Chapter 2

Well, honestly, I’m not sure why I did it.

Maybe it was just that sudden irritation bubbling up inside me.

Or maybe it was the silly thought, “Our precious protagonist is being threatened!!” that spurred me into action.

But one thing was clear.

“Uuugh...”

In front of me, some pig-like guy was sprawled on the ground.

And the person who knocked him down was none other than me.

“Haha, this is quite the situation.”

A soft smile curled up at the corners of my mouth.

It was a sly grin.

I wanted to show a friendly expression, but due to my 'trait,' that was impossible.

No matter what I did, I couldn’t shake off the sly, shady look.

Well, what could I do? I gave up trying and bent down.

I spoke to the pig-like guy, who was rolling around awkwardly on the ground.

“My deepest apologies, it seems I have unintentionally caused offense. Are you alright, my lord?”

“Wh-what the hell! Who the hell are you!?”

He suddenly started shouting, as if something inside him had snapped.

The pain from the impact must have subsided, and now the anger from being knocked down was boiling over.

His reaction was bigger than I expected.

“Oh dear~ I'm terribly sorry.”

“Where did you crawl out from, you filthy commoner! How dare you knock down a scion of the Holint baronial family!?”

“I was in such a hurry that I didn’t see where I was going.”

“And you call that an excuse...!”

“What a powerful voice you have.”

I calmly responded to the pig’s rage and elegantly introduced myself.

“Allow me to introduce myself properly. I am Yuda Sneykers, only son of the Sneykers family.”

“Sneykers...?”

For a moment, the guy who had been furious paused. @@@@

It seemed that the name ‘Sneykers’ made him stop in his tracks.

Well, it would be strange if he didn’t know it.

The Sneykers family was somewhat prestigious, after all.

I watched his stiffening face with a broad smile.

“The Count of Snakes...? Could you be the son of the Snake Count?”

“It’s an honor that you recognize me.”

“A-ah...”

The pig’s face turned pale.

It seemed like he finally realized he was screwed.

But what good would a late realization do?

Once the snake wraps itself around its prey, it doesn’t let go.

‘What? Holint baronial family?’

If I remember correctly, they were a low-status family with no wealth or importance.

And this guy dared to bully a commoner?

Even worse, our lovely protagonist?

“I-I’m so sorry...! I didn’t recognize your esteemed personage and acted disrespectfully...!”

In a flash, the guy bent his head in a bow.

The once stiff back was now hunched over, making him look utterly pathetic.

Well, I could see why he’d react that way.

He insulted a noble from a prestigious family in front of all these people.

“Haha, so you do recognize your rudeness?”

“I’m truly sorry. I really am!”

“Hmm?”

I tilted my head, letting my mocking tone hang in the air.

Though he might hope for mercy, I had no intention of giving him any.

I had no interest in a pathetic apology like this.

‘If he had apologized to our poor protagonist instead of me, maybe I’d have considered it.’

But it was too late for that.

Letting go of my bad thoughts, I smirked.

“Pathetic, isn’t it?”

With that slow comment, I reached out my hand.

Moving gracefully, like a snake slithering through the grass.

My hand touched the pig’s shoulder gently, sending a cold shiver down his spine.

“Seeing you act like this... it’s hard not to laugh.”

The guy flinched, his eyebrows twitching.

I know his type very well.

People consumed with pride and inferiority, constantly needing to show off.

The type of person I despise most.

There’s a simple way to deal with people like him.

You crush their pride.

Publicly shame them, ridicule them, ignore them, and break their precious sense of superiority.

“You’re pathetic.”

That’s the plan: Operation Maximum Mockery.

I stuck my tongue out slightly, licking my lips.

My voice dripped with the particular smugness that came naturally from my 'Smiling Mask' trait.

“You seem more suited to being a street thug than a noble.”

=Did you stuff your mouth with filth? And you call yourself a noble?

“And scolding a helpless girl? Where’s your sense of chivalry?”

=No pride at all? You might as well cut off your balls if you live like that.

“For someone so large, your heart seems quite small.”

=Big guy, but such a tiny mind.

“I bet the Baroness must have her hands full with you. They say raising children is the hardest part, after all.”

=Your poor mother.

A barrage of insults.

The guy looked utterly bewildered, unable to process the flood of humiliation.

How’s that? That’s the art of 'K-gamer teabagging.'

The real key here is the crowd.

They’re all watching, seeing this guy who acted like a tiger, exposed as nothing more than a barking dog.

People will laugh at him.

And as they do, his pride will crumble further.

“Quite the unique fellow.”

=Idiot.

As I carried on with my delightful roasting, my gaze fell upon a trembling girl.

Pink hair, green eyes quivering with fear.

Our lovely protagonist, Regia Pilots.

She was on her knees, staring at us.

She looked just like a frightened rabbit.

Cute, just like she was in the game.

I winked at her.

It was my way of saying, “Don’t worry too much.”

‘Speaking of which... it’s about time.’

I checked the time, mumbling to myself.

As if on cue, an announcement echoed in my ears.

“The entrance exam will begin shortly. Applicants, please follow the guide to the examination area.”

The announcement broke the tension in the air.

I stopped my torment and took my hand off the guy’s shoulder.

His face was flushed bright red.

