Another day.
Another morning.
Another reminder that the sun continued to exist despite my repeated disapproval.
I stared at the ceiling.
The ceiling offered no solutions.
Disappointing.
With a sigh that carried the weight of several personal grievances, I rolled out of bed and prepared for another day at Galia Military Academy.
The dormitory was quiet.
Most students were either asleep or pretending they enjoyed mornings.
Both possibilities were equally concerning.
A few minutes later, I found myself walking toward the dining hall.
The academy grounds were already alive.
Students trained.
Students studied.
Students ran laps for reasons I refused to understand.
One particularly enthusiastic freshman was practicing sword swings before breakfast.
Before breakfast.
The man clearly had issues.
I silently wished him luck with those.
The dining hall was already crowded by the time I arrived.
Thousands of students filled the massive structure.
Some discussed classes.
Others discussed rankings.
More than a few discussed me.
Unfortunately.
I heard my name at least six times before reaching the food line.
Rank three apparently attracted attention.
Who could have predicted such a thing?
Certainly not the academy that publicly displayed rankings for everyone to see.
I collected breakfast and found a relatively isolated table.
Peace.
Glorious peace.
For approximately twenty-three seconds.
Then someone three tables away started discussing the freshman rankings.
The academy truly was committed to ruining my morning.
I ate quickly.
Not because I was in a hurry.
Because the less time I spent around people, the lower the chance of somebody attempting a conversation.
A strategy that rarely worked.
But hope was important.
Eventually breakfast ended.
Students began leaving for their respective classes.
I followed.
Unfortunately.
The academy's academic classes were significantly less exciting than combat training.
Not because they were boring.
Quite the opposite.
They were useful.
The problem was that usefulness required concentration.
And concentration required effort.
A tragedy.
The first lecture focused on battlefield formations.
The second focused on military logistics.
The third focused on command structures within the Imperial Army.
By lunch, my brain felt thoroughly educated.
I disliked it.
Lunch itself was uneventful.
A fact I appreciated.
No duels.
No challenges.
No instructors threatening violence.
Progress.
Real progress.
After finishing my meal, I checked my Student Crystal.
Six duel requests remained.
Waiting.
Patiently.
Annoyingly.
I ignored them again.
Future me would handle that problem.
Present me had other priorities.
Such as avoiding responsibility.
With several hours remaining before the afternoon lessons, I decided to visit the academy library.
A decision that immediately proved worthwhile.
The building was enormous.
Calling it a library felt inaccurate.
It resembled a palace that was personally dedicated to books.
Towering shelves stretched endlessly in every direction.
Students occupied reading areas throughout the structure.
Research groups filled entire sections.
Several professors argued over something involving ancient runes.
One looked prepared to commit murder.
The other appeared equally willing.
Academic discussions truly were terrifying.
I wandered aimlessly through the shelves.
History.
Monster Ecology.
Advanced Mana Theory.
Ancient Kingdom Records.
A section dedicated entirely to dragons.
Priorities had clearly been established.
At one point I discovered an entire shelf devoted to books I had personally written within this world.
That experience felt strange.
I decided not to think about it.
Thinking about it seemed dangerous.
Eventually I found myself entering one of the library courtyards.
A quiet area surrounded by trees and stone pathways.
Students occasionally passed through.
Most ignored me.
A few stared.
The usual.
Then something caught my attention.
A bush.
A completely ordinary bush.
Covered in small purple berries.
I stopped walking.
The bush remained silent.
I stared at the berries.
The berries stared back.
A question entered my mind.
Were they edible?
This was admittedly not the most important question I could have asked.
But it was the question I asked.
Five minutes later I had acquired an answer.
They were.
Surprisingly good.
Sweet.
Slightly cold.
Refreshing.
I ate another.
Then another.
Then several more.
A second problem immediately presented itself.
I wanted more.
Life was difficult.
For several minutes I remained there.
Standing beside a bush.
Eating berries.
Students passed by occasionally.
Most looked confused.
One girl looked horrified.
I chose to ignore her.
The berries were excellent.
Eventually responsibility located me once more.
In the form of afternoon classes.
An unfortunate development.
I left the courtyard and returned to civilization.
The rest of the afternoon passed quietly.
Combat theory.
Tactical evaluation.
Monster classification.
Normal academy things.
I spent most of the time observing my classmates.
Academies were fascinating places.
Put enough talented people in one location and eventually patterns emerged.
The future leaders naturally attracted followers.
The future troublemakers attracted attention.
The future disasters attracted instructors.
One swordsman spent every break practicing.
A mage continuously took notes.
Another student somehow managed to sleep through nearly everything.
A personal hero.
Several groups had already formed.
Friendships.
Rivalries.
Cliques.
All developing naturally.
Academy life in its purest form.
I mostly watched.
Observing people was easier than participating.
And generally safer.
By the time the final class ended, the sun had already begun descending toward the horizon.
Golden light covered the academy grounds.
Students flooded the pathways once again.
Some headed toward training facilities.
Others toward dormitories.
A few toward the dueling arenas.
I noticed several familiar faces.
Then continued walking.
Eventually reaching one of the quieter sections of the academy.
A stone bench overlooked a small garden.
It seemed peaceful.
I approved.
So naturally I sat down.
For several minutes, I simply enjoyed the silence.
Then my Student Crystal vibrated.
I ignored it.
The crystal vibrated again.
I ignored it harder.
A third vibration followed.
Persistent little thing.
Reluctantly, I picked it up.
The familiar notifications appeared.
Duel Requests.
Still six.
Still waiting.
Still refusing to disappear.
I stared at them.
They stared back.
An uncomfortable standoff.
One I was unfortunately losing.
With a sigh, I opened the list.
Six requests.
Six future problems.
Unfortunately, academy policy prevented me from pretending they didn't exist forever.
Rejecting a challenge counted as a forfeit.
Which was academy code for:
Stop ducking fights.
A surprisingly reasonable rule.
An annoying one.
But reasonable.
I began reading through them.
One challenger had somehow written an entire paragraph explaining why defeating me would improve his reputation.
Honest.
Ambitious.
Transparent.
I appreciated the effort.
Unfortunately, I wasn't interested.
The next challenger appeared convinced destiny itself had chosen him.
Destiny and I had a complicated relationship.
I moved on.
Another seemed determined to prove a point.
I wasn't sure what point.
Judging from the message, neither was he.
One was overly confident.
Another was overly dramatic.
A third somehow managed to insult me, challenge me, and compliment himself within the same sentence.
A remarkable achievement.
That left one.
The final request.
The oldest.
The one sitting at the very top.
I paused.
Unlike the others, this request contained only a single sentence.
No boasting.
No challenge.
No threats.
No attempt to provoke me.
Just a message.
Simple.
Direct.
Curious.
For the first time all day, my interest stirred.
I read it once.
Then again.
A small smile appeared.
Well.
That was different.
For several moments I remained silent.
Thinking.
Considering.
Evaluating.
Then I sighed.
Because unfortunately—
Curiosity was one of my weaknesses.
"Fine."
I tapped the screen.
The request opened.
A second confirmation appeared.
I selected Accept.
The crystal flashed.
A notification immediately appeared.
Official Duel Registered.
Location: Arena Seven.
Time: Tomorrow.
Spectator Access: Public.
Wonderful.
Exactly what I wanted.
An audience.
The crystal flashed once more.
The challenger's information finally appeared.
I looked at the name.
Then blinked.
Once.
Twice.
For several seconds, I simply stared.
The smile slowly returned.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
The academy was apparently feeling generous today.
Because tomorrow had just become significantly more entertaining.
And for once—
I wasn't entirely opposed to that.