In the tiered classroom, Liam was surrounded by the children of nobles.
Since his victory over Dorf yesterday, the nobles had been openly fawning over Liam.
"Liam, that was amazing!"
"You beat the top student, and he was the top of the year, right?"
"Sure, someone with combat experience is different, huh?"
Liam, who was being praised, didn't seem entirely displeased.
"It's not that big of a deal. He was just weak."
This only made the surrounding nobles praise him even more.
Wallace, watching from a distance, was thoroughly exasperated by the nobles who were now openly fawning over Liam, unlike yesterday.
"---Fawning over the strong. What a wonderfully straightforward bunch."
The other regular cadets in the same classroom looked bitter at the sight.
They were probably as disappointed as Wallace by the sudden change in the nobles' attitudes.
(They were treating him like a country bumpkin yesterday, and now they're fawning over him like this.)
Liam's victory over Dorf had turned the nobles who had previously mocked him into his followers.
(Sigh---I miss the junior school days.)
Back then, Kurt, Liam's friend, was also around.
If he had come to the officer academy with Liam, he would have surely kept these fawning people at bay.
However, Kurt was the heir to the Exner baronial family, a lineage of military men.
Such individuals typically choose the officer academy as their final option.
After graduating from junior school, they prioritize attending university and obtaining the qualifications for a civil servant.
They choose the officer academy last because they plan to work in the military for at least four years after their initial assignment.
As a result, Kurt is a university student and not here.
(Come to think of it, he was quite depressed when he parted ways with Liam.)
Kurt was very upset when Liam decided to aim for the officer academy first.
He probably wanted to enter the officer academy with Liam, but as the current head of the baronial family, Liam couldn't stay in the military forever.
He needed to return to the family estate as soon as possible.
Wallace looked at Liam, who was being fawned over by everyone.
"An amateur with no combat experience trying to beat me? You're ten years too early."
Around Liam, his followers were confused, saying things like "Ten years?" "Ten years is good?" "Isn't that surprisingly soon?"
Then, a girl with short purple hair, Marie Sera Marian, entered the classroom.
She was a beauty with a great figure, standing out in the male-dominated officer academy.
"Liam-sama, I heard about it!"
As soon as she entered, she approached Liam, her eyes shining and her hands clasped.
"---Marie."
Liam, who looked openly annoyed, was ignored as Marie continued to praise him.
"You beat the top student in the simulator! You're amazing, Liam-sama! I was so frustrated yesterday that I vented my anger on the instructors. If you had called me, I would have come immediately!"
Wallace sighed.
(Liam's knights are all such unique characters.)
Marie also entered the officer academy with Liam.
Her reason was to obtain a knighthood.
However, Marie, whose records had been erased, had already obtained a knighthood two thousand years ago.
What would happen when such a person came to the officer academy?
---The officer academy, which occasionally receives exceptional candidates, has a well-thought-out plan.
They have a separate class for such exceptional candidates.
It's a place for candidates who not only have exceptional abilities but also seem to have some hidden agenda.
It's a class for problem children, and the instructors who teach there are all tough.
On the first day, Marie refused to cut her hair short and attended classes with long hair.
Naturally, the instructors told her to cut her hair, but Marie overpowered them and even lectured them.
According to Marie, "Is this the level of the empire's military instructors? I don't know what I can learn from you." She was disappointed.
The instructors couldn't expel her because they couldn't beat her, so they were at a loss and consulted Liam.
Liam, who had cut his hair and was now bald, told her, "What? Why am I bald and you're refusing to cut your hair? Cut it quickly!" The next day, she cut her hair short and reported to Liam.
Some cadets say they heard the instructors complaining, "What was all our effort for?" or not.
Anyway, Marie was placed in a class for problem children, separate from Liam's.
Liam seemed to lose his motivation with Marie's appearance.
"Is that so? That's a shame. I understand, so go back to your classroom, Marie."
"No, I want to praise Liam-sama more! I can't rest until I tell everyone how wonderful Liam-sama is!"
Her eyes were bloodshot.
Marie began to praise Liam so enthusiastically that even his followers were taken aback.
"First of all, Liam-sama's greatness is a given, and it's inevitable---!!"
Seeing Marie suddenly start a speech, Wallace thought to himself.
(Sigh---I miss the junior school days.)
ā
I like yes-men.
I love people who praise me no matter what I do, like dogs.
But seeing Marie, who was excitedly praising me, I thought to myself.
This is different---.
Marie, with bloodshot eyes, was saying things like "Liam-sama is already a complete being!"
