It had been a week since the academy officially started the semester.
Most of the cadets were getting used to the academy, making friends and building camaraderie, but… there were still some cadets who hadn’t adjusted yet.
Mainly, it was the talented commoners. No matter how much talent they had, they couldn’t catch up to the nobles in just a week—so the commoners were despised and envied.
Because their classes weren’t progressing due to the commoners, some nobles even suggested creating a separate inferior class for them.
Of course, such an opinion would never be accepted in an academy that championed equality—but even so, the academy couldn’t stop the nobles from looking down on the commoners.
Liber was one of those cadets who was looked down upon.
“Damn, damn—damn damn…”
Liber, a commoner who caught the eye of a passing knight in his village, received a recommendation letter to the academy, passed the entrance exam, and entered—but contrary to his expectations, academy life was brutally harsh.
While no cadet directly bullied him, almost everyone ignored him because he was a commoner.
Human emotions are sensitive; even without direct bullying, it was enough to make him suffer.
“Shit!”
Thud! Liber kicked the lamppost next to the bench with his foot. The lamppost didn’t budge at all, and only his poor foot throbbed in pain—but unable to contain his anger, Liber continued spewing curses.
“Shit, shit… you bastards… what did I even do wrong…”
He had talent.
By sheer luck, he met a genius who recommended him to the academy.
He thought a brilliant future awaited him.
Reality was far from it. That gap tormented Liber. He wanted to escape this suffering immediately. He knew exactly how to do it.
All he had to do was grow stronger. Catch up to the other cadets, surpass them, and then the nobles who once looked down on him would extend their hands as if nothing ever happened.
After all, nobles were the type to snarl yesterday and offer flowers with a smile today if it benefited them.
‘But how? How am I supposed to do that?’
If he’d had overwhelming talent, Liber wouldn’t have been suffering like this. What he had was just enough to earn him the label of “moderately gifted.”
And the most common thing in the academy was precisely that kind of “genius.”
“Fuck, shit…”
“Who’s there?”
Liber, who had been sitting alone on the bench cursing, flinched and turned his head toward the voice. From the darkness where the streetlight didn’t reach, someone was approaching.
Thinking it might be the dorm supervisor or an academy instructor, Liber trembled slightly as he waited for the figure to emerge from the shadows.
A moment later, when the man stepped out of the darkness, Liber let out a sigh of relief. It was a second-year senior from the Knight Department—not as intimidating as an instructor or professor, but still formidable.
“What are you doing here alone?”
“…Nothing, Senior.”
“Really? You look troubled.”
The senior smirked and plopped down next to Liber. Liber flinched as the sky-like senior sat beside him, but the senior waved his hands reassuringly to calm him.
“Having trouble keeping up with the lessons, huh?”
“…”
“In your village, you were probably the greatest genius, but now that you’re here, you’re just another cadet, and your pride’s taking a hit, right?”
“How did you…”
Liber stared at the senior in shock. Smirking, the senior explained.
“I’ve been through the same thing. I’m Demian Rotus, second year.”
“Oh, I’m Liber. Nice to meet you, Senior Demian.”
“What’s troubling you… is it the Aura problem?”
As if reminiscing about his own struggles, Demian began deducing Liber’s concerns. To Liber’s astonishment, Demian pinpointed his exact issue, causing Liber to blink rapidly.
“That’s right. Aura. When I first started learning it, I racked my brain trying to figure out how the hell to master it.”
“…Even though you’re a noble, Senior?”
“Well, just a noble in name. No fancy breathing techniques or family support for me.”
Scratching his cheek, Demian shared his story. As a child, he went hunting in the mountains because there wasn’t enough food. He even chewed on tree bark. And despite being called a noble, all he had were expensive trinkets that made him look pathetic.
Realizing that even nobles had their struggles, Liber began lowering his guard. Seeing this, Demian cautiously spoke up.
“If there were a way to solve that problem, what would you do?”
“A way to solve the problem…?”
