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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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News of the civil war began to trickle into the media.
At first, everyone used restrained expressions like “disturbances by beastkin slaves” or “rebellion of a small warlord”, but the situation changed rapidly.
All four castles in the southern colony had fallen into rebel hands in an instant.
Moreover, Duke Lorraine Philip had gone so far as to declare an independent state called the Southern Republic.
– Civil War! Where is the blade of Duke Lorraine, who has amassed an army of 30,000, pointing?
– Why did Duke Lorraine choose rebellion?
– The Imperial Family to subjugate the rebellion in the colony…
Every newspaper was full of stories about the civil war.
In the end, the Imperial Knights received orders from the Emperor and formed a suppression army to depart.
It was said that about 2000 troops were assembled, including 1200 knights, volunteer soldiers, mage mercenaries, and hired forces from trading companies.
On the other hand, the rebel army numbered 50,000.
It might seem like an inadequately small force was dispatched, but that wasn’t actually the case.
The Imperial Knights were evaluated to have combat power that didn’t fall behind even a full division of the Imperial Army.
The Emperor might be thinking he had over-invested by sending out the Imperial Knights to deal with a rebel army mostly composed of beastkin slaves.
Well, it was probably more important to make it look like a rebellion that could be settled at the level of a single knight order, rather than moving troops ostentatiously to make it look like a civil war.
Though that single knight order was quite large.
“M-Mr. Hainkel, are you all prepared?”
“Yes, I’m ready. But why are you flustered, Ms. Emilia?”
“Hehe… I’m feeling nervous.”
Today was the day of the Elemental Magic midterm exam.
Tomorrow would be Battle Magic…
Although I roughly knew the exam format and questions and had prepared to some extent, I couldn’t help feeling nervous.
There was something called the butterfly effect, so I didn’t know how things might have changed.
Emilia kept adjusting my clothes with trembling hands.
It was already fine.
“That’s enough, Ms. Emilia. I’ll be going now.”
“Oh. Yes. But…”
“Yes?”
“Don’t you seem too distant? I mean. Couldn’t you call me more intimately…”
“For example?”
“Like, Emilia-”
“Then shall you call me Schlus oppa?”
“…!”
When I said that jokingly, Emilia seemed to show signs of being flustered.
Although she was a spy monitoring me, it was true that I felt we had grown closer after spending quite a long time together.
But I mustn’t forget.
The fact that Emilia could stab a knife into my neck while I was sleeping at any time.
I turned around and grabbed the doorknob.
“Sc-Schlus oppa.”
“…?”
Did I just mishear something?
“N-no! Please pretend you didn’t hear that!”
“…”
With a clattering sound, Emilia disappeared far away.
Was she planning to add a clumsy concept now too…?
Or was it a mistake she made because she couldn’t remember her own concept?
Feeling slightly confused, as soon as I left the house-
“Oh. Hello? What a coincidence.”
“…”
I had to feel dizzy again.
Standing in front of the mansion was Erica.
For a concept of meeting on the way, she had already shown herself leaning against the wall and then hurriedly standing up.
“Are you going to take the exam?”
“That’s right.”
“O-our paths seem to overlap? It’s not that I planned to go together. Just since we met, by coincidence.”
Erica kept chattering and sticking close to my side.
Anyone could see her stride didn’t match, but she was forcing herself to keep up the pace.
How could this be seen as coincidentally going together?
I was about to ask what her business was, but stopped myself.
After all, it was obvious that she would say-
“Huh! Hmph? I didn’t come looking for you! I’m just walking beside you because we coincidentally met, that’s all!”
Oh.
That might be too accurate without a single word wrong.
I was about to ask just to check the answer sheet, but I barely held back.
If she had business, she would tell me without me asking.
“…”
However, even after a long while, Erica didn’t speak to me.
But it didn’t seem like she was really just coincidentally going the same way.
Judging by how she followed along in confusion and silence even when I deliberately chose a roundabout path to the exam venue.
Meanwhile, she kept looking around suspiciously, which was quite suspicious.
What on earth was this situation?
I started deducing based on Erica’s character, the location of the Imperial Academy campus, and the timing of the Elemental Magic midterm exam day.
