Chapter 1:
Military Academy
AN ENTIRE PLANET had been set aside as an army training facility:
the Algrand Empire's Imperial Military Academy. The planet's urban
areas, dense forests, deserts, and snowy plains were all used for military
training. From warships ready to launch to an entire orbital space station,
every resource was utilized for the education of the soldiers tasked with
protecting the Empire.
I, Liam Sera Banfield, was currently attending that academy, in the
Strategy Department where elites were sent. Everyone here was on a path
to becoming an officer of some rank or other, to stand above the common
soldiers. Anyone whose aim it was to command in the future was
absolutely required to attend courses in this department, so the competition
was fierce.
One might expect to see only elite soldiers here, but in the Empire
there were always exceptions, and these exceptions were young nobles.
For the regular students at this school, only brilliant ones with good grades
could get into this department. However, any old noble could do the same
just by virtue of their family's name. This was just more proof of the
unalterable status of nobility in the Empire. I was one such noble, enrolled
in this department for no other reason than I was going to be a duke in the
future. In other words, among the deserving elite in this department, there
were also hopeless incompetents enrolled only because of their nobility
status. In the Empire, such outrages were sadly commonplace.
"The circumstances of your birth aren't everything in this world, but
don't you think they influence a lot?"
I had brought up this very subject up with Wallace while we sat in
the academy's cafeteria. Wallace, with his shaved head, gave me an odd
look as he chewed on a hunk of hard bread. As was the norm, we found
ourselves eating a meal that emphasized nutrition over taste.
"Where's this coming from? A more important observation is that it
sucks here. Just because my hair was a little long, I have to spend an entire
year bald? That's ridiculous!"
He still couldn't get over our first day at school. Wallace had arrived
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with longer hair than allowed by regulations, and his punishment was to
spend the next year completely shaved. Long hair presented a number of
problems, such as potentially impeding one's sight, so everyone here,
including the women, had to wear it short. Eila Sera Berman, who sat with
us, had previously boasted hair that fell to the middle of her back if she let
it down, but now her hair was shorn too.
While she chewed her food, Eila glared at Wallace with
unconcealed contempt. "Wallace, can you not interrupt him? Anyway,
what were you saying, Liam?"
By now, Wallace seemed used to Eila's attitude, so he didn't seem
particularly bothered by her remark, except to say, "Harsh as always."
"I told you to shut up, didn't I?"
Eila being cold to Wallace was normal enough, but there was
something odd I'd been curious about. Why had she enrolled in the
military academy too? I'd assumed she'd be going on to college with our
friend Kurt, so it had been a surprise to find her here. The two of them had
gotten along well, and I had even expected they might get together at some
point. I just didn't understand why Eila had come here instead. I knew she
must have her reasons, but I didn't want to make things awkward by
prying. I decided I'd save the question for when we were somewhere a bit
more private.
I returned the conversation to the topic Wallace had derailed. "What
I'm saying is, I was born a noble. For that reason alone, I'm able to attend
the elite program here. I'm sure for the regular students, that makes me an
object of resentment."
I had said this at a normal volume, but the cafeteria's bustle
gradually quieted around me. My fellow cadets from the Strategy
Department were here with us, including many of those "regular students"
I'd just referred to. Overhearing our conversation, it might very well seem
a natural-born winner like me was basking in his superiority, looking down
on those who had worked hard to get here.
Wallace glanced about nervously, cautioning me for my careless
remark. "Can't you be a little more quiet when you say stuff like that,
Liam? Look around you."
I took a look and saw the glares of the natural-born losers seated
around me, their brows furrowed in anger. Meanwhile, in contrast, other
cadets looked back at me approvingly, but I was guessing those were my
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fellow nobles. They probably felt much the same way I did.
"Well, it's the truth, isn't it? If they have a problem with it, they can
talk to me personally. If they have the courage to, that is."
I took another glance around, but apparently no one had the guts to
confront me. Each person whose eyes I met quickly looked away. They
were probably too afraid to defy a current count and future duke. The
military academy was huge, so it was impossible to remember the names
or even the faces of every cadet here, but I was certain all the ones who
glared at me were ordinary cadets. Such students couldn't say a thing
against a noble, no matter how much resentment they harbored. They may
have been elites in terms of their hard-won achievements, but they were
powerless in the face of the Empire's nobility-first doctrines.
This was it—exactly what I was after in my reincarnated existence.
