Hector's voice faintly echoed in my mind. "If I had to recommend one, I'd say go for Glenn, the Third Prince. I've heard that the Fourth Princess, Perist, doesn't enjoy socializing."
I wasn't exaggerating, but I struggled to remember names. Once they stretched beyond five letters, I started to mix it up. I didn't know why. Maybe it was just how I was born. If I had to offer an excuse, I'd say the name Glenn wasn't very memorable. It felt too plain for a prince's name.
By the way, I had seen that name somewhere before, not just in Hector's recommendation. I paused to recall, and fortunately, it came to me quickly—5th place: Glenn Scarlett, 81 points. I had spotted it on the Tower of Training rankings, probably in the Room of Agility.
If he ranked fifth, he must be pretty good. I wondered, Then what was that performance on the tram all about? Was he just timid compared to his abilities, or was he putting on an act? It would be a relief if it were the former, but if it's the latter...
"I won't get accused of blasphemy against the imperial family, will I?" I muttered.
Seren asked, "Did you make a mistake?"
"Not really. I just spoke a little informally."
"At Cartel Academy, students are considered equals," Seren claimed.
I sighed in relief.
She continued, "Of course, that doesn't mean anyone sane would speak casually to a member of the imperial family."
Damn. I rubbed my forehead.
Seren gave me a reassuring smile. "Don't worry too much. You've seen Prince Glenn in person, right? He doesn't strike me as someone who flaunts his status."
I nodded. "Yeah, you're right."
"That's good. Then this should work in our favor. I need you to keep an eye on the prince."
"Keep an eye on him?" I repeated.
"It's nothing serious. I just mean observe him."
I gave her a bewildered look. "Are you asking me to spy on the imperial family?"
"You said you'd help me," Seren replied with a slight glance. "I'm not asking for surveillance. Just keep an eye on him."
"In this world, that's called surveillance."
Seren fell silent.
"What exactly should I focus on?" I asked.
"Nothing in particular. Just treat him normally. It'd be ideal if you could get to know him. If anything odd happens, let me know," she replied.
Something strange... That won't be easy, I grumbled inwardly.
"The Glenn I saw—"
"Prince Glenn," she corrected.
"Prince Glenn is already pretty strange," I said, looking at Seren. "So, it's normal for a strange person to do strange things. Should I only tell you when he does something truly unusual? Or should I report every little strange thing he does?"
"It's up to you," Seren said coolly. Then she turned to me with a slightly desperate look. "Please do me this favor, will you? I need to take the same class as Princess Perist. I need to take the same class as Princess Perist. I have only one body, so I cannot keep an eye on the prince myself."
She was admitting she was also spying. Only then did I understand why she needed my help. "Do you know what class Glenn is taking?"
"Of course," Seren replied confidently. "I looked it up in advance. Historical Geography."
What a fortunate coincidence. Glenn had mentioned something about that class during our conversation on the tram.
Seren's reaction amused me, so I feigned hesitation. In truth, getting to know Glenn would not hurt. If I wanted access to the Tomb of the Nameless King, I'd need some connection to the imperial family. Besides, I was curious about what he was hiding.
I don't think any imperial family member has ever joined the Church. If that were true, the empire would truly be in peril. It would be a far more serious issue than if Alderson was a member of the church, as I previously assumed, or the Great Master Juan.
In this country, the imperial family embodied not just the pinnacle of power but also the rightful inheritance of the Red Souls of the five kings. Even as the Third Prince, his lower rank did little to diminish the weight of his symbolic significance.
"Alright, fine."
At my response, Seren exhaled in relief and stepped back.
Right on cue, the other hero disciples wandered over, clearly having waited for her to leave. "What did you talk about?"
"We talked about classes," I replied. "She threatened to kill me if our elective classes overlapped."
Serren shot me a glare, clearly offended that our conversation had escalated into a murder threat in the blink of an eye. I pretended not to notice. "Anyway, how was the welcome party yesterday?"
"Ah, it was amazing," Charis answered. "The meat practically melted in my mouth. But more than that, the orchestra's singer was gorgeous."
