I Don't Know The Playthroughs Of The Returned Villainesses - Chapter 7

Arthur Arcana. Born into a prominent merchant family in the Empire, he was forced to enroll in the Academy after his parents purchased a barony. He was also the only magic swordsman in the world capable of wielding both aura and mana simultaneously.

Yes.

A magic swordsman.
This protagonist mastered both magic and swordsmanship—at a high level, no less.
The reason he wielded a greatsword was simple: he enhanced his body with both aura and mana, so any lesser sword would bend under the force of his power.

“By the way, where’s the Omni-Scabbard?”

No matter how much I looked around her, I couldn’t find it.
The Blue Lion’s Scabbard.

An artifact commonly called the ‘Omni-Scabbard.’ Its ability was simple: it perfectly accommodated any weapon and negated its weight. A starting item. It could even hold non-sword items, functioning as a kind of inventory. A very useful storage space.

But it was missing. Currently, Arcana’s greatsword was sheathed in a simple, unadorned scabbard.

‘Is it because it’s a starting item?’

Indeed, it would be too overpowered if that scabbard truly existed. A scabbard that could even absorb incoming magic attacks by ‘storing’ them would be broken from the start.

“Well…let’s go down and think about it later.”

The Academy’s main gate began to open. The beginning of the main story.

*

“Wow…”

It was overwhelming even from above, but down here, it was even more spectacular.

“It’s a pleasure to meet an elf. I am…”

“Greetings to the Duke’s…”

The scene outside the Academy was already chaotic. Earlier, it was greetings to the high-ranking nobles of their own countries, but now they were busy greeting nobles from other countries.

“The fact that I understand why they’re doing this makes it even more of a headache.”

Surprisingly, I understood this chaos, which was baffling.

For nobles, status equaled power. The high-ranking nobles gathered here were essentially their future superiors. And among them were even Dukes, whose single word could mean life or death. Making a good impression and showing off their skills would be beneficial in many ways. Essentially, the Dukes, second only to the Emperor in the Empire, were like executives of a major corporation, so bowing your head was the norm. I was the strange one, standing in the back, doing nothing but sighing.

‘…’

Why wasn’t I bowing my head?

Because there was no point. Even if I pushed through the crowd and reached the high-ranking nobles, I had nothing to say for myself. What was the point of introducing myself as a fallen noble whose title held no meaning?

And the biggest reason was…

“I can’t be bothered.”

I simply couldn’t be bothered to push through the crowd and greet the Dukes and other high-ranking nobles. They probably wouldn’t remember a ruined noble anyway.

“When will this be over?”

Realistically, it was impossible to enter the Academy until these self-introductions ended.

‘Should I look for the main characters?’

Since I had nothing else to do, I decided to look for the main characters.

‘Two from the Duke’s family…two from the elves…two from the Magic Tower…and the Saintess is…over there.’

Seeing the main characters in person, I felt it again.

‘Life is truly unfair.’

They were all incredibly beautiful.

“And…huh?”

What was this?

I saw a face I shouldn’t be seeing.

Blink

I blinked again, but it didn’t change.

‘Why is she here?’

A beastkin with ash-grey hair. But her true identity was that of an executive in a massive mafia organization that controlled the underworld of numerous countries.

‘Empress’ Sephir.

She wasn’t supposed to appear during the Academy arc. Originally, she would have appeared when the Saintess and Arcana visited the Holy See, their conflict starting with them thwarting her slave trade.

So…why was she at the Academy?

And at the entrance ceremony, no less?

Wag, wag

‘And…she’s not even hiding her tail and ears?’

As a beastkin, her emotions were revealed through her tail and ears, so she always meticulously hid them with illusion magic while navigating the underworld…yet here she was, confidently wagging her tail.

“What?”

Seriously, what was going on?

How was I supposed to deal with this?

‘…’

I had no idea. I hadn’t considered the possibility of Sephir being at the Academy.

“No, there’s no reason for her to be here!”

I knew she was the daughter of the beastkin chieftain, but she had clearly stated,

“Can you, Father, afford the losses I would incur by attending the Academy for three years?”

Her absence would have been a significant blow to the beastkin’s finances, so the chieftain was supposed to negotiate with her…

“What happened…?”

A strange new entry, ‘Underworld,’ had been added to the Academy’s power structure.

“I don’t want to go to the Academy.”

My already reluctant desire to attend the Academy had diminished even further.

*

“State your identity.”

“Goris Garmoon, eldest son of the Earl Garmoon family of the Empire.”

“Confirmed. Congratulations on your admission.”

What kind of entrance ceremony was this? 

I understood the need for security in an age rife with rebels and terrorists, but this was a strange sight. Nobles were lined up in rows, undergoing identity verification like it was airport security, with their admission documents and unique mana signatures being checked. Who would call this an entrance ceremony?