Right now, I was being the consummate evil lord.
Upset by what I had said, a senior cadet walked over to me and
barked, "Quite a confident attitude you've got there." He put his hand on
our table and bent down, sneering at me.
"Dolph?" Wallace exclaimed in surprise.
I recognized the name of this upperclassman, having heard he was
the head of the senior class. I was sure Dolph himself was a noble, yet he
had the moral superiority to be angry at me for disrespecting the regular
students? This was the type of noble I absolutely couldn't stand.
Dolph stared at me haughtily and scoffed, "I hear you've got decent
grades, but I hardly think that justifies the attitude. You're still new here.
You're not as special as you think—there are plenty of people just like you
here. You should reconsider your behavior a little."
Dolph Sera Lawrence, his hair all slicked back with some sort of
product, appeared to be something of a strange noble, one who
sympathized with the common citizenry. He was thin, but clearly had a
soldier's trained physique. He wasn't bad-looking either, and no doubt he
was popular and had a fair number of hangers-on, but I just couldn't stand
that pompous look on his face. Moreover, I couldn't stand him lecturing
me. After all, the nobles of House Lawrence were only viscounts—and
thus ranked below me.
I replied, "The school's top student takes it upon himself to lecture
me, eh? How arrogant of you."
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"That's not an attitude you should be taking with an
upperclassman."
"Who do you think you're talking to? Don't get cocky just because
you're in a higher grade than me."
"You're in the military now. You must really be ignorant to bring up
peerage here."
"Interesting thing to say. Shall we test whether peerage really is
meaningless in the military, then?"
My opponent was an upperclassman, but a noble ranked below me.
There was no reason for me to back down and act inferior to him. I was in
the military now? He had no idea how much I had donated to the academy
and the Imperial Army. They would overlook any behavior on my part.
Nevertheless, Eila looked worried. Wallace was trying to get me to
back off.
"Liam, stop that!" Eila fretted.
"Pick your battles, man!" Wallace said. "This is Dolph you're
talking to!"
Neither of them wanted me to get into this, but I hated people who
thought they had the moral high ground, as they reminded me too much of
my previous life. I had been just like them once, believing that being a
good person was the way to live one's life. Look where that had got me! I
was sure this guy was full of righteous anger for me belittling the general
populace, and perhaps he was justified for feeling that way—but his
sanctimoniousness made me sick.
"So, what do you wanna do?" I asked. "You wanna go?"
If he meant to pick a fight with me, I intended to reciprocate. Dolph
raised his chin slightly, a vein standing out on his forehead. Apparently,
though, he preferred a challenge to a physical fight.
"Meet me in the simulator room. I'll teach you how to behave in
front of your upperclassmen."
"Sounds like an entertaining lesson."
I gave him a smirk and a buzz went through the cafeteria. I
overheard snatches of furtive conversation.
"Hey, Liam and Dolph are gonna go at it in the simulator!"
"Those two?"
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"That'll be a good show."
The excitement swept through the cafeteria, but Wallace only held
his head in his hands. "Liam, why are you so—"
With a resigned look on her face, Eila sighed, "You really don't
change, do you?"
Eila had known me since our time training at another noble house,
so it came as no surprise to her that I wouldn't back down.
"Of course," I told her. "This is just what happens if you pick a fight
with someone above your station."
When he heard me say this, Dolph visibly reddened. "Just you
wait."
Surely he was just boiling with rage at my bringing peerage into the
military and speaking so arrogantly to an older student.
***
The military academy's simulator room was used for individual
training and for group lessons, and was therefore a large facility that could
accommodate many students at once.
A sizable number of cadets had packed themselves into one section
of the room, all of them here to watch the showdown. Competing today
were Liam, who had already earned some of the highest grades in the first-
year class, and Dolph, the top student in the sixth-year class. The two of
them were about to face off in the simulator as commanders of their own
armies. Everyone else was simply there to watch.
Members of the audience cheered for both sides of the conflict.
Leaning on a railing that separated him from the simulation area, Wallace
gave a little sigh, sweeping his gaze over the cadets who cheered for Liam.
"Liam's so popular with the commoners."
Many of the regular students were cheering on Liam. He had nobles
in his corner too, but the majority of his support came from the common
cadets. On the other side, numerous nobles who didn't care for Liam were
cheering for Dolph.