Judging by how his arm was trembling, he must’ve been thoroughly humiliated.

“Well, let’s leave it here for now, shall we? I hope we never meet again!”

=Don’t mess with me if you don’t want to die.

I flashed a broad smile.

This time, I didn’t bother hiding the slyness in it.

It was an obvious warning.

“...Thank you for your generosity.”

The guy bit his lip for a moment before bowing his head and backing away.

He was the perfect picture of a ‘third-rate villain.’

This really did feel like a game.

I handed it to her with ease.

It might not make sense for it to fit in my coat pocket, but let’s just ignore that for now.

Sometimes ignorance is bliss.

“It happened to be in my pocket. I’d be happy if you used it, Miss Regia.”

“H-huh?”

“Go ahead.”

“B-but how did you pull that out of such a small pocket...?”

“It’s a secret.”

I skillfully dodged her flustered question.

To prevent further questions, I gently took her wrist.

“Eep...?”

“Just hold still for a moment. I’ll wrap it so it doesn’t get worse.”

I unrolled the bandage and carefully wrapped it around her wrist.

Regia looked startled at first but soon relaxed under my touch.

“T-thank you... I feel like I’ve been relying on you for help all day.”

“Don’t worry about it.”

“But...”

“I’m just glad to have been of assistance to you, Miss Regia.”

“What...?”

Oops. Did I get too caught up in the moment?

Regia blinked at me, clearly confused by my words.

She tilted her head, her pink hair fluttering as she asked cautiously,

“Do you know me, by any chance?”

“Huh?”

“Well... it’s just that you’ve been so friendly, I wondered if you recognized me...”

There it was—the inevitable tricky question.

How do I explain this?

Just as I was lost in awkward silence, a voice saved me from behind.

“Yuda Sneykers. You’re next.”

It was one of the assistants overseeing the entrance exams.

He glanced down at the list of applicants before nodding slightly at me.

“Please follow the guide to the examination area.”

“Ah~ Of course! I’ll head there right away!”

It was the perfect excuse to avoid answering.

What excellent timing.

“It’s my turn now. I’ll be back after the exam.”

“O-okay...! Good luck with your exam!”

“Haha! I’m glad to hear your support!”

Well, I’ll be off now!

I waved as I walked toward the exam area.

---

I entered the exam room, my heart pounding with excitement.

This was the Galimar Academy, the most prestigious educational institution in the world, and the setting of the original game.

What kind of thrilling exam would it be?

Surely, since this was such a famous academy, the entrance test would be creative and exciting, right?

“All you need to do is attack the target in front of you.”

But my anticipation didn’t last long.

In fact, it was crushed almost immediately.

I stared blankly at the assistant and asked,

“By ‘target,’ do you mean that small, cute little doll standing over there?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“Good grief...”

I let out a disappointed sigh.

In front of me was a scarecrow-like doll standing all alone.

I had hoped for something more spectacular.

“I trust you’re familiar with how the score will be measured?”

Not really.

“Since we’ve been broadcasting the exams to the waiting area for the benefit of the other applicants, you should be well informed by now.”

I was too busy chatting with Regia to notice.

“Good luck.”

Dammit, seriously.

Of course, I couldn’t say that to the assistant.

I guess I’ll just have to wing it.

I should have paid more attention to the briefing...

‘...Sigh.’

It was too late to regret now.

Accepting the harsh reality, I mentally prepared myself.

I assumed the stance for casting magic.

‘I should aim for something middle-of-the-road, not too strong but not too weak either.’

I examined the target closely.

It wasn’t just an ordinary doll.

It was outfitted with a variety of defensive and absorption spells hidden beneath its fabric.

They certainly lived up to the academy’s ‘prestigious’ reputation.

‘I’d better be careful... don’t overdo it.’

I had no intention of becoming the top student.

A place in the spotlight comes with its own set of headaches, and I wasn’t interested.

Even if they offered it to me, I wouldn’t take it.

‘Just enough to not break the doll.’

I whispered to myself as I pointed my fingers at the target.

I formed a finger gun with my thumb and index finger.

As I concentrated mana at my fingertips, it coalesced into a pitch-black bullet.

“Bang.”

Pffshh!

With a sound like air escaping, the dark bullet shot forward.

The shard flew fast, and in the next moment, it hit the target square in the forehead.

Thunk!

The shadow struck hard against the defensive spell.

The bullet whirled furiously, as if about to pierce through, but it gradually lost power.

Though the doll looked plain, it was still the academy’s official entrance exam target.

It wasn’t going to break easily.

In the end, the mana bullet dissipated without leaving so much as a scratch.

Thud.

The doll fell over from the force.

I glanced down at the target now lying on the floor.

‘That should be fine, right?’

The doll wasn’t broken, and the spell I cast wasn’t too flashy.

Nothing about it should draw unnecessary attention.

Just the right amount of power for an average academy score.

If I do say so myself, that was perfect control.

“Wow~ controlling power is harder than it looks.”

I mumbled quietly to myself.

With a satisfied smile, I shook off the residual mana from my hand.

Good. Everything went according to plan.

“Maybe I should go watch Miss Regia’s exam now.”

...Of course, at that time, I had no idea.

That the academy staff...

The professors watching my exam through the magical devices were

in an uproar over what I had just done.