“I mean, if there were an easy way to grasp Aura, what would you do?”
Demian reached into his pocket and pulled out a small glass bottle. Inside was something resembling a red fruit, unlike anything Liber had ever seen before.
The fruit was blood-red, as if made by condensing human blood. Liber couldn’t take his eyes off it. Watching him, Demian smirked.
“This fruit allows you to sense Aura.”
“T-There’s such a fruit?”
“Yes.”
“Then… then why don’t the nobles use it…?”
“It’s extremely rare. Very.”
Though Demian claimed to be a fallen noble, he was still technically a noble—and if he said the fruit was expensive, Liber couldn’t even begin to imagine its worth.
Click. Demian opened the bottle’s lid and placed the fruit on Liber’s palm.
“Eat it.”
“W-What? But didn’t you say it was super rare?”
“Yes, it’s rare. I don’t have many. But… even the rarest things should be used by those who need them.”
Swallowing hard, Liber stared at the fruit in his hand. If he ate it, just by eating it—he’d be able to sense Aura.
“…Why?”
“Hm?”
“Why are you being so kind to me, someone you just met?”
But he didn’t immediately toss it into his mouth. Though not highly educated, Liber wasn’t a fool. He knew there was no reason for a stranger to give him such a precious fruit.
“Do you need a reason to help someone in trouble?”
“No matter what…”
“Oh, it’s not free.”
“…I don’t have money.”
“I’m not asking for money.”
However.
“One day, help someone in trouble like this. That’s the price I ask of you.”
Demian’s noble and knightly demeanor was so convincing that Liber couldn’t detect any strangeness in it.
Moved by the image of noblesse oblige—someone willing to use their resources to help the weak—Liber shed tears and popped the fruit into his mouth.
A moment later, Liber trembled as he felt Aura surging through his body.
“T-This is…”
“Congratulations. You’re now an Aura User.”
Demian’s lips curled into a smile as he spoke.
Looking at that smile, Liber vowed to dedicate everything to this senior and live like him.
* * *
“Hey, Arthur. Got plans after class today?”
“Huh? No, why?”
“Let’s go shopping.”
After some time passed since entering the academy, the cadets began forming friendships. By “compatible,” they usually meant good family backgrounds and outstanding skills.
With my good background and even better skills, I naturally became friends with the kids, but the one I hung out with most was Arthur. Some nobles frowned upon me associating with commoners… but I didn’t care.
Above all.
‘At least his level matches mine.’
In terms of skill and appearance.
Among the first-year Knight Department cadets, only three could somewhat handle my sword: Hundred, Arthur, and some guy whose name I forgot.
The nameless guy was already hanging out with other nobles, and Hundred had no manners—so naturally, Arthur was the only one left.
Fortunately, Arthur didn’t mind sticking with me, though he did freak out whenever I joked about being gay.
“Why? Something you want to buy?”
“Dessert.”
“Dessert?”
“Yeah, someone asked me to buy something… but it’s embarrassing to go alone.”
“Taking care of your fiancée? What a romantic.”
In truth, it was a gift for another girl, but I nodded anyway. Arthur nodded knowingly. After class, we headed outside the academy.
Diaros Academy consisted of the main academy building, accessible only to cadets, instructors, and professors, and the surrounding Academy Territory.
Just a step outside the academy, countless shops built for cadets lured them in. Dessert shops were among them.
When we arrived at the dessert shop, Arthur hesitated at the entrance, reluctant to go inside.
“But, Kail. I don’t have money…”
“Did I call you out here to make you pay? I’ll treat you, dummy.”
“Really?”
Cheered by the promise of free dessert, Arthur happily walked in. Inside, countless female cadets who had rushed straight from class filled the shop.
I realized for the first time how many girls were in the academy. There were a few female cadets in the Knight Department, but they were treated as rare exceptions, so I usually kept my distance.
“Wow…”
“What? Is this your first time here?”
“Yeah! First time!”
“Oh, right, you were a commoner.”
