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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Vine
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The Imperial Palace, located in the heart of the Empire’s capital.
In the grand office of Emperor Siegfried IV, a middle-aged man whose wrinkles deepened with each passing year, only two figures remained.
An audience with the Emperor was priceless. Only a handful of people were granted a one-on-one meeting with him.
“I was surprised to hear about your unscheduled visit to the Academy. Was it something that even I couldn’t know?”
“Yes. There was something I had to confirm.”
And Linda Westhaven, the Empire’s strongest Master, was one of those few.
They were childhood friends. An unremarkable royal with no claim to succession, and a commoner. That friendship was a well-known fact, and that friendship was the backbone of Emperor Siegfried IV’s rule.
Having the most powerful individual in the Empire as your best friend was an immense source of power.
“The Western Kingdom has proposed a student exchange program. Between our Academy and theirs.”
“Clover..? They always refused our proposals for the last ten years, didn’t they…?”
Siegfried gave her a brief explanation. He left the tedious matters to his advisors, but there were some things only a Master could solve.
A student exchange program was harmless. But when the results of the exchange turned into a battle of prestige, it made it difficult to organize them.
The Empire had always picked strong students. So, the fact that there were many students coming from the West was something that was worth noting.
“Yes… strange, right? And they informed me that a ‘Sword Saint’ will be attending as an advisor.”
The presence of the kingdom’s Master changed everything.
“Bringing their Master into the Empire? That’s clear provocation. Do they not know their place?”
The corners of Linda’s lips curled up. Masters were considered weapons, she must have found his presence insulting.
“He wouldn’t go to the academy to guide students, of course, are you going to deal with it?”
He had no intention of refusing. He knew the Sword Saint’s personality very well. He wouldn’t turn back, if he did stop him he would just try to infiltrate using secret routes, that would be more annoying. It was better to let him come and manage the situation properly.
“…Alright, I’ll watch him until he gets to the Academy.”
“You won’t watch him any longer?”
“I have a lot of work to do. I can’t waste my time on someone like him.”
The Emperor looked surprised. Was she truly the same person he had known for years? Was this the same Linda that he knew, who never refused a fight?
“You’re refusing a fight? The sun must be rising from the west.”
“The Academy is fine. A Shadow hides there.” The Emperor’s eyes widened.
“Was that why you had to inspect it…? Then there is nothing to worry about.”
“I should probably leave a backup, just in case.”
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The training grounds, located near the dormitories, were filled with the sound of clanging metal.
-Clang!!
“Ugh!”
River dropped her sword. She had been sent flying from my parry, and had been hit by a strong counterattack.
Although the training sword was real, her injuries were nothing, I was being careful.
But River was not happy about that, she stood up, picking up her sword. She looked angry.
“Okay, calm down. What did you do wrong?”
Her emotions were getting too high. She had to control it.
“Hah… Hah… As usual, you’re controlling the battle with your skill. I was getting impatient again…”
“That’s it. Your speed is good, but your impatience is a problem.”
River finally understood her problem. She was fast, but she was acting rash.
“Let’s stop for today.”
“No, I can still do more…!”
“You are clearly not focused.”
She had gotten faster, and stronger. But she wasn’t keeping up with her improvement, her skills were lacking.
“That’s… I’m sorry.”
She knew something was wrong with her, but she wouldn’t meet my eyes. Something was different.
“What’s bothering you?”
“I already said, that everyone is stronger than me…!”
“That’s not it, though.”
River was clearly confused and embarrassed. She clearly had a problem, but it was not something she wanted to talk about.
“If you can’t focus, training won’t be effective. Take a shower, and we can have dinner.”
I had a bad premonition. She was probably holding on to a lot of things. Perhaps I would need to use extreme methods.
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There was one large dining hall for everyone, and the food was made by magical golems.
It was a rare sight for most commoners, but at the Academy, it was just a normal thing.
The place was loud and crowded, but it was nicely decorated.
“Amy, don’t you find me reliable?”
“Why are you saying that, all of a sudden?”
I began complaining, after we sat at a table. “Maybe it’s my small stature, I must not look that reliable.”
I had my own ideal image of myself. An image where I was tall, with broad shoulders… like Andy.
Did Amy and River view me as unreliable? Was that why they didn’t ask for help?
“N-no! Atlas is reliable and dependable!” Amy was flustered.
She didn’t like it when I self-deprecated myself. “That’s ridiculous! Look at how you almost got yourself killed! You should be relying on me! I’m the best!”
“You’re saying you wanted to be that helpless again?!”
“It’s not fair! You always make me choose impossible questions!”
“You’re acting like I’m not someone who has helped you before, and listened to all of your problems.”
It hurt, I had placed them as my top priority. I was worried that they would wander into dangerous situations, and get hurt or die. And I wanted them to rely on me, that’s all I wanted.
“It’s not that you’re not reliable Atlas… It’s probably a personal problem.” Amy added.
She was clearly making a point. “You are probably not saying something because you are ashamed, I know how it feels, are you not doing something like that too Atlas?”
“Are you doing a self-introduction?”
“Hey…! I gave you a serious answer.”
She playfully hit my arm.
“I’m not hiding anything. My problems are all public.” I was going to tell them eventually, after all, it was only a matter of time before they understood how I saw it.
“You’re… about your height?”
“That’s the only one thing that I haven’t solved.” I would have fixed everything else by now, but that was the one remaining problem.
“I hope you achieve your goal, Atlas.” She smiled at me, a forced smile.
“You’re acting like I’m not here. Is it because I’m a shorty?”
River, who was sitting beside me, had clearly heard everything, her eyes narrowed at me. She had held it in for a long time.
“You can tell me if you have a problem.”
River sighed, and moved her hair away from her face. She was clearly agitated. She was also not one to reveal anything.
“If you’re not going to be honest, then I’ll make you say it!”
I changed my tone, and I made my face as silly as I could.
“You’re so cheap!”
It was childish, but if that was what it took for her to tell me… then I would keep doing that. I needed to know about her problems. I knew everything would come to be unpredictable, now that I had deviated from the main plot.
“You’re acting like a child. Why does your height matter so much?”
“Fine… I’ll tell you, Okay?!”
River’s face was red from embarrassment, she was finally going to talk.
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