‘Is she trying to beg me to let her copy answers?’
That was the first answer that came to mind, but I quickly shook my head to deny it.
Erica’s strong pride wouldn’t allow cheating.
Especially if her opponent was Schlus, a commoner.
In that case, there was only one reason I could think of.
“Erica.”
“Huh?”
“Thank you for the escort.”
“W-what? What are you talking about?”
“I don’t think I need to explain.”
“No, really, what are you saying?!”
Her attempt to pretend not to know was too clumsy.
In short, Erica was guarding me.
Although it had lessened recently, originally there were frequent incidents of group lynching against commoners who entered the Imperial Academy…
I had written such a description before.
In my case, I had avoided such incidents thanks to demonstrating undeniable power in Battle Magic from the first class.
But things would be different during midterms.
Given that I had set the condition of dropping out if I lost the freshman top rank at the entrance ceremony, there might be groups desperately trying to interfere with me.
No, there definitely were.
With 100% probability.
Even in the original work, Hertlocker couldn’t avoid being attacked all day on the day of the midterms.
Erica was now protecting me from that.
Not physically or magically protecting me.
She was protecting me now in her position as the eldest daughter of the Lichtenburg family, one of the three great mage families, and as the official heir.
If someone attacked me here, it would mean touching the Lichtenburg family.
No one would dare want to fight with the Lichtenburg family.
They would hate to fight with a family possessing ridiculous wealth that could pay Jin’s overpriced request fee in full without blinking an eye.
“It’s not like that! I said it’s not!”
“What’s not?”
“W-whatever you’re thinking right now. It’s all wrong!”
“Okay.”
“You understand? That it’s not, right?”
“Yes. I understand. But thank you anyway.”
“Aaaargh!”
Seeing Erica’s face turn red, probably embarrassed at being found out, I couldn’t help but smile.
It made me think, this really is the Erica I know.
Rude, rough, and willful, but actually possessing kindness and an inability to be honest.
I thought that perhaps I had received more help from Erica than I knew.
No, maybe not.
“Oh? Isn’t that Professor Sergei’s assistant?”
“It seems so.”
“Who’s that next to him?”
When I turned my head, indeed, Sergei’s assistant was talking with someone.
At first I didn’t recognize them, but looking closely, it was Alexia’s aide.
I’m sure their name was… Yusek?
I couldn’t remember the surname.
Maybe it wasn’t even mentioned in the original work.
Seeing that Alexia had left her aide behind, it seemed she was planning quite a rough journey.
She couldn’t run at supersonic speeds while carrying the human Yusek…
It was a distance where their voices absolutely couldn’t be heard, but when I focused on the mana, I could hear them to some extent, though it was a bit muffled.
“Now is the opportune time while Chairwoman Alexia is away. Right away…”
“No. We must wait until orders come…”
Ah…
I understood what they were talking about.
“Shall we go greet them?”
“Do as you please.”
“No… I don’t even take Battle Magic. Aren’t you going to greet them?”
“No need. It’s unnecessary.”
“How rude…”
“What did you just say?”
“I didn’t say anything?”
I didn’t particularly want to interrupt the conversation between the two.
They were plotting quite a terrifying conspiracy, but…
I decided to ignore it for now since it would happen later anyway.
Rather, pretending not to know would allow me to accurately predict when things would happen according to the original work.
By the way, I knew Yusek was the mastermind behind that incident, but I didn’t know Sergei’s assistant was involved too.
It was a secret even I, the original author, didn’t know.
It was a bit funny.
Thinking about it again, it wasn’t an unreasonable setting that broke plausibility.
The details would all come to light when the incident occurred…
“We-we’ve arrived? I’ll go in first. You come in a bit later.”
“Why on earth…”
“Just because.”
Erica said that while checking my reaction as we arrived at the exam venue.
What?
After advertising that we were together the whole way here, now you don’t want to be seen entering together?
What kind of goldfish-level intelligence is this?
I really couldn’t understand Erica’s thought process.
“Why are you following me?!”
“I never said a word about listening to you.”
“You, really…!”