Standing next to Wallace, Eila commented as if this was totally
obvious. "Dolph's a typical nobles-first type. He thinks your birth means
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everything and commoners are just tools to be used. There's no way he
and Liam would get along."
Dolph was the second son of House Lawrence, a noble from birth.
Consequently, he felt that the nobility always stood above the common
people and that the latter should put their lives on the line to support
the former. Liam had offended him by saying students like themselves
were only in the elite course because of their birth, and not because of their
hard work.
Wallace recalled shady rumors he'd heard about Dolph since
arriving at the military academy. It's true Dolph is talented, but I've heard
he uses dirty tactics too. I hope this doesn't get ugly.
Dolph's skills were the real deal, but he apparently also wasn't
afraid to use whatever means were at his disposal. This left Wallace
worried for Liam. After all, they'd only just started school here and he was
up against a senior. The five years of experience Dolph had over Liam
might not have seemed like much, but it could make all the difference.
Despite Liam's talents, his opponent had held the top spot for his grade
through his whole time at the military academy. Wallace couldn't imagine
this would be an easy contest for his friend.
Though...his "top student" status isn't without suspicion.
There were rumors that Dolph was only at the top of his grade
because he went around thwarting the competition. Some even said he'd
get students expelled on false charges if they seemed like potential rivals,
and that he partnered with dangerous people and had the families of rivals
taken hostage to force them to drop out. Allegedly, he collected dirt on
people and forced them to intentionally score get lower on their written
and practical tests.
"Liam's moral fiber is impressive, if he's picking fights with guys
who don't care what they have to do to win," Wallace said. Even if Liam
tended to say nasty things, Wallace felt his friend had a very keen sense of
right and wrong, plus the skill to back up his principles.
"Why don't you try learning from him a little?" Eila said to him
coldly. "You know you're only in the Strategy Department because of all
of his donations, don't you?"
"Ugh! I-I know that. What about you, though? Did you get in purely
based on skill?"
"Don't lump me in with you. The instructors said I barely passed."
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"Barely, eh?"
"Well, that's better than you!"
It was well-known in the academy that Liam had gotten into the
Strategy Department on merit, whereas Wallace had been told by the
instructors that his grades wouldn't normally qualify him. He was
admonished to follow Liam's example, proving to him that Liam had
gotten in on his own skill.
In other words, the regular cadets knew that while Liam was a
noble, he had been accepted on his own merits, and on top of that, he
seemed to have complaints about other nobles. At the military academy,
Liam was a beacon of hope for ordinary students, and a nuisance to the
nobles.
When the simulators started up, everything around those in
attendance went dark. In the air, fleets of miniature space craft faced each
other, these being 3D holographic projections. The two boys manipulated
their respective control panels, and Liam's fleet immediately went on the
offensive.
"Charging right in?" Dolph called out in criticism. "Looks like you
don't even know the basics! Those tactics might work against pirates, but
they won't work against me!"
"What was that?" Liam replied angrily.
He increased his attack, but unfortunately it was just as Dolph had
said. Liam's fleet was slowly losing ground.
"If all you can do is charge forward like a wild boar, you're no
match for me. Your formations suck too! You're not utilizing your fleet
properly. If this is all you're capable of, you must have been fighting some
really weak pirates to earn those medals of yours!"
In the simulator, a participant was able to customize their fleet. You
weren't shown your opponent's fleet before combat began, so it was
considered part of the training to predict what your opponent would come
up with. Liam had formed a fleet specialized for attacking, which he
excelled at, but Dolph's fleet was geared toward defense. The situation
was disadvantageous for Liam, and it made seem like Dolph had seen
through Liam's strategy from the beginning. It was as though he'd known
exactly what sort of fleet Liam would organize and exactly what
formations he'd use to attack.
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"Dolph's done something," Wallace realized.
Seeing Liam in such a precarious position, Eila looked over at
Dolph's face where it was displayed on one of the audience's large
monitors. "He's got a nasty smile on his face. He probably planned this
from the beginning."
As Liam's fleet continued to suffer losses, the noble students all
started to jeer at him.
"Is this all the Pirate Hunter amounts to?" someone called out.
Another cried, "You might be able to beat some lousy pirates, but
just remember you're no better than anyone else here!"
"Country bumpkins like him should really know their place."
Everyone seemed sure of Liam's defeat. Though the ordinary
students had caught on to Dolph's cheating too, they were afraid to protest.
