"A-ahm, are you a noble?" As I was leading them towards the class for the first year, Emily asked me, coming a little closer. She didn't show it, but she was stealing glances at me for quite some time.
Heh. Even she can't handle my charm.
The rest of the group were looking around the building in awe, mostly because of the lavishness and cleanliness of the building. They were acting like country pumpkins, which, in a sense, they were.
"Why do you think so?" Curiously, I asked instead of replying, knowing how much she dislikes nobles. If I say yes, she will most probably not talk to me anymore.
"Just a hunch," she replied.
"Hmm, I used to be one, but now I am disowned," I replied, and now everyone was looking at me.
"I a-am s-sorry," she replied, albeit a little flustered.
"Don't be." I replied, not bothered by her words.
"Why were you disowned, man?" Berg asked curiously, following behind me. His words made everyone glare at him, except Aron. He was still trying to calm himself down.
'Bro, look after your girl first,' I thought, but kept those words to myself.
"You will know soon enough," I replied as I caught a glimpse of the classroom.
"Come on, tell me," he insisted, but I just ignored him.
"This one is the 'Osmium class,'" I said as soon as we reached the place, pointing towards the class in front of me.
"And there is the 'Platinum class,'" pointing towards the other class at the end of the corridor, I added.
"That's my class," Berg said as he started to move towards his Platinum class—well, not before talking for a while with Cassia.
"Rest of you in this class?" I asked as I saw the remaining people: Emily, Cassia, the brunette-haired girl Nora, and the hero Aron.
"Looks like it," for the first time, Aron replied with his signature smile while looking at the girls.
Nora smiled back, Cassia just nodded, and Emily stepped back in disgust. Seriously, I should have waited a little longer to know what happened with them.
With a nod, I twisted the doorknob, and with a soft click sound, the door opened.
As soon as I entered the classroom, the whole class went silent. Everyone's gaze was on me; not a single one of them said anything as they all stared at me.
My gaze also observed the class. I recognized quite a few of them, being the class of the hero. Most of them had a few roles in the game, while some stood out, like the chocolate-skinned girl and a few of the girls, most of them being sub-heroines.
However, my gaze soon got fixated on the blonde-haired girl who, like a queen, was sitting in the middle of the class.
My heart raced a little, but I managed to calm down after a deep breath. Even after all this time, Eden's feelings for her were still within me. But damn, she looked as beautiful as I remembered.
She quickly shifted her attention away from me, not able to meet my gaze.
However, the silence in the class didn't last long, as multiple people gasped, looking at me.
Some did that because of my face, while people who I had spent my childhood with did that because they recognized me.
The sound of my footsteps echoed in the class as I made my way towards the last row through the stairs in the middle, as it was the only place left empty.
As I walked, my gaze shifted from Angelina towards the girl beside her.
Her light brown hair fell down on her shoulders as she placed her hand under her chin.
However, unlike Angelina, she wasn't trying to ignore me; she was locking eyes with me.
Aeloria Starfayre, aside from Emily and Angelina, is the third main heroine of the game.
And if my guess is right, she, like me, is also reincarnated in this world.
"Hmm." As I sat down, I looked beside me, only to find the rest of them had also followed, sitting right beside me.
"Why are you guys sitting here?" I asked, looking at them. On my right, Aron was sitting, and just beside him were Cassia and Nora. On my left was Emily.
"It's the only empty seat," Emily replied as she placed her bag on the desk. Wait, bag?
Now that I looked around, all of them carried a bag with them.
There weren't going to be any classes, so why bother?
The hushed voices in the class had not gone silent, as most of them still hadn't recovered from my entrance.
"Is that you, Eden?" As I was lost in my thoughts, a soft, melodic voice brought me back to reality.
I looked up, and in front of me was a beautiful girl.
Her black hair was tied in a low ponytail, and her chocolate-colored skin shone in the light of the classroom.
As people heard her, another round of gasps resonated in the class.
"E-Eden?"
"The same Eden from rumors..."
"Why is he here?"
The voices of my classmates started to grow louder and louder as they finally recognized who I was, but I kept my focus on the girl in front of me.
"Fatima," I mumbled slowly as I looked at the girl, who had a mischievous smile on her face.
She is the daughter of Duke Ironheart of the South and the sub-heroine of the first game.
"Yep, it's me," I replied with a slight smile, placing my hands under my chin.
"H-he is really here!"
"Why is he even in this class?"
"Why does he have the nerve to come here, especially in the princess's class?"
And just as I thought, the class erupted in noise when they confirmed my identity.
The people around me also moved away a bit.
"Are you enjoying this?" I asked Fatima. Her mischievous smile has now turned into a grin.
"Whatever you mean, Eden~," she replied happily as she walked back to her seat.
I knew that bitch did that on purpose to stir up some drama.
And as if that wasn't enough, a group of three boys started walking toward me.
"Why did you come?" The leader of the trio asked, his voice hostile, and his face seemed ready for a confrontation.
"Why can't I be here, Cardin?" I retorted as I looked at him.
He had light green hair matching his eyes, cut in a buzz cut, and sharp facial features that exuded authority.
"Leave!" He shouted, pointing at the door.
"Why? Just because Fatima talked to me a little?" I asked curiously, observing his anger-filled expression.
Except for my sister, every daughter of the Duke already has a fiancé fixed in their childhood.
There is intermarriage between the Duke families, and hardly anyone outside has the chance to marry them.
In the game, you have to fight and defeat their fiancé if you want to win them over.
"No! Because you don't deserve to be here!" He shouted, slamming the desk.
"And who the fuck are you to decide that?" I replied, looking into his eyes as I stood up, arriving ahead of him. As I was a head taller than him, I was now looking down on him.
"How dare you talk to the Lord like that!" the one beside Cardin shouted as he reached to grab my collar.
*Crack...*
But before he could do that, I grabbed his hand. With just a little pressure, his wrist snapped, making a cracking sound.
"AHHHH!"
He cried out in pain, bending down on his knees, tears threatening to drop from his eyes, but I didn't loosen my grip.
I jerked his hand, making him face me.
"His status means nothing to me." I tightened the grip on his hand, making him cry out loudly. "So, know your place, pest."
With that, I loosened my grip.
I know violence isn't the right thing to do on the first day, but I can't be passive here.
The only thing that will stop them from annoying me is strength and fear, which I will show them.
"Now, shall we?" I asked as I looked back at Cardin, who started to take a hand-to-hand combat stance, and so did I.
"If you guys want to fight, do it later, not now," the soothing voice of Angelina stopped us.
I looked at her; her gaze was on Cardin as he loosened his stance.
Even though a small part of me wanted to listen to her words and didn't want to hurt her feelings, I didn't stop.
I don't want these small, lingering feelings, and the best way to lose them is to face them.
"Cardin," I said, making him focus on me. With a smirk, I continued, "Are you chickening out?"
He snapped as he took the stance again.
And just as he was about to start the fight, the door of the classroom opened, and Sophia came in.
Her gaze landed on the kneeling student on the floor, then towards Cardin, and finally towards me.
"Eden Morton, you lose 10 academic points."