<em>Do I look like Stalin or Pol Pot¹ to you?</em><em>What we are trying to establish is a school, not a munitions factory.</em><em>While we can teach children how to be either soldiers or schrs, we cannot teach them how tomit murder.</em><strong>『Queenie Cowan, at an unofficial meeting at the White House』</strong>


    * **If you traveled east from Sydney, Australia, you woulde across a massive ind after an hour or so.Centered around the UNESCO World Heritage Site, ‘Lord Howe Ind,’ this ce was connected to three other artificial inds.This was the pride of Australia and the only academy in the world dedicated to Superhumans.Lord Howe Academy.The four inds that made up the academy each boasted different characteristics and atmospheres, as each artificial ind had 15-year intervals between theirpletion.Perhaps this also served as a testament to the advancement of modern architectural technology.On the oldest southern ind, you could see antique buildings with decades of tradition.While on the newest northern ind, you could find cutting-edge buildings and facilities.And that beauty was merely on the surface level. The true beauty of Lord Howe Academy was something only the students could experience.The curriculum, befitting the name ‘academy’, was the true beauty and pride of Lord Howe.For Superhumans, they had physical enhancement methods and martial arts.For Mages, it was Thaumaturgyparable to the Magic Tower or Grande école².For Persons of Religion, teachings on spiritual descent and blessings were provided by priests dispatched directly from the Holy Nation.Following the wishes of founder Quinny Cowan, the academy provided all the techniques for handling mana ording to the aptitude and talent of each student.And it didn’t stop there; it also included sses on general knowledge and etiquette necessary for modern society, and…“…Are there no shooting sses?”What brought Margan’s endless praises about the academy to a stop was the voice of the Saintess.“Shooting? Are you speaking about military training?”“I don’t know the exact name. Are there any sses rted to modern weaponry like pistols, rifles, grenades…?”Modern weaponry? Hearing that unexpected question, Margan tilted his head before responding.“Yes, we do have such sses, but they are to prepare students aiming to enter military academies in the United States.”He subtly turned his gaze towards Yeomyeong, who was listening to his exnation with one ear and letting it go out the other, only staring out the window.“If this question is rted to Mr. Yeomyeong, I don’t think it’s necessary for him to receive military training at the academy.”“What?”“From what I know, all Superhumans in Korea are required to join the military. And as per my knowledge, Korean students immediately after graduation. Mr. Yeomyeong would probably…”Seeing that Margan had misunderstood her query, the Saintess once again interrupted with a smile.“No, no. I’m the one who’s interested in learning it.”“…”“Also, Yeomyeong probably doesn’t need to learn how to shoot, you know? He seems pretty adept at handling firearms and carrying grenades…”The Saintess, who had been trailing off, had a sudden realization dawn upon her.“Wait… have you perhaps alreadypleted your military service?”Only then did Yeomyeong turn his head to look at Margan and the Saintess.“…How old do you think I am?”“Well, now that I think about it, aren’t you much older than me?”“…”Yeomyeong narrowed his eyes and stared at the Saintess’ blindfold, as if asking her if she had just realized this.“Then… since we’re on the topic of age, should I call you ‘oppa’?”For the first time since they got on the ne, Yeomyeong showed a look of disdain.It was a look that hadn’t appeared on his face even when countless reporters were crowding around him.Seeing that expression, Margan understood that the rtionship the Saintess and Yeomyeong had wasn’t the ‘the kind of rtionship’ the reporters had been talking about.Anyway, faced with an unexpected reaction, the Saintess scratched her nose and said,“That’s strange. I heard that Korean men like being called ‘oppa.’”“…Who told you that nonsense?”“My friend?”“…”<em>You have a friend who’s of your age?</em>Yeomyeong barely suppressed the retort rising to his throat.He wanted to say, ‘Even your deranged mother let you make friends, huh?’ but he held that back as well.Only after <em>literally</em> exercising his Superhuman patience did Yeomyeong manage to give her a suitable response.“Regardless, don’t call me ‘oppa.’ It feels ufortable seeing that we’ll be in the same grade.”“Your reaction makes me want to call you ‘oppa’ even more.”“…”“It’s pretty hrious to see you make that face every time I joke around.”As the Saintess chuckled, Yeomyeong shook his head before turning his gaze back out the window.“Um, Saintess. If you really want to learn how to shoot, how about joining a shooting club instead of military training?”“A shooting club?”“Upholding the founder’s legacy, our academy conducts various activities for the students. Among them…”Margan subtly began his long-winded exnation about the academy again, and the Saintess listened attentively.Clubs and societies, Olympic gold medalists as personal instructors, and so on…As Margan’s gentle voice droned on, regaining his solitude, Yeomyeong fell back into his thoughts.The Sword of the Imperial Knight, the Academy Route, the yer…Under the coldly sinking golden eyes reflected in the airne window, the janitor dove even deeper into his thoughts.