Without any proof, their complaints would just add to Liam's shame. It
was obvious that Dolph wasn't playing fair, but all Wallace and the other
students could do was continue to watch it play out.
"He's going to lose at this rate," Wallace groaned.
The number of Liam's forces had been depleted significantly.
Eila was also sure he would lose. "He can't turn this around, can
he?"
The situation was so bad for Liam that even his friends had written
off his chances, and so had all the regular students.
Meanwhile, a figure watched over the battle, standing upside-down
on the ceiling.
***
The man who stood upside-down on the ceiling wore a striped
tailcoat with the brim of his top hat pulled low to hide his eyes. Only his
mouth was visible, curved in a smile.
"I see that things have gotten interesting while I was stocking up on
power at the Capital Planet."
The Guide watched over Liam and Dolph's confrontation. Having
been thoroughly tortured by Liam in the past, he had been resting up in the
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Imperial Capital, feeding on despair to replenish his strength. He'd since
gained back a bit of his depleted power, so he had come to check in on
Liam.
When he was this close to Liam, however, the boy's feelings of
gratitude caused him pain. If he stayed nearby for too long, he'd end up
writhing in agony.
Liam was beloved by his people now. When his own feelings of
gratitude combined with those of his subjects, they formed a terrible
power. The Guide could no longer ignore the power Liam was gaining, but
it would be difficult now for him to make Liam unhappy by himself. That
was why he was visiting at this moment. He wanted to see if he could
come up with any fresh ideas to take Liam down—and as he watched
Dolph, he hit upon one.
The Guide slowly descended from the ceiling, then moved toward
Dolph. None of the students in attendance could perceive the mysterious
figure as he walked past them and stood next to Dolph, who wore an ugly
smile on his face, secure in his imminent victory.
"This boy has plunged quite a few people into despair. Just my
type."
Dolph had crushed countless rivals in order to maintain his place at
the top of his grade. He was resented by many people in many places, not
just at the military academy. That hatred had accumulated in coils all
around him, so the Guide found it quite pleasurable to stand close by.
Unlike Liam, Dolph was an enticing noble who was rotten to the core. The
Guide particularly enjoyed how he had tampered with the simulator to win
against Liam.
"I've got a good idea!" the Guide said, reaching out to touch the
simulator control panel. The black smoke that emerged from his hand
entered the simulator through a seam and instantly something odd began to
happen. Dolph's fleet, which up to now had maintained its superior
position, gradually started to lose ground. The difference in numbers
between his surviving ships and Liam's began to shrink.
Dolph was bewildered by this turn of events. "Wh-what the...?"
Liam, on the other hand, was smiling. "What's wrong, top of the
class? Weren't you going to show me who was superior?"
Seeing Liam get cocky, the Guide bared his teeth in a wide grin. It
was amusing to him that Liam seemed to believe he was turning the tables
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through his own power.
"Good—get cocky. That'll lead you to your end, Liam."
The Guide, for all his hatred of Liam, was indeed working to help
him win. Yet, he had his reasons.
"Dammit!" Dolph cried. "Dammit! There's no way!"
Dolph rushed to reposition his ships, but it created gaps through
which Liam attacked, wearing down the senior cadet's advantage. Liam's
remaining fleet was structured around taking the offensive, and steadily ate
away at Dolph's numbers. The former gap between the players closed
quickly. Suddenly, Dolph was the one who was losing, and his chances for
a comeback looked unlikely.
"Wh-why? Did you also...?" Dolph was panicking, face gone pale.
He had been so certain of his victory before. He suspected Liam of
cheating somehow too, but he couldn't bring that up, could he? If someone
investigated the simulator to prove that Liam had cheated, they'd discover
the same thing about Dolph. He was in a precarious position now, due to
his own actions...and because of the Guide's interference.
The Guide put his hand on Dolph's shoulder, speaking close to his
ear. "I expect much from you. I think this loss will drive you forward, and
you'll never let Liam get away with making you lose again... Isn't that
right?"
Dolph couldn't hear the Guide's words, but he glared at Liam, a
vein popping out on his forehead. He had always done whatever it took to
stay on top, to never lose to anyone. It was humiliating to lose now to
Liam—to a student so much younger than himself.
"You won't get away with this... I won't let you get away with this,
Liam!"
When the simulator ultimately ruled Liam the victor, the ordinary
students in the room all cheered. The nobles, on the other hand, just gave
the defeated Dolph scornful looks, some openly mocking him.
