Chapter 16: Worthless Pride

The students of class 3 had a different changing room from those in class 4. Of course, it was also divided by men and women.

I wasn't someone who was curious or liked to see others' bodies, but... I needed to say that I had the best body shape among the students in class 3. Some of them even looked at me from the side with respect.

As expected from boys. They did want to have a good body shape, no matter if it was inside an Eroge or Earth.

Looking at my reflection in the mirror, I smiled confidently. My blond hair was slicked back a little bit, giving freedom for my sky-blue eyes to see clearly, not obstructed by it.

My body was donned in dark blue training clothes, which looked like a squire uniform, with the Royal Academy logo, a lion holding a sword, on my left chest.

It was a habit from back in Horizon Online when I was about to go to fight, as I learned that being obstructed by a hair could lead to a fatal mistake in a high-level fight.

After all, one of my former comrades got killed because his hair obstructed his sight. So I didn't take this lightly even when I knew this world wasn't as dangerous as before.

"Nice."

My preparation was complete, and I exited the changing room. The other students had lined up in the middle of the training ground. Apparently, I was the last to arrive.

"Hmm? Are you the last one?"

I heard a soft voice from the front of the lined-up student. My gaze was obstructed by them, but I knew who asked me that question, as she was one of the heroines that I'd like to get in the near future.

So, building a good impression was important. As I approached the crowd, I was able to see her figure.

A short blonde hair and blue eyes, similar to me, and wore a tight training bodysuit that emphasized her well-developed body, curves, and ample breasts underneath a sexy white knight uniform with a skirt that stopped near thighs, easing her movement.

Standing while holding a sword, whose tip was stabbed into the ground, was the instructor of self-defense, the former female Knight Corp's Commander, Rania Reylana.

"Yes, instructor. Please forgive my tardiness." I replied with a calm voice mixed with an apologetic tone. "I have a bit of trouble wearing my training clothes as it... is a bit tight to my body."

'Perfect! That should be a good reason to be late.'

That was what I thought when I expected her to answer me immediately. But the answer didn't come, and I looked at her. Somehow, her eyes widened slightly as she looked at me.

'What's wrong?'

"Instructor?" I called out to her once again, and she finally snapped out of it.

"Ah!" A surprised voice escaped her lips. She immediately coughed once into her fist, regaining her composure.

"Get in your line and prepare for the training. Although you have a good reason to be late, which is never okay, find me later after class so I can give you your punishment. Understood?"

"Yes." I replied curtly and joined the rank of the boys from class 3.

As expected, I couldn't dodge her punishment. Also, I didn't think it was my imagination, but Adam chuckled in a low voice when he heard that I would be punished for being late.

This guy... He already hated me just for giving him a middle finger? I would also kill someone who would disrespect me in Horizon Online, so I wasn't even surprised.

Also... there was a reason why I wasn't angry at Adam for trying to mock me.

'Getting to meet her after class is within the plan to get close to Rania.'

Anyway, I stood at the end of the line and listened to the Instructor, who started to speak.

"Alright. Now that all the students have lined up, I will introduce myself. I am the instructor of a self-defense class, a Level 55 knight, and my name is Rania. In this class, you will call me either Instructor or ma'am. Do you understand? If so, answer with a loud 'Yes, ma'am'!"

"Yes, ma'am." We responded as she asked.

Usually, a commotion would break out when they heard or met someone with over Level 50 present in front of them. They were equivalent to an artist or actors in this world.

But the students at Royal Academy weren't stupid. They understood from what happened earlier that any mistakes would mean getting punished. So they kept silent, hiding their excitement behind their broad smile.

"Alright. Maybe you've already been told by your homeroom teacher, but we will test your skill today, so I can create a training menu for all of you. In this academy, each student will have different training to fully develop their abilities. The test is by dueling against each other. Don't worry; it won't be lethal."

Rania looked around the students with a serious gaze. Some had nervous expressions, and I heard some gulps coming from students with no confidence in their overall fighting abilities.

None of them whined, though, and that gained a nod of approval from Rania.

"Alright. Now if you understand, is there anyone who is willing to fight first? Raise your hand to volunteer yourself."

As expected, none of the students raised their hands.

No one here knew the others' capability. Not to mention, as most of the ones who could fight were the son or daughter of a knight, they also held a code not to sully their honors, so they couldn't pick a pick first without any reason, though I felt like a test was enough of a reason, I didn't know about them.

The students from Class 4 looked around worriedly. Their grades and talents were worse than the students in Grade 3. Some of them might know how to fight, but they also didn't want to risk it first.

Well, I said none of the students raised their hands due to those reasons, but... There was one exception.

"Oh?" Rania let out an interested voice as she looked at my line. A student had raised his hand, and she looked rather impressed by his bravery.

"We have someone who volunteers himself." She continued, looking at the front of the line. "Nominate another student to be your partner in the duel. The nominated student won't be allowed to refuse. Understand?"

"Yes, Instructor!" That one particular student replied energetically. A confident smile grew on his face.

It was within my calculation. The fact that the System gave me a Quest to fight with Adam was clear enough. Why?

Because the System must've predicted this since the start.

Yes. The one who raised his hand was Adam, and he looked at me and pointed his finger right at my face.

What a cliché, but I welcomed this cliché.

The Instructor's face looked worried when she saw Adam pointing his finger at me. Why, though? I wanted to use 'Requirement Appraisal' on her, but I left it for now. I would do that once I beat this mongrel who had the guts to nominate me.

"I choose him." Adam declared, his tone full of confidence. "I will have a duel with him!"

Eliza looked rather worried on the side, clutching her hands under her breasts.

'Well, look at how cute she is.' I chuckled lowly, thinking about that. But it seemed like Adam misunderstood it as me looking down at him as his expression worsened, looking angry.

It didn't need to be said that this guy was confident with his fighting skill because he had lived in a village before and was experienced in hunting wild animals. Still, though. He should just keep his worthless pride down the gutter and understand where he stood.

This world was my bonus stage.

'You will regret nominating me to be your partner.'

"Alright." I replied to Adam with a grin. "Let's do it."