Chapter 102: Academy (1)

“Huff…”

Yuri let out a sigh.

He was now standing at the academy entrance ceremony.

“How did I end up in this…?”

Some time had passed since his arrival in the Empire. By a twist of fate, he found himself having to enroll at the academy. Despite being a hero of the alliance, at the academy, he was just another first-year student.

While he closed his eyes and lamented his situation, a guy from a short distance away shot him a fierce look.

Probably his future rival. And in another direction, a pretty-faced student was yawning.

She seemed like someone he would overcome future difficulties with. At some point, the director’s speech ended. The students headed to their assigned classrooms. Curiously, Yuri was placed in the lowest-ranked class.

He chose a seat in the middle, where he wouldn’t attract too much attention.

Suddenly, a loud and beautiful voice came from behind.

“Can you move? I can’t see. I can’t see the board because of you.”

Turning around, he found a familiar face. Yuri’s eyes widened.

“Huh? What are you doing here?”

“What are you talking about?”

She furrowed her delicate eyebrows.

“Stop saying nonsense and move.”

Yuri stared at her.

That small face held perfectly balanced features. She had once been familiar to him, but seeing her again, he thought her beauty was something he could never get used to.

“Yekaterina.”

“You know me?”

She tilted her head. Her annoyed face now showed a bit of curiosity.

Yuri understood.

“This is a stupid dream.”

“Stupid dream?”

“Yes, a dream.”

He was wandering in a dream world.

“Since it’s a dream, I’ll do whatever I want.”

Yuri suddenly stood up and stared directly at Yekaterina.

“How could you betray me? I didn’t expect that from you. You’re cruel, Yena.”

The nickname slipped out unintentionally.

“What nonsense are you spouting…?”

“Damn you…”

Yuri wanted to slap her, but couldn’t raise his hand. Instead, he gathered strength in his fingers and flicked her forehead.

It was a game the two used to play. But this time he did it for real. The flick was so strong that Yekaterina’s neck came off.

“Huh?”

He hadn’t meant to kill her, but seeing her head detach left Yuri frozen.

All the students in the classroom turned to look at him at the same time. They all had the same face.

“Murderer!”

“Murderer!”

“Murderer!”

“Murderer!”

Countless voices rose in unison. Yuri covered his ears. There were so many echoes that it hurt.

Yekaterina’s headless body began to sway.

And suddenly, from the severed part of her neck, a black snake emerged.

***

“Haa!”

Yuri woke up with a start.

As he sat up, he saw Jared lying on the floor holding his jaw.

Was it a dream? He remembered what had happened.

A black snake had attacked him, and Yuri, with the reflexes of a trained knight, had struck without hesitation.

He thought he had hit it well, but opening his eyes, he realized he was in the real world.

He muttered what he hadn’t been able to say at the end of the dream.

“Too slow.”

Jared looked at him with disbelief.

“Your Highness?”

“Ah, Jared. I wasn’t talking about you.”

“Who wakes up throwing punches?”

“Someone attacked me in my dream.”

Yuri got up. Maybe because of the bad dream, he didn’t feel entirely well. His overall condition was low.

Was it last night’s alcohol? Or that strange dream?

The more he thought about it, the more absurd it seemed.

“After all that suffering, now I enroll in an academy…?”

It was a ridiculous development. He should’ve woken up right when the entrance ceremony part began.

Good thing it was only a dream.

“Jared, I’m sorry I hit you, even if it was unintentional.”

“I accept your apology.”

“Let me tell you the dream I had…”

“Ah, by the way, Your Highness. You’re going to the academy today, right?”

“What?”

Yuri looked at him in surprise.

“What’s wrong? Isn’t today the day you go to the Academiaum?”

“Huh? Ah… right.”

Yuri sighed in relief.

“So that’s why I had that stupid dream.”

He had been invited as a guest lecturer to the Academiaum.

