as Duke Müsel. One of the dukes ranked below the Four Heavenly Kings and regarded as the Demon King’s strategist. I had never faced him directly, but the battle against his subordinate remained vivid in my memory.

Death Knight Kaiserji. Our party had fought the bastard five-on-one, and the memory left a deep scar on every one of us.

We were a hero party—the supposed final weapon against the Demon King’s army. Sure, we were at the bottom among hero parties, but a hero party was still a hero party. The fact that we couldn’t defeat a mere knight serving under a duke, not even one of the Four Heavenly Kings, in a five-versus-one fight was humiliating.

It wasn’t as if we lacked time. Thirty minutes should have been more than enough to settle things. Yet we failed to subdue him, and in the end Kaiserji escaped unscathed.

Even if pure martial prowess alone put him on par with his master Erich, the match ending in a draw was still a massive shock. Jin, who rarely spoke to begin with, stayed completely silent for an entire week. The rest of us, myself included, shrank into ourselves.

It was shocking to realize that was the extent of our strength. If we had defeated Kaiserji, the course of the war might have changed.

Maybe that was the beginning of it all.

In the early days they had at least pretended to hold ideals. But at some point the gears started grinding, and eventually they threw me out like garbage. Was that battle the trigger?

Or maybe their early act was fake and their true nature simply revealed itself later.

I couldn’t decide which was worse. Both were tragic, so there was no point dwelling on it.

Shaking off the thoughts, I turned back to the newspaper.

“…What a load of bullshit.”

I hurled the newspaper across the room.

It’s not like the owner is being dragged around by the dog.

These bastards were definitely hiding something. Even if they weren’t, countless people could die because of those beasts. I couldn’t understand how anyone could just brush it off with a single sentence like that.

My blood boiled. The anger refused to cool. At this rate I’d give myself an ulcer.

Unable to calm ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠down, I clutched my head and tore at my hair. After some time passed, I suddenly sensed a presence nearby.

Not many people come all the way out here.

An academy staff member? I already told them I didn’t need anything else.

They should have turned back by now.

The presence had drawn close enough to feel my aura clearly, yet instead of fleeing it only grew stronger.

What the hell do they want?

I stepped outside. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠There stood a beautiful blonde girl with a deathly pale face.