At the Academy, requesting a duel held two distinct meanings.
One was to gauge each other’s skills, using the duel as an opportunity to learn and grow. The other was a wagered duel.
A wagered duel involved placing a bet, having it officially acknowledged in front of others, and then settling the wager based on the outcome of the match. It was one of the Academy students’ favorite spectacles.
In wagered duels, the stakes were considered absolute. Failure to honor the terms after winning or losing was essentially considered a disregard for the testimony of witnesses; this was a violation serious enough for the Academy to impose penalties. The recognition of these duels carried considerable weight.
“But is there really any need to go that far?”
Estelle found it hard to understand.
She wondered if it was worth investing that much time in an orange-haired girl who looked like she would crumble with just a few sharp words.
“Of course. People like wagered duels more than you’d think. And if I say I’ll be friendly with her if she beats me, it’ll turn all her bravado into nothing but hot air.”
The promise to be friendly carried an unspoken truth. That they hadn’t been friendly up until now.
When Iris thought about it, this was the perfect opportunity to completely put Lina, who had been spreading rumors about being close with both Iris and Estelle, in her place from the very beginning.
On top of that, Iris planned to offer a wager so tempting that Lina wouldn’t even be able to refuse. The reward would definitely be too sweet for her to pass up.
Of course, Iris had no intention of losing.
Though she had been thoroughly knocked out in her previous duel with Theo and was unable to put up any real resistance, it didn’t mean she was weak.
It simply meant that Theo was overwhelmingly strong.
Iris herself was plenty powerful, and she was confident she could defeat anyone else in Class A with high swordsmanship scores, except for Theo.
That was how much confidence she had in her own abilities.
“So, I plan to submit the duel request tomorrow. Estelle, if you need to relieve some stress, make sure to do it beforehand.”
“Hmm~ Sounds good. I’ll take care of it today, then.”
“That’s perfect. Just don’t completely destroy her. I’d like to see at least some semblance of her skills.”
Today, the two of them were in remarkably perfect sync.
***
“Hey, commoner. Got a minute to talk?”
While lying down in the dormitory, I couldn’t stand Marty’s constant racket, so I stepped outside, only to run into Lina boldly strolling into the male dormitory to strike up a conversation.
Seriously, why did this girl keep bothering me?
She probably thought Estelle or Iris would shut her down completely, so she kept coming to me, hoping to push me around. But let me make this clear: I wasn’t the type to roll over easily.
“You know that the male dormitory is off-limits to female students, right?”
“Hah, that’s a rule meant for commoners like you. Do you really think a noble lady like me couldn’t come in if I wanted to?”
The dormitory supervisor was supposed to be standing guard at the entrance, which meant one of two things. Either the supervisor had no choice but to let Lina in, or he cooperated with her in hopes of gaining some favor from a noblewoman.
Whichever it was, this clear breach of rules was something I planned to bring up with the faculty. I looked at Lina with an annoyed expression as I mulled over the hassle she was causing.
“I heard you already received demerits today. Are you looking to get more?”
“Hah, what are you going to do, run crying to the teachers?”
“There’s no reason for me not to.”
Since there were male faculty members staying in the dormitory, there was no real need to go all the way to the staff office to resolve the issue.
If no one had been around, I would’ve had to go to the staff office, though.
“So the only thing you can do is complain to the teachers?”
“Well, if that’s what you want to think, go right ahead.”
I didn’t feel like dealing with her, so I gave a half-hearted reply and headed off. I started recalling the room number where the faculty members were staying.
“Excuse me, is anyone here?”
I knocked on the door and called out to see if someone was inside.
“Yes, I’m here. What’s the matter?”
The teacher who had given Lina demerits earlier today appeared.
Oh, dear. This wasn’t looking good for her: one of the least sympathetic teachers toward noble ladies had shown up.
Sure enough, the way Lina flinched at the sight of him made it clear she remembered what had happened earlier.
“Ah, I caught a female student wandering into the male dormitory, so I thought I should check if this was grounds for demerits.”
“What? A female student?”
The teacher frowned deeply, then spotted Lina who was trying to hide behind me. His expression darkened even further.
“You again, Miss Lina von Maria.”
