episode_0115

After the short yet long entrance ceremony at the academy came to an end, Ethan, who had ascended the stage as the head of the department, quickly scanned the inside of the auditorium.

He was looking for his exclusive maid, Lillis, amidst the chaotic auditorium filled with nearly 400 new students.

Surely, she was originally seated in the front row of the auditorium.

Since he hadn’t seen her move during the event, he assumed she would still be waiting inside the auditorium, making it easier to find her if she stayed in the same spot.

However, the spot where they were seated before he ascended the stage was now crowded with new students trying to leave after the ceremony.

“Did she leave early?”

Given the chaotic situation, he thought it would be easier to find her outside rather than staying inside the auditorium.

Nevertheless, if it was Lillis, he could easily recognize her even outside, thanks to her beautiful appearance, unique figure, and the peculiar mix of maid and formal attire she wore.

“Maybe she got into an accident.”

Although Lillis usually made wise decisions, she had a tendency to be emotionally volatile at times.

At the very least, if something were to happen, he hoped it would be within his sight so he could handle the situation.

However, these days, Lillis had become more well-behaved without causing any accidents. Looking back, most of the incidents she had caused in the past were situations where she had to step in.

Even though she was Lillis, she wasn’t expected to cause a commotion for no reason on the day of the entrance ceremony.

“….”

Feeling a bit anxious for some reason, Ethan quickly prepared to leave the auditorium.

Perhaps due to the intuition he had developed over the years of being with Lillis, Ethan felt an inexplicable urge to find her quickly.

After briefly conversing with Princess Seraphine, Ethan, who was about to leave the auditorium with other students, suddenly felt someone grab his shoulder.

“Can we talk for a moment?”

“….”

Ethan stopped in his tracks for a moment at the sudden voice of the white-haired young man who had called him.

Although they hadn’t exchanged a word before, Ethan already knew who he was.

He was the man who had entered the academy as the top student of the swordsmanship department and had stood by his side during the ceremony.

His name was… Kyetmyaoshaygi Volt, or something like that.

And he was accompanied by women who seemed to be the top students of the magic and archery departments.

Despite the rude way he approached him, Ethan accepted it, considering the man was a commoner.

“What’s the matter?”

“Uh, well….”

Kyetmyaoshaygi Volt hesitated a bit at Ethan’s question, rolling his eyes.

It was inevitable, as he had only grabbed Ethan in a hurry to stop him from leaving.

Thinking it would be awkward to start a conversation with any other topic, he decided to be straightforward.

“Just, do you have something to tell me?”

“Something to tell me?”

“Well, you know? Something like a commonality between you and me? Like a secret that’s hard to tell others.”

“I don’t understand what you’re talking about. Even if I had a secret that’s hard to tell others, why would I talk to you, a stranger, about it? Especially in front of your women.”

“Y-Your women?! I-I’m not this guy’s woman, we’re just… working together because it’s mutually beneficial…”

“Wait, Sirena. Don’t complicate things. I have something important to discuss.”

“Hmph.”

Approaching with a serious expression as if he had something important to say, Kyetmyaoshaygi Volt ended up just bickering with his women.

Ethan’s interest waned at Kyetmyaoshaygi Volt’s attitude, and it was enough to make him reconsider his hasty steps.

“It seems there’s nothing between you and me. My companions are waiting, so I’ll go first.”

“Wait, Ethan!”

“I don’t know when we became so familiar as to call each other by name. Please show some respect.”

“Wait, please! Kyetmyaoshaygi Volt is a hero chosen by the goddess!”

“Does Aurelia Academy teach heroes not to show respect? I don’t think that’s a haughty teaching that should come from the mouth of a saint.”

“That, that is…”

Edan’s logical discourse left Serista speechless, and she quietly shrunk back.

In the conversation that wasn’t going very well, the hero quietly pondered.

‘…As expected. It seems like I’ve already experienced at least one regression or possession.’

The Edan he knew from the game was not a noble character with such dignity, nor was he a character capable of quietly subduing others with logical conversations.

It was certain that he had experienced something significant enough to change completely.

Since he himself was a possessor who had come from outside the game world, he couldn’t be sure that the Edan in front of him was not a similar case.

If he had realized his mistake in the future and returned to change the past, it would be understandable for him to show such a cautious attitude.

If he had possessed a character in the game just like himself, knowing the game’s story, he would naturally have to be wary of himself.

Anyway, it seemed that his slightly bold approach had indeed upset Edan, so Serista quietly apologized to him.

