" Sir Nicholos are you sure what you did back then was the right thing to do? "
Christine who had waited until the end of homeroom asked in a whispered voice, to her it must have looked like I was lying to get out of trouble, so I decided it would best to clear her confusion.
" Christine, it was the late heads birthday last week, it is just that nobody bothered to do anything
To tell you the truth if not for our public image that I have to maintain I would have had a issued a festival instead "
" W..What "
" He was a piece of shit who was hated by both the people and his family, aside than albert who knew him when he was a child, everyone secretly celebrated his death "
' Although, the original Nicholos did harbour some other feelings it was by no way sadness
It was closer to regret for not being able to witness it himself ' the thought suddenly appearing
" So, there is no need to worry because if someone decides to check they will find that his birthday was indeed last week "
Saying so I turned to see her body stiff, eyes wandering as if uncertain of what to say
' Well, it is the first time I have cursed in front of her, and I was cursing none other than my supposed dead father '
Standing up I opted to change the topic instead
" A week has passed meaning that our practical lecture is today, you know that right? "
Hearing me Christine regained her focus as she answered me standing after me
" Yes, I know "
" While it is meant to teach us about live battles, that does not mean that it will only be an endless stream of spars,
we will also be learning survival and basic martial arts, so you don't need to worry about a sudden duel coming out of nowhere"
Nodding Christine smiled slightly as we walked to our practical lecture
....
Reaching the academy field, we found the students who have already arrived running laps with Professor Denis watching them on a podium.
" Move faster!! If I wanted a bunch of sloths I would have went to the retirement centre!! "
And as always, his voice was loud and clear for everyone to hear. I guess I should go speak to him before he singles us out, so leaving Christine behind with some instructions I approached him
" Professor Denis may I have a word? "
Acting as if he has just noticed me Denis turned his head and came forward
" If it isn't the esteemed Sir Nicholos, I am honoured that you have finally been able to grace my class once again " he said in a sarcastic tone which I paid no mind
" I have indeed been far too late however I am here to speak of another matter " I said while steering my gaze towards Christine
" Hmm... and what is it "
" My partner can be said to be a little less experienced than others who are currently at the academy, so for her own safety I wished you could be more lenient with her "
Hearing me Denis's brows grew crooked as he gave me a stern look
" The academy's policy states that all are treated equally, while you are an exception I cannot do the same for cadet Christine "
Of course I had already seen this coming, but it wasn't an issue that can't be solved with some subtle emotional manipulation
' Later on in the novel Denis was actually the one who always made sure that Christine was ok during his lecture
This came to be because he related her to his own daughter who was the same age as her, it came as a surprise at the time as despite his outer appearance he held a rather soft heart '
" I know but she is still only 16, at her age she should be at home alongside her family but instead she was left here without even being able to protect herself " I explained as we continued looking at her
Noticing our stares Christine lowered her head then as if gathering courage raised it again while giving a shy wave before turning away, seeing her like that I could feel the shift in Denis's presence.
After a moment of silence, I heard a deep sigh coming from him as he rubbed his forehead
" Fine, but instead you will be getting double the work, you got that "
" That would only be fair " I replied to him before excusing myself to bring Christine
The following training was nothing short of brutal anything that was done by others once I had to do twice and anything done twice, I had to do four times. Even the other students started giving me looks of pity
Be it basic physical training, martial arts or survival I did all without any complaint, by the time Denis finally decided to give us a break I looked as if I had returned from a war zone
Reaching me was Christine who handed me a water bottle and a towel which I took gratefully
" Thank you " Christine suddenly said with an expression of guilt
" Hm.. shouldn't I be the one thanking you for bringing my stuff '' I said trying to change the subject which didn't seem to work as Christine went on
" No, not that. Before the lecture started you spoke to Professor Denis and then suddenly my training seems to be lighter than everyone else while yours is tripled
You must have told him to do so "
Not wanting to have her get hung up on this I looked away and scoffed
" Oh please, you are just overthinking things
Plus, I wanted the extra training, had to make up for the week I missed"
Yet even as I said that she simply smiled at me and thanked me again however before I could tell her that it was fine a subtle voice interrupted our talk
" Sir Nicholos Arcane may I perhaps have a word "
Upon hearing that I turned to find a giant of a man over two meters tall with black hair and brown eyes sporting a gentle smile
" I had wished to speak to you earlier however I didn't know how to approach "
The man who was speaking with a calm tone was none other than the Felipe Mons the heir of the Mons Dukedom and future tank of the protagonist's party
" Sir Felipe, it has been a while "
and also, someone the previous Nicholos knew, seeing him a smile spread on my face
" I had been quite busy these days, so I happened to disappear for quite a while "
" No need to give excuses, I am simply happy to see you are doing well "
Felipe was the only main character who had connections to the original Nicholos having known each other as kids, even as that connection did grow distant later, he never forgot about it having tried constantly to help Nicholos
" I had gone through some rough times to say the least and brought you lots of worry, but I am glad to say that I was able to pull through "
" Is that so "
Hearing my words a look of relief came upon Felipe who seemed to be getting emotional, however before he could say another way the loud voice of Professor Denis wrung out
" Come on you maggots, no time for dilly dallying
I want 100 hundred push ups starting now, Sir Nicholos 200 "
Following him we immediately started as he walked towards as before telling Christine to only do up to 30 instead
" It seems you have gotten on the bad side of the professor " Felipe said as he did his push ups beside me
" It is a habit of mine I just can't get rid of I guess " I said back to him causing him to laugh
Just as I was about to add something the sudden presence of Denis came upon us causing us to freeze
" You seem to have a lot of energy to be talking so how about we crank it up to 200 and 300 respectively " he said before turning around and leaving
Starring at each other we simply accepted our fate with nothing but our groans as a protest as the hellish training continued