001 - Meeting

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So, how did this happen?

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The Campbell Baron Family is a small noble family located in a small barony on the outskirts of the Empire.

I think they're only mentioned once in Sera's main story?

There were no dungeons with monsters in the area and the main industry was also just simple dairy farming. The lord and his family are actually just friendly neighbors.

Naturally, the slightest accident or event would cause a big uproar, as if the world had been overturned.

Namely.

The Lord's son entering the Imperial Academy. A rare spectacle of the residents of the territory collectively crying, as if they're being abandoned.

"You're leaving at last, Dwod."

"Yes, Father."

Baron Armin Campbell, a warm and kind middle-aged man, hugged me while wiping away his welling tears.

"You are the pride of our territory. Please take care of yourself and graduate safely."

"Of course, don't worry."

I separated from Father with a confident smile.

He may look like this, but he's built with pure hard muscle.

Dairy farming and farming in general are hard jobs, so even if you don't specifically train your body, you'll be toned.

"However, never get into a fight. The Imperial Academy is a place where high-ranking children from all over the empire gather. It's best for small barons like us to be as inconspicuous as possible…"

"Don't worry, really."

Doubling the confidence level in my smile, I cut off Nagging Season 1823718029837.

Well, his worries were not unfounded considering the main story of Savior Rising.

An aristocratic family with weak prestige would be easily swept up in all sorts of power struggles between the powerful and eccentric high-ranking nobles.

Fortunately, I also don't have the slightest intention of violating my father's advice.

< Status Info >

「Dowd Campbell」

Strength: F

Agility: F

Endurance: F

Luck: F

Power: F

< Skill Info >

[ No Skill in Possession ]

< Mastery Info >

[ No Specialization Skill in Possession ]

< Special Gift >

[ Unawakened ]

"…"

It was an eye watering, neat Status Window.

However, all my stats are F, an unprecedented trash start that I've never once encountered out of all the playtime I've put into Sera.

'This is dangerous…'

With a wry smile, I turned my gaze to the small window next to the main page.

[ Main Quest ]

[ Enter the Academy and be assigned a class! ]

This is something I often saw in the game, so it's nice seeing it here. But the existence of a system page called the 'Quest Window' was a problem itself.

The fact that a main quest exists means that there are scenarios to overcome. This also means that the Academy that I'm about to enter will become a pandemonium, a breeding ground for different types of plots and conspiracies.

'I can't just skip the main quest…'

Considering the game's system and mechanics, the moment you don't do it, it will be 'game over'.

I don't think that would ever do anything good for me.

At the very least, something akin to death awaits me.

'But it doesn't make sense for me to complete the quest myself.'

In the first place, my motto was, 'Never do anything that hinders survival'.

I have no idea why I'm here, but one thing is certain. I must live to see the happy ending.

So getting involved in the main story with these garbage stats would simply get me deleted in one breath.

Although this guy does have an unawakened special gift, it's hard expecting anything from it.

I don't even have a clue on how to awaken it.

'All I know is that it would automatically do so when the character completed a special action…'

I don't know about player characters, but there's definitely no way I would know the gift conditions for an extra character like this.

So what's the best course of action I can take in this situation?

Faithfully fulfilling my role as an extra.

Don't stand out, don't show off and keep low-key.

Just let the main character take care of everything.

"Don't worry, Father!"

Uh. Now that I think about it, the advice that my father gave couldn't sound any wiser.

Is that really nagging if that's the case?

"I will do my best to become invisible at the Academy!"

"…Uh, no, there's no need to go that far…"

"Don't worry, I'll never have the vain ambition of raising the territory's honor!"

"…Yes, it's true that I don't particularly want that, but…"

After such exchanges, I finally departed from the estate.

Though, unlike the beginning, the territory residents' and my parents' expressions were a little strange seeing me off. Anyways, what's good is good.

And thus, my low-key Academy Life as an extra is about to begin!

●

I really thought of that.

I was envisioning a truly hopeful future.

Ah, those dream-filled days.

"Do you need a doctor? You don't look so good."

"No, I'm okay, thank you."

Actually, no, I'm not okay.

As someone who decided to commit to being an extra, meeting the person in front of me was horrifically unfortunate.

"…"

I glanced at the other person impassively reading the newspaper and sipping tea.

Elnore Elinalise La Tristan.

The most likely candidate for the Final Boss.

'How did I end up traveling with someone like this?'

Thinking so, I couldn't help but let out an inward sigh.

The train bound for Elfante Imperial Academy has two-person rooms.

You have no choice since you can't choose which person you want to share the room with, it's completely random. It's just that if the person you're with was this terrifying, it's probably okay to lament.

This type of luck was astonishingly horrendous.

'Why would a Duke's Daughter get a cheap compartment that the countryside Barons use anyway?'

As I was thinking about that, an answer suddenly came from the other side.

Her gaze was still fixed on the newspaper.

"Duke Tristan cares a lot about public image. He focuses on creating a friendly image rather than making us ride first class just because we're from a noble family."

"…"

"Don't worry, you didn't make the stupid mistake of thinking out loud. Your expression is just funny."

The Student Council President laughed as she said one thing after another.

"The thoughts of the people who ride in the same compartment as me are all the same. You were simply giving off a similar look to them."

"…Is that so?"

It seems like this wasn't a one time occurrence.

Well, as Duke Tristan's daughter, she's a huge celebrity that's almost on par with the Royal Family. A lot of people must've felt pressured by her presence.

