“Don’t just stand there, say something!” Maro said, changing his tone of voice out of anger at me not answering.
“T-that’s r-right. Why are you in this academy with us?”
“He must have cheated or used his family’s influence!”
Complaints from my other classmates began piercing through the silence.
“See? Nobody wants to attend classes with you present, Yuno!” said Maro, riding on the high of having had many of our classmates agree with him.
Although I must say, I passed the entrance exam properly.
Out of the 200 total points you could get from the practical and written tests combined, I had gotten 100 points on the written one and 20 on the practical one, just enough to reach the 120 total points that were the minimum for being accepted.
So, their statements were simply false.
“Hey, you people are just saying whatever you want at this point; I’ll have you know that Yuno properly took the entrance exams and passed!” said my childhood friend, Alice, unable to bear it any longer, her shaking from anger causing her blonde ponytail to sway slightly.
She had told me it would turn out like this earlier. Or rather, she had begged me to not enrol in the academy after all while in tears.
Her protecting me like this made me realise once again what a splendid friend I had in her.
“Oy, Alice, I heard you received top grades in the entrance exam. Am I wrong? His mere presence will make that amazing achievement of yours lose value!”
“Ara, Maro, good job finding that out. But that means you should also know Yuno’s results, no? Of course, I know. I know that Yuno got enough points to pass, and I also know that you barely made it…”
Oof… she really was in her element here.
I had never seen her lose an argument.
And indeed, Maro’s face turned red from embarrassment as he stared at the floor.
But, that only lasted a moment, as he looked up with a dubious smile on his face.
“Everyone, did you hear that!? The heiress of a ducal family has the hots for Yuno-kun from a family of knights! What a predicament, we all have to hold back due to one person’s feelings.”
The moment Maro said so, the hostility that had been directed at me also began being directed towards Alice.
But something like this wouldn’t stop her… is what I thought.
Her face had turned bright red and she seemed to be at a loss for words.
“…”
– I see an opportunity.
They could insult me all they wanted, I didn’t care, but insulting Alice was a different matter entirely. Now that I had properly enrolled in the academy, I could drop out.
I steeled myself to make that declaration to my classmates.
“Everyone, I will be–”
That was when the door to the classroom opened.
“Okayy, sit down kids and let’s get homeroom started.”
The place instantly fell silent as the black-haired, sick-looking teacher entered the classroom.
Likely frustrated at not having been able to finish me but unable to do anything with a teacher present, Maro kept on going ‘tch’.
“What are you lot doing. Sit down already.”
I sat down next to Alice.
“Sorry, Alice. And thanks.”
“…It was nothing. ‘Least I could’ve done…” she said quietly, turning away from me so I couldn’t see her face.
Maro’s statement seemed to have really gotten to her.
“Well everyone, congratulations on your enrolment. You being here means you all have bright futures ahead of you, and–”
“Siiir~ I think someone here came to the wrong school~” said Maro, raising his hand and cutting off the teacher.
I was amazed by how he could be so rude while being a noble.
“Hm? What d’you mean?”
“It’s Yuno-kun. Yuno Astorio” he said, pointing at me with a nasty smile on his face.
“Yuno Astorio… nah, he’s definitely one of my students.”
“Like I said, there must be a mistake somewhere! He’s absolutely incompetent and can’t use a sword or magic at all!”
“Well… while his points in the practical exam were certainly not the best, he made up for it by getting full points in the written exam, something that hasn’t happened before in the history of this school” the teacher said, and a flurry of whispers broke out all throughout the classroom.
“He got full points… on that exam…?”
They probably hadn’t known that part then, and even Maro’s eyes had widened in astonishment as he sank back into his seat.
“Hehe”
Alice, on the other hand, was smiling as if it was something she had done herself.
“So yeah, that’s how it is. You should stop trying to cause trouble and think of him as a good example.” said the teacher, closing the discussion. He then introduced himself as Mr. Soleil, and proceeded to explain the school’s rules to us.
■ Social status has no meaning on school grounds until after graduation.
■ Using magic or weapons outside the designated areas is forbidden.
■ Be prudent when making a contract with a god.
Everything he told us broadly amounted to those three rules.
The most thought-provoking one for me was the third one.
Making a contract with a god was said to be a once-in-a-lifetime event, which made it extremely important.
It was no exaggeration to say that all our futures would be decided based on what god we made a contract with.
After all, we would receive the power of the god we made a contract with in the form of a Skill.
That was why everyone desperately tried to make a contract with as famous a god as possible. That was also why people tried to go to the best educational institutions.
Yet, all that had nothing to do with me.
Because I had already made a contract with a god called ‘Zeus’. It had been way too easy.
“Mr. Soleil! I have a question! I heard that long ago, there existed people who made contracts with multiple gods, but is that even possible?” a lively-looking girl with chestnut-coloured hair asked the teacher energetically.
It seemed like our other classmates were also interested, since the classroom instantly fell quiet.
“It’s possible, but extremely improbable. Most people make one contract and live out the rest of their lives like that. So you kids should think carefully about what god you make a contract with. Here, I’ll show you an easy-to-understand example,” the teacher said, then left the classroom.
My classmates were literally and figuratively on the edges of their seats.
It seemed like they all knew what was going to happen next.
I glanced at Alice.
She simply shook her head, and said “I think it would be better if you didn’t witness this” with a sad look on her face.
A couple moments later, I had an encounter that would change my life.
Sponsored Content
