Chapter 22
Right after the freshman welcome examination.
The students of Class E were still steeped in its aftertaste.
The spectators' murmurs still seemed to linger in their ears.
-Good grief, how can someone with an overall E rank be the top student of a class?
-If trash like that can rank first, what must the ones below him be like?
-Tsk, tsk··· They're all below standard.
The aftertaste.
That word had been trampled beneath ridicule so many times.
The wounds pierced by those barbs had breathed that much.
-Oh my, look at that one struggling.
-Ahaha! Dangling there by a thread—what? Is he even crying?
-Why did those lowlifes even enroll···.
Everyone heard it.
The contempt aimed at Class E, and the sneering lips that bobbed with laughter.
The children had no choice but to hang their heads.
They clenched their teeth against that shuddering humiliation.
-Oh my, is that one supposed to be the runner-up? They're particularly tenacious.
-They're forcing themselves to stand back up. Do they not understand reality···?
The students of Class E.
They, too, had once been called prodigies somewhere.
They possessed valuable talents and immeasurable potential.
Thus, they had always been full of pride.
‘However.’
Even people like that were treated as failures here.
Grandia Academy.
The finest educational institution on the continent.
A waystation through which countless talents passed.
Among the real talents, they were painfully ordinary.
‘This is too much.’
The effort they had built up over the years was so easily denied.
They did not even have precious noble blood.
Commoners. People of lowly status who had begged their way into an education.
In a way, perhaps being looked down on by the other noble students was only natural.
‘We only did our best···.’
Skill, power, and money.
They had none of the three.
Naturally, then, they were scorned here.
Even the faculty did nothing to restrain the conflict between classes.
Under the pretext of encouraging competition and stirring up the students' fighting spirit.
Therefore.
The children's hearts could be protected by no one.
Yes, that was how it should have been···.
-You shouldn't mess with someone else's bread shuttle.
Someone stepped forward.
A boy wearing a mask.
He tapped each of the disheveled students once on the shoulder.
Then, after telling them to rest, he walked toward the training ground where they had been thoroughly trampled.
‘······.’
Up until then, the students had held no particular expectations.
The duel between the top student of Class C and the top student of Class E.
The result had been obvious to everyone.
Class E's complete defeat had already been decided.
The examination itself had been prepared as a stage for them to be laughed at.
-Mr. Ruyan, you've worked hard.
-Take a short rest.
The result would be the same.
He, too, would be thoroughly crushed and showered with countless more sneers.
Thus, there was only one thing the Class E children prayed for.
‘Please.’
Please.
Let this tiresome moment pass quickly.
Let them escape those detestable voices.
The children sprawled across the waiting seats embraced that resignation.
The appearance of defeated soldiers who had lost the will to fight.
That was how they burned only the bitter taste in their mouths like cigarettes.
-What, what···?
A miracle occurred.
That characteristically laughter-laden voice.
An air of ease conveyed through the clownish mask.
-Hmm.
-You said you'd finish it in one blow···.
-This is all?
It was the moment everyone's expectations shattered.
The boy utterly overwhelmed Shariel.
He was neither scorched by the flames nor stained by soot.
-······.
The painful mockery of Class C.
He silenced it all.
He drew admiration from the upper and lower classes alike.
His back as he cut through the flames, swinging a colorful sword.
《Examination over. The winner is Victor.》
In the end, he even seized victory.
He had broken a wall that had seemed so impossibly high.
And he did not stop there.
-So.
-Anyone else dissatisfied with my Shuttles?
He glared at the students remaining in the waiting seats, subtly pressuring them.
Meanwhile, he held up a V toward the students of Class E.
He had taken their side.
He had struck back on behalf of the classmates who had been wronged.
Of course, perhaps the person in question had not intended such a kind gesture···.
At least, that was how it looked to the mentally exhausted students—the children of Class E.
-Did he take our side···?
-Why? Even if we're in the same class, it's not as though we were close···.
-Besides, we all joined forces to try to knock him out of first place···.
Those most deeply moved were the eight known as the ‘Bread Shuttles.’
They were among the highest-ranked students in Class E.
Their pride in their abilities was immense, and their hearts had long been filled with resentment.
Goodwill had come to children like that.
-You all worked hard today.
-Don't pull the rickshaw tomorrow. Get plenty of rest.
-The exam must have left you exhausted, both physically and mentally.
And then, immediately after the exam, came his careful consideration.
The Shuttles could not help but let down their guard.
A dangerous guy, an unpredictable guy.
That assessment had transformed into ‘a guy who might not be so bad.’
