Since entering the Imperial Academy, the first thing I did was gather information and investigate myself.
To return to my original world, I needed to know about this one and delay becoming a monster.
That’s why I ended up in the library. There’s no better place to build knowledge of this world than a library.
I’m not fluent in the language of this world yet, so reading the books was quite a challenge.
But with a dictionary by my side, I could manage to get through them somehow. Even if there were difficult words, I had to piece together the context to understand.
Here’s what I learned so far.
About 20 years ago, a hero chosen by the Holy Sword fought against the Demon King and was wiped out.
When the Demon King died, the continent was supposed to regain peace, but that wasn’t the case.
The Demon King’s death fragmented him into thousands of pieces that scattered across the continent.
The scattered pieces became food for monsters, and those monsters, feasting on the Demon King’s blood and flesh, grew stronger.
Ultimately, the death of such a colossal being threw the continent into secondary chaos.
‘The Seed of the Demon King.’
That’s what you call the monsters that consumed fragments of the Demon King. With those swarming, this world wasn’t peaceful either.
However, what caught my interest while reading wasn’t that.
It was a world where the hero and the Demon King once existed. And if this is a world from a novel, what kind of setup would that ‘protagonist’ have?
Did the hero even have a child? If so, he’s likely to be the protagonist.
Generally speaking, there are two ways to end a story.
The first is to conclude the tale, that is, to see the ending.
The second is for the protagonist to die during the story.
A novel without a protagonist simply cannot exist. Hence, if the protagonist dies and the world crumbles, it will expel me back to where I originally came from.
Probably.
“······.”
I couldn’t be certain, but I had to hang on to that. I couldn’t think of any other way to go back.
Waiting around doing nothing and just becoming a monster would be far too miserable.
I might go mad halfway through, and I could become a disaster that engulfs the Central Empire.
My emotions had dulled significantly after a year, but I couldn’t even begin to guess how things would turn out later.
I felt sorry for the protagonist here, but there was nothing I could do about it.
I wanted to go back. I didn’t want to become a monster.
I had to become the villain that obstructs the protagonist.
*
The entrance exam was a memory I’d rather forget.
It had only been a short time since I possessed this body, and I was still adjusting to controlling my power.
Of course, if you ask me if I do it well now, I’d say not really, but I was much clumsier back then.
I didn’t like standing out much, so I was going to finish it appropriately, but before I knew it, I had become the top student.
Since a lot of the entrance exam consisted of mock duels. Even if I tried to lose on purpose, it wasn’t easy.
I ended up overpowering a student who was a strong candidate for the top position without a scratch, which was somehow a plus point or something like that.
Because of that, I felt tired for quite some time. The burning gazes followed me wherever I went.
And then—
I thought it had calmed down recently, but it seemed to have flared up again.
“Iria! Were you messing around earlier?! You were, right?! I heard you made a bet with a Class B student!”
“Who are you?”
As I walked through the corridor, an unfamiliar male student grabbed my shoulders and shouted.
“Someone like that is a top student? The prestige of the Imperial Academy has hit rock bottom.”
“······.”
Sometimes, seniors from other grades would give me dirty looks.
I had no idea why they acted so friendly when we had never met. Did they add something to my measly mana?
Everyone seemed to have an unnecessary interest in others.
These were beings who wouldn’t even make eye contact in a back alley.
I heard that in the Combat Magic Department, the total amount of mana is incredibly important. I deliberately entered the department for magic since I disliked standing out, but perhaps this time it worked against me.
But I couldn’t help it. Choosing the Swordsmanship Department was out of the question.
If I wield a sword, there’s a high chance my opponent dies. I don’t know how to subdue without killing.
Hence, there were no options when choosing my department. It was more like escaping from the worst than choosing because I liked it.
“Iria, wait a moment······.”
“No.”
“Let’s duel!”
“I said no.”
“Hmph.”
I coldly brushed off yet another unfamiliar student trying to approach me and continued walking.
I lost count of how many duel requests I received since morning. I stopped counting halfway through.
