episode_0019

I just wanted to bury myself while practicing with the sword.

“Alright, let’s have the class president greet.”

How did it end up like this???

***

“I’m lucky we were all assigned to the same class!”

“Yeah, more than that. Kidney! How did you become the top student?”

“I don’t know. We all studied together. It’s really puzzling for me too..”

“I joined in the middle, so I don’t know completely, but maybe the ability to lead a team was also evaluated. Understanding what the Academy wants, leading the team in that direction. This ability seems highly valued as the principal mentioned earlier..”

As everyone nodded understandingly, warm gazes from behind made me turn around

Whoosh—

A woman with thick blue hair that could almost look black turned her head as if nothing happened.

“What’s this…”

“What? What happened?”

“Yeah. Someone was looking at our direction.”

“Oh, really!?”

Erin, who had always been sensitive, and I, who had become even more sensitive since the last exam, felt it. Maybe it was related to becoming the top student, but there didn’t seem to be any malice.

“There doesn’t seem to be malice, so should we leave it for now?”

“Yeah. It’s too ambiguous to attack right now.”

“No, not attack but..”

The girl who grew up in the wild has a completely different way of thinking from us..

“Prince Hwang! It’s been a while!”

“Oh, Prince Hwang is also in the Diamond class!”

.

.

“Oh, I remember seeing Prince Hwang at Frill Youngae’s birthday party. His popularity exploded from the first day as expected of a celebrity.”

“Yeah, nice to see you after a long time..”

“Mm. That’s right.”

Unlike the excited people around Prince Hwang, our group seemed… well, different?

“But still, we should at least say hello..”

“I’m good.”

“Hmm. Then I won’t go either.”

“Yeah, me neither.”

“What! I’m not okay with that!”

“Why does it feel so uncomfortable?”

!?

Suddenly, a tall white-haired woman approached us without a sound. Her priestly attire and the rosary hanging around her neck were partially obscured by two high hills, as if begging to be spared. But that rosary, where have I seen it before..?

“Ouch!! Why are you poking Selina!”

“Why are you staring like that!

“No, I..”

It seemed that the woman in front of me also noticed my stare, as she turned her slightly reddened cheeks away, and except for David nodding in understanding, everyone else was glaring at me.

“I apologize. Lady. The rosary seemed familiar somewhere..”

Yes, the woman I stared at was a nun. The Forbidden Leaf of the Holy Empire. The most precious treasure and the one closest to God. This could be considered blasphemy against the divine..

“Rosario? I’ve had this since I was very young…”

Even though there was such an incident, the nun showed a compassionate smile in response.

“Then it must be a misunderstanding. Nice to meet you. I am Kidney, the writer of Asterin.”

“Yes. Nice to meet you Kidney Youngsik. I am Sophia Everhart. Rather than the overly formal title of Lady, please call me Sophia. It would be nice.”

“How dare we..”

“Now we are classmates! It’s the first time I’ve made friends of the opposite sex!”

Sophia, holding hands with a slightly excited glint in her eyes, seemed to prove why she was called the treasure of the Holy Empire with her sparkling golden eyes.

“Please take care of the others too!”

“Oh, um. Yes!”

“Yes! Please take care of us!!”

“Yes, let’s get along well in the same class.”

“Yes.”

The awkward duo and Frillyoungae, who was used to dealing with high-ranking individuals, and Erin, who seemed indifferent to whoever was present.

“Hmm. Looks interesting.”

“Prince!?”

As the saint came to our side and began talking, naturally drawing the attention of the classmates, it seemed like even the boss monster’s aggro was pulled.

“So, what were you talking about?”

“Nice to see you after a long time. I was suggesting becoming friends with others.”

“Well, we’ll be in the same class for a long time. It would be nice to become close early on.”

The two key figures of a nation continued their conversation smoothly as if they already knew each other well, but there was a slightly uncomfortable look on the saint’s face.

“Prince. It’s been a while since the banquet.”

“Yes, you were there. Kidney Yeongsik by Astelin the author.”

The prince looked at me with a maintained smile. As he was famous for his handsome looks, there was indeed an impression of exceptional appearance, but… just like I felt last time, there was something artificially unsettling. No, it felt even stronger with my heightened sensitivity.

