Ch.6006. Entrance Examination Mock Battle

Ian Tigris Linebarrel.

The protagonist and playable character of Tactical Combat, he was the legitimate son of a count’s family with a narrative of entering the academy and becoming a war hero.

His appearance—a handsome man with soft features, a sturdy build, and melancholic eyes—perfectly captured the preferences of many female players. As a result, he became a popular cosplay subject, with both male and female cosplayers continuing to dress as Ian long after the game’s release.

However, for Gilbert, what mattered more than this background was the protagonist’s current state. Being a playable character, the protagonist’s personality was determined by dialogue choices.

When first enjoying the game’s story, Gilbert often chose options that showed a serious and heroic demeanor, but as time passed, he began selecting all sorts of outrageous dialogue options to unlock branching sub-quests.

Choosing to annihilate villages or violate prisoners of war was considered mild. Achieving “Complete All Achievements” required engaging in such outrageous behaviors.

The issue now was what kind of character the protagonist would be in this reality where Gilbert wasn’t controlling him.

According to the developer’s official statement, Ian Tigris Linebarrel was described as an upright and just character, and following the choices that gamers considered “canon” clearly revealed these traits, leading to generally positive evaluations of Ian.

Gilbert had thought the same in his original world, but after waking up in the Tactical Combat world, he revised much of what he knew. Though he was a veteran player, it was impossible to remember every detailed setting; he mostly recalled major events and essential items to collect.

But now, experiencing firsthand the ripple effects caused by the “scoundrel” setting he had thoughtlessly applied when creating Gilbert, he abandoned the notion that all game settings would match up.

Even in the game, countless sub-quests and divergent endings could be triggered by a single choice. With the addition of DLC, that number had increased further, so in this reality, nothing could be taken for granted until seen with one’s own eyes.

That’s why Gilbert eagerly anticipated meeting the protagonist. As the entire continent would be engulfed in war, a heroic protagonist needed to be the figurehead and core of the allied forces. Given his rock-bottom reputation, Gilbert knew there were clear limits to how much he could improve people’s perception of him, especially considering those who had already suffered because of him.

Gilbert glanced sideways at Ian standing beside him. His firmly closed mouth and confident gaze passed the initial appearance test. Though not a physiognomist, Gilbert was relieved that Ian didn’t seem weak-willed or timid.

When Ian stood beside Gilbert, the number of people eligible for commander positions was reduced to two. At that point, the exploration phase lost its meaning. The purpose of the exploration was to become a commander, but two positions were already filled, with only two remaining. From now on, they had to compete fiercely for the remaining positions.

Gilbert checked if there were any major companion characters among the cadets vying for commander positions. Since becoming a stagnant, even rotten player, most achievements had forced solo play, and he had been too lazy to recruit companions, preferring to go it alone. But here, this wasn’t a game where you could retry—it was a one-coin hardcore reality.

Needing reliable companions who could fight alongside him, Gilbert dug through his memories for information about companions he had previously discarded. As he recalled, there were essential companion characters who had to be recruited in the year the protagonist enrolled.

One had pink hair and a picky personality, but after recruiting her as a companion, she became as reliable as comfort food. Gamers nicknamed her “Pinky” because of her pink hair, but she had the fortitude to never back down from her responsibilities, even with a knife to her throat.

‘Her name was definitely Lily or something like that?’

“Lily Roseus Nobilitas, appointed as commander of Team 3. Please come forward.”

Yes, that was exactly her name.

Gilbert watched as Lily, newly appointed as commander, stepped forward.

She had a modest height with pink hair that easily reached past her waist. Her soft, slightly round facial features and eyes full of confidence were impressive.

But what really drew the cadets’ attention was something else.

Bounce, bounce.

It was the enormous breasts that seemed mismatched with her petite frame, moving up and down with each step she took. Though the tight cadet uniform minimized their movement, no one could avoid noticing that sacred motion.

‘Indeed, Pinky.’

The nickname “Pinky” that gamers had given this comfort food character stemmed entirely from her massive bust. In reality, her personality was somewhat naive regarding sexual matters, and Gilbert remembered there was even a meme in some communities saying, “That’s just how Pinky is these days.”

Glare.

Lily, now positioned next to Ian, shot Gilbert a piercing look. He was puzzled by her sudden hostility, but then remembered that he was Gilbert Lion Heart.

While Lily had a picky personality, she wasn’t particularly difficult. If anything, she tended to be kind. As the academy story progressed, she never treated commoners poorly and never crossed any lines.

However, there was only one situation where she would become this enraged: when encountering trash like Gilbert.

“Gilbert Lion Heart.”

“What is it?”

From Lily’s voice filled with hostility, Gilbert realized he had blown his chance at recruiting her as a companion before even trying. He had forgotten the basic fact that Lily could feel nothing but contempt for Gilbert, known as the count family’s scoundrel.

“Even scum like you couldn’t escape the proof of blue blood, I see?”

“As you can see.”

“Ha! Then I’ll make sure you pay for your sins.”

Gilbert turned away from the hate-filled Lily, appearing disinterested, but inwardly he realized something had gone wrong. Her tone suggested she had known Gilbert for a long time, and their relationship was clearly not good.

Without even waiting to see who would be selected as the final commander candidate, he began searching through Gilbert’s memories. Fortunately, he could access the original Gilbert’s memories—from before his possession—as easily as pulling a book from a shelf.

Just as the final commander candidate took their place, Gilbert found the memory he was looking for and secretly clenched his fist.

It was cliché, if anything. Gilbert had severely bullied young Lily, who had been self-conscious about her large chest. Even then showing his true colors, he had been relentless even toward Lily, the daughter of a promising count’s family.

At some point, they had little interaction, and quite some time had passed without seeing each other as Gilbert was busy causing trouble throughout the domain. But judging by her hostile glare, the childhood wounds still remained.

Gilbert experienced once again the butterfly effect created by a single line of character description. Simultaneously, the thought crossed his mind that this issue would torment him for a very long time.

“All commander cadets have been selected. The entrance mock battle will be entirely under the command of these commander cadets, and subordinate cadets should follow their commanders’ orders during the battle. Cadets will be randomly assigned to each team. After team selection, you will have 30 minutes for strategy planning before the mock battle begins. Are there any questions?”

No one had questions in response to Rohas’s explanation. The rules were very simple: divide into teams and conduct the mock battle according to the commanders’ orders, so there wasn’t much to ask about.

“Then commander cadets should proceed to their designated barracks. The servants will guide you there. I wish all cadets good results in this entrance mock battle.”

Having completed the selection of commander cadets and the general explanation of the entrance mock battle, Rohas withdrew.

Gilbert headed to his barracks, feeling Lily’s hate-filled gaze as she followed a servant to Team 3’s barracks. Somehow, facing that look made him feel like he might not live out his natural lifespan.

He also made a mental note to be cautious in everything, as karma could strike at any time and from anywhere.

The barracks he arrived at, guided by a servant, was quite decent for a temporary facility. Not only was it spacious, but it also featured a tactical board showing the terrain where the entrance mock battle would take place.

Although he had enjoyed it as a game, there were inevitably limitations to its freedom, and he had found many details like this somewhat lacking. Some areas had shown game-like allowances, which made it even more noticeable.

After sitting in the commander’s seat and waiting briefly, the people who would become his team members began to enter one by one.

Their expressions crumpled upon seeing Gilbert—clearly disappointed that their commander was such a scoundrel.

Finally, when all team members had gathered and filled the barracks, Gilbert, who had been quiet until now, picked up the command baton and struck the tactical board, focusing everyone’s attention.

Gilbert’s entrance mock battle was about to begin.