ALL NOVEL Chapter 176
First, I boldly stepped out.
However, there were professors hiding out of nervousness, thinking something big might happen.
Seeing over fifty “humans” clumsily charging at me with hostility was…
“Hmm…”
It certainly stirred up a lot of thoughts and emotions.
And it seemed that it wasn’t just me; Yurasia and Silina felt the same way.
“Pfft… Eliaernes, don’t you feel like you’re turning into a villain?”
“Why are you acting like you aren’t one?”
“Uh… Young Lady, are we villains?”
“Well, I don’t think I am… but they seem to think we’re the villains.”
I have my own personal line for judging who is human or not.
The moment that line is crossed, no matter what the opponent is, I don’t see them as human.
But the brats in front of me, glaring with various weapons drawn… they are, for now, human.
Plus, aren’t the professors wary of me too?
So, how do I put this… I’ve never felt like this before in my life.
“Is this how the demons felt when they were being hunted by humans?”
“What on earth is she talking about?”
“Yes, yes?!”
“No, um…”
I paused for a moment, tilting my head.
Can I say this? Is it okay?
It feels a bit unpleasant to think of myself in such a way, but since I’m the one saying it, it should be fine.
Nodding, I continued.
“It’s just that these pathetic brats are trying so hard to take me down, and it feels… hmm, can I say it’s not funny?”
Demons. Especially the Legion Commander.
I thought those bastards would put on a tough front against us, but experiencing this firsthand, I understand why they acted so arrogantly.
It wasn’t arrogance; it was a natural response.
A fundamentally different existence. A being that lives several times longer than humans and wields the power that a human takes a lifetime to achieve from birth.
Moreover, these are demons who have toyed with humans for hundreds of years.
For them, humans must’ve seemed like mere inferiors, as they’ve always thought.
But when those inferiors gather to hunt them down, they have every right to act arrogantly.
Especially after taking down Greed first.
That bastard Krahal, even right before he bit the dust, was still acting all high and mighty. So I seriously pondered why it was arrogance and not just greed.
Of course, my perspective changed after actually meeting true arrogance.
Anyway…
“It’s a really… strange feeling. My mouth is twitching, it’s just… odd.”
Understanding their feelings is frustrating, yet what can I do?
If I end up meeting my comrades later, I think it wouldn’t be bad to share this feeling I’m experiencing right now.
It would be good for them to be in such a position themselves. They definitely will, no, without a doubt, feel the same emotions as I do.
A very complicated mix of feelings.
“Goodness. Look at her smile? Eliaernes, you’re not secretly planning something bad, are you?”
“What nonsense are you talking about?”
“Don’t tell me to enjoy this as a hobby.”
“Make sense with your words.”
“Looking at your face, it doesn’t seem like such nonsensical words.”
I raised a hand and touched my twitching mouth. That upwardly tilted corner of my mouth feels funny. Is it because of this situation? Or is it that every time I think of those bastards, I make this face? Is that why Flora realizes it?
I don’t know. I just want to believe it’s because I find this situation amusing.
If I make this face thinking of those brats, it feels like I’m losing, and that hurts my pride.
“I’ll always follow you no matter what you think, Young Lady.”
Yurasia clenched her fist and sparkled with determination.
“Uh… uh…”
I never imagined I’d get such a response. Usually, in such situations… shouldn’t I be saying I’d correct any misbehavior immediately?
“… right.”
I felt like I had to live diligently, even for blinded Yurasia.
“Sigh… Honestly, I threw out a joke since their hostility is solely directed at you, Eliaernes. Don’t you feel any pressure?”
“Should I be trembling with worry?”
“Isn’t that the usual response? I know you’ve reached 6th Rank and have excellent battle instincts, but this isn’t a normal situation. You’re not trying to kill them, just subdue them.”
It’s common knowledge that it’s harder to subdue than to kill in battle.
Plus, those kids are many, but way weaker than me.
Just standing here and radiating my mana and killing intent would make them foam at the mouth and convulse.
And if I do that, they might carry trauma for life or end up mentally broken.
So, I must not do that.
I need to restrain each one of them with fists and feet with suitable force, ensuring they don’t come at me again while keeping their minds intact.
It’s like trying to catch mosquitoes charging at me without killing them.
That’s how I need to handle roughly fifty of them.
Is it impossible?
“What can’t I do?”
It’s easy. On this hot day, in the damp and sticky mountains, I’m thinking I could finish this without breaking a sweat.
And just having the crown princess standing next to me will surely raise their worries tenfold.
Silina would probably struggle to avoid any harm.
That alone would suffice for Silina’s role.
“It’d be easy alone, but you and Yurasia are helping me. Pina could help from the back as well.”
At my words, Yurasia and Silina’s eyes widened.
“… That’s true.”
“Are you trusting me?!”
“Have I ever not believed in you?”
“Ha…”
Beyond that, Yurasia began to tear up and covered her mouth.