"That's all the top of his grade can do, eh?"
"That's all a coward like him is capable of."
"Even while cheating, he couldn't beat Liam, huh?"
It was all so humiliating, but the words that stung the most came
from his opponent, Liam. Victorious, Liam spoke down to Dolph as if it
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was only natural that he had triumphed.
"This is what happens when all you know is the simulator. You
should experience real war sometime. I can teach you whatever you want,
as your upperclassman in life... Cadet Dolph."
Watching Liam gloat so mercilessly, the Guide nodded in
satisfaction. Dolph, on the other hand, was glaring at Liam with an
incredible scowl on his face.
"You bastaaard!!!" he growled.
The Guide chuckled to himself. "That's right—let your hatred for
Liam grow. Eventually, you'll take him down. I'll prepare the battlefield
myself."
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The Guide reflected on the previous short-sighted attempts he'd
made against Liam, when he'd been preoccupied with the pain the boy
caused him. Rather than expend a great deal of energy trying to take Liam
down himself, the Guide decided to carefully orchestrate his demise. For
now, he wanted to let Liam get a little full of himself, which was sure to
cause the boy to let his guard down. When everything was in place and the
right time came, he would get rid of Liam in one fell swoop.
"Let that head of yours get bigger, Liam. I look forward to seeing
your face when you lose everything."
Just like that, the Guide sank into the floor, vanishing. Dolph was
left behind, grinding his teeth and glaring at Liam.
"Just remember this," he snarled. "Because I'm not gonna be
forgetting today anytime soon."
This was the moment when yet another person began despising
Liam with all his heart.
***
The day after he defeated Dolph in the simulator, Liam was
surrounded by nobles in the Strategy Department's lecture hall. They'd all
hated him until the day before, but they'd done an about-face and now
tried to cozy up to him.
"That was real impressive, Liam!"
"A senior, and Dolph no less—the top of the class!"
"Just goes to show what someone who's seen real combat can do!"
The other students sang Liam's praises, and Liam didn't exactly
disapprove.
"Oh, I'm not that great. It's just that he was weak."
No matter how humble he tried to appear, the nobles around Liam
continued to compliment him. It was undisguised flattery. Watching the
scene from a distance, Wallace grew fed up with these nobles who had so
quickly changed their tune.
"They just want to cling to whoever's the strongest. Oh, what a
fantastically honest bunch."
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Eila, also watching from afar, was just as exasperated as Wallace,
but for her own reasons glared at the cadets closest to Liam. One of them
put a hand on Liam's shoulder, and Eila's features contorted into
something fearsome.
"Damn adulterers, trying to get close to Liam..."
Wallace turned from the enraged Eila and checked on the regular
students instead. They were all glowering at the nobles, bitter expressions
on their faces. He figured they were probably just as disgusted with the
nobles' change of attitude as he was.
Just yesterday they were making fun of him for being from the sticks,
but now they've totally changed their tunes.
Nobles that had been ignoring Liam before were now fawning all
over him after his victory over Dolph.
Wallace sighed. "Reminds me of primary school."
When he muttered this, Eila clasped her hands together beside him
and reminisced aloud about her cherished memories.
"Things were so nice in primary school! Liam and Kurt got along so
well, and they went everywhere together. I was so happy watching them. I
can't believe Kurt had to go away to college first since he decided to
become a soldier. It just sucks that they're apart now."
Wallace noticed that there was no mention of him in all her
reminiscing. "Wait a second... I hung out with them too. Actually, they
dragged me around everywhere and put me through a lot..."
"Sorry, I don't remember that. Are you sure you graduated from
primary school, Wallace?"
"I did! I was there the whole time with you, including graduation!"
After primary school, Kurt had gone on to college because he was
Baron Exner's heir. As a military family, they held off on attending
military academy until the final stage of their education. From primary
school, they advanced to college to become qualified as government
officials, and then after graduating from the military academy they would
simply remain in the military. It was more efficient and tailored to their
futures. So, Kurt had left with a heavy heart to walk a different path than
his companion.
Eila thought, Poor Kurt was so down when he realized he'd have to
part with Liam, wasn't he?
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Kurt really had been dejected when he'd learned that Liam planned
to attend the military academy first.
She sighed, "It would have been so fun if Kurt were here too. You, I
could take or leave, Wallace."
"Hey, I don't want to be in the military, you know. I just came with
Liam 'cause I had no other choice, since he said he wanted to get this over
with."