He got in contact with them when he admitted Got to the rehab clinic, and since he was a prominent figure on the continent, the academy invited him to give a lecture.

For Yuri, it was a welcome task.

“Finally, I’ll get to see that guy’s face.”

“That guy?”

“Edran.”

“Ah…”

The guy who sold drugs to Got and hired Pamia behind the scenes.

At first, they planned to kidnap him, but fearing Yuri’s retaliation, Edran was always surrounded by his family’s guards. That’s why Yuri hadn’t had a personal talk with him yet.

But at the Academiaum, he couldn’t bring guards. Yuri planned to use this opportunity to have a “private talk” with him.

“While I’m at it, I also want to see the students from Briol.”

They were studying abroad, and as prince, it was only right he recognized their efforts.

If they started thinking about becoming naturalized in the Empire, it would be a huge loss for the country.

“My jaw hurts.”

“Bear with it.”

Yuri got up.

“I overslept. We should leave now, right?”

“Yes. Sir Laurent has already prepared everything.”

“Well done.”

Yuri washed up, changed into clean clothes, and as always, strapped his sword Guilty to his waist before leaving the Duforia Hotel.

The carriage was already waiting. Everything had been arranged; the coachman gave him a courteous bow.

“I’ll take you to the Academiaum.”

The carriage arrived at the destination in no time.

The Academiaum, standing at the center of a vast estate, looked like a true fortress. Through the windows, classes were in session, and in the outer yard, students were practicing swordsmanship.

The level wasn’t bad.

“So this is where I’ll give my lecture.”

***

Yuri stepped down from the carriage, paid the fare, and went in.

They said the tuition was expensive, and indeed, the interior was luxurious. Beyond the lobby, carpets lined the halls, and portraits of famous graduates from the Academiaum hung on the walls.

The director came out to greet him.

“Your Highness, thank you for accepting the invitation.”

“And you are…?”

“My name is Peter, director of the Academiaum.”

“Pleasure to meet you.”

Peter hadn’t gained fame through sword or magic, but as a scholar. So there was no overwhelming aura about him, but behind his glasses, his round eyes gleamed with intelligence.

“I didn’t think you would actually come. The students in the swordsmanship faculty are especially excited for this lecture.”

“The swordsmanship faculty…”

Got, whom Yuri had placed in the clinic, and Dale, who had lured him to the Hotel Duforia, belonged to that faculty.

Yuri asked, recalling Dale—someone he never would’ve imagined learning swordsmanship.

“Out of curiosity, can underperforming students be expelled?”

“No, not really. They just keep training in lower-level classes.”

“I see…”

“Why do you ask?”

“I saw someone who claimed to be in the swordsmanship faculty, but he was so weak it was hard to believe he could even learn to use a sword.”

“Hahahaha…”

The director laughed.

“I can’t say we don’t have students like that. Poor kids pushed here by their families.”

“I figured.”

“Shall we head to the auditorium?”

The director led the way up the stairs.

Upon reaching the third floor and passing through a large door, a vast auditorium unfolded. From the central stage, the audience seats rose up to the ceiling.

Yuri nodded.

“It’s big.”

“Yes. Students from all faculties will attend.”

“Will we all fit?”

“Possibly.”

Yuri smiled.

“When does the lecture begin?”

“After this class ends. There’s a waiting room over there—would you like a more comfortable space prepared?”

“No, this is fine. I’ll stay here.”

“Understood. The other speakers will be arriving soon.”

“How many of us are there in total?”

“Two more.”

“Got it.”

Behind the stage was a spacious room where lecturers could rest.

As soon as he sat down, Yuri said,

“We have a problem.”

“What is it?”

“I haven’t decided what to talk about in the lecture.”

“Excuse me?”

“What should I say?”

“Then why did you accept the invitation?”

“How else was I supposed to beat or kill Edran if I didn’t come here?”

