Ch.5005. Entrance Exam Simulation

While the Demeia Academy did not place much importance on formality and ostentation, that didn’t mean the entrance ceremony lacked grandeur. On the contrary, major events were lavishly funded and conducted on a grand scale, especially the entrance and graduation ceremonies, which exceeded all expectations in their magnificence.

The reason was simple.

The entrance ceremony was attended by high-ranking nobles because it welcomed noble children proving their blue blood and talented individuals who would be responsible for the empire’s future.

Similarly, the graduation ceremony was held almost like an official imperial event, as it was a tribute to nobles who had completed their proof and to talented individuals who had become the empire’s future.

The main reason the Demeia Academy couldn’t afford to prepare these ceremonies carelessly was that imperial family members close to the line of succession took turns attending to grace the occasions.

Gilbert sat in his assigned seat, guided by attendants, while marveling at the splendid interior decorations he had only seen in virtual reality before. Judging by his position in the front rows, it was clear that seating had been arranged according to social status.

No matter how much this place claimed to value merit above all else, it would be unreasonable to place nobles and commoners on equal footing at such formal occasions.

Moreover, doing so at an entrance ceremony attended by imperial family members could, in extreme cases, be treated as sympathizing with the Resistance that praised the Republic.

Of course, that was an extreme example—usually, such situations would end with someone merely expressing discomfort—but it was better to avoid creating such situations in the first place.

How much time had passed?

While Gilbert was glancing around to locate the protagonist, all the empty seats were filled, and the distinguished guests took their places one by one.

When the Academy Director of Demeia Academy finally ascended the platform to begin the ceremony, the murmuring voices disappeared, and silence fell.

The position of Demeia Academy’s Director was one of considerable power within the empire.

Since all nobles had to attend the academy, and it gathered the empire’s finest talents, if the Director were to turn against the empire, it could lead to irreversible disaster.

For this reason, the position of Director had been held by the Duramentum Marquis family, staunch imperial loyalists, for generations, and they had been granted the middle name “Demeia” directly by the emperor.

The current Director, Marquis Lucas, had achieved remarkable military accomplishments before inheriting the position from his predecessor. He had attained the first rank as a knight and was considered one of the strongest swords protecting the empire.

During his time as a field commander, he was famous for being highly respected by his subordinates. Gilbert, who had played Tactical Combat, had quite liked Marquis Lucas for his integrity and the respect he commanded from his subordinates.

Considering how many people in the community called him the “elderly charisma” and even cosplayed as him, it was clear how popular Marquis Lucas had been.

In that sense, Gilbert felt a strange sense of awe seeing Marquis Lucas Demeia Duramentum on the platform. As he had thought when meeting Seraphina, it felt peculiar to see in person a character he had only encountered in virtual reality.

Marquis Lucas, who had ascended the platform, looked around at the new students who had been admitted this year. Students of all kinds, from children of famous noble families to commoners who didn’t even have a family name, were all looking at him.

He greatly enjoyed this scene that he witnessed every year since becoming the Academy Director. While on the battlefield he had to watch the empire’s stars fade away, at the academy it was the opposite.

He felt invigorated just by facing these shining stars who would be responsible for the empire’s future.

He was very curious about what talented individuals had entered the academy this time. And he was beginning to look forward to the entrance mock battle, the first opportunity to confirm this.

Standing on the platform, Lucas cleared his throat and began to speak into a magic device enchanted with amplification magic.

“Welcome, everyone. I am Lucas Demeia Duramentum, the Director of Demeia Academy.”

Lucas’s speech, which began like a commander addressing troops before deployment, had the power to captivate the audience’s attention.

A commander’s position was one where a single word could manipulate the morale of allies. Turning the tide of an unfavorable battle with a single word was also part of a commander’s capability.

Among them, Marquis Lucas, who had served as the field army commander of the Infractus front, was particularly outstanding in this talent.

“This Academy Director has no interest in what you did before coming to Demeia Academy. This is a place where you must prove yourself, a battlefield.”

Having instantly captured the attention of everyone at the entrance ceremony, Marquis Lucas continued his congratulatory speech and mock battle opening address.

“Do not rely on your family background. If you are a noble, you must prove your blue blood, and if you are a commoner, you must draw out your innate talents. Prove yourself endlessly, again and again. That is the purpose of your presence here.”

Though his words were devoid of any rhetoric and utterly rigid, they struck a chord in everyone’s heart.

“I will end the introduction here. I now declare the opening of Demeia Academy’s entrance mock battle.”

With that short and powerful speech, Marquis Lucas descended from the platform.

