Chapter: 225
The commoner dormitory at the academy looked pretty much the same as I remembered.
Compared to the dorms for nobles, it seemed humble to the max, but most commoners considered this place a luxury.
Just standing here brought back memories of my training camp days during school.
As I stood in front of the dormitory, the nearby students hurriedly bowed their heads.
“Greetings! Lady Alrn!”
“Hello!”
They tried to sound calm, but their voices were tinged with confusion rather than fear.
These kids don’t know the old Lucy.
It’s true that the girl Lucy Alrn had gained quite the reputation for her wild antics.
The name “Lucy Alrn” was so widely spread that even commoners had heard of it at least once.
So, normally, they’d probably be on their toes, fearing my past misdeeds.
‘Who would’ve thought that Lucy’s extreme actions would actually lower her credibility?’
The problem was that Lucy’s actions were far beyond what common sense would allow.
She insulted the king by calling him cattle.
She told the First Prince that he gave her the creeps.
She wreaked havoc by smashing church statues.
And the list just goes on and on.
It’s enough to keep any sane person grasping for their sanity.
While nobles who had suffered at Lucy Alrn’s hands would just shrug it off as “Yeah, that’s her,” commoners had a different take.
Some believed it outright, while others questioned whether one person could cause so much chaos.
Those who were skeptical interpreted it in their own way.
They thought of her as a figure created to anonymize various incidents in high society.
Or perhaps they viewed her as someone too weak to stop such malicious rumors, thus just a victim of bullying in the upper class.
The first-years who had actually witnessed my antics knew the rumors weren’t all fiction, but the upperclassmen didn’t share that clarity.
They rarely saw me during the first semester. With only the tales of my exploits to go by, they thought, “Oh, she’s just a young talented girl getting hate for her skills.”
The fact that second-years had first-years pull pranks on me was based on this very thought.
They considered themselves knowledgeable and superior.
No, that’s too soft a term. It doesn’t even scratch the surface of how utterly foolish they were.
Instead, let’s say:
Yeah, some second-year students burdened with a serious case of middle school syndrome had pegged me as a lone girl tormented by the nobles.
So, they thought whatever happened, I wouldn’t dare raise my voice.
You know, when I first heard that, I was like, “Are you kidding me? What nonsense is this?”
[Isn’t this good for you? People are talking and dismissing your achievements as rumors. If they get louder, your reputation might actually rise.]
‘Are you being serious?’
[Ha, of course not.]
…This guy.
‘I can’t believe you find it fun to toy with a girl half your age.’
[It’s amusing. It’s always refreshing. I hope you keep it up.]
Seriously?
Looks like I have no choice but to give you a lesson in mutually assured destruction.
With the plan set to deliberately leave sweat on the doorknob so that Clumsy Fox would be licking her lips, I stepped into the commoner dormitory.
“Lady?! This is for commoners only…”
As I did, the dormitory supervisor dashed over nervously, but he had no way to stop me.
The moment he reached for me, the disdain in my eyes made it clear.
“Isn’t this a bit too bold?♡ Sexual harassment in front of everyone?♡”
“…N-No! That’s absolutely not it!”
“Wanna hear me scream?♡ ‘A bald pervert is trying to grab me!’ Cheers?♡”
“I’m sorry! I didn’t know the context!”
With the supervisor in a panic backing away, the path into the dorm opened up.
Was it because he had just yelled? The gaze of the commoners inside directed at me was intense.
Confusion. Fear. Despair. Curiosity. Horror.
I sorted through the mixed emotions they wore as I caught sight of someone gripping the doorknob to the meeting room upstairs.
Mane. Currently the leader of the commoners.
He’s not a saint or a villain.
Mane is a merchant—a person out there simply seeking his own gain without a care for good or evil.
I can’t be sure if he was involved in this incident. But one thing is for sure: he’s someone I can communicate with.
Even if there’s a variable thrown into the mix, his merchant instinct wouldn’t just disappear.
As soon as he saw my face, Mane tried to bolt from the room, but I wasn’t having any of that.
I jumped from the first floor and landed gracefully in front of him on the second-floor balcony.
“Where do you think you’re going? Gonna run away from this little girl? Wow, what a coward. Still peeing the bed at night?”
“…Why would I fear a Lady? I simply couldn’t capture your noble form with my poor eyesight. Truly, I apologize.”