“It was truly regrettable back then. By the way, any lingering effects?”

“No. Thanks to your concern, I entered school without any harm.”

“Yeah.. that was really unfortunate.”

Although the words expressed concern for the imperial subjects as a prince, I perceived them slightly differently.

“Youngsters, take your seats.”

Tap tap-

“Well, I am Professor Flanca Rose, who will be in charge of the Diamond Class. It may be my first time as an academy professor, but I am also your senior here. I believe I can provide guidance tailored more to students. Work hard from now on.”

Saying so, Professor Rose stared through me intensely. Perhaps this meant she intended to make things difficult, as it didn’t seem like an easy path from the start.

“Your skills are undeniable…”

“We did confirm your skills properly…”

While the actual time spent with Professor Rose was short, perhaps due to its intense nature, everyone seemed fed up.

“Well then. Although it’s listed in the schedule to have some meaningless self-introduction time…”

Swish!

“Just take your time with that, and lead the class representatives to the training ground.”

Tossing away the timetable she held, Professor Rose said this. When we responded with strange expressions, she gazed at us as if something was off.

“Um.. Professor.. our class representative hasn’t been decided yet…”

“Oh? Then the strongest one should be the leader.”

As soon as those words were spoken, the students who had been subtly sizing each other up began to show their confidence openly and started glaring at each other.

“If that’s the case, then it’s me!”

“Hmm, do you really think so?”

“Sigh, ignorance makes one bold.. You all are quite arrogant.”

As the classroom became noisy with the students’ confrontation, Professor Rose, who had been watching disapprovingly, unfolded her arms and continued speaking.

“I’m not one to stop fighting, or rather, I encourage it. But if you fight in the classroom, it becomes troublesome to clean up afterward, so stop it.”

As Professor Rose asserted herself, the chaotic atmosphere in the classroom was instantly settled.

“I’ll just decide. Kidney student, come forward now.”

“Yes?”

“Hurry up. Training time is running out.”

Feeling the pressure of dozens of pairs of eyes on me in an instant, I stepped forward, resenting Professor Rose, the instigator of this situation.

“Now, since Kidney is the class representative, follow him well, and Kidney, lead your peers to the training ground.”

With that, Professor Rose left first. Just thinking about my classmates still staring at me made me feel dizzy already.

“Congratulations!”

“Oh, you’re congratulating me? You’ve already used two scrolls of congratulation.”

“Leading the class is something to congratulate.”

Thank you so much, everyone…. I want to die.

“Well then, fellow students? Shall we move together..?”

Although I said that, my classmates continued to stare at me as if they still had doubts.

“No, he said the strongest person should be the class president. Why him again?”

“Does that mean he’s the strongest…?”

“Or maybe it’s just something that pleased the professor. He got recognition from Professor Rose in the last exam.”

As the inexperienced vice-president sighed because it was difficult to lead the strong-willed Diamond Class students,

“Everyone, let’s move to the training ground as the class president said!”

“That’s right, if we’re late, Professor Rose might get even angrier.”

Fortunately, Saint and Frill Youngae provided solid support for the shooting practice. Indeed, life is all about connections…

“Alright, everyone. Let’s move for now.”

“Yes!”

“Yes, let’s start moving first.”

With the Crown Prince delivering the final blow, I even felt like the Crown Prince was the class president. Winking at me with a smile as if telling me to trust only myself. I vowed to avoid thoughts that he might have a penchant for mischief.

After all the students left the classroom and returned to double-check, something suddenly pulled me firmly from the side.

“You, where did you come from?”

“Huh? You, who were staring at me earlier…?”

“Clearly, you had nothing to do with the story of the stars. The fate of Kidney didn’t involve you!”

Looking at her now, the girl with deep blue hair and eyes that were close to yellow or light, reminiscent of the universe, kept focusing on me.

“Originally, your fate should have been dead already. It’s almost miraculous that you’ve survived until now… Why are you creating constellations?”

“I, I don’t believe in that…”

“It’s not about that!”

“I don’t believe in fortune-telling either. My ancestors don’t know much either.”

“Ugh, really! So frustrating! Follow me after class today!”

Saying that, the girl also ran to the training ground. Somehow, I could be sure that life would definitely change significantly compared to before coming to the academy.