Chapter 7: Chatter chatter

When I told the school staff my name, they guided me to the waiting room.

Inside, there were many students and their parents.

All of them were dressed more expensively than we were.

They chatted while enjoying coffee and refreshments.

“Oh my, did you say you’re the Marchioness of Where-was-it?”

“Yes, yes. And aren’t you the cousin of Princess So-and-so?”

It was a conversation among the uppermost of the upper class—people far removed from my world.

When they glanced at us, they quickly looked away as if we were mere stones on the ground.

We sat in the empty seats.

The other parents were chatting with their children.

We couldn’t join the conversation.

The atmosphere simply didn’t allow it.

“Dad, don’t let it get to you.”

“Do I look like I’m intimidated?”

“Yeah.”

I stopped talking.

The Imperial Guard didn’t just fight—they also received the Emperor’s guests.

And when we say the Emperor’s guests, we’re talking about at least counts or higher.

Only true high nobility—those with a different level of history and pedigree—ever had an audience with the Emperor.

There’s no way I’d be intimidated after facing people like that.

I waited in silence, smiling faintly.

“Elizabeth Valentine and Leo Valentine. Please come this way.”

***

After waiting several dozen minutes, a staff member called us.

I straightened my clothes in the full-length mirror on the wall and followed.

“Don’t be nervous. You’ll do great.”

Elizabeth patted my back.

I felt uneasy.

“Seems like the interviewers have changed.”

“I’m not nervous.”

“A bit of nervousness is necessary.”

The staff member opened a grand, old-fashioned wooden door.

It was the principal’s office.

There was a large desk and a set of sofas arranged for conversation.

On one sofa sat an older man and woman.

The man was overweight, and the woman wore glasses.

“Please, have a seat.”

The woman with square-rimmed glasses spoke, her expression stern.

The overweight man glanced at Elizabeth and me, then briefly skimmed the documents.

The woman continued.

“First of all, welcome to Lenz Academy. Please make yourselves comfortable. You may have some tea if you wish.”

Though her words were extremely polite, the air felt cold.

“There are usually three interviewers, but one had an upset stomach and is currently in the restroom. He’ll return shortly. We apologize.”

Her expression was stiff—neither a smile nor a frown—and the mood grew heavier.

A sour coffee scent stung my nose.

“Elizabeth Valentine. What a beautiful name. May I ask how you chose it?”

“It was her mother’s name. The woman I loved most—and still love. She wanted this name for her daughter.”

“Then, your wife…”

The woman continued.

It seemed she would be leading the interview.

“Unfortunately, she passed away shortly after giving birth.”

“That must have been difficult.”

This time, the overweight man finally spoke, crossing his legs and dragging out his words in a sluggish tone.

There was no trace of empathy in his demeanor.

“I see on the form that you’re from the Valentine family. Since when, exactly? You weren’t always a Valentine, were you? What was the profession of the ancestor who acquired the name?”

The Valentine family was once a prestigious noble house.

But during the war, the entire line was wiped out.

Later, commoners began buying surnames.

They avoided names still in use, so they purchased ones from extinct noble lines.

Valentine was one of the most popular.

The fat professor was clearly poking at that.

But this wasn’t a question.

It felt more like an interrogation.

I hadn’t expected something like this.

I quickly crafted a story.

“He was a hunter. The gamekeeper for the Montparte family’s forest. He once hunted a two-headed bear beast and made a fortune.”

“And used that money to buy the surname? He was lucky, then. Since we’re talking about your family, may I ask about your financial situation?”

His questions were beginning to cross the line.

I looked to the other interviewer.

She seemed aware that this was inappropriate, but the mood didn’t allow her to stop him.

An awkward silence hung in the air.

The overweight man clicked his tongue.

“Why the gloves, by the way?”

“I didn’t want it to look unsightly.”

“What could be so unsightly? Look at my hands—scarred from years of holding pens and papers.”

He lifted his hand proudly.

At that moment, Elizabeth pulled off the black glove from my right hand.

That was all the answer they needed.

The woman with glasses hurried to ask a different question.

“Ahem, Mr. Valentine, what value do you consider most important in your child’s education?”

“Conviction. Whether she succeeds or fails, she needs a guiding principle to keep from losing her way.”

It was a question I had anticipated, and I thought I gave a decent answer.

But from the woman’s expression, it seemed I’d missed the mark.

“Hmm… I see. Then why did you choose to apply to Lenz Academy?”

“Because this is the finest and most prestigious school in the world. Any parent would want their child to study here.”

Perhaps it was too generic a response.

Her expression grew colder and colder.

