Chapter 16: A New Start
Having made a fresh start in the Combat Course in a new classroom, Kazuma finished morning homeroom and tried to converse with his classmates to deepen their bonds, but he was thwarted right from the start.
“Kaaazuumaaa. I finally get why you weren’t scared of me before.”
“A-Alice-chan…”
The one cracking her knuckles and intimidating Kazuma was Miyazono Arisu.
She knew full well that Kazuma wasn’t an ordinary Support Course student, but she hadn’t realized he was strong enough to overwhelm Kenzaki Souji.
However, now that she knew about his performance in the Academy Battle Tournament, Alice harbored dissatisfaction towards Kazuma.
“If you’re that strong, then of course someone like me wouldn’t scare you, huh~”
“N-No~, hahaha.”
Kazuma was flustered by Alice, who was clearly making a displeased face.
From her perspective, it seemed like she was being made a fool of, and she was angry.
Kazuma understood this, so he couldn’t say anything and just laughed evasively.
“Hmph! Well, fine. I’ll make you regret it during training.”
Snorting loudly, Alice returned to her seat.
Only after Alice left did a few classmates approach Kazuma.
It seemed that rather than being scared of Alice, no one could get close because of the tense, touch-and-go atmosphere.
“Yo, Kazuma.”
“Oh, Shunsuke. Haven’t seen you since the mochi pounding.”
“Yeah. Not much time has passed, but it feels nostalgic.”
“Indeed.”
“More importantly, you’re as wild as ever. I’ve never heard of someone transferring from the Support Course to the Combat Course.”
“I know. I heard it from Tanaka-sensei too. Apparently, it’s an unprecedented event.”
“I’ll bet. Transferring from the Combat Course to the Support Course happens relatively often, but the reverse never does. Normally.”
“I wish you’d stop saying it like I’m the abnormal one!”
“You are abnormal!”
It was a moment when the classmates’ opinions perfectly aligned.
“Pien…”
Being treated as abnormal by all his new classmates, Kazuma, though he found it truly regrettable, couldn’t refute it and merely feigned crying.
“Well, putting that aside, let’s get along from now on.”
“You switch gears fast, huh.”
“I was in an environment where I’d die if I didn’t.”
“That Satsuki-ryu, huh…”
He was grandly misunderstanding, but since that was more convenient for him, Kazuma decided to leave it as is.
“That’s right. It’s a killing art passed down to a single heir, but there were three other disciples besides me, you know. We had a fierce succession war, washing blood with blood…”
Getting carried away, Kazuma’s tongue spun like a propeller as he fabricated non-existent lies.
“That’s gotta be a lie, surely.”
Thinking that such a story couldn’t possibly exist in modern times, all the classmates nodded vigorously in agreement.
“It’s not a lie, this.”
“It’s interesting, sure. But I can’t believe it, man.”
“But you saw my strength, right?”
“Mmm… Now that you mention it, it certainly does seem more credible, but…”
Recalling Kazuma’s absurd strength displayed at the Academy Battle Tournament, all the classmates began to wonder if it might not entirely be a lie after all.
“Well, it’s all a made-up story, though.”
The classmates were utterly exasperated at Kazuma, who declared it so nonchalantly, but since this was just him being his usual self, they decided to ignore it.
“Anyway, there’s something I want to ask. Are there any rules in the Combat Course that the Support Course doesn’t have?”
“Ah, nothing like that in particular. As long as you uphold basic human morals.”
“Ah, I see. By the way, this class has few people, doesn’t it?”
The class Kazuma was newly assigned to had two fewer students than other classes.
He had completely forgotten, but in this class, there had been students named Tamura and Inoue. However, they had been instigated by the Ivera Church and, unfortunately, ended up being expelled.
“Did you forget? That Tamura and Inoue were expelled.”
“Ah, right, they were here~. I totally forgot!”
Shunsuke was drawn into laughter by Kazuma’s hearty laugh, but he managed to cover for him.
“Well, if you’ve lived a life like yours, Inoue and Tamura would be distant memories, huh.”
Inoue and Tamura had gone berserk due to a new drug from the Ivera Church, attacked their classmates, and beat them half to death.
