19

Magisa took Arc's words to mean "noblesse oblige."

In other words, a noble's high position comes with matching responsibilities.

As a princess, she doesn't need to talk about equality—she needs to use her authority in the right way.

That was how Magisa understood it.

She also assumed that Arc, by deliberately eating in the commoners' cafeteria, was forcing himself to see inequality every day and keep himself in check.

When Arc said, "Don't wish for equality just because it's convenient for you," right before they parted, Magisa felt a pang of guilt.

She realized she had been seeking equality for her own self-centered reasons.

She just wanted everyone to treat her the same, so she thought she wanted an equal society.

It felt like Arc was seeing right through her selfishness—her foolishness—and that made her ashamed.

Of course, she was completely misunderstanding Arc…

In reality, Arc is far more self-centered than she realized.

By the way, that moment between Arc and Magisa was originally supposed to be the key scene where Surt meets Magisa.

They were supposed to talk on a party balcony and grow closer.

But Arc interfered, which made the plot veer away from its original path.

Surt and Magisa never spoke. Magisa ended up talking to Arc instead.

Arc, without knowing it, crushed Surt and Magisa's chance to meet.

That's the power of the "original story crusher."

On a side note, in the original story, the main character, Surt, also tells Magisa something similar to what Arc said.

When Magisa tells Surt, "I want to be your friend so we can laugh together on the same level," Surt snorts at the idea of equality.

Then he shares his harsh past with her.

After hearing that, Magisa feels embarrassed about her own views and later arrives at the idea of noblesse oblige.

One way or another, or maybe because the story is somehow self-correcting, Magisa ended up reaching the same conclusion as in the original.

◇　◇　◇

Surt is completely alone in the world.

His parents, sister, and even a childhood friend were killed by the Dark Hand.

On top of that, he himself was cut across the face, burned, and spent three days on the brink of death.

His only goal is to destroy the Dark Hand.

He enrolled at the magic academy to gain the power to do that.

Surt looked down on the students enjoying the easy academy life.

He thought they were just a bunch of clueless kids who had never seen a real battlefield.

He also disliked nobles.

They never saved him when he needed help, so he saw them as useless.

He felt the same about Arc.

More accurately, he didn't know about Arc's achievements.

So he labeled Arc as "just another noble."

But that same Arc saved Surt's life.

It was humiliating for Surt.

What bothered him even more was how weak he realized he was.

If he couldn't even handle a single monster, how could he possibly defeat the Dark Hand?

He kept brooding over this on his own.

Originally, the plot said Surt was supposed to defeat a monster with Ruine, a duke's daughter, which would've been a huge moment in his journey.

But he lost that chance.

Missing that opportunity only made him more impatient.

And that impatience turned into resentment toward Arc.

◇　◇　◇

Lately, that red-haired guy keeps glaring at me.

What's his deal?

It's rude to look at a noble that way.

Whatever.

I have a heart as vast as the universe.

No point in worrying about some commoner's glare.

That's what I thought, until he challenged me to a duel.

Hah.

How bold for a commoner.

He must not understand my endless generosity.

Fine.

I'll show him the difference between us.

On the day of the duel…

Lots of people came to watch.

They can't wait to see me fight?

All right then.

They can watch as much as they like.

But if they faint from seeing someone as noble as me fight, that's on them.

"Surt. I hate you, Arc Noyadarma."

"Hah. Great. So what are you gonna do about it?"

"I'll defeat you. I'll beat you and move forward."

"Sure, try it. If you really think you can."

Putting arrogant people in their place feels good.

I'll toy with him.

Surt seems to be a magic swordsman.

Magic swordsmen can use both magic and swords.

By the way, I can't use a sword.

It's too heavy.

Plus, swinging a sword just seems so... crude.

A noble like me fights gracefully, using only magic.

The match started.

I fired a barrage of ice magic from a distance.

If I don't let a swordsman get close, I can't lose.

He's no match for me!

Fwahahaha!

There's no way someone as exalted as me could lose!

I kept hurling ice spells, and soon Surt was exhausted.

He put up some resistance, but in the end, it was a total victory for me.

Now he'll surely kneel at my feet and shower me with admiration.

Wah-hah-hah!

A commoner can't win against me!

Know your place when you pick a fight with a noble!