The Tale of Gerald Vader, the Heretic Knightโs Rampage Through Another World
โWelcome to the capital. You must be tired after your long journey.โ
After disembarking from the carriage we’d shared for two days, Alissa greeted us in front of the imposing hotel towering before us.
Twina and I would be staying at this hotel, the Golden Age, for a few days until we enrolled in the academy and moved into the dormitory.
While the Knight Academy is fundamentally a boarding school, dorm rooms are assigned based on the results of the โClass Placement Examโ.
In other words, we wouldn’t move into the dorms immediately after enrollment; we couldn’t enter until after the exam.
Incidentally, the Vader family doesn’t have a villa in the capital.
Our family isn’t wealthy enough to maintain a villa in the capital that we’d only use maybe once every twenty years.
โฆBut that aside.
โThank you for coming to greet me, Sister. The uniform suits you well.โ
Standing in the hotel rotary, Alissa wore the Knight Academy uniform and beamed with a radiant smile.
Even soโฆ even to her brother’s eyes, Sister looked stunningly beautiful in that uniform.
She looks just like the main heroine from the game itself.
Well, she is one of them, after all.
โYou’ll be wearing the same outfit in just a few days.โ
โI’m still being worn by my clothes, though.โ
โHehe, that’s only at first. After half a year, everyone develops the bearing of a knight. You’ll probably get it sooner.โ
โThat just makes me dread the future even moreโฆโ
My sister, smiling sweetly yet casually dropping terrifying hints.
So that means life at the Knight Academy is super harsh, right?
Well, knowing the main game’s scenario, that’s exactly how it is.
Now comes the real deal.
I intend to attend classes diligently while avoiding any interaction with the protagonist or other named characters as much as possible.
Like a pill bug under a rock, I plan to live quietly, unnoticed, and safely.
โฆOr so I was thinking.
Alisa looked around, her eyes darting left and right, a puzzled expression on her face.
โCome to think of it, what about Sword-Making-sama? she should be here with us.โ
โโฆIf it’s me, I’m right here.โ
A voice came from the passenger carriage, and Twina stumbled down.
Her already pale face had grown even paler, and she wore a thoroughly disheartened expression.
โIt seems Twina wasn’t used to riding. I had her rest inside for a bit.โ
โAh, so she hadn’t been on a long journey before?โ
Alissa nodded in understanding.
โEspecially since the road to the capital is quite bumpy.โ
โI did inform the attendants to proceed very slowlyโฆ but still, it’s nearly two full days of constant jostling in the carriage. Unlike the journey from Vader’s domain to its capital, the road to the royal capital passes through mountains, valleys, and treacherous terrain.โ
โOr rather, Gerald. Why are you fine, though? You said this was your first time in the capital too, didn’t you?โ
โWell, even if you say thatโฆโ
Twina muttered resentfully, but there was no real answer for this except that it was just his constitution.
Maybe it had something to do with frequently riding in cars or trains in his past life.
Or maybe the skill I acquired just the other day was preventing motion sickness before it even started.
Either way, it seemed I was unusually resistant to motion sickness now.
โ
โNow then, Swordmaker-sama. How is the magic coming along?โ
After checking in at the hotel front desk and entering our reserved room,
Alissa, who had been accompanying me and Twina, broached the subject.
She held the grimoire she’d brought with her.
Of course, it was the grimoire for โExpose,โ likely acquired at the capital’s magic item shop.
โOf course, it’s absolutely perfect.โ
Twina answered Alissa’s question with complete confidence.
For a moment, Alissa shot me a questioning glance, but I gave her a firm nod.
โSister. Her foundational magic is nearly flawless.โ
โHmph. I am a god, after all. Once I grasped the basic concepts of magic, the rest was simple.โ
โThat’s wonderful. So, do you think you can master the โExposeโ magic before enrollment?โ
โOf course. Now then, that grimoire? Let me have a look.โ
With that, the supremely confident Twina took the grimoire from Alissa.
She flipped through the pages rapidly, nodding and murmuring โHmm, hmmโ as she scanned it.
โI see, I seeโฆ The first chapter explains the fundamentals of magic we’ve studied so far. So the real work starts in Chapter 2โฆ Mm-hmm, I understandโฆ I understand itโฆ!!โ
โฆAnd then.
