The Absolute Speed of a Certain Comic'

"So, are the three of us classmates now?"

Kurogane Ikki was quite pleased to hear this, his face breaking into his signature gentle smile.

He subconsciously glanced at Ryoji.

Could it be fate? The two of them, heirs to two legendary knights' surnames, were gradually intertwining their fates. This gave Kurogane Ikki a sense of urgency, like "from now on, I can't slack off."

After glancing at Ryoji, he awkwardly turned his head away.

"?"

Stella tilted her head, confused by Kurogane Ikki's reaction. She felt something was unusual about it.

His face was slightly awkward, and he didn't dare to look at Ryoji.

Stella furrowed her brows, then suddenly realized, her face darkening like the bottom of a pot.

Even she had to admit, Ryoji's charm was almost beyond belief. It made her feel embarrassed, and she could imagine anyone, no matter who, being struck by his presence— regardless of gender.

When he stood there, sometimes even butterflies or migratory birds would fly toward him, circling around his body, as though even the world itself recognized his allure.

"By the way, I've been meaning to ask."

Stella took another sip of her drink, pretending to act nonchalant as she asked.

"Ryoji, your last name is Nangou, right? Could it be... the Nangou family?"

"Yes."

"Is it really true? Are you the direct descendant of the God of War?"

Stella smiled on the surface, but her heart tightened suddenly.

For some reason, she felt like she had lost. Even though he was male, he was still more beautiful than her, and the strange relationship between him and Ikki—even a rivalry— felt off to her.

"No, not a direct descendant."

Ryoji, oblivious to their thoughts, continued casually.

Since his reincarnation, he had gotten used to everyone, regardless of gender, casting furtive glances at him. Being too charming was troublesome like that.

"When people hear my last name, they think I'm a descendant of Nangou Torajirou, but actually, I was found by my master… apparently, I was picked up on a snowy night."

That's right. Ryoji's reincarnation had a touch of the fantastical.

According to his master, one winter night, while strolling in the snow, he saw a golden light falling from the sky, and within that light was Ryoji. His master, intrigued, decided not to ignore the extremely weak infant and took him home, raising him with great care.

In this world of Blazers, it wasn't entirely impossible to explain. After all, some babies had such powerful special abilities that they could unintentionally activate them, potentially causing them to be separated from their parents.

However, it seemed his master also tried to trace his biological parents in secret but found no leads. From this, it appeared that Ryoji's rebirth was indeed full of mysteries— he may well have been "born of nature," without any parents.

So, Ryoji's luck since his rebirth had been incredibly good. If his master hadn't picked him up from the snow, he most likely would have frozen to death in the cold.

But, in reality, his luck was truly delicate...

"It's almost time for the opening ceremony. I'll head back now."

Ryoji snapped out of his thoughts, waved to the two, and walked away from the main gate.

"So, Ryoji isn't really a descendant of the God of War? I didn't know that."

Kurogane Ikki watched Ryoji's retreating figure with a surprised look on his face.

Even though he wasn't a direct descendant, the fact that he bore the same surname as the God of War seemed to indicate that Ryoji held an important place in the God of War's heart.

"Ikk—!"

Suddenly, a loud, low roar sounded from beside him, startling Kurogane Ikki.

"Are you going to become gay because of that guy?"

Stella asked him anxiously.

"Of course not!"

Kurogane Ikki's face dropped, and he couldn't help but shout.

...

At 9 AM, the opening ceremony started on time.

The three grades, with a total of over 700 students and nearly a hundred teachers, gathered in the auditorium to hear about this year's changes in the system from Shinguuji Kurono.

Then came the speech from the student president, Toudou Touka. Overall, it was the same old rhetoric— words about welcome, effort, and so on—which Ryoji couldn't care less about.

Around 10 AM, the faculty and students dispersed and returned to their respective classrooms.

''Year 1, Class 1.''

Located in the first teaching building, turn left on the third floor, and it's the first room.

This year, there were about 250 freshmen at Hagun Academy, divided into ten classes, each with 25 students.

When Ryoji entered the classroom, almost all of the students in ''Year 1, Class 1'' had already arrived. Ryoji took a quick glance around and saw no familiar faces, except for Kurogane Ikki and Stella.

"Nangou San!"

As Ryoji was thinking this, an excited voice reached his ears.

Looking toward the source of the voice, a girl with short peach-colored hair appeared in his view. She had a youthful, cute face and quite the magnetic presence, wearing gold-rimmed glasses, and her bright eyes were now fixated on him as she approached.

"You're the camera younger sister from that day?"

Ryoji remembered her presence... no, I mean, he remembered her face.

"Yes, yes, yes! I'm Kusakabe Kagami! I can't believe Nangou San remembers me! I'm so touched!"

The girl, with glasses, was overwhelmed with joy, almost as if all her efforts over the past three days had been worthwhile.

"You know me?"

"Of course! I'm someone who aspires to become a reporter for the national TV station, so remembering names is nothing for me!"

Kusakabe Kagami flashed a cheerful smile and made a peace sign.

Since parting ways with the "beautiful boy" three days ago, she hadn't stopped looking for traces of him. Finally, she managed to get some intel from the student president.

"Damn, she beat me to it!"

"She's deliberately acting cute! She totally tricked me!"

"Wonder what his name is?"

The classroom quickly became a mess, with over ten girls forming several groups, chatting and gossiping. Some threw flirtatious glances at Ryoji, while others cast envious and jealous looks at Kusakabe Kagami.

"Damn, he stole all the spotlight!"

The boys, meanwhile, looked at Ryoji with suspicion, as if he were an enemy.

"Nangou San, I'm a huge fan of yours!"

"Yeah, me too! That line, 'I don't mind being beaten by you,' was so cool! You're too handsome! You should definitely be nominated for the Hagun Academy's best lines award!"

"The Nangou San in that footage was too handsome! Even the Director couldn't compete!"

"Is it just me… or does the Nangou San lying in a pool of blood have the most aesthetic beauty?"

At some point, over ten girls had gathered around, all gazing at Ryoji with admiration.

"Footage?" Ryoji remained calm.

Compared to his past experiences, being surrounded by just a dozen or so girls felt like a small-scale event.

"I filmed it!"

The group of girls surrounded him, and Kusakabe Kagami, not wanting to be left out, quickly grabbed the best position. She ran to Ryoji's side and hugged his arm tightly, pressing herself into his personal space with a bright smile.

''(End of chapter)''

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