After waiting for the young lady of the distinguished Orunkaim family to leave the classroom with a carefree stride, humming a tune, I returned to my seat, packed the distributed textbook into my bag, and exited the room.
That little brat had thoroughly annoyed me.
If she were to go around broadcasting that I am a member of the Oldingham family, I might be dragged back to that suffocating royal castle. I must find a way to silence the cat girl. However, cats, as a species, rarely do what one wants them to.
I clicked my tongue involuntarily.
Thinking about it now wouldn’t help. I wouldn’t figure it out anyway. At times like these, it’s best to swing a sword until my mind clears. Since the distribution of real swords hasn’t happened yet, I could borrow a wooden sword from Lili in the faculty room and practice swings somewhere.
As I thought of such things and stepped out into the hallway, once again, I heard a voice call out behind me.
“Yo.”
I was already sick of it.
I turned around, glaring up at the source.
“What is it this time?”
“Huh? Why are you snapping out of nowhere?”
Standing there was a scruffy-haired boy.
Unlike the other students, who wore their uniforms properly, his blazer hung open, revealing a silver necklace glinting at the chest of his unbuttoned shirt. Both hands were shoved into his pockets, and a smirk was plastered across his face. Looking up, I could see he was quite tall.
His hair was a bright, almost golden brown, but closer to the roots, it darkened noticeably. He’d probably bleached it with magic.
“What do you want?”
“Your name’s Neu, isn’t it?”
“Yeah. Eremia Neu.”
He came closer with an intrigued look, leaning in as if to sniff me like a dog. He circled behind me and then back in front.
“Hmm…”
A faint scent of cologne wafted over.
So this is what a delinquent is like. He looked like someone who hadn’t killed anyone but was definitely accustomed to punching people in the face. Well, I’ve killed people before. In my past life, though.
“Is there something you want? If it’s money, I don’t have any, so try someone else.”
“Who’s talking about extortion? … What were you talking about with her?”
He must mean Miku.
Though I suspected as much, I asked anyway.
“Who are you talking about?”
“Don’t play dumb. Lady Orunkaim. I saw you talking in the corner of the classroom, all secretive-like.”
The smirk was gone.
There was something intense about his gaze. Unusual for a student. It was sharp, almost unnerving. But I was used to the battlefield, so there was no way he’d intimidate me.
More importantly, his question. How should I answer?
The existence of the dungeon curriculum hasn’t been disclosed to other students yet. So, that matter is a secret between Miku and me.
I don’t owe anyone the courtesy of keeping secrets, but since she might know my true identity, I couldn’t carelessly speak about it. She could retaliate by exposing me.
I decided to change the subject.
“What’s this? Is Miku your girlfriend? Or your sister? Cousin? Relax; I’m ten years old. Nothing romantic is going on.”
The boy grimaced and scratched his head.
“Ugh, it’s not like that. I don’t care about some kid’s love life. Or about Orunkaim. Or you. But damn, you talk like an old man. Way different from the kids I know.”
I felt a chill inside.
He was right. Real kids wouldn’t talk like this. Damn it, this is such a hassle.
Hiding my inner turmoil, I responded without showing it on my face.
“Don’t say stupid things. There’s no such convenient phenomenon as looking like a kid but having an adult’s mind.”
“Don’t take it so seriously, ‘little old man.’”
Little old man? I’ll knock your teeth out, you bastard.
No, no, getting angry here would be bad for a lot of reasons.
“Anyway, I’m not interested in some bratty little girl. That’s not what I was asking about. Not that you’d understand, but women need a certain allure, you know?”
A brat calling another brat a brat. From Blythe’s perspective, he’s less than a novice knight—a snot-nosed kid.
Still, I could agree with his taste in women.
I waited for him to speak further, but for some reason, he hesitated.
“Ah… well…”
If that’s the case, then the curriculum issue might be what he’s referring to. Perhaps he knows I defeated Lawrence and wants to recruit me. Or maybe he’s targeting Miku instead. I couldn’t see that annoying cat girl being a valuable asset, though.
I’d like to ask directly, but that would mean revealing the secret of the curriculum. Damn it, what a hassle.
“Can I ask your name?”
“Hm? Oh, Void.”
“Your family name?”
Void spread his arms and shrugged.
“Ha, don’t have one. Unlike most of you noble brats at this school, I grew up in the slums of Elva. I’m not even a proper commoner, and I’ve never seen my parents’ faces.”
Elva. That coastal city.
Its glamorous tourist district by the sea contrasts starkly with the desolate slums on the inland side. The city’s dual nature is as if divided by a line on a map.
The knights on patrol only roam the tourist areas, leaving the slums to fester. Not that the slum residents probably wanted knights stationed there, anyway.
That place is the shadows of the world. The brighter the light on the surface, the darker the shadows beneath. Mysterious organizations emerge and writhe there.
I raised my chin, speaking imperiously.
“Even so, you weren’t raised like weeds, were you?”
“... What a pain of a kid. The orphanage was Scale. Void Scale. But no one calls me that anymore. I left the orphanage when I was ten, and I haven’t used that name since.”
“I see.”
No wonder he has such a foul mouth and attitude.
The Royal Lehan Knight School recruits students regardless of status to find talented individuals. It’s not rare for commoners to be among the students.
But for him to pass the entrance exams, maybe this guy is more capable than he looks. Not that he seems particularly smart.
“Is that all? Well then, Void.”
As I moved to leave, Void placed a hand on my shoulder, forcing me to stop.
“You’re a crafty little brat, trying to dodge the question and end it.”
“...”
So, he’s sharp. What now?
Just as I was pondering, Void removed his hand from my shoulder.
“Eh, whatever. It’s not like it matters to me what you two were talking about.”
“...?”
He walked away, waving a hand dismissively. So casually.
“But just one thing, a bit of advice from your ‘big brother’ to little Neu: Watch out for Lady Orunkaim.”
“What the hell was that guy even trying to say…?”
This Lehan Knight School is full of incomprehensible people.
Too drained to even think about swinging a sword, I gave up on heading to the faculty room and returned to the dormitory.