By the time the entrance exam ended, it was already evening.
Having left the academy grounds that served as the exam venue, Rest walked through the streets of the royal capital and headed straight home.
There was nobody around. Examinees were dismissed and sent home in the order they finished their interviews, so Rest, whose exam number was in the latter half, had ended up being kept late.
(Viola and Primula are probably worried. I'd like to head straight home without any detours...)
"...Do you need something from me?"
"...So you noticed, commoner."
From around the time he'd left the academy, Rest had sensed someone trailing behind him.
When he turned around, a boy emerged from behind the shadow of a building.
"You're... if I remember correctly?"
Cedric... no, it was Celeric, wasn't it.
The celery boy glared at Rest with a look of pure loathing, as though he were staring down his parents' murderer.
"You really made a fool of me back there! Don't think a commoner like you can mock someone who carries the blood of Count Brute's house and get away with it!"
"That's some seriously misplaced resentment..."
Rest had never intended to embarrass him.
All he'd done was score six times as many points right after Celeric had smugly posted his high score.
"That's exactly what made me look like a fool! Don't screw with me...!"
"...And then what? You waited here just to complain to me?"
There was no other way to put it — this guy was incredibly childish.
Rest felt like telling him that if he had that much free time, he should spend it studying or working or something.
...He really feels like a discounted version of Cedric... It's so pathetic that it's almost impressive...
"Take this!"
"......!"
Shouting, the Celery Boy hurled something at him.
Rest tensed for a moment, but... it looked like a glove.
"I challenge you to a duel! I'll kill you!"
"What a temper... A duel over something this stupid..."
For starters, dueling was a privilege reserved for nobles.
Even if he was from a branch family of a Count's house, what could a mere commoner possibly be bluffing about?
"Shut up! If I say it's a duel, then it's a duel! Die!"
Without waiting for Rest's agreement, the Celery Boy thrust his palm forward and cast a spell.
Rest quickly activated defensive magic.
"Lightning Cannon!"
"Earthen Wall."
A wall of earth burst from the ground, intercepting the bolt of lightning.
"I'll smash through that dirt clod in no time!"
The Celery Boy shouted as he unleashed another lightning strike.
The second spell shattered the earthen wall to pieces... but Rest was no longer behind it.
"What!?"
"Your magic's not bad, actually... You're just like your idiot brother in that regard."
"Gwahh...!?"
Using the earthen wall to draw his opponent's attention, Rest quickly circled around behind the celery boy in the opening that created.
Then, delivering a sharp sweeping kick, he grabbed the boy by the head and slammed him into the ground.
"Gu, uuuuuuh...!"
"And there you have it — match over. No objections that I won, right?"
"No way... me, a scion of a count's family, beaten by a commoner...!"
"You're a commoner too, you know. Give me a break..."
While pinning the celery boy to the ground, Rest let out a sigh.
Why did noble-wannabes like this always cling so stubbornly to their status and bloodline?
Viola, Primula, and even Yuri, whom he'd met today — all of them were genuine nobles, yet they were generous toward those of lower standing.
"...The thought of being classmates with you honestly makes me anxious about academy life."
"You're dead... You think you'll get away with this unscathed...!?"
"Hm?"
"I'm connected to a count's household... If I put in a word with Count Brute, you'll be ruined in no time...!"
Lying collapsed on the ground, the celery boy glared up at Rest with undisguised hatred.
"You, your family, even your girlfriend — none of you will get out of this unharmed... I'll have you all thrown in prison for the crime of insulting the nobility...!"
"Oh my, Rest. So this is where you were."
The celery boy was still spewing his venomous threats — when a third party's voice cut in.
A carriage had stopped on the road, and a young girl was poking her head out from inside.
"It's been quite hard to run into you, so I was wondering if we'd somehow missed each other somewhere."
"Viola? Why are you here?"
The carriage that had pulled up nearby bore the emblem of House Rosemary.
Viola leaned out of the carriage window and addressed Rest with a smile.
"I decided to have lunch at a restaurant in town today. Father and Mother are coming along too. I was looking for you — I thought I'd pick you up along the way."
"Rest, how did the exam go?"
Primula's worried face peeked over Viola's shoulder.
"Ah, it went perfectly."
"Good... I'm relieved."
"Of course it did — he's my Rest, after all. By the way, who is that man?"
Viola turned her eyes toward the boy pinned down by Rest.
"The e-embblem of House Rosemary...!?"
The celery boy's face went blank with shock, and his teeth chattered.
He had just been bragging about being descended from a count's family, but the arrival of a marquis's house had clearly rattled him.
"Some stranger I met at the exam. He challenged me to a duel, so I took him down."
"Oh my, a duel — that's rather intense."
"Sir."
The sisters pulled back, and in their place appeared Albert, the head of House Rosemary.
"You there. If this was a duel, then you must be a noble. State which house you belong to."
"H-uh... well... that is..."
"...Make it quick. Don't waste my time!"
"Y-yes, sir! I'm from House Brute!"
Intimidated, the boy Celery hurriedly introduced himself.
When Rest let him go, the boy scrambled to his feet in a panic and pressed both hands toward the carriage in a bow.
"Hmm, Brute the Count's son, is it? I don't recall there being a boy your age in that household…"
"N-no… well… I wouldn't say I'm from the main family, more from a branch house…"
"Oh my. Then what is your family's title?"
"…I don't have one."
"In other words, you're a commoner? And how did a commoner come to propose a duel?"
Proving one's justice through the outcome of a duel was the right of nobles alone.
The party challenged to a duel also had to be noble — they could appoint a proxy, but they could not refuse outright.
"So a commoner who isn't even a noble forced a member of my household into a duel — that amounts to being caught red-handed in an act of assault, then."
"N-no, but… I do carry the blood of a count's house, and I've been granted permission to bear the name Brute…"
"That still makes you a commoner, does it not? Am I wrong?"
"Nnngh…"
The boy Celery fell silent.
Albert's words were nothing short of flawless logic, and the boy had no comeback.
"…………"
"…Well, no matter. I shall file a formal protest directly with House Brute the Count over this matter."
"T-that's…"
"We're about to have a family meal. I don't wish to be bothered by any more trivial matters. Rest, get in the carriage at once."
"Understood."
Rest sent a sympathetic glance to the dejected celery boy before climbing into the carriage without hesitation.
Rosemary and her husband sat side by side inside, with Viola and Primula seated across from them.
The two girls smiled and patted the empty seat between them. Rest sat down without resistance.
"Then, let's be off."
Albert gave the driver his orders, and the carriage set off in motion.
Leaving the celery boy face-down on the ground, the carriage rolled away without a shred of mercy.