Chapter 18: 17

How to Survive at the Academy

Chapter 17: Joint Combat Practice (4)

Princess Penia’s Head Escort, Claire, struggled to chase after the princess, her charge having jumped off the arena and running towards the exit.

The princess barely managed to calm down as she saw Claire approaching.

No matter how furious she was, she still had to maintain her royal status. She wasn’t in a position to show such undignified behavior in front of her royal knight.

“I can’t give up on how things are currently.”

She approached me with an ill-tempered look, her anger not having completely subsided. 

“You know something, don’t you? Surely… Whether you are bearing the weight of it or hiding it… I don’t know why you aren’t talking, or maybe you’re being forced to, but I can tell that there is something. I can’t feel any malicious or dark intent inside you but…”

“I think you may be overestimating yourself, princess….”

“Listen carefully. I can’t say anything right now because I don’t have any evidence but…”

The princess’s bright golden eyes looked straight at me.

As expected of a main character. The more I thought about it, the more I remembered just how important of a role Princess Penia and Lucy Mayreel had.

It was difficult to act appropriately in front of the princess’s Insightful Eyes. 

Just like how she caught me in my brief moment of desperation earlier, her sharp sixth sense didn’t allow for even a moment of carelessness. 

In ‘Silvenia’s Failed Swordmaster’, Princess Penia’s Insightful Eyes was just a simple ability that allowed her to know an opponent’s next action in advance during battle, or to peek at an opponent’s stats.

But aside from that, it was treated as nothing more than a plot device.

However, living in this reality myself, actually facing her ability in my daily life had caused me much mental anguish. 

I knew it. It was better to keep as much distance away from the princess as possible. 

Although it would never happen as she was a main character, I needed to make sure to never become close to her. I felt like I was starting to care too much about it.

Of course, I wasn’t sure if it would be easy to keep my distance. It would all depend on my effort from now on.

“How sure are you that you would get your answer as long as you figure out the vague outline of the situation?”

The princess let out a sigh. She seemed to finally realize how funny and ridiculous this whole situation was.

She put her hands on her waist and let out another sigh, finally regaining her composure.

“Anyway… I’m sorry I yelled and showed disgraceful behavior towards you.”

She swept her hand over her face, seemingly recalling the terrible way she had acted earlier. 

Well, even though she was furious, at least the conversation ended with an apology from the princess.

The difference in status between us was enormous. If she was even slightly irritated, it could have had catastrophic results for me.

This was an unprecedented situation in the first place. Princess Penia had rarely gotten annoyed or angry at others, the reason for which was quite complicated. 

I knew about some instances in the princess’s childhood which made it understandable why she had such an unnaturally altruistic and caring personality. 

When she was young, she pointed out a slight stain on her teacup.  This resulted in a maid she was friendly with getting whipped in the royal garden.

The royal family was always conscious of the dangers of being poisoned. So the fact that a stain remained on a piece of tableware for the royal family, and the fact that it even reached the table, was a clear indication that the maid was insincere in her important duty of checking. 

But that wasn’t all.

One day, the princess was running around the garden when she fell down, getting a scratch on her skin. That very same day, her head escort was changed.

Whenever she was tired or had a minor illness, the royal doctor’s complexion would always turn pale. 

Once, her shoe broke during a royal banquet. The royal tailor personally came to her room and threw his body on the floor, apologizing with tears running down his face.

For Princess Penia, who was born with a graceful personality, all of these were burdensome and only served to put pressure on her.

Not a single mistake was allowed on the path of a noble monarch. They must always accept that their own mistakes would be an irreversible disaster for someone else. 

If the princess herself were to directly express her anger or resentment towards someone, she wouldn’t even be able to estimate what kind of disaster she had brought upon them.

The Benevolent Princess was a nickname given to her in tribute to her caring nature. But I knew the truth. That her nickname was nothing but a chain that bound her.

But there was nothing I could do for her. I didn’t have any reason to. But if there was something that was bothering me, it was that I had become a variable in her worries.

“It’s okay to leave. You’ve been looking at that door for some time now. You must have something urgent to attend to, right?”

The princess let me leave as if she had given up. And I was grateful for that.

In any case, I knew I shouldn’t be here, and yet my existence had given the princess unnecessary stress.

“It’s already hard enough to keep up with my classes, but that fox-like merchant keeps hiding her intentions and is trying to devour the whole academy for her own gain! And Professor Glast’s temper isn’t getting any better! Meanwhile, people around me kept mentioning the royal laws… even if I didn’t want to, I had to pay attention to them! It’s all too difficult!”

That moment when she lost her rationality and her pent-up feelings surfaced… She was definitely different from the Princess Penia that I knew.

