The academy was buzzing with the arrival of test opponents for the second semester midterm exams.
“Did you hear? They sent a group of apprentice knights made up of the offspring of old-school knights from a small country in the Southern Region called the Kingdom of Troy as test opponents for the Knight Department students.”
“That’s nice. There must be a lot of handsome guys there, right? We got a ton of strict noblewomen invited as test opponents for the ‘Let’s Enter the Ball’ exam…”
“What? A bunch of well-dressed nobles with waists as slender as ants? Isn’t that heaven?”
As Son Ohchun passed by, he became interested in their talk about women, not being a monkey after all. While the lower class students froze in place, Isabel tugged on Son Ohchun’s ear with a look of annoyance.
“Why are you bothering the poor kids?”
“Ouch! What did I do wrong? If I find someone I like, I can show a little interest, can’t I?”
“You really don’t understand the ball scene, do you? Do you know how fierce the political battles among women can be? If there’s a competitor after the guy they like, they challenge each other to a dance duel.”
“Hah. You underestimate me just because I’m a beastman. How can you duel with a dance? Should I wield a sword?”
“They compete to see who lasts longer in the dancing shoes that go wild on their own without embarrassing themselves. To endure the uncontrollable moves and speed of the shoes, how much dancing must you learn and how flexible must you be to withstand it?”
Son Ohchun’s mouth dropped open.
“Are you insane? To challenge yourself in a contest while wearing cursed items like that? Truly masculine!”
“More like ‘feminine.’ They practice splits to woo promising guys and wear restrictive shoes or steel boots until their feet blister.”
“Why would they even practice in such torture devices?”
“The dancing shoes are so nasty that if the wearer lasts too long, they increase in weight or tighten around the foot.”
“You guys are somehow managing to take that class?”
The lower class female students laughed sheepishly.
“Thanks for acknowledging us.”
“To be honest, we only signed up for the class to goof around and enjoy ourselves; we didn’t expect it to be this intense.”
“That Duke Andersen said he likes girls who can dance, and we shouldn’t have gotten our hopes up…”
“…”
Is that landmine of a guy not just dragging down his own class and followers but also everyone who likes him?
Son Ohchun secretly vowed not to even greet Andersen in the future.
“Oh my. But it’s not all bad, is it? If you take this class properly, you could earn a whopping 10 agility experience points!”
The concern of the lower class female students instantly shifted to the one who made the entrance, Countess Arcadia, who stood there with her fan adorned with a dancing phoenix, covering her mouth.
“But that’s only possible because you, Arcadia, can do it.”
“We common students like us can’t pull off the high-difficulty challenge moves and dancing challenges…”
“Ha ha ha! Then I shall become the first in this class. I hope you all work hard aiming for second place!”
Son Ohchun scratched his head as he watched the lower class female students leave with drooping shoulders like defeated soldiers.
“What’s up? I thought that person was usually pretty nice? They seem to have changed a bit.”
“Ha ha ha. I’ve recently taken up a new hobby. With the honor of the ducal family in jeopardy, it’s time to expose the reality of how I was benefiting from the family name by showing my prowess to the petty people who kept gossiping about me.”
“Well, if that’s the case, then I guess it can’t be helped.”
Son Ohchun nodded in agreement.
Just like a bird that flies high will fall for a long time, rumors about Arcadia continued for a while. The strength she had to withstand them and still manage to make other students feel intimidated just by attending the same class as her was secretly admirable.
“What kind of test opponents did you get, Son Ohchun?”
“With this atmosphere, I should have to say they must be the worst of the worst, right? I hear they invited bureaucrats from the Empire for the ‘Even a Monkey Can Understand the Good Governance’ class.”
“Oh my. That sounds like quite an academic course!”
Isabel looked up at Son Ohchun with an expression of betrayal.
“What’s even that Good Governance? You take classes like that too?”
“Actually, I thought it was some class teaching finishing moves. I almost lost my mind because they just recited the writings.”
“Then why did you sign up?”
“I had registered for too few classes, and if I didn’t take this, I’d either have to buy my grades with points or repeat a year.”
“…You fell for a title optimized to lure monkey-humanoids.”
So just what kind of class is that?
To the dazed Isabel, Son Ohchun explained instead.
“Good Governance is, supposedly, the opposite of extraordinary strength and extraordinary phenomena.”
“What specifically do they teach?”
“It’s said that special mana manipulation techniques and magic don’t rely on extraordinary strength or phenomena but on daily effort and virtue to navigate crises using laws and human power learned from the Administration Department.”
