Chapter 372

“We’re almost there, Your Grace.”

Dolph’s voice reached my ears.

But even without his words, I could feel that we were approaching the Holy City.

The scenery outside the window was so familiar that I could tell.

“Halt!”

And that familiar place was now heavily guarded.

I had never seen the gates of the Holy City so heavily fortified.

It was a sign of how unstable the world had become.

In the central continent, the Dark Cult had risen up, seizing territory and gaining power. In the empire, a civil war that had claimed countless lives had just ended.

And there had been an assassination attempt on the new emperor.

And it had been revealed that Red Rain, a mysterious organization, was behind all of it.

It was only natural for the Holy City, the center of the Holy Church, to be on high alert.

“Everyone, get out! We need to verify your identities!”

A middle-aged man, who appeared to be the captain of the guard, shouted, fully armed.

The massive gate behind him was tightly shut, like an impenetrable fortress.

The guards stood in formation, their weapons at the ready, blocking the entrance.

“Don’t you know who he is…?”

Dolph, feeling emboldened by his master’s status, was about to throw his weight around.

But there was no need for that.

It was better to be polite.

I raised my hand to stop him.

“It’s alright, Dolph. I’ll handle it.”

I stepped out of the carriage.

And I handed the guard my pass without any resistance.

“Here’s my pass.”

It was a pass that proved I was a student at lepheria Academy.

With this, I would be able to pass through even the tightest security.

“Hmm, Max Celtrine, fourth-year student at Saint lepheria Academy, citizen of the empire. And the others are… Huh?”

The captain of the guard, who had been about to ask for the others’ passes, suddenly widened his eyes in surprise.

He seemed to have realized something.

“M-Max Celtrine? C-Could you be… D-Duke of Odinel?”

I still wasn’t used to my new title.

It sounded even stranger coming from a stranger’s mouth.

“Yes, I am Duke of Odinel.”

“A-As expected. P-Please forgive my rudeness, Your Grace!”

The captain of the guard’s attitude changed completely.

He bowed deeply.

I had passed through the gates of the Holy City countless times, but this was the first time I had been treated like this.

It was a treatment I had never received when I was just the heir to a count.

Even in the distant Holy City, the title of Duke of the Empire carried a lot of weight.

‘She gave me a bigger gift than I thought.’

I chuckled, thinking of the empress, who had surprised everyone by bestowing the title of duke upon me.

“W-What are you waiting for?! Open the gates!”

The captain of the guard hurriedly ordered.

The tightly shut gates swung open.

The guards hurriedly cleared the way.

The captain of the guard bowed again.

“I apologize for the inconvenience. Please proceed, Your Grace.”

“Thank you. Keep up the good work.”

And so, we easily passed through the heavily guarded gates.

* * *

“Where to?”

“To the academy, of course.”

The carriage headed straight for the academy.

The familiar scent of the air…

It was the scent of the academy.

I could smell it more clearly now that I was back after being away for so long.

“You missed it, didn’t you?”

Regina said, reading my expression.

“Heh, yeah. It’s a place with a lot of memories.”

Countless memories with my seniors, classmates, and juniors.

I remembered them all vividly.

I suddenly wanted to see my graduated seniors.

…The fact that they were all female seniors said a lot about my unusual social circle.

“It’s good to have memories.”

Regina also had many memories of the academy.

Maybe even more than me, with my limited social circle.

She was, after all, the legendary student council president who would be remembered in the academy’s history.

“I agree.”

I smiled.

We soon reached the main gate of the academy.

It had been closed when we left.

But now it was wide open.

“It seems like they’re getting ready to return to normal.”

It was a positive sign.

This academy shouldn’t be affected by the darkness of the world.

It had to keep the flame of hope burning brightly.

That’s what I was fighting for.

“It has to. A place of learning shouldn’t be closed for too long.”

Regina said.

It might have seemed like the academy had been frozen in time, but everyone must have been working hard in their own way.

To return the academy to normalcy as soon as possible.

If the civil war had dragged on, they would have probably resumed classes with half the students.

*Clack, clack.*

The carriage passed through the main gate.

The vast grounds of the academy…

I saw students, even though I had thought there wouldn’t be any.

It seemed like they had opened the academy to the students even though the semester was suspended.

“Shall we go to the dormitory?”

“Yes, we need to unpack first.”

I had my own mansion outside the academy, but I wasn’t planning to stay there this semester.

The dormitory was a more convenient location, since I could respond to any incidents that might occur within the academy immediately.

“Alright.”

The carriage headed towards the student dormitory.

After a while,

“Huh?!”

I heard someone gasp in surprise.

I ignored it.

