C71: Freuden Ulburg
Sorry for the lack of post but I had stomach issues and I was bedridden for 3 days.
âIf you knew Iâm a commoner, wonât you attack right away?â
Rene swallowed her saliva.
She was at the point where she wondered if he could just pretend she didnât know and get out.
âHmmâ¦.You?â
Freuden looked at Rene and raised an eyebrow then he approached her.
âHmm.â
Reneâs stomach was burning at the sight of him staring at her with a slightly skeptical look. Did the leader of the noble faction even recognize her? Will he remember the Dunema incident and ask her to take responsibility now?
Reneâs head was spinning in a complicated way.
According to the rumors she had heard, Freuden was famous as a demon that hated commoners and had no mercy. Meanwhile, Freud did not take his eyes off Rene.
When his gaze finally settled on the book about the non-attribute magic that Rene was holding in her arms she hid the book behind her back without realizing it.
Freuden narrowed his eyes.
âYouâ¦â¦.â
âYes Yes?!â
ââ¦â¦No, nothing.â
When Rene reacted too violently, Freuden shook his head.
âHow did you get here? Ordinary students would not come this far.â
âWell, thatâ¦â¦.â
Rene pondered how she was going to answer.
Freuden was suspicious of Reneâs attitude and narrowed his eyes even more.
Rene choked her chest at the sight.
Freuden is a handsome man that stands out, his skin is white and his jawline is thin, so he has a very sharp image, but he has a lot of charisma because of his unique eyes and the parted hairstyle that exposed the forehead raised his mood even higher.
Since the rumors were so strong Rene answered frankly to her fear that she might die if she lied.
âI heard someone singing.â
âSinging?â
âYeahâ¦.â¦I wouldnât have come if I knew this was seniorâs space! Really! Trust me!â
Freuden looked at her with slightly widened eyes, then turned his gaze away and murmured.
âYou heard a song?â
âYeah. Songâ¦â¦.â
âHow was it?â
âYes?â
âIâm pretty sure you came here by chance.â
âI, really? Thank god.â
âInstead, I want you to keep it a secret from other students. This is my personal space and even my bodyguards donât know about it.â
âHuhâ¦â¦.â
At Freudenâs attitude, which was completely different from what she had heard, Rene lost her voice for a moment.
âHey, arenât you mad?â
âAngry? Why?â
âOh no, I meanâ¦â¦.â
âIâm a commoner.â
She couldnât even say those words, so she just muttered to herself.
âI will not blame you for coming here. All you have to do is keep what you saw in this place a secret.â
âOf course! I wonât tell anyone! Really!â
âAre you going to promise?â
âYeah! I promise!â
The conversation went better than she expected and Rene started doubting the rumors about Freuden.
âMaybe you have mistaken me for a nobleman? I donât think so.â
At least according to the rumors she heard, Freuden Ulburg always had a cold attitude that seemed to prey on someone. However, the Freuden she is facing now did not do that at all and the cute flower bed jumped into her eyes.
âDid senior raise them all?â
Judging by his reaction, this must be Freudenâs personal space.
âSenior Freuden made this.â
That Freuden? The eldest son of the House of Ulburg, one of the three dukes of the Empire? He is a symbol of fear for commoners and even for aristocrats.
At least the aristocrats she knows are extravagant and brag all the time about their hobbies like buying expensive clothes, buying fancy accessories, or having tea parties but Freuden was different.
âWhat a simple noble. Is it possible that senior Freuden sang that song too?â
If so, from whom did he learn the song? Rene tried to ask, but she immediately withdrew.
âNo. Itâs much better not to draw attention here.â
Freudenâs unexpectedly merciful nature, contrary to what she knew, made it a better choice for her to take advantage of this opportunity to leave.
âSorry, I wonât speak about this with anyone. Today I didnât see anything. Yep. So Iâll just go.â
âYes.â
Freuden didnât really want to look down on her or make fun of her since she was a commoner.
âThen, Iâm going.â
Rene stepped backwards slowly.
âRene.â
âYeah?!â
âIf you want to come, you can come again.â
ââ¦â¦Yeah?â
âYou can come. I will give you special permission.â
ââ¦â¦.â
Rene didnât understand what the hell this meant. She didnât know if he was serious or was just kidding with her.
âAh yes.â
As she moved away from Freuden, she could only think that she was dreaming because todayâs been full of incredible things and with quick steps, she escaped from Freudenâs secret garden.
* * *
Rudgerâs class has begun. He came in right on time for lecture and scanned the pulpit where the students were sitting. Before this, they seemed quite bored, but after showing the coordinate designation magic, the studentsâ concentration had returned.
