Ch.39Group Project (3)

# In group projects, there exist various types of villains.

There’s the incompetent member who lacks any knowledge in the field and can’t contribute anything. There’s the whiner who always has prior commitments and complains about finishing quickly. And there’s the troublemaker whose stubborn attitude not only ruins teamwork but also causes serious discord.

As seen in the examples above, while group projects have many villains, the most representative one is the “free rider.”

So what does free riding mean? Literally, it’s the “criminal act” of using transportation without paying. In group projects, these are the so-called conscience-sellers who do nothing but hope others will do everything for them.

However, as the definition suggests, it’s not a crime if you pay the proper fare. In group projects too, if someone has unavoidable circumstances or completely lacks knowledge in the field, they sometimes become “sponsors” who provide various conveniences.

For instance, they might fully pay for a study room rental or buy delicious food whenever there’s a discussion. In such cases, it’s not free riding but properly paying the fare for a comfortable bus ride.

Of course, it’s not good to exploit this in reverse by resolving everything with money. At the very least, one should explain the circumstances and get the consent of team members.

“I look forward to working with you. I’ve been keeping an eye on you.”

With her cute yet elegant appearance and a delicate frame that seemed less than 160cm tall.

The brown-haired girl, Aira, who exuded an adorable doll-like aura, smiled and greeted me. On the surface, it looked like a polite greeting from a noble family’s daughter.

But I could clearly see how she had been sizing up Benjamin and Leona before greeting me. It was definitely not a gaze between equals.

Unlike Jackson who looked down on others openly, she seemed to harbor a hidden knife in her heart. I might be overreacting, but having often volunteered as a pushover in group projects, I could somewhat see through people.

Whether they were genuinely interested in participating in the group project or just planning to free ride.

My first impression of Aira leaned toward the latter.

‘But a Matthius Marquis…’

As everyone knows, a marquis is just below a duke in rank, and there are a total of three marquis families in the Empire of Minerva. Among them, the Matthius family is a border earl responsible for the empire’s borders.

Also, I know that the Navy Knights, where my father once served and where Dave is currently training as an apprentice knight, belongs to the Matthius family. The Navy Knights are closer to a special forces unit that conducts special operations rather than regular warfare, which is why they’re affiliated with the military family of Matthius.

“…I’m Issac Dukar Mayshall. So you’re from the Matthius family. It’s an honor to meet you.”

I put on a friendly expression and formally greeted Aira, who was waiting for my response. While my first impression wasn’t particularly positive, I could observe her over time.

Aira curled up the corners of her mouth even more at my greeting, then turned to look at Benjamin. When Benjamin met her gaze, he flinched before hastily greeting her.

“Be-Benjamin Blank! Ni-nice to meet you!”

“Nice to meet you too. And…”

Finally, Aira turned her gaze to Leona. When their eyes met, Leona opened her mouth with her characteristically inorganic expression.

“I’m Leona Lions.”

Unlike Benjamin who had made a fuss, Leona greeted her with a stiff expression and voice as rigid as a wooden block. An ordinary person might have dismissed it as an unusual personality.

But Aira was different. When Leona greeted her bluntly, the corners of her upturned mouth dropped slightly.

“…Is that it?”

And then she even questioned it. Her voice tone had lowered, making it clear to anyone that she was being sarcastic.

However, Leona didn’t seem to notice the meaning, or she responded with a consistently monotone voice until the end. The key point was how she tilted her head as if she genuinely didn’t understand.

“I did greet you, didn’t I?”

“…No. I just thought your personality was a bit unique.”

Fortunately, it seemed to pass somehow. A trace of displeasure was detected on Aira’s face, but I pretended not to notice. Seeing this, I inwardly sighed.

Even in a changed world, my luck with group projects remained consistently poor. Moreover, since we seemed to have gotten off on the wrong foot, it was hard to predict what lay ahead. Of course, this wasn’t Leona’s fault but entirely due to Aira’s sense of authority.

As I mentioned before, while nobles might understand each other, the gap between nobles and commoners is indescribably large. No matter how low-ranking a noble might be, commoners must absolutely obey them.