“Thank you for your answer. Now, let’s move on to Miss Valentine. As you know, a proper family is balanced when there is both a father and a mother. Has it been difficult without that balance?”

“My father is very kind, so I never really felt that way.”

“It seems you were an excellent student in elementary school. You passed the first screening thanks to the principal’s recommendation. Did your father tutor you himself?”

“A little. He only helps me with the hard parts. I do the rest on my own. I’d like to learn more, but my dad is always busy.”

“And what does he do for a living?”

At the question about my job, Elizabeth froze.

“Uh, well…”

“I work at a construction site,” I answered honestly.

There was no point in lying—it’d be obvious right away.

Better to be upfront.

“A… construction site?”

One side of the bespectacled woman’s face twisted in distaste.

“Yes. I carry stones, hammer nails, pull ropes. That sort of work.”

“…Forgive me, but what’s your highest level of education?”

My highest level of education, huh.

I chuckled at the blunt question.

In truth, my final degree is a doctorate in Combat Magic from the Imperial Royal Academy.

After reaching the 6th Circle and joining the Royal Guard, Chevalier gave me a certificate in recognition.

I was proud of it.

I kept it safely stored with my Royal Guard uniform.

“I have none. I never went to school.”

I hid the truth.

After all, with my current identity, I’ve never had any formal education.

In fact, aside from the academy, I never attended regular elementary, middle, or high school.

My parents thought it was a waste of money and never sent me.

In any case, with that one sentence, the mood in the interview room soured.

The bespectacled woman didn’t bother hiding her contempt.

The fat man clicked his tongue in disapproval.

A thick silence of scorn and disdain settled in the air.

I felt disappointed.

So this is what the “top prestigious school” is like.

I wasn’t expecting warmth, but their attitude was so blatant it was laughable.

“Tsk. What gave you the confidence to apply here in the first place?”

It seemed the interview was over.

The fat man blatantly started picking a fight.

“You don’t have the education, your job’s unacceptable, and the mother isn’t around. Kid, did you nag your dad to bring you here?”

“You should’ve done your research. Do you even know the level of students that come here?”

“They’re all from noble families. Not just from around here, either. Even the Prince of Britain and the Princess of Spain attend this school.”

“There are barely any commoners, and even then, their parents are doctors, lawyers, or mages. You just don’t compare.”

‘That bastard…’

‘This pig won’t shut up.’

“That pig won’t shut up,” Elizabeth muttered.

“Oh—!”

“I thought the same, but you’re not supposed to say that out loud…!”

“I hurriedly tried to cover Elizabeth’s mouth, but it was already too late.”

***

“…What?”

“…Miss Valentine.”

The fat man looked like he couldn’t believe what he just heard.

The bespectacled woman stared daggers at Elizabeth.

Under the professors’ cold gazes, Elizabeth didn’t shrink back.

She smirked.

“What?”

“W-what do you mean, ‘what’?! Just now—what did you say?!”

Professor Feswal shot up, flailing like a madman.

I was so stunned I couldn’t even speak.

‘Was my daughter always this bold?’

“Mr. Valentine! Just how are you raising your daughter?!”

The fat professor yelled at me as if I should be scolding her.

‘But seriously, what did he expect me to do?’

“I think I’ve raised her very well. Elizabeth, I’m proud of you.”

I patted Elizabeth’s head deliberately in front of them.

What a proud kid.

Elizabeth beamed and hugged me.

“Hehe.”

“Y-you…!”

“Miss Valentine! Do you even realize who you’re insulting?!”

The bespectacled woman took the fat man’s side.

She was trying to pressure us, using a tone like, ‘You’ve picked the wrong fight!’

I responded calmly.

“And what about you? You said nothing when that pig insulted us, but now that my daughter speaks up, you’re suddenly outraged?”

“Are you trying to twist words?”

“I’m being sincere. I came here with genuine intent. We’re not asking to be respected, but we should at least be treated like people. We didn’t come here to be lectured with lines like ‘know your place’ or ‘can you even think?’ Isn’t basic decency part of being an intellectual?”

“…Ha. You’ve really crossed the line. You’ve just defamed a professor of Lenz School. That’s a serious offense. Apologize immediately!”

As the tension in the room thickened—

An unexpected figure entered the interview room.

“What’s going on here?”

“Pr-Principal!”

The fat professor and the bespectacled one were startled by the man behind me.

I, too, was slightly surprised.

His eyes widened when he saw me.

“Mr. Valentine? And Miss Valentine? Were you two also here for an interview?”

It was Felix Ladenburg—someone we’d met before.