Ch.146146. Road School Power Struggle (3)

“How many times do I have to tell you to understand? Stop acting high and mighty just because you’re a Levrant student and go back already!”

“I’m not acting high and mighty! I’m just here to take care of my own grades!”

He was arguing with the professor in charge of this class—someone who held the title of professor even if he didn’t actually teach.

At a glance… judging by the mention of the Power Battle, he must be a student, yet he wasn’t backing down at all.

“Oh, my head… Did you come from Levrant without doing proper research?”

“What research?”

“That Sirah Road School is hopeless! The other three locations might be different, but this place is geographically remote and unsuitable for proper training!”

But just now, when he introduced himself.

-‘I’m ranked 11th in E-grade of Levrant Academy’s Page Ranking.’

Rana heard it clearly. E-grade, 11th place.

‘E-grade 11th place… Even a B-grade or A-grade student would barely be enough!’

That’s why Rana could only bite her lip in frustration.

Although she had only been enrolled here for a few weeks, she had a rough idea of how the Road School operated.

The funding allocated from Levrant was proportional to attendance hours and student numbers. Based on this, they merely maintained their positions.

Even when supplies arrived, their actual use was limited, with the rest either stored away or secretly diverted for sale.

Sirah Road School only received support from the Principality’s administration, and both students and professors were only thinking about slacking off.

In such a situation, E-grade…?

Such a rank would be meaningless in this rotten school. Probably the same for other classes too…

“Wake up from your dream. Do you really think you can take down even a single monster with these kids right now?”

“…”

In the middle of Junon’s argument with the professor, that one sentence hit Rana’s head like a hammer.

“Even if you try to teach them now, nothing will change with your mere E-rank Page Ranking. These kids have been like this since before I came—there’s no way they’ll show any meaningful change in just two weeks!”

She couldn’t deny it.

The Power Battle was fundamentally based on students’ abilities—what could be done in just two weeks?

And the next words pierced deep into Rana’s heart.

“If anyone at this school wanted to return to Levrant, they would have made an effort themselves. At least, none of them did! They’re all hopeless rejects!”

She wanted to deny it, but it was absolutely true.

If she had tried to do something herself instead of depending on the professors at Road School, she would have achieved results long ago.

Also, if she performed exceptionally well in this Power Battle, she might receive an invitation to re-enroll at Levrant.

Yet she had been denying this all along, waiting only for the professor’s guidance.

The starting point was wrong. She hadn’t been trapped by the noose of being a dropout—she had willingly walked into it.

But… there was no way she could easily accept that.

“Damn it!!”

“Hey, hey, hey…! Where do you think you’re going, running out so rudely while a professor is speaking! Tsk tsk. Rana, that girl will never get into Levrant!”

Rana ran past Junon and sprinted endlessly down the corridor.

No one asked where she was going or what she was trying to do. Except for Junon.

“…”

“Don’t let her harbor false hopes and just go back. You’re only E-rank in Page Ranking anyway, so it doesn’t matter, does it? Hmph.”

Junon, who had been quietly watching Rana’s retreating figure, slowly approached the professor.

“W-what!”

The professor’s heart sank involuntarily at the pressure emanating from that cold face.

And then his collar was grabbed, making his heart truly sink.

“You’re not a professor. You’re just an old geezer who spouts nothing but pessimism.”

“Y-you brat? Ugh!”

As Junon released his grip on the collar, the professor was immediately thrown to the ground.

The professor tried to glare back to avoid losing face, but upon meeting those pitch-black eyes, he swallowed hard instead.

“Never set foot in this classroom again. I’ll teach your students myself.”

A voice filled with anger echoed throughout the classroom.

***

“Damn it, where did she go?”

While arguing with the professor, I felt someone’s gaze and glanced sideways.

That gaze wasn’t exactly friendly. But when I looked closely at the female student’s face, it was one I knew all too well.

With each word from the professor, her face twisted more miserably.

It was probably self-loathing.

She was angry at the professor who kept saying nothing could be done, but more so at herself for not having done anything.

“What was her name again… Ah, right!”

Rana. That was definitely her name.

“Rana! Where are you! Say something!”

Self-loathing is a truly terrifying emotion.

It easily shakes one’s rationality and dangerously breaks one’s will, leading to helplessness.

And the deeper the self-loathing, the longer one remains trapped in it unable to overcome it, the more devastated a person becomes.

Those consumed by this emotion develop self-contempt, and soon their numbed reason gives in to impulses and leads them to do something reckless.

Rana probably wants to prove the professor wrong so badly that she can’t see straight right now.

“Answer me, Rana! Where are you?!”

I shouldn’t have let her stay bound to that foolish old man. I should have gotten her out of there sooner…!

“Rana! Where are—quack!”

“Kyaa…!”

“I’m sorry. I wasn’t watching where I was going, but I’m in a hurry so excuse me…?”

Wait, the person I just bumped into had a female voice. Could it be Rana…?

I thought as I turned my head, but it couldn’t be that lucky. Still, it was quite unexpected.

“Ow ow ow… Finally found you, Junon.”

Grayish-white hair braided on one side.

