CHAPTER 44: THE VEIL OF MERITOCRACY (PART 1)

I feel paralyzed.

My heart thumps loudly in my chest.

I can feel countless gazes burrowing into me. Many whispers swirl in the air, and I can hear my name among the many voices.

But none of them matter!

What matters most to me is the fact that I got multiple Cs on Courses that I studied very hard for.

Perhaps I didn’t study hard enough. After all, I have so many Courses I am offering, so maybe, despite trying my hardest, it wasn’t good enough.

I would actually believe that bullshit if not for the fact that I can see the results of my peers.

’Most of the High Nobles attending this Course got at least a B, with some even scoring an A! How is this possible? I know most of them didn’t study as much as I did!’

Besides, I recognize most of the names I see on the board.

These are Nobles who have asked me questions on many topics they didn’t understand.

I know for certain that they aren’t as proficient in these courses as I am.

So why?!

"Pfft! Looks like realization is finally dawning on him..."

"Serves him right! He thought he was better than everyone just because he’s a little smart..."

"Smart my ass! Look at his many Cs. How exactly did he get his Scholarship again?"

"He’s a fraud..."

"That’s what you get for taking on too many Courses..."

"Arrogant prick..."

"He should have avoided that Department from the start..."

"Poor guy. Doesn’t he know Administration & Statecraft is dominated by the High Nobility...?"

I remain silent throughout, my body fixed in a single position.

There are many words I feel tempted to blurt out, but I bite my lips in frustration and fight back the stinging hot sensations in my eyes.

Naturally, I’m not upset at any of their words.

But—

’I worked so hard...’ My thoughts trailed. ’All my efforts, all those sleepless nights... all of my passion...’

I do not deserve such a meager grade.

Not when some privileged children who didn’t put in half my efforts were getting higher scores.

’These are also the first batch of results that come out...’ Since each Department operates on a certain day of the week, and it’s Monday, it’s not surprising that the Department of Administration & Statecraft released its results first.

My heart jumps in fear and worry as I fear what will become of my other results.

Will it be the same?

Are all my efforts going to be wasted again?

Several questions swirl in my mind, but rather than getting swept away by my emotions, I let out a very deep sigh and calm myself.

What is the point in shouting, screaming, or even crying about this matter?

It’s useless.

Not only would it show weakness, but it would offer no solution to my problem. Right now, despite the immense frustration that courses through me, I have a surge of clarity.

I understand what is happening.

’This is prejudice...’ I sigh to myself and smile bitterly. ’In no world should any of these Nobles score higher than me in some of these courses. At most, we’d get the same Grade. However, I’m sure that would be unsatisfactory to the higher-ups that govern this school...’

The Department of Administration & Statecraft especially has a reputation for being a Noble-exclusive space. High Nobility thrive there, and the Low Nobility fill the department like maggots on rotten food.

It is their domain.

I hardly saw any Knight or Clergy students there, but I didn’t concern myself with any of that.

That’s because I was interested in the Courses offered in that department.

In fact, I still am.

So, I made sure to work harder and study more to prove myself in class.

—And I did!

I got along perfectly well with most of my lecturers, and many of the students in these Courses recognized my brilliance. I would often answer questions in class, turn in my assignments very early, and contribute substantially to the discourse in class.

I was not an average student by any means.

So a ’C’ is not justifiable!

’This is a form of suppression. They’re trying to make sure I don’t outdo the actual Nobles in this Department. Honestly, I already knew the Academy was prejudiced, and I experienced my fair share of it before... but this is the first time it’s really bothering me.’

Let’s take my Silver Wing dormitory as an example.

It is normally meant to be occupied by the low echelon members of the High Nobility. Its rooms are individual mini-flats and offer relative comfort. We also have general attendants who can be sent on errands and who help tidy up the rooms periodically.

As someone from a Knight Household, I’m only qualified to be there as a result of my Scholarship. Even then, I do not enjoy some of the benefits that the others do.

For example, the general attendants avoid my room most of the time.

They do not periodically clean it as well, and I have to request it from them before they do so.

Also, they take much longer before fulfilling requests or heeding instructions. Their weaponized incompetence makes it so that it would be easier and faster for me to simply do the things myself.

However, since I am so busy... I can’t help but constantly rely on them.

That is prejudice.

However, it is something I can bear.

I am not trying to abolish century-old traditions here. I know the High Nobility look down on those who aren’t in their circles. In fact, they even look down on those lesser than them, even in their own circle.

More and more, I have noticed this among them.

I know that they will discriminate against me, and I have long decided to bear with it.

After all, it is indeed a privilege to be here.