I almost blurted out the words, “What a loser,” but I decided not to press him any further.
I had a fun time to begin in the meeting room, no need to dive into the deep end right now.
When I smiled without saying a word, Mane dropped to his knees and slammed his forehead into the floor, hard enough to make him bleed.
“I’m truly sorry! I have no excuses!”
Listening to his rehearsed speech flowing out smoothly made my head spin.
Every aspect—from the angle he bowed to that desperate tone—was anything but ordinary.
How come people like Luca and him can bow so well? Is there a secret school for this somewhere?
“I truly regret wasting the Lady’s time! However, I beg for your mercy to give me a moment to explain my circumstances…”
Amid Mane’s desperate pleas, there was a trace of resentment towards others.
It felt like he was determined to drag others down if he was going down too. I was sure of one thing though:
Mane was not involved in this mess.
*
Mane had followed his parents selling various merchandise from a young age.
Through it all, he saw and learned a great deal. His father led a vast merchant group, commanding many, yet he wasn’t always overbearing.
He was someone who could cast aside his pride like old shoes.
When needed, he would bow low, even acting subservient enough to make any noble look down on him.
Once, when he asked his father why he had to act that way, his father replied:
“No matter how much money you have or how much power you possess, losing sight of who you are may cause everything to vanish in an instant. Mane, remember this: always know your role.”
After witnessing a merchant’s downfall for overestimating his position, Mane made sure to remember his father’s words all his life.
Even after entering the academy with excellent grades, he remained cautious.
He believed that forgetting his place amid all these prominent figures would surely lead to his ruin.
However, there were those around him who disregarded that simple wisdom.
They were arrogant.
They assumed they had wealth rivaling even the nobility’s.
Claimed their fathers were famed adventurers leading renowned mercenary groups.
Said they had talents worthy of summoning by the magic tower.
Insisted that the Second Prince would make them knights.
These commoners had lived like kings among their peers and hadn’t shed those habits.
They had once enjoyed the best of treatment in their previous environment.
They had the pride of being accepted into the Soul Academy, a place nobles couldn’t easily access.
Even while competing against high-ranking nobles, they had started to shine, thanks to their results.
Having had it easy, they didn’t wish to remember their limits.
The reason Mane decided to become the leader of the common group was to rein them in.
He believed if he didn’t grab their leashes, they could stir up trouble beyond repair.
The privilege commoners enjoyed at Soul Academy came from the graciousness of the highborn.
If the influential leaders here became furious and drew their blades, oppression of commoners would be a breeze.
If those fools flubbed it up, it wouldn’t just be them facing the consequences; I’d be in hot water too. Mane had been desperately trying to control them, but…
Unfortunately, the idiots he was trying to corral were even more clueless than expected.
“That’s all.”
Mane concluded his explanation based on the report he had just received and nervously eyed the expression of the girl with crossed arms.
At first, he was certain it was game over for him, but not anymore.
Lucy Alrn turned out to be much more rational than the rumors suggested.
Rude? Isn’t that the natural tone nobles use with commoners?
Look! She could’ve gone to the academy and exposed their wrongdoings yet came here to hear them out instead!
Even if there were plenty of reasons to be angry, she was waiting patiently for it to end!
This alone proved she was a person of considerable character!
So, there’s hope.
If everything goes smoothly in this exchange, I could prevent the whole commoner group from being wiped out, and I might save myself too.
“So, the scrappy leader. According to you, those embarrassments over there are the masterminds behind all this?”
“While I can’t say others are entirely innocent…”
“Can you just answer the question? Do I look as relaxed as you?”
“Lady, you’re right. Those three are the instigators.”
The moment Mane’s judgment was set, he made up his mind to cut off the idiot trio from any fallback.
Although other idiots had implicitly agreed, it was clear that these three led the charge.
As soon as Mane nodded, Lucy Alrn’s gaze shifted to the trio of dunces.
As she watched their stiff faces, Mane prayed silently.
Please, for the love of God, let those trash bags just keep quiet. Let them realize the weight of their mistakes and stay silent.
Mane prayed harder than he ever had in his life, but it seemed his faith wasn’t strong enough, and his wish wasn’t granted.
“Dunces. Got something to say?”
“I challenge you to a duel.”
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