Chapter 13 “But I will wear my heart upon my sleeve For daws to peck at. I am not what I am.”

The school bell rang loudly, echoing throughout the entire room. All the teachers and students who heard it immediately closed their books and stopped all activities they were engaged in.

It didn't feel like the third period had ended, and now the time shown by the wall clock in the young man's class was eleven o'clock in the afternoon. From the first period to the third, the young man had only been sleeping in his class, paying no attention to the lessons being taught by his teachers.

However, as the classroom suddenly became lively, and his stomach began to growl, the young man woke up from his slumber and took out the packed lunch he had stored in his backpack.

“Should I eat my lunch in the classroom? Or should I take it somewhere outside the classroom to eat?” he pondered.

“Yo! So, how does it feel to attend school in this place? Comfortable?”

Suddenly, a woman came, patting the young man on the shoulder and carrying a packed lunch in her hand.

“You... Marie? I'm sorry, but I don't have money to deal with you right now,” said the young man.

“Hey, don't be so harsh! I'm just bringing you to your class. Your seating arrangement or anything like that is not my concern,” said Marie.

After hearing Marie's explanation, the young man sighed and opened his lunchbox on the table.

“So, why did you come to me now?” the young man asked.

“Oh! Wait a minute, let's eat together to strengthen our relationship!” said Marie, pulling an empty chair from another student's desk and placing it next to the young man's.

“If you want to strengthen our relationship, you should have apologized to me first,” said the young man, slightly annoyed.

“Yeah, yeah, sorry.” said Marie, sitting on the chair opposite the young man.

“So? Why did you come here?” the young man asked while eating his lunch.

“Hmm? Of course, to strengthen our relationship. What else?” Marie replied.

“Yeah, yeah. Um... hey, have you also heard about it?” the young man asked with a hint of hesitation.

“Heard about what?”

“Have you heard that I can't read, can't use low-level magic, can't fight with weapons or bare hands, and so on?”

“Of course! I even joined in laughing at your foolishness, hahaha!” mocked Marie.

“Hah… I don't even understand. Do you come here just to be friends with me, or do you want to make me hate you even more?” complained the young man.

“Hey, hey, hey, calm down! How about this? I'll tell you how you can do all those things?” Marie offered.

“Really!? Is there a way? Don't tell me you're just going to trick me like before.” the young man said, somewhat skeptical of the offer.

“Hey, hey, I'm a freelancer, not a scammer. Also, trust from customers is the number one motto in my book.” said Marie while casually eating her food.

“Hah, okay. But this is all for free, right?”

“Hah? Free? What language is that? What sentence is that? Sorry, it seems I don't understand the meaning of your words.” said Marie, pretending to be clueless and extending her hand as if asking for something.

Immediately, the young man took a piece of meat from his lunchbox and placed it on Marie's palm.

“Um... Are you serious?” Marie asked while looking at the piece of meat that was now in her white palm.

“Of course.” replied the young man.

“Are you kidding!? Do you think my information can be paid for with just a piece of meat!?” Marie exclaimed while devouring the piece of meat.

“Hah... Hasn't anyone ever told you that you're money-minded? Well, this is all the money I currently have,” the young man complained while taking out all the money from his pocket.

“Only this much?” Marie asked in surprise.

“Yes, because last day I had to buy drinks for the group gathered on the roadside, which was organized by Kalina.” the young man explained.

“Oh, that group? Alright, in that case, I'll make this information free. After you finish your lunch, head straight to the library in this school.” Marie said, providing a map indicating the library's location.

“There are some books there that you might find interesting. Bye!” Marie exclaimed, then quickly wrapped up her lunch and ran away, leaving the young man behind.

“The library?” the young man mumbled, examining the map in his hand.

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It is currently eleven thirty in the morning. Observing the map in his hand, the young man walked towards the direction of the library.

“It seems like I've arrived,” the young man murmured at a large door leading to the library.

The library was vast with an extensive collection of books. To accommodate the numerous books, the library had towering shelves that appeared to require a ladder to reach.

Without hesitation, the young man entered the library and promptly searched for the book he was looking for. Similar to his previous world, the library was quiet and deserted, except for a few teachers and students assigned to maintain order.

An hour passed, and the young man couldn't find a single book he could read. Despite specifying that he was looking for books with characters from foreign lands, the writings still looked unfamiliar to him.

“Is it possible that even in a library this large, there's not a single book I can read?” the young man wondered.

While wandering around the quiet library, suddenly, a man's angry shout echoed through the space.

“You stupid dog! I told you to bring me quality ingredients, not something that looks good! Look! Because of your mistake, all the potion ingredients I used are now ruined and unusable!” the man yelled.

The young man quickly ran towards the source of the voice and discovered that his classmate, an Alchemist, was grabbing the red hair of a woman.

“For a sinner like you, you should be grateful to me because I always pay for your work! Do you want me to report this incident to the school so they can expel you for trying to sabotage my research? I'm sure if I report it, you might even get a death sentence for attempting to disrupt my study.” threatened the Alchemist.

