Chapter 267: Hugo Whitworth
The atmosphere by the entrance turned cold for a moment.
Almost every new student turned to look at the commotion in disbelief.
The majority of the noble students held a disdainful expression, whereas the commoner students all kept their heads low, afraid of being implicated.
In the meantime, the noble who was scolded had a darkened expression.
Their eyes narrowed into a cold light. "Say that again, Commoner!"
"Apologies, I didn’t calculate that the fatness in your belly might affect your hearing too," Leonard said regretfully.
Then, in a shocking manner, he took a deep breath and exclaimed.
"I’M SORRY THAT I BLOCK YOUR FAT BODY FROM PASSING THROUGH THIS WIDE SPACE!"
The volume was extremely loud, ensuring that even a deaf person might have restored their hearing.
"YOU!"
Instantly, the noble was enraged. They directly lifted their sleeves and threatened coldly.
"How dare a mere commoner try to make a fool out of me? I’ll have your family drown!"
"Oh, you want to drown my family?" Leonard’s eyes lit up.
"Are you sure you can drown them with your physique size?"
"..."
Just when the noble was about to go a step further, the nearby pigeon suddenly flew toward them and warned sternly.
"No fighting at the academy entrance! One more time and you will be expelled."
"Hmph!" The enraged noble snorted coldly. He gave one last glare at Leonard and made a slicing neck gesture.
"Remember this well. I am Hugo Whitworth, son of Count Liam Whitworth."
Shortly after their exclamation, the enraged noble Hugo glanced around the surroundings and lifted his chin up. He fixed his uniform slightly and walked away.
’And here I thought he was just your typical arrogant noble.’ Leonard narrowed his eyes.
Others might have been mistaken or even fooled by that act of his.
However, it seemed like their improvisation wasn’t inferior in any way. By proclaiming his identity, he was essentially painting a light of conceit.
But upon closer inspection, Hugo made himself the focus.
Conceit only applies if the person was all talk and no show. Once they proved themselves, those conceited behaviors would turn into confidence.
In return, the person he clashed with would appear to be the unreasonable and ridiculous one.
To summarize, Leonard was being used as a stepping stone by said noble.
Truly, one could never be deceived by what was shown on the surface.
’I was probably the clown.’ He knitted his brows and exhaled softly. This world had no lack of clever and intelligent people.
Each move he made must be planned more carefully.
With this lesson in mind, Leonard highly doubted his little disguise play could last long. If anything, he could even be discovered already, but the people in charge chose to feign blindness.
After all, his status was the Crown Prince.
Who wants to be on the opposite end of the Crown Prince?
...
On the upper floor in a secure room within the academy, multiple people were gathered around. Each one of them was draped in a fancy outfit that depicted their positions.
They were none other than the instructors, otherwise known as professors.
Similar to how Mirelle was addressed as a tutor, its level was superior to that of an instructor. And depending on the situation, a tutor could be equal or a bit inferior to that of a Professor.
Needless to say, Mirelle’s level was comparable to that of a Professor. If that had not been the case, she wouldn’t have been highly sought and even recruited to become a guest instructor.
Granted that there weren’t any "instructors" in the academy because everyone here was a Professor, Mirelle being the sole guest instructor was an exception.
"What do you think of their interaction?" One of the people in the room asked.
They had witnessed the ordeal at the entrance gate. Added to their special detection runes, it was relatively easy for them to discover Leonard’s disguise.
The disguise itself wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t perfect enough to not leak out the tiny residual of mana usage. Those tiny residuals were detected and alarmed the rest.
"It’s the Crown Prince of Aldros. We couldn’t possibly disqualify him for using a magic disguise." Another Professor shrugged.
Although the intention of such action was unclear to them, many of them held no desire to pursue the issue.
That was the power of status and background.
If it was a mere commoner who deliberately broke the rule, they would have been expelled without a second chance.
Even an explanation for their action wouldn’t be heard.
However, Leonard was the future emperor if nothing major changed.
The Professors also had the backing of the Mage Tower. But unless absolutely necessary, the Mage Tower wouldn’t engage in direct confrontation with the Aldros Empire either.
"Just feign ignorance and continue the Aptitude Test. Since the academy promised guest instructor Mirelle to establish a fair test, we shall honor that." An old Professor stroked their beard and said calmly.
"I have no interest in catching Rosie’s flame." He continued.
Archmage Rosie was the mentor of Mirelle, and many Mages agreed silently to never provoke her.
The title Archmage wasn’t for show. Neither was it self-proclaimed.
It was a title only obtained when multiple high-ranked Mages acknowledged their ability and achievement.
"Hmm, you’re right, Rupert. Just wait for it to play out while we evaluate this new batch of students. There are so many policy changes on our plate already."
...
In the blink of an eye, every student was directed to a large open field. The field was surrounded by a very powerful magic barrier.
"Find a spot for yourself, but do not wander past the boundary lines."
Nearby academy staff all echoed the same slogan. They warned and advised the students not to step past the boundary line.
"Hoh, I wonder what will happen if we do step out."
"You’re curious too?"
"Who wouldn’t be?"
A few noble students laughed among themselves before they spotted a nearby female commoner student.
They were so socially awkward and wore some old glasses. The perfect candidate to be a test subject.