Igniting A Spark

Drama! Drama! Drama~! 

Ever since childhood, I have loved drama. No, it would be more appropriate to say I hated the monotonous lifestyle.

I sought excitement and thrill to keep me entertained throughout my days.

I used to be the person who thrived on chaos. If I couldn't find it, I would create it myself.

How did I achieve that?

Well, I was the type of student wh o would always remind the class teacher about homework.

I was the 'best friend' who would manipulate girls into breaking up with their boyfriends and vice versa.

I was the guy who used to instigate discord between two friends and watch them fight!

Remember the story where my friends from college and I played truth and dare while drunk?

Guess who gave them the idea of doing so? It was me!

Why did I do something so horrible? Because I knew I would get a good drama out of it!

…Of course, it negatively affected me in the end by messing up my whole sleep schedule but meh, whatever. It was totally worth it.

My point is I worship chaos! I love drama! I like seeing the peacefulness of life getting disrupted!

I know all the things I said make me look like a bad person, but I don't care.

In my past life, as I grew up, I physically felt my emotions drifting away from me.

The happiness and sadness I used to feel as a child stopped coming to me. I could hardly remember the last time I cried.

I had a girlfriend but I could never love her the way I saw my friends loving their partners.

I had parents but I never felt close to them.

I had siblings but we never shared any secrets. 

I had friends but being with them felt suffocating.

My life was boring and the lack of stimulation drove me to insanity many, many times.

I always felt like I was lacking something in life. To cover up that lack of feeling, I started doing things that a 'good person' would never do.

But it's not like I killed anyone or did anything bad. You could say I just anonymously played little pranks on my friends.

I just wanted to feel something– anything that could make me feel a little alive.

So when I came to this world, I was happy. I was finally inside a war fantasy novel. There was chaos everywhere around me!

And right now, I was witnessing the start of something that would later turn into huge chaos.

I put the martial manual I had in my hands back in my dimensional bracelet and took out a packet of popcorn.

Yes, I brought popcorn.

Training could wait. Watching this scene takes priority.

"What did you say to me?!" a bulky black male yelled at a small structured emerald-haired elven boy's face.

He was ripped, and the black blazer he wore struggled to contain his giant biceps.

With a height of around 7'4, he possessed an imposing figure capable of inducing fear into anyone's heart. It was hard to believe that he was only 18.

His name was… Ah… I don't know. I forgot.

Yes! I did claim to have a near-perfect memory but even I can't remember all the useless small details! 

"Do you know who I am? I'm Alberto Okoro! I'm the right-hand man of Kai Wiseman!" the ripped guy yelled again, his deep, booming voice thundering across the training field. 

The onlookers quaked in fear for the safety of the petite elven boy facing the giant man. 

Those who had not been watching the scene before were surely paying attention now, turning their heads to see what was happening.

Yes, I remember now! His name was Alberto– Oh, he already introduced himself?

Anyway, he was the right-hand man of– Oh, he said that too? 

"Dude, why are you so mad? I just asked you to move from this spot politely." while everyone else quietly watched in horror, the elven boy in front of Alberto spoke calmly without a shred of fear visible on his face.

He was William Sinoath. His family background wasn't that special. 

Sinoaths used to be a powerhouse in the past but now they have lost most of their influence and political standing.

Why? 

Because most of their members were massacred. 

Why? 

Well, I can tell you but I'm afraid I'll go off-topic. So let's put this talk aside for another time.

Sinoaths still serve the Netyoive family– the ruling family of the southern continent– as their vassal but are barely a noble house anymore.

However, they are still known for their pride as an elven family. Despite no longer holding the fame they once had, they maintain their dignity in their bearing.

And the pride and dignity of the Sinoath blood shone through in the way this boy held himself. Standing tall against a man twice his size, he exuded an air of determination.

"What do you mean you asked me politely? You literally said, and I quote, `Oi, move from here, you're taking too much space.` Does that sound polite to you?!" Alberto spat out in a ridiculing tone. "And who are you to tell me what to do anyway?!"