“I'm sorry...” the woman replied weakly.

“Sorry!? Do you think everything you've damaged can be fixed with just an apology? DON'T GIVE ME THAT SHIT!” the Alchemist shouted.

The Alchemist then unleashed a series of brutal punches to the woman's face, causing her to bleed and collapse on the floor.

The Alchemist stood there, staring at his bloodied right hand, and suddenly, a small smile appeared on his face.

“This... is enjoyable,” the Alchemist muttered.

“Your filthy blood... doesn't seem so bad. Hey Mongrel! If you want me to keep this a secret, you have to keep lying there until I'm satisfied with beating you.” commanded the Alchemist.

The woman who had been beaten by the Alchemist remained lying on the floor without uttering a single word.

The Alchemist then stepped over the woman, straddling her as he prepared to deliver even more severe blows to her face.

“Be prepared. I think this is going to be an interesting for both of us.” said the Alchemist.

Without paying attention to the Alchemist's words, the woman remained silent, turning her face towards the young man who had been watching the scene from a distance.

Observing this, the young man felt as if Cecilia's silver eyes were continuously looking at him, filled with hope for him to intervene and rescue her from her suffering.

“...Cecilia!?” the young man whispered.

Immediately, the young man ran towards the Alchemist and kicked him away from Cecilia. With a stronger physique, the young man's kick sent the Alchemist crashing into a bookshelf nearby.

“Aww! Who the hell are you!? Don't you know I'm one of the seven knights of this country!?” the Alchemist barked.

“You fool! Even if you're a knight, your behavior doesn't reflect that of a true knight! Are you not ashamed of hitting a defenseless woman who had no intention of fighting back?” the young man retorted.

“You, Wallace!? What is this? Since when did you become like this? Why are you... Wait, could it be what they say is… true?” the Alchemist spoke.

Though slightly injured and surprised, the Alchemist suddenly smiled with great delight.

“Good, it seems like it's true; you've indeed changed! Excellent, this is very interesting,” the Alchemist said with a broad smile on his face.

“What do you mean?” the young man asked.

“What I mean is someone like you, who used to be an oppressor, suddenly wanting to try and become a saint when all your memories and powers are gone! Do you think people hate you at this school for no reason? Why are they happy seeing you suffer? And why are your parents frightened when their strongest child, capable of protecting their family, loses their strength and memories? It's all because your family was the cruelest oppressor in this world! Hahaha!” mocked the Alchemist.

“No, it's impossible! Despite being rough, they both were not...”

Suddenly, the young man recalled what his family did to Kalina and why everyone always seemed fearful toward him and his family.

“Hahaha! See! You also understand what I'm saying, right!? Now guess it! What will happen after everyone in this entire country finds out that you've lost all your powers and memories? The answer is they'll prepare to seek revenge against all your family! Hahaha! It's too late for you, oh Hero of the prophecy...” jeered the Alchemist.

Hearing the Alchemist's words, the young man stood there in contemplation, observing his surroundings. He looked towards Cecilia, who was still lying on the library floor, gazing at the ceiling. With a sigh, the young man reached out to Cecilia to help her stand.

“Hey, Cecilia, how long are you going to lie on this filthy floor?” the young man asked.

“...” Cecilia remained silent, continuing to lie on the library floor.

“Never mind, she won't stand from that floor.” the Alchemist commented.

“Huh!? Why?” the young man asked.

““Because she is my family's slave. How else do you think she could get into this school if not for being my family's slave?”

The young man then stood upright, gazing into the Alchemist's eyes.

“Hey, do you think this world isn't weird?” the young man asked the Alchemist.

“Weird?”

“Yes, too weird. Look around you; this is a backward world! Slavery, oppression, exclusion, uneven power, caste-based politics, destructive religion, and so on. Even someone's kindness is viewed as disgusting in this holy city,” the young man explained.

“What are you trying to say?” the Alchemist asked.

“What I mean is I want to challenge you! I'll defeat you and show that I can change this wrong world! And my first step is to save this one woman.” declared the young man.

“So, you mean you want to fight me to free that Mongrel?” asked the Alchemist.

“Yes.” confidently answered the young man.

“Then what reward will you give me if I win the fight?” the Alchemist asked.

“It's up to you; just state your desire,” replied the young man.

“... I want you to bow down and lick my shoes. How about that? Not bad, right?” said the Alchemist.

“... Alright, if that's what you want,” the young man agreed.

“Great! Alright! This is something I've been waiting for my entire life! By my position as one of the seven knights of this country, I challenge you to a duel!” declared the Alchemist.

“I accept. In the name and position I hold, I swear to change this wrong world!”

And not long after, the school halted all their classes and began announcing the duel between the two legendary knights in the country. All students and teachers cheered loudly, thinking that all of this was just a dream.

Because for the first time in history, the two members of the legendary knights would engage in a battle in the grandest and largest colosseum in the world.

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