“I’ll… do my best!”
“No… not striving hard, just do it moderately, moderately.”
This being the last day… I don’t think I should do such bad things with Yurasia.
*
Murmurs—
More than fifty students, nearing sixty, were sweating as they climbed over the ridge.
“Are we really okay…?”
First-year students in the Signia Class of Karela Academy, and the only and worst delinquent of the academy.
Heir of the Hero, directly from the Eustetia Duchy.
Eliaernes Eustetia.
From now on, we must face her.
Not only do we have to take points to ruin her finals, but we must also inflict injuries on her.
While I don’t know the exact rank, she should at least be 3rd Rank. Thankfully, she uses no weapon. A martial artist.
But beside her, the academy’s top student, Yurasia Espirot, wields a sword. Confirmed rank giving off sword aura at 5th Rank.
And her friend.
The second-best student of the academy, a 5-circle genius mage known as a disciple of Flame Sovereign, Stella Behrhaigen.
If she were present, I might have lost heart before even starting, but I confirmed that Stella isn’t at Eliaernes’ side.
Of course, even a 5th Rank swordsman would be terrifying enough to suck the blood out of me, but there’s nothing scarier in large-scale combat than a backline mage.
Using that as consolation, the kids didn’t stop their steps. They couldn’t afford to stop.
“Even if it doesn’t feel right, we have to…”
Even if it doesn’t feel right, we have to.
We have no choice but to do it.
Everyone here shared the same feeling.
Shivria Eustetia.
Her family, a side branch of Eustetia, manages the iron mines in the Veruna Region. Moreover, they have connections with every supplier of iron.
And the kids here, their parents, are the workers under them.
Shivria leveraged this to approach the kids. While she spoke kindly, it boiled down to obeying her orders or starving to death along with their parents.
And she promised that if they followed those orders, they wouldn’t have to worry about the consequences.
Honestly, I couldn’t trust that.
It’s a well-known fact that side branches can’t surpass the power of the direct line, even for the most naive child.
However, I couldn’t just blindly refuse either.
How much registration fee did I pay to come to this academy? I have to pay next semester’s tuition too. For that, my parents work tirelessly even on this hot summer day.
But, but…
If I refuse Shivria’s command, this academy will lose its importance. I’d be in a position where I must worry about bread and milk for tomorrow.
“… Even if it doesn’t feel okay, we have to.”
Like casting a spell, I muttered the same phrase repeatedly.
It’s a desperate situation with no way out.
Inside the academy, there are no gaps and discrimination based on status? That’s true. But among students, it’s different. A clear wall exists.
An insurmountable wall between nobles and commoners.
Commoners can never surpass noble blood, a wall far too high to overcome.
Still, the only good thing is…
Eliaernes might not be like Shivria.
I heard the stories from those who first ambushed Eliaernes.
“Why would I touch your family? Stop mumbling nonsense and just attack me if you came to fight. Don’t indulge in unnecessary sentiments.”
After saying that, Eliaernes subdued all the kids who ambushed her and said,
“Hey, what are your names?”
“Do your parents work in the iron industry?”
“As I thought. Then what’s your name? No, no. Write down all your names.”
“Why the hell are you making me do that? Damn, if you’re scared, just get lost.”
“If you’ve written it down, don’t think about anything unnecessary and go home and be filial. Study and don’t slack on training. Do whatever it takes to be filial to them while they’re still around, got it?”
“If it doesn’t work, keep trying until it does. Kids these days have no romance or passion. Your parents are working their bones away to get you into a good academy, and you’re just here with your pride stuck in the mud? Ugh, you kids. In my day—”
Having left such peculiar words, Eliaernes…
Actively moved starting the next day, ‘preemptively’ ambushing other kids.
This led the kids to think, perhaps Eliaernes understands our situation intentionally acting friendly to give us a reason to oppose her, to alleviate our guilt, and ultimately waiting for us to move.
It wasn’t definite.
But if they didn’t think this way, they felt like they’d really crumble, so the kids forced themselves to think that way.
After contemplating this thought for a while…
“Wow… seeing this in person, there are so many.”
From not far away, I heard giggling laughter.
“Hey friends. Do you guys have a lot of points?”
Against the dark sky, backlit by the cool moon, Eliaernes was licking her lips while discussing points…
“Points? Ah, aah…”
It was enough to shatter the children’s hopes.
“Are you seriously not hiding some pathetic thing? If so, we’ll all miss out on the fun, okay?”
The wind blew. Wildflowers danced, and many leaves nodded along.
“Ugh… those kids’ faces look awful. Are they really hiding something?”
In the lush, refreshing, and beautiful midst of summer, a small, delicate girl beamed brightly.
“If you’re hiding it, who cares? We’ll just beat it out of you.”
With a thud of a light sound,
Lovely Cherry Blossoms fluttered.
“Ugh… Aaaah!!”
At the same time, 58 students lunged at once.
Thus began the Eliaernes subjugation?