This modest yet gentle voice, demure but somehow weak.

The blue ribbon she always wore on her braided hair—it was a face I hadn’t seen in quite a while.

“Adel…?”

“Umm… It’s been a while, hasn’t it?”

“Y-yeah… it has.”

I never expected to see this face here. But I should apologize first.

“Sorry, Adel. It’s hard to explain, but I need to find someone right now, so let’s catch up later!”

“Eh? Eh? Junooon-! Wait a minute!”

I’m too busy looking for a student who might be doing something dangerous…!

I’ll properly apologize to Adel later… Huh?

Somehow Adel had gotten ahead of me. She even used magic to block my path directly.

“If you’re looking for someone, I’ll be faster than searching on foot.”

“Huh?”

“I was once an Academy student too, you know?”

Adel’s magical power stirred the wind.

Magic flowing from her small wand drew a magic circle, and the condensed wind manifested three sparrow-shaped entities.

Adel was an elemental wind mage who could condense and apply it in various forms, a support position.

As a wizard, she was also capable of using detection magic.

She’s right. Getting help would be much more efficient than searching alone on foot.

“Can you send them north, northwest, and northeast? She’s slightly shorter than you, with her bangs fixed with a pin instead of a ribbon. She also has freckles.”

“Leave it to me.”

She closed her eyes and cast another detection spell on the sparrows.

The sparrows would partially synchronize with Adel and serve as her eyes.

After just a few minutes, Adel opened her eyes.

“Northwest. Not too far from here, and she’s alone. I’ll guide you directly.”

“Thanks, Adel.”

“Y-yeah. We shouldn’t lose her…”

“Right. We should hurry.”

She went quite far. Even though she said Rana was alone, I wonder if she’s done anything reckless yet.

I decided to prioritize calming Rana’s mental state.

***

-‘Wake up from your dream. Do you really think you can take down even a single monster with these kids right now?’

No.

‘Even if you try to teach them now, nothing will change. These kids have been like this since before I came—there’s no way they’ll show any meaningful change in just two weeks!’

No!

-‘If anyone at this school wanted to return to Levrant, they would have made an effort themselves. At least, none of them did! They’re all hopeless rejects!’

No, that’s not true!

That professor said nothing would change no matter what she did.

He said there was no possibility of meaningful change.

He called her a hopeless reject… he spouted such nonsense.

She had to deny it.

“I just need to… show them directly!!”

She needed to erase the stigma of being a dropout who had barely dipped her toes in Levrant before leaving.

She needed to create change through her own efforts.

Rana spent all her money to purchase a sword. Then she ran like mad to a place where she could encounter monsters.

If she could defeat a monster herself and drag its carcass back.

She could disprove everything that professor said. The claim that she was a hopeless reject, that she was a dropout who never made an effort.

Creak- Creak-

A Stump approached, giving her an unpleasant look.

It was the largest dead tree in the area, said to eat birds and even attack well-raised livestock.

‘Good. If I bring that back, he won’t be able to say anything.’

Her hands and feet trembled. The monster she faced for the first time outside of Talbert Arc was more frightening than she had imagined.

Nevertheless, Rana had no intention of turning back. Even though she could easily escape if she just moved out of the Stump’s attack range.

“Hiyaaaaa!!!”

Rana drew her sword and charged at the Stump.

She was already in a state where the impulse driven by self-loathing outweighed the fear of possibly losing her life.

The result of attacking without retreat was a miserable future of rolling on the ground after being struck in the side by a branch whip.

“Huurgh…!”

Rough breathing accompanied the pain of broken ribs. Only now did Rana truly feel something.

As the creaking sound of branches grew closer, and the size of the wooden monster larger than a human body approached, that feeling bloomed.

Fear. That was the emotion.

Sensing the fear of death slowly approaching, she tried to move her body, but her legs wouldn’t budge.

The branch whip that had sent her rolling on the ground came flying once more.

If the previous strike had hit from right to left, this one was coming down from above.

“Mom… I’m sorry…”

She had been arrogant. Hasty and stupid.

The professor in charge hadn’t been wrong about anything.

-‘Wake up from your dream. Do you really think you can take down even a single monster right now?’

A hopeless reject who couldn’t even defeat a single monster. Realizing this was her true self, she closed her eyes.

But why?

Suddenly, light shone down on her head. Along with a crashing sound.

“Huh…?”

The girl opened her eyes slightly. She realized something had disappeared from the ground she was looking at.

The shadow was gone.

The shadow cast by the tree’s branch that was about to strike down and cover her body in darkness. But was that all?

“Did you think it ended just because you were lacking?”

The shadow cast by the tree’s branch hadn’t just disappeared.

It had been shattered.

That thing that had broken her ribs and could easily send a human body flying.

Now it lay scattered on the ground in pieces. Only she and the man who had just spoken were present.

Rana slowly raised her head.

Eventually, the girl faced jet-black hair that even the sunlight couldn’t obscure.

“If you know you’re lacking, you should learn to solve it. Don’t ever charge in recklessly like this again.”

No. Rather, it seemed as if the sunlight created a halo behind him.