Even a Scoundrel Gets Tired

199 – Group Assignment

With the chime signaling the start of class,

I ascended the stairs, one by one,

and she, still showing no

inclination to approach me,

followed behind, scattering her

beautiful violet tresses in the air.

Well, it seemed that running was not particularly

familiar to her,

her face plainly revealing

the exertion it cost her…

Though perhaps, in a way, that was to be expected.

After all, she is

the Marchioness’ daughter.

She should be practicing

graceful strides, not

suddenly running and

sprinting like this.

Still, I wasn’t particularly worried.

Whatever the case, she too

Being a wielder of the sword,

I had assumed he’d at least done some minimal physical training.

The proof of this was that even now,

he was somehow managing to keep up with

my own, admittedly rather quick, pace.

I saw no real need to glance back.

“Hey, you madman…I’m leaving you behind?!”

“Ugh… Why did the carriage wheel have to break down *today*…!!”

“Ah… right… the speed-enhancing magic formula…”

Instead of turning,

I scanned my surroundings once more,

spotting students in the same predicament as us left and right.

Truth be told, I hardly ever

have reason to be late, living in the dorms as I do.

But the majority of the

slightly-more-affluent nobles

simply refuse to reside there.

What reason *would* they have to?

Even if their homes are a fair distance,

a carriage ride gets them here quickly enough,

and no matter how good the academy dormitories’

amenities might be,

they couldn’t possibly compare to their own estates.

*’I’d like to find a place of my own if I could…’*

It wasn’t that anything about where

I lived now was particularly inconvenient.

Of course, being a dormitory specifically

for commoners, the environment was somewhat spartan,

but I had long since grown

accustomed to such things and barely noticed them.

And if there were things I lacked,

or points of discomfort,

I could simply fix or remodel them myself.

There had, in fact, been several occasions when

holes appeared in the walls,

or cracks appeared in the floor,

but all such issues had

long since been resolved.

All by my own hand.

Even if the building’s design or…

Even if I couldn’t quite manage the raw materials themselves,

I could process things to a certain level with my own hands,

So until now, there hadn’t really been a

particular reason for me to yearn for a home.

Yes, until now, that is.

“And now that Aria’s even

left the house… This is a mess…”

The Reinhardt family mansion where Aria had lived

until recently had already been half-destroyed,

and now she’d be living alone in Charlotte’s mansion,

so I wanted to find a place where she

and I could live as soon as possible.

Honestly, I didn’t matter; it would be enough if just Aria

could live somewhere else, but

her condition the last time I saw her

weighed heavily on my mind.

Besides, continuously

relying on the Charlotte family like this

wasn’t something I could do.

Of course, Sino said there was

no need to worry about such things,

and that, in fact, I could stay

as long as I wanted,

but honestly, that suggestion didn’t sit right with me.

For anyone else, maybe,

but hearing Charlotte say it like that,

it felt like if I continued to

rely on them, I’d regret it later,

but at least I wanted to take

responsibility for my little sister myself.

‘If it weren’t for me, at least Aria would be in the mansion right now…’

“Hey!!”

“…?”

“What are you doing? Why aren’t you running?

You’re really going to be late if you don’t!!”

Ah, come to think of it, I was still running.

Forcing myself to come to,

I started climbing the stairs again

at an even faster pace than before, and

At long last, I managed to reach my classroom,

A Class, situated at the Academy’s

highest point.

“This building, I wonder who designed it…”

Why they had to design A Class at the very

top, I just don’t know.

No matter how wonderful the view,

isn’t it inconvenient?

Besides, the Academy’s

main facilities are all located

below, aren’t they?

“Don’t the Academy’s A Class students

complain about climbing all these stairs…?”

“Complain? Over something like this?”

Ah, I keep forgetting.

That I’m not alone right now.

“…You really won’t go back?”

“No. I’ve received permission from

all the professors, you know?”

“…When?”

“Before I came to meet you.”

She said it with a grin, probably thinking

she’d landed a blow,

and, pleased with herself, began heading

into the A Class classroom even before I did.

That sight made me involuntarily lower my head.

“Uh… who… who are you?”

“Greetings, Professor.

My name is Ardelena Valentine, and I requested

a tour for today.”

“Ah…! The student who said she’d be coming

with that Jennison student… that student?”

Now, I just didn’t have the confidence

to stride in there with dignity.

*

“Alright then, let’s all share

our thoughts on this formula…”

“They’re not teaching anything

that grand after all, are they?”

“….”

Hm… to state the conclusion first,

it was managed, somehow, to be patched up.

Ardein’s claim that she’d

contacted the professors beforehand

proved not to be a falsehood, as

Professor Rupel, just about to begin

his lecture, similarly,

said nothing of her actions

and proceeded with the lesson

as if nothing at all had occurred.

Of course, that didn’t mean

the reactions of the other students

were nonexistent either.

“Hmm…?”

“….”

Luckily, Sylvia and Isabella,

having already seen her once before,

merely alternated glances

between her and me, tilting their heads,

but refrained from making

any further specific remarks.

“Hmm… a new face.

Shino, do you know who that girl is?”