I let Charis' words wash over me while scanning the area. At first glance, it seemed everyone was here, but on closer look, a few people were missing. "Where are Hector and Evan?"
Charis looked confused. "Wasn't Hector with you?"
I pointed at myself. "Me?"
"You're his roommate."
So Hector's my roommate. I shook my head. "No one came to my room last night."
"Really? He said he was tired and left early."
" Mm. " I felt a flicker of concern, but Hector wasn't the type to get into trouble easily. I decided not to worry. "What about Evan?"
"He left early too. He had a swordsmanship class this morning. Oh , and get this—yesterday he accidentally drank several glasses of alcohol thinking it was juice. After that, he started acting like a completely different person, getting all flirty and dramatic," Charis shared.
Oh-ho... Now that sounded entertaining. Pity I missed it. Wait, has Evan always been that bad with alcohol?
Before I could dwell on it, Pam approached. "If you've decided on a class, apply soon. Time is running out."
"Yes." I nodded and headed into the office.
***
"You mean the class starts today?" I exclaimed.
"Yes," the stern-looking faculty member replied with a nod. "It's also the last Historical Geography class this month. If you miss it, you won't be able to attend again for three weeks."
I scratched my head. "Can I still enroll now?"
"Of course. The beginning of the class is at 9 a.m, so you've got about thirty minutes. You'd better hurry."
"What?" I blurted.
"Room 108 in Theory Hall. Good luck," he said curtly.
"Wait, where exactly is that?"
The faculty member ignored me completely and went back to sorting papers, bloodshot eyes fixed on the desk. It was clear this was not someone I could hold a conversation with, so I left the office.
Charis was waiting outside. "All done?"
"Yeah," I replied with a sigh.
"Really? Come to think of it, what subject did you choose?"
"Historical Geography."
"That doesn't really suit you," he muttered.
I gave a slight nod in agreement.
Pam poked her head around the corner and asked, "That's the only one you picked?"
"That is the case for now."
"What a waste!" she cried. "I wanted to take so many I had to cut some out with tears in my eyes."
"How many did you sign up for?" I asked.
"Fifteen!" she declared with a proud grin.
Charis leaned closer to me and whispered, "She's not in her right mind either."
"I can hear everything," Pam snapped, crossing her arms. "It's not me who's weird. You two are! Do you know how expensive the entrance fee for Cartel Academy is? Someone from a poor family like me can only dream of it."
"Understood, understood," Charis said quickly, raising his hands in mock surrender to calm her down. Then he turned to me. "Luan, want to come eat with us?"
"It's nice to see the academy," Pam said, her tone softening. "The faculty member said we could take a tram ride around the campus and get an introduction."
"That sounds nice," I said, "but class starts soon. I have to go. If I miss this, I won't have classes for a month."
"Yeah, that's a shame," Charis said with a nod.
I glanced between them. "Do you guys know where Theory Hall is?"
"No."
"Let me think..." Pam muttered.
The others around me didn't seem to know either.
"I'll ask someone else," I said. "Anyway, I have to go now."
"See you later," Pam called.
I left the hero disciples behind and stepped out of the main building. Scanning the crowd for someone approachable, I instead caught sight of a familiar face. It was Glenn.
"E-excuse me!" He stood there with a hesitant expression, as if waiting for me. When our eyes met, he smiled awkwardly. " Ahaha... I-I thought since you were applying for the Historical Geography class... I-if you don't mind, I could take you to the classroom."
So this fool was really a prince. Was the bright red hair, unique to the imperial family, hidden beneath that large hat?
I stared at Glenn as he scratched the back of his head nervously and said, "I-in fact, I'm also taking the Historical Geography class..."
"Really? Then I'd appreciate it if you could show me the way, Your Highness."
Glenn flinched at the sudden formality. "Why the sudden politeness?"
"You're a prince, aren't you? I failed to recognize you earlier," I answered.
At that, Glen bit his lip and, in a rare display, spoke in a rough voice. "Don't call me that."
That was unexpected.
"J-just treat me like you usually do," he added.
