Chapter 78 |
A New Bug
Rin Glacia.
The eldest daughter of House Glacia, and a girl hailed as the greatest genius of her generation.
At the same time, she was the top seat with the most overwhelming presence in Grandia Academy history.
Even seniors in their graduating year found it hard to speak to her.
She was like an ice rose blooming in a pure white snowfield.
"..."
Rin had never cared about anything.
She thought everything was worthless.
No one and nothing ever caught her interest.
But lately, one person had begun to get on her nerves.
'Viktor.'
A commoner with no family name.
Class E top seat.
According to rumor, a weakling with E-rank overall stats.
A student whose very admission was a mystery.
Normally, he would have been an extra she never even glanced at.
'But...'
His actions kept lingering in her mind.
Far too many achievements for someone from Class E.
'Strange.'
In the last practical, he had overtaken her and taken first place.
He had worked with faculty to expose an informant.
There were even rumors he was involved with Chief Investigator Javert, the academy's de facto number two.
At the Freshmen Welcome Exam, he beat Class C's top seat, then later turned even Class B's top seat into his pet.
'No way someone like that is Class E.'
It was strength that made no sense for someone who was supposedly just Class E's top seat.
Rin knew because she had sparred with Caitlin herself.
Caitlin's speed was not something you could beat through luck alone.
At least in terms of peak burst speed, she was one of the fastest people Rin had ever seen.
'And he toyed with Class B's top seat.'
Viktor had not even gotten a scratch.
Even by the lowest estimate, he belonged in the lower ranks of Class A, and at the high end, he could contend for the very top of Class A.
'And... it looked like he used a unique kind of power.'
The boy used a peculiar power.
Not magic, not divine power, not sorcery.
On top of that, his showmanship was outstanding, so he was bound to draw attention.
Rin's interest in Viktor kept growing, and that interest irritated her more and more.
'Practical top seat...'
Rin had already lost to the boy once.
It had deeply wounded her pride.
She always had to be the best.
'I can't leave this as it is.'
She needed confirmation.
Confirmation that he was inferior to her.
Confirmation that he was worthless scrap not even worth a handful.
On an official stage, before everyone's eyes, she had to prove she was the best.
'If I fall behind someone like this, even my family won't look at me...'
It was a kind of obsession.
A habit ingrained into her life.
Without hesitation, Rin headed straight for Class E.
She strode confidently into the classroom and stopped in front of the name Viktor.
"W-what... isn't that Class A's top seat?"
"Lady Glacia? That genius they call the best in academy history...?"
"Why would someone that important come to our classroom?"
"Does she have business with Hyung-nim...?"
Whispers spread among the Class E students around her.
Of course, to Rin, it was noise that didn't even reach her ears.
Those cold blue eyes were fixed on one point only.
"Class E top seat."
"..."
A masked boy sat before her.
A clown with a polite impression, yet an ominous air.
Rin looked at him with an icy gaze.
"During this Midterm Practical Exam, fight me."
It was neither a request nor a suggestion.
What she threw at him was a one-sided notice.
In the answers Rin had anticipated, refusal did not exist.
Silence from the boy, or a frightened nod, would have been enough.
"I won't accept refusal. The top seat you stole in the practical, I'll take it back this time in front of the whole school."
"..."
"Answer."
"..."
An overbearing attitude.
Perhaps frozen by it, the clown couldn't even open his mouth.
Rin waited briefly for an answer, then turned and left the classroom.
She took Viktor's silence as acceptance.
"I trust you're not a coward who runs."
A parting line as she stepped out, as if scraping at his nerves.
It was arrogance through and through.
"You'll be shattered miserably anyway."
After that, her footsteps faded down the hallway.
Inside the classroom, only a faint winter scent remained.
The boy, unable to give any reply, simply stared blankly after Rin's retreating back.
***
Rin's declaration of war.
The news spread quickly among the students.
Only one day had passed, yet it had already become such a hot topic that the entire school knew.
"Did you hear the news too?"
"Ah! That one, right?"
"I heard Class A's top seat really made her move this time?"
Rin Glacia.
The genius called the best of this generation.
She had thrown down the gauntlet.
"She asked to fight Class E's top seat?"
"Viktor? The guy who even beat Caitlin last time?"
Her opponent was Viktor, Class E top seat.
Recently, he was the most talked-about student in Grandia.
Starting with the informant case, one performance after another had pushed his stock to the top.
A clash between those two.
In a way, it was only natural for the academy's atmosphere to turn upside down.
"In this midterm? Class A's top seat and Class E's top seat are fighting...?"
"I never thought Lady Glacia herself would show interest."
"This is bad... what about Class E's top seat?"
"No matter how capable that guy is, wouldn't Lady Glacia still be too much for him?"
The students were burning with excitement.
In their dull academy life, an event like this was their only joy.
Before long, the cadets were talking about nothing else.
"Hyung-nim!"
And things around me were just as noisy.
"Are you really all right?"
"I heard Lady Glacia challenged you to a duel!"
"W-what do we do? If it's the Midterm Practical Exam, everyone will be watching..."
"Still, this is amazing! They say this is the first time Class A's top seat has taken interest in anyone since enrollment!"
The Class E students made a huge fuss while worrying about me.
The Shuttles, in particular, were worked up.
"I'm fine."
"But...!"
"Besides, it wasn't anything as grand as a duel. She only said we'd settle who was superior during the Midterm Practical Exam."