---I love people who flatter me, but this is too much, and it's off-putting.
The same goes for Tia, the head knight.
Even if I fall clumsily, she would probably say, "Impressive, Liam-sama!"
At that point, it feels more like she's mocking me, which is strange.
---It's disheartening.
"Liam-sama is a wonderful person!"
"---Is that so? I'm glad. Marie, go back to your classroom."
"Why, Liam-sama!?"
"The class is about to start."
"Oh, that's just---"
"Go back now!"
"Yes, yes!"
Does she, as my second-in-command, have any sense of responsibility for praising me and being late for class?
She is indeed capable, but she has a lot of quirky traits.
Watching Marie leave the classroom with her shoulders slumped, the people who had been fawning over me also distanced themselves.
They were probably taken aback by Marie's extreme flattery.
Just when it seemed like I was about to have some followers, Marie got in the way.
Marie is really too much.
She doesn't know how to praise me appropriately, making me look like a fool.
Ah, my mood is completely ruined.
ā
One of the cadets who had been surrounding Liam quietly left the classroom.
He slipped out of the classroom, looking tense, and started to move as if fleeing. Marie, who had been hiding around the corner, called out to him.
"The class is about to start. Where do you think you're going?"
The cadet's eyes widened in surprise, but he quickly pulled out a knife from his pocket and tried to stab Marie.
Grabbing his arm, Marie quickly threw him to the ground and pinned him down.
"What do you think you're doing with a knife?"
"Let me go!"
Grabbing one of the cadet's fingers, Marie smiled and bent it in the opposite direction of the joint.
"Ah!"
Seeing the cadet suppress his scream, Marie smiled.
"Just a novice. ---Why did you try to get close to Liam-sama?"
She broke another finger, but the cadet didn't answer.
Trying to escape, a tall, black-clad man with a mask slowly emerged from the floor.
Marie wasn't surprised by his appearance, but the cadet was clearly shaken.
It was Kukuri, Liam's subordinate who works in the shadows.
"Marie-sama, it's a problem if you act on your own."
"Kukuri, who sent this person? Is the Berkeley family down to this level of assassin?"
Kukuri laughed.
"---No, this person is from the Lawrence family. Not an assassin."
"A pawn of Dorf's."
Marie broke another finger, and the Lawrence family's agent, disguised as a cadet, showed a pained expression, clearly shaken by the revelation of his employer.
"Yes. They prepared a false identity and sent him to the officer academy. His entire identity is fake. He's one of the people trained to make Dorf the top student."
"I see, I understand."
He was there to gather information and spread rumors to give Dorf an advantage.
He seemed to be involved in more serious matters, but for Marie and Kukuri, it was just a game.
Kukuri complained to Marie.
"Since he was trying to get close to Liam-sama to gather information, I was observing him."
"He approached Liam-sama with ill intentions. That alone is worthy of death, isn't it?"
Kukuri made a troubled gesture.
"I agree, but we have our own plans. We were letting him run because he wasn't an assassin. Well, there's nothing we can do now. We'll reveal his identity and turn him over to the military."
"Oh, you're not going to kill him?"
"We could, but that would expose Dorf's misdeeds. We can always kill him later."
Marie released the assassin, and Kukuri grabbed him and sank into the floor with him.
The assassin tried to scream but was silenced by Kukuri.
Marie, watching this, headed back to her classroom.
"---There are many enemies of Liam-sama in the officer academy."
All the assassins trying to get close to Liam were eliminated by Marie and Kukuri.
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A few weeks later.
Unlike Liam, Dorf was in a bad state after his followers were removed.
"Damn it! They're all mocking me! It's all the fault of my incompetent subordinates!"
All the cadets Dorf had planted in the officer academy were caught.
They were all expelled immediately, and naturally, there were calls for Dorf to be held responsible.
However, as a noble, Dorf was spared expulsion.
Instead, he would not be able to graduate as the top student.
His chances of a successful military career were almost certain to be ruined.
"What should I do? What can I do!"
The Lawrence family, known for its many military men, had caused trouble for Dorf's relatives.
As a result, he was receiving complaints from his relatives and could not expect any help.
"---It's all the fault of the Banfield family's Liam. I was going to rise through the ranks and become a marshal in the future."
All his efforts had been in vain.
Dorf hated Liam even more.
"I will never forgive you, Liam!"
Enraged, Dorf vowed to take revenge on Liam by any means necessary.
Bryan (Ā“ć»Ļć»ļ½) "It's tough. The second-in-command of the Banfield family is so bad at praising---it's tough."