Chapter 5
【 Duel 】
The entrance ceremony ended faster than I thought.
It started at nine and was over in just twenty minutes, after which they began dismissing the students.
‘As expected of the Headmaster.’
The Headmaster of this academy was known to be a man of few words.
True to that setting, even in the game, his lines were overwhelmingly fewer compared to other characters.
And now that I saw him in person, he really was the taciturn type, just as described.
‘Headmaster Dilug. I’ll have to meet him privately one day.’
If I truly walked the path of success, I’d inevitably see him at least once before graduation—whether I wanted to or not.
And when that time came, I needed to make a good impression.
Though he looked like a quiet old man, he possessed remarkable skill and a vast network of connections.
‘He even has ties with people from the underworld. I might need those connections someday.’
Anyway, he was someone it wouldn’t hurt to stay on good terms with.
Well, setting that aside.
‘…Where exactly is my classroom?’
After the entrance ceremony, the students were told to find their assigned classrooms.
I was among them.
‘The academy really is huge.’
Lysquare Academy, located in the capital of the Arium Empire.
Though the Empire had numerous academies, Lysquare was the largest and most well-equipped among them.
However, despite its scale, the number of new students accepted each year was quite small.
‘Ninety students per grade. Three classes with thirty students each.’
I knew that well from having raised dozens of characters in Lysquare Academy throughout the game.
If I remembered correctly, each class had around ten nobles and twenty commoners.
‘That was usually the ratio. All first, second, and third-year classes had thirty students, with nobles and commoners divided roughly like that.’
But, as always, there were exceptions.
First Year, Class One.
If memory served me right, that class didn’t even have five nobles.
Of course, there was a valid reason for that.
But right now, that reason wasn’t the important part…
‘The problem is that I’m in Class One.’
A few minutes ago, right after the ceremony ended, I learned which class I’d been placed in through a teacher’s guidance.
‘Class One. So it’s really Class One, huh….’
No matter how much I thought about it, this Gideon Kyrgram person was strange.
I had visited First Year, Class One multiple times while playing the game, and I had even played as one of its students several times.
But no matter how deep I dug into my memory, there had never been a noble named Gideon Kyrgram in Class One.
No, not even a commoner named Gideon.
So the more I thought about Gideon—or rather, about myself—the more suspicious it all felt.
‘Well, whatever. So this is Class One.’
Following the other students, I eventually arrived at the First Year, Class One classroom.
Knowing who was inside made me hesitate for a moment, but I didn’t have any other choice.
After taking a deep breath, I opened the door and stepped in.
‘As expected, she’s already here.’
The first thing that caught my eye was a blonde-haired girl.
It was the same girl I’d met earlier in the garden.
‘Class One even has the Princess of the Empire herself.’
That was the reason I’d been reluctant to come here.
While it didn’t bother me in the game, sharing the same classroom in real life… felt rather overwhelming.
‘Looks like I’m not the only one feeling that way.’
There were twenty-five commoners in the classroom.
Normally, they’d be chatting and getting to know one another.
But because of the Princess’s presence, everyone just sat quietly at their desks.
Well, it made sense.
Even the presence of a single noble could make commoners nervous—let alone a member of the royal family.
‘And besides, the few nobles in this class aren’t ordinary ones either.’
If I recalled correctly, there were originally four nobles in First Year, Class One.
‘First, the Princess, Layla. And then… Roy Varbellos.’
I looked toward the back corner of the room, where a boy sat alone.
He had very pale skin and a delicate frame—a fair, almost frail-looking boy.
‘He’s a count, right? And his family’s a fairly well-known line of magicians.’
I didn’t know much about Roy.
He was just a minor, inconspicuous extra character.
More importantly, there were three nobles in this class with overwhelming presence.
One of them was the aforementioned Layla, and…
‘Sara Isrinbloom.’
The black-haired girl I had crossed swords with in the garden earlier.
As expected, she was sitting beside Layla.
And right next to them sat a boy with a relaxed, confident expression.
‘Jason Hawkbat.’
The green-haired boy was the third son of a ducal family.
The Hawkbat Family—one of the Empire’s Three Swords.
While the Isrinbloom Family specialized in technical swordsmanship, the Hawkbat Family focused on speed-based quick sword techniques.
In fact, Jason was known as the fastest swordsman in the entire academy.
‘Layla, Sara, Jason, Roy.’
Those were the four nobles who originally made up Class One.
But for some reason, I’d been added to their ranks.
‘…For now, I should stay quiet.’
If I wanted to restore my family’s name, I first had to rise in status. And to do that, I needed to build connections with the children of influential families.
But that kind of relationship required patience and timing.
If I approached them too eagerly, I might only raise their guard.
‘Let’s sit next to Roy.’
Fortunately, the seat beside Roy was empty.
And since he was a quiet extra, sitting there shouldn’t cause any trouble…
“Gideon. You’re in Class One too?”