"Rest assured, you won't be harmed just by being involved with me. I'm sorry for worrying you."

"…"

However, she cares too much for another person.

'Isn't this different from the one in my memory?'

In the game, this person obviously didn't care about other people.

She judges everything by value, a perfectionist that never tolerates flaws. Finally, she's arrogant who always sees others as beneath her.

Those were the characteristics that I remember of Elnore.

By the way, what is this delicately thoughtful look you're showing me right now?

Regardless if it's her description or how she's portrayed, this was undeniably strange.

"Do you have any other questions? It doesn't seem like you're convinced."

"No. It's just that you're surprisingly nice."

Hearing this, Elnore removed her gaze from the newspaper for the first time.

Her eyes slightly narrowed.

"Surprising?"

"Yes?"

"Have you heard anything bad about me? Have we met before?"

"…"

That's because I know you're one of the possible people who'll destroy the world.

However, it was only after meeting the main character did her villainous transformation begin. It all stemmed from the inferiority complex to the main character, who was considered perfect in all aspects, and has a talent that far surpasses herself.

Of course, you might wonder how the world will end just because of an inferiority complex, but the real problem is the 'curse' that this person has.

'Gray Devil.'

Thinking of Duke Tristan, and the name of the existence inside Elnore, I couldn't help but smile bitterly

It's the worst of the 'devils', the King-Class villains. It's so bad, in fact, that it appears in the myth of creation.

The moment that it's released, the world is practically over. And the trigger is the moment when Elnore's mental collapses.

Throughout the story, Elnore constantly had friction against the main character, and when her mentality collapsed, the demon took over her body. After that…

It's the end of the world. Other than the main character fully growing, the destruction cannot be stopped even if the whole world banded together.

"…"

"I thought you had an explosive personality, turns out you don't," I basically said this towards someone like that.

I must have gone crazy.

"…I've just heard a lot about being strict."

Elnore stared at me for a while, then sighed. I wondered if my improvised excuse worked.

"You're a strange man, aren't you?"

"Yes, that's what I often hear."

I blurted with an awkward smile, before immediately looking out the window.

I want to refrain from continuing this conversation further.

Anyway, my goal was to just have the main character beat the main quest. There's nothing good about hanging out with people that'll often appear in the scenarios.

My purpose is to lead a peaceful and quiet academy life, so let's do just that. Remain calm and enjoy the view outside.

The spring scenery in full bloom was very picturesque. It almost feels like you can smell the fragrance of the flowers with your eyes.

The new buds blooming, the stretching mountain and streams, the wide fields, and the huge boulder flying towards this window-

"…"

Wait, the last one... Fuck!

"Student Council President."

"Eum?"

"Excuse me for a moment."

Right after saying that, I dove into Elnore's arms.

"…?!"

I saw that Elnore was greatly shaken.

Even if it's this person, it seems that she still panics if someone suddenly rushed into their arms.

Fortunately or unfortunately, the situation continued without pause, leaving no time for explanations.

-!

-!!

-!!!!!!!

A house-sized boulder flew towards our compartment, tearing most of it off.

Naturally, suddenly being hit with a huge amount of force, the train shook greatly. Subsequently, the train body deviated from the track and tilted over.

-!

-!!!

-!!!!!!!!!!!

A few tumultuous turns was next in line as the entire train rolled over.

There were screams everywhere, but even that was drowned out by the roar that followed.

It's probably the sound of the entire train being thrown to the ground.

And throughout all of this, Elnore and I are fine.

It's not because I'm lucky, but because of the blue shield around Elnore right now.

An automatic saint shield.

'I survived knowing that this person always had this…'

Drenched in cold sweat, I let out a sigh of relief.

If I got directly hit by that thing without any protection, I would'nt have lived. Not with my abilities.

"…You, are you okay?"

"Yes? Ah yes. I'm okay."

"Then, can you move? It's a bit heavy."

It's only after Elnore said this in an emotionless voice from below that I realized that I'm pressing her under my whole body.

"…"

I quickly got up from this embarrassing position. After a while, the Student Council President also stood up.

She looked down at the ground, tidying up her messy hair and uniform. Perhaps it's because of the ambiguous mood, but her nape and face were slightly red.

Um, what now?

Should I apologize first?

"I'm sorry-"

"It's alright, you were just trying to save me."

What?

"It's the first time I've had such radical contact with a man, but thank you. I know your intentions, so there is no need to apologize."

"…"

Did she interpret it that way?

I just rushed in knowing that she has a shield.

It seems that from Elnore's point of view, I was protecting her from the impact.

Well, she didn't know that I knew the existence of the shield in advance.

As I was thinking about that, Elnore said another thing.

"You, what's your name?"

What?

This person, according to the setup, doesn't she only ask the name of someone she likes?

I feel like if I answer something now, we'll be involved often in the future.

"…You, what's your name?"

However, I can't just say, 'What for?' to someone in front staring directly at me.

Rather, it's the worst option.

"I'm Dowd Campbell."

"Dowd, Dowd, Campbell, Campbell."

Elnore closed her eyes and muttered my name a few times, then nodded.

"Go it, I won't forget it. I will definitely pay you back later."

No, you can just forget about it.

Like can't we be as far away from each other as possible?

As I was thinking that with an awkward smile, something suddenly appeared in front of me.

<System Message>

[ You have gained the villain's favor! ]

[ Satisfied Special Gift awakening conditions! ]

[ Obtained the skills 'Desperation' and 'Fatal Charm'! ]

…What the fuck?

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