All sorts of incidents would occur in the original story, causing her mind to wear out little by little. But to even include me in there, I was sure she felt as if her head was about to explode.

I was worried she may later develop anxiety and affect the story, given how she was already feeling unstable. In which case, I should do whatever I could do… but there was nothing in particular that I could do.

I put my hand on the exit and said a few words.

“No matter what type of burden I may carry, it shouldn’t be any heavier than the weight the princess carries.”

She might think I was being too presumptuous, but this shouldn’t end up being too big of a deal.

“While it’s definitely necessary to pay attention to politics and social problems, why don’t you try putting your mind at ease? This isn’t a place where the royal family needs to establish authority over everything… it’s just Silvenia Academy.”

The princess’s eyes widened at my words, even though I didn’t say anything too surprising. 

“I’m not sure if you are aware of it but you look very tired.”

She lived a life spent looking through others, but she didn’t have much experience in someone else being able to see through her.

Looking at the utterly stunned expression on the princess’s face, I quickly closed the door and ran out.

Thankfully, she didn’t try to stop me. That was a relief.

Anyways, Princess Penia was a main character.

She may be very bothered by my existence now, but after she gets involved in all sorts of incidents in the main story, she would forget about me soon enough.

Let’s not see each other again!

Please!

* * *

* * * 

I found Taylee McLaure on a wooden bench somewhere in the outskirts of the Student Center. He was sitting down, tightly clutching the wooden sword he used in the duel.

Now that I could see Taylee in the distance, that didn’t mean I actually had a plan.

“Hm…”

But wasn’t this a hilarious situation? This wasn’t even something one would think of.

The third-class villain Ed Rothstaylor who verbally abused Taylee McLaure and tried to have him kicked out has now come back to give him some words of encouragement. 

Wasn’t that kind of funny?

Because I was so surprised earlier, my body just automatically jumped up and I ended up shouting whatever I could think of at him. But now that I’m thinking calmly, there wasn’t anything I could do to encourage Taylee. 

There was no way he would feel any sense of sincerity no matter what I told him.

I thought about what I should do in such an awkward situation as I took each step toward him. But someone blocked my path suddenly.

“Don’t come any closer.”

I was so surprised, but after looking at her face, I felt a strange sense of joy rising from within me.

She had a short wavy dark brown bob, with a weak appearance but a strong expression on her face showing her will.

“You are…”

“Please… don’t come any closer…”

Despite both of her arms visibly shaking, she talked while maintaining eye contact.

She looked exactly like she did in the game. If you’ve played ‘Silvenia’s Failed Swordmaster’ even once, you would be glad to see her face.

She was practically the face of the game. Taylee’s childhood friend who always supported him whenever he was having a hard time or facing a challenge. I didn’t expect to see Ayla Triss in the flesh.

“Ed Rothstaylor… don’t come… any closer to Taylee. Don’t come closer…!”

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Her trembling face made her look so pitiful. And yet, there was utter disdain on her face. It was a new sight to see.

Of course, only by being in Ed Rothstaylor’s shoes would I get to see Ayla, who had such a weak heart, had such disgust on her face.

“Even if it’s not you… for Taylee… he’s already gone through so much! Isn’t it enough already?! There’s no need to bully him anymore! I also saw you! It… It must have been hard enough already…!”

Her trembling voice was so faint it sounded as though it was going to break, and yet she didn’t stop talking till she spat out everything she wanted to say. More than anything, she was truly sincere in wanting to protect Taylee. I felt unnecessarily touched by her efforts. 

That’s right, this was Ayla…!

It’s funny how I felt moved by someone who was staring at me like they wanted to murder me…

Clank!

The iron cup Ayla was holding fell and started rolling on the stone grounds. She must’ve been on her way to get some water.

It was only then that Taylee responded, having heard the sound of water splashing on the floor. 

Taylee slowly got up from the bench and started walking toward us.

I felt a sense of disharmony then. That sense of weakness he had disappeared as he walked over.

“Ed… Rothstaylor…”

He grabbed the sword tightly as he approached me, then he sent Ayla behind his back and he stared at me.

“Still… I guess you still attend school…”

A low and serious voice. I was surprised to see that he looked fairly back to life. The Taylee that I saw when he lost the duel surely didn’t look to have a bit of life left in him. 

So what happened?

Taylee’s unique willpower to live. No matter how powerful an opponent, he had a fighting spirit that would never break. I could definitely feel that sense of willpower in him.

Had he already resurrected?

It seemed so.

After coming all the way here, I could see the whole story of what may have happened.

I couldn’t follow Taylee right away because of my duel with the Princess.

However, his childhood friend and biggest supporter, Ayla Triss, worriedly ran after him.

And what happened next could be inferred without having to see it in person. 

