BFBG 23

Chapter 23

The principal slowly looked me over from head to toe once again.

As if, even after seeing me again, he still couldn’t figure it out.

He tilted his head slightly.

‘How did I get caught?’

[EX-rank Mentality calms your agitation.]

Wasn’t the principal’s ‘Dragon Eyes’ specialized only in seeing mana and magic?

It shouldn’t be possible for him to judge the level of someone’s physical development.

What exactly did he see in me to think I wasn’t a swordsman?

“No, wait. Am I right?”

The principal stared intently at my forearm. My legs. My chest.

Then suddenly changed what he was saying.

“I don’t know anymore. Some parts of you look like a swordsman. Other parts don’t. Hmm. What is this?”

The principal spent a full ten seconds stroking his chin while staring through my body.

“…Eh. I give up.”

He declared surrender.

“Well, Lionel acknowledged you, so I guess that settles it.”

The principal looked at me and smiled softly.

“Sorry. Looks like I misjudged you. Forget what I just said.”

Part of me wanted to ask.

What exactly made him think I wasn’t a swordsman?

But I couldn’t actually ask.

‘If I ask and the conversation drags on… I’m the one who’ll end up in trouble.’

The principal might say something like, ‘If you’re that curious, should I examine you properly?’

Questions would only stir up unnecessary trouble.

“Yes. Understood.”

All I could do was nod thankfully that the principal had withdrawn his suspicions on his own.

“Then go rest now. You must be exhausted.”

“Yes. I’ll do that.”

I stood up.

Then walked out of the principal’s office.

[EX-rank Mentality calms your agitation.]

My steps heading outside were incredibly fast.

Since I had no idea what might come out of his mouth next, I needed to get away as quickly as possible.

“Ah, right. I forgot. Wait a second.”

At that moment, the principal stopped me.

Thump. Thump.

My heart started beating again.

[EX-rank Mentality suppresses anxiety.]

…Why stop me?

Did he find additional evidence that I wasn’t a swordsman and want to question me about it?

[EX-rank Mentality calms your agitation.]

“Do you still have something to say?”

“Something to say? Yeah. Something very important.”

The principal’s eyes were extremely serious.

So it really was a continuation of the earlier topic.

…Damn it.

I waited for his next words with trembling eyes.

“Your room got wrecked, didn’t it? Are you planning to sleep there tonight?”

But unexpectedly—

What came out of the principal’s mouth wasn’t suspicion.

“…Pardon?”

“Don’t remember the state of your room?”

“Ah.”

The words were so unexpected that my brain froze for a second.

So this wasn’t related to him saying I didn’t seem like a swordsman.

The tension drained away, and the muscles that had tightened loosened all at once.

“I remember. You broke the wall, Principal…”

“Yeah. It became a complete mess.”

The principal opened a drawer, took out a key, and tossed it to me.

“So until that room is repaired, use this one.”

The key flew in a neat arc and landed in my palm.

It looked ridiculously luxurious.

Nothing like an ordinary dormitory key.

“Which room is it?”

“The building and room number are written on the key.”

“Ah.”

I see.

I immediately examined the key.

Written on it were the words: ‘Garam Hall, Room 105.’

“…Garam Hall?”

Garam Hall—that place?

“Judging by your expression, you know where Garam Hall is.”

“…Yes. I know.”

The dormitory only students ranked within the top ten of each grade could enter.

Not only were the rooms excellent, but everything—from meals to training facilities—was top-tier.

The so-called ‘elite student dormitory.’

“Is it really okay for me to use this room?”

“Of course. I’m giving permission. What’s the problem?”

“That may be true, but…”

There were plenty of students there obsessed with elitism or pureblood superiority.

If someone unproven like me stepped inside, they’d definitely raise hell.

“It’s fine. It’s not like you’re staying there permanently. Just three or four days until your room’s repaired. Everyone will understand.”

“Hmm…”

I doubted that.

“I’ve already informed the dorm supervisor. Entering won’t be a problem. Now go.”

“Yes. Understood.”

Thinking about the awful personalities of the elite brats in Garam Hall as I knew them—

I felt certain there’d be trouble.

…Whatever.

When someone above you gives an order, you obey.

If problems arise, I’ll just ask for another room then.

“Well then, I’ll really be going. Thank you again for today.”

“Yeah, yeah. Go on.”

The principal waved with a bright smile.