‘If they’re going to do this, they should at least hurry up.’

The timer on my document had long since expired, and I still hadn’t entered the Academy. I should have just slept in.

‘I woke up early for nothing.’

Time passed as I waited in a line longer than a roller coaster queue at a theme park…

“State your identity.”

Finally, my turn.

“Aron Dite of the Dite Viscount family of the Empire.”

Hum

The professor seemed to be checking my mana signature.

“Dite…Dite… Wait, there’s no such family.”

Pause

Oh no.

Something clicked.
“Sigh…”
I could only sigh.

“You, state your precise identity.”

Shift
The professor’s demeanor changed. He began circulating mana.

‘…’

This was embarrassing… The surrounding gazes focused on me. I couldn’t stall any longer; it would become dangerous.

“It should be among the ruined noble families of the Empire.”

I spoke to the professor in a dejected voice, but…

“What? Speak louder!”

Our professor, now on high alert, seemed to have damaged his hearing as well. His shout attracted even more attention from the nearby nobles.

“Look for it under ruined nobles!”

I had no choice. My parents had abandoned me, transferring the title to me, and the territory was ruined. How was I supposed to know if the title was still valid?

Flip, flip, flip

“Hmm… Here it is. My apologies.”

The professor finally found me after flipping through the documents to the very end, looking at me with an apologetic expression.

But what could I do?

“That guy’s in the Academy…?”

“No wonder I didn’t see him earlier…”

I was already infamous among the nobles.

“Haha, it’s fine…”

‘If you’re truly sorry, why don’t you join me in social suicide?’

I seriously considered saying that.

“Well then.”

Bow

I quickly bowed my head and entered the Academy, overwhelmed by the burdensome gazes of the nobles, filled with various implications.

“How much worse can it get from the very beginning?”

Technically, it hadn’t even begun yet, but I already knew it was a disaster.

*

“This is the training hall…and this is…the club room.”

The first thing I did upon entering the Academy was memorize the layout. I didn’t know exactly when incidents would occur, but I knew where they would happen, so this was crucial for navigating the situations effectively.

‘Of course, after that entrance, I doubt anything will go according to plan.’

Footsteps

“Hey, did you hear earlier? A ruined noble…”

“Seriously? How did he get into the Academy?”

Everyone I encountered in the hallways was talking about me.

‘Even I find that strange.’

I thought I had applied and been accepted as a Viscount, but I was classified as a ruined noble. How did I even get into a place where only continental nobles were supposed to be admitted? It wasn’t a first-come, first-served system, as far as I knew; there was a screening process.

Ding-dong

Classes will begin shortly.

Just as I had memorized most of the Academy’s layout, the pre-class bell rang.

“It’s been a while.”

Come to think of it, it had been a long time since I had been in a school. Years, considering I had skipped college and gone straight to manual labor.

“I should hurry back to the classroom.”

I was already burdened by the attention from earlier, and being late for class would only make things worse.

*

Creak

I opened the classroom door and surveyed the situation.

‘The main characters are all gathered… Good!’

Fortunately, there were no villainesses in my class. I had been worried about Sephir being in the same class, but thankfully, that hadn’t happened.

I looked around the classroom and found the least conspicuous spot: the middle seat in the row closest to the window. Neither front nor back, a place unlikely to attract attention. A quiet spot, perfect for napping, as long as there was no one nearby to draw attention.

Thump

I sat down and hung my bag on the back of the chair.

‘The main characters are…popular, as expected.’

After all, their statuses were Elven Prince, eldest son of the Duke, apprentice of the Tower Master, and Saintess. People naturally flocked to them.

However, the most surprising thing was this:

“Now, now, it’s our first time meeting…”

The protagonist, a mere Baron, was casually mingling and leading the conversation among those VIPs, individuals at the top of their respective nations.

‘Is that…the protagonist?’

That level of affability was scary. Witnessing the protagonist’s charisma firsthand was more intimidating than I had imagined.

Creak

The classroom door opened, and a man entered.

Footsteps

A sudden silence fell, punctuated only by his footsteps. Even I, with my head down, trying to avoid attention, could tell.

‘The professor must have arrived.’

The professor who would be our homeroom teacher for the next three years. Even in the game, the professor was randomly assigned for each playthrough, so I didn’t know who it would be.

‘Please, let it be a flexible professor…’

I raised my head and saw the professor’s face.

“Greetings!”

A familiar voice.

‘Ah.’

A face I had seen just a while ago.

“I’m Hector Hector, and I’ll be your homeroom teacher!”

‘I’m doomed.’

My Academy life seemed to be over.

“Pleased to meet you!”

It was that professor, the one from the entrance.