The Invincible Army

“Wouldn’t that be a bit much?”

Flora whispered.

In the classroom, all students sat in the front, while their attendants consciously sat in the back rows.

Only a very small number of students, seemingly those with powerful abilities, outstanding talent, or prominent family backgrounds, were exceptions.

Ryan, of course, met this standard.

But he was an external student; a strong dragon doesn’t oppress a local snake, and for various considerations such as integrating into the class and making a good impression… at least Flora believed Ryan should act like a regular student.

Ryan didn’t answer; instead, he pulled Flora without explanation to the gloomy student.

“Move over one seat,” he said calmly.

“Y-yes, Your Highness.”

The gloomy student dared not disobey and immediately shifted one seat to the left.

Ryan didn’t sit down himself; instead, he had Flora sit in the middle, while he sat in the aisle seat, demonstrating his domineering attitude.

Flora, having realized Ryan’s firm stance, no longer resisted.

When she subtly transmitted a message:

“Your Highness, you did very well.”

“Hm.”

Flora had now understood.

The situation in the classroom was different from the mansion.

Here, whether people were fearful, disgusted, or indifferent… overall, their initial positioning was as enemies.

And the kind of enemies who were naive, bullied the weak and feared the strong, and were easily impulsive.

In such circumstances, if one showed weakness, the enemies would pounce like hungry wolves and tear at them…

So, there could be no retreat.

No display of weakness.

Everyone needed to know that while this might not necessarily be the best approach, it was definitely better than Flora’s slightly weaker approach.

This wasn’t to say Ryan had suddenly become enlightened and smarter than Flora.

Rather, their living environments and experiences were different.

This was a situation Ryan was familiar with, one he had encountered most frequently, and he was already very adept at it.

But it wasn’t that Flora didn’t understand the principle of not being soft-hearted towards enemies.

However, Flora simply didn’t regard these students in the academy, who posed no great threat, as enemies.

Instead, she saw them as a group of adorable, naive children… rather, she was looking at them with a ‘doting aunt’ mentality.

‘(This time Flora was a bit arrogant… I am currently just a maid by the Crown Prince’s side, nothing more…)’

After readjusting her mindset and role, Flora naturally displayed a proud and self-assured expression, sitting upright in her seat.

Of course, this was just a facade; deep down, she felt a pang of pity for Ryan.

“No need to feel that way. This is the understanding expected of a member of the royal family…”

“Rather, I was a bit obsessive before, treating my family and subordinates as enemies to guard against.”

Ryan sensed her thoughts.

“Thanks to you, I no longer cause sadness to those who care about me…

I also don’t believe your approach is wrong, after all, our ultimate goal is to reduce the number of enemies in the academy.”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

Ryan constantly remembered to achieve small goals first, and Flora smiled with relief.

At the same time, she decided to leverage her attractive appearance to compensate for Ryan’s shortcomings.

So she turned and asked the ordinary student beside her, waving her hand in a friendly manner, and said with delight:

It must be said, her appearance and amiability were quite formidable.

The gloomy young man, who had been somewhat listless, gradually calmed down upon seeing this.

“Student, I am Crown Prince Ryan’s maid, my name is Flora Haggia. What is your name?”

Considering the goal of recruiting the other party, Flora took a more proactive approach.

The gloomy young man, however, was stunned, and discreetly cast a sound-transmission spell with his wand under the table.

‘Instant sound-transmission magic? And no wand needed? And the magic fluctuations are too faint…’

‘Ah, no, my name is Defen Flight. I am from the Flight Baronet family in the southeast. Hello, Miss Haggia.’

[Hello, Mr. Flight, you are also very impressive; your spellcasting has almost no magic fluctuations.]

‘No, I was just going to say, I was startled…’

‘No, compared to you, I am… Huh, I guess you are just a minor mage?’

“Yes, but this magical technique is actually unrelated to being a Grand Mage, Mr. Flight, you can achieve it too.”

‘Is, is that so?’

Flight became a bit unconfident and wanted to ask for more details but was worried it might be a secret family technique, so he felt embarrassed to speak up.

Just then, the teacher arrived.

“Let’s talk again when we have time.”

Flora decisively ended the conversation.

She immediately recognized that Flight was very interested in magical techniques, so she deliberately guided the conversation in that direction and piqued his curiosity, so she could use it as a topic for their next interaction.

“Making friends shouldn’t be rushed; it needs to be done step by step, gradually deepening one’s impression in the other person’s mind, making them often think of you…”

Flora immediately informed Ryan of her thoughts and explained her strategy.

“The principle is still the same as breaking down the main objective… I will fully grasp it and put it into practice.”

Ryan nodded slightly.

At the same time, he quickly recalled Flora’s annoying actions two months ago, when she greeted him again and again… but in the end, he didn’t ask anything.

“Good morning, students. From today onwards, you are fifth-year students of the academy.

Although most of you already know the significance of fifth-year students, I must reiterate it here…”

The teacher began speaking.

It was clear to anyone that this was specifically an introduction for the newly admitted Ryan and Flora.

However, Ryan did know the significance of being a fifth-year at the Royal Academy.

By fifth grade, students could choose to graduate and leave school or continue their studies.

Even in the best noble schools, most students preferred to stay for two more years, as with their background, they were generally assured a comfortable life in the future, and graduation merely meant waiting for their fathers to pass away to inherit their titles.

But only the eldest son could inherit the family business.

Second sons, third sons, those establishing their own households, or those wishing to be promoted from baron to count, could only achieve this through meritorious service.

Considering the current emperor’s preference for martial achievements, joining one of the six great knight orders became the best path for these students.

And eldest sons who had no intention of joining a knight order would also participate in the assessment to prove themselves to the world.

In such circumstances, passing the assessment in the fifth year, whether one chose to leave or stay, was immensely glorious and something to boast about to countless people within the school for a long time.

Of course, Ryan regarded this as a good way to promote his abilities.

Considering it was merely a matter of convenience, Ryan did not refuse.

However, speaking of this, Ryan also wanted to take the opportunity to change a situation.

Namely, for the past three years of campus recruitment, not a single student at the Star Academy wanted to join the Black Dragon Knights.

Even the number of people participating in the assessment was the lowest among the five knight orders.

It was only the underperforming students who felt they couldn’t pass the other four knight orders who would come…

Ryan naturally did not let such people pass simply because of a lack of talent.

You ask why there are only five knight orders?

Congratulations, you’ve found the crucial point.

The Azure Sky Knights do not recruit at school; instead, students go north to undergo assessments, starting as foot soldiers and earning promotions based on military achievements and performance.

However, the number of volunteers wishing to join the Azure Sky Knights is still the highest within the school.

The reason is also simple.

In the eight years since the Azure Sky Knights were established, they have achieved a ninety percent win rate in battles, big and small.

The unit led by the commander of that knight order has never suffered any defeats, always victorious in battle, and incurred the fewest casualties in the entire empire.

Therefore, it is said that as long as one can join the Azure Sky Knights, they will gain military merits and even be ennobled while simply ‘lying down’.

Although those who merely dream of this cannot possibly join, it also indirectly shows the immense standing of the Azure Sky Knights in people’s hearts.

…One more thing I forgot to mention… In November, the Azure Sky Knights will conduct assessments on campus.

Those interested, please prepare in advance.

As these words were spoken, it was as if a thunderbolt had exploded in the classroom.