The moment our eyes met was fleeting.

Leo immediately started picking up the papers scattered on the floor.

Meanwhile, I went down to the main building’s second-floor hallway along with the other students.

Outside the window, flyers with lost and found notices were fluttering wildly.

‘What kind of crazy situation is this?’

Who is scattering papers in real-time?

Perhaps because flyers were distributed in other buildings too, students continuously warped to the main building’s second floor.

I pushed through the teeming crowd.

“Excuse me.”

“Ah! Why are you push—”

The students who were getting annoyed quieted down and stepped back upon seeing my face.

Times like these, the time I was considered Pleroma is quite useful.

Pushing through the crowd to the front of the notice board, I saw a postcard and a photograph stuck to the wall.

[To His Highness Duke Elias Hohenzollern of Prussia]

A familiar name typed out.

The edges of the paper were frayed, likely because students had already flipped it over.

[We will attend to anything without wasting your time.]

‘This is…’

An appeal letter.

People usually say things like this ‘just before’ their social lives end.

In other words, it’s a phrase frequently used by those seeking favors. It was familiar because countless such letters had arrived for Nicolaus.

I read the red text written at the end.

[Primrose path]

‘…Hmm.’

This is the problem here.

Though in a foreign language, it’s a familiar idiom.

There’s only one place in the Empire that uses this term as a street name.

Though the sender and detailed address weren’t written, this street has recently become famous in the Empire for its entertainment businesses.

And like most, while claiming to abide by the law, they always operate by toeing the line of illegality.

I flipped the postcard back over and checked the photo attached below it.

It showed someone wearing a half-mask with near-white platinum blonde hair tied up.

Perhaps taken with an artifact rather than a regular camera, the colors remained vivid.

Except for the fact that Elias doesn’t usually tie his hair up, the rest certainly resembled him.

Didn’t I just think the idea of ‘making him voluntarily withdraw from the team’ was too far-fetched?

Nope.

‘It was the right answer.’

The bastard who scattered papers all over the school must be one of Elias’s teammates, and that bastard must have had dirt on Elias.

They intended to get him expelled from the start.

No, expulsion would be fortunate.

For students of the Imperial Second Academy, unlike regular students, issues like this are directly linked to their life in the political arena.

Especially for the Emperor, who is looking for a definite reason to send Elias away, this becomes very good news.

‘Since he’ll be kicked out soon anyway, excluding him isn’t a problem.’

Just then, with the sound of one person’s footsteps, the surroundings fell deathly silent.

“Aha.”

Having arrived sometime, Elias muttered beside me with an icy face.

“So this was the plan to kick me out?”

The gazes of the other students were already entirely fixed on Elias.

Elias scoffed and turned around.

“Do you believe it?”

“……”

Whether they believed it or not, the students’ eyes weren’t particularly friendly towards Elias.

Understandably so; how could they trust the words of the guy considered the biggest troublemaker in this school? With photographic evidence, it’s even harder to believe.

‘The problem is that the photo ultimately obscures everything.’

Due to the half-mask, the face isn’t clearly visible, and because the robe is pulled low, only the near-white hair color is discernible.

However, it was enough to add a sense of reality to the students’ imagination.

“Guys, logically, do you think someone would send mail like this to the school?”

“……”

No one spoke.

Elias, frustrated, ruffled his hair messily and tore the postcard and photo from the notice board.

Without erasing his smile, he lowered his voice.

“Nothing to see here, so get lost now.”

‘Hmm.’

This was his original way of speaking.

Though usually reserved for villains, well… from Elias’s current perspective, the students inevitably look bad.

Elias immediately disappeared from the spot.

Fortunately, the students didn’t seem unfamiliar with Elias speaking this way, and instead of criticizing his tone, they started whispering among themselves about the mail.

‘I should go.’

I immediately turned around. And in that instant, I was silently aghast.

Because the Club President was right in front of me.

“…Junior…. You were here.”

Another wreck is here.

Judging by his complexion, it’s like seeing Adelbert from a few days ago.

Smiling out of courtesy, I replied.

“Yes. I didn’t expect to see you here.”

As I tried to slip past him, the President quickly blocked my path.

“Wait… just a moment, do you really have a minute?”

***

No, I don’t.

I need to go comfort Elias, how could I have time?

Surprisingly, Elias was in my room. As always, sprawled face down on my bed.

“It’s practically your bed now.”

Come to think of it, wherever this guy goes, he just lies down whenever he sees a spot.

I remember him abruptly lying flat on the floor when he drank Adelbert’s alcohol before.

Looking at Elias, who was just blinking, I sat down on the floor.

Elias lowered the blanket and muttered.

