The Petty Professor's Scheme
The meeting had been called to discuss the class formation exam—more precisely, the class assignment test. Professor Marius, the faculty member in charge, had gathered the lecturers and teaching assistants in one place.
“The appointed time has come and gone, yet she still hasn’t arrived.” Marius clicked his tongue in disapproval.
“Isn’t this the height of arrogance? It’s already been twenty minutes. And this is a meeting to discuss the enormously important matter of the class assignment test, no less…” One of the lecturers voiced his complaint, clearly eager to stay in Marius’s good graces.
Marius responded with nothing but a thin, bitter smile. The others gradually began to voice their own dissatisfaction.
“Can she really behave like this?”
“Being late from the very first meeting? Isn’t that going too far?”
“I’ve only heard strange rumors about her.”
To Marius, the scene was utterly satisfying. Good. Pile on even more resentment toward Altair! Kuhahaha!
Then, all at once, their murmuring stopped. A sinister aura suddenly flowed in from somewhere. Marius quickly pulled something from his pocket—an pill.
With this, I won’t have to show any pathetic weakness.
It was a rare elixir he had gone to great lengths to obtain. They said that once you took it, overflowing confidence would follow for some time.
If I’d had this back then…
His body trembled. The reason he had been beaten by that woman was all because of that damned aura. Without it, his body wouldn’t have frozen, and victory would have been his by right. But now that he had this, he would never suffer the same humiliation again.
Besides.
The people here would come to respect him for standing tall in the face of that aura. The pill had been expensive, but it was worth every coin.
The effect appeared almost immediately after he swallowed it. Confidence surged up from deep within his body.
“Enter!” Marius shouted toward the door.
As if on cue, a woman appeared. Every eye in the room turned to her.
Altair Auvergne.
Even though most of them were seeing her for the first time, they instantly recognized that the woman in black was the subject of all those rumors. And there was one thing the rumors had failed to mention: that she was a stunning beauty.
It wasn’t simply that her appearance was exceptional. She possessed a unique atmosphere that captured the gaze of everyone who looked at her. For a long moment, no one in the room could look away.
“Why are you so late!” Marius thundered at her.
Several people glanced at him in surprise. Was Professor Marius always this assertive? He was the sort of man who, had he not been an academy alumnus, would never have become a professor.
To think he can raise his voice so boldly against that aura.
A few of the assistants and lecturers quietly revised their opinion of Marius. His face did seem strangely flushed, but they had no way of knowing it was due to the elixir.
“Am I late? It’s five minutes to eleven, isn’t it?”
Her tone was oddly light and casual, clashing with her appearance and aura.
“I clearly said by ten-thirty! You’re twenty-five minutes late and you have the audacity to act like this!”
“Oh, was that the time? I must have…”
She couldn’t possibly have misread it. Altair’s eyes sharpened. She had checked the document again that very morning. It had clearly stated to arrive by eleven.
What a childish trick.
She wasn’t even particularly angry. She had already expected this kind of behavior from him.
“Instructor Altair, why are you speaking so informally to Professor Marius?” Someone raised his voice. It was the same lecturer who had been complaining to Marius earlier. Seeing Marius confront Altair so boldly had given him courage.
“Didn’t you see that old man speak informally to me first? Why is it only a problem when I do it?”
“That man is a professor. You are nothing more than a mere instructor, are you not? The positions are different!”
Marius put on a solemn expression at those words.
He doesn’t look that old, yet he talks like some fossil. And if he’s calling himself a ‘mere instructor,’ isn’t he insulting himself as well?
Altair shook her head. There wasn’t a single sane person in the room.
“Positions? Bullshit. I’m the kind of bastard who doesn’t feel the need to respect anyone who doesn’t respect me. If you have a complaint, try actually persuading me. Stop spouting nonsense about positions or whatever.”
The lecturer who had protested twisted his face at Altair’s sharp rebuke and retreated.
Some people briefly wondered, Bastard? Shouldn’t it be bitch? but the moment they met Altair’s eyes, they immediately dropped the thought.
“Let’s get on with what we came here to do. We gathered because of the class assignment test, didn’t we? Let’s start already.”
Her gaze turned toward Marius.
