Chap 8-First Day at the Academy 3

 

Thanks to that, the nobles who had been quietly watching are now ridiculing Arietta, regardless of gender.

Of course. Those people have already boarded the ship of another successor candidate.

Arietta, who doesn’t even aim for the throne, must feel wronged.

“Next is Miss Bathory. Now that I see it, you’re wearing pants.”

“Ah, due to my family’s circumstances, I’m not in a position to wear dresses.”

“Hmm. The fashion is a bit disappointing, but your appearance is so outstanding, and a noble’s dignity doesn’t come from fashion alone. Let’s check it out now. Would you walk from that end to here?”

At the professor’s order, I walked from the end of the classroom to the professor as instructed.

Embodying the dignity of a noble.

“Wonderful! Perfect! How can she exude such noble grace even in that attire! Look, everyone. You must move like Miss Bathory!”

The students’ gazes are fixed on me.

Are they perhaps losing to a thief like me?

Their eyes, filled with jealousy and competitiveness, glare at me.

Do nobles pay attention to even these little things?

I leisurely sat down at the table next to the desk.

Andrei Lee waved his hand, and a teacup descended from the air as if by Magic.

With a relaxed gesture, in a proper posture, I lifted the teacup with a steady hand and slowly brought it to my lips.

Yes. This was something I learned to use when cross-dressing as a noblewoman.

-But, I’m a man.

-If you cross-dress, you’re a woman. You look like one.

-Oh, come on! Ouch!

How much unfair and absurd time did I endure?

Thinking about those days, it was really unnecessary.

Well, to be honest, I did cross-dress a few times after that, but I only had tea time once or twice.

Even those situations didn’t require it.

To be praised by a professor of an ambiguous gender, neither male nor female.

“Yes. Like that with the tea. Yes. Adjust the angle of your arm like that and maintain a relaxed posture. As if to show that I am noble even when drinking a cup of tea. That’s it. Indeed, you were a bit reprehensible for taking a few days off on the first day, but you’re absolutely perfect.”

Now he’s even praising how I drink tea. Andrei Lee clapped his hands until they were red.

Waves of emotion swirled in his eyes.

The eyes of a proud teacher looking at a student who perfectly understands noble grace.

It’s overwhelming.

Do nobles waste their time on things like this?

“Um. Thank you.”

“So humble! You can be a little more proud. Now, can you show us how to hold a fork and knife?”

I showed him as instructed, and he repeated the praise.

These are actions that would normally earn me scolding from a master, so I don’t know if this Schperen Academy is normal.

“I hope the young masters will be inspired by Miss Bathory’s appearance. Surely, a man of stature cannot be inferior to a young lady, can he?”

After praising me for a long time, Andrei Lee finished the lecture, saying that he would teach flower embroidery next time.

Is this what they call liberal arts?

It’s a required subject, so I can’t skip it.

Honestly, this is just a waste of time.

“Miss Bathory, what is this? You knew how to do this?”

Arietta, looking somewhat angry, asked me that.

“Yes. Well.”

“You said you were a little good at it?”

Perhaps because she was scolded by Andrei Lee earlier, Arietta glared at me.

But I feel wronged.

That master said it was nothing.

“I was rolled around and cursed at by my master, so I thought it was just a little.”

“What kind of person was your master?”

“I don’t know.”

I don’t know either.

Judging from the fact that she knows this, she doesn’t seem like a simple thief.

Honestly, it seems like she’s really a noblewoman.

Even though she tightly controls the underworld, and even though the nobles are hooked, they’re leaving Bathory alone.

It’s suspicious after all.

And.

“Did you say Miss Bathory? You’re really amazing!”

“That perfect appearance that the young ladies struggle with!”

“I’ve never heard of the Bathory family. Where is your territory?”

Now, potential prey are flocking to me from all directions.

The life of a young lady is tiring.

“Are you perhaps from a family of martial arts? Perhaps a knight?”

“We are not a family of knights. My family, um, has circumstances, so the women also develop their strength.”

“I see. A woman with strength is a beautiful thing. I am Roman from the Joseph family.”

A very excited man introduced himself to me.

Judging by his eyes, he sees me as a woman.

I could feel lust for the opposite sex in his gaze.

It’s quite unpleasant.

I’ve felt this when I cross-dressed once or twice.

It’s best to just look at this with one eye and let it flow out the other ear.

“Ah, yes.”

“I am Roberts, the second son of the Yuner Heim family.”

“I see.”

Annoying things.

As expected, the world of nobles is hard to understand.

This is rather annoying. Even though it’s better than fighting, the gaze of the opposite sex, or rather, the gaze that was the same sex until recently, is so unpleasant.

Is my appearance that pretty?

“Ah, by the way, what is your relationship with the princess?”

“The princess and I are friends.”

Since I’ve already told Ailia that, I can’t say anything other than friends.

And.

Like a lie, the wave of nobles that had been surrounding me quickly disappeared.

This alone shows how bad Arietta’s position is.

Arietta herself seems very depressed.

“Indeed, this is how you can get rid of people who stick to you.”

“That’s quite unpleasant.”

“Consider it a compliment and be happy. Where to next?”

“Fortunately, today’s schedule is relaxed. We just need to go to the swordsmanship department.”

Swordsmanship department.

If I registered for everything in the same place as the princess.

I must be registered in the swordsmanship department, just like when I lectured in liberal arts.

“The princess in the swordsmanship department? That doesn’t suit her.”

“What?”

“No, I just mean it’s unexpected.”

This princess in the swordsmanship department?

Ah, is it pressure from the imperial family? If you’re a member of the imperial family, you’re probably in the swordsmanship department.

