Alexander

As I walked toward the battlefield with slow steps, I felt an eerie calm.

It was strange—soon, I would be participating in my first real battle in this world against the third strongest student in the first year.

And yet, all I felt was calm. This wasn't a calmness born from confidence in victory.

Even though my chances of winning were higher than losing, the possibility of defeat still existed. After all, I was about to fight Alexander—a ruthless and merciless person willing to do anything to win.

But I remained calm. This wasn't just a random battle—winning would strengthen my image as a leader of the nobles, while losing to a commoner might make them decide not to listen to me.

That would make executing my future plans much more difficult.

And yet, I felt nothing but emptiness.

---

*Alexander's Perspective*

Rage.

Alexander felt nothing but rage as he looked at the group of students before him. Yet, he couldn't allow himself to lose control.

"As I said, I want you to watch the battle and be ready to challenge any student who might try to take advantage of my weakened state after I defeat Edward."

Upon hearing this, the students hesitated as if they wanted to say something.

Seeing their expressions, Alexander's anger deepened, but he maintained his composure.

"Of course, you will receive a generous reward for this service."

"What kind of reward?"

Looking at the student with the excited expression, Alexander felt an urge to smash his face into the ground.

But instead, he replied with a gentle smile.

"Naturally, points. I will give you a portion of my weekly points based on your contributions."

"Of course! Count on us! We'll stop any student who tries to challenge you, no matter their rank!"

"Good. Now, you may leave—I will join you shortly."

But before the students left Alexander's room, they heard his voice turn ice-cold.

"And I hope none of you are foolish enough to try and exploit the situation… because you are too weak for that."

After the group of students left, Alexander sighed tiredly, rubbing his temples.

"It seems you can't control your followers,"

Alexander turned his cold gaze to the corner of the room, where Jess sat, and said mockingly,

"Do you call those idiots, who think with their backsides, followers?"

"Even though I gave them a plan that would benefit them in the long run, they let their greed take over and ruined everything."

As he spoke, Alexander's eyes were filled with fury.

But Jess didn't care about Alexander's anger. He simply said,

"From the way you talk, it seems you're confident in defeating Edward."

Hearing this, Alexander chuckled lightly.

"No, I am not confident at all. That Lightstar bastard must be sure of his victory since he dared to challenge me."

Jess looked at Alexander strangely.

"You seem calm for someone who's about to lose his rank."

Alexander's laughter stopped as he spoke calmly,

"Even though I'm not certain of victory, there's still hope. And losing to Edward wouldn't be that bad—he is the heir of one of the Four Great Houses, so a loss against him won't harm my reputation."

"Besides, there isn't a huge difference in points between rank 4 and rank 3."

Jess's eyes turned cold as he replied,

"But there's a significant difference between the points rank 3 gets and rank 5 gets."

Alexander's smile vanished, replaced by a dangerous expression. A terrifying aura erupted from his body as he spoke with chilling coldness,

"If I were you, I'd focus more on maintaining my rank. The Swordice family is known for its immense pride, and their heir certainly won't accept being lower than a commoner—especially one from the lower city."

Hearing this, Jess scoffed coldly and left the room, leaving Alexander alone.

Alexander sighed tiredly.

"I miss the days when I could solve all my problems with my fists."

In truth, Alexander didn't care whether the students followed his orders or not. He was already planning to pass out after the battle—whether he won or lost.

That way, no one would be able to challenge him since he would be unconscious.

As for the students' reward, he had only said it would depend on their contributions. If they did nothing, they would get nothing.

At most, he would give them a few points just to keep them from getting angry.

And as for why he gathered them despite their uselessness—who would object to having a backup plan?

---

The battle between Edward and Alexander caused a massive uproar in the academy, drawing a huge number of students from both the first and second years to witness the fight between the heir of House Lightstar and the strongest commoner in the first year—Alexander, the third-ranked student.

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Look who's back! Yes, it's me. Sorry for the sudden disappearance, and unfortunately, this time I have no excuse. But I'll make it up to you!