I left the office and headed toward Garam Hall.

After Jian left the principal’s office—

The principal stared at Jian’s retreating figure through the window, lost in thought.

“No matter how I look at it, that mana doesn’t belong to someone who learned the sword…”

This was the reason the principal had said Jian didn’t seem like a swordsman.

As a dragon, Heneta possessed the ability to see the ‘mana’ hidden deep within someone’s body.

Using that power, he examined the mana sleeping inside Jian.

But there was none of the firm, solid feeling unique to swordsmen.

“Even his mana channels weren’t like a swordsman’s.”

When removing the ‘Countdown of Death’ planted by Reaper, Heneta had examined Jian’s internal mana pathways.

Those channels were far too weak for someone trained in swordsmanship.

So naturally, he’d assumed Jian was a mage.

Yet…

“And they say he’s already a nearly completed genius swordsman…”

When he first heard the name ‘Jian Bellomata’—

He couldn’t describe how shocked he’d been.

“But then again, judging by his body… he does seem like a swordsman…”

The reason Heneta changed his words midway and thought, ‘No? Maybe yes?’ was because Jian’s physical conditioning was exceptional.

Heneta wasn’t fully familiar with human bodies, so he couldn’t be 100% certain.

But Jian’s physique seemed highly developed.

‘Even his skeletal structure was the best I’ve ever seen.’

Should it be called the ultimate frame?

Not even Lionel’s bones were like this.

Looking only at his body, one could mistake him for a completed swordsman.

“I have no idea.”

His mana said no.

His body said yes.

How could anyone draw a conclusion?

“Still, Lionel personally verified his abilities. So he must indeed be a swordsman close to completion…”

Lionel wasn’t someone with poor judgment.

They hadn’t fought seriously, but Lionel had crossed blades with him during testing.

It was probably safe to trust Lionel’s assessment.

“But if Lionel’s judgment is correct, and the boy truly is a completed swordsman… then maybe those strange mana pathways are due to some constitutional issue.”

Former Red Dragon Lord.

Current Last Dragon.

Heneta had lived over six thousand years as a dragon and seen countless geniuses.

“In that case… a severed meridian condition?”

Severed Meridian.

A congenital disorder where someone is born with defective mana channels, causing problems with the channels themselves or with moving mana.

The more overwhelmingly talented a genius was, the more likely they were to suffer from it.

Jian’s abnormal condition had a very high probability of being caused by such a defect.

“…Tsk. Then that means he’ll die young.”

Most geniuses born with Severed Meridian died early.

Heneta’s expression became grave.

“Should I call him later and examine him properly?”

Thinking that, he casually looked around the room.

“…Signs it was opened?”

He noticed traces on the painting—the mechanism used to open the secret storage room.

Heneta immediately stood and approached it.

“Don’t tell me Reaper came here because…”

Heneta hurriedly opened the hidden storage and checked the secret safe inside.

“Damn it…!”

The secret safe was empty.

Leaving the principal’s office—

As I walked toward Garam Hall, I replayed what the principal said earlier:

‘You don’t seem like a swordsman.’

Now that I’d calmed down in the outside air and regained composure, I started seeing how the situation unfolded.

‘The principal probably judged me based on the mana inside my body.’

I wasn’t certain.

But considering the unique nature of Dragon Eyes, it was likely.

‘And the reason he changed his mind was because my body looked well-built. Like it had been properly trained.’

Dragon Eyes were absurdly powerful when it came to seeing mana.

But they couldn’t judge physical conditioning.

‘And the principal is a dragon. He wouldn’t know human bodies well.’

To his eyes, my decorative muscles probably looked like properly trained muscles.

That’s why he reached the conclusion:

‘I don’t know. Lionel’s opinion must be right.’

Mana said no.

Body said yes.

Caught between two contradictory pieces of information, he chose to trust Lionel—the swordsman standing among the strongest.

‘But regardless of how things ended today… the principal now suspects I might not actually be a swordsman.’

For now, he accepted Lionel’s judgment.

But the thought would remain in his head:

‘Jian’s mana isn’t like a swordsman’s. Strange.’

‘If I do anything later that doesn’t fit a swordsman… his suspicions will start all over again.’

Maybe he really isn’t a swordsman?

Did Lionel misjudge?

Those thoughts would replace everything else.

And eventually—

He’d decide to verify my abilities properly.

‘And if the result proves I’m not a swordsman… it’s over.’

If I stopped being viewed as a genius swordsman, they’d reinvestigate how I killed the Death Knight.

Then one way or another, I’d end up in serious trouble.

‘There’d also be issues with the wyvern extermination involving Princess Aris.’

After that, I’d gain titles like liar and braggart.

My credibility in the academy would hit rock bottom.

‘And if that happens, the plan Jeyraon set up becomes impossible to carry out.’

Then Reaper and the executives would grow suspicious.

Jeyraon wouldn’t handle things this sloppily.

Maybe I’m not Jeyraon after all.

The doubts would grow.

And if things reached that point?

‘Off with the head. Body and head say goodbye.’

My life says goodbye too.

‘Absolutely cannot get caught.’

Too many things were tied to people believing I was a ‘completed genius swordsman.’

No matter what happened, this lie couldn’t be exposed.

‘What should I do?’

How could I keep this lie hidden?

‘The best solution is to become a real completed swordsman…’

Thankfully, this body was basically talent incarnate.

If I trained well using game knowledge, I could become absurdly strong at a crazy speed.

‘But the growth system in Heroic Chronicles requires time. To reach my current public reputation, I’d need at least half a year.’

Half a year.

In half a year, a lie could become truth.

‘Half a year… How do I survive these six months?’

As I reviewed future scenarios and all the game knowledge I possessed—

I thought about how to respond going forward.

‘Is this the place?’

After walking for fifteen minutes while lost in thought—

I finally arrived at Garam Hall.

I pressed the intercom beside the tightly shut gate.

After a small beep—

Light appeared in the tiny lens next to the intercom.

Kiiiing… Kuuuuuu…

The gate opened with a loud mechanical noise.

‘Looks like the dorm supervisor checked my face and opened it immediately.’

Still—

I didn’t expect them to open it without saying a word.

‘With that supervisor’s personality, even if she opened it, shouldn’t she have insulted me first?’

Regardless of the principal’s orders—

A student unworthy of this place shouldn’t be accepted.

If it were the supervisor of Garam Hall, she should’ve tried to throw me out saying exactly that.

‘What? Did the principal threaten her or something? Told her not to disrespect me under any circumstances?’

Thinking that—

I passed through the long garden unique to Garam Hall and entered the building.

“…”

As expected, the dorm supervisor stood at the entrance.

A woman dressed so bizarrely she couldn’t be mistaken for a normal instructor.

Seria Guardian.

‘At this hour, didn’t she just wake up? Yet she’s still wearing a maid outfit? Does she sleep in that thing?’

Whether due to bloodline obsession—

Or simply her personality—

Either way, she was one of the rudest characters in Heroic Chronicles.

Because of that awful attitude, she had many haters—

Yet because that rude personality contrasted with her maid outfit, she was also very popular.

A divisive character among fans.

‘What kind of insult is she about to throw at me?’

I actually liked her.

At first she was truly awful—

But she improved little by little later on.

‘So I heard. But I never thought you’d actually come. Are you unaware of your place? Or did you lose your sense of shame on the way here?’

Something like that was what I expected.

I was preparing to let her words go in one ear and out the other—

When—

“Welcome.”

Seria bowed her head politely.

“I am Seria Guardian, practical training instructor and the person responsible for Garam Hall at Garam Academy.”

…Huh?

“On behalf of myself and all Garam Hall students, we sincerely welcome student Jian Bellomata.”

My mind went blank.

Welcome me?

What was this?

There was no way this rude dorm supervisor would say something like that on our first meeting.

‘The principal really must’ve spoken strongly.’

He must’ve warned her not to be disrespectful under any circumstances.

So even if unwillingly, she was pretending to welcome me.

‘Has to be.’

Just as I became certain—

[You have been acknowledged as a member of Garam Academy’s Garam Hall.]

‘Acknowledged?’

My eyes widened at the sudden system message.

I’d truly been recognized as a member of Garam Hall?

“I will guide you to your room.”

If I’d been acknowledged—

That meant Seria, the dorm supervisor, had accepted me.

‘So everything she said about welcoming me… was sincere?’

Why?

Why though?

‘No, wait. Before that—being recognized as a member of Garam Hall means…’

[The special training ground of Garam Hall has been unlocked. Training efficiency increases significantly when training there.]

‘Seriously?’

The special training ground unlocked at this point in time?