The weapons I forge are absolutely flawless.

However, some people still disagree.

"He's just a peasant, all he thinks about is stabbing people in the back, he has no sense of honor whatsoever."

Judging from his tone, he sounds like a student born into a noble family.

"If you really care about so-called honor, what you should be doing now is throwing me your gloves instead of hiding behind someone and gossiping."

Wiener used the same tactics the other person used to attack him, spinning around and mocking them.

Sure enough, just one sentence was enough to provoke that person from the back row.

"You bastard! Very well, I, Garcia Cáceres, formally challenge you to a duel."

A strong, balding man jumped up from his seat and his first action was to take off his gloves.

"If you're so capable, then..."

Garcia took off his white gloves, about to throw them at Vina's face.

"But I refuse."

"Huh?" Garcia paused, seemingly shocked by Vina's shamelessness.

"I am just a commoner, and I have no obligation to accept a duel."

"Besides, this is during class time. Are you still going to continue disrupting class order?"

After Wiener's reminder, many of those who were still looking forward to watching the show remembered that Mr. Slav was still on the stage.

With just a slight provocation, he jumps out like a clown.

Such a guy is hardly a big deal.

Refusing a duel is a greater blow to the opponent's dignity than accepting one.

"Garcia Cáceres, disrupting class order, 20 points deducted."

Slavic voices echoed in the classroom.

"Teacher, I—"

Garcia tried to explain, but when he met Slav's calm gaze, all the words stuck in his throat.

He lost the courage to argue the moment he received just a brief glance from the Slav.

Garcia silently sat back down, feeling the piercing gazes around him like needles.

It was as if every gaze was mocking him.

It's like saying, "How come Cáceres has produced another reckless idiot?"

Garcia remembered the name deeply—Vina.

He vowed to make Wiener pay for this.

"Does anyone else have any objections?" Slav asked, glancing around again.

Having learned from Garcia's experience, the freshmen were much more obedient, and no matter what the teachers on stage were saying, they just kept quiet.

"Vina gets twenty points. Sit down."

As soon as Viner sat down, she felt two pokes on her back. She knew without a doubt that it was Felix who had done it.

"Hey, Vena. I didn't understand a word you said about advancing and retreating. You wouldn't happen to be actually quite smart, would you?"

Felix looked at Vina with admiration.

Wiener's response to this was...

"See that person?" Viner subtly pointed at Garcia.

"I saw it, what's wrong?" Felix asked, puzzled.

"People who are ugly should read more books."

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Chapter 24 The Message from Lisette

"I understand, Wiener, you mean I don't need to rack my brains to study the books, right?"

Felix glanced at Garcia's receding hairline and suddenly realized.

If reading books would turn me into this state, then I'm glad I don't like reading.

"How come I never realized you were such a narcissistic person?" Vena was speechless.

"Am I not good-looking?" Felix asked in a matter-of-fact tone.

"...Looks good." Even though she knew the other person was actually a boy, Vena still couldn't bring herself to say that he didn't look good.

“That’s it,” Felix said smugly.

"Stay away from me from now on."

"Eh???"

-----------------

The morning classes ended quickly.

“Wina told me to stay away from him…Wina told me to stay away from him.”

Felix seemed to have lost his soul, and shuffled away from the classroom.

The other students also went to the cafeteria in twos and threes.

Wiener had already tidied up, but he remained in his seat.

He still remembered Lisette telling him not to leave after school.

"You haven't been at the academy long, but you've already attracted one girl after another. Vena, are you really here to study?"

Lisette arrived as scheduled.

However, this opening remark carried a hint of sourness.

“Students’ task is definitely to study,” Wiener replied.

"Then who is that incredibly pretty girl in the row behind you who was whispering to you during class?" Lisette asked, sounding annoyed.

"They said a few words to you in class, and then left looking lost and dejected after class. Don't you have anything to explain?"

“You mean Felix? Is it possible, I mean possible, that he just looks like a girl?” Vena felt wronged.

“Like a girl… cough. Anyway, let’s get down to business.” Lisette changed the subject, a little embarrassed.

"I've made some progress regarding your assignment to the Combat Academy."

"It goes without saying that someone interfered. As for who did the interference, I'm guessing it's a senior named Jessica, right?"

Wiener sought to verify this.

“You already know?” Lisette asked in return.

“No, I don’t know.” Viner shook her head first, then counted on her fingers to Lisette, “Before the sorting, I had contact with three ladies in total.”