Having lived in a democratic society, I find this unfortunate, but in this world, such a system is considered normal. If I had been born in this world without memories of my past life, would I have lived with a sense of authority like Jackson or Aira?

“…Anyway, now that introductions are over, what should we do next?”

Aira brought up the main topic while an odd atmosphere lingered. She too seemed uncomfortable with the situation.

I recalled the group project method that Professor Virus had explained earlier. In fact, there wasn’t much difference from group projects in my past life; it was almost identical.

So now, we needed to decide on the most important part.

Something that someone definitely has to do, but I don’t want to do it and hope someone else will.

“…A group leader?”

We needed to decide on a “leader” who would guide the group members.

As soon as I brought it up, everyone started darting their eyes around. This confirmed that human behavior remains unchanged no matter where you go.

However, at this moment, our group was uniquely positioned. Benjamin, being a commoner, would hesitate to step forward with nobles like me and Aira present, and Leona, maintaining her concept, wasn’t active.

This meant that only Aira and I were suitable candidates for the leader position.

‘I might as well do it.’

It would be more comfortable for me. In my past life too, I would step up rather than uncomfortably reading the room.

I was about to open my mouth, inwardly sighing.

“If no one else wants to do it, I’ll take the lead. That would be more comfortable for you all, right?”

An unexpected situation unfolded.

Aira placed her hands on her hips and confidently declared that she would be the group leader. I looked at her with a surprised expression.

I don’t know where her confidence came from, but in group projects, the leader is the person with the most risk. If the members perform well, there’s no problem, but the moment even one villain appears, the leader faces all kinds of stress.

Could Aira really handle the role of a leader well? I was genuinely concerned and expressed my worry.

“Are you sure? It won’t be easy.”

“Don’t worry. Leave it all to me. You just need to do as I say. Got it?”

“… …”

This kind of style could actually be detrimental. It’s often said that someone who’s enthusiastic but incompetent is the most dangerous. Not only does it affect work efficiency, but it can also put allies at risk.

However, if she becomes the “sponsor” I mentioned earlier, the story changes. Aira might not know, but this project is easy enough for me to handle entirely on my own. Being the author of the Biography of Xenon, I’d have to put down my pen if I couldn’t handle this.

Anyway, I could only desperately hope that Aira would be a leader and not a dictator. If she truly had a dictatorial style, the road ahead would be tough.

And if free riding was added to the mix, there was a high chance she’d just give orders without doing anything herself. Judging by the look in her eyes earlier, the possibility seemed quite high.

“First, is there anyone here who hasn’t read up to volume 8 of the Biography of Xenon? For reference, I’ve read them all. I also have the books in my dormitory, so I can lend them if you want.”

Had her mindset changed after becoming the leader? Surprisingly, Aira was enthusiastic.

It was to the point where I genuinely questioned if she was really a free rider. I looked at her with a renewed perspective and answered.

“I’ve read them all.”

“I’ve read them all.”

As I opened my mouth, Leona said the exact same thing simultaneously. We both went “Huh?” and looked at each other without any prompting.

However, when Leona met my gaze, she only twitched the area below her eyes and then turned her head forward again without saying anything else. I felt slightly disappointed.

While it made sense for me as an author, I wondered how Leona had acquired them. Even Marie, the daughter of Duke Reckyless, had said they were hard to obtain.

I tilted my head and then looked at Aira. She had one eye raised, wearing an expression of surprise.

“…I see. It must have been hard to get, but you managed somehow.”

Judging by her reaction, she had assumed that Leona and I wouldn’t have been able to obtain the Biography of Xenon. But what’s noteworthy here is that she seemed quite disappointed.

The Biography of Xenon is a book that sells out as soon as it’s released, so one should normally be relieved. The more books read, the smoother the project would progress.

But she seemed uncomfortable for some reason, as if something wasn’t going according to her plan.

“I, I haven’t read them all. Actually, I haven’t even read volume 6…”

“Really?”

As if to confirm my suspicion, as soon as Benjamin cautiously spoke up, Aira’s face lit up. Seeing this, it’s not strange to feel an inexplicable sense of unease rising.

Aira then tapped her lips and spoke to Benjamin with a tone suggesting she was doing him a favor.

“I could lend them to you if you want. I’ve bought all eight volumes.”