“You accepted a lecture invitation for that? Your Highness, seriously…”

Jared let out a dry laugh, while Laurent, in a serious tone, offered advice:

“Talk about your experiences in the alliance, mix in some life lessons, and pretend you found some profound meaning in it. Like those philosophical life speeches.”

“Good idea. Laurent has a cynical side, huh?”

“No, not at all. I just thought I’d help, Your Highness…”

As they spoke, things outside grew noisy. It seemed someone was arguing with the staff, and soon the door burst open.

“Why do I have to give a lecture in a place like this?”

“Please understand. You already accepted…”

“I said I wouldn’t do it!”

“I’m sorry. Canceling now would…”

“I said I don’t want to! Is there a problem with that?”

“No, none at all…”

He was a mage in a robe. He looked to be in his forties, and his face reflected a complicated temperament.

His brow was furrowed, and every time he complained, the wrinkles spread across his entire forehead.

“What are these brats going to understand from my lecture…?”

Then his eyes landed on Yuri. He squinted.

“Who’s that little punk?”

“I think he’s also a speaker…”

“The Academiaum has hit rock bottom.”

Yuri tilted his head. Ever since his interview in The Imperial Magazine, no one had dared provoke him like this.

Was there really someone in the imperial city who didn’t recognize his face?

Jared whispered.

“I think he has bad eyesight.”

“Oh, really?”

“He squints when he talks. He probably can’t see well.”

“I thought he just had a bad attitude.”

“Both. Bad eyes and a bad temper.”

Then the mage shouted irritably.

“What are you mumbling over there?”

The man beside him, clearly uncomfortable, approached Yuri.

“You see, the mage is in a foul mood…”

But upon seeing Yuri’s face, his jaw dropped.

“Huh? You’re Prince Yuri Briol?”

“That’s right.”

“Wow, I didn’t know you were coming as a lecturer. It’s an honor. I read your interview.”

“Thank you.”

The mage squinted at Yuri, observing him. Yuri asked the other man:

“Why doesn’t he wear glasses?”

“He’s very stubborn…”

“Hey, you!”

“Yes?”

“Come here.”

It seemed that once the mage recognized Yuri’s identity, he simply decided to ignore him.

Instead of continuing to complain out loud, he sat down and started pestering the man accompanying him. The man could only respond with bowed head.

Yuri gave Jared a pat on the shoulder.

“You should be grateful to have a good superior.”

“Yes, sir…”

Yuri chatted with Laurent and Jared about the lecture, while the mage muttered alone in a corner.

Jared whispered,

“I asked the Academiaum staff. They say he’s pretty well-known in the capital. He works at the Empire branch of the Magic Tower, and his students often die.”

“Is he high-level?”

“Just an expert, more or less. They say his classes are incredibly boring. But he loves lecturing because he gets to brag about himself.”

Jared let out a chuckle as he murmured.

As they talked, footsteps could be heard from outside. The building was shaking from the number of people. It seemed the Academiaum students were filling their seats.

Soon, the director entered the waiting room. When he opened the door, the murmur of the audience spilled in.

“There will be two lectures today. Alright, the first to speak will be…”

Yuri raised his hand. He wanted to go first so he’d have time to meet with Edran alone.

But the mage also raised his hand.

“I’ll speak first.”

“I raised my hand first.”

“And what does that matter?”

“Then what does matter?”

Yuri stood up. The mage shrank a little. The director stepped in to mediate.

“Haha, no need to fight. Let’s flip a coin…”

So they decided the order by drawing lots. In the end, the mage was the one to take the stage first.

With grand airs, he flared his robe and walked confidently. Yuri frowned and stood up.

“What are you going to do, Your Highness?”

“I’m curious.”

Yuri replied.

“I want to see what that mage has to say. Will you join me?”

“Ah, of course.”

Yuri left the waiting room with Laurent and Jared.

As soon as he entered, every gaze in the auditorium turned toward him. The mage’s face, already on stage, twisted.