It wasn't a particularly difficult request, so I nodded. "Alright. Then let's get moving. We've only got thirty minutes before class starts."
Glenn blinked in disbelief but managed a hesitant reply. " U-uh? R-right."
Fortunately, Theory Hall was close to the main building, about a fifteen-minute walk at a leisurely pace. Once I learned the location, I saw no need to take the tram. Glenn and I walked slowly, feeling no urgency.
Glenn glanced at me and asked, "Excuse me, Luan, are you interested in Historical Geography?"
"If not, why would I choose that class?"
"Really? That's great." His expression brightened slightly. "A-actually... the Historical Geography classroom is a bit strange right now."
"Strange? How so?"
"It feels like some bad students are using it as a lounge rather than a classroom."
What the hell did this even mean?
I stared at Glenn as he continued, "There are very few classes held in Room 108. It's the perfect place for students to hang out."
"The professor doesn't say anything?"
Glenn's eyes darkened a little. "At present, Professor Alec isn't enthusiastic about teaching. I heard he used to be very passionate... In any case, there are a lot of scary seniors in the classroom. Be careful. Maybe they won't mess with you if you're next to me. Yes."
Those words made sense. No matter how timid he was, a prince was still a prince. I didn't think even the bravest would dare challenge him.
Soon, we arrived at the Theory Hall and entered Room 108.
I frowned the moment I opened the door. For a moment, I thought I had stepped into a bar down south from my past. The room smelled strongly of alcohol and thick cigarette smoke.
They don't even ventilate this place?
My vision blurred as I tried to see inside clearly. The room had tiered seating, and a dozen students sat at the top. Judging by their sour expressions, these had to be the scary seniors that Glenn had mentioned. They looked over and laughed.
Glenn coughed as if the smoke were choking him, but he made no move to open the window.
Does this bastard have a screw loose? Despite his timid nature, he was still a member of the imperial family. Nothing about this situation made sense to me.
Even more surprising, Glenn sat down at the front of the classroom without a word. Everyone here seemed to have a screw loose—the students, Glenn, and even Alec, who watched from the sidelines.
Since I didn't have a screw loose, I acted normally, walking to the window and throwing it wide open.
Glenn gasped and stared at me with wide eyes.
The choking smoke finally escaped the room. At last, I could breathe.
The moment the big guy at the end glared at me, I wanted to use Good and Manners. right then and there. But class was about to start, and I couldn't let this spiral into a bloodbath. Drawing on superhuman endurance, I swallowed my urge and sat down beside Glenn.
"Luan..." Glenn muttered.
"What is it?"
" Umm. It's nothing... Do you want me to lend you a notebook?"
Glenn handed me an extra notebook and some writing instruments. Maybe I needed to take notes. "Thank you."
Time passed, but Alec showed no sign of arriving. I glanced at my watch. It was 9:10 a.m.—ten minutes after class was supposed to start, and the professor hadn't shown up. I waited a little longer, assuming something had delayed him. However, when the minute hand reached 9:30, the door remained closed.
I asked, frustrated, "Does he usually come this late?"
"He's a bit late today..."
That meant he was often late. I hadn't expected things to be easy, but it felt like everything was off from the start.
By the way, Glenn didn't look well. He kept shifting in his seat.
"Do you want to go to the bathroom?" I asked.
"N-no..."
"Go and come back."
"Okay. But..." Glenn's gaze flicked toward the back of the room.
He is probably uneasy leaving me alone with the others. I'm not a child. Or do I just seem weak?
"It's fine. The professor should be here soon anyway," I said to reassure him.
"That's true." Glenn hesitated, then stood up. "I'll be right back."
He ran off quickly, so he must have been holding it in for a while. I waved as he left.
As soon as Glenn was gone, I heard chairs scrape against the floor and several people approaching.
"I haven't seen your face before," said the bear-like guy who caught my eye earlier. He leaned in close and asked, "You look like a first-year. Is that right?"
I nodded. "I guess so."
I was a transfer student, but for now, we all counted as first-graders.
"I guess so?" The bear-like fellow laughed, then dropped the smile and glared at me. "Hey, you vain guy. Which family are you from?"