A Wild Man Has Entered the Academy

TLed by NolepGuy

Chapter 83

I was force-fed a chaotic sense of etiquette by Rod. Although I somewhat expected this outcome, I couldn’t even land a proper hit.

To make matters worse, Rod’s health isn’t even fully recovered yet. He’s gradually escaping the effects of poisoning, but his body must still be stiff.

Even so, the fight didn’t even qualify as a proper match while he was in a normal state, not in a Berserk State. It could only be described as a one-sided battle.

Even someone with Navy-Colored Magic feels distant, so how much more so with Purple? It made me realize anew just how high the sky truly is.

“How can I narrow the gap, even just a little?”

Let me say in advance, it’s not necessary for me to fully comprehend the Heavenly Principle. Only a rare few ever achieve that.

For example, let’s say Hector and Rod clashed with all their might. In that case, Rod has an 80% chance of winning.

But on the flip side, that means Hector has a 20% chance of victory.

Hector is considered strong in his own right and has been tempered through his experiences with Tribal Unification.

For someone like me, who was just an ordinary person, understanding the Heavenly Principle is practically impossible. I need to focus on cultivating strength itself.

“Just so you know, Sivar isn’t weak by any means. I also went all out with sincerity when facing him.”

“Are you talking about moving in an instant with a single step and deflecting lightning?”

“Exactly. If I hadn’t been serious, I would’ve just dodged it.”

Even Rod defended me, who had been beaten like a dog on a hot day. His tone carried a subtle pride, as if satisfied with instilling etiquette in me.

I almost protested, asking if he didn’t hit me too hard, but I stopped. After all, it allowed me to receive some comfort.

“By the way, how hard did you hit Sivar for him to come back looking so miserable? He’s usually expressionless no matter what.”

Ellie stroked my hair and protested to Rod. When I silently spread my arms, she hugged me without a word.

As expected, I found peace of mind afterward. Resting my face against Ellie’s vast, warm heart brought me solace.

She accepted my childishness without a single complaint. I swear, Ellie must be the embodiment of an angel.

“He went so far as to use a technique I explicitly told him never to use. Even though he trusted his skills, it’s an extremely dangerous technique. Its power is so great that it can harm even the user. So, I gave him a little warning massage.”

“That ‘massage’ seems to have been quite intense.”

“It was the Rod of Love. I also took the opportunity to instill some etiquette.”

“I see… Please don’t do that again next time. Sivar, you listen to the Headmaster properly too, alright?”

I nodded fervently at Ellie’s request. I hadn’t defied Rod out of malice; I merely wanted to experiment.

I wanted to see if my lightning could work against someone as strong as Rod. And I learned firsthand that it does.

Because I experienced its power directly when he counterattacked. At that moment, Ellie began running her fingers through my hair.

“Why is your hair so singed? I’ll have to take care of it later.”

“Take care of it? Are you going to cut my hair too?”

Kara’s question pierced my ears. For some reason, there was a hint of dissatisfaction in her tone.

Since my face was buried in Ellie’s chest, I couldn’t see her expression. But I could guess it was one of discomfort.

“Normally, I’d visit a barbershop. But I think I can handle this much myself. Only the bangs and the ends of your hair are burnt, right?”

Swish—

As she said that, Ellie briefly pulled my face away from her chest. I blinked and looked directly at her.

Her gentle smile and radiant golden eyes were mesmerizing, as if they could pull you in just by looking.

“Strangely, you don’t grow much of a beard. Back when we first met, your hair was incredibly long, and you were a complete furball.”

“Sivar had a beard too?”

“Yes. When I first met him in the Forest of Chaos, he wasn’t just a wildling; he looked like a primitive man. His beard reached down to his chest.”

“I can’t quite picture it. A beard on that smooth face?”

Kara looked at my face with curiosity, expressing her amazement. I found it a bit puzzling too.

I don’t know how long I was stuck in the Forest of Chaos, but considering how fast my beard grew, it must’ve been quite a while.

If not, there’s only one explanation. The Forest of Chaos, where mana flows abnormally, must have influenced it.

It’s a place where all sorts of predators are drawn to its mana, and even Porori could become a spirit beast there, so it’s highly plausible.

Clench!

“Anyway, don’t discipline him with the Rod of Love anymore. You can teach etiquette without resorting to that. And Sivar isn’t completely without manners, is he?”

“He’s not without manners. He’s just a little lacking in social skills.”

That was a fact I couldn’t argue with. To be precise, it’s not that I lack social skills; I just appear that way.

With demons constantly eyeing the Academy, I have to pretend to lack social skills to stay prepared.

This is only possible because I’ve cleverly manipulated perceptions. The problem is that perception has taken root deeply.

Even if I wanted to change it now, I couldn’t. But for me, this is actually a good thing.

“I don’t have to worry about appearances.”

I can act freely without worrying about others’ opinions. That alone is a huge advantage.

Of course, it means those around me will often have to deal with headaches. I’m not completely oblivious, so I’ll know where to draw the line.

