"So, the first-year class event for the academy festival has been decided — a competition between Class A and Class B."
In the homeroom, after the meeting.
At the words Ermes — their nominal class representative — had spoken from the podium, the entirety of Class B erupted in uproar.
And in an instant, they realized.
Ah — so this year's academy festival, they were going to be...
...made into the spectacle of...
...a public execution...
...put on display for all to see.
...so it dawned on them.
Class B, composed of viscounts' and barons' children, versus Class A, whose students hailed from houses of even higher standing. In this kingdom, that difference in status manifested directly as a difference in magic.
They had learned through countless past magic exercises — and even before that, through their treatment at the academy — just how futile it was. No matter what they did, they stood no chance. They had been reminded of that truth more times than they could bear.
And so nearly all of Class B had been about to accept that fate, without even the will to resist—
"—Therefore,"
And so,
"...
How shall we...
...win?"
"If you'll allow me, I'd like to explain that now — would that be alright?"
Those were the next words that left his mouth.
The entire class, almost to a person, had to be questioning their ears.
"...Wait a minute, Ermes."
The one who spoke was Albert von Yerk.
This student, who had been getting in his way ever since the moment he transferred in, was once again the first to raise his voice.
Hearing that, the other students felt a wave of relief.
Ah, there's Albert, stepping up once more.
Surely even he couldn't justify what this transfer student was spouting this time. He'd surely put a stop to it.
I'm so sick of this already. Stop stirring up trouble in this academy. Why won't you just leave?
With those kinds of thoughts — hostility toward Ermes and expectations for Albert — they watched the exchange unfold.
Whether he noticed the mood or not, Albert fixed Ermes with a serious expression and spoke.
"If I didn't mishear — did you just say *how* you're going to win?"
"Yes."
"...Do you seriously think you stand a chance? Our B-Class, against that A-Class?"
"That's exactly what I'm about to explain."
"..."
After a pause following Ermes' unruffled response, Albert was silent for a moment.
"...Fine. Go ahead."
Ignoring the stunned looks from the other students, he took his seat and gestured for Ermes to continue, just as he'd said.
"Very well. First, the B-Class's —"
"W-Wait!"
He was about to continue when yet another voice from a different direction cut him off.
The one who stood up was a male student, different from Albert.
With a gaze laced with surprise, anxiety, and a hint of hostility, he glared at Ermes.
"You said we could win? Give me a break — there's no way that's possible!"
"You haven't heard anything yet, so why do you assume that?"
"Sh-Shut up! Who even are you? You just transferred in and already you're acting like you own the place! Would it kill you to stop running your mouth with this nonsense?"
"..."
It was the same kind of line Albert had thrown at him before.
But precisely because of that, this time Ermes took those words in calmly.
"...Actually, I'd like to ask you something."
Composed, he returned a question of his own.
"Why are you so determined not to even listen to what I have to say?"
"Gu—!"
"In the first place, a match against Class A is already a foregone conclusion. And as you're all well aware, if we fight the way things stand now, we will certainly lose. ...In that case, regardless of whether what I'm saying is true, I think you could at least hear me out when I claim 'there is a way to win.'"
"Th-That's—"
"—A-Anyway, Ermes-kun."
The one who answered in place of the tongue-tied male student was Nina, a girl seated in the far right corner of the classroom.
"I really don't want to say it, but I can guess what's going on, so I'll answer for them.
—They don't want to try hard. That's all it is."
Her merciless words didn't just hit the male student in question.
Several other students also reacted — grinding their teeth or looking down, as if the words hit close to home.
"Because there's no way we can win anyway. So we don't want to waste effort on something pointless. We'd rather not try and lose, leaving at least a little room for excuses, than try our hardest and lose. We want to be able to say it couldn't be helped."
"..."
"Yeah, you can despise us for it. ...I know what everyone in B-Class has been put through since the first term, so I can sympathize to some extent, but you don't know that."
"...And you're saying that's wrong?"
Those words were squeezed out of the male student in question, prompted by Nina's remark.
"You people are different! Everyone already knows — that commoner over there is a monster, someone who has no business being in B-Class!
She's one of the chosen, not like us! That's why you can say things like that — because you've never lost, that's why you—"
"Oh? Never lost? Ermes hasn't?"
"!"
Nina spoke as though she would not let those words go unchallenged, a quiet fury drifting from her.
"The first practical exercise. If you watched how Ermes and I went at each other and still think that — then I'm sorry, but even I would look down on you."
Right. They should have been watching by now.
Ermes did not fear challenge because she had never known defeat. It was because she was someone who could take the experience that came with losing, accept the sting of it, and press forward. Because she still possessed something they had lost.
"...I thought it was enviable."
A voice appealed from a different direction, breaking the male student's renewed silence.
It was Sarah who had spoken, and she continued with an earnest expression.
"Watching Ermes and Nina fight — it was beautiful. I thought they were incredible, and I wished I could be like that.
...I imagine everyone else here felt the same way, to a greater or lesser degree."
It was precisely because she had been the most objective outside observer of the class that day that she could say those words with a near-certainty in her voice.
