And so, the second Battle Festa officially began.
After a few weeks’ break, students had returned to the academy, and now entered the preparation period—essentially a practice phase—during which all classes became practical-only, nearly self-directed study.
Some students swung swords, others honed their magic, while a few schemed with tiger-like intensity to deliver secret treats to their crushes—everyone spent their time as they pleased.
Last year around this time, Raze had been doing strength training—but this year, her figure was nowhere to be seen on the training grounds.
“Granoli! Master Granooooli!”
Instead, a red-haired student dashed across the training field, shouting Raze’s name at the top of his lungs.
It was none other than Ian Masse Drua—the very same boy who’d won the winter inter-year tournament just recently. His switch from sword to spear remained fresh in everyone’s memory.
“H-how did it come to this…”
Meanwhile, the very person being called—Raze herself—stood hidden behind the school building adjacent to the training grounds, wearing what might have been the most bewildered expression of her entire academic career.
Now, one might wonder: why was this red-haired boy searching for someone with such innocent, shameless enthusiasm?
“Master Granoli~! If you’re here, please answer meee!”
Raze had only ever seen people call out names like that in three scenarios: parents searching for lost children, kids looking for missing pets, or someone in genuine, desperate trouble.
“Huh… I could’ve sworn she’d be around here…”
Even as Raze hid, Ian continued racing between the training grounds and martial arts hall, calling her name. Whether by wild instinct or uncanny tracking skill, his search abilities were proving rather troublesome.
For someone like Raze—who desperately wanted to avoid attention—this was a terrible situation.
Just who was this “master” that Ian, after his dramatic performance last tournament, now addressed with such reverence? Given that the tournament impacted future career paths—especially for students aiming to join the Knights—many quietly observed Ian’s actions with keen interest.
All she’d done was pop by the library and peek into the training grounds—and now she’d completely missed her chance to slip away unnoticed.
“Ugh… Why did this happen…? …Was it my fault…?”
Muttering to herself, Raze slumped forward in despair.
In the distance, Ian’s voice calling her name grew louder.
During the winter tournament, she’d only offered a bit of casual advice—she never expected it to spiral into this mess.
She hadn’t done anything extraordinary, yet somehow Ian was hunting her down. Knowing his personality, he’d probably demand a practice match. Last year, she’d dodged him by pointing him toward a senior—but that senior had since graduated, and Raze couldn’t think of anyone else willing to spar with him. …She understood now: Ian likely couldn’t find anyone else, so he’d come looking for her.
Maybe she could deliberately hold back and lose—but she’d already beaten him once. And Ian, admirable in his single-mindedness (or stubbornness, depending on perspective), probably wouldn’t accept a half-hearted match. People with that kind of “wild instinct” needed careful handling.
Raze stood perfectly still, suppressing her presence to the utmost, as she scrambled for a solution.
(…My fake adventurer title’s already blown, isn’t it?)
Given the caliber of students at this elite academy, registered adventurers among them weren’t exactly rare. Noble families here invested heavily in education—though some, naturally, forbade their children from taking dangerous risks. Still, for boys especially, excellence in both academics and martial arts was the expected ideal. Most students had been trained since childhood by highly accomplished private tutors.
(…Maybe it’s fine if I show a bit more strength? But… it’s Lord Ian we’re talking about…)
Imagining herself having a “good match” with the academy’s top-ranked Ian, Raze groaned inwardly.
(…But even if I did go all out, would anyone really connect it to the Wolf’s Fang?)
Her thoughts drifted into escapism, circling back to the core issue.
All the otome game characters were absurdly overqualified—and stunningly beautiful—so whatever they did naturally drew attention.
If commoner Raze Granoli used a teleportation spell, it’d probably just look underwhelming.
After all, she was known in foreign lands as the “Head-Severing Phantom.” Her combat style involved moving freely through space and eliminating enemies before they even saw her—so much so that even her own country’s soldiers rarely recognized her face.
Even among allies, those meeting her for the first time would often give her a puzzled look, as if to say, “Why is a child wearing a military uniform?” It wasn’t uncommon for people to tease or provoke her because of that.