No matter how high a wall or how difficult an ordeal may be, for anything that blocked Taylee’s path, Ayla would always hug, encourage, and give him positive reinforcement. 

“It’s okay. You can overcome it this time too. You’ve done so well thus far. I believe in you. You can do it. Don’t be discouraged, Taylee.”

She was always there to give Tayle heartwarming support, crying and laughing by his side.

As long as Ayla was with him, Taylee would always stand back up after getting knocked down.

I think even Taylee knew about it.

“Coming here… For what reason… What business do you have with me…?”

Because of her, Taylee was able to stand again.

I was worried he might think I was bullying Ayla, which would explain why he hid her small body behind him as he looked straight at me with such burning volition. 

I was already used to this overwhelming feeling.

Having played as Taylee countless times, it was because of this strong willpower that I felt fully immersed in the game.

“You were quite good with the sword. I saw how you handled it.”

“Tell me clearly what you are planning.”

“I don’t have anything planned.”

For someone who used to despise you at the entrance exam to suddenly say such things, it couldn’t be helped that he thought I was out of my mind.

But I still wanted to tell him something, at the very least.

I gained a sense of affection for him, having played ‘Silvenia’s Failed Swordmaster’ many times in the past. 

While I played the game, there were many times I felt he truly had a strong mental fortitude. No matter how difficult the challenges he faced were, I was always greatly encouraged by that strong willpower and never felt discouraged. 

Coming to the hasty conclusion that he would lose the will to fight just because he got beaten by Lucy once… 

I guess I worried too much.

He was supposed to be my solution, the one who would take on all the ordeals that would happen in the future. He was supposed to be that kind of a pushover. But after meeting him in person, my heart seemed to have changed a bit to some extent.

Well, it was already a given that he would have to take care of all the hardships for me but I should set that aside for now. I would seem heartless if I didn’t. 

“Euut!”

My eyes met with Ayla, her gaze still filled with contempt. But all I did was nod at her and then turned around.

I was on pins and needles, worried that Taylee had collapsed.

But no matter how praiseworthy or amazing of a friend they may be, having more contact may negatively impact the future.

So I just turned around and walked away. 

I could feel their gazes on my back. And without looking, I knew their faces must be saying, “Just what the hell is wrong with that guy?”

…well, it was something that couldn’t be helped.

* * *

Shortly after, while the Joint Combat Training was still underway, sparks started to soar through the sky.

The students playing around the Student Center were all surprised as they looked at Nail Hall. Nobody thought that such a large-scale fire would break out so suddenly. 

Although it wasn’t a fire in the first place.

The flame of Takan, a high-ranking fire spirit, was a cursed flame that burned only the opponent targeted by the Elementalist who summoned him.

But that didn’t mean it wasn’t hot. The heat could definitely be felt spreading through the grounds. With this high temperature from a distance, the students in the audience probably felt like they were thrown into the desert.

“Was it already time for that?”

I went back towards Nail Hall with my hands in my pocket.

This was the climax scene of the Joint Combat Practice event for the first and second years.

If this was the original story, we would all be sitting in the audience at Nail Hall, watching it together.

But Lucy won over Taylee, which was different from what was supposed to happen. But thanks to the scale of the fire, I could tell from where I was.

This was the duel between ‘The Golden Daughter Lortel’ and ‘Yennekar Palerover.’

To gauge the skills of the second-year’s star student, Lortel cast intermediate ice magic at risk of getting herself disqualified. The spell blew off the ceiling of Nail Hall.

After all, the cost of repairing the ceiling was nothing to her.

But because of that, Yennekar was forced to show off the full extent of her skills and brought out the manifestation of Takan, the strongest amongst all the spirits she had signed a contract with.

I could picture what was happening even though I wasn’t there.

The flaming lizard wrapped around the large Nail Hall had the most overwhelming and grandest appearance among Yennekar’s ‘best friends’.

I caught a glimpse of her sitting on its flaming head. She grabbed onto the spirit’s hard scales and swung her wand around, just in case she lost balance and fell off. It was quite a sight to see her smiling so cheerfully in such a situation. 

Never forgetting to smile, she truly was like the main character in a fairy tale. 

I sat on a bench nearby and leaned back. I was exhausted. I didn’t really want to enter the Nail Hall, currently burning with heat.

The appearance of the giant flaming lizard roaring against the backdrop of the setting sun was certainly quite surreal.

Even though some things happened differently from the original, I was sure Taylee and Ayla were watching this same scene.

This was going to be the final boss of Act 1, and also the first out of countless ordeals that Taylee would have to face.

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The top student of the second-year magic students at Silvenia Academy, Yennekar Palerover.

I hoped they were watching it clearly.

Because this would be the last chance they get to see her appearance like this.

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