“In any case, since I’ve instilled some etiquette in Sivar, he probably won’t act rudely toward adults for a while. Has anything like that happened recently?”

“No, not at all. He’s been obediently listening to the professors too.”

“That’s a relief. But why doesn’t he listen to me?”

Rod tried to brush it off but seemed to notice something odd and voiced his curiosity. His face showed genuine confusion.

I didn’t respond to his question. Right now, receiving comfort from Ellie was my priority.

“Uh… Maybe it’s because the Headmaster hasn’t given him any candy?”

“…That’s a strange but plausible explanation.”

Fortunately, Luna’s argument, which carried a certain credibility, convinced Rod. Of course, I would’ve gone through with the sparring even if he had given me candy.

“Still, candy is out of the question. If someone saw, they might think it’s not candy but drugs.”

“Isn’t it about time to let up? There are plenty of other things besides candy anyway.”

“Candy can fit in your pocket. If you develop bad habits now, it’ll cause trouble later.”

What an old-fashioned grandfather. I grumbled inwardly.

If Kara hadn’t secretly given me candy, I would’ve already been suffering withdrawal symptoms.

There’s only one reason he’s so adamant about refusing. It’s because I’ve caused so much trouble that he’s using me as an example.

“And with Sivar’s adaptation period results coming out soon, he’ll need to restrain himself.”

“Adaptation period? Has it already been that long?”

Ellie asked in a slightly surprised voice. The adaptation period usually lasts about a month.

It doesn’t feel like much time has passed, but it means that much time has already flown by. Ellie had a reason to be astonished.

“Time flies when daily life repeats itself.”

After adapting to the forest, I also lost track of how much time had passed.

I marked about three years, but after surpassing 1,000 days, I stopped counting altogether.

“That’s right. As of now, most of the professors seem inclined to approve Sivar’s enrollment. A few have objected, but it’s manageable.”

“What reasons did they give for rejecting Sivar? I can more or less guess.”

“Surprisingly, it’s the same reason as Kara’s case. Especially in Sivar’s case, it was even more severe. They said you were at least better in comparison.”

“Unbelievable. Nothing’s changed at all.”

Kara snorted in disbelief. Since she had also gone through the adaptation period, she knew how things worked.

“So, it’s a positive outcome, right?”

“That’s correct. Although Sivar has caused minor and major incidents, most of them were related to property damage.”

As he said that, Rod shot me a sharp glare. The moment I saw his gaze, I burrowed back into Ellie’s chest.

I had only lifted my head to gauge the atmosphere, but this was too much. It’s not like I caused trouble on purpose.

“Crucially, there’s practically no record of him harming anyone. Even during sparring and survival training, people let it slide. Well, some said it was akin to using violence due to the overwhelming power gap, but they let it go.”

As I received Ellie’s soothing touch, Rod continued speaking.

I could sense he was trying hard to find fault with me. However, I’ve never used violence against someone without cause.

Strictly speaking, I have used violence, but only in appropriate situations, never without reason.

“Wait, there was one exception.”

Delphoi, who had dared to lay a hand on Luna, doesn’t count. He deserved it, so I personally dealt with him.

If the one nitpicking is Delphoi, it makes sense. Surely he wouldn’t cling to that one incident forever.

“Once the adaptation period is over, you’ll be quite busy for a while. You’ll need to get fitted for a school uniform, and Sivar will gain more freedom.”

“Gaining more freedom means…”

“It means he won’t need a guardian anymore. Most importantly, he’ll be assigned a private dormitory.”

A private dormitory. For someone like me, who had been living under the same roof as Rod, it was a hard concept to grasp.

It also meant that those who had always been by my side wouldn’t be around anymore. I’d finally start my journey as a civilized person.

“Doesn’t Sivar still need protection? Leaving him alone without supervision could lead to unforeseen problems…”

Ellie wrapped her arms tightly around my head, voicing her concerns. Her tone was genuinely worried.

Her point was valid. Sudden changes in circumstances could lead to unpredictable outcomes.

For me, having more alone time was fine, but others couldn’t help but worry.

No one could predict what kind of trouble I might cause if I wandered off again. That’s why I’d always had a guardian assigned to me.

“Other professors share that concern. But they insisted on assigning a private dormitory, saying there could be no exceptions. If things don’t change even after enrollment, they argued it might be seen as favoritism.”

“Favoritism? More like they’re just waiting for her to cause trouble.”

Kara voiced her negative opinion. Her words carried enough weight to be convincing.

There were already a truckload of people who viewed Kara negatively. If even she felt this way, how much worse must it be for me?

I was like a ticking time bomb. The moment that bomb went off, they’d pounce on the opportunity to tear me apart.

“That’s why I came up with an idea. Sivar.”

“?”

At Rod’s call, I raised my head, my expression asking what he wanted.

“Would you consider staying with Rize for the time being?”

“······?”

“Are you out of your mind?”