For an outsider, this may seem like a childish reason to fight. 

After all, Alberto's whole basis for the argument was that William rudely talked to him.

Alberto was a 'weak in front of strong and strong in front of weak' kind of guy. And William was a little too haughty for his own good.

You put their kinds in front of each other and you'll get to see them start a fight over something trivial in under a minute.

Well, in Williams' defense, elves are known to be prideful.

But that wasn't the whole truth. You see, Alberto was asked to start this fight by Kai Wiseman– the leader of the group who called themselves Young Elites. 

I still can't get over how stupid 'Young Elites' sounds but anyway.

Why did Kai instruct Alberto to do that? 

Well, because he's a third-rate novel villain. Causing inconveniences in the plot is his whole reason for existence.

As I've explained before, there are two internal authorities that govern the cadet body in this academy: Cadet Council and Disciplinary Community, also known as 'royals' and 'pawns.'

The Cadet Council, also called the 'royals,' consists of the top eight ranking cadets of the academy. They possess individual titles such as King, Queen, Bishops, Knights, and Rooks.

They have the power to make significant changes and set new rules in the academy.

The Disciplinary Committee, also known as the 'pawns,' consists of the next eight cadets ranked from 9-16 and is responsible for enforcing the rules set by the Cadet Council.

Quinn, who is ranked 16, is technically a member of the Disciplinary Committee.

But if I remember the plot of the novel correctly, he has not yet attended any of their meetings and has not yet actively joined the committee.

If my estimation is right, then he will soon be forced to join them though. It will happen before the start of the 'mock war.'

Anyway, Kai's goal was to acquire the position of the King— the cadet council president and 'rule' this city during his time in the academy.

In order to achieve his goals, he needed to understand the strengths and weaknesses of those who would be his competitors.

Nero, to no one's surprise, was one of those people who would be his competitors for the rank of King. 

In fact, he and Quinn were the only real threat to him.

That's why Alberto's goal here was to create a spark that could later be turned into a forest fire.

And seeing how his future competitors will deal with that fire would tell him everything he'd like to know about them.

And from the looks of it, he was being successful in doing so since Alberto was doing a good job enraging William.

"What are you talking about? I never said that! It looks like you're trying to blame me for something I didn't do," Williams said, frowning. "I just asked you to move a little because I wanted to practice here swinging a great sword around like it's a toy! You could hurt someone with that!"

"Oh, is that right? So you're saying I heard wrong?" Alberto raised his voice. "I'm sorry to tell you this, shorty, but unlike your long ears that can't seem to function properly, mine works perfectly!" 

Ooh! That was a low blow! Elves are really sensitive about their ears! And short guys are really sensitive about their heights!

I'm 6'1 by the way. Hmph. Bow down to me, you mere mortals!

After a few seconds of silence, the emerald-haired elven boy puffed his chest in anger and yelled

"You know, I never said anything you're claiming I did, but now I am! You are uselessly big. Go fuck off elsewhere instead of making a fuss here and disturbing everyone around you!" he scowled.

Oof, even I wouldn't have taken that if I was in Alberto's place.

"What?! Why the fuck would I care about anyone else? And if you have a problem with me, then you move! In fact, run! Run before I punch that stupid face of yours." Alberto barked and clenched his fists as a warning.

"So you accuse someone of something they never did, you refuse to be mindful of your surroundings, and to top it off, you threaten to carry out a physical assault against a fellow cadet." William voiced Alberto's violations out loud, seemingly giving him one last chance to retreat.

But instead, Alberto shot a wide grin and continued his barking. "Yeah, I do! What the fuck will you do about it? Go cry to your mama, you little baby?"

"Is that supposed to be a comeback? Because if yes, then it was childish and stupid." William gritted his teeth and mockingly cocked his head to the side, "God, I pity you. To be both stupid and ugly. Life must be hard for you."

Burn! I call it a burn!