"Didn't she look down on you, Hyung-nim? Saying she'd smash you, calling you a coward...!"
"It doesn't really bother me. It didn't get under my skin."
I barely calmed them down.
With exams coming up, this was no time to get heated over something so pointless.
"I'm fine. Please focus on your own studies."
"Hyung-nim..."
"Again, for our sake..."
"Because you don't want us to lose focus on exams..."
Even that got taken too seriously.
It seemed they thought I was pretending to be fine so I wouldn't make them worry.
"We'll definitely show improvement in our grades...!"
"We memorize the secret manual you gave us every day!"
At this point, even explaining myself got tiring.
So I just let them take it however they wanted.
'Still, seeing them take my side is kind of nice...'
Though maybe a bit excessive.
I scratched my head and roughly accepted their concerns.
Meanwhile, it wasn't only the Shuttles who reacted to the news.
"Sir Viktor! I heard the news!"
"V-Viktor-nim..."
Ranne and Alice.
Those two were practically attached at the hip now.
"I heard Lady Glacia challenged you to a duel!"
"S-sh-she looked so scary..."
"So now you'll conquer even Class A!"
"But still, p-please be careful not to get hurt..."
A cheerful blonde and a black-haired girl speaking timidly.
I could only tilt my head at their reaction.
It had a completely different nuance from the Class E kids.
"You two aren't worried about me?"
"Y-yes...? Worried?"
"Worried? About Sir Viktor?"
They stared at my question like they had no idea what I was talking about.
Then, maybe thinking I was joking, Ranne burst out laughing.
Her purple eyes were full of certainty.
"Pfft... that was a funny joke!"
A joke.
"Sir Viktor losing? In a match between mere cadets? Impossible!"
"R-right... V-Viktor-nim will win anyway."
"You're someone who can tear apart an Apostle with just a tree branch in hand."
"Was that some kind of nonsense joke? M-maybe I didn't get it..."
Instead, the two of them looked flustered.
As if they'd just been asked why one plus one equals two.
Purple and pale green eyes blinked at me, and I felt oddly awkward.
'What is this?'
These two trusted me a little too much.
Well, they were the ones who had watched my performances up close...
"Mm... with praise like that, I hardly know what to do with myself."
"Haha! You're humble too, Sir."
A very high level of trust.
Faced with those intense gazes, all I could do was smile awkwardly.
Of course, unlike them, some reactions were openly mocking.
"Ha...! Heard that monster bitch challenged you this time?"
"Caitlin-yang."
Blatant ridicule.
The tanned blonde delinquent girl spoke as if jeering at me.
"Now I'll finally get to watch you lose pathetically."
"So it seems even Gayteeth-yang rates Class A's top seat highly."
"I know because I've fought her. She's completely insane. She can match most faculty. She's a whole different species from us."
"My."
"What did you even do to get on that monster's bad side?"
"I don't recall doing anything to offend her..."
"Anyway, serves you right. Go get wrecked in front of the whole school and make a total fool of yourself."
"Isn't that your self-introduction?"
"Y-you little shit..."
She spat every bit of trash talk she could to provoke me, then got provoked herself from a single line in return.
Despite how she looked, she was surprisingly amateur.
Rattle.
I gave the collar around Caitlin a few light tugs.
Did she really not realize that trying to provoke me in this state was just ridiculous?
At that signal, she stiffened and glared at me with a rotten expression.
"Come to think of it, I don't think I've heard it once today."
"..."
"Caitlin-yang?"
"..."
"Gayteeth-yang."
"Please, anything but that..."
Crackle.
Her yellow eyes trembled.
Sparks leaked out with her emotions.
But a cold-blooded vampire hunter never let prey escape.
"Expulsion?"
"..."
Her shoulders trembled, and Caitlin lowered her head.
I pulled the collar and made her meet my eyes again.
"You need to answer."
"..."
"Expulsion?"
"Pi, i-it, pik..."
"More clearly."
"Pi, pika..."
"Brighter!"
"Pika...!"
"More energetic!!!"
"Pi, pika...☆ Pikachu!"
Her face turned red to the limit.
I rubbed the top of boiling Caitlin's head over and over.
"Good girl!"
A brief rudeness incident occurred, but I safely suppressed it with a magic spell.
She knew this was how it would end anyway, so why bare her teeth every time?
Still, by now, even that prickly side felt charming.
Tears welled in her eyes as she glared at me murderously. It was exquisite.
"Ahem."
I fiddled with her spark-frizzed hair.
After I thoroughly ruffled it, she looked like she was about to die from how much she loved that rough petting.
Feeling even more refreshed, I left the Class B classroom.
As I walked down the hallway, various thoughts settled in my mind.
'Rin Glacia... a match against the top first-year scorer.'
I figured I should make preparations of my own.
There's nothing wrong with being thorough.
I crossed the hallway with light steps.
Where I ended up was the lab of a certain chief investigator.
"Professor Javert."
"Student Viktor."
Even with such a sudden visit, Javert welcomed me calmly.
Green eyes blinked between strands of loose red hair.
She set down the papers she had been reading and asked,
"What is your business?"
That inorganic gaze remained unchanged.
Regardless, I answered in a bright voice.
"I have one favor to ask."
"A favor...?"
"Yes, a favor."
It was about time to bring it out.
Compared to my other stats, my attack power was especially lacking.
For someone like me, there was one bug that was practically a nuclear bomb of offense.
"Could you help me for a moment?"
Now then.
Shall we try using a new bug?