“I can see you’ve picked a class quite poorly. With that, aren’t you at risk of flunking?”
Son Ohchun shrugged.
“Just don’t be shocked. So far, my grades in the classroom are the best.”
“No way!”
Isabel protested vehemently.
“Jezel has always seemed intelligent, so I can understand that. Oknodie, with their foundation’s early education, I can reluctantly concede too. But you, no way.”
“Excuse me? Are you treating me like some tin can? Don’t underestimate the ace of the Administration Department’s liberal arts class.”
Countess Arcadia chuckled softly behind her fan.
“Seems like you might be a bit biased against the Administration Department. That class is no walk in the park either. It’s not all about getting good scores, you know?”
“Do you have any idea about Countess’s insights?”
“For example, let’s say the royal family announces that they will double the harvest this year to prepare for a potential famine. How will they increase the harvest without relying on extraordinary strength or phenomena?”
Isabel pondered seriously.
“By developing fertilizers or changing cultivation methods…?”
“Ha. That’s a pretty dumb answer.”
Son Ohchun immediately laughed and chimed in.
“Using the strength built from daily training to grab twice as much grain. To avoid getting caught, disguise as a thief and steal grain from hostile territories.”
“Huh? Then there’s no reason for the Administration Department to even teach that.”
“That’s correct, you know?”
With Arcadia’s declaration, Isabel was left speechless.
Not a joke, but really?
“As long as you don’t get caught, you can do whatever you want. That’s an age-old saying in the Administration Department.”
“Isn’t the Administration Department supposed to be filled with distinguished individuals from various noble bloodlines and smart cookies…?”
“That’s right.”
“Now I’m genuinely worried about the future of each country thanks to the Countess’s words…”
Arcadia’s shoulder shook even more as she tried to suppress her laughter behind the fan.
“Let go of your prejudices. Most officials in charge of administration in various territories are just about average. It’s hard for them to develop any new fertilizer or pioneer land swarming with monsters by displaying exceptional knowledge surpassing their predecessors.”
“That may be true…”
“In comparison, stealing other people’s achievements or plundering the farmers of your territory is much easier and more realistic. But if you rush in and act carelessly, the negative impacts will only grow.”
“What if a territorial battle breaks out with a neighboring territory, or the reputation of the territory plummets?”
“Therefore, knowing how to do things without getting caught, or how to carry out actions safely even if you do, is critically important. Plus, you’ll learn what kinds of cowardly tricks are in use through this class.”
It was a seemingly worthless class, but hearing Countess Arcadia, it didn’t sound so impractical…?
“Good Governance, what a nice term. If you train hard, you can steal without using finishing moves—how worthwhile!”
“Sorry to make you feel bad for the professor’s ramblings… You seriously should stop talking bad about professors.”
Even against Isabel’s reproach, Son Ohchun just burst out laughing heartily.
“By the way, have you two heard the rumors about the test opponents coming for the class that Di is taking?”
Arcadia’s expression suddenly darkened.
It seemed that there was something suspicious connected to the Countess’s connections.
Isabel inquired back with a stiff expression.
“If I asked Jezel, I could find out but I haven’t asked yet. Why, what’s worrying you?”
Arcadia sighed deeply.
“There are rumors they are bringing in a traveling band.”
“What’s the problem with a band?”
“They’re a band that causes listeners to collectively faint or fall into chaos, unleashing numerous incidents, and keeping people awake for three full days straight, creating horrid status conditions.”
“Oh, that can’t be… It’s not the Blood Band made up of criminal ex-players, is it? I have distant memories from my time with the Esornia Expedition Team.”
Isabel, rifling through her memories, gasped and clenched her hands.
“Aren’t they the ones who cast a massive buff on their army and stormed the battlefield after an Empire arrow flew into their carriage?”
“Yep. That’s the Blood Band.”
What kind of test opponents are those, anyway?
Is there a need to send them charging at the freshmen who just came to class?
Son Ohchun, stunned, waited until their conversation ended before bluntly asking.
“So which class are you talking about?”
Ah.
Oknodie, this guy had more than one class, right?
“From what I found out, it’s ‘Picnic Healing.’”
“Oh no, now that makes sense. It was strange that Duke Andersen was taking that class.”
“…”
Son Ohchun’s resolve strengthened.
From now on, if he even saw Andersen coming, he should run without looking back.
In this chaotic atmosphere, there was not a word about the winged beastmen who were also coming as test opponents for the first years.
There were just too many villain-like opponents invited among those who were to test for all sorts of classes.