âIn this state, a month should be sufficient.â
Rudger shook his head with satisfaction and opened his mouth.
âThe first test period is coming soon.â
That soft voice reverberated throughout the classroom.
There are many tests to be taken during the school year, but the word 1st came heavily to the students. In particular, this is the first exam for the freshmen who just entered Theon.
âAs I told you last time, I plan to teach only to high-ranking students who do well in exams.â
Rudger continued.
âOf course, I am not teaching the entire Source Code. What you guys can get from the first test is one of the that make up the Source Code.â
The Source Code formula consists of a total of four frameworks. In other words, if they want to learn the entire Source Code the students must be in top 5 for all 4 tests that take place during the semester.
âI wonder who will learn the entire Source Code this semester.â
Gulp.
Some of the students swallowed and clenched their fists.
Their responses were half mixed with anticipation and tension but in the midst of that, there were some who showed leisure.
âAs this is the first test, there will be no difficult content. Itâs a test to check how carefully you listened to my classes based on the basics.â
A sigh of relief erupted everywhere at Rudgerâs words.
âI think you know everything about the subject itself, but just in case you donât know, Iâll tell you again. If anyone doesnât know yet, write it down now.â
As soon as the words came out, the students took out their pens.
Even if they already knew, they decided to write it down in case of any unforeseen circumstances.
âTsk. Itâs stupid.â
Flora laughed at the studentsâ actions since she already remembered everything Rudger had taught in her mind.
âOf course, I remember everything because Iâm smart. Itâs not because I never thought that the teacherâs class was good.â
While she was rationalizing herself, Rudger introduced the subjects one by one to the students.
âThe range of questions will be from Mana Mechanics 1st volume, the Basics of Natural Sciences, and the Basics of Understanding and Introduction to Elements. There are a total of 20 questions and all of them are subjective.â
In addition, in the case of a problem that requires calculation, he even warned firmly to write down the entire math.
âEven if the answer is correct, if the explanation is strange, it will be considered incorrect. In the opposite case, I will still give partial points. So, donât go over what you know vaguely, and review properly.â
Rudgerâs explanation was clear and the students didnât even have any more questions to ask.
âItâs my first test, so Iâll go lightly.â
âLightly?â
âItâs an open book test.â
âYes?!â
To that call, some freshmen responded by asking why while an unexpected reaction burst out among the second graders.
âYouâre still a freshman, so you donât know the meaning of the open book test.â
People think an open book test itâs a very easy test because you just have to look at the answers and write them down but itâs the opposite. There is only one case when a teacher has allowed students to open books.
âHe will make the exam so hard that it will be difficult to solve it even if the students use the book.â
The second graders laughed at the first graders.
Rene, who knew what open book meant, did not stop writing notes even though she had a slightly blank expression on her face. Then she suddenly felt a gaze and turned her head.
âHuh.â
Flora Lumos was looking at her but that gaze just disappeared as if passing by.
âWhat?â
However, Rene felt a strange sense of uneasiness. She felt as if Flora was somehow looking at her with a slightly wary gaze.
âThe explanation of the test ends here. I will start the class right away.â
With the following words of Rudger, Rene had no choice but to put an end to her doubts.
* * *
Soon after the class was over, the night came, announcing that the holidays were approaching. Rudger immediately finished getting ready to go out, and rode a wagon down to Leathervelk.
Today was the day of the meeting about how to deal with the behind-the-scenes world of Leathervelk.
Dressed in a long black coat, he pressed his hat deep down as he stood on the sidewalk. At that moment, a black-coated car stopped in front of him. One of the car doors opened and a familiar face appeared.
âBrother letâs go.â
âWhere did you get the car?â
Rudger asked, sitting in the back seat naturally.
Hans, who took the steering wheel, responded while starting the car.
âWell, the enemies of the Red Society were working on this and that. Among them was the transportation industry, and I just brought the best performing vehicles they had.â
âHmm.â
âOh, of course, I am not saying that I use it for personal purposes. We have to be stylish when we go to the meeting.â
âYes.â
âHow are you going?â
Rudger pulled out his one-eyed glasses from his inner pocket, put them on, and cleaned his collar.
âI will go as I always have.â
âHa-ha. You are my brother.â
Hans drove to the meeting point.
Eventually, they stopped at a street side bar lit up with colorful lights. From the entrance, customers were swarming and nearby women were waving their hands in thick make-up to solicit.
âItâs needlessly flashy.â
âWell, wouldnât it be better than doing it in a dirty and dreary place?â
âYeah.â
âLetâs get off.â
The two got out of the vehicle.