The Banished Villainous Noble Son Who Was Used as a Stepping Stone in the Original Work Awakens to Combat and Destroys the Laws of the World - Episode 2: The Former Noble Descends Upon the Adventurers’ Guild

Episode 2: The Former Noble Descends Upon the Adventurers’ Guild

――It had only been a few hours since that condemnation event.

As I walked along the boulevard in the afternoon, I stood out sharply.

A fine black jacket. A collar stitched with gold thread. Polished leather shoes. Formal white gloves.

No matter how you looked at it, I was a “noble”—

No, more accurately, a *former* noble who had just been exiled moments ago.

…And yet, I was heading straight to the Adventurers’ Guild.

Am I out of place? The center of attention? ――All the better.

Right now, there’s no one who can stop me.

My appearance as a noble, public reputation—none of that mattered in the face of the thrill of battle.

Or rather, I wasn’t a noble anymore. So it didn’t matter at all.

Yes—I had been set free.

From the “cage” of the otome game—

No, from the cage of *being a noble*.

(…Still, I can’t calm down.)

The sound of my heartbeat was annoyingly loud. My steps quickened naturally.

I already knew what this restless feeling in my chest was.

――It’s because I want to touch the “battle system” as soon as possible.

Back when I was still a noble, I never had such desires.

I didn’t even know this world was a game. I was the original “Alphonse Clichard.”

But now, it’s different.

I remembered what made this world fun—the battle system, skills, stats, growth mechanics…

And now, I could enjoy all of it without worrying about anyone’s judgment.

Yes, this is where the game finally begins for me.

The place to satisfy this surging desire could only be the guild.

(I knew there was a building that looked like the “Adventurers’ Guild” in this city. Even on the game’s field map, it should be around… there—found it!)

Standing before me was a gray stone building.

The same one that used to appear as part of the background back then.

(In the game, it didn’t even have a sign. It was vaguely referred to in dialogue as “there’s a guild,” but… I knew this had to be it, based on the atmosphere!)

—Realizing my guess was right, I couldn’t help but smile.

◆

I opened the door of the Adventurers’ Guild.

A faint scent of iron and leather tickled my nose.

Wooden counters were lined up, and adventurers carrying swords and spears chatted as they pleased.

(…It feels even more realistic than I imagined.)

While I was quietly soaking it all in, it seemed someone noticed me—the air in the room felt like it suddenly froze.

“…Huh?”

“Wh-What the heck, a noble…?”

The adventurers chatting near the reception desk all turned their eyes toward me at once.

Of course they did—I looked far too out of place.

But I didn’t care and walked straight to the reception.

“I’d like to register as an adventurer.”

The receptionist froze. Her mouth was open in surprise for a moment.

“…Eh? A-Ah, y-yes!? U-Um, d-do you have a letter of recommendation…?”

“No. But I can register without one, right?”

“Y-Yes, but… w-we don’t usually expect nobles to walk in without warning, so…”

Her eyes were darting everywhere. Clearly flustered.

“…No way. Isn’t that guy the ‘banished noble son’ everyone’s been talking about?”

“You’re serious? That guy from the headlines…? Not the whole family—just the son got exiled, right?”

I overheard murmurs from some seasoned-looking adventurers behind me.

Looks like the “condemnation” was already making the rounds.

But more importantly――

“I want to fight. Right away.”

All I could think about was fighting.

“What’s with that guy…?”

“He’s got a nice face, but is he mentally off…?”

“Seriously, what’s a noble even saying right now…?”

As the murmurs spread through the guild, the receptionist—perhaps giving up—offered me a registration form and a status crystal with a stiff smile.

“T-Then, please place your hand here… Your current status will automatically be recorded…”

I touched the crystal.

The transparent orb gathered a pale blue light at its center. And softly glowing text floated up.

[Name]: Alphonse

[Race]: Human

[Age]: 15

[Title]: None

[Skills]:

・Persistence: Lv.1

・Etiquette: Lv.1

・Academics: Lv.3

・Dance: Lv.2

・Household Management: Lv.2

・Linguistics: Lv.2

・Swordsmanship: Lv.1

・Magic: Lv.1

(…“Persistence,” huh. My skills never even showed up in the main game. But to think I’d see them like this.)

I couldn’t help but let out a wry smile.

In the original work, I had a neutral role—neither ally nor enemy.

If anything, as a “villainous noble son,” I was closer to being an enemy—but I never had any *battle* events.

So, my stats remained a mystery. And no one ever cared to dig into them.

(So this is the truth—“Persistence: Lv.1.” All that arrogant behavior and it’s only level 1? What merciful developers gave me that?)

While thinking sarcastically, I shrugged.

(Well, whatever. I’m not here to make up for past mistakes—as long as I have the power to fight, that’s all I need.)

I skimmed over the skills I didn’t care about and focused on the ones relevant to battle.

That was the most rational decision for me.

(Yeah… about half of these are useless.)

You could say they were the results of a noble’s education.

These were naturally acquired through standard noble upbringing.

…But they were totally useless in battle.

In this game, the “battle system” only gets showcased a few times.

If it’s only a few times, what’s the point of diving into it in the first place?

In a life-or-death fight, how would something like “Etiquette: Lv.1” even help?

No—at that level, it only guaranteed my condemnation no matter what.

That’s why I was drawn to this “battle system.”

I couldn’t help wanting to explore it more deeply.

And now, I could finally reach for it.

(Swordsmanship and Magic are both Level 1—that’s a relief!)

If they had been Level 0—well, technically, “unlisted”— I would’ve had to start from scratch.

But standing at the starting line already was pure luck.

Not all noble education was bad, after all.

“A-Alphonse…-sama?”

“Just Alphonse is fine. ‘-sama’ doesn’t suit me anymore.”

When I said that, the receptionist gave a wry smile and nervously handed me the registration card.

As I took it, the cold metal feel was distinct in my hand.

“So this is… my Adventurer Registration Card…”

Just by holding it, I couldn’t help but smile.

Somewhere in my heart, I had always been starving for this.

And now, I finally had it in my hand.

I turned to the receptionist—

“Any combat quests available?”

I knew *everything* about this world’s battle system.

But that was only from the player’s perspective.

I had never actually fought—not once.

This body’s first battle—

I was truly looking forward to it, from the bottom of my heart.

Original Author’s Comment:

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Thank you so much for reading up to this point!!

I’ll continue doing my best, so I hope you stick with me!

(Here’s the link if you want to support the Author: https://kakuyomu.jp/works/16818622176303375188.)