“Why were you so late? I need someone to whine to.”

“I came back in 1 minute.”

Saying that, I snatched the crumpled postcard and photo from Elias’s hand.

‘Hmm.’

Typed out to prevent handwriting recognition.

Usually, postcards have limited space, meaning less content, so most are simply handwritten and sent.

Just then, Leo and Narce warped into my room.

‘So natural.’

Casually trespassing into someone else’s room.

Even though there’s a perfectly good space in the student union basement, ever since I started using magic at school, my friends always come here.

‘Shouldn’t have given them the detailed coordinates.’

Anyway, I need to say what I have to say.

I spoke to Elias, who was just blinking.

“You’ve been to Primrose, haven’t you, Eli.”

“……”

Elias’s eyes trembled violently. Leo, catching that moment, grabbed his shoulder firmly.

“Hey, you, no way…”

“Elias. This is where the gambling den you frequented is located, right? Am I wrong?”

Elias flinched his shoulder.

“…Yeah. But I’m clean. I didn’t do anything problematic.”

“What the hell did you?! Come to think of it, you placed bets, didn’t you?!”

“I didn’t just bet! I had safety measures in place. And I always dyed my hair black when I went!”

“Right, that photo isn’t you.”

Saying that, I gestured for Leo and Elias to calm down.

From the fact that the letter from Primrose Path was an appeal letter as a survival strategy, the answer to why Elias considers himself clean was already apparent.

Leo was likely pushing him just in case, but he too must have grasped the whole situation.

Just then, Leo clutched his forehead and said.

“…Wait, black hair? Who dyed it for you?”

“Narce did.”

“…!”

Leo turned around with contorted eyes.

Narce just kept smiling cheerfully.

Elias threw off the blanket, sat up, and said.

“Let me say it again, the photo isn’t me.”

“Do you have evidence to refute it? I don’t think you would have moved without a plan either. We’re going to convene the disciplinary committee right away, so tell me now.”

At Leo’s words, Elias lifted his head sharply, his eyes full of life.

“Yeah, I do.”

“What is it. Tell me now.”

Elias remained silent for a long while, then suddenly said something completely random.

“Guys. I have a way.”

“…?”

A way…?

Momentarily, my eyes met Leo’s and Narce’s.

Can we really trust the method this guy is thinking of?

‘No. He’s actually been surprisingly rational lately.’

There might be a surprisingly decent method.

While I was thinking that, Leo spoke cautiously.

“What kind of method?”

“What else? The method to send those guys off and pass by myself.”

“No, I mean, what is it?”

“I have no choice but to pass, guys. Ah~ They’re practically feeding me with a spoon here.”

Elias’s eyes widened, he smiled, and shot up from his seat.

“Let’s go.”

***

After saying “Let’s go,” Elias warped out of the school alone and returned shortly after.

“First, we’ll convene the disciplinary committee.”

Elias said calmly, walking out of the dormitory.

No matter how much we asked, Elias wouldn’t give a clear answer, so Leo mobilized the student council to retrieve the flyers scattered throughout the school.

“I welcome it if they open it. Of course, it’s not true. I have all the evidence to refute it.”

“Right. The other party will likely get exposed instead. Actually, all your teammates have already scheduled interviews with the Class 1 professor.”

“Oh, really?”

Leo took the training footage straight to the Magic Department professor. Naturally, none of the professors reacted well.

‘Of course, they’re planning to expel Elias, so it won’t affect them much.’

“Good~ But those guys aren’t the type to be swayed by interviews. You know that, right?”

“If they’re the type to do that much, probably.”

Seriously, only learning scummy tricks….

Elias muttered.

“I’m so grateful I don’t know what to do with myself. I guess this is what they mean when they say the world gives you shit if you walk the right path.”

“There’s no such saying.”

“Anyway, if they attack me like this when I’m clean, I welcome it. Right? In the end, they’ll fall into their own trap.”

“Right.”

“No, the more I think about it, the more absurd it is. Slandering me like that? Do I look like such an impure person? If it were the pro-Emperor faction guys, maybe…”

I clamped my hand over Elias’s mouth.

Saying that in this school, which receives support from the Emperor? Now that I look, Elias’s eyes seem slightly crazed.

I moved with Elias towards the Magic Department lecture building.

The rumor must have already spread throughout the school, as our class professor summoned Elias.

So, we actually needed to go to the building with the research labs, but Elias wanted to see the Team 8 students first, so we came here first.

‘The professor is probably thinking about Elias’s disciplinary hearing, but well…’

Actually, the ones who should be disciplined are the opposite party, so we can take our time a bit.

The Class 1 guys probably have no clue, but we have an alibi.

