Chapter 5-3:
Control
IN MY PREVIOUS LIFE, I’D CONTROLLED A DECENTLY large faction within the academy. Many of them gathered under me because they were enticed by the influence of the duke, but they were ultimately all useless. The academy had other factions too, of course. Just like me, there were other children of powerful nobles who also had decent followings. For example, people flocked toward Crown Prince Edward, who was in the same grade as me, though he didn’t enjoy as large of a crowd now as he had in my previous timeline.
However, there was never once a clash of factions. Nobles had to act with grace, at least on the surface. No matter what, they couldn’t get their hands dirty and thus avoided direct conflict. One generally flaunted their power and spread rumors and the like to threaten their opponent indirectly. It was precisely because I’d tried to deal with Eleanor myself directly that I was sentenced to death.
In my current timeline, my reputation was at rock bottom with those other factions. After all, Richard and Emma had used sheer violence and force to increase their influence, Isabel and Oscar had manipulated others, and Alice and Lewis had increased their supporters through praising me. The methods that nobles generally used didn’t stand a chance against my six squires.
I could only empathize. I would be angry at me as well if I were in the other nobles’ position. Generally, rumors were spread to negatively affect an opponent’s reputation, but I was an exception.
“The squires of Lady Serena from House Rosenberg don’t have much of an education, do they?” people whispered.
I’d raised my squires specifically to become assassins; of course they weren’t educated in other fields. I honestly had nothing to refute. My squires, on the other hand, didn’t let this slander slide. They swiftly tracked down the root of this rumor, gathered some witnesses, and marched up to me.
“We’ve found the one who acted defiant toward you, Lady Serena,” my squires said. “We apologize for the inconvenience, but we must trouble you for a bit.”
I had to act when I heard those words. Nobles were overly concerned about appearances, and I hailed from the house of a duke, no less. I couldn’t leave a person be after I was told that they’d insulted me.
Please, just don’t tell me stuff like this, I internally begged.
And so, that day, I approached Karen, the second-year daughter of Count Silverain. Normally, it was extremely frowned upon for a first-year student to dare to go to the classroom of a second-year. The moment I stepped inside, a male upperclassman came up to me with a warning.
“Hey, a first-year shouldn’t enter the classroom of a second-year!” he barked. “Do you all not know of etiquette? Just because you enjoy high rank doesn’t mean that you can get away with doing as you please!”
He was right, and his logic was sound. I agreed with him. His face was vaguely familiar. I assumed that he came from a rather prominent noble household. Unfortunately, logic and rank weren’t effective against my squires.
Richard approached a nearby desk that could seat five people, placed a hand on top of it, and leaned forward.
“Oh, I’m terribly sorry, sir,” he said. “But we cannot determine one’s worth and importance by age.”
When he finished his sentence, he pressed his hand against the desk and crushed it to smithereens. He used brute force and mana—from a technical standpoint, it was an impressive feat. It felt like a waste to use these skills on mere threats.
People screamed in terror; the upperclassman who had barked at us became as white as a sheet. I would likely have to reimburse the school for the destroyed desk.
“Why don’t we have a talk out in the halls, sir?” Richard asked.
He grabbed the upperclassman’s collar and dragged him outside. The other upperclassmen could only look at the ground in silence.
“Lady Serena, that one over there is Lady Karen,” Isabel said, gesturing toward a young woman at the back of the classroom.
Karen was in a white dress and clearly looked to be of noble birth. She sat in an arrogant fashion, surrounded by four other students who I assumed were her entourage. I’d been just like her in my previous life. She was decently pretty, but her almond-shaped eyes made her look stern and strong-willed.
“Do you have any business with me, Lady Serena?” Karen asked. She gazed at me completely unfazed, a show of her high rank.
I suppose her attitude is at least impressive.
“Me? Heavens no; that’s not what I’ve heard,” I replied. “I’ve been told that you have business with me. You apparently claimed that I’m an incompetent person, capable only of combat, did you not? I’ve also heard you said that I am the most unfit to become queen. If you have something to say to me, I thought it would be best if I heard it directly from you. Thus, I made my way to your classroom.”
“Oh?” Karen replied. “Have I ever said such things?”
She was feigning innocence, a classic tactic that people used to deny any responsibility.
“Indeed,” I said. “I’ve heard as much from several students.”
“And from whom did you hear such words?”
Karen seemed confident, assuming that I had no proof. Perhaps she also thought that she could talk her way out of it. She completely underestimated me. I could only pity her; my squires weren’t so kind.
“Why, from the people around you, of course,” I stated.
“What?” Karen gasped.
She looked around at her entourage, shock riddled on her face. Suddenly, one of the girls in the group turned expressionless.
“It’s true,” the girl said indifferently. “Three days ago, Lady Karen stated that Lady Serena is an incompetent person, capable only of combat.”
“Elena!” Karen said, still astonished by this turn of events. She turned to Elena. “Why in the world are you…”
According to Isabel, Elena had idolized Karen more than anyone; it was no wonder that Karen was hurt the most by this betrayal. Elena’s adulation came from the illusory prestige that Karen’s social status and appearance provided. These factors could be easily destroyed; I’d learned that in my previous life.
Above all, my social status and appearance trumped Karen’s. Elena was also physically and mentally threatened by my squires, so she quickly switched sides. It wasn’t just Elena who betrayed Karen—the guy next to her also spoke up.
“Lady Karen also said that Lady Serena is the most unbefitting to become queen,” he reported.
“Ed?! Are you betraying me too?!” Karen shouted.
She looked like she would faint at any moment. Ed was a student in the sorcery class and apparently in love with Karen. Because of his low rank, he knew that his feelings would remain unrequited. However, she knew of them and manipulated him to have him by her side.
Meanwhile, Ed had focused on his studies of magic, though he struggled to improve his spells. It was then that he turned to Alice, who was at the top of the class despite being only a first-year student, and asked for tips on how to cast more difficult spells. Alice then claimed that he would gain more mana if he switched sides and worked under me.
On impulse, Ed decided to put his trust in me. Lo and behold, he became capable of using more powerful spells. In truth, it was all thanks to Alice’s words of advice, but he became my devout believer ever since.
Honestly, this isn’t the type of control over the academy that I’d envisioned. I feel like we’re trying to make an evil secret society or something. Am I just imagining things?
Karen, now abandoned by her followers that she’d had faith in, turned to the other two members of her entourage in a cry for help. The other two simply smiled.
“Lady Karen, please be at ease,” one of them said. “We’re on your side.”
“Quite right,” the other agreed. “All you need to do is believe in Lady Serena as well. Then we can all remain together.”
I had no idea what methods my squires had used, but the other two had also joined my side. The four members of Karen’s entourage weren’t there to protect her; they were there so that she could not escape. They also ensured that her squires couldn’t approach her.
“Eep!” Karen cried, her determined expression twisted into one of terror.
She made an attempt to flee, but the four members of her former entourage surrounded her to close off any escape route.
“Thank you for your time, Lady Serena,” Oscar said respectfully. “We can take care of the rest.”
I had no idea how he planned to take care of things, but judging from my experience, I was certain that Karen and her entourage would await me tomorrow at the academy gates. A sadistic expression flashed across Oscar’s face. I didn’t know what he had in mind, but I didn’t remember providing such odd training to my squires.
Why did it turn out like this?
The next morning, Karen and her entourage were indeed waiting in front of the academy gates.