That was the truth. In that moment, every single one of them had been captivated by the sight before them.
There was not a single person among them who didn't harbor even a shred of longing in that moment.
"...I'm sorry. Holding Ermes back—that was my selfishness. If you have any grievances with him, I'll take them on myself."
"But even so, he came to meet us halfway. ...So this time, won't you all meet him halfway too?"
Silence fell over the entire class.
If anyone else had said those same words, they might have been told to cut it out and kicked aside.
But this was Sara—of all people.
From the moment of her enrollment, she had been proclaimed a genius with Dual aptitude, a saint. Even when nobles addressed her, even when the Second Prince singled her out, she never once let it go to her head. She had stayed by the side of every single one of them—the underachievers—and supported them. It was her earnest plea.
They were not so shameless as to brush it aside.
Having been persuaded by the person who represented their class, the gazes and attention turned back toward them.
Ermes sensed this, thought for a few seconds about what to say, and then spoke to a certain person.
"Lord Albert."
"...What is it?"
"The usual, if you would."
"!? H-Here?!"
"Yes. Don't worry—I'll smooth things over."
Though puzzled by Ermes' request, Albert nodded surprisingly readily.
And then—he raised his Magic power and began his Chant.
"Gather—
South wind
Sunder—
North wind—
Reach the divine gale at the edge of all directions!"]
Bloodline Magic——'
Four Winds of the Heavenly Demon
'!"
Unbelievably, the activation of Bloodline Magic right inside the classroom.
The students' eyes went wide with shock, but Albert showed no mercy—he launched a wind projectile straight at Ermes.
"—!"
A devastating blow from Bloodline Magic, no less, bore down on Ermes.
Yet he calmly raised a wall of light to intercept it. The sheer difference in power shattered the wall in an instant, but he caught the weakened strike while crossing his arms and stepping back, letting the momentum carry him as he spun once through the air before landing lightly on his feet.
Shaking both arms that still tingled, he spoke with a trace of surprise.
"—Impressive. Your power has gone up again, hasn't it?"
"...Talk is cheap. Easy for you to say after brushing it off with General-purpose Magic."
The classmates were dumbfounded.
Of course, Ermes had deflected a Bloodline Magic with ease—but the one most stunned was Albert.
His magic had been—
That powerful
?
The answer came from Ermes's lips, carrying yet another shock.
"I've had Lord Albert undergoing a training regimen I devised, starting several days ago."
The class was engulfed in surprise once more.
It was understandable that they found Ermes's claim hard to believe. In that case, the first thing to do would be—show them evidence convincing enough to warrant belief.
That was the reasoning behind the demonstration just now. It seemed to have been more effective than even he had anticipated.
Having lent at least some credibility to his words, he continued.
"Now then. When it comes to the psychological aspects of dealing with me, Lady Niina and Lady Saramia would know best—so from me, just one thing."
He cast a brief sweep around the classroom, then spoke a single line.
"—Don't you find it frustrating?"
It was a line that, despite everything, cut straight to the heart.
"You entered this academy with lofty ambitions, brimming with confidence—only to be oppressed by the entire student body and forced to give up. I apologize, but I grew sick of it in a single week. Your ability to endure this for half a year is the only thing worthy of praise."
He continued with words that carried a subtle edge of provocation, then paused with a deliberate "However—"
"I don't want to believe that you've given up entirely. I want to believe that my coming to the Royal Capital, and staying in the Royal Capital, meant something. …I want to believe that this country is beginning to change compared to the days when my master was here."
Perhaps for the first time, he had laid bare his true feelings—and now he sought confirmation once more.
"Therefore, I'll ask again. —Don't you find it frustrating?"
"—As if we wouldn't!!"
The one who answered immediately was the male student who had confronted Ermes earlier.
"If we just shut up and took it, you'd do whatever you pleased! If we didn't feel anything after being treated like this, we wouldn't be human anymore!"
"That's right! As if you're the only one who's fed up!"
"We have our pride too, our stubbornness! You don't know a single thing about us!"
"...That's right. So I'd like you to know that starting now."
Receiving the words of will spoken one after another, he murmured.
In a way, it was a change in him.
It was his reaching out — he who had always drawn a line of indifference toward everyone except those closest to him.
"If that's how you all feel, then let me try once more. This time I'll be more direct, alright?"
Fully aware of what that shift meant, Ermes spoke again.
"—
A chance
to land
a single hit
on the A-class
lot.
If that's what you want, then listen to what I have to say."
The response was an affirmation by the name of silence.
Seeing that, Ermes felt relieved.
...Ah, these people. It had been a close call — they were teetering right at the edge of the kind of despair where he could have given up on them. But they hadn't crossed that line.
They still hadn't become like those nobles.
They hadn't accepted everything and lost their will. They weren't something that had ceased to be human.
They were beings who still carried wishes and feelings — beings who qualified as mages.
"...Now then, let me start over."
With those emotions still lingering, Ermes drew a breath.
"Forgive my presumption, but let us do this as befits an academy. — Allow me to begin the lecture."
At last, Ermes is truly getting started! Stay tuned for the next chapter!