Chapter 34: Chapter 34

I refused outright.

It wasn’t that I hated muscles. Just…

They were too much…

“Fufu, I’ll leave for today, but you will definitely join! Oh, Lady Thermion. The path is open to women as well.”

“I refuse!”

The offer from the ‘Physical Beauty’ club was just the beginning. After that, all sorts of club offers came flying in.

“Hello, freshman, I am the president of the ‘Magic Research Society’, or MRS for short. If you join our club, you will be provided with various privileges such as unlimited access to various experimental equipment as well as valuable ancient books. As the president, I can lend you the key to the magic hall.”

“Hey, freshman. Would you like to join our ‘Map Exploration Club’? Great adventures and historical events await you! Normally, first-year freshmen are not allowed to go on ‘explorations’, but in your case, we’ll allow you to come along on this semester’s expedition as a special offer!”

“We are a club called the ‘Imperial History Exploration’. We focus on the wonderful history…”

“The Astrology Research Society is…”

Leila, who was next to me, was also receiving a flood of offers.

I thought others would find it difficult to approach the Duke’s daughter, but it seemed that wasn’t the case. All kinds of clubs were targeting Leila and me.

“Sorry, but no.”

“Don’t be like that. Think about it! Club life is the best part of academy life! If you join our club…”

“I said no.”

These guys were pretty persistent. Leila and I had firmly drawn the line that we had no intention of joining anything yet, but they quickly crossed that line and made all sorts of suggestions.

As it turned out, the auditorium where orientation was scheduled to be held was filled with ‘seniors’ who didn’t look like freshmen at all walking around. However, those eyes were all like those of a wild beast hunting for prey.

“Hahaha! With this, I’ve secured one new recruit!”

“Hey, grab that redhead! That’s the talent we’re looking for!”

In particular, children from prestigious noble families were the number one targets. Leila and I were on a level where we were in a league of our own.

“Dane Sogres. You are the one who passed the autonomous major. Our club will have you!”

“What are you talking about?! We’ll take him!”

“Leila Thermion. It is an honor to meet you, the daughter of Duke Thermion! If you don’t mind, I’d like to take a moment to tell you about our club…”

They were as persistent as leeches. They didn’t give up. If you refused, another would take advantage of the gap and make all sorts of appeals.

“I told you no!”

It was at that moment that Leila, who had been suffering, finally exploded.

“Students who are not freshmen who have entered the auditorium for reasons other than work-related reasons are requested to leave the auditorium immediately. I repeat, you are requested to leave the auditorium immediately.”

A voice clearly amplified by magic resonated throughout the auditorium. The auditorium fell silent for a moment at the sound of that clear, deep voice.

However, that was only for a moment.

“Now! It’s that guy! Let’s take advantage of this opportunity!”

“You there! I got you!”

As if nothing had happened, the commotion broke out again. The auditorium was filled with the voices of seniors who rushed in to recruit new students. But this time, instead of wincing at the noise, I was able to smile.

Because I heard a voice I knew well.

“Answer my call.”

The air split open, and dozens of summoned creatures began to pour down from the ceiling of the auditorium.

Flapping wings.

Big eyes.

“Kie kie kie kie!”

“Kiekiek!”

A mischievous laugh that matched her cute appearance.

It was a 5th-rank summons, ‘Elmina’, and the person who appeared among the Elminas was一

“This is your final warning.”

一my second sister.

“W-wow. Do you see those summons?”

“There’s no way. She summoned dozens of them at the same time?”

“I-it’s Clare Sogres!”

The screams of those who saw the Elminas summoned by my second sister were heard, and the shock of those who recognized her also rang out.

I just smiled.

Was she here as an assistant?

In the midst of this, my second sister spoke again.

“Please leave now.”

She added, “Please note that contact with Elmina will cause severe itching for a day. If you are willing to endure this, feel free to stay.”

At her words, the auditorium became quiet again, and this time no one opened their mouths.

“I think everyone agrees, right?”

No one answered. My second sister smiled faintly and raised her hand, pointing to the auditorium door.

“The exit is over there.”

And then something miraculous happened. The hesitation only lasted for a moment.

“Hey, hey. If she says she’s going to do it, she will. Get out quickly.”

“Didn’t you hear about the last time? The Magic Department’s lab exploded! She took her summons and took care of everything at once!”

Those persistent seniors were so scared that they quickly ran away.

Thanks to that, the auditorium was cleaned up and tidy, and we freshmen were just standing there blankly, trying to figure out what had just happened. In the midst of all this, I made eye contact with my second sister, who was far away.

“See you later.”

The shape of her mouth clearly said this. Then, my second sister waved her hand once to dispel all those Elminas and returned to her seat.

“Dane, Dane, is that your second sister?”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

“Your sister is so cool… As expected… the little princess of the Summoning Department…”

“Is that what she’s called?”

“She’s your older sister and you don’t even know that?”

Little princess. Just hearing the name, I was sure my eldest sister must have teased her several times for that nickname.

“Oh. She’s also known as the scariest and coldest assistant professor.”

My second sister didn’t really talk much. Compared to my eldest sister, she was more certain about making and breaking relationships.

But to me, she was an infinitely kind older sister. So, on the one hand, I could understand why she gained such a title, but on the other hand, I didn’t like it.

“Your sisters are very famous in the capital.”

“Really?”

“Don’t you know? It’s not like the South is some kind of rural village. How can you not know?”

Rather, it was because my parents weren’t very interested in the politics of the capital. So, naturally, I didn’t have much news about the capital.