“Are you covering for him because he’s your friend? Even after seeing him go in there, you still want to shield him as a friend?”

Just then, as soon as we reached the top of the stairs, a voice came through. It was the Class 1 guy.

Leo answered calmly.

“No matter what you say here, the student council cannot simply overlook the distribution of over five hundred unauthorized flyers.”

“So, what’s the student council going to do about it. Expel me?”

Leo ignored his words and stated his own point.

“I wasn’t finished. And if you knew it was lost property, you could have just returned it to Elias. Why didn’t you?”

“I really was just trying to return lost property?”

“Who knows. Maybe you just made up a fake letter to stir up trouble?”

“Haha… You think I don’t know you’re covering for the Class 2 kids because you’re the Class 2 president? Is it okay for the student council to spread false rumors like this?”

A classmate of ours stepped forward, frowning.

“Hey. Cut it out, will you?”

“I’ll just pay a fine to the student council, whatever. Satisfied? I have nothing more to say about him either. I just found lost property and tried to return it.”

At those words, Elias, watching from the back door, spoke lowly.

“Nothing to say?”

The classroom fell silent instantly.

The Class 1 student, finally noticing Elias, looked briefly startled, then nodded.

“Right.”

“Hey.”

Elias approached the student menacingly.

The student, having some pride left, flinched but didn’t back down.

Fear was evident in his eyes, but more prominent was a sneer, as if daring him to try something.

Elias brought his face right up to the student’s and curled his lip.

“Wanna die?”

“……”

At the utterly undignified words, Leo started biting his lip. His face was visibly darkening.

“Is this why you’ve been excluding me all this time? So where did I go?”

“Where else, it’s written right there in the letter.”

“Why would I? What purpose would I have going there?”

“What do you think you went there for? It’s obvious what they do there.”

“Ah, so what is that, then~?”

“Stop changing the subject. Everyone knows except you. No, you probably know too. You went there, how could you not know?”

Despite Elias’s fearsome expression, the Class 1 student scoffed leisurely.

‘Definitely not ordinary.’

Meeting a guy like that in a group project, I can see Elias must have been really tired.

From the start, thinking ‘He’s going to be expelled anyway, so let’s just exclude him from practice from the beginning’ is already extraordinary.

Whether they excluded him knowing beforehand he would be expelled, or if they luckily obtained evidence while excluding him, openly marginalizing him instead of just pushing him away moderately is not something someone with a normal mindset can do.

‘Guys like these have a high chance of not losing their nerve even if a disciplinary committee is convened.’

There’s a high chance they enjoy ostracizing people.

From using terms like ‘lost property’ to evade responsibility, it’s clear the bastard will just brush it off with something like ‘Oops, my mistake~’ even if Elias convenes a disciplinary hearing.

Combined with his cunning actions, it might seem like there are many grounds for punishment, but examining each one closely leaves only matters difficult to punish severely. The bastard must have known this when he acted.

‘This is a problem.’

Even if a disciplinary committee is convened, their teamwork won’t recover.

They still have to take the second exam together with the Class 1 guys, and Elias, whose image has taken a hit—made even more plausible because he’s perceived as the type of guy who deserves it—ends up taking all the damage.

Earlier, Elias bragged to us that he had a way to ‘send those guys off and pass by myself.’

I don’t know if that’s really possible in this situation. Those guys don’t seem like they’d easily fall for a sparring provocation like I did with Hans or Philip.

Just then, Elias burst out laughing.

“Ah~ You little shit, really. Should’ve just said so.”

“What?”

The student grimaced, looking displeased.

“Want me to tell you?”

“Tell me what.”

Elias threw an arm around the student’s shoulder.

“I thought about it carefully, and you seem quite curious. Right?”

Elias rummaged through his pocket and pulled out the postcard I had returned earlier.

“Why are you running around blabbing about something like this all over school? Hm?”

“Hey, you really went?! If the school finds out about this, it’s expulsion, Elias!”

A classmate asked, looking like he couldn’t believe his sanity.

The Class 1 guy pushed Elias’s arm away and sneered.

“See, he admits it himself.”

“No, think about it. What’s so great about this that you’d make five hundred flyers and distribute them? Honestly, you…”

Elias grinned and continued.

“You did it because you wanted to go, right? Huh?”

“What?”

“Hmm…”

The last sound came from near me.

At Elias’s leap in logic, Leo frowned and tilted his head.

“It’s nothing special, but if you really want to know, it might not be bad to find out. So what are you going to do?”

“What do you mean what…”

Elias pressed his robe brooch firmly and pulled out the pin.

The sneer vanished from the face of the student watching Elias’s actions. Doubt began to cloud his expression, probably the same for everyone else.

