CHAPTER 23: GROUPED

The morning sunlight slipped through the curtains, falling straight onto my face.

I groaned, rolling over.

For a blissful moment, I forgot about the academy, nobles, and the absolute chaos that followed me like a curse.

Then my eyes landed on something sitting on the nightstand.

A small, leather pouch — the one Ariana had handed me last night.

"...Ah, right. The ’tuition fee,’" I muttered, dragging myself upright.

I reached over and untied the string lazily. The contents jingled softly.

The moment I peered inside — I froze.

"...What the hell."

Inside, glimmering faintly in the morning light, were coins. Not gold. Not silver.

Platinum.

I blinked. Then blinked again. Maybe I was hallucinating.

I poured them out onto the table — one, two... twelve platinum coins.

Twelve.

And not just that — nestled among them were six gold coins and a handful of silvers.

For a second, I just stared.

Then I burst out laughing.

"Even when she’s neglected, she’s still a duke’s daughter through and through."

To put things into perspective — platinum coins weren’t even circulated among commoners.

Not because of discrimination, but because no one sane would ever need that much money.

One platinum coin equaled ten gold coins.

Ten.

For the average citizen, that was enough to live comfortably for few years.

And she just—handed me twelve of them like pocket change.

"By the gods..." I muttered, running a hand down my face. "If anyone finds out I have this, I’ll get stabbed before sunset."

A thought crossed my mind — with this ’tuition fee’ my wealth has crossed 500 gp;d coins. Isn’t it too much money to be kept home for a lone living person. Maybe I should visit the Imperial Bank and deposit it.

"...I’ll deal with it later," I sighed, tying the pouch again and stuffing it deep inside my storage bag.

For now — breakfast, and then, lunch prep.

Luckily, I still had leftover ingredients from yesterday. So today’s lunch was simple — cheesecake, version two.

Not as fancy as last night’s, but good enough. I packed a few slices neatly into the box and headed out.

*****

By the time I reached the academy gates, the morning crowd was already buzzing.

Cadets in crisp uniforms, laughter echoing, chatter everywhere.

And, thankfully, no rumors about Ariana visiting my house.

At least not yet.

But there were others. Oh, plenty of those.

"Did you hear? Lucien Ashborne told off Princess Celestia yesterday."

"Not just that — he humiliated Kael, the top student, right in front of everyone!"

"I heard he made the princess cry."

"No way! He wouldn’t dare—right?"

...Right.

I sighed, rubbing the back of my neck as I walked through the gates.

’Man, word really spreads like wildfire around here.’

It wasn’t all bad though. Most of them just watched from a distance — some in curiosity, some in fear, and others in amusement.

When I entered the classroom, the noise dropped instantly.

Dozens of eyes turned my way.

I could practically hear their thoughts.

There he is.

The villain who cursed at a duke’s daughter and argued with the princess.

I walked straight toward my usual seat at the back, ignoring the heavy silence that trailed behind me.

On my way, my eyes met his — Kael.

He sat in the front row, posture straight, expression sharp. The righteous glow in his eyes almost blinding.

He looked at me like I’d just personally murdered his god.

I gave him my best deadpan look.

’Yeah, yeah. Fuck you too, protagonist.’

As expected, the rest of his merry band — Celestia, Elisha, and Bordon — followed suit, glaring daggers.

I ignored them all and kept walking.

When I reached my seat, I casually waved toward Ariana — who was sitting near the side rows.

She startled slightly, then gave a small, shy wave back.

And just like that, the entire class collectively held its breath.

Dozens of gazes instantly shifted — from me to her, from her to me — and back again.

Whispers erupted almost immediately.

"Wait, did he just—?"

"Are they... friends?"

"How do they even know each other?"

"Wasn’t she the quiet one who barely talks to anyone?"

Ariana, meanwhile, seemed to shrink into her seat, her face red as she stared fixedly at her desk.

I almost laughed. Poor girl. She wasn’t used to attention — especially not this kind.

Still, I couldn’t help but feel a strange sense of satisfaction.

*****

The morning dragged on quietly — at least, until the door slid open and the familiar sound of firm footsteps filled the classroom.

Samantha Everheart, the homeroom teacher — walked in with her usual poise.

"Alright," she said, voice clear and firm, "I assume you all remember what I told you few days ago."

Dozens of heads nodded almost in unison.

"Good. I told you to form your teams for the upcoming dungeon assessment."

Her eyes narrowed slightly. "Let’s see how well you listened."

She began checking the roster in her hand.

"Team One — Kael, Celestia, Arnold, Sia."

Of course. The golden quartet. The "model group" of the class.

As she continued reading through, most names were ticked off one by one — neatly divided groups of four.

By the time she reached the end of the list, her brows furrowed slightly.

"...Hmm. Four students still ungrouped."

I didn’t even need to look up to know I was one of them.

Lucien Ashborne — the outcast.

Ariana Solmere — the timid duke’s daughter.

And two others: a freckled girl who looked like she’d rather disappear into the wall, and a lanky boy who clearly regretted every life choice that led him here.

Samantha lowered the paper and fixed her gaze on us.

"Still no groups?" she asked flatly.

No one answered.

The boy, Ren, scratched the back of his head awkwardly. "W-Well, ma’am, it’s not that we didn’t try, it’s just—"

Samantha raised an eyebrow. "No one wanted to team up with Ashborne?"

Ren froze, caught in the crossfire. "I—uh..."

"Thought so," she said curtly.

My lips twitched. "You could’ve said it more politely, you know."

Her sharp eyes turned toward me, and for a moment, I thought I saw a faint smirk tug at her lips.

"Politeness won’t help you in a dungeon, cadet."

Then she wrote something on the sheet. "Alright. Group Ten — Lucien Ashborne, Ariana Solmere, Livia Crestfall, and Ren Halberd."

A few whispers immediately broke out in the classroom.

"Wait, that combination?"

"They’re gonna die in there."

"Poor lady Ariana..."

I ignored them all, though I could feel Ariana stiffen beside me.

Samantha tapped her clipboard once, drawing everyone’s attention again.