They both looked back at Liam, still being fawned over. He seemed
to be enjoying himself, but the two of them felt a bit neglected at the sight.
"It's ten years too soon for someone with no real combat experience
to beat me," Liam said to the nobles gathered around him. "Dolph chose
the wrong person to go up against."
The young nobles weren't quite sure what to say to that. Lives were
long in this world, so the notion that Dolph would catch up to Liam in only
ten years' time seemed surprising.
"Huh? Ten years?"
"Just ten years?"
"Th-that's pretty fast."
Eila laughed. "He's cocky, but he keeps realistic expectations when
it comes to his enemies' abilities. It's just like Liam."
Wallace shrugged but smiled with relief that things were as they
should be. "Liam will be Liam, I suppose."
Then, into the lecture hall strode Marie, her long hair cut short. A
stir went through the boys at the sudden appearance of such a beautiful
woman, but the woman in question paid them no mind, pushing through
the people surrounding Liam as if they weren't even there.
"Lord Liam, I just heard!" Marie exclaimed in her sweetest voice,
eyes sparkling as she stood before him with her hands clasped.
"Marie," Liam said stiffly, to acknowledge her.
Not noticing his obvious displeasure, Marie began to passionately
recount what she'd heard about his victory. "To defeat a senior in a
simulator battle! Of course, I wouldn't expect anything less, Lord Liam. I
was so devastated that I couldn't witness your gallant battle myself that I
ended up taking out my frustration on the instructors a bit. If you had just
called for me, I would have been there as fast as I could!"
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Hearing Marie admit her antics, both Wallace and Eila sighed
deeply.
"Liam's sure got some eccentric knights," Wallace said. "Taking out
her frustrations on the instructors? That can't be good."
"It just makes it worse when you know how talented these knights
are too."
Liam looked unamused by Marie's sudden appearance and effusive
praise. He knew she should be in another class.
"Oh yeah? That's too bad, Marie. Now why don't you hurry back to
class?"
"No, please let me extol your virtues a little longer, Lord Liam! I
won't be satisfied until everyone around you knows just how wonderful
you are!"
Marie's eyes were wild as she praised Liam so fervently that even
the people hoping to become his lackeys were a little put off by it.
"After all, it should be common knowledge that you're incredible,
Lord Liam—it's simple fact!"
Watching Marie gush this way, Wallace murmured, "Yup, reminds
me of our time in primary school..."
***
I liked a good yes-man. My favorite kind of person was the one who
was like a loyal dog, who would sing my praises no matter what I did.
When Marie praised me to high heaven the way she did, though, I couldn't
help but think that...no, this isn't quite it.
Marie had worked herself into a complete frenzy, her eyes glassy as
she said things like, "You're a perfect being, Lord Liam!"
This was going so far that it was just creepy. My head knight Tia
was just as bad. I could trip and fall flat on my face and she'd probably
say, "An exemplary show of grace, Lord Liam!" It became so ridiculous
that it began to sound to me like mockery.
No matter how much they praised me, it just felt so pointless.
"You're a truly amazing person, Lord Liam!"
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"Well, glad to hear it. Marie, go back to your classroom now."
"But why, Lord Liam?"
"Because class is about to start."
"Oh, don't worry about a little thing like—"
"Just go back already!"
"Y-yes, sir!"
Imagine being late to class just because she was too busy
complimenting me! Did Marie have no awareness at all how my knights
should conduct themselves? Since she was just as bad as Tia, it made me
feel that it had been a mistake to make her my second most important
knight. It was true that they were both highly talented, but the two of them
had all these other problems.
As Marie left the classroom with slumped shoulders, the people who
had been crowding around me all dispersed too. They'd probably been
turned off by Marie's extreme bootlicking. I had just been about to gain
some lackeys, but they were all scared off by Marie. She really did seem to
be more trouble than she was worth. She didn't know how to keep her
sycophancy to a reasonable level and made me look foolish as a result. My
good mood from earlier was totally ruined now.
***
One of the cadets who had been crowding around Liam slipped out
of the lecture hall nervously, as if fleeing. He was heading down the
hallway when Marie, who was hiding around a nearby corner, called out to
him.
"Class is about to start, you know. Where do you think you're
going?"
The cadet's eyes went wide and he pulled a knife from his pocket,
lunging with it toward Marie. She grabbed his arm and quickly threw him
to the floor, pinning him down.