That incident had been shocking for the classmates at the time, but from Kazuma’s perspective, it was indeed probably a trivial matter.
After all, Kazuma had met and deepened his relationships with world-renowned figures, starting with the Witch.
“Hmph, if there’s anyone out there who’s lived a more turbulent life than me, I’d love to meet them.”
Kazuma didn’t understand the intent behind Shunsuke’s words and was being needlessly stubborn.
“What are you trying to compete about…”
Seeing Kazuma being stubborn over something incomprehensible, a completely exasperated Shunsuke shrugged his shoulders.
Eventually, the bell signaling the start of class rang, and the classmates around Kazuma returned to their seats as the first lesson began.
The Combat Course naturally also had basic studies, so Kazuma opened the textbook he had received and diligently took notes.
However, although he was taking notes diligently, he didn’t know if he could keep up with the studies.
Still, it was probably better than not doing it at all.
The first class ended, and Kazuma let out a long sigh.
“Fuuuuh…”
Unfortunately, just because he had transferred to the Combat Course didn’t mean Kazuma’s academic ability would dramatically improve.
He had listened to the lecture diligently, but Kazuma hadn’t understood even thirty percent of its content.
“This is bad…”
Slumped over his desk, Kazuma felt a sense of panic, but thankfully, the Combat Course emphasized Combat Power over academic ability.
That was precisely why the academy, counting on Kazuma’s Combat Power, had allowed him to transfer to the Combat Course.
Of course, there were merits for Kazuma, and merits for the academy as well.
It was a win-win relationship, though the academy’s benefit was slightly greater.
“Looks like you’re struggling.”
“Hm? Gouda-kun, is that you?”
“Tsuyoshi is fine.”
“Ah, in that case, Kazuma is fine for me too.”
“Understood.”
“Tsuyoshi, your way of speaking feels strangely old-fashioned. Why is that?”
“You ask quite directly, don’t you.”
“Ah, sorry. I don’t mean to make fun of you or anything.”
“I don’t mind, so it’s fine. As for my speech being old-fashioned, well, that’s due to my father’s influence. My family runs a karate dojo, and my father spoke formally to maintain his dignity. I was influenced by that and ended up this way.”
“I see. I think it’s fine.”
“It helps to hear you say that. There are some who say it’s too stiff and they don’t like it.”
“Ah, yeah, I can see how it might be confusing if a classmate used such language.”
It wasn’t that Tsuyoshi’s appearance itself was old-fashioned, but he had a look that somehow made him seem that way.
He wore his uniform over a clean-shaven head and a lean, toned physique, and because he kept even the top button of his collar neatly fastened, he looked very much like an honor student.
And at the same time, he also looked like someone from a family bound by old-fashioned traditions.
Thanks to doing karate, his posture was excellent, and his back was ramrod straight, as if he had a ruler inserted there, which further enhanced that impression.
“By the way, Tsuyoshi, how tall are you?”
“I haven’t measured recently, but the last time I did, I was 179cm.”
“Seriously?! That’s tall!”
“You’re pretty tall yourself, Kazuma, aren’t you?”
“I haven’t measured either, but I’m probably over 175cm.”
“You’re well over the average height for a Japanese person, aren’t you? Could you stand up for a moment?”
Kazuma, who had been sitting and talking with Tsuyoshi, stood up as requested.
“Hm. Our eye levels are almost the same.”
“Looks like it~. I thought I’d grown taller, but not this much~.”
“Didn’t you think about it when you bought your uniform?”
“I thought I’d hit my growth spurt in middle school. I bought my current size thinking I wouldn’t get any bigger.”
“Looks like that was a mistake.”
“Yeah. Just as I was told, I should have ordered a slightly larger size.”
He regretted his past decision, but Kazuma had come to terms with it, figuring there was no point in dwelling on it, and was simply waiting for a new uniform to be issued.
“Speaking of which, are you managing to keep up with your studies?”
“Please, help me.”
“Honesty is a good thing. If you’re okay with me, I’ll teach you.”
“Ooh~, my bosom buddy~”
“Don’t worry about it, my friend.”
“O-Oh!”
The joke didn’t land, and though Kazuma was bewildered, he covered it up with a smile.
After that, they continued to liven up with trivial conversation until the break time ended.