Episode 41: Declaration of War

“Villain…?”

Randolph’s brow twitched slightly.

“No… it’s nothing. Don’t worry about it, Randolph-senpai.”

With that, I flashed a scheming, villainous smile.

“And… I’d like to offer a piece of advice.”

“Advice? To me?”

“Yes. The reason I was admitted to this military academy… was by the direct order of His Majesty, King Luverios.”

“…I’ve heard about that.”

“Then this will be quick. In other words, I’m here because of His Majesty’s will. …You understand what that means, don’t you?”

Randolph fell silent, seemingly lost in thought.

The king likely ordered my enrollment in the academy to eventually send me to fight in wars against other nations.

He’s wary of me but intends to make use of my strength.

However… I doubt Randolph knows the full extent of that background.

Randolph is probably considering the opposite possibility.

Namely… that I was specially admitted to the academy because the king trusts me.

And from an outsider’s perspective, that assumption would seem entirely reasonable.

After all, I was summoned to the capital and personally ordered by the king to enroll in the academy.

“…Has His Majesty entrusted you with some special mission?”

As expected, Randolph posed the question.

He’s probably suspicious that I was sent to the academy as an inspector to investigate its inner workings.

“Well… who knows? I can’t exactly reveal the details. It’s a direct order from His Majesty, after all.”

Pausing there, I took a step closer to Randolph.

“Now, let’s return to the original topic. Allow me to give you that advice, Randolph-senpai… You’d be wise to carefully consider your judgment regarding this incident. If you make a ruling that’s too one-sided or self-serving, a report might just make its way to His Majesty. Imagine how saddened he’d be to learn that the student representative overlooked bullying… or worse, protected the perpetrators.”

Randolph fell silent again. After a few seconds,

he slowly opened his mouth.

“…You’re right. It may have been hasty to assume one side’s claims were true without verifying the facts.”

“So, you’re saying there’s a chance Ruberus was lying?”

“…Yes. Just a possibility, mind you.”

Though reluctant, Randolph nodded. At that, Ruberus raised his voice in a flustered panic.

“W-Wait a minute, Lord Randolph! Are you saying I lied!?”

“…Could you think about the situation before you speak, Ruberus-kun?”

Randolph’s voice was quiet, but there was a faint trace of irritation in it.

“Incompetent fools get cast out, even from factions. I’d rather not see you end up like that… if possible.”

“Ugh…”

It was an indirect warning—a signal that if Ruberus said anything reckless, Randolph would cut him loose from the faction.

As the second son of an earl and a prospective son-in-law to a marquis, Ruberus was likely a somewhat valuable pawn to Randolph.

But he wasn’t valuable enough for Randolph to risk direct conflict with someone he (mistakenly) believed was acting on the king’s orders—namely, me.

“We’ll put a hold on concluding this matter for now and verify the facts later. …Any objections, Siegfried-kun?”

“None at all.”

“Very well. I have other matters to attend to, so I’ll take my leave. …And one piece of advice from me.”

For a moment, Randolph shot a sharp glare in my direction.

“Even if you’ve received special orders from His Majesty… I am the heir to the Steyart ducal family, one of the five great noble houses. If you act too arrogantly, I’ll have to respond accordingly. Disrupt the order here, and an accident might befall you.”

It was blatant intimidation.

He was saying that, king’s orders or not (which I didn’t have), he had plenty of ways to crush me.

“However… depending on your attitude, I’d be willing to get along with you, Siegfried-kun. Join me, and there could be benefits for you as well. For now, I suggest you keep a low profile at this academy. …Farewell.”

Turning on his heel, Randolph began to walk away. Ruberus, staggering to his feet, spat out venomously,

“Filthy commoner…”

Those words weren’t directed at me but at the victims of the bullying.

Realizing he couldn’t defy me, he redirected his anger toward those weaker than him—a true small-time villain. His utterly despicable attitude was, in its own way, oddly endearing.

Leaving his unconscious lackeys behind, Ruberus hurried after Randolph.

—Oh, right.

“Ruberus.”

“Huh…?”

Called by name, Ruberus reflexively turned to face me.

In that instant, I drove my fist into his stomach.

“Oof…!”

Ruberus doubled over in agony.

Grabbing his head, I slammed another punch into his gut.

“Guh…! …Ugh…! Hack…!”

Unable to endure, Ruberus vomited stomach acid.

Lucky for him—if I’d put in a bit more force, he’d have been spitting up organs instead of just bile.

When I let go, Ruberus collapsed into the puddle of his own vomit with a wet thud.

“What… are you doing!?”

Randolph stared at me, his face a mask of shock.

“Hm? …Oh, this? I just recalled something Ruberus said earlier. He told his lackeys, ‘Give ‘em a couple punches to liven things up. Beating down lowborn scum is pretty fun.’”

I continued with a wry smile.

“But I’d only hit Ruberus once so far. It felt wrong to ignore his advice, so I figured I’d add a couple more punches.”

“…I told you to keep a low profile at this academy.”

A clear look of hatred flashed across Randolph’s face.

He seemed to have taken my actions as a declaration of war against him.

“What a shame, Siegfried-kun. It looks like you won’t have a very pleasant school life.”

“Oh… is that so? I’m looking forward to it.”

A comfortable life isn’t what I’m after.

If Randolph wants to send his lackeys to play the villain against me, that’s exactly what I want.

With one final piercing glare, Randolph turned and left without another word.