“Sorry, Blackwood. I realize now that I may have rudely approached you without warning, which might have made you uncomfortable.”

“….”

“Still, I genuinely wanted to talk to you, Blackwood. I didn’t ask with any ulterior motives, and it wouldn’t harm you to hear the story.”

“…I’m already quite upset.”

“I didn’t intend to upset you. I just wanted to get to know you better as fellow top students in the swordsmanship department. We both excel in academics, so we have a lot in common, right?”

“….”

Edan’s guard softened slightly at the change in Serista’s attitude from before.

Just as Serista was about to continue persuading him, their conversation was forcibly interrupted by the noise coming from outside the auditorium.

-Clang! Bang! Clang!!

“What’s that noise?”

“What, what could it be…? Could someone be sparring outside the auditorium…?”

The first to notice the commotion, the elf archer and the priestess, caught Edan and the hero’s attention outside.

The words coming from the students watching the fight were enough to elicit a reaction from Blackwood.

“Wow! The maid is winning!!”

“No, does it make sense to barely lose with a dagger against that sword?”

“….!!!”

Upon hearing the words of a maid fighting with a dagger, Edan couldn’t help but think of only one person.

‘Lilith…!’

She seemed to have calmed down a bit recently.

***

The duel between me and Raidenhart ended much more anticlimactically than I had expected.

I had somewhat anticipated it from the moment we exchanged the first blows.

The swordsmanship was so poor that it was hardly worthy of being called such, and even the strikes had no weight behind them.

It was just a feeble attempt to cut down the target in front of them.

Perhaps because I had watched Edan and Harold’s sparring twice a week, it seemed like a simple trajectory that my body reacted to before my mind.

Even deflecting his sword with just a single hand was not a difficult task.

Deflecting such a crude sword did not require any special skill.

-Clang!

“Ugh…!”

Just using the ‘shockwave’ at the moment of the sword clashing was enough to handle his longsword.

Within a few minutes of the duel starting, the advantage completely shifted to my side.

In a sword fight between a dagger and a longsword, the dagger is generally at a disadvantage. With a shorter range, more parts of the body are exposed to danger, and the weight of the sword is also less, making each strike weaker.

However, in the current situation, these penalties were meaningless when facing him.

Avoiding the simple trajectory of his sword did not put my body in any danger, and the lack of power could be compensated for by using the shockwave at the moment of impact.

With these two disadvantages reinforced, it was now time for the dagger’s unique advantages to shine.

The only advantage the dagger had was its attack speed, which was several times faster than swinging a longsword.

-Clang! Bang! Clang!!

“Ugh, ugh…! Aaahh!!”

No matter how much he tried to provoke me, the guy who was determined to strike me with his sword, Rydenhart, couldn’t even touch my body, let alone my uniform.

In the small gap that opened up, allowing him to strike me once, the outcome of our battle was ultimately decided.

*Swoosh!*

“Aaahh!!”

Rydenhart, who had stabbed his left wrist into my armor, let out a painful scream as his sword fell to the ground.

With the sound of the blade hitting the ground, our duel came to an end.

*Clang…*

“Agh, aahh…!”

…It’s not as enjoyable as I thought it would be.

Although he was the one who initiated the conflict, fighting person to person was still quite brutal.

Even if a limb or two were cut off, they could be reattached with healing magic from the church in this world.

“Do you understand the difference in our skills?”

“Y-You b*stard…!!”

Clutching the wounded area with his right hand, Rydenhart glared at me with a murderous intent.

He should calm down now that it’s over, but it seemed like his pride was hurt quite a bit.

“Aaahh! Son of a b*tch!!”

“Admit your defeat. If you want to preserve what little honor you have left.”

“I-I’ll kill you! You insignificant wench with an unknown background! I’ll slaughter your entire household in the name of the Rydenhart family, and turn you into a slave for the soldiers with your limbs and tongue cut off…”

“…What did you just say.”

“…Huh?”

As the guy cursed me with third-rate villain lines, a familiar figure appeared in front of him.

With a cloak bearing the emblem of the Blackwood family, Edan drew a knife from his left hip before I could even explain who he was.

With an almost imperceptible speed, his knife swirled through the air.

*Swish!*

Blood splattered.

Painful screams echoed.

Rydenhart’s wrists remained tightly clasped together as they flew up into the sky.

“Agh! Aaahhh!!”

“Say those words again. This time, the blade will come out of the back of your head.”

Edan raised another blade against the guy who was screaming on the ground, his eyes sharpened with a cold gaze I had never seen before.