Erica got angry, her face turning red, as I stuck right behind her.
Students coming to take the exam were now visible far behind us.
Now we really had no choice but to go in.
I stayed right behind Erica as she entered with her mouth shut tight, and at the last moment, I stood beside her.
While matching my footsteps with hers the whole time.
“Damn…”
It was funny how she was cursing with her expression, unable to say it out loud.
I thought this one was cute even when angry.
No wonder she gained readers’ popularity in the original work despite doing all sorts of detestable things.
“Huh…?”
But the exam venue looked strange.
Wasn’t it the same as a regular lecture hall, without partitions?
That was when I sensed it.
The midterms were following the original work exactly.
I sat down in an empty seat near the front.
“Wh-what are you doing?”
“I didn’t say anything.”
“…”
Soon, Erica sat down next to me.
Was she going to escort me even in the exam hall?
Ludwig would surely take care of that, though.
She was unnecessarily full of responsibility.
“Is it okay to sit right next to you?”
“…?”
Just as the awkward silence was becoming suffocating-
Iris in her nun’s habit sat down next to me.
She had her usual benevolent smile on her face.
The funny thing was Erica’s reaction.
She was so surprised that her mouth hung open, unable to close it.
Probably because it was right after Iris and I had a big fight, she must be wondering why we were like this.
Actually, that wasn’t a fight.
I wasn’t angry at Iris.
I just accepted that this was Iris’s original personality.
“Did you think about it a bit when you saw the gift I gave you?”
“I couldn’t figure anything out.”
“That’s disappointing.”
“Do you have any reason to be disappointed?”
“…”
Iris pouted, pretending to be upset.
But really, what could I do if I couldn’t figure it out?
The reason I would kill Julia.
It would be good if that future could be avoided by Iris provoking me and handing over the cross.
But I really wasn’t angry.
Iris must have done that in her own way to try to prevent a future catastrophe.
I had absolutely no lingering feelings for Iris.
I was not the type of man to hold grudges like that.
Tap, tap, tap…
Soon, regular and disciplined footsteps echoed.
Sure enough, it was Professor Ludwig.
With his expressionless face, Ludwig looked over the students today as well with eyes that seemed to be looking down on trash, then stood in front of the podium.
“Is everyone here? Anyone not present in the exam hall at this time will be disqualified.”
It was a bit chilling.
If it weren’t for Erica’s escort, I might have been attacked by masked assailants and unable to take the exam by now.
“Welcome to the Elemental Magic midterm exam.”
“…?”
Ludwig said with a grin.
It was quite rare to see him smile.
The only time he smiled occasionally…
Was when he was tormenting students.
“The exam will last for 48 hours.”
“What?!”
“An exam paper consisting of 10 questions will be distributed.”
Ludwig continued speaking, disregarding the students’ agitation.
In the end, the students had no choice but to quiet down to listen to his explanation.
“The text of each question requires a specific magic formula. You are to engrave the formula into mana and submit the answer in a form that I can see. Of course, if the formula does not maintain its proper form when I grade it, there may be disadvantages.”
In other words, he was saying to imbue sufficient magical power into the formula so that it would be maintained for a long time…
This would be quite a burdensome exam for me if I didn’t use ‘Selection and Concentration’ on my magical power.
“Professor! Can we go outside during the exam?”
“Of course.”
“Um… Then can we take the exam paper with us?”
“That’s possible.”
“What about talking to other students during the exam time…?”
“Are you planning to live as a mute for three days? Of course it’s possible. I won’t set any more rules or restrictions beyond this. Just remember that the midterm is graded on a curve.”
Ludwig said with a devilish smile.
Right. It was exactly the same as the original work.
Ludwig had clearly stated he wouldn’t set any rules or restrictions other than what he just explained, and he never once mentioned cheating like sharing answers or other misconduct.
In short, anything was allowed in this exam.
He was saying he didn’t care whether the examinees copied answers from each other or not.
“Then I will start the exam from now. Answers will be accepted until 09:00 two days from now.”
As Ludwig gestured, exam papers spread out and landed in front of the students.
It had begun.
The utter chaos that was the midterm exam.
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No rules, wow