The Academy’s Hard-Headed Swordmaster

Dairus Academy was an educational institution located within the Academy’s special district.

The entire territory was filled with shops catering to the Academy, including lodgings for prospective students awaiting admission.

Of course, as a high-ranking noble, I had no need for such things.

I had purchased an entire mansion within the Academy district.

With contributions from not only the Count, but also the Duke, it was safe to say the mansion was the finest in the district.

“But if you live in the Academy district, wouldn’t you still live in the dormitory?”

“Students who have homes nearby are allowed to commute.”

“Hahaha, Yuri. You still don’t know anything, do you? The thrill is barely making it to class on time from the dorms.”

“How would ‘you’ know that, Kyle?”

“…I heard.”

At Yuri’s question about how I would know something I’d never experienced, I quickly changed the subject.

Come to think of it, I was still a complete newbie who had never entered a place like the Academy.

Yuri looked at me strangely as I talked about things I hadn’t experienced as if I had, but I feigned ignorance until the end.

Knock, knock.

“Young Master Kyle?”

As if waiting for the right moment, the mansion’s maid knocked on the door.

At my call to enter, the door opened, and the maid extended a letter.

“It’s from the Academy.”

“Oh, finally.”

I quickly rushed over and took the letter from the maid.

There were two letters; one for me and one for Yuri.

After handing Yuri her letter, I immediately broke the seal on mine and checked the contents. Inside was the acceptance or rejection notice from the Academy that I had been waiting for.

[Student Kyle Meyer]

[Congratulations on your acceptance.]

[Please be sure to bring your acceptance letter to the entrance ceremony.]

“Yes!”

It was something to be expected, but even with the expected, one couldn’t help but feel anxious.

Delighted with the acceptance, I tilted my head at the two letters in Yuri’s hand. Two? I only received one.

“Yuri, what’s that?”

“Acceptance letters.”

“There are two?”

“Ah, this. Want to see?”

Yuri handed me the second letter, the one I didn’t have. I quickly scanned its contents.

My eyes widened after reading the letter. To summarize:

“It says I’m the top student.”

Yuri Grace. She was the valedictorian of this year’s Academy.

***

After receiving the acceptance letters, the time until the Academy entrance ceremony flew by like melting snow.

I wanted to go to school with Yuri, but as the valedictorian, she was called in earlier for the entrance ceremony oath and other rehearsals.

Feeling a bit lonely, I headed to the Academy alone, resigned to the fact that I had to attend the entrance ceremony by myself.

The day of the Academy entrance ceremony.

It seemed I wasn’t the only one who had been waiting for this day, as many people were heading towards the Academy.

‘Neigh!’

“Get out of the way! Do you know who’s in this carriage!?”

“And do ‘you’ know who owns ‘this’ carriage!?”

As expected, given the nature of the Academy, there were more nobles than commoners, and the nobles seemed to find even this short distance too bothersome to walk, opting to travel by carriage.

With so many carriages converging at once, traffic jams formed on the road.

If human-driven vehicles were frustrating when stuck in traffic, horse-drawn carriages were even worse.

The horses, unable to stand still, started to get agitated, and the already chaotic road became even more so.

‘Walking would be faster.’

Thinking so, I bypassed the congested road and headed towards the Academy. In the distance,

I saw numerous students walking towards the Academy, just like me.

The first thing that caught my eye were the people who suddenly flew into the air as they tried to pass through the entrance.

“Waaaaah!”

“??”

At first, I was bewildered by the sight, but I soon realized what was happening.

Those flying figures were all unsuccessful applicants disguised as Academy entrants.

Those without Academy acceptance letters couldn’t even enter the Academy.

A magical barrier prevented them.

I finally understood why the letter emphasized bringing the acceptance letter.

‘You can’t even enter without it.’

Of course, I, with my acceptance letter in hand, was different.

Basking in the envious gazes of the rejected applicants, I entered the Academy and encountered students meticulously checking acceptance letters at the main gate.

‘Well, if they’re going to do this, why even have the barrier?’

I didn’t understand, but I obediently joined the line and presented my acceptance letter. A student two heads shorter than me stared blankly up at me, then, as if remembering, asked for my details.

“Uh, uh… Your name is?”

“Kyle Meyer.”

“Kyle Meyer, Kyle Meyer… Here it is.

Yep, confirmed. You can go in!”

“Are you a senior?”

“Yep! Second year, Lil Pine. Nice to meet you, junior.”

“Oh, nice to meet you too.”

I grasped her outstretched hand and shook it up and down. She was a cute senior, but I felt no romantic interest.

That’s because…

‘Her chest is small.’

I’m not interested in women with smaller chests than me.

Passing by the cute senior, I entered and saw upperclassmen in uniform guiding the new students to the auditorium.

Following the guidance, I arrived at the auditorium where new students were already seated, waiting for the ceremony to begin.

I sat down in an empty seat, and shortly after, someone plopped down next to me.

“Hi.”

I turned my head to see who had sat beside me. A smile immediately bloomed on my face.

A rare platinum-blonde, busty beauty was sitting next to me.

“Oh, hi.”

“You’re big. Knight Department?”

“Yeah, Knight Department. You?”

“I’m in the Arts Department. Singing is my specialty.”

“Singing? That’s impressive.”

I’m a cold man to small-chested women, but a warm man to busty ones.

Back in Korea, there weren’t many women with chests larger than mine, so I was always grumpy. But this world was different.