The Royal Academy is far better than the Knight Academy I attended in my previous life.

The Silver Wing is better than the Bronze Wing.

There, the students have shared rooms, minor comforts, and no attendants at all.

Naturally, every dormitory wing has a Supervising Officer and Assistant Officers who help maintain order in the dormitory. However, the Bronze Wing certainly has things the worst when it comes to ease of living.

I don’t have to suffer such inconvenience, so I can still manage the little problems associated with living in the Silver Wing.

There is also no intent in my heart to change the way things operate.

It pains me to see people being treated this way, but this is how life has always been.

What can I do?

I often hear my fellow Knights in the Bronze Wing complain about Prestige Points, as well as other problems. Of course, I have felt the temptation to help them out.

Perhaps we could even band together and resist the tyrannical school system as the underdogs.

But... all of that is fantasy.

This Academy is far too powerful for mere students to make such grand changes.

So I ignored it all.

Even with all the nonsense I have experienced thus far, I endured.

But—

’This is something I can not accept!’

A part of me, who is now used to the subservience and suppression, is tempted to simply let it go and take a different approach. Perhaps I could work harder next time to prove my worth, hoping for better results when that time comes.

However, I shut down that notion almost immediately.

Such blind hope is simply juvenile.

I know how the world works. Although I was never privy to the secrets of the High Nobility in my past life, I still have abundant knowledge on politics. One thing I have learned is that some things never really change the higher up you go.

It only expands in scope.

The High Nobility look down on those inferior to them the same way the Low Nobles look down on the commoners. There are only a few differences involved.

Because of this comparison that exists in my mind, I already know that this won’t stop.

My suppression will continue unless I do something about it!

With fire burning in my cold gray eyes, I leave the result board and walk straight to the faculty offices, an unquenchable energy soaring in my heart.

’I have to challenge these stupid results and call for a redraft!’

***********

A week has passed since I saw my first batch of results.

The other results have come out in subsequent days, and I did as well as I expected: multiple As, some Bs, and almost no Cs.

In essence, 21 As, 11 Bs, and 7 Cs.

I took a total of 39 Courses, spread among six Departments, during this Spring Term.

The only Cs I was awarded, apart from the ones I incurred in the Department of Administration & Statecraft, were from the Department of Etiquette & Noble Arts.

I already know how much I dislike that Department, so my average performance in some of the Courses doesn’t surprise me too much.

However, for the most part, I still performed well in most of the Courses in that Department.

The only problem... is the Department of Administration & Statecraft!

I got Cs in all five Core Courses, and Bs in the three Electives.

It has been exactly one week since I filed my complaints and called for a redraft—which students are allowed to do.

But I have been ignored even until now.

It seems the Department doesn’t have any intention to do anything about the results.

How absurd!

So, calling for a redraft is nothing but a formality?

No... I don’t think so.

I believe if I got a lower grade—perhaps a D, E, or even an F—I would be taken more seriously.

After all, that would have long-lasting repercussions.

Not only would I be disqualified from being a First Rate Scholar with such grades, but I could lose my Scholarship with a single F. The Department didn’t go that far in their grades because they also know they can’t get away with it.

However... a C falls within the acceptable range for them.

After all, if I work hard enough in other Departments, obtaining as many As and Bs within them, I won’t have any problems. I can even still obtain the First Rate Scholar title when I graduate. Of course, I still won’t be able to slack off in the Department of Administration & Statecraft, since that would give them an excuse to score me lower and ruin my chances.

In essence, I will simply be studying in vain—just so I can get a meager C grade.

Of course, there is also the option of dropping the Department in my second year, which is probably what they are after with all of these disturbances.

They’re trying to discourage the participation of students who aren’t Nobles.

Am I the first ever non-noble student to register in this Department? Of course not! I’m certain many others have taken interest in the Courses offered by this Department, but there’s a reason it has remained dominated by the Nobles for so long.

It’s systems like this, put in place to chase anyone who isn’t a Noble away.

The fact that other Departments do not operate like this, despite the subtle prejudices that also exist within them, proves that there is something particularly distinct in the Department of Administration & Statecraft that is pushing this situation.

Or... someone.

’There’s a Noble behind this in the Department!’ My eyes flicker silently as I stand outside a particular office, taking in a deep breath.

The office door has a label written on top of it, and it states:

Senior Professor: Alaric Duskryn

I sigh softly, piecing everything together for a moment before knocking on the door and placing my hand on the knob.

Since a Noble is behind the situation, I can only rely on another Noble to help me out with this.

So, Alaric Duskryn...

"... I choose you."