episode_0129

“How much do you want?”

“Are you insulting us right now?”

“Insulting? I’m offering to help. Rather than getting red-faced over a measly sword, isn’t it better for both sides to get what they want through a fair deal?”

“That sword belongs to Training Hall 3. Do you think ignoring the academy’s honor by taking it so lightly is something the Grave family would approve of?”

“Wow, you’re really rigid, huh?”

“It’s not about being rigid—this is a matter of principle—”

The students behind him all chimed in with their own comments, but honestly, I had no interest in listening to each and every one.

“Fine. Let’s say, as you claim, that me taking the sword is an act unbefitting the academy’s honor. Then there’d be no issue if Lucilla trained here instead, right?”

“Th-that’s…”

“What’s the problem? It’s not strange at all. Lucilla is also a student of this prestigious Fiend Academy. I just happened to pass by and saw her training alone in the unused Hall 7.”

“That’s simply a matter of her skill level. She must have recognized that she didn’t belong in this training hall, which is why she requested special permission from the student council to use Hall 7 at night.”

“You really think—never mind.”

No matter what I say, it won’t reach their ears. They’re already trapped in their own little worlds.

I’ve seen this type of person to the point of exhaustion. The hero’s party in previous loops was like this. My parents were like this. I was like this. They don’t fully believe their own thoughts are absolute truth. But even so, they refuse to reconsider their own biases.

“Has even one of you ever watched Lucilla swing a sword up close?”

The student at the front of the group glanced back, exchanging quick looks with the others.

“Yes, we have. But no matter how generously we assess her skill, it’s not at the level to warrant using Hall 3’s facilities. And she herself clearly recognized her own limits.”

“So you’re saying it was Lucilla’s own choice?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“Hmm…”

Then what should I do? By any measure, I’m the one being rude here. Even as a member of the Grave ducal house, what I’m doing is nothing more than throwing a tantrum. But none of them have the guts to call me out on it. No matter how much they believe they stand for justice, if it’s the Grave family—let alone the mad heir of that family—they can’t predict what consequences they might face.

You can dodge a sword, but you can’t escape a sudden storm.

Even if I’ve sworn to myself I won’t act like that anymore, who would easily believe the words of a madman?

In the end, all they can do is pick on Lucilla, a commoner with little voice in the academy. And that’s exactly what I wanted.

Even if the academy claims to be meritocratic, the gap between noble-born and commoner students was always clear.

Maybe it wouldn’t hurt to teach them a lesson here.

“So, in the end, all Lucilla has to do is prove her own strength, right?”

I gestured for Lucilla to come over.

“What is it?”

“Fight them. And if possible, overwhelm them so thoroughly they can’t even argue.”

“Wha—?”

“Why the surprise? You keep saying it’s the academy’s duty, that it was your own choice, but that’s not true, is it? You were just being considerate. So show them. Prove that you’re more than capable of standing here.”

“That’s—”

“How insolent, Young Lord Grave!”

From behind the student who had been speaking, a particularly furious girl stomped forward, her face flushed with anger.

“We’ve shown you the respect befitting the heir of House Grave, but this is beyond tolerance! Are you seriously equating us with that commoner right now?”

“No. I’m placing you far below her. It’d be a blessing if you could even reach her toes. But you can’t, which is why you’ve all been shoving her into Hall 7 and pretending not to see her, right?”

A blessing? If even one of them could land a single decent hit on Lucilla here, I’d be ready to kneel and admit I was wrong.

“Wait, Eric. That remark was uncalled for.”

“I’m just stating facts. Besides, you don’t think you’ll lose to them either, do you?”

Lucilla had just called me rude. That reaction only comes when you already know you’ve won.

“Rude? They were the ones who started it. They couldn’t say a word to me, the one who looks weaker, but the moment you got dragged into it, they finally found their anger.”

“Take that back!”

The girl who shouted at me was now right in front of me. Long golden hair that reached her waist, blue eyes. Though currently obscured by her fury, her usual confident demeanor was obvious in her striking features.

Hm. I’m sure I’ve seen her somewhere.

“Lucilla.”

I called her softly and gestured.

“What is it?”

“Lend me your ear for a sec.”

Lucilla looked puzzled but obediently leaned in. Confident the others wouldn’t hear, I whispered quickly.

“Who’s that girl again? I feel like I’ve seen her before, but I can’t remember.”

“Laura Remilton. She becomes the Third Captain of the Imperial Guard in a few years.”

“Ah.”

Thanks to Lucilla’s hushed reply, I finally recognized the girl in front of me.

Overlapping the image of her loudly flaunting her noble status in front of Elia with her current demeanor, it clicked.

The prideful, stubborn, yet never arrogant or self-absorbed heir of the prestigious Remilton County—

One of the students Elia had listed as “prime talent to exploit.”

“Not just Laura. There are others here too. They might not be ready for the higher-tier training halls yet, but they’ve got potential.”

Scanning the students behind Laura, I could see a few who would later become key figures on the empire’s frontlines. Overshadowed by Lucilla and the hero’s party, they were still vital to the empire’s defense.

Most of them were people I’d only glimpsed while Elia was desperately trying to keep the empire running, squeezing every drop of talent she could. But at least it proved the academy wasn’t entirely full of trash.

A sign that the academy was doing its job. If these were the students training in Hall 3, I could only imagine what those in Halls 1 and 2 were like.

“Eric. Your expression is weird.”

Slurp.

Damn it.

I wiped the drool from my mouth and spoke to Lucilla.

“Pick out the ones with potential. From that bunch.”

“Are you sure? What if I actually win—”

“That’s what I’m hoping for. If they’re the type to break after a single loss to someone like you, it’s better they break here. For the empire’s sake—and for yours.”

If they couldn’t even accept a single defeat from a fellow student—let alone being chosen as a hero—they’d never survive the battles against the demonkind. Fighting stronger foes would be their daily life, and protecting thousands behind them would be their future.

“They’re the ones who’ll shoulder the empire’s future! How could I possibly crush them?”

“So you’ll back down now? Absolutely not.”

I raised my middle finger at Laura, who was staring at me blankly. The meaning might be slightly different, but thankfully, it was a universal insult in this world too.

“Y-you…! How dare you—!”

“What the hell was that?!”

“I just gave you a reason to fight. I’m confident I’d turn to charcoal in seconds if I fought her, after all.”

I felt a little bad for Laura, who’d just been insulted out of nowhere, but I couldn’t let this end here. If I hadn’t known, fine—but now that I’d seen so many future elites gathered here, the sooner they grew, the better for everyone.

It was already set in stone that Lucilla would one day draw the holy sword and become the chosen hero. And when that unprecedented event—a commoner becoming the hero—happened, she’d have to prove she was worthy.

In past loops, she’d had to run around frantically to earn the empire’s full support. But this time was different.

I wiggled my fingers and taunted them all.

“The strongest one, step forward.”

It’s not like I’m the one fighting, after all.