Gilbert observed the professors moving in perfect unison as he watched the introduction to the tutorial he had seen and heard countless times. The Demeia entrance mock battle began by dividing the new students into four teams.

Dividing them into just two teams would result in a simple frontal battle between the sides, while three teams would lead to two teams forming an alliance to overwhelm the third, followed by the allied teams fighting each other.

That’s why they decided to divide them into four teams for the mock battle. Of course, three teams could form an alliance to defeat one team, or two pairs of teams could form alliances for a frontal battle.

But if one team was eliminated in such a way, the story would change. The moment an intact alliance defeated the opposing alliance, they would become enemies again.

Even within the same alliance, they had to check for betrayal and be mindful of preserving their strength. In the case of the entrance mock battle, which was conducted in a short period, judgment in the moment was more important than anything else.

That’s why the student who became the commander could receive high bonus points but would also be subject to harsh judgment. The evaluation was strict because the commander student was given full command authority.

‘Well, let’s get started.’

Due to the special nature of the evaluation, they would first accept volunteers for the commander position, and if there were no volunteers, they would select a commander student at random before proceeding with the mock battle.

This is where the character creation of Tactical Combat begins. A choice appears whether to volunteer as a commander student or not, and the moment you choose, it affects the special ability scores of authority and leadership.

If you volunteer as a commander student, the difficulty naturally increases significantly. Gilbert had once experienced the commander difficulty when he was still a newbie, and his evaluation plummeted, causing him to struggle throughout the game until he eventually started over.

Trusting his military experience and being cocky was his sin.

Gilbert shook his head. That was only before he became familiar with it.

Of course, he couldn’t guarantee it would be the same now that the game had become reality, but experience doesn’t just disappear. If anything, being in reality might make it easier to apply his military experience.

“I am Rohas, in charge of conducting this mock battle. Would any of the incoming students like to volunteer for the role of commander?”

Before stepping forward, Gilbert quickly looked around. Everyone seemed to be in an exploratory phase, looking around at each other, but no one was stepping forward readily.

Commoner students felt burdened by the thought of giving orders to nobles, while noble students were assessing the situation and timing, considering possible variables. But not Gilbert.

“I will do it.”

Before anyone else, and faster than anyone else.

Volunteering to be the commander first during character creation was an achievement in the game. Taking this route came with the penalty of being ganged up on if a team was eliminated during the mock battle, but if you successfully led your team to victory, you received a high ability score bonus.

You get what you show. That was the advantage of this route.

“Gilbert Lion Heart, you are appointed as the commander of Team 1. Please come this way first.”

All eyes turned to Gilbert. The curious gazes wondering who the first volunteer commander would be soon changed to looks of contempt and hatred.

Trash, hopeless, scoundrel.

None of the evaluations conveyed by those gazes were positive. Gilbert knew this well but deliberately ignored it. Even if he hadn’t done anything himself, there was nothing he could do about public opinion.

His infamy had already spread widely among both noble and commoner students. Since he had already been branded as an irredeemable scoundrel within his domain, it was inevitable that his reputation would spread even to Demeia Academy.

Therefore, his plan for changing perceptions was simple. No matter how many good deeds he did, he couldn’t escape being accused of image laundering as a piece of trash.

But if he could highlight the thought, “I didn’t know that trash had such a side to him,” the story would change a bit. When a bad person tries to reform by continuously doing good deeds, they get criticized for image laundering, but if they occasionally do good deeds, people look at them with surprise, thinking, “I didn’t know they had that side to them.”

Gilbert aimed for that subtle difference. Just the single notion that “even that guy has such a side” could completely reverse evaluations. The beginning of what was needed for this was precisely this entrance mock battle.

“Is there anyone else who wishes to be a commander?”

At Rohas’s words, Gilbert carefully observed the students who were still hesitating. Part of it was to see who would emerge as competitors, but the main reason was curiosity about which route the protagonist, who should be at the entrance ceremony, would take.

Gilbert had chosen this route not only to change perceptions but also to receive bonus points for special ability scores to pursue the commander route instead of relying on flawed trait skills.

If the protagonist didn’t take the commander route, Gilbert planned to use him as a subordinate, and if he did take the commander route, Gilbert would use him as a fellow commander. That’s why he was curious about the protagonist’s choice of route.

After a brief moment, finally, another student volunteered to be a commander after Gilbert.

“I will do it.”

A young man with rare black hair, the complete opposite of Gilbert with his soft features typical of a handsome man, raised his hand high.

Gilbert’s eyes suddenly lit up.

The protagonist of Tactical Combat had finally appeared.