-He might really be a decent guy···.
-For starters, even though we did that to him, he stepped forward and stopped them from directing the abuse at us···.
-······I need to apologize properly. For looking down on him and threatening him recklessly back then.
The Shuttles found themselves thinking.
Perhaps the person before them really was worthy of being called ‘big bro.’
Perhaps, if they stayed by his side, they could learn a great deal during their time at the academy.
Thus, the Shuttles decided to thank the boy first.
““Welcome, big bro!!””
A booming chorus.
“We've been waiting for you, big bro!”
“Big bro! Come sit over here!”
“We laid out a cushion for you in advance!”
This was the story behind the Bread Shuttles' sudden change of heart.
***
“Hmm···.”
I could not hide my bewilderment.
It was because of the welcome that poured over me as soon as I entered the classroom.
After receiving their respectful greetings, I sat down in the seat with a cushion already laid out.
‘······What is this?’
The Bread Shuttles were standing at the very front.
And they looked positively delighted.
Even when they cannot say anything, their irritation usually shows plainly on their faces.
Of course. I had made them pull rickshaws, play Top Blade, play Sonic, and so on.
After making them do all that, what kind of person would they be if their expressions did not crumple?
Perhaps because of that, whenever I encountered them, I could always see their brows furrow···.
‘Why do they look so happy today?’
Hadn't they suffered a crushing defeat in yesterday's exam, too?
I had expected the atmosphere of a house in mourning, but the air was not as gloomy as I had thought.
I tilted my head to myself.
“Big bro, is something wrong!”
“Uh··· It's nothing.”
“Yes! If there's anything you need, just tell us!”
“······.”
No, what is wrong with you guys?
It was starting to frighten me.
As I scratched my head uneasily, one of the fidgeting Shuttles finally opened his mouth.
“B-big bro··· Thank you for yesterday!”
“Huh? What are you talking about?”
“Yesterday's exam. I was truly impressed. I knew you were strong for someone from Class E, big bro, but I never imagined you'd overwhelm the top student of Class C! And not just anyone—the Lady Ravriel known as a prodigy of flame magic!”
“Ah··· You mean that. She certainly was a tricky opponent.”
“Haha! What humility, after you beat her with a single balloon!”
“I was lucky.”
“The rumor is already spreading throughout the academy.”
No, I really was lucky.
Do you have any idea how weak I am?
It's only because I used a ton of bugs. My basic stats are fixed at E rank, you know?
Even a flick of mana-dust from you guys would punch a hole through me.
‘This is awkward···.’
[Still, haven't their attitudes changed completely?]
‘That is true, but···.’
[They must have been impressed. Yesterday's exam was shocking enough. You struck a blow against Class C on behalf of those children who had been thoroughly toyed with.]
‘Do you think so?’
Had I succeeded in raising my approval without meaning to?
Well, I certainly had done it in spectacular fashion yesterday.
In any case, something good was something good, so I decided to nod and move on.
“Ahem, let us continue striving forward. We cannot remain in Class E throughout our entire academy life.”
“Yes, big bro!”
Big bro.
I was the one who had made them call me that, but hearing it now felt strange.
And they all kept calling me big bro, regardless of gender···.
I cleared my mind and exchanged a few words with the Shuttles gathered around me.
‘Well··· Since things have turned out this way, perhaps I should make active use of them from now on.’
Even if they were students of Class E, they were all basically capable people.
People with no real talent whatsoever could not even enroll at Grandia.
In other words, these children, too, were talents with plenty of room to grow.
If their growth routes were opened without obstruction, they could become as strong as those in Class A.
It was probably balanced that way because this was a game.
‘In my past life, gameplay like [Clearing the Story Using Only Class E Characters] had even become popular···.’
That meant they were not impossible to raise.
The difficulty was fairly high, but it was no problem for veterans like me.
If I succeeded, I would gain reliable allies.
I planned to remain in Class E for a while anyway, so I thought I might as well raise them while I was at it.
‘I will think about it later.’
As I quietly organized my thoughts, a message suddenly appeared before my eyes.
Ding-!
[Sub Quest]
-Contents: Raise every student in Class E into a fighter of B rank or higher.
-Quest Duration: Until graduation
-Penalty for Failure: None
-Reward: Character-exclusive item ‘Scales of the Black Tuner (S-)’
So this counted as a quest, too.
And scales, at that. It was an S-rank item.
There was no reason for me to refuse.
I lightly clicked the quest acceptance button.
‘Good··· Things are falling into place.’
I conversed with my mouth while organizing my thoughts with my mind.