As soon as those words left Williams' mouth, Alberto raised his right hand up. He channeled mana to his dimensional bracelet and equipped a greatsword in his hand.

The elven boy didn't back down, either. He took a low fighting stance and summoned a spear in his right hand.

Crunch— Crunch—

Munching on the popcorn, I enjoyed the sight in front of me in anticipation of what was about to happen.

Fwoosh—!

But before Alberto could swing down his sword and William could thrust forward his spear, a black-haired boy appeared out of nowhere in between them.

Tsk.

Who else but Nero can be counted on to ruin a perfectly good fight before it even starts?

"Stop it, you two!" Nero yelled while using his hands to push back the two cadets and create some distance between them. "And Alberto, raising a weapon at a fellow cadet is a violation of rules. I will report it to the cadet council if I see this sort of behavior ever again."

"What?!" jerking Nero's hand that was pushing him back off his chest, Alberto shouted. "He has also pulled out his weapon on me!"

"You were the one who did it first. You surely don't expect William to let you hit him without fighting back, do you?" Nero narrowed his eyes while retrieving his hands.

"You–" Alberto was about to start barking again when a guy from his class came forward and took a stand for him.

"And you surely don't expect Alberto to let William keep insulting him, right? I mean, if we are really going to the cadet council, then let's also tell them how rudely William talked to him." the guy who came forward argued.

Before Nero or William could respond to that comment, Anastasia stepped up and inserted herself into the argument too.

"To be fair, he is a big guy," she pointed at Alberto and said. "Not to mention he's using a greatsword. There's plenty of space in the field; he shouldn't swing that thing around near someone. If William wanted him to give him some space, he could've done that."

"Is that a reason to start insulting someone about their physique? Your classmate called Alberto 'uselessly big' in front of everyone," in response, a girl came forward from class 1-C-8 and answered back to Anastasia. "Not to mention, your classmate could've also gone somewhere else to practice."

From the looks of it, both this girl and the other boy were probably part of Alberto's unit.

"And is that a reason to pull a weapon on someone?" Nero shot a counterargument. "Mind you. He pulled out a real greatsword on him! That weapon is meant to kill! And if that wasn't enough–" 

"Quiet!"

Just as they were in the middle of shouting at each other like cats and dogs, a thunderous voice echoed throughout the training field right then and silenced the cadets.

Oh look, it seems that the Instructor has finally remembered that it is his job to supervise the cadets.

After being unable to bear the disturbance any longer, Leo Sensei walked over to the cadets who were making a fuss and yelled in their faces.

"Enough! Cease this childish quarrel now! Get back to your training and remember why you are here. You all are the future of this world, so start acting like it!"

"But Sensei, he pulled a weapon on me!" William exclaimed, seeming unhappy that Alberto was receiving no punishment. "He was the one who picked a fight with me!"

"I said enough!" however, Leo sternly told William to drop the topic. "If you take this matter to the council, both of you will be punished. Now go back and resume your practice!"

Only when Leo ended the confrontation with them did the cadets drop their heads and nod.

As they dispersed, the whole training field was plunged into an awkward silence.

Crunch— Crunch—

Some of them wanted to argue further, while others wanted to take this matter to the authorities.

However, they could do nothing but return to practicing their weapon arts in bitter silence.

As they did, they hoped that the events of the morning would never be brought up again. 

Little did they know, it would be brought up again and unbeknownst to them–

"Eh?"

As I was lost in thought, I noticed that the cadets near me were giving me a look as if to say, "Are you serious?"

What? Why is everyone staring at me? 

I didn't even do anything– Ohh! 

Then it hit me.

In the tense palpable silence followed by a heated argument, the sound of someone munching on popcorn echoed across the training field.

It was me.

Putting away the popcorn packet in my dimensional bracelet, I equipped my martial manual back in my hands.

Ignoring all the looks of disbelief and ridicule directed at me, I began practicing my weapon art again.

Well, time to get back to training. The drama was only about to get spicy from here on out but I needed to get stronger to enjoy it to the fullest.