Receiving Singclaire's gaze was burdensome and it was hard to suppress the trembling in my body.
{T/n: Singclaire is Duke Closh}
The intensity I felt was different compared to when I stood before Bahart.
"This is the real Aura Master."
Facing him in person, all my past experiences felt meaningless. He was a monster in his own right.
It felt as if I was standing not before a human but in front of a ferocious wild animal.
Each of his movements reflexively put me on guard, and without even realizing it, I was following the movements of his muscles with my eyes.
"Look at this."
When Singclaire opened his mouth, I shifted my gaze from his face, trying to ease my tension.
"You, are you a student?"
"Yes, I am."
"But why does it feel like you're scrutinizing me..."
Stopping at that point, Singclaire turned to Tolman, who was following him from behind.
"Tolman."
"Yes, Your Highness."
"I heard that the students here also engage in practical battles. Is that true?"
"Yes, we conduct evaluations of that nature almost every year."
"Hmm..."
"May I ask why you're curious about that?"
He looked at me intensely without answering, then flashed his unique smile, revealing his sharp teeth, and nodded his head.
"Oh, it's nothing."
I wish he would just stop showing interest.
I still don't understand why he knows my name and why he approached me in the first place.
Anyway, as I stood there, Singclaire suddenly extended his thick hand.
"...?"
What is it?
What does he want me to do?
Ignoring my puzzled reaction, he extended his hand again.
It seemed like a gesture to shake hands, so I naturally grabbed his hand.
I grabbed it naturally, but I wondered what he wanted me to do.
Well, Aura Masters can't be normal anyway.
"Haha, Adrias Cromwell!"
"Yes, Your Highness."
"I wanted to thank you."
"Yes? Yes, thank you."
What? Why? What is this?
Adrias, what did you do before I arrived?
No matter how hard I try to recall, I don't remember any connection with Duke Closh or the Closh family.
"Thanks to you, it seems like I have a promising apprentice in my ranks."
"Yes?"
I have no idea what he's talking about.
Even though Aura Masters tend to act on their own, I can't even follow this conversation.
"It's all thanks to the potions you made."
"Oh!"
Now it all makes sense.
So, he gave my potion to the apprentice of Mckane Jajak, and that led to him having a child...?
"Aphrodisiac!"
It was a completely unexpected use.
I never imagined it would be used in such a way.
"Thinking about it, it seems natural, doesn't it?"
If it's a stamina-boosting potion, it can certainly be seen as an aphrodisiac. However, since I've only used it in games, I never imagined it being used in that way.
Aside from how I obtained the potion, which is still in the final stages of registration, I could anticipate the storm that would come from its unexpected usage.
"An effective aphrodisiac without side effects? This could have serious repercussions..."
For a man, there's nothing more valuable than an item like that.
Of course, it means it will sell a lot, which is good for me financially.
The problem is the concern that it will attract too much attention.
Already, even the mighty Duke of Closh is shaking my hand in gratitude.
For someone like me, who must remain hidden until I become strong enough to protect myself, it is a great trial that lies ahead.
"Well, congratulations on your success."
"Yes, yes. I will keep an eye on you. I will also provide support, so please accept it."
There's no need for that.
But I couldn't refuse and forced a smile of gratitude.
If I were to decline here, it would backfire.
"Thank you, Your Highness."
As the conversation ended, Singclaire briefly spoke with Tolman before boarding the train and leaving.
It was evident how confident he was in his power, considering he didn't have a single retainer by his side.
"Attention! We have been delayed for a while. So let's get straight to the point."
Tolman gathered the students from the Knight Academy and the Magic Academy and began speaking.
Finally, he was about to explain the evaluation, and everyone listened attentively.
"This evaluation is a joint assessment between the 3rd-year students from the Knight Academy and the Magic Academy. Please remember that this is a cooperative assessment, not a competition."
A cooperative assessment?
It seems I'm not the only one who finds it strange, as a sense of confusion filled the surroundings.
"Now, I will form groups with three students from the Knight Academy and one student from the Magic Academy. There will be one group remaining with the remaining students, so please note that it will consist of three Knight Academy students and two Magic Academy students. I will now announce the pre-arranged groups."
I don't know what we'll be doing, but if it's a group assignment, it should be easy.
After all, I'll just go along with what the Knight Academy students decide.
"...Evans, Crodos, Pine. You four are Group 8. Next, Christopher, Hazal, Vivian, and Adrias. You four are Group 9..."
As each name was called, I stepped forward and waited in the assigned group.
When my name was called, a strange feeling came over me.
"Just now, weren't Hazal and Vivian...?"
Although I couldn't fully concentrate on the other names, I felt a sense of unease as I looked at the members of Group 9.
Phew, calm down. There's no need to be scared already.
"Hmph, you seem weak."
As I approached, a guy who is likely Christopher sneered at me.
The other two, whom I already knew, should be Vivian and Hazal.
"Well, even if that is the case, he was just praised by Duke Closh. Hello, my name is Hazal Gafril."
A brown-skinned man with a gleaming aura and bright eyes greeted me with a friendly smile.