She finished reading it in no time at all, then snapped the grimoire shut.
โGerald. Sword-Master-sama, you’re reading that grimoire at an absurdly fast pace. Are you really okay?โ
โI think it’ll probably be fine.โ
Alissa called out worriedly at the sheer speed, but I wasn’t concerned in the slightest.
โWell, just watch.โ
โโฆRight then.โ
Twina said this and placed the grimoire on the table.
Then, taking just one deep breathโshe quietly chanted the spell.
Her body was enveloped in a faint light for just an instant.
โโฆHmm.โ
Twina nodded with satisfaction, then slowly removed the โExposure Talismanโ hanging around her neck and placed it on a nearby table.
Her form remained visible.
โโฆHow does it look?โ
โI see you clearly, Twina.โ
โI see you perfectly well too.โ
It seemed Twina had mastered the โRevealโ magic perfectly.
Truly worthy of being our family’s guardian spirit.
She really nailed it when it mattered.
Twina, seemingly pleased, flicked her hair back with a smug look.
โโฆHmph. With me, magic like this is child’s play.โ
โI never imagined you’d truly mastered the basics of magic in such a short time.โ
Alisa seemed unable to hide her surprise.
She let out gasps of admiration, as if caught off guard.
Incidentally, even if Twina hadn’t mastered the basics of magic before enrollment, she could still have entered the academy.
However, depending on her grades, she would be placed in the lowest-ranked class. For a while, she’d be stuck attending classes in a โzooโโin the worst sense of the word.
Of course, if she scored well on the regular exams held every few months, she could move up to a higher class. For Alissa, this was likely a deliberately difficult challenge, anticipating that outcome.
But I knew.
I knew she’d sneak out of bed night after night, sitting by the window, poring over magic tomes by moonlight.
I knew that whenever she encountered something she didn’t understand, she’d ask me over and over, then carry around slips of paper with the terms written on them, flipping through them constantly, memorizing them diligently, anywhere and anytime.
Well, I did come up with the idea for the so-called โflashcards,โ but it was none other than her who mastered them and perfected the fundamentals of magic.
Now, I genuinely want to praise the fruits of her labor.
โImpressive, Twina.โ
โI knew it! I knew it!โ
She turned back to me, her face twisting into a sickening grin.
โKukukuโฆ! At last, this moment has comeโฆ! Now nothing stands between us. Then, let’s beginโฆ!!โ
And with that sickening grin still on her face, she lunged at meโ
โGuh!โ
A sound like a frog being crushed escaped from her throat.
It was a sound that should never have come from a beautiful goddess.
Looking over, I saw Alissa standing behind Twina, gripping her collar tightly.
โBrilliant, Sword-Maker-sama. I never imagined you’d go this far.โ
Alissa continued, her face beaming with a broad smile.
“Then there are many magical arts you should learn before entering the academy. Basic body enhancement magic, purification magic essential for women. And you probably haven’t learned the martial arts fundamentals built on that enhancement yet. The Knight Academy is tough. Better to be prepared, whether facing gods or monsters. Gerald, I’ll be borrowing her for a while. I’ll return by dinner.”
“N-no, no, no, no! Magic aside, there’s no way I can master swordsmanship from scratch now!ใH-hold onโฆ I’m the guardian spirit of the Vader family! Let me goooooooooo!!”
โBang.
Like a lamb caught by a wolf, Twina was dragged away, and soon the door leading to the hallway closed.
Silence returned.
Only the melancholy afternoon sunlight and I were left behind in the hotel room.
โโฆโฆโฆโฆโ
Ahโฆ
I rubbed my temples hard.
Seeing Twina’s unfathomable potential had apparently ignited something in Alissa’s instructor spirit (?).
With things like this, the two of them probably wouldn’t be back in this room for the rest of the day.
My condolences.
โโฆWell then, I suppose I’ll study a bit myself.โ
Scratching my head, I muttered to myself.
Just as Alissa said, the Knight Academy is strict in every way.
When it comes to studying, there’s no such thing as doing too much.
With nothing else to do, I pulled my study materials out of my luggage and headed for the desk provided in the room.