The Romance Fantasy Novel MC is Only Into Me

Becoming a temporary professor at the academy was not difficult.
As soon as a spot opened up due to the professor’s injured ankle, the son of the Duke’s family arrived promptly, clutching a pile of recommendation letters.

Once his abilities were proven to the professors, everything went smoothly afterward.
“There won’t be anything difficult. Just stay at the academy on weekdays and lightly supervise training for three hours a day. We’ll handle the rest.”
“So I get to coast by.”

“We can’t expect much from someone here temporarily. Take it easy with your guidance.”
The professors of the knight department didn’t expect much from an unofficially appointed ‘temporary professor’ anyway.
They seemed to regard Ransell as little more than a placeholder until the official professor appeared.

“Just until we bring in the real professor, do your best without causing trouble.”
“Of course. Though I wonder if a professor will really come.”
“...?”

Of course, before Ransell wanted it, no official professor appeared.
The knight department at the academy was cursed so that there would always be one vacant professorship. Just like Baron Onis. The cause was an unknown accident, leaving one spot perpetually empty.
“I’m just saying.”

“...Is that so.”
The academy professors shivered at Ransell’s subtle tone. They were perceptive people.
Anyway, the appearance of the young temporary professor in the knight department attracted attention in many ways.

It was natural he drew a lot of interest inside and outside the academy.
“Ransell Dante? Who’s that?”
“The temporary professor.”

“He hasn’t even been a knight for five years, I heard.”
“Someone like that as a professor?”
Some even expressed dissatisfaction, especially from the higher-status academy students.
They didn’t like having a professor close to their age.

“Professor Ransell Dante.”
Some wore discontented expressions from the first time Ransell appeared at the training ground.
“I heard academy professors aren’t just anyone... Your name sounds unfamiliar to me.”

“......”
“I’m just questioning whether I’m really supposed to be under you. Don’t take offense; I’m just being honest.”
They were softening their words to say, “Who is this nobody trying to act like a professor?”

In the academy, the professor-trainee relationship was a nominal hierarchy, regardless of noble status.
‘The heir to Duke Mond, Wibel Mond...’
Ransell loosened his body, watching a well-dressed man with earrings.
“Say something, Lord Ransell Dante.”

The man, marked as ‘Duke Heir’ in the game, gave Ransell a challenging look.
“Alright.”
Ransell let dozens of wooden swords fall to the ground.

The academy students watched in confusion as the wooden swords scattered across the grass.
“Since this is our first class, how about I see your skills?”
Ransell smiled.

“I need to check if you lot are talented enough to question a professor’s authority.”
“You mean sparring?”
“Let’s say it’s both a spar and a test.”

Picking up one wooden sword, he motioned to them.
“I’ll give the highest score to anyone who manages to touch me with their blade even once. How about that?”
Murmurs spread.

It was a surprisingly bold condition.
“Don’t you all want to graduate top and raise your family’s name? Come on, pick one up. First come, first served.”
One or two cautiously stepped forward, grabbing wooden swords.

“I’ll go first. Ransell Dante.”
“Anytime.”
Moments later,

Cries echoed from the training ground.
“Argh!”
“I lost! I lost! I surrender, why...!”

“Aaagh!”
“A knight crawling on the ground, how pathetic. Next!”
“Aaaaah!”

“P-please spare me!”
.
.

.
“What are they doing?”
“It looks like the new temporary professor is sparring with trainees...”

“Sparring? That?”
The so-called sparring centered on Ransell Dante was really abuse, assault, and one-sided violence.
It only stopped when passing professors noticed.

“Stop! Stop! You’ll kill someone!”
Ransell put down the wooden sword while looking at the trainees sprawled on the ground.
The challenging looks toward him changed to terrified eyes in just over two hours.

No trainee in the knight department—male or female—escaped without bruises.
If those had been real swords, at least one limb would be gone, and their morale plummeted.
“Talent is good, but you’re still far from ready. Keep working hard.”

After that day, no one questioned Ransell’s qualifications.
Knights were the type who believed the most convincing lesson was to experience it firsthand.
Having fully settled into the academy, Ransell—

“Today’s class.”
During the thrice-weekly training he was responsible for—
“Is self-study.”

“Huh?”
“Train on your own.”
“Ah, yes.”

The next day too—
“Self-study.”
And the day after—

“Self-study.”
The following week—
“That.”

And the week after that—
“Well.”
“...”

