I wiped the milk around my mouth with the paper bag that had held the bread and shouted.

“Riona! I told you to quit the assassination business!”

“Your voice! Your voice is too loud! I was joking!”

Ugh. Well, I guess that makes sense.

“I’ve retired from espionage, sabotage, and assassination. I’m just a student now. I live with proper common sense and decency. So, don’t worry—I’m fine. Thanks for seriously scolding me. Sorry about that.”

Riona apologized with a laugh.

Does she not realize that coming from her, it doesn’t sound like a joke? Well, I suppose the fact that she can joke about things like this now is, in a way, a big step forward.

“Alright. I have a favor to ask of you all.”

“What is it, El-tan? Just say the word! I’ll do anything! In fact, if you want, I’ll do it right now! Come here~!”

She spread her arms wide and crouched slightly.

“What the hell are you doing?”

“Offering myself to you~!”

...I might snap.

Here I am, trying to have a serious conversation.

“El-tan, your face is scary. You look like an angry little puppy.”

“You… What happened to the common sense and decency you supposedly had just seconds ago…?”

No, I know. There’s no end to it if I react to every little thing Riona says. I’m an adult. I need to show composure. Blythe, this is your second life. Broaden your heart.

Haaah…

“We want to take on a support role for the entire class. Rather than pushing ahead as the vanguard, we want to elevate everyone as a whole.”

“Sure~. I was never really good at direct combat anyway, so it doesn’t matter to me. I’ll just help with whatever El-tan wants to do.”

“I see. I appreciate it. —Void?”

“Haaah?”

He let out a huge yawn.

Then, in his usual sluggish tone, he replied.

“Didn’t I already say? I don’t care.”

“I thought you meant you were fine with taking on the dirty work.”

“Idiot. Why the hell should I go that far for a bunch of bratty classmates? It’s not like I’m getting paid. Let ‘em do what they can on their own. I’ll just cover the gaps. That way, I don’t have to do as much work. Heh.”

His wording made him sound like a total scumbag, but what he was saying was actually quite reasonable. This was just Void as usual.

Still, this guy is incredible. How do you grow up to say such considerate things in such a detestable way? It has to be a talent. He’s twisted, but in the most straightforward way possible.

“Oujin, are you okay with that too?”

I turned to look at Oujin.

His cheeks were puffed up like a squirrel’s.

Munch, munch, munch, munch.

He was chewing frantically, trying to swallow in a hurry, but he had stuffed too much into his mouth.

“Don’t choke on it…”

Munch, munch, munch, munch—gulp.

He managed to swallow.

Wiping his mouth with his sleeve, Oujin straightened his expression.

“Phew. Yeah, of course. I’m fine with tha— Guh! Nngh!”

“Alright, alright. You don’t have to talk. I got it.”

He nodded while covering his mouth.

Are you okay, Oujin? Ever since the dungeon curriculum, your image has changed quite a bit. Where did that cool, model student persona go?

“The curriculum resumes tomorrow. We’ll start implementing the plan right away.”

Now that he had settled down, Oujin asked me a question.

“Eremia, when the class moves together like last time, the team three can stay as they are. But what about when they don’t?”

“Ah… I haven’t thought about that.”

If the teams split up, we’d have to split up too. But according to the curriculum rules, parties were required to stay together.

“Maybe we can ask Lili to be flexible about it. I’ll talk to her tonight.”

“Tonight? You meet with Instructor Ituka at night? …That’s suspicious…”

“!?”

Aaaagh!

I let something slip again. My head is a mess. I need to organize my secrets.

Void, Oujin, and Kilpus know that I’m the prince, but Lili and Riona don’t.

Lili and Riona know I’m living in Lili’s room, but Void, Oujin, and Kilpus don’t.

No one knows that I’m Blythe, but Kilpus and Lili are close to figuring it out, so I have to be careful.

As I sorted my thoughts, Oujin leaned in with a serious expression.

“Eremia… Don’t tell me… At night, you and Instructor Ituka are… doing… something—”

“Wait. Don’t get the wrong idea. There’s nothing improper going on.”

“—Training in swordsmanship together!? That’s unfair!”

Oujin. You…

No matter how much your character has changed, your ridiculous sense of righteousness never wavers.

“I just misspoke. I meant that I’ll ask Lili after school to be flexible with the rules.”

The only one pouting beside me was Riona, who knew about my cohabitation with Lili.

This situation is a mess.

Oujin slumped his shoulders.

“I see. That’s unfortunate. I crossed the sea to train under her, as she carries the legacy of the famous Blythe. If the opportunity arises, I’d like to request her guidance, but it doesn’t seem likely.”

Even during practical lessons, Lili never directly sparred with students like other instructors. That was because Blythe-style swordsmanship had no fixed forms.

It was incredibly difficult to teach.

The Blythe style was all about instinctive, reflexive, and improvisational swordplay. I had no idea how to teach something like that.

All one could do was endlessly drill the fundamentals, push their reflexes to the absolute limit, and train their body to be flexible enough to respond to attacks from any angle while building the muscle necessary to cut through an opponent.

If Oujin ever gets a chance to cross swords with Lili, it’ll be when she acknowledges his foundational skills. Only then can he begin to experience the Blythe style.

No, at that point, it’d be more like the "Lili style."

It’s a long road ahead. While I have the reflexes, my muscle strength is lacking. Oujin is in the same boat. That’s why we have to eat like crazy and keep training our bodies.

As I thought about that, Oujin shook his head.

“Ah, no, forget about me. I was just getting impatient.”

“Impatient?”

Oujin scratched his cheek awkwardly.