Despite wearing a uniform with rank insignia and introducing herself as the Representative of the 537th Special Assault Battalion—that is, as Wolf Fang herself—most people still couldn’t believe it at first glance.
—Which meant…
READ THE ORIGINAL TRANSLATION AT gadgetizedpanda.net
(Huh? Wait a minute… If I go all out here, would my true identity even be exposed?)
She could absolutely complete a mission without anyone ever seeing her true form—that skill was undeniably hers. After all, Raze-Shess-Orphan was the first living person ever to earn the title “Wolf’s Fang”—a one-of-a-kind, living legend.
Raze froze in sudden realization.
How had she never noticed something so simple until now?
From the moment she’d enrolled as a scholarship student and falsely claimed to be an adventurer, it should’ve been obvious: excelling academically or martially wouldn’t raise eyebrows.
“Haha…”
The sheer desperation with which she’d been hiding her identity suddenly struck her as absurd, and she let out an involuntary, self-deprecating laugh.
Since enrolling, she’d gained precious friends.
While interacting with Carne and Folia as Raze Granoli, she’d been terrified of her military identity coming to light.
Even the fearsome “Wolf’s Fang” Raze-Shess-Orphan had things she feared.
Plain and simple: she was afraid that if they discovered she was a soldier, her current relationships with them would shatter.
These were her first true friends—the kind you couldn’t manufacture through espionage or strategy. To Raze, they were more precious than any priceless magic stone.
Without even noticing, she’d grown deeply fond of this place.
—And revealing herself as the Wolf’s Fang over something trivial was extremely unlikely.
With that thought, she felt a slight weight lift from her shoulders.
“Alright. I’ll do my best. Wait—why did I even start thinking all this…?”
Just as she resolved to keep supporting everyone as their guardian, Raze tilted her head in confusion.
“Granooooli!”
“Ah!”
The sound of her name snapped her back to reality. Peeking cautiously toward the training grounds, she saw Ian had spotted Folia and was now talking to her.
She’d gotten completely sidetracked. Even if going all out wouldn’t expose her as the Wolf’s Fang, that only applied when operating as a soldier. She couldn’t possibly unleash her full power against fellow students—and defeating Ian would only attract unwanted attention from adult recruiters.
“…Guess I’ll just pretend I didn’t hear him this time.”
Playing dumb and slipping away seemed the best option—but could she really avoid him for the entire preparation period…?
Just as she turned to leave—
“Found the scholarship student. What’re you doing lurking around here? Ian’s looking for you.”
Raze flinched as she turned to see a male student standing there.
She’d sensed someone approaching but assumed they’d ignore her.
Never expecting to be addressed directly—especially by Addis Larg Zarth, the son of her superior—Raze was inwardly startled.
“Um… could you please pretend you didn’t see me here…?”
She tried to brush past him and escape.
“Wait.”
“Yes…?”
Addis stopped her.
Since he’d gone so far as to track her down, he must have had a reason. Raze waited quietly for him to speak.
“Uh… well… you see…”
Uncharacteristically hesitant—normally so laced with sarcasm—Addis fumbled for words, leaving Raze puzzled enough to tilt her head.
His silver eyes darted nervously, and the hand he’d half-raised to stop her now awkwardly retreated to scratch the back of his head.
After a moment of stuttering, he seemed to steel himself—and looked straight at Raze.
“This might sound weird, but…”
“…Yes?”
“Have you… gotten engaged to anyone or anything?”
“Huh?”
Caught completely off guard, Raze let out an undignified squeak.
Misinterpreting her reaction, Addis quickly backtracked.
“No, never mind—if you don’t know what I’m talking about, just forget I—”
“W-wait, why would you ask that?!”
“Huh?”
Raze’s mind reeled. That information—known only to her squadmates, Julius, and patrons at that one tavern—shouldn’t have reached anyone else.
(Did His Excellency talk about me?! Wait—does that mean he knows I almost got engaged too?!)
Had Addis heard about her from Wellrain?
The mere possibility that Wellrain knew about the tavern incident was already bad enough.
Her thoughts spiraled into frantic speculation.
And she wasn’t the only one shocked by this exchange…
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