Anyway, the Paleove Empire is quite serious about swordsmanship.

I’ve seen some members of the imperial family do that before.

The imperial family has always had a promiscuous lifestyle, so there are many collateral relatives.

They also said that the imperial family made them learn swordsmanship to prepare for the battle with the Demon King.

“Sister Ailia is also in the swordsmanship department.”

“Oh, are you meeting her?”

If so, my mouth is watering.

If I catch that princess from the first day and bring one person down, maybe the other students won’t ignore Arietta.

It’s good to secure stability first.

“No, it’s practically impossible. How big is the age gap?”

“Tsk.”

“You’re being obvious.”

“It can’t be helped. Ailia Princess types have to be suppressed like this.”

It’s obvious.

Ailia is probably doing well in the swordsmanship department.

Even though I ignored her back then, considering that the imperial family was originally a family of generals, she must have learned something.

Ailia probably has that too, so she’s full of pride.

If you trample on such a woman in advance?

Once the wings of a bird that was about to fly are broken, it’s bound to be ignored.

“Do you know that my sister is deeply versed in swordsmanship?”

“That’s why. I’m going to blatantly oppress her openly in front of many people.”

Touch the pride of the imperial family.

What could be better than that?

The imperial family is the noblest existence, so if you tarnish their reputation even a little, they will eventually become enraged.

No matter how good a person’s personality is, if they’re fundamentally a member of the imperial family, they won’t be able to stand it if someone with no background spits in their face.

“Assassins will come every night.”

“That’s good. If I catch assassins like that, I’ll catch their tails.”

“Wow. How did you come up with that idea?”

“So, are there any people from her faction?”

“There are some. That man from earlier.”

Oh.

Are you talking about the guy who was scared of me earlier?

Hmm. Then it’s not bad.

If he’s under Ailia, it’s a good idea to get rid of him in advance.

Arietta has only been checked and lived, so she doesn’t know how important this is.

At least cutting off one limb is beneficial to us.

So.

I’ll step on that guy.

I sat on Arietta’s desk and said in a slightly despicable voice.

“Let’s step on that guy first.”

“You’re not a thug, and you’re saying it too easily.”

“Ailia and her people are basically thugs with decent status.”

Looking at their eyes earlier, they’re all glitzy on the outside but have daggers hidden behind them.

After learning this and that under that master, I was able to recognize people naturally.

Yes.

Ailia. Beneath that beautiful mask was a power monster more hideous than anyone else.

Maybe the other people aiming for the throne are the same.

On the other hand, Arietta is just like a scared squirrel.

“So, are you really going to fight?”

“I don’t touch them unless they hit me first.”

Humans live by helping each other and living in harmony.

Me secretly stealing in the underworld means sharing what I have and using it together.

Unfortunately, those fools aiming for the throne are the ones who are touching me.

“I see.”

“More than that, how many people do we have to deal with?”

“Three.”

Three people.

In other words, there are three imperial succession candidates that need to be caught and dropped.

In the end, the master asked me for something difficult.

In order to have a peaceful academy life, I have to beat up those royals.

It’s definitely better than being with that hero party.

“Unexpectedly few.”

“The problem is that it’s very difficult to catch those three.”

It’s definitely an academy, so you can’t go the easy way.

The Thieves’ Guild also accepts assassination requests, so I’ve learned about assassination.

Well, if you catch them without anyone knowing, that’s assassination.

What’s more scary than assassination is burying them socially.

“So, let’s start by dropping their reputation.”

After dropping their reputation, we’ll drag them into the swamp and crush them.

Before aiming for the throne, they’ll be beings who can’t even touch their own sister.

How the empire will change without a single imperial successor is a pleasure for later.

The swordsmanship department’s class begins in a huge training ground located between the main building and the dormitory building of Schperen Academy.

Even the training ground is really huge.

Barrier rods coated in gold are embedded in the barrier that surrounds the training ground.

It’s probably to prepare for injuries that may occur while training in the training ground.

“What are you looking at?”

“Those barrier rods look quite expensive.”

“That’s right. Thanks to that, the nobles can fight each other in the swordsmanship department without any problems. I saw this place once when I took an entrance exam.”

If that’s the case.

That means it doesn’t matter how much I beat up Ailia or anyone else?

Okay. I’ll definitely remember that.

A mad dog only comes to its senses when it’s beaten. A royal only learns fear when they’re beaten.

Good, the scenario is perfectly drawn in my head.

It’s a relief it’s not Magic.

“It must have been installed for the nobles?”

“Probably?”

At the end of the barrier rods covered in gold, there is even a lion statue symbolizing the Paleove Empire.

As a country bumpkin with no background, I can’t help but think that this is a facility where the empire’s wealth is concentrated.

The only thing I like is that the practice is realistic.

If it’s mainly sparring, doesn’t that mean that at least the nobles are prepared to be hit?

“Isn’t that Arietta Princess?”

“Shh. Don’t mention it carelessly. You know what time it is.”

“Ah, that’s right.”

The students just ignored the princess even when they saw her.

Yes. That means there are factions here too, whether it’s Ailia or other royals.

Not long after, the professor entered the training ground.

I’ve seen him once on the empire’s front lines.

Gustav, the black-haired swordsman.

I heard that he was not assigned to the military, but he was specially appointed as an instructor for his activities on the battlefield as a high-level adventurer.

Gustav scanned the students as if he recognized the latecomers.

“There are two new students today.”

“I guess he’s calling the princess.”

“No, you’re included too.”

“The princess and hmm, you are. Are you Miss Bathory who attended today?”

Gustav didn’t need me to say anything.

How did my master manipulate the attendance sheet?