“Re-really? That would be great…”

“But there’s one condition.”

“What?”

Benjamin’s eyes widened in surprise when Aira interrupted and mentioned a condition. Not just him, I was also taken aback.

I glanced at Leona to check her reaction, but she maintained the same inscrutable expression as before. Still, I guessed she probably felt similar to me.

Meanwhile, Aira curled up the corners of her mouth and revealed the nature of the condition to the bewildered Benjamin.

“You’ll have to do something for me in return…”

“I can lend you the books.”

Before Aira could finish, Leona cut in. Her tone was as rigid as ever, but there was a hint of discomfort in it.

Aira stopped abruptly when Leona interrupted. She then pressed her lips together and looked at Leona with a cold gaze.

“…Were you taught that it’s okay to interrupt someone when they’re speaking?”

Aira’s chilling pressure continued. An atmosphere that didn’t match her doll-like, elegant appearance and small stature began to seep out.

But Leona wasn’t one to back down easily. Since she was seated, she looked up at Aira and responded stiffly.

“I spoke up because I didn’t see the necessity for Aira to lend the books. If I’ve offended you, I apologize.”

“Do you think a mere apology is enough? I’m upset now.”

“… …”

Faced with Aira’s continued pressure, Leona didn’t respond. She remained expressionless, but there was a hint of “Do I really have to do this?” in her face, or so it seemed.

Seeing this reaction, Aira clicked her tongue and warned Leona in a stern voice. Thankfully, she seemed to have decided to let it go.

“This is a warning. If you show such behavior again, I’ll remove you from the group. As the leader, I have that authority. Understand?”

“I understand. But I will still lend the books to Benjamin.”

“Do as you please.”

“Th-thank you, Leona.”

Benjamin thanked Leona but also kept an eye on Aira. Seeing him grovel made him look a bit pitiful.

Watching the situation, I muttered to myself.

‘There’s no need to cause division…’

It might have been better if Aira had lent the books to Benjamin and received something in return. After all, Benjamin was a commoner, and Aira was a noble.

What Leona just did clearly undermines a noble’s authority. I don’t care about such authority, but it’s clear that other nobles would view it unfavorably.

As I mentioned earlier, commoners must bow to nobles even if they’re just heirs or heiresses who haven’t officially inherited their titles. It’s a kind of “common sense” concept.

“Hmph. Commoners… I can’t even get angry over this…”

“… …”

“Why are you looking at me like that? Do you have something to say?”

“No.”

I think I have a rough idea of what kind of person Aira is. While I’m not entirely sure, one thing is certain.

The moment someone offends her, this group will disintegrate.

I could vaguely sense it when she mentioned having the authority as the leader. I’ll need to keep observing, but she seems to dislike having her authority compromised.

‘This could get a bit tiring…’

I thought that something beyond free riding might be born.

While I was thinking this, Aira stared at my face with a prim expression and called my name.

“Issac.”

“Yes. What is it?”

“You can do well, right?”

At first glance, it might sound like a question of trust, but it implied that she couldn’t trust Benjamin and Leona.

It seems she found me, a fellow noble who stood out in class, more reliable than commoners.

Moreover, though she doesn’t know it, I’m the original author of the Biography of Xenon, the subject of our group project.

I can confidently say that I can do more than just do well; I can chew it up thoroughly.

“You don’t need to worry.”

“Hmm. Really? Alright. I’ll trust you for now.”

Was she already dividing people into nobles and commoners? Aira patted my shoulder as encouragement. And she looked at Benjamin and Leona with a haughty gaze.

I stared at Aira, maintaining a stoic expression on the outside while inwardly heaving a deep sigh.

‘Everything’s fine, just please don’t be stubborn.’

Since I can handle everything, I just hope she doesn’t troll.

Although I’m not sure if she’s capable or not, it’s clear from her conflict with Leona that she has a sense of authority. I’d like to avoid the group disintegrating due to unnecessary stubbornness.

‘I should keep the worst-case scenario in mind, just in case.’

Even though we started off on a rocky note, there hadn’t been any major issues so far.

At least not yet. Above all…

‘Looking again, she’s like a fairy.’

I believe everyone knows who I was thinking about.