episode_0107

After somehow finishing the magic department entrance exam with a mana blast bombardment…

Rushing out of the magic department exam site, which now had about three crater-like holes, I was able to meet Ethan waiting at the academy central square.

“Maid, did you do well on the exam?”

…Should I say I did well on it?

Well, since it seemed like I had at least avoided failing, I gave a suitable answer without worrying too much.

“Well, I guess. It seems like I did okay.”

“Just okay…? Was the exam difficult for Lillis?”

“No, not really. It wasn’t that difficult.”

I just jumped in without any preparation as Lillis and almost failed miserably.

Still, it was fortunate that I somehow managed to salvage it with the final mana blast.

In the end, I destroyed a total of six targets.

One of the toughest targets and the one next to it.

One moving target and the one next to it.

And even one target that I accidentally hit while firing magic arrows at the furthest target.

Destroying a total of six targets, including the three highest-scoring ones, made the operation successful.

…Honestly, it was somewhat amusing that I could only destroy six targets with such a large-scale magic blast.

Oh well. As long as I reached the passing score, that’s what matters.

As for how to improve accuracy, in other words, how to increase luck, I would have to figure that out after entering the academy. However, there were also subjects in the academy classes that focused on raising luck.

“If you’re curious about my passing status, there’s no need to worry. It seems like I should be able to pass just fine.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. However, since the exam subject was in an area I’m not confident in, I don’t think I’ll get a high score.”

“Well, that can’t be helped. Everyone has things they’re good at and things they’re not. I know that Maid is a great mage, so it’s okay.”

“Thank you for saying that.”

“Oh, by the way, I heard a familiar explosion sound from the exam site earlier. Did Maid…?”

“…Today is the day when your swordsmanship exam results are announced, right? Did you check while I was taking the exam?”

“No, not yet. I wanted to check with Maid.”

“That works out well. Since we have time until lunch, how about checking now, my Lord?”

“Sure, let’s do that.”

And so, to confirm Ethan’s swordsmanship exam results, we walked together to the academy headquarters bulletin board.

Actually, I was more curious about the entrance status of another character rather than Ethan.

Whether the main character entered the swordsmanship department as expected or chose a different department. It was time to find out the truth.

***

Finding Ethan’s name on the bulletin board in front of the academy headquarters was not difficult.

Generally, when arranging the names of many students on the bulletin board, the academy does not distinguish between nobles and commoners. Of course, they also do not differentiate between the ranks of nobles.

The Luminoir Academy’s method was to arrange names in ascending order. It was the most fair way, and it led to fewer complaints.

And needless to say, since this was a domestic game, arranging names in ascending order meant arranging them in alphabetical order.

Looking around the list, I soon found Ethan’s name.

…

Ark Relkenia

Ethan Richard Blackwood

Emma Lightsword

…

“Maid, did you find it?”

“Yes. You passed splendidly, my Lord.”

“Splendidly…?”

“Congratulations. At least you won’t have to hear your father’s scolding.”

“…Well, thanks. It’s all thanks to Maid.”

“It’s just the result of your hard work, my Lord.”

…Well, I admit that I didn’t do nothing.

If I hadn’t pushed Ethan, he might not have developed this level of swordsmanship, and he probably wouldn’t have been able to guarantee victory in the duel with Caraham.

But still, the most important thing was that Ethan achieved this result because of his effort. I only provided a little motivation.

By the way, I also roughly checked the passing status of other key characters. Only those who influence the main storyline like Natalina and Caraham.

Perhaps there was a momentary thought that Karaheum’s defeat in the duel with Edan might affect his acceptance, but the results showed that the current story was flowing closely to the original without major deviations.

The important thing was not Edan or Karaheum, but the protagonist character’s admission to the Swordsmanship Department.

“How do you even find the protagonist’s name in this long list…?”

Even though I spent 2000 hours in my past life at the Luminor Academy, it was impossible to memorize all the students’ names. Who in their right mind could remember and differentiate the names of non-main characters, let alone extras?

Nevertheless, it didn’t matter. Even if I didn’t know the names of the protagonist characters, there was a way to find them.

The fact that in the Luminor Academy, the protagonist characters had fixed surnames was a useful point to exploit.

Despite freely choosing their first names, the last name had to be fixed, even if only for the sake of the game’s story.

In this list of students, finding the surname “Bolt” meant finding the protagonist.

Bolt… Where is Bolt… Bolt…

“Maid?”