I tried my best to ignore the information I already knew and returned the greeting.
"I am Adrias Cromwell. Nice to meet you all."
"Yes, nice to meet you too. What are you all doing? Let's introduce ourselves."
Upon Hazal's words, Christopher, who had been showing a hostile expression, spoke.
"I am Christopher Grod. I hope you don't become a burden in this evaluation."
"Vivian."
Ignoring Christopher's hostile reaction and looking at Vivian, who was radiating a playful aura, she briefly mentioned her name before getting distracted again.
"Oh, haha. Sorry about that. It seems we ended up in the same group with the least sociable guys."
"This guy, who do you think you're talking about?"
"Obviously, I mean you."
Suddenly, they started arguing among themselves, and I sneakily observed Vivian's demeanour.
Fortunately, she seemed completely uninterested in me.
"Yeah, please don't show any interest in me until the end."
It's just my luck.
Why did I end up in the same group as them? Can't we switch groups?
To be honest, Vivian, who was quietly standing there, was somewhat tolerable. But Hazal, who was pretending to be fine, seemed even more intimidating.
"A fanatic of the Jevar sect and a lady of the Academy..."
Both of them are crazy when you think about it.
I started to resent myself from five minutes ago when I was excited about the group assignment.
Please, let nothing happen during this evaluation.
Just then, as if to change the atmosphere, the professor in charge of the Knight Academy stepped forward.
"Professor Vigo."
He's a professor of little importance, so there's no need to pay attention to him.
Rather, the teaching assistant under him is the one to watch out for.
"This evaluation will be a random assignment mission."
As he spoke, the Knight Academy students nodded with a rough understanding, while the Magic Academy students had a bewildered expression.
"The given period will be until next Monday. For students who have classes during this period, we have obtained their permission in advance, so don't worry about attendance. We will provide separate lectures."
After saying that, he waited for questions.
Since no one asked any, he continued.
"The content is simple. We will draw lots here in a lottery format to determine the mission. All you have to do is complete the mission successfully. The only thing you should pay attention to is that each of you will rate your group members. If cooperation or abilities are lacking, the evaluation from your group members may be low, so be careful. Additionally, to prevent accidents and ensure an objective evaluation, there will be one teaching assistant assigned to each group. The teaching assistants will also rate your performance, so take note of that. That's all for the content. Any questions?"
What I thought would be a mission completion evaluation turned into a political game in an instant.
We just have to show ourselves in the best light to each other.
And to prevent any potential "accidents," teaching assistants were assigned for objective judgment.
"Now, the teaching assistants will be assigned. Please get along well with your teammates for the next few days."
As Professor Vigo finished speaking, the teaching assistants who were waiting behind him were assigned to their respective groups.
When I saw the teaching assistant assigned to our group, I felt as if destiny was playing a role.
Just as I thought there was a teaching assistant, I needed to be careful of, we ended up in the same group.
"Assigned to Group 9, Ivy Claire."
A tall, tan-skinned woman with long blonde hair approached, chewing gum loudly.
Her revealing outfit accentuated her muscular physique.
All the members assigned to the same group as her looked at her with apprehensive expressions, given her rough appearance and demeanour.
"Hey, if someone greets you, you should respond."
Tch.
Watching her spit out the gum roughly, I couldn't help but feel a headache coming on as I introduced myself first.
"I'm Adrias Cromwell, a 3rd-year student from the Magic Academy."
"Hmm."
Her snort seemed to indicate interest, and it made my heart skip a beat.
Ivy Claire. She wasn't a playable character.
However, she could be described as a "power-hiding" character, despite her appearance and actions being in that manner.
Though she seemed light-hearted on the surface, her abilities were comparable to that of an Overlord, approaching that of an Archdemon.
Why she was working as a teaching assistant here was a mystery.
"After playing so many games, I still couldn't figure it out."
Contrary to her seemingly casual demeanour and appearance, she was someone who thoroughly hid her true self and held a dismissive attitude towards others.
I had a few occasions where I worked with her as teammates, but our relationship ended there.
She was one of those individuals whom I couldn't seem to increase my favourability with, no matter how hard I tried.
"The conversation you had with the Duke earlier was quite memorable."
"Is that so?"
"Yeah. You're already young, yet you're making stamina potions. Seems like you lack confidence, huh?"
"..."
Is it already that time? Are we resorting to "seductive" comments?
There's no need to dignify that with a response.
"Well, weak magicians like you wouldn't be able to do much without the help of potions."
"Did you confirm that?"
Ah, without realizing it, I got caught up in provocation.
I would never back down, so why did I lose my cool?
It's all Adrias' fault.
"Well, I've faced quite a few opponents by now. You don't seem any different."
"Oh, really? I wonder about that."
Adrias, stop!
This isn't me! It's not me! Adrias has taken control of my body!
As Ivy and I engaged in a battle of harassment, our fellow group members watching us shook their heads in dismay.
A Jevar fanatic, an Academy lady, an extra knight, a power-hiding delinquent teaching assistant, and lastly, a necromancer.
A chaotic group of uncertain identities had formed.