That was when the noisy gathering finally began to disperse.
My eyes met Alice's among the children.
“Oh.”
I was glad to see her.
I had arrived late for yesterday's exam and had not been able to watch her test.
I heard she had declared her surrender as soon as it began.
‘It was only natural···.’
Alice still could not properly control her ability.
Afraid of hurting others, she must have been reluctant to activate her dream.
She was such a pitiful child.
Despite possessing such selflessness, she was destined to become a calamity in the end.
The original story was bleak in many ways, too.
“Miss Alice.”
I waved lightly to greet her.
We had already broken the ice last time, so I should be able to approach her more casually.
Alice was the supporting character I had cherished most in Nugme.
I wanted to stay as close to her as possible.
I also had to prevent the future in which she became a calamity.
“Good morning.”
“Eek···.”
However, the greeting I offered so warmly did not come back to me.
The girl flinched when our eyes met.
Her shoulders hunched, then began to tremble.
The flustered girl soon averted her eyes.
‘What.’
And as if that were not enough, she quietly slipped out of the classroom.
I could do nothing but stand there, dumbfounded.
What was that?
What was going on?
‘Don't tell me.’
Did I get rejected before I had even confessed?
***
Alice.
Several days ago, she had seen something she should never have seen.
-Our eyes, our eyes met···?
-H-how? That has never happened before···.
Purgatory, Floor 70.
The back of the monster that had reigned there.
The girl who had dared to spy on its surroundings had been caught by the clown's gaze.
-I-I'm going to die···. He'll kill me, he'll silence me···.
-Sniff, what, what should I do···?
It had been a situation in which her life felt threatened.
Since she had seen what she should not have seen, she thought she would surely be silenced.
Yet, contrary to her expectations, no harm came to her.
Time passed without her understanding why.
‘Why···?’
Alice had agonized over it with tearful eyes.
The mask that had looked straight through her with a grotesque smile was already etched into her mind.
Alice took it as a kind of warning.
‘So he is not going to kill me for now? B-but the moment I tell anyone···.’
There had been no reason for him to kill Alice in the first place.
Even the faculty of Grandia had been unable to attempt a conquest of the seventieth floor.
He was a person who had killed the master of such a place with a single gesture.
Overwhelming power.
The academy's fate had effectively fallen into his hands.
In such a situation, he must have thought there was no need to bother silencing her.
‘He was telling me to behave myself···.’
If she opened her mouth, she would die.
He was the person who had butchered a dragon with a single finger.
Even the faculty of Grandia must seem laughable to him.
‘I have to stay still. Quietly··· live as though I were already dead.’
It was the conclusion she had reached coldly.
Or perhaps she had simply been somewhat terrified···.
‘If I tell anyone, I do not know what will happen to the academy···.’
That was the best Alice could do.
There was simply too much she did not know.
Why?
Why on earth?
Why had someone that powerful enrolled in Class E?
Why was he moving while concealing his strength?
They said the strongest people were all insane. Was the boy one of those people, too?
Why had the academy failed to notice anything strange about him?
Was he so far beyond the faculty that they could not even sense his strength?
Could the headmaster stand against him?
‘I don't know. I don't know anything···.’
A multitude of questions bloomed, but none of them were answered.
Only the fear in her heart continued to grow.
Even as she made her way to school, Alice repeated the same things to herself several times.
‘Never.’
I must never become entangled with that person again.
I must never draw that person's attention.
I must not even pretend to know him.
-Then how about this? We become friends from now on?
The words she had heard before did trouble her, but surely that did not matter.
To put it bluntly, there was no reason for someone so extraordinary to take notice of her, was there?
Since she had received a warning, all she needed to do was show that she understood it clearly.
She needed to convince him that she would never tell anyone.
‘T-then··· It will be fine.’
Yes.
She would live quietly.
He would not pretend to know her or anything, either.
Her hopeful circuits had been working overtime.
Alice took a deep breath as she made that resolution.
Yes, she had certainly resolved to do that···.
“Miss Alice.”
What was this situation supposed to be?
“I finally caught you. You spent the whole day running away···.”
A grotesquely smiling mask stood before her.
And behind her was a wall, preventing her from running away again.
One of the clown's hands was braced against that wall.
A wall slam.
A romantic tableau straight out of a novel, with a boy and a girl.
But Alice felt as though she might wet herself on the spot.
“Y-y-yyes···.”
A voice trembling like a goat.
The clown chuckled and gently took her hand.
“How about a date? Just the two of us.”
“Y-yes···? Yess···?”
Her shoulders trembled violently.
Alice felt like crying.