"And what were you planning to do with that knife, hmm? Want to
tell me? Who ordered you to do what, exactly? Well? Well? Spill it!!!"
"L-let me go!"
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The cadet struggled against her, so Marie grabbed one of his fingers
and bent it back, a sunny smile on her face.
"Augh!"
Marie clucked her tongue, unimpressed by the student's attempt at
stifling a scream.
"Barely more than an amateur. Why did you get close to Lord
Liam?"
She broke another finger of his, but the cadet still didn't answer. He
was continuing to struggle, trying to get away, when a man in black slowly
began to rise from the floor. Marie wasn't surprised by this newcomer's
appearance, but the cadet was clearly shaken by it.
The man who had emerged from the floor was Kukuri, the head of
an organization that handled House Banfield's less savory business. His
body was wrapped in a black cloak and his face was covered by a mask. It
was his job to protect Liam from the shadows, and he possessed an
incredibly ominous aura. His voice was low, and he chuckled as he looked
upon Marie and the cadet.
"I can't have you acting on your own like this, Miss Marie."
"Kukuri, who put him up to this? He's not competent enough to be a
Berkeley assassin."
Snickering, Kukuri spilled the beans. "He's not a hired assassin...
He works for House Lawrence."
Hearing this, Marie snapped the bone in another one of the cadet's
fingers. "Ah... Dolph, eh?"
The disguised student's face twisted in agony. On top of the pain, he
hadn't been able to hide his distress when his employer's name was
revealed. Amused by the young man's reactions, Kukuri shared the rest of
the information he knew about him.
"Yes. This person was sent to the academy with a fake identity...
His entire background is fabricated. He's one of the operatives planted
here to help Dolph maintain his position as top student."
"I see."
The phony student's main role was to collect information for Dolph
to exploit and to spread rumors for his benefit. The man appeared to be
involved in more violent business as well, but from Marie's and Kukuri's
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perspectives his abilities were sorely lacking. Kukuri had purposely
allowed him to remain free up to now, so the man was irritated that Marie
had taken it upon herself to apprehended him.
"You know, I was observing this one to find out just what sort of
information he was collecting on Master Liam."
"He approached Lord Liam with ill intent. For that alone, he
deserves death, does he not?"
Kukuri shrugged. He agreed in part, but still disapproved of the
interference in his job.
"I understand what you mean, but as I said, he isn't a professional
assassin, so I was leaving him alone for the time being. There's no going
back now though. Let's reveal his identity and hand him over to the
military."
"Oh? You don't want to kill him?"
"Well, we could, but then Dolph's misdeeds might never come to
light. We'll always have the option to kill him later."
Marie released the man and Kukuri took hold of him instead,
pinning his arms behind his back. Together, they began to sink into the
floor. Terrified by this mysterious process, the man tried to scream, but
Kukuri covered his mouth so he couldn't call for help. Marie watched until
no trace was left of them, then finally headed on toward her own
classroom.
"Lord Liam has plenty of enemies here too," she mused.
At the military academy, Marie and Kukuri took care of all of the
assassins that dared to get close to Liam.
***
A few weeks later, Dolph was in an enraged state. While Liam had
gained followers, Dolph had lost his. Isolated at the military academy, he
was now a subject of ridicule for all those around him.
"Dammit! How dare they treat me like this!" he fumed. "This is all
because of my incompetent men!"
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By this time, all of the operatives Dolph had snuck into the academy
had been caught. They were immediately expelled, and naturally there had
been calls for Dolph to take responsibility for their actions as well. Still, he
escaped expulsion so far himself due to his noble status, but as punishment
he would no longer graduate at the top of his class. It was also very likely
that his guaranteed spot in the military upon graduation no longer
remained on the table.
"What do I do? What am I supposed to do?"
Many members of House Lawrence served in the military, so
Dolph's actions had caused problems for these relatives as well. Since he
was also in trouble at home, he couldn't expect any help from his family.
"This is all because of Liam of House Banfield! I was supposed to
get ahead in the military and serve as a marshal one day!"
He'd done whatever it required to stay on top, but now all his effort
and machinations would go unrewarded.
Dolph's hatred for Liam only kept growing as from his point of
view, all of his hard work would go unrewarded.
"I swear... I swear I'll have my revenge. You're not going to get
away with this, Liam!"
Dolph vowed to use whatever methods were at his disposal to take
revenge on his enemy.
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