I sighed at the encroaching fatigue.
I had plenty of time until my next class, but I was already annoyed, thinking that more duel requests would come in during that time.
I leaned back against an empty spot in the park. Then, I heard a familiar voice.
“You look tired.”
I turned my head toward the direction of the voice. There seemed to be a guest at the long bench where I had been sitting.
Yet, the person who spoke to me wasn’t a stranger.
Blue hair, and glasses pushed down on his nose.
“Professor Albert?”
I’m not great at remembering faces, but I definitely remembered those dark circles under his eyes.
Wasn’t he the guy I saw just not long ago? The professor of Fundamentals of Mana.
He quietly admired the scenery of the park while sipping coffee.
Then slowly, he began to speak.
“Being the top student at the academy comes with a price. The student who graduates as the top student can choose their career path as they wish.”
His calm yet grave voice fell upon me like a gentle rain. Had he anticipated what would happen to me?
For him, who didn’t have a short teaching experience, it must be something that happens every year.
“Most students probably think you’re an easy target to challenge, Iria. They’re new to school life, after all, wanting to crumble and learn. They might just want to see how far behind they are from the top student.”
“Is that so?”
“Of course, there are always exceptions. But if you don’t accept their challenges, they’ll keep coming. If you keep avoiding them, they’ll think you’re scared.”
“So you’re saying I should accept all of them?”
There was a brief silence as Albert swallowed a sip of coffee.
He took a moment before continuing.
“It’s not a requirement, but I did. I am an Academy graduate myself. I was the top student. As someone in a position, if you’re underestimated, you will be bitten.”
“······.”
“So I proved my skills. Thoroughly crushed them, so they wouldn’t even think of getting back up. From that point on, I didn’t receive any duel requests. They probably accepted that it was impossible for them to beat me with their skills.”
Albert quietly continued. It felt like he was reminiscing about the past, yet somehow, it felt aimed at me.
“I’m not saying you should do as I did, but Iria, you have skills, don’t you? Pursuing a distant goal is fine, but neglecting what’s in front of you will wear you out in life.”
With those words, he stood up.
Holding a coffee cup he had finished and clutching a magic textbook with one hand.
“I’m off now. Take care.”
“Okay.”
“By the way, I heard that the second daughter of House Aster is aiming for the top position, so be careful. Those who hold the title of top student must bear its weight.”
Lucia Aster.
Albert mentioned that name as he left.
According to him, students challenging the top student at the beginning of the semester is a yearly school culture.
And anyone seated in that position must bear the weight of it.
I frowned.
“······What a hassle.”
Honestly, it was annoying.
I didn’t want to become the top student. If possible, I wanted to hand it over to someone else.
But to do that, I had to accept the duels and also throw some.
How?
Even if I pretended to get hit and acted like it hurt, no one would believe me. I guess I have no talent for acting.
So does that mean I have to accept the duels in the end? I didn’t want to do that either.
“······.”
Not knowing what to do, I decided to do nothing.
After all, if I let it go for a few days like this, they would probably get tired and drop out.
Afternoon class in the Fundamentals of Swordsmanship.
Classes about swordsmanship are often held outdoors. They usually emphasize practicum over theory.
As it is a physical class, there are changing rooms available.
And.
“May. Get ready.”
Inside that changing room, there were people preparing for something.
With her purple hair, Lucia smiled sweetly. She had caught something in the mana’s wave she had created.
Soon someone would be coming in. She signaled to her servant by tapping his shoulder.
The changing room door swung open, and as if waiting, the servant splashed water.
Splash!
With a refreshing sound, a silver-haired girl walked in and got drenched.
“Oh my! I’m sorry! Our servant made a mistake···.”
Lucia said as she covered her mouth with her hand.
But even if her mouth was covered, she couldn’t hide the mocking look in her eyes. Anyone could clearly see her derision.
Iria lifted her gaze. Her red eyes shone with vivid light.
“······?”
Her eerily red eyes locked onto Lucia.
And then, the door to the changing room closed.