“Yes.”

“Why are you staring so intently? Are you looking for someone?”

“No. I just thought I should memorize the names of those who might be taking classes with the young master in the future.”

“The maid is quite diligent.”

In reality, I was indeed looking for someone on the bulletin board, but it seemed suspicious to stare for too long, so I decided to quickly scan the first few lines.

Even though I couldn’t be sure if the protagonist character had taken the Swordsmanship Department entrance exam, wasting time on unnecessary things was a possibility.

As I was about to leave after skimming through the names near ‘G,’ I found a name that anyone would say belonged to the player, and as soon as I confirmed that name, I couldn’t help but sink into deep despair.

“Oh, oh…”

“Why are you like that, maid?”

“Oh, no… It’s nothing, young master.”

“…For something that’s nothing, your expression is quite serious.”

“How could that be? I-I’m fine, young master.”

“…Let’s go back to the inn and rest for now. The maid seems tired from the entrance exam today.”

“Yes, yes…”

Just by confirming the protagonist’s name, my mind was filled with various complex emotions and confusion.

At the same time, I began to seriously ponder whether this world itself could be saved.

No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t imagine that the hero of this world with ‘that name’ would ever try to defeat the Demon King.

—

An hour after Edan and Relis left the academy bulletin board, a pair of a man and a woman with striking appearances and attire entered the department bulletin board.

A tall, silver-haired man with a two-handed sword at his waist.

And a woman with pink hair dressed in pure white priestess robes.

The various scars on the man’s body and armor indicated his experience in many battles.

The star and curve patterns on the white priestess robes proved that she was a saint of the Aurelia Church.

“How did it go, hero?”

“Hmm…”

The Aurelia Church’s hero scanned the list on the academy bulletin board from top to bottom, searching for his name.

His gaze stopped quietly at one side of the board.

After confirming his name, the hero let out a slightly troubled sigh and replied to the woman.

“It seems I have passed, Saint Serista.”

“Well, I knew the hero would pass! The ‘destiny’ I felt from you also predicted that you would succeed.”

“Yes. Thank you for believing in me, Saint Serista.”

Despite the bright smile from Serista, the pink-haired girl, the hero paid no attention and quietly scanned the academy bulletin board once more.

“Natalie, Karaheum, Edan… Is the original story progressing correctly?”

“…”

“Then what was that woman I saw in Silverwood…? She looked exactly like Aeria… The healer in Silverwood seemed to be a petite woman with pink hair…”

“Hero?”

“Is it originally set randomly without any meaning? But other parts are still the same…”

“Hey, hero…! Um, how long are you going to keep standing in front of the bulletin board…!”

“…I’m sorry, Saint Cerista.”

The hero, who had been lost in thought muttering to himself for a moment, quietly stepped back at Cerista’s words.

The empty space he left was quickly filled by other applicants eager to confirm their own acceptance.

“Why do you keep saying things like it’s random or the original again this time?”

“…I’m sorry. There are parts that I can’t explain to Saint Cerista.”

“…I see. If there are things that the hero can’t talk about, there must be a reason.”

“Thank you for understanding.”

“Now that the hero has been accepted to the academy, let’s go to the church today to report on the hero’s achievements. I’ll also inform the High Priest and start preparing for admission to the academy next year.”

“Understood, Saint.”

Although he was still a man whose thoughts were unclear, Cerista found the current time walking together with him enjoyable.

Having gone through hardships with the hero several times, he already occupied a significant place in Cerista’s heart.

For the next 4 years, the fact that she could live as a student at the academy with him made her happy.

“From next year, both the hero and I will be students at Luminoir Academy!”

“…Yes, that’s right.”

“I’ve been relying on you so far, and I’ll continue to do so in the future! …Thank you, Hero!”

“….”

As soon as Volt heard his name from Cerista’s mouth, his expression stiffened for a moment.

Seeing his expression, she quickly realized her mistake and hurriedly bowed her head to check his feelings.

“I-I’m sorry, Hero! I-I was just so happy that I…!”

“It’s okay. …But next time, I would prefer if you called me by my last name rather than my first name. I’ve mentioned it before, but I’m not particularly fond of my name…”

“I-I’ll remember that…”

With conflicting emotions in their hearts, the two headed towards the Aurelia Church Academy branch.

It was the hero, Getmyoshegikwat Volt of Luminoir Academy, and the fake saint Cerista of the Aurelia Church.