“Who… Ah, of course I do~?”

Albert and Shino, deep in conversation

in the corner, similarly,

seemed to already know her, as one might expect of those frequenting high society,

but regrettably, not many students

in this classroom knew her,

so it wasn’t strange that nearly every

eye was fixed on her now.

Furthermore, though it felt somewhat

uncomfortable to appraise her appearance

right in front of her,

she was objectively, and subjectively, quite beautiful.

Moreover, she was even a one-year younger junior,

who shouldn’t even be here in the first place.

And now, she stands there, confidently taking an A class lesson.

There was no way the noble

scum, always starved for gossip, would let this lie.

Naturally, nearly every eye in the room

was drawn to her.

Just like now.

“Could you perhaps share your family name…”

“She’s still so young,

why would she want to attend this class…”

“If you need someone to show you around the Academy…”

…What on earth was that last one

even thinking saying something like that?

Even if he had nothing else to say,

it was perfectly clear that speaking like that

to one of the Academy’s students

would accomplish absolutely nothing.

And besides that,

the questions directed at her were plentiful.

Enough to fluster her – she who had always appeared

so consistently composed – for once.

Well, the majority were from the male students, it’s true.

‘…It might be better if they

kept getting distracted like this─’

“Alright, alright everyone, I understand

you’re all excited about the new student,

but let’s focus on the lecture for now!”

With that, the professor, unable to bear it any longer,

ordered them back to their seats, and the throng around her began to disperse in a rush.

At the same time, her viperous gaze,

hidden amidst the crowd, turned sharply towards me.

I ignored it, though.

Turning my head completely away.

From the start, my role had ended

the moment I brought her here,

so there was no need for me to get

any more involved.

Besides, it was rather pleasant to see her in a bind.

“…!”

‘What? What is it, kid?’

After that brief moment spent meeting my junior’s

reproachful gaze,

someone at my side

I felt something tugging at my sleeve.

“Jenison…!”

“…Saintess?”

The culprit was none other than the Saintess, herself.

After that battle, I had heard

she was taken back to the Order,

but since I hadn’t received

any news after that, I just assumed

she was still unconscious.

‘…Well, if she hadn’t woken up,

the Order wouldn’t have stayed quiet this long.’

“Jenison…? What are you thinking so hard about?”

“…Just thinking it’s a relief you’re awake.”

“Ah…things got so busy the moment

I woke up…I couldn’t even contact you, I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright, I’m just glad you’re well.”

“….”

“…Is something wrong?”

“No…I just didn’t expect

to hear such sincere gratitude from you…”

Well, I don’t know how

she’ll take it, but

it was truly heartfelt that she woke up.

Because in the first place, it was because of me

that she ended up unconscious like that.

I was the one who

asked for her help in the first place,

and I was also the one who

sent her back to the Order unconscious.

To be honest, even if the Order

were to hold me accountable right now, I couldn’t argue.

That’s how much the Order

cherishes their Saintess,

and at that time, I had essentially taken her

directly from the Order’s hands.

“But…did you perhaps need to see me about something…?”

“Ah, that’s right, that’s…!!”

“Now, everyone focus!! There’s

something else I need to announce.”

“….”

“…Let’s talk again later.”

“Y-yes…”

Like that, she was about to

tell me something, but

she was blocked by the huge

wall that was Professor Rufel, and had to return to her place;

as if having waited for this,

Professor Rufel, who was slowly

observing all the students from the front of the platform,

began to slowly write down instructions on the chalkboard.

“You all probably know that

the final assessment is

starting soon, yes?”

“Yesss~”

“Who doesn’t know that.”

…Has it already been that long?

Time really flies, huh…

…Well, I’m just not remembering

properly because of all the various

things keeping me busy,

but quite a bit of time has passed.

Enough for the final assessment to start again.

“Due to the incident that

occurred during the last mid-term assessment,

the format of this final assessment will be slightly different.”

“Huh? Out of the blue?!”

“No, what is this…!”

“Quiet, already.

The professors are having

a headache because of that, too.”

“”….””

“In any case, the final assessment

will be changed to exploration

and report submission, so keep that in mind.”

“…Huh? Is that all?”

“Wait a moment, this might

actually be a good thing?”

Professor Rufel’s remark instantly

overturned the thought that

the difficulty of the assessment might

have increased even further;

the reactions of the students,

who had been dissatisfied with the

changed assessment method just a moment ago,

all turned positive.

Honestly, compared to the other students,

Submitting reports, truthfully, seemed a far lesser evil than fighting.

For students of weaker constitution, perpetually stuck in the lower ranks,

it was akin to grasping a thread, easily turning the tables.

Few students disliked it.

Report submissions, with just a touch of

effort, promised respectable marks.

And one could avoid any bloodshed or risk.

Everyone, just then, breathed a sigh of relief at this

comparatively eased difficulty,

when the professor’s lips parted once more.

“No, naturally, that isn’t the end of it.

The final evaluation will be in groups, groups of four or more, that is.”

“”….?””

“And should even a single member

fail to participate adequately,

the score will be the absolute minimum.”

“”…!!””

Thus began the group project.