Since the original source material was a game, there were more busty women than small-chested ones.

In this world, I could be a sweet, popular guy.

Lost in our cheerful chatter, I realized I hadn’t even asked her name.

“Speaking of which, we haven’t introduced ourselves properly. What’s your name?”

“Aria.”

“I’m Kyle Meyer. Nice to meet you.”

I smiled and extended my hand, but Aria tilted her head, looking at me strangely.

I looked back questioningly, and she pointed at herself, repeating her introduction.

“Aria, I said.”

“Yeah, I heard you earlier.”

“Hmm, are you pretending you don’t know? Or are you acting?”

“Are you famous or something?”

At my question, Aria burst into laughter. She laughed so hard tears welled up in the corners of her eyes.

Clutching her stomach, Aria wiped her tears and waved her hand dismissively.

“No, I want to be famous, but I’m still just a student.”

“Well, keep trying.”

“Hahaha! You’re really funny!”

Then, she explained why she had laughed so much.

“You don’t get it even after hearing I don’t have a last name? I’m a commoner.”

“So?”

“‘So?’ you say? You’re a noble. Even if a noble is friends with a commoner…”

“I don’t really care about that. Besides, this is the Academy.”

An educational institution where all students are equal.

So equal, in fact, that a commoner player character could laugh and even have a romantic relationship with the Empire’s Prince.

But Aria, having heard my words, seemed to think I was some kind of goody-two-shoes who meticulously followed the rules, humming and glancing at me.

“Suuuure. Okay. I like you. Wanna be friends?”

“Friends sounds good. I always wanted a female friend.”

“Hee, but not a girlfriend?”

“Ah, about that…”

I pointed towards the front of the auditorium where a sharp, murderous aura was emanating. Yuri was standing there, glaring daggers at me.

Pointing at Yuri, I explained to Aria why she couldn’t be my girlfriend.

“She’s my fiancée. So, a girlfriend is a bit…”

“Wow, you’re quite the catch! To have such a pretty fiancée.”

“Nobles, you know.”

“Right, right. Feeding one more commoner wouldn’t be a problem, would it?”

“Probably not.”

Hearing my words, Aria grinned and started to stroke my arm.

“What about me?”

“Busty women are always wel—”

“—Is what you were going to say, but! Getting involved with a man who has a fiancée is asking for trouble, right?”

Aria gave me a mischievous smile.

It was a face that clearly said she was teasing me.

I slightly hardened my expression and looked down at her.

“Retract that statement.”

“Okay, if you buy me dessert.”

On my first day at the Academy, I was extorted by my new friend.

If only her chest was smaller, I wouldn’t have fallen for it…

***

Top student of the Academy.

A position envied by countless nobles, but Yuri Grace wasn’t pleased.

She had to be separated from her fiancé, Kyle Meyer, during the entrance ceremony.

‘…What is he doing right now?’

Glancing towards where her fiancé was seated, Yuri spotted a platinum-blonde girl sitting next to Kyle.

She didn’t consider herself overly possessive to the point of getting upset over a girl sitting next to him, but objectively, the two seemed unusually close.

‘Stay away.’

Yuri narrowed her eyes, glaring at Kyle. As if sensing her gaze, both of their eyes met hers simultaneously.

Their gazes locked across the auditorium, and Yuri saw the platinum-blonde girl smirk at her.

This nameless hussy was getting close to Kyle.

Touching his arm, rubbing against his chest.

Fury boiled inside her, but what made her even angrier was Kyle’s inaction.

‘…Kyle.’

Even though nobles tended to be liberal in their relationships, flirting right in front of your fiancée? That was insane.

As Yuri repeatedly clenched and unclenched her fists in anger, a voice called out to her, snapping her attention.

“—Miss Yuri Grace?”

“…Yes.”

“The entrance ceremony will begin shortly. Just proceed as we rehearsed.”

“Understood.”

Even as she replied to the Professor in front of her, Yuri’s gaze remained fixed on Kyle.

He continued to flirt with the unknown girl beside him until the ceremony began and Yuri stood on the stage.

“Wow… How can he flirt right in front of his fiancée?”

“…?”

Just then, a girl standing behind her spoke.

Yuri turned around to look at the student who had addressed her.

She was the Academy’s salutatorian…

“Ah, do you not know my name? Ahem—I’m Kim Sera.”

“Kim Sera?”

“Yeah. Ah, Kim is the family name, and Sera is my given name, so you can just call me Sera.”

“Kim… Which family is that?”

Yuri tilted her head at the unfamiliar family name.

Judging by her black hair and East Asian features, she didn’t seem to be from the Empire.

“Anyway—Nice to meet you, Yuri Grace.”

“…Yeah, sure.”

Thinking it wouldn’t hurt to befriend a noble from another country, especially one talented enough to be the salutatorian, Yuri greeted her.

Glancing down, she had a gut feeling that, at least with Sera, there was no risk of losing Kyle.

Because her chest was far too small.

“By the way—isn’t that too much?”

“Who?”

“Him, Kyle Meyer. …Was Kyle always that muscular?”

“You know about Kyle?”

“Of course!”

Sera puffed out her chest confidently.

“I know everything from his birthday to his favorite things—it’s all in my head!”

“…Oh, really?”

Scratch what she thought earlier.

She shouldn’t get close to this girl.

Thinking so, Yuri subtly distanced herself from Sera.