“Ahem.” Marius cleared his throat. The atmosphere left him no choice but to proceed. He picked up a piece of chalk and tapped the blackboard.
“As you all know, the class assignment test…”
Before he could even begin the explanation, Altair raised her hand.
“What is it?”
“We already took the entrance exam. So why are we doing another test for class assignment instead of using those results?”
“It’s tradition.”
Tradition couldn’t be helped. Altair nodded and lowered her arm.
She doesn’t even know something that basic…
Marius looked at her with contempt, then began drawing on the blackboard—a circle crudely divided into five sections.
“As you all know, the class assignment test will take place in the Saint Franc Forest to the west. The freshmen will be released into designated areas to hunt the monsters placed there. Points will be awarded based on the number and quality of monsters defeated.”
He proceeded to assign lecturers and assistants to each area.
“And finally, Altair. You will be in charge of Zone E.”
He wore a sly smile. He planned to release especially dangerous monsters in Zone E. He also intended to place Princess Ditrua there.
If some kind of accident were to happen…
Just imagining it brought him joy. Of course, as the person ultimately responsible, he wouldn’t escape criticism entirely, but Marius’s thoughts never reached that far.
The day of the entrance ceremony dawned. Countless freshmen who had come from all over entered the academy with excited expressions. It was one of the few occasions when all the new students—from swordsmanship, magic, theology, and every other department—gathered in a single place. Most events were held separately by college or department, so it was rare for an entire year to assemble together.
The freshmen buzzed with anticipation. Soon the sound of trumpets rang out, and the entrance ceremony began. After the usual sequence of formalities, the freshman representative stepped onto the podium to deliver the oath. The one representing all the new students gathered here was none other than Ditrua.
“…I so swear. Ditrua Ailekalzas Listia Ferrier Dira Ronalp.”
Once the oath was finished, she descended from the platform. The freshmen applauded her.
That name is ridiculously long.
A purple-haired girl watched the scene with a sullen expression. Her name was Rilke. Among those who had passed the entrance exam with top marks, she was virtually the only commoner.
Rilke Termore. It’s easy to say and it sounds beautiful, doesn’t it? Hehe.
Smiling, Rilke kept her eyes on Ditrua until the princess had completely left the podium.
I’ll beat you.
She may have conceded first place during the entrance exam, but she was determined to claim the top spot in the upcoming class assignment test. Rilke clenched her fist tightly. She wanted this boring entrance ceremony to end as quickly as possible so she could get on with the real test.
“I am Marius, the professor in charge of the class assignment test. I will be your swordsmanship instructor from now on.”
He swept his arrogant gaze across the freshmen.
“I will now explain the test content, so keep your ears wide open.”
Rilke watched him with narrowed eyes. She had a feeling his personality would be just as unpleasant as his face suggested. She knew it was wrong to judge people by appearances, but this man gave off a terrible first impression.
Stop thinking useless things.
She pushed the stray thoughts from her mind and focused on Marius’s explanation. The test itself was simple: defeat as many strong monsters as possible to earn a higher score. It was a perfectly ordinary exam with no special points to watch out for.
How boring.
Of course, whether it actually turned out boring would depend on the monsters inside and the level of her competitors. Rilke’s sharp eyes scanned the other students.
First place. No matter what.
She made the vow silently.
“You students will follow Instructor Leon.”
“Follow me.”
About forty students remained. Looking at those who were left, Rilke noticed quite a few notable figures in this group.
The princess, myself, and even Bastien…
Wait.
Bastien was definitely assigned to Group A earlier, wasn’t he?
Then who was that kid?
He mentioned having a twin brother.
His name was Clement, if she remembered correctly. Looking more closely, there were many differences. Unlike the large-framed Bastien, Clement had a relatively average build.
His features are more delicate, too. Fraternal twins?
Now that she really looked, it seemed strange that she had ever mixed them up.
“And finally, the remaining freshmen. All of you are assigned to Zone E.”
Marius wore a strangely sly smile.
“Follow Assistant Hendrick. Oh, and one piece of advice. You may sense powerful demonic energy. Don’t be afraid. It isn’t coming from the monsters.”
What the hell was he talking about?
If you’re going to explain something, at least explain it properly.
As expected, Rilke decided, she really didn’t like this man at all.