Chapter 55: Why Has My Reputation Seemingly Worsened?
A new week began.
On Monday morning, Will took the entire morning off to personally purchase magical items for detecting postmarks. There was a specific item that could identify the origin of communications from the Royal Family, but… as it involved the Royal Family, it was generally only available on the black market.
Fortunately, due to the plot that unfolded later in the original work, he had anticipated dealing with the Royal Family, and the protagonist of the original work, Xiu, had used this item before. Therefore, he had leveraged a bit of Hysterm’s influence in advance to establish a connection.
Now, when he needed to use it, he could simply contact the relevant informant to buy what he wanted.
He ended up with a small bottle of powder, pure black in color. It was said that by observing the powder’s color change, one could determine the material of the wax seal.
“I’ll try it out when I get back tonight.”
Of course…
Will found the existence of such an item to be quite ridiculous!
Why would the Royal Family have a method for outsiders to identify their communications, especially using it on their own wax seals and continuing to use it? Wouldn’t that make them highly susceptible to leaks?
However, if one were to study the history of the Royal Family from beginning to end, it would actually make perfect sense.
This was because… the method was originally intended for internal use within the Royal Family and was not supposed to be leaked.
The King of Entak had always been a prolific breeder, with many offspring from each generation. However, Entak did not follow the conventional primogeniture succession; instead, the king typically designated his heir through his will.
Two hundred years ago, the reigning king found himself unable to control the infighting among his children. Letters and intelligence flew back and forth, spies mingled with traitors, and the situation was a complete mess. To make matters worse, even he didn’t know who was writing to whom in these chaotic struggles, nor which faction these communicating nobles belonged to.
As king, he didn’t actually oppose the infighting; in fact, he enjoyed watching it and selecting the child who was most cunning, resourceful, and most like himself to become the next king.
But…
When even he couldn’t decipher the schemes and deceits of his own children, he felt like a useless emperor.
Therefore, the king at that time obtained a material from the Dungeon that could be used in wax seals for identification. He decreed that all members of the Royal Family could only use it for official communications. Any letter sent without it would result in the loss of their royal status.
He provided his children with different materials for identification, allowing him to observe their abilities and relationships while also preventing excessive espionage from outsiders.
And then…
This item…
Due to the Royal Family’s complacency and apathy, it hadn’t been updated in two hundred years!
Two hundred years ago, only the king himself knew the identification method, and he could clearly distinguish which color belonged to which family.
Two hundred years later, it had become widely circulated on the black market, with even the specific color used by each family being updated. However, as a matter of formality, no princess or prince dared to communicate privately without using this method.
This example vividly illustrated the dire state of the Entak Royal Family…
A king with many offspring, children engaged in fierce power struggles, and a corrupt, lazy system that hadn’t changed in two hundred years.
The current Entak Royal Family was like a candle in the wind.
It could collapse with a single push.
If he hadn’t known that he would have to interact with the Royal Family in the future, he would never have gotten involved in this mess.
Indeed, the mess of the Royal Family was more fittingly described as a “pool” than a mere “drop.”
“Speaking of which, today is the first day I officially have the status of an elite class student. I wonder if my classmates will change their perception of me when they know my high score on the practical exam?”
Will pushed open the classroom door.
His seat was still in the corner of the classroom. The desk was clean, thanks to Teacher Liya’s intervention; surely, no one dared to write on it anymore.
However…
Uh…
Why…
Were the other students’ desks around this desk moved more than a meter away?!
There weren’t many students in the classroom, unlike his previous school. Here, the desks and chairs could be spaced out considerably if desired.
His previous position was a bit out of the way, but at least there were people in front and to his right. Now, why would they prefer to sit closer together, yet refuse to sit anywhere near him?
“Uh… this…”
Should he ask someone?
He looked at the blonde girl next to him, who was chatting animatedly. Yes, it was that enthusiastic noble girl who had avoided him on the first day.
“Excuse me, what is this…”
He patted her shoulder.
“!? ”
Then, as if she had seen a ghost, she scrambled back to her own chair, shouting as she ran, “Ahhh, don’t come near me! I-I apologize! Don’t involve me; I haven’t done anything.”
“Huh?!”
“Is it true? The super violent Will, who severely punished Felix in the practical exam, is here for class?!”