“…Your Highness.”
My plan to stay under the radar was immediately crushed—by none other than the ever-friendly Princess herself.
Layla smiled as she approached, and I quickly bowed my head in greeting.
But she waved her hand lightly.
“No need to be so formal. This is the academy, after all. You can treat me comfortably.”
“Thank you for your consideration. But still, I feel more comfortable this way.”
Layla wasn’t saying that just out of formality.
From what I’d learned while playing the game, Layla genuinely didn’t care about social status.
She treated nobles and commoners alike—the very image of an ideal royal.
‘Thanks to her, this class didn’t have those common conflicts between nobles and commoners.’
Of course, it was partly due to Layla’s character, but it was also because none of the commoners dared to harbor resentment toward a Princess, even if she were just another student.
And in this class, the nobles included two from ducal families and one from a count’s family.
There were many commoners, but the imbalance alone was enough to make them feel small.
“Is that so? Well then, Gideon—since we’re in the same class, why don’t you join us for a chat before class starts? We were just talking about you, actually.”
“Were you? May I ask… why?”
“Your Highness.”
Before Layla could answer, Sara had already risen from her seat and approached us.
“I would prefer if you didn’t share that story with this man…”
“Sara. I told you, here at least, call me Layla.”
“…Understood, Layla.”
Sara lowered her head slightly in acknowledgment, then looked back at me.
Her eyes were still full of displeasure.
“I didn’t expect you to end up in the same class as me.”
“I didn’t expect to meet you again this soon either.”
I spoke with a polite smile—the kind of sales-smile I’d perfected back when I still had a job, before I turned into a full-time gamer.
But Sara looked at me with a mix of irritation and suspicion all the same.
“No matter how I look at it, you’re suspicious. Some no-name noble from an unknown family dared to face me and—”
“Hey, hey. Sara. That’s enough.”
A green-haired boy—Jason—approached us, chuckling softly.
“If you’re a swordsman, you should know how to accept defeat. Clinging to it like this is just… pathetic, honestly.”
“Shut up, Jason. And I didn’t lose to this man—”
“Yeah, yeah. I heard it all from Layla earlier. He blocked all your attacks, right?”
With a teasing grin, Jason successfully shut her up, then turned to me and extended his hand.
“Nice to meet you, Gideon. I just heard about you from Lady Layla.”
“It’s an honor to meet you, Sir Jason.”
I shook his hand firmly, and he smirked at my reply.
“Oh? You know who I am?”
“As a fellow swordsman, I’ve heard much about the Hawkbat Family.”
“Oh-ho.”
Jason looked at me with an intrigued glint in his eyes.
“I heard from Her High—no, from Layla. You crossed swords with Sara earlier, didn’t you?”
“It was just a brief exchange.”
“Really? She said you won.”
“…I wouldn’t say I won. I merely managed to defend myself.”
“The moment you blocked all of Sara’s attacks, that was your victory.”
Jason said that, then paused for a moment to look me over.
“Gideon Kyrgram. From a baron family, right?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“Hmmm. Interesting. A swordsman from some unheard-of family managed to beat Sara…”
“Jason! I told you I didn’t lose! The duel just didn’t have a winner!”
Sara raised her voice, her face slightly flushed.
“And if you’ve got a problem with my swordsmanship, you can fight me yourself. I’ll beat you too.”
“I’d rather not. You fight way too dirty.”
“Did you just call my family’s swordsmanship dirty…?”
“Hey, you two, stop. Not here, okay…?”
Layla quickly stepped in between them to mediate.
Meanwhile, I stood awkwardly caught in the middle, unable to do or say anything.
I wanted to quietly slip away, but walking off without a word might offend these “highborn” students.
“Alright, alright! Everyone, take your seats. Huh? Most of you are already sitting. Oh, not all—hey, you four, sit down.”
Just as I was fidgeting helplessly, my savior appeared.
“Today, we’ll just do a quick round of introductions and call it a day for the morning.”
The man who’d just entered the classroom was Luke Keras—homeroom teacher of First Year, Class One.
At his arrival, Sara glared briefly at Jason before returning to her seat. Layla and Jason followed suit.
I quickly slipped toward the back and sat beside Roy.
‘Haah… I thought my heart was going to give out.’
As expected of Sara.
No wonder players used to curse her out constantly.
‘Still, no matter how nasty her personality is, I need to stay on good terms with her.’
To become a knight, it was best to maintain friendly ties with the heirs of the three ducal families, whether I liked it or not.
Well, that could wait for later.
‘It’s been a while since I’ve sat in a classroom like this.’
I turned my gaze toward Luke as he began introducing himself at the front.
Listening to a teacher like this again… it really did feel like I’d gone back to being a student.
Except this wasn’t a school in twenty-first century Korea—so the feeling was entirely different.