“The esteemed Miss Lisette von Cordelia, Dr. Ada from the infirmary, and Senior Jessica who has been eyeing me for some reason.”

Wiener's response was somewhat sarcastic.

Since you say you've been involved with a lot of girls, I'll show you one by one.

"That wasn't without reason. After you scared that thug away and fell unconscious, it was Senior Jessica who was the first to arrive at the scene and bring us back to the academy."

“Senior Jessica noticed you back then, so she managed to get you into the Arena before the division of departments,” Lisette explained.

“If you’re saying she saved us, then I should indeed be grateful. But what does that have to do with getting me into the academy?” Vena didn’t understand.

"Do you know about the Silver Wolf Class?" Risty asked in return.

Wiener shook his head.

“If you don’t even know this, then it’s going to be a bit difficult to explain to you,” Lisette sighed, but still spoke patiently.

"Black Eagles, Blue Lions, and Golden Deer are the three academic classes, which you can think of as organizations similar to student councils. The main difference between the three is that the class leaders come from the Empire, the Kingdom, and the Allied Powers, respectively."

“Outstanding students usually receive invitations from the three major classes starting in the second semester of their freshman year. Those who are invited to join a class are all among the best in their class.”

As the future head of the third largest vassal family in the Allied Nations, Lisette's name was already on the Golden Deer Class list.

With top-notch abilities, background, and connections, he will be invited to the Golden Deer Academy as soon as the time is right.

As the top freshman in the Magic Academy, Lisette knows more than the average student.

“That sounds plausible. But joining a class should have more substantial benefits, right?” Wiener asked.

“That’s right. Besides being able to learn higher-level combat skills and magic, dungeon qualification is the most important thing.”

The dungeon, located underground at St. Freya Academy, is one of the academy's specialties.

The initial location chosen for the establishment of St. Freya Academy was because it was a natural gathering place of magical energy.

High concentrations of magic energy will continuously breed magical beasts, and the concentration will be higher the deeper you go, the stronger the magical beasts that will be bred.

However, the materials obtained from killing these monsters are genuine.

Therefore, the academy organizes the knights and professors to regularly clear out the powerful monsters deep in the dungeon, leaving the remaining ones for students to practice on.

The monsters in the first three levels pose less of a threat and will be gradually opened to students based on certain conditions.

Access to dungeons beyond the third level is controlled by each class.

Either become a member of the class or pay a sufficient price to gain access to deeper levels of dungeon exploration.

"What about the Silver Wolf Class?"

Listy introduced the three academic classes, but deliberately skipped Jessica's Silver Wolf class, which piqued Vena's curiosity.

"The Silver Wolf House is generally outside the scope of ordinary discussions. Even if it means giving up direct invitations from three other houses in exchange for a chance to enter the Silver Wolf House, countless people would fight tooth and nail to get in. No one can refuse an invitation from the Silver Wolf House."

"Is it really that exaggerated? What makes the Silver Wolf Class so special?"

“Because of the hero,” Lisette replied.

"Being able to join the Silver Wolf Class is equivalent to being marked as belonging to the Hero Faction."

"The current hero has just been born. If we calculate based on the usual activity cycle of heroes throughout history, he has at least another ten years or so of active time."

"There are many who yearn to fight alongside heroes, even if it means giving up their right to inherit a title."

The hero must be absolutely neutral and cannot belong to any country.

Only in this way can we gain the unwavering support of the three major powers.

The same applies to members of the Hero Squad; as long as they remain members of the Hero Squad, they are automatically exempt from the right to inherit the title.

You're probably saying that the hero's corpse you're talking about is already completely cold.

Wiener silently complained to himself.

However, it seems that this news has not yet been disseminated, or it has been kept strictly confidential.

That makes sense. Once the news of the hero's untimely death spreads, the resulting upheaval cannot be easily resolved with just a few words.

"Now that you've explained it that way, I think I can understand why Jessica's status is so special."

“Wrong, you still don’t realize the seriousness of the situation.” Lisette’s expression turned serious.

"The Silver Wolf House has always been selective in its selection process, and everyone is generally used to it."

"But Jessica will graduate next year, and the position of Silver Wolf Class leader will be vacant then, so she will definitely find a successor before she graduates."

"...Could this successor you're talking about be...?" Vinardon sensed something was wrong.

"You still have a long way to go. But you were indeed included in Jessica's selection process." There was a hint of envy in Lisette's tone.

"Although only a few branch deans know about it now, it should only be a matter of time before it spreads completely."

"So, should I congratulate you in advance, Venus?"

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Chapter 25 Gambling