—I didn’t punish him, and even though I instigated it, he challenged me himself!
“I heard he beat up Felix for a full ten minutes, making Felix beg for mercy before letting him go!”
—We only sparred for ten minutes, and I only punched him once!
“The scariest thing is that our homeroom teacher, Teacher Liya, also succumbed to his might and slept in his arms in public on the training grounds!”
—Teacher Liya rushed over and fainted on her own!
“Oh, I also heard that he often takes Teacher Liya to dark corridors to do unspeakable, sordid things.”
—Uh… that… well… that…
“The other day, someone who was assigned to clean saw him coming out of Teacher Liya’s laboratory with his clothes disheveled late at night!”
—That was because the experimental materials exploded!
Alright.
Will understood.
The moment he surpassed bullying, he had already become the embodiment of bullying.
…Well, isn’t that good?
It’s fine. Changing a negative impression is much easier than being bullied from the start. At least this process doesn’t involve being sent to a cold storage prison.
He sat down and looked around.
Felix’s previous seat was empty, and even his backpack and some belongings that were left there had been removed—his suspension had ended long ago, and from the looks of it, he had probably been expelled from the elite class.
As for the red-haired, green-tea-like Bell, who was involved in this situation, her belongings were still there, but she was nowhere to be seen. In Will’s memory, Bell was an extremely diligent student who would always arrive in class twenty minutes early. It seemed she had been so devastated that she didn’t even come to class anymore.
The third person…
Hunter.
He was the only one of the three who had been suspended and had honestly returned to class after his suspension ended.
However, his previous seat was behind Bell’s, and he had now moved elsewhere—also to a corner of the classroom. What, is this guy trying to imitate me and become a corner warrior?
While Will was observing, he suddenly noticed Hunter looking back at him. His gaze was sharp, revealing a fierce determination.
Moreover, Hunter pointed at himself and then at Will.
“Hmm… does he need something from me? I have a bad feeling about this…”
The class period wasn’t long. As soon as it ended, Will and Hunter exchanged a look. They both exited the classroom, one from the front door and the other from the back, and coincidentally headed towards a secluded corridor.
Will looked up at Hunter, who was a head taller than him and already had a rather gloomy appearance. Hunter’s blue hair covered one of his eyes, making him look particularly unapproachable.
“What’s wrong? Your gaze towards me feels quite… quite terrifying…”
“I…”
Hunter bowed deeply.
“I must thank you.”
“Wait, what you’re saying sounds so sarcastic.”
“No, I’m serious. You let me see Bell’s true colors. Otherwise, I would have wasted many years on her.”
Will thought this kid was surprisingly mature. Even being betrayed by his childhood friend, he could recover so quickly and face life squarely.
“No, no, it was just a coincidence. You don’t need to be so emotional.”
“You’ve also shown me a new path. Women are unreliable. Only by being loyal to a wise ruler can one go further, more steadily, and higher, achieving one’s ideals and beliefs.”
“So, your wise ruler wouldn’t happen to be…”
“That’s right! Lord Will, please take me as your subordinate! I’ll be at your beck and call from now on!”
“Is being your subordinate all you aspire to—”
Will rubbed his forehead.
Never mind, it was an unexpected bonus.
Hunter, as a character, didn’t even have a name or detailed description in the original work. As someone outside the control of the book, he would be less bound by fate.
He could gather some information for him that he couldn’t conveniently obtain… and so on.
“Also, Brother Will.”
“Don’t call me that. You’re a head taller than me, it’s weird.”
“I’ve brought you… the information left behind by Felix.”
He said plainly.
How could he betray his former boss so readily? This child must not be allowed to stay.
“Actually, he does have someone supporting him from behind the scenes, though they haven’t provided much power or resources. Perhaps ‘utilizing’ or ‘inducing’ is a more accurate description.”
“What? Hmm… let me think. Could it be a senior student, perhaps two years older than us, with slicked-back blond hair?”
Will pondered, recalling the person he had seen on the training grounds during the practical exam.
He was also the only suspicious individual he remembered after the entire practical exam.
“It was him. As expected of Brother Will; you had already noticed.”
“What is his identity?”
“A competitor of the Hysterm family, the second young master of the Brandon family.”