Watching Arthur dramatically gawk at the dessert shop, I chuckled and headed straight to the counter to buy a cake.
Arthur, seeing new things everywhere, tried to order a bunch of cakes, but our goal for the day was to visit every dessert shop in the Academy Territory, so I only bought one.
“Thanks for the meal.”
“Sure.”
In the blink of an eye, Arthur devoured his cake, eventually stealing half of the one I ordered.
Sighing, I got up, and Arthur licked the cream off his lips before following me.
We stormed through the Academy Territory, conquering every dessert shop we found. Occasionally, we skipped overly crowded places and conquered dozens of cakes instead.
“Ugh, I’m full.”
“Still a bit hungry…”
“What?”
On our way back to the academy, barely holding back the nausea from eating all day, Arthur casually glanced down an alley.
I followed his gaze and spotted someone staggering deeper into the alley.
“That’s…”
“What? Who is it?”
“…Isn’t that our classmate, Liber?”
“Oh, that guy?”
When I tilted my head in confusion, Arthur stared at me as if questioning my sincerity.
Shrugging once, I prompted Arthur to explain.
“He’s the guy who suddenly got stronger recently. Everyone’s been curious about how he improved so fast.”
“A genius, huh?”
“…Not just that. He got stronger at an unbelievable speed. There’s definitely something secret about it.”
“Maybe drugs?”
Seeing Liber stagger around like a drug addict, I joked, but Arthur seemed to recall something and immediately chased after Liber into the alley.
Watching Arthur charge ahead without a care, I scratched the back of my head and sighed before following him.
We secretly tailed Liber, who slipped between alleys, glancing around nervously. Not long after, he encountered a woman who looked like a prostitute.
“Knight.”
“Haah, haah—”
“Welcome.”
Liber immediately engaged in a passionate kiss with the prostitute. Arthur, witnessing the explicit scene, gaped in shock.
Realizing why Liber had sneaked into the alley, I turned to Arthur and said:
“There was a secret, alright.”
“…Yeah.”
Finding it rather unremarkable, we left the alley and headed back to the academy. Of course. Even with my mediocre memory, I remembered who invaded the academy first.
It was definitely some guy named Dejaw or Demiglass, not Liber.
‘I’m not a total idiot. How could I confuse that?’
After all, I was someone who had seen the ending of Diaros Academy’s first cycle.
I had a rough idea of how this world worked.
* * *
Liber shoved the prostitute away and shouted:
“Haah, haah—what the hell…”
“…They’re gone, I see.”
The prostitute wiped her lips and glared at Liber. Realizing the meaning behind her words, Liber flinched and stared at her.
“N-No! I brought them!”
“You did follow them, right? Well, since they left, maybe they were your friends.”
“No, they weren’t…”
“Oh, making friends is really important, you know?”
“Sh-Shut up! Don’t lecture me!”
Liber snapped, trembling as he reached out his hand toward the prostitute.
“G-Give me… the medicine… please…”
“It’s not medicine. It’s fruit. The Fruit of Life. Scarlet.”
“Same thing, just hurry…”
The prostitute smirked and pulled a glass bottle from between her breasts. Inside were several seed-sized Scarlets.
Seeing the Scarlet, Liber’s eyes widened, and he lunged to snatch it from her, but she didn’t let it go easily.
Watching Liber pant and drool over the Scarlet, the prostitute slowly raised the corners of her lips.
“Did you finish what you were told to do?”
“Y-Yeah. I did, so…”
“Good. You deserve a reward for being obedient.”
Pop! She opened the bottle and handed Liber one Scarlet. He immediately tossed it into his mouth and shuddered.
Energy surged through his body. Now, he couldn’t live without it.
Watching Liber succumb to the Scarlet, the prostitute internally scoffed at how pitiful he was. To think he couldn’t even last a few days?
‘Well, it’s none of our concern.’
Whether a single commoner cadet fell apart didn’t matter to her.
What mattered was achieving the grand mission.