    * * *<em>- Hey, those guys will be arriving soon, right?</em><em>- Really? Today? How are they going to being? The Dimensional Portal? The airport?</em><em>- It must be the airport. There was an article about them taking a ne from Manchuria.</em>The ‘Author’ gritted his teeth as he watched his ssmates whispering among themselves as they shared news articles on their phones.Was it because they were chattering among themselves during such an important lesson? No, that was not it.The thing that was troubling him was the term ‘those guys’ his ssmates were speaking about.The Saintess who changed the future of Manchuria and the unknown transfer student.<em>…I can somewhat understand the Saintess.</em>Although he didn’t know the reason she had suddenly departed for Manchuria, details revealed in news interviews and articles weren’t much different from the Saintess he was familiar with from the novel.She was depicted as a righteous figure willing to roll up her sleeves to prevent the deaths of innocents.Even though the reason she headed to North Manchuria remained unknown, it was within his realm of understanding since she had returned to the academy just before Chapter 1 began.However, the variable here was the rumored transfer student. He… was a being outside the Author’s knowledge.<em>…Cheon Yeomyeong. I’ve never used that name in the novel nor have I heard of it. At least, I know that there are no main characters with that name.</em>The Author chewed on his lips while thinking about the transfer student.It was hard to tell how many of the articles released by the war correspondents from Manchuria were actually true, but even if only half of them were factual, it was still unbelievable.Not only did he supposedly fight Kahal Magdu and obtain the dragon’s bones, but he also defeated a living dragon and on top of that, he even rode it?And the most unbelievable piece of information was his upation.A rookie mercenary, they said? In the game, weren’t they NPCs that struggled against level 6 trash mobs?But what? He fought dragons?Maybe the dragon was weaker than expected, or perhaps it probably went easy on them after seeing the Saintess’ face.The dragon Orsay Taboul was a character only mentioned in the passing, so the Author had no way of knowing its skills and tendencies in detail.However, no matter how one looked at it, a dragon was still a dragon.Even with the help of the Saintess, the fact that a rookie mercenary survived an encounter with a dragon was not normal.It was something that did not make sense, no matter how much he thought about it.Still, if he tried to think of a possibility…<em>…Is he like me? Someone who came from outside the work?</em>It was the most usible hypothesis and also the worst-case scenario.If this hypothesis were true? This person had already turned the entire story upside down while he was twiddling his thumbs, waiting for the prologue to start.Once he reached that far, doubts began to spiral into more doubts.<em>What if he monopolized the strange-fated events? And what if he brought the Saintess in to capture the dragon?</em>Of course, it was all just a hypothesis. Without meeting him directly and digging into the man’s background, there was no way for him to confirm his doubts.His worry was deepened. It was a worry without any answer.He habitually chewed his lip, only snapping out of it when his lower lip split and the metallic taste of blood filled his mouth.And soon, the chime announcing dinner time rang.As soon as the familiar melody of ‘Für Elise’ ended, the students began to rise from their seats.However, unlike usual, no one was rushing to the dining hall.<em>- Who wants toe with me to the airport?</em><em>- But the seniors said that the airport is off-limits today.</em><em>- Even so, won’t it be fine for the first-year students?</em><em>- I don’t care. I’m going anyway!</em><em>- Hey! Wait for me!</em>The Author licked his torn lips as he watched the crowd of students rush out of the ssroom.<em>Should I go and check it out as well? Or should I escape from the academy while I still can?</em>While he was pondering over this, someone ced a hand on his shoulder.“Do you not n on going?”The owner of the hand was… Jeon Yunseong. From the Author’s perspective, this boy came the closest character to being the protagonist.The Author trailed off, addressing the boy who believed the fake friendship he offered was real.“Uh… I… am not sure. Will it be okay to go and see? I think the teachers might not like it.”“Oh, don’t worry about that. We’re not the only ones going.”“What if we all get demerits? There will definitely be people who won’t go.”The Author said this while ncing at the other people still remaining in the ssroom.Apart from Jeon Yunseong and him, only two others were in the ss.The elf princess who was hiding her identity and… an unknown crazy bitch.“If there are people who haven’t gone yet… Ah…”Following the Author’s gaze, Jeon Yunseong turned his head and blushed slightly.In contrast to the innocent, youthful affection of the boy, the author swallowed blood-tinged saliva.It was because he remembered the crazy bitch he had encountered back at the garbage dump.The terrifying killing aura and mana that made his knees buckle just by thinking of it.<em>Come to think of it… The transfer student isn’t the only variable problem; that bitch was one too.</em>What on earth was wrong with this world that such people were attending the academy?“Yunseong, why don’t we just…”Just as the Author was about to suggest that the two of them should go alone, the other boy happened to muster his courage.“Uh, um…! Miss Soe Miri?”“Yes?”Jeon Yunseong called out to Soe Miri, who was organizing textbooks, and asked hesitantly.“Uh, well… would you like to apany us?”“…Apany you? Where to?”Realizing that he had omitted the context, Jeon Yunseong hastily added.“To the a-airport! We’re thinking of going to see the Saintess and the transfer student!”Jeon Yunseong said while pulling the Author up.Taking some time to process the sudden proposal, Soe Miri blinked at the two of them and then smiled faintly.“Yes, let’s go together.”“…Oh? Really?”“We are nning to go see them as well.”<em>We?</em> The Author swallowed his curse as he looked at Seti, who was apanying Soe Miri as if it were natural. <em>Damn it.</em>He wanted to leave the group immediately, but facing those cold blue eyes, he felt like a rat facing a tiger, unable to open his mouth.“Shall we go?”Following Soe Miri’s excited words, the Author and the group left the ssroom and started walking towards the airport.<ol>1. Pol Pot was a Cambodianmunist revolutionary, politician and a dictator who ruled Cambodia as Prime Minister of Democratic Kampuchea between 1976 and 1979.2. A grande école is a specialized top-level educational institution in France and some other previous French colonies such as Moro and Tunisia.</ol>