While other noble children my age enjoyed social parties and debuts, I was swinging my sword and spear, casting spells, playing with summons, and running wild. At best, we only maintained serious relationships with a few nobles, including Duke Thermion.

That didn’t mean that my father’s reputation as a war hero had disappeared.

“So, Dane, are you interested in joining a club?”

“No.”

There wasn’t a club that interested me.

I wouldn’t go for ‘Physical Beauty’ because I didn’t want to apply that shiny oil, and the rest didn’t really interest me either.

I wondered if there was a club that could help me develop one of my talents.

“I was drawn to the ‘Beautiful and Delicious Cooking Research Club’.”

“Are you good at cooking?”

“Hmm. I haven’t tried it!”

I chuckled as I looked at Leila smiling brightly. It looked like she was really excited about it. I’d have to think about it after the entrance ceremony was over.

By the way, I was the only one in the autonomous major. What should I do?

The autonomous major gave me more freedom than I thought. Not only could I take all of the classes regardless of grade or major, but I could also freely use the facilities related to the undergraduate program.

“Apologies for the commotion. Alright, now we’ll get started with the freshman orientation.”

That was why, since I entered the academy as an autonomous major, I planned to shake off the regrets of my past life and use all of my talents to the fullest.

“From today onwards, you are proud members of the Imperial Academy…”

Oh, right. I was told to go see a certain professor later.

His name was…

“Kelthas Redfield.”

Kelthas Redfield.

Until a few days ago, he was one of the most relaxed men in the world. He had served as Commander of the Imperial Knights. This alone would have made the rest of his life comfortable, but after retirement, he was appointed a professor at the Imperial Academy.

That professorship was for an ‘honorary position’, with only one professor in the Imperial Academy, and no students to teach.

Autonomous major.

A major that hadn’t had a single student accepted in the past few decades,

However, given the nature of the Imperial Academy, which valued tradition, this was a department that would never disappear. So, he was the most relaxed person in the world.

For about ten years, that was certainly the case—until a disturbance suddenly appeared.

‘This is ridiculous.’

Was it true that this student sitting quietly in front of him was really accepted to the autonomous major program?

“Hello, Professor. My name is Dane Sogres.”

“Ahem. Okay. Ahem.”

“Are you uncomfortable?”

“Ahem. No.”

He didn’t feel uncomfortable, only confused. After all, the professorship in the Autonomous Department was effectively an honorary position. Since there were no students to be in charge of, there was nothing to instruct.

It was the best of the best positions. He just had to write a paper or two occasionally and produce some research results.

‘Getting this position in the first place was difficult!!’

Therefore, the competition for his position was very fierce.

Kelthas was the former commander of the Imperial Knights. He became a professor in the Autonomous Department ten years ago, after passing a competition as fierce as the Imperial Academy entrance exam. Naturally, he thought there wouldn’t be any new students admitted to the Autonomous Department until he retired.

That was what the former professor had told him.

‘He retired after living a leisurely life for thirty years without a single student, didn’t he?’

Kelthas had thought it would always be like that. He thought he would retire comfortably…

‘If I had known this would happen, I wouldn’t have taken this post!’

Kelthas screamed inwardly.

He’d heard there was an applicant while he was on vacation, but he didn’t care. However, when he came back, they said the student had passed!

Was this real?

‘Was it through Sogres’ connections…? No, he’s not that kind of person.’

He knew Count Sogres. Even though they weren’t close friends, they were at least familiar with each other’s character. That alone let him know that Count Sogres was not the kind of person who would do anything to force his son into the Imperial Academy.

Above all, the boy had gotten a pass from the three pickiest deans in the academy.

There was no room for doubt, so he got even angrier.

“…Why did you end up applying to the Autonomous Department?”

“So that I can do whatever I want.”

“Do you plan on choosing a specific field later?”

Dane pondered the question for a moment and then shook his head, saying, “I don’t want to miss out on other opportunities by being assigned to any one department in particular.”

Professor Kelthas was truly devastated by that decisive answer.

‘My leisurely life…’

A thought crossed his mind at that moment.

‘Maybe.’

Being a professor meant having the right to evaluate your students. In other words, the student in front of him was one he could evaluate, and his future academic life would change depending on that score.

Even if he took classes in other departments and got good grades because this was the autonomous major, he was the one who would be comprehensively evaluating the boy.

‘Alright.’

Professor Kelthas intended to do this.

“You said you passed the exam with spearmanship, magic, and summoning.”

“Yes.”

“That’s amazing. You passed those difficult departments’ exams three times.”

“I was lucky.”

This time, you won’t be so lucky.

“So, do you happen to have any talent for swordsmanship?”

“Swordsmanship?”

“Yes, swordsmanship is the basis of all weapons. Of course, I do not mean to disparage the spearmanship taught by Count Sogres, but since you have entered the autonomous major and I am a professor, I think you should know at least some of swordsmanship.”

It was pure nonsense. However, the boy in front of him was only fourteen years old, and he had the power to change this boy’s score.

‘I guess I can use this as an excuse to make him go away.’

He came here to rest, not to teach students. If it was instructing others, he had done enough of that as a knight commander. He just chose the title of ‘professor’ because he didn’t want to hear that he was an elder trapped in the back rooms after retirement.

“So, I want to see if you have any talent for swordsmanship.”

Professor Kelthas naturally expected Dane to respond by saying he was embarrassed or untalented, or maybe that he had never studied it before.

If he said that, Kelthas would reply with a disappointed tone, scold him appropriately, and then have him practice swordsmanship and find fault with him here and there.

However, Dane’s answer was different from what he had expected.

“Alright.”