Chapter 75: A Solo Lunch, But an Incident Occurs
Thus began Rest’s life at the academy. He attended several classes and deepened his friendships with his classmates. His school life was progressing smoothly, or so he thought. However, about two weeks after entering the academy, he was suddenly caught up in a commotion.
On a certain lunch break, the Rosemary Sisters were hosting a tea party with their female friends, leaving Rest to act alone for a change. This academy, an educational institution for nobles, had several salons where students could gather, provided they applied in advance.
(For nobles, tea parties are a venue for gathering information. It’s a lady’s refinement, I suppose.)
Usually, he would share a lunch brought from the Marquis family with the sisters, but today he decided to take the opportunity to eat at the cafeteria. Since he didn’t have a class during the first period of the afternoon, he could enjoy his meal at a leisurely pace. As he walked down the hallway towards the cafeteria with a relaxed gait, a sudden loud bang echoed through the air.
“What…!”
Startled by the explosion-like sound, Rest braced himself. There was no doubt about it; that was an explosion caused by Fire Attribute Magic. Looking around the hallway to find the source of the noise, he noticed smoke rising from a classroom at the end.
“Is that… the D Class classroom?!”
Indeed, it was the classroom for Year One, Class D. Students were hurriedly evacuating from the classroom, while a crowd of onlookers began to gather.
“…………!”
Cautiously, Rest approached the problematic classroom and peered inside among the crowd. In the center of the room lay a male student collapsed on the floor.
“Ugh… ah…”
“Franz! Franz!”
The fallen student had his clothes charred black and bore burns all over his body. He was breathing faintly; he was alive, but if he didn’t receive urgent medical attention, his life could be in danger. A female student clung to him, desperately calling his name and crying out.
“Hmph… Fool. How dare you touch this noble body.”
And there, looking down at the two, was a familiar figure. It was the Third Prince, Rodel Aiwood, who had caused a stir by barging into Class A right after the entrance ceremony.
“Hey, what happened here?”
“Um… who are you?”
“Just tell me what happened.”
Rest caught a boy who appeared to be a student from Class D and asked him for details. The boy explained the situation.
“Prince Rodel approached one of the female students, asking her to join him for a meal. When her boyfriend tried to intervene, they got into an argument, and the prince’s arm was grabbed…”
“Wait… did he use magic? In a classroom like this?”
Surprised, Rest inquired, and the boy nodded. It was hard to believe that someone would unleash an attack spell and nearly kill someone just because they were interrupted while flirting. He had heard that the prince was foolish, but he never expected him to be this reckless.
(What a feudal mindset… No, it’s just that this prince is an idiot.)
“You’ve dirtied my clothes because of this. You, girl, take responsibility!”
“See? The prince has spoken! Get up already!”
“Please, no!”
One of Rodel’s retainers grabbed the female student’s arm and forced her to stand. If Rest remembered correctly, this was the boy referred to as the “Dora Count’s Son” by Celestine. Another small retainer stood beside Rodel, grinning as he cast lewd glances at the resisting girl.
“Please, let me tend to Franz! If this continues, he’ll die…!”
“I don’t care about the life of a worthless commoner. Don’t keep me waiting any longer.”
Rodel coldly replied to the girl’s pleas. His tone was icy, but his gaze was fixated on the girl’s chest and the thighs peeking from her skirt. He had heard that Rodel was a womanizer, and it seemed to be true.
(What should I do…?)
Rest’s expression soured as he squinted at the brazen scene unfolding before him. Emotionally, he wanted to intervene. Anyone with a decent sense of morality would find the situation in the classroom utterly distasteful.
(But… it would be troublesome if that foolish prince took notice of me.)
Even if he stepped in to stop this, he wouldn’t be criticized by anyone. No matter how royal he was, this was clearly going too far.
(But… I doubt the prince would be expelled or face severe punishment…)
According to what Celestine had told him, this prince was a worthless man, but he seemed to have powerful backers. It wouldn’t be that simple to resolve the situation with an expulsion.
(Given the prince’s personality, he would definitely hold a grudge. It would be fine if it were just me, but if Viola or Primula got involved, that would be a problem…)
He couldn’t let the two of them become targets of Rodel’s ire. Yet, it also felt wrong to simply turn a blind eye and walk away.
(A man who would abandon those two in their time of need is not worthy of their friendship… I can’t let them down.)
Rest had resolved not to shame the Rosemary Sisters who had chosen him. He couldn’t allow himself to succumb to complacency and ignore the evil unfolding before him.
“Let’s do this…”
He would not overlook the prince’s misdeeds. However, he needed to strike without being noticed, to take him down without recognition. It was a simple task, wasn’t it?
“[Smoke Screen]”
As Rest cast the spell, a curtain of white smoke enveloped the interior of the D Class classroom.