Lina who was already cowering at the irritation in his voice hesitated before stepping forward nervously. What she did next was utterly ridiculous.
“Oh, teacher~ I’m so sorry~ I, um, must’ve gotten lost and accidentally wandered into the male dormitory without realizing it!”
Each dormitory had a distinct structure, and a dorm supervisor was stationed at every building. So her excuse made no sense.
I couldn’t fathom why she would spout such a ridiculous lie.
“Well, in any case, I’ve reported it, so I’ll be on my way now.”
“Understood. Miss Lina, please come with me.”
“Ah, um… About the demerits…”
“The demerits are only normal, and you’ll hear about the consequences of your lie when we get to the staff office.”
Ah, how satisfying.
This was why she should’ve kept her behavior in check.
“Oh, and please keep an eye on her for me, Supervisor!”
“No need to worry, Student Theo.”
He seemed more than capable of handling this.
Considering how easily he had given Lina demerits earlier, I had no doubt he would manage the situation without issue.
“M-Mr. Theo…! You know I just got lost, right? Please, say something for me…!”
Seriously, this girl had the nerve to pick fights with me at every turn but didn’t hesitate to shamelessly ask for help in front of others.
“Well, it’s hard to believe you got lost when the buildings look so different, and you must have passed the dorm supervisor. Strange, isn’t it? Anyway, this isn’t my concern, so figure it out yourself, Miss Lina.”
With that, I walked past her and headed outside. From there, I could hear the lively sounds of ongoing classes echoing in the distance.
Looking back, since I was only a first-year, I could afford to spend my time leisurely attending classes like this, but I knew that as the semesters passed and the years progressed, more practical lessons would be added one by one, and this relaxed period would only last during my freshman year.
“Should I go on a little trip somewhere?”
The thought suddenly occurred to me that I could probably travel anywhere with ease if I used Estelle’s teleportation magic.
“Hmm, if I go alone and leave those two behind, they’ll probably hate it.”
It wasn’t just about them being upset. While I was gone, who knew what kind of trouble they might stir up to open the path toward a bad ending?
Leaving them behind was simply not an option.
If I went, we’d have to go together, and if not, then I wouldn’t go at all.
“I’m bored; I might as well head out for some training.”
Before entering the Academy, I had focused solely on training every day to perform well on the entrance exam, but lately, I had been slacking off for far too long.
If this kept up and my skills dulled to the point where my swordsmanship weakened, that would definitely become a problem.
I was well aware of the Academy’s rules, which allowed even first-year students to use the training grounds when necessary, so I quietly returned to my room, grabbed my sword, and headed for the training grounds.
“I guess I should practice swordsmanship first, and then do some magic training.”
Alternatively, I could just focus on swordsmanship today and leave the magic training for tomorrow.
There wasn’t an immediate practical exam to prepare for anyway, so there was no need to rush or stress myself out over training.
It was while I was making my way to the training grounds that it happened.
“You really are annoying. I got used to putting up with things I don’t like, but I’ve never seen anyone as clueless as you.”
A very familiar voice started to echo from somewhere nearby.
“…That sounds like Estelle’s voice.”
I thought it might be another fight with Iris, so I quickly scanned my surroundings.
“Ha, seriously. Before I decide to dye that orange head of yours another color, you’d better stop following us around. And if I see you picking a fight with Sir Theo again, I swear I won’t let it slide next time.”
By chance, I spotted Lina who looked utterly flustered, likely fresh from receiving demerits, and Estelle who was wearing a terrifyingly hostile expression.
“L-Lady Estelle, please calm down for a moment…”
“Calm down? Do I look like I’m in the mood to calm down? From the very beginning, you’ve been treating Sir Theo like dirt for no reason other than the fact that he’s a commoner. Then you started spreading weird rumors about being close to us. And you think I wouldn’t notice you making up nasty stories about Sir Theo?”
The glint in Estelle’s eyes looked like she was about to do something drastic any second, which made me wonder if I should intervene or not.
“Th-That’s not, I-I didn’t mean it like that…”
…But honestly, it was turning out to be so interesting and entertaining that I decided to just stay and watch.
If only I had some popcorn. Watching this would be perfect with a snack.
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