“I’m asking if I should tell you. Cat got your tongue?”

“No, what have you been trying to tell me all this time. Speak clearly…”

The moment the Class 1 student answered coldly, Elias threw off his robe and shrugged off his jacket.

“…?!”

The student froze, wearing an expression of disbelief unparalleled in the world.

Now Elias tossed aside his tie and literally began ripping his shirt open.

“Seeing as you’re blabbing about it all over town, you seem really curious, so I’ll teach you just like I learned there.”

“No, that’s not what I meant…”

As Elias put his hand on his belt, the student noticeably recoiled, his face panicked.

‘What the?’

And learn what? Why are you admitting it?

Wondering if I was the only one shocked, I looked around.

Naturally, everyone else wore the exact same expression as me.

The student, also unable to grasp the situation, looked around at the surrounding students.

And, realizing everyone interpreted it the same way, he froze solid.

“I said I’ll teach youuuuu!”

“No, what are you talking about?!”

Saying that, the student turned around and started running at full speed.

Leo, snapping out of it while I was frozen, chased after them.

“Hey! What are you doing?! Calm down a bit!”

Being Elias’s childhood friend, his reaction speed certainly seemed accustomed to such incidents.

“Why are you running away! I said I’ll teach you! If you had the dedication to distribute 500 flyers, you should have just told me directly, huh?”

For a moment, I had forgotten why Elias had been treated like a delinquent until now.

I hadn’t really registered the fact that he possessed the executive ability to tie up a first-year student he’d never met before in the lobby on his first day of transfer.

I don’t know how I forgot that intense first impression.

‘No, this isn’t the time for this.’

I started running after them.

Fortunately, several students were going to catch them, so it probably wouldn’t look too strange.

But those two were unbelievably fast, as if possessed. One seemed faster due to a perceived life crisis, while the other just seemed naturally fast.

Even after running for a while, they showed no signs of stopping.

Elias’s roar came from the distance.

“Hey!”

“No, aaaaaaaahk! Stop coming!”

“You go too! You go home too! I’ll take responsibility and make sure you get a vacation.”

Does he mean get expelled?

Anyway, Elias lost the concept he was going for earlier. His true intentions started leaking out. Maybe they could catch him.

Just as I felt a moment of relief, our class professor emerged from the 1st-year Magic Department door far away.

“Hmm?!”

Seeing the Class 1 guy and Elias unable to control their speed, panic began to spread across the professor’s face.

***

‘So this is how he establishes dominance.’

The activity of crushing the opponent’s spirit by competing over who is crazier was successful.

Although it seemed insane, Elias’s choice wasn’t bad.

‘Because the probability of that Class 1 guy getting expelled is extremely low.’

Whether he distributed 500 unauthorized flyers or 1000, he would be punished for it, but expulsion or suspension wouldn’t happen, so they still have to take the second exam together.

Especially since there are three more students who share the same intention as that ringleader.

Even convening a disciplinary committee wouldn’t have salvaged the total mess during the exam.

But, now things are different.

The Class 1 guy’s face was pale, clearly showing his spirit was completely broken.

“You students…”

“……”

“What on earth is this in high school?”

The professor gave up using polite speech.

We were currently receiving a lecture inside the professor’s office.

Thankfully, a collision accident was avoided.

The moment I put up a barrier in front of the professor, Leo had grabbed the Class 1 guy and Elias with magic and thrown them.

Then, the professor, seeing Leo’s and my tired faces, encouraged us.

“The students still did well. Running like this can easily lead to accidents, but thanks to you, no one got hurt. Still, if possible, please safely call a teacher next time.”

“We will…”

Leo answered soullessly.

The professor cleared his throat and sat down. His expression was now utterly serious.

“Actually, I summoned student Elias earlier.”

“Yes.”

Elias answered with a sulky face.

“Student. Tell me exactly what happened there.”

“You mean Primrose Path.”

“Yes.”

“There is nothing to tell. I never committed any act that would tarnish the names of the Imperial Second Academy and Hohenzollern, Professor.”

The professor stared intently at Elias, then opened his mouth.

“Student. There’s even a photograph, isn’t there? Of course, the authenticity must be verified from now on, but considering the letter the student allegedly received, the problem becomes even bigger.”

“There is nothing to tell.”

“If you continue like this, we must first convene a disciplinary committee to grasp the situation. Before that happens…”

“No. Please convene it.”

At Elias’s confident tone, the Class 1 student scowled and glared at him.

The professor also narrowed his eyes.

Anyone could see Elias’s expulsion was practically confirmed, so it was only natural.

Elias smiled at them.

“Alternatively, you could check the newspaper at six o’clock.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep