A completely unexpected story burst out of Carl's mouth, causing my mind to go blank for a moment.

Calm down. I talked to a lot of people yesterday, didn’t I?

For all I know, Carl could be bringing some lame quest.

Let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

If you expect too much, you’ll only be more disappointed.

"Carl, is that request…" “Is that request to retrieve something from an abandoned building in the back alley?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“Then…” “Did you also get the key?”

“It seems you already knew about it, so it must really be the revelation from Almadi.”

Carl nodded to himself and then pulled out a rusty iron key from his pocket and handed it to me.

The moment I received it, a message window popped up in front of me.

• Ding

[Request from a Female Student] [Please enter the abandoned house and retrieve the item for the female student.] [Reward: 30 silver]

What do you mean, don’t get ahead of yourself!

Carl! You did great!

I thought you were just a lousy knight acting like my stalker, but it turns out you’re a loyal knight always thinking of me!

I was so happy that I wanted to jump up and hug Carl, but the Mesugaki skill wouldn’t allow it.

Instead, the Mesugaki skill moved my body forward, and I proudly extended my hand upward.

I didn’t understand what this gesture meant, but Carl did.

As soon as he saw me move, he knelt on one knee.

Carl’s head ended up exactly where my hand could reach.

Wait a minute. What?

Before I could even process what was happening, the Mesugaki skill moved my body on its own.

My hand patted Carl’s head, and a faint smile appeared on his lips.

…

Hey. You do realize you’re being treated like a dog right now, don’t you?

Carl, are you okay with being treated like a loyal dog instead of a knight?

That thought crossed my mind, but I didn’t say anything, not wanting to ruin the smile on his face.

“Thank you, Carl.” “You tried hard, for a lousy knight.”

“No, I’m just doing what I’m supposed to do as a knight.”

As I patted the head of a grown man, I couldn’t help but feel a strange sense of detachment, but I forced myself to ignore it.

Think about something else. Think about something else.

Yeah, thinking about the quest should do.

The quest, "Request from a Female Student," which you can get at the start of Soul Academy, might seem like nothing special based on the reward alone.

But the real value of this quest isn’t in the reward the female student gives.

It’s the fact that you can enter the abandoned house in the back alley.

There’s a hidden dungeon entrance in that building!

Normally, you’d have to play through the game until you hit level 10 and complete a skill proficiency quest before you could enter, but I’ve already got everything ready!

Perfect. I’ll head there tonight.

As I thought about the quest, a new question arose.

Everything else is fine, but how did Carl even get this?

This is a quest you can only receive after talking to the female student first.

Carl, who cares about nothing but training and discipline, wouldn’t have initiated a conversation with her.

“Carl…” “Lousy knight. How did you even hear about this request?”

“You mean that?”

When I asked, Carl eagerly answered.

He said that on his way to meet me yesterday, he overheard a female student talking about me.

So he pretended to ask for directions and offered his help if she was in trouble.

“She came to me the next day and told me her concerns.”

Listening to Carl’s story made me feel a gap between us.

When I approached her, she was extremely wary.

But when Carl talked to her, she came to him the next day with her problems?

That’s just unfair.

I know my language is a bit aggressive because of the Mesugaki skill.

My reputation isn’t great, either.

But it was our first time meeting, for both Carl and me.

What’s the difference between us that makes her trust Carl right away?

Is it appearance? Is it because of how we look?

Carl is definitely good-looking.

He’s the only person who can make a crying child smile just by talking to them in a world full of people who’d make them cry.

But was his appearance enough to completely break down her guard?!

Carl’s face isn’t some kind of hypnosis app, for crying out loud!

It’s so unfair.

One person gets wary looks just for speaking, while another gains favor just by talking.

“Miss, it seems people are coming.”

As Carl said that, he carefully stepped away from my hand and stood up.

“Unfortunately, I can’t acknowledge you in public. There’s no benefit in people knowing I’m a knight of the Allen family.”

“Do as you like.” “Suit yourself, lousy knight.”

“Thank you for understanding.”

As soon as he got up and went to prepare for class, people started entering the classroom.

They looked at me with puzzled expressions before moving to seats far away from mine.

I should be happy about receiving a quest I thought I’d never get, so why does my chest feel so empty?

Luckily, this feeling didn’t last long.

Because a force of nature who didn’t care about my expression or tone entered the scene.

“Are you taking this class too?”

The moment Freyr entered the classroom and saw me, she smiled brightly and ran over.

It was obvious why she suddenly showed interest.

She must be looking forward to sparring with me.

After all, Professor Anton’s combat class focuses on improving skills through duels.

It was annoying, but in a way, it was also a good thing.

It’s better to have a duel now than to deal with her nagging me for one after school, right?

While half-listening to Freyr’s random chatter, I noticed a guy walking toward me.

His face looked familiar, but I couldn’t remember his name.

Other than Mesugaki Skill calling him “insignificant noble.”

Well, does it matter?

Regardless of what I call him in my head, Mesugaki Skill will still refer to him as insignificant.

“Hello, Lady Allen.”

“Hello, insignificant noble.” “Hello, insignificant noble. You look well?”

“Thanks to you.”

When the insignificant noble greeted me, I felt the gazes of others on us.

Most of them were curious, but some were worried.

Is it that unusual for someone to talk to me?

After thinking for a moment, I realized that only a handful of people had spoken to me today, so maybe it was unusual.

“I wanted to thank you. Last time, I was too overwhelmed and could only send a letter, but I thought it was more appropriate to thank you in person.”

The insignificant noble then bowed deeply, almost touching his forehead to the ground.

“Thank you. If it weren’t for you, Lady Allen, I would have died.”

I knew his gratitude was genuine, but it only made me uncomfortable.

Because that incident was caused by me.

“Don’t worry about it.” “Were you just waiting for the right moment to thank me? Typical of an insignificant noble. Don’t worry about it. I didn’t do it for you.”

“Ha ha ha. Still, thanks to you, I’m alive.”

•  

“Hey, are you crazy?!”

As soon as Jacob Reese returned to his seat, his close friend, Harry Sober, exclaimed in shock.

“Why?” “Why?! Why did you talk to Lady Allen?”

Harry scolded his friend, then glanced nervously at Lucy Allen, who had formed her own little space in the corner, and lowered his voice.

“Because she’s the one who saved my life.”

Jacob still vividly remembered that hellish place.

If it weren’t for Lucy Allen, Jacob wouldn’t be standing here today.

“But she’s got a bad reputation. Who knows what could happen?”

Harry whispered with a frown, and Jacob let out a dry laugh.

He was right. Lucy Allen didn’t have a good reputation.

Anyone from a noble family who had attended social events would have heard of Lucy Allen’s infamy, and Jacob was no exception.

But Jacob didn’t believe everything he heard.

With so many stories, not everything could be false, but he thought most of them were misunderstandings.

A person who willingly risks themselves for others can’t be all that bad, can they?

“Most of it must be misunderstandings.”

After all, Lady Allen had proved the rumor about her being bad at academics false by ranking first in the Academy entrance exam.

Jacob believed that many of the malicious rumors were probably untrue as well.

“Anyway, stay away from her. There are tons of rumors that Lady Allen has caught the third prince’s attention.”

“The third prince?” “Yes.”

Harry’s exaggerated worry reflected deep concern about getting involved with someone the prince might be watching.

Lady Allen. It’s only been a day, and you’ve already caused another incident.

Before Jacob could ask Harry more about the rumors, the combat professor made his appearance.

The professor entered with a deliberate loud step and looked around the room with a smile.

“Nice to meet you all. I’m Professor Anton, your combat instructor. I’ll be teaching you how to fight.”

“As you know, this class focuses on gaining experience through sparring between students. Specifically…”

Despite Professor Anton’s long explanation, the students’ reactions were lukewarm.

Seeing this, Professor Anton cleared his throat and spoke again.

“Hmm. Is it hard to understand? Maybe it’s better to show you directly. Is there anyone who would like to come forward and spar?”

No sooner had Professor Anton spoken than one student raised her hand high.

Freyr Kent.

She was the daughter of the Kent family, known for producing outstanding sword masters, and she was the most likely candidate to become the next Swordmaster.

“I’ll spar with Lucy Allen.” “Lousy knight.” “We agreed, didn’t we?” “If you spar with me, you’ll realize just how lousy your swordsmanship is. Are you sure you’re okay with that?” “Are you scared?”

“What a joke. Do I look so weak that I’d be defeated by your sloppy sword?”

No one dared interrupt the tension between Freyr and Lucy.

No one wanted to get caught up in whatever was about to unfold.

As Freyr and Lucy stepped forward, Professor Anton smiled with satisfaction.

“To think the two best warriors from the entrance exam would come forward. This is a pleasant surprise.”

As the two took their stances at a distance, Harry whispered to Jacob.

“Who do you think will win?” “Lady Allen.” “Are you brainwashed or something? There’s no way Lady Kent will lose in a sparring match! She’s called the greatest talent in the history of the Kent family!”

By common logic, Harry was right.

Freyr Kent had dominated several tournaments in the kingdom, displaying overwhelming skill and winning each one.

No matter how well Lady Allen performed in the entrance exam, she shouldn’t be able to beat Freyr Kent.

But Jacob thought differently.

“I know that, but Lady Allen will win. I’m willing to bet on it.”

“A bet? Fine. I’ll put one gold on it.”

“That’s your month’s worth of food, you know?” “Are you scared?” “No.”

Jacob recalled Lucy Allen overpowering a monster that resembled a witch in the dungeon.

Someone with that level of skill losing to another person?

Jacob simply couldn’t imagine it.

“Let’s make the bet.”