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Gilbert, who had just left Professor Horizon’s lab, unbuttoned the top button of his cadet uniform, which was soaked with cold sweat. He had achieved his goal, but the aftermath of the mana pressure was more severe than he had expected.

In the game, he would have just received a message about being afflicted with a status ailment and thought nothing of it. But experiencing the mana pressure firsthand made him realize it was no joke. His stomach churned, and his legs felt weak, trembling uncontrollably unless he consciously forced them to stay steady.

But he had achieved his goal. The sub-quest trigger was still active, allowing him to officially accept the Lion King’s Mana Meditation Technique quest.

However, something unexpected happened. Professor Horizon’s threat to expel him from the academy if he failed the quest echoed in his ears. Opening the mission window, he confirmed that the penalty for failure was indeed expulsion from the academy.

Gilbert tried to recall if there had ever been a failure penalty in the Lion King sub-quest during his countless playthroughs of Tactical Combat. Despite exploring every possible branch and choice, he had never encountered such a penalty before.

It was clear that this was no longer just a game. His last provocative remark to Professor Horizon must have triggered this outcome.

He needed to be more careful with his actions.

Shaking his head, Gilbert went to find the homeroom teacher of the first-year class.

Professor Horizon had given him a week, and the mission window he had just checked showed the timer already ticking down. It seemed that as soon as Gilbert left the lab, some measures had been taken.

Although he had never failed this quest before, with the new penalty in place, he couldn’t be sure how things would unfold. He decided it would be best to save as much time as possible to handle any variables.

Arriving at the homeroom teacher’s office, he knocked lightly on the door. A voice from inside granted him permission to enter.

Stepping inside, he saw a neatly organized interior, quite different from Professor Horizon’s lab. Military-related books and various weapons filled the room, giving a glimpse into the personality of its owner.

“Gilbert, cadet.”

“Good day, Professor.”

Gilbert bowed his head in greeting to the first-year homeroom teacher, who was busy writing something at her desk.

“Is this about what I think it is?”

“Yes.”

“We’ll need some time to talk.”

The professor set aside the documents she was working on and gestured toward a reception table. Gilbert pulled out a chair and sat down, while the professor took a seat across from him.

Gilbert crossed his legs and observed his homeroom teacher as she brushed her long hair back.

Her fiery red hair contrasted sharply with her cold, piercing blue eyes that seemed to see right through people. Her long arms and legs were well-suited for swordsmanship, and her toned lower body was a testament to her rigorous training.

Gilbert briefly recalled what he knew about his homeroom teacher.

Briana Tepeo Malchirab.

She was the eldest daughter of the prestigious Malchirab Marquis family, and her swordsmanship was renowned across the continent. Even first-class knights struggled to parry her strikes, and her skills on a Colossal Mech were nothing short of artistry. She was undoubtedly one of the top swordsmen on the continent.

To Gilbert, Professor Briana held a special place. When he was just a newbie starting out in Tactical Combat, he had challenged himself over a thousand times to become her direct disciple. Those experiences had laid the foundation for the Gilbert he was today. In a way, she was his true master.

“Professor Horizon told me. You’ve been quite bold.”

Her tone was calm, but after a thousand attempts, Gilbert could read the subtle changes in her emotions. Her words and actions might seem cold and emotionless, but deep down, she always cared for her students.

Her cold demeanor was a result of her early experiences on the battlefield, where she had witnessed countless deaths. The grief of losing comrades she had just been laughing with was too much for the teenage Briana to bear.

“It wasn’t intentional.”

Gilbert replied without changing his expression. While it was a deliberate act, he couldn’t reveal the truth.

Briana’s icy eyes flashed as if trying to read Gilbert’s thoughts, but she soon looked away. Whether it was intentional or not didn’t matter. What mattered was that Professor Horizon’s demands were unreasonable.

How could it make sense for a student who had proposed a hypothesis to be forced to prove it on the spot, with the threat of expulsion if they failed within a week? Briana had to restrain herself from storming into Professor Horizon’s office right then and there.

In reality, the message Professor Horizon had sent to Briana and Headmaster Lucas wasn’t as extreme as Briana thought, but it did imply such a meaning. Additionally, it included a ‘directive’ to allow Gilbert to leave the academy for a week.

Although the Great Sage rarely abused his position, Briana couldn’t shake the feeling that he looked down on Headmaster Lucas, the Marquis of Lucas. Despite being revered across the continent and having an unfathomable age, there were aspects of him that Briana didn’t like.

“Gilbert, cadet.”

“Yes, Professor.”

“Professor Horizon never goes back on his word.”

“Is that so?”

“Do you not understand the gravity of the situation?”

Briana’s brow furrowed slightly, an unconscious reaction when she was displeased. Gilbert was relieved to see that Briana’s concern for her students remained unchanged, even in reality.

“No, I fully understand. Then I have no choice but to prove it.”

“There’s no other way. A mere cadet has challenged the Great Sage’s opinion.”

Gilbert couldn’t help but chuckle inwardly at her scolding. Her words and tone made it seem like she was reprimanding a brash cadet for daring to oppose the Great Sage, but knowing Briana’s personality, he understood that she was expressing her dissatisfaction with Professor Horizon and her concern for him.

“I deeply regret my actions.”

“Good. Your leave from the academy has been arranged, so you may go.”

“Thank you for your concern.”

“You seem to be misunderstanding something, Gilbert. Go ahead and leave.”

Briana glared at Gilbert for a moment before returning to her desk. Gilbert smiled slightly at her back, bowed, and left the room.

First, he needed to obtain the Lion King’s Mana Meditation Technique. Then, like before, he could aim to become her direct disciple. Being her disciple came with many benefits, but the best part was that it would make his relationship with Princess Knight Seraphina more interesting.

Briana was a renowned swordsman on the continent, and she was also the mentor of the equally talented Seraphina. In other words, becoming Briana’s direct disciple would make him Seraphina’s senior. Given Seraphina’s ambition for talent, she would undoubtedly support Gilbert, who had passed Briana’s rigorous standards.

For Gilbert, who currently bore the title of a troublemaker, this was an attractive option. After all, a capable troublemaker was better than an incapable one. Despite his excellent performance in the entrance mock battle, many still viewed him unfavorably.

At least as Briana’s direct disciple, those perceptions would change, and he could meet the conditions set by his father, the Count of Lithuania.

With another reason to quickly clear the sub-quest, Gilbert headed back to his dorm room.

‘Wait.’

A sudden thought struck him, and his expression hardened. With a serious look, he glanced at the firmly closed door of Briana’s office. Briana, like Princess Knight Seraphina, was an unromanceable character. This had been officially announced by the developers and confirmed by players who had dissected the game.

But the reason was different from Seraphina’s.

While Briana had no romance route, it wasn’t because she didn’t exist, like Seraphina.

The reason Briana was unromanceable.

She dies heroically during the main story.

***

Although Gilbert had just remembered that Briana would die, he still had time. The tutorial had just ended, and the main story hadn’t progressed yet.

To prevent Briana’s death or do anything about it, he first needed to avoid expulsion. He had exactly one week, and his destination was about two days away from the academy, so there was no time to waste.

He would have preferred to use a teleportation magic circle, but for this quest, it was better to move on foot for future benefits.

Hurrying back to his dorm room, Gilbert packed some clothes and left the academy.

His first destination was the place where the Lion King, Terodamas, was said to have fallen.

 

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