It was probably just a student who recognized my carriage.

But then,

“W-Wait! Wait!”

I heard someone calling out to me from behind.

But the voice quickly faded away.

It was only natural.

The carriage was still moving.

“S-Someone…”

Dolph said, tilting his head in confusion.

“Don’t worry about it. They’re too far away now. If they have something to say, they’ll find us.”

My words turned out to be prophetic.

The part about them finding us.

But I hadn’t expected them to find us so quickly.

*Whoosh!*

“Whoa!”

A familiar scream rang out.

It was my timid friend’s scream.

Which meant…

I opened the carriage window.

And then,

…I saw a strange sight.

Two people were flying, almost scraping the ground.

It was a familiar sight to me.

But Regina just chuckled and shook her head in disbelief.

“I gave them a lift because they looked pathetic.”

I heard my eccentric friend’s voice, her expression as indifferent as ever.

She hadn’t changed at all.

I couldn’t help but burst out laughing.

“You guys really haven’t changed at all.”

* * *

“L-Leader!”

Allen Benesse lunged at me.

I dodged him easily.

I wasn’t into hugging guys.

“L-Leader?”

He looked at me with teary eyes, as if he was deeply hurt.

…I told you I wasn’t into that, man.

“Max.”

Riviera called my name and bumped into me.

I opened my arms wide and embraced her.

This was how you greeted a friend you hadn’t seen in a long time.

*Thud*

She snuggled into my arms.

She was so small.

She was cute in many ways.

Of course, her true nature was anything but cute.

“I missed you.”

“Me too.”

It was a short exchange, but it was filled with genuine affection.

“W-What about me?”

I heard Allen cry out from the side.

There was no need for special words or actions between men.

Just a simple “Hey, you’re back” was enough.

Honestly, it was true.

“…Your Grace, that’s a bit unfair, don’t you think?”

Regina said, unable to watch any longer.

Oops.

“Why does Your Grace only hug the girls…?”

“Cough, cough!”

“Y-Yes, Professor! Please scold him!”

“It’s a man’s instinct to like women… but…”

Riviera tried to help me, but her awkwardness didn’t seem to be helping.

I discreetly stepped away from her.

And then I put my arm around Allen’s shoulder.

“Don’t get me wrong. You know how much I care about you.”

“L-Leader!”

It was a good thing he was so naive.

Well, we were close friends.

“Let’s go somewhere and talk over a drink.”

We moved to a different location.

* * *

We sat down at a table in the academy’s cafe, which had a nice view.

Fortunately, it was open.

“I knew you’d be back safe and sound, Leader. I had faith in you.”

“Me too.”

I smiled at my friends’ sincere words.

“Thank you for thinking of me.”

“A-And of course, Professor, too.”

“Professor, too…”

They hurriedly added, realizing they had forgotten about Regina.

She sipped her tea.

“It’s alright. You don’t have to force yourselves to say things you don’t mean. I’ll just deduct extra credit instead.”

“C-Cough, cough!”

Allen choked on his drink.

“Ugh.”

Riviera frowned, looking pained.

“Oh my, I was just kidding.”

…I knew she was joking this time.

“H-Hahaha, r-right?”

“That was mean…”

The atmosphere recovered.

It was true that they were uncomfortable around Regina, their senior and professor.

I hoped they would get closer, but it was probably just wishful thinking.

A timid boy, an eccentric girl, and a cold, elite woman.

…Their personalities were too different.

“How are things here?”

I changed the subject with a smile.

“Well, it’s a strange atmosphere. There are soldiers patrolling everywhere, and people are anxious. Refugees from the central continent are begging to be let in… It’s unsettling.”

“Well, considering the current situation…”

“But…”

“But?”

“The academy is fine. The students and the faculty are all focused on their work, waiting for the semester to resume. The library and the training grounds are always lit up at night because of the students.”

Allen’s eyes sparkled with pride.

It was good news for me.

There might be a few bad apples like Armin, but most of the students were on our side.

I had experienced their help countless times.

Especially from my classmates, whose skills had improved dramatically after being inspired by my transformation into a top student.

Thanks to them, I had been able to resolve many situations with minimal casualties.

They were all fourth-years now.

But,

‘It seems like the juniors are also inspired by the fourth-years, who were once considered the weakest class.’

It was an unexpected effect.

It would definitely be helpful in the long run.

“That’s a great attitude. As expected of the best academy.”

I smiled.

Allen’s expression suddenly darkened, as if he had remembered something.

“Ah, but… there’s some bad news…”

“Bad news?”

I narrowed my eyes.

He spoke in a heavy voice.

“…Principal Arifer collapsed a few days ago.”

I jumped to my feet.