It was a class neglect disguised as ‘self-study.’
He did nothing at the academy and simply loafed around, fully establishing his position as a freeloader.
Since the academy’s only goal was ranking the knights, the class content didn’t matter as long as evaluations were done properly.

Especially the knight department. Those who had wielded swords since their first steps had little need for theory.
Experience and combat were more important.
Majors like magic and administration were very different.

‘Is Marigold still an outcast?’
Around then, Ransell spotted Marigold, whom he hadn’t seen for a while.
“What are you doing?”

Three weeks after becoming a temporary professor at the academy, Ransell found her eating a sandwich with messy hair.
“Making friends reduces the threat level of humans.”
“......”

“The perfect world where no one gets hurt.”
She looked very strange after a long time.
 
———

[Fallen Noble /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ Lady Simulation]
Schedule for the fourth week of March.
Mon – Magic theory class. (Location: Classroom)

Tue – Applied magic practice. (Location: Training ground)
Wed – Magic tool crafting. (Location: Workshop)
Thu – Basic magic class. (Location: Classroom)

Fri – Applied magic practice. (Location: Training ground)
Sat – Jenise’s magic research assistant.
Sun – Jenise’s magic research assistant.

※Goal: Make 100 friends!
———
Unlike the knight department, which was just for competition,

the magic department had proper educational facilities.
Carefully selected professors from the capital lectured the academy students on their magic theories.
The academy functioned as a ‘university’ by recruiting research students to develop magic.

“Stop dawdling or you’ll be late for class, miss!”
“Aaah!”
“I told you not to doze off. You already know no one will wake you up.”

“I didn’t think Pina would be so strict!”
“Is that an excuse?”
“No, it’s not—!”

“Hurry up and run!”
Urged by Pina, Marigold clutched a pile of books and ran down the corridor.
Her tightly tied hair and scruffy robe fluttered as she hurried toward the classroom where class was probably in session.

“Ah!
Her ankle twisted, and the next moment she fell with a thud.
The books and papers she carried spilled everywhere.

“No—!”
“It’s hopeless. You don’t have time, what are you doing?”
“Aaah!”

While she scrambled to pick up the documents, a pale hand appeared before her and helped.
“Are you okay?”
Looking up, she saw a handsome boy looking down at her.

“I’ll help you pick them up.”
“Oh, I’m fine.”
Marigold shook her head so fast it made a swooshing sound.

Perhaps fearing he’d intervene, she quickly gathered the dropped items herself.
“I’ll do it. Yep.”
“......”

The boy blinked awkwardly, staring at his outstretched hand.
“I’ve wondered, Mary, are you avoiding me?”
He was a boy with a refined appearance that made him seem almost like a girl.

Blue bob-cut hair, drooping eyes, a faint smile always lingering at his mouth’s corner, a tear mark, pure white robe.
He was a boy mage with a sophisticated look that made passersby turn to look at him.
“Are you avoiding me because some don’t like me? If that’s why, I can talk to them.”

“No, it’s not that.”
“If not, it doesn’t matter. I want to be friends with you...”
“It’s just, it’s just not true!”

Marigold ran down the corridor without looking back.
“Ugh!”
Not long after, she fell again but didn’t accept his help and gathered all the papers herself.

“......”
The boy stood silently, quietly watching Marigold disappear into the distance.
“Ah! Lord Aldehar! Why are you here? Class is starting.”

A female research student from the magic department approached him brightly. Her eyes sparkled endlessly as she looked at him.
“Aren’t you late? It’s unusual for Lord Aldehar to be late. That’s surprising.”
Simply being able to talk to people like that made him happy; that was his usual image.

“I’ll walk with you to the classroom, Lord Aldehar. Hehe.”
The boy called Aldehar pondered something briefly, then spoke.
“Hey, do you think I’m hated?”

“Huh? By wh-who? Lord Aldehar?”
“Yes.”
“Impossible! Who would hate Lord Aldehar? The heir of the Lukia Kingdom and the youngest fourth-tier prodigy mage, Lord Aldehar! Who on this continent would!”

“Really?”
“Of course!”
Despite the flattering praise, Aldehar felt no special emotion.

“But it’s not easy to get close to Mary.”
“Ah, Mary is...”
The research student glanced aside.

Marigold.
She was already a well-known outcast in the magic department.
“Mary’s a bit peculiar. Haha...”

“Really?”
“There are rumors...”
Rumors about Marigold were already widespread within the magic department.

That she was a commoner, orphan, Jenise’s disciple, a newbie to magic, a half-ugly kid, and so on.
Among the many rumors, the most damaging was what had happened when she first arrived at the academy.