How To Survive Clichés

Chapter 13

I was flustered.
What is this now?

[You weren’t a scoundrel, right?]
– Change the perception of ten key characters around you. (1/10)
– Yuri Elloa, the Princess
– You have obtained 1 QP.

…That Yuri Elloa, the Princess?

I couldn’t comprehend it. She was the one who believed the most that Damian was a scoundrel and wanted him expelled.

I thought it might be possible that one of the students listening to the conversation could emerge as a key character, but never in my wildest dreams did I think it would be the princess.
It seemed like things were going to be harder than I expected.

‘Then, who are the remaining nine…?’

I predicted they were probably characters from ‘The Dimensional Kill’. Given that Yuri Elloa, the princess, appeared out of nowhere, it meant it wouldn’t be someone like an extra character such as Riword.

I wanted to avoid getting involved with the characters from the novel as much as possible, but now it felt like I was being forced to intertwine with the story.

What on earth is this?

I stared blankly into the air for a moment and let out a sigh.

With my life on the line, I had no choice but to comply for now.

‘So, who else do I have to change the perception of here?’

As I slowly scanned the surroundings, I noticed someone approaching me.
I couldn’t help but frown.

Rathio Dens.
The eldest son of the Dens Marquisate, one of the four great magical families like the Draco family, and a typical noble with a superiority complex. He was coming toward me with his faction.

‘Oh yeah, there’s that guy too.’

Unlike a third-rate villain like Damian, this guy was the real deal.
While Damian was just a device meant to disappear after getting a proper lesson from Yoo Suho, Rathio was the archetypal villain who would leave Yoo Suho feeling empty, frustrated, and angry.

The reason he was approaching me was obvious.
‘It’s to expand his influence.’

No matter how much equality was emphasized at Aethis, the school was still a microcosm of society.
Nobles stuck with nobles, commoners with commoners.

Students found a sense of belonging centered around their class and factions, forming relationships that would later turn into political alliances and mutual benefits.

Each student was evidence of their faction’s strength.

As expected, Rathio approached with his faction and greeted me.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Rathio Dens, the eldest son of the Dens family. It’s the first time we’re formally meeting.”

“…Yeah. Nice to meet you.”

“I enjoyed watching the duel. That commoner, not knowing his place and acting out, made me sick to my stomach. But thanks to you, I had a good show, so I suppose I should thank you for that.”

His faction snickered, and Rathio couldn’t hide the smile creeping onto his face.

A good show.
It wasn’t just that I had humiliated Riword; Rathio was also pleased to assess Damian’s capabilities.
As a member of another great magical family, it wouldn’t have been hard for him to notice that Damian was lacking in mana.

In short, he had come because he thought I seemed easy to handle.
Thinking about it made me angry.

“Anyway, Damian, let me get straight to the point. Join my faction.”

The students perked up at his words.
Rathio and his faction were already growing in influence, and if another great magical family like Damian Draco joined, no one could imagine what might happen.

Rathio glanced around, enjoying the students’ reactions, and continued.

“Nobles should stick together, right? Especially those of us from great magical families. Not with those filthy commoners or second-rate nobles.”

A few commoner students who overheard lowered their heads. I could feel Ian next to me flinch as well.

“You may not know since you just transferred, but at Aethis, there’s no class without group projects. The same goes for practical training. If you join my faction, your grades until graduation are practically guaranteed.”

In a school like Aethis that emphasizes equality and skill, guaranteeing grades in exchange for joining a faction?

It made no sense. More importantly, there was another reason behind his offer.

‘He needs the fact that the eldest son of the Draco family, one of the great magical families, is under the control of the Dens family.’

By bringing Damian into his faction, Rathio would automatically gain superiority.

‘If that were all, it would be a relief.’

Rathio wasn’t the type to stop at just words. He would trap people by presenting contracts filled with unfavorable terms, and once they were bound, he would exploit them to the fullest, stripping away everything they had.

If the target was a noble, he would devour the entire family. If it was a commoner, they would either become a slave or disappear without a trace.

This was how the Marquis Dens had accumulated his power and wealth. Naturally, Rathio had learned from a young age to do the same.

For reference, in the original story, Damian rejected the offer.

Despite his unruly behavior, Damian was excellent at avoiding anything that would cause him harm.
However, the situation was a bit different now.

Rathio seemed to have judged that it would be better to bring me into his faction since, while not as strong as him, I still had decent enough abilities to be worth recruiting.
Like now.

“That guy earlier could use some education, don’t you think? If you want, I can help. It’s always better to show who’s superior rather than letting it slide, to avoid any problems in the future.”

His tone was smooth, as he tried to coax me, while also subtly scolding me, as if teaching me a lesson.
It was a way to show that, despite being a fellow noble, our positions were different.

At that moment, one of Rathio’s faction members butted in.

“Yeah, and between us, there’s plenty of fun to be had too.”

Rathio’s eyes flashed sharply, and he shot a cold glare at the unknown student.

“…I told you not to interrupt when I’m speaking.”

“S-sorry.”

Judging by his behavior, the student seemed to be a noble from the provinces.

Rathio clicked his tongue, and the student who had interrupted bowed his head deeply and stepped back.

Only then did Rathio, looking satisfied, turn his gaze back to me and urge me for an answer.

“So, what do you say? Want to join?”

“Wasn’t graduation a requirement for the Dens family as well?”

Instead of answering, I asked a question, causing his eyebrow to twitch briefly.

Graduation. I was hinting that I knew the Draco family required it for one to become the family head.
Rathio, realizing my intent, smiled as if amused.
It was the same for him.

The only difference was that the process was more complicated and difficult for his family than for the Draco family. That’s why Rathio was so desperate to expand his influence.

“Want to graduate with your own strength?”

“Isn’t that obvious?”

“If that’s the case, joining a faction would still let you do what you want, wouldn’t it?”

No. I won’t. No matter how many times I thought about it, the answer was the same.

Even if I was in a hurry to break away from clichés, I couldn’t get involved with a villain.

This time, I didn’t reply.
Instead, I extended my hand for a handshake.
It was a clear sign of rejection.

Rathio furrowed one eyebrow but eventually accepted the handshake.

He realized there was no point in dragging the conversation any further, knowing it would only be a waste of time. He didn’t lose anything by not having Damian on his side.

As Rathio walked back to his faction, he turned around and called out,

“If you change your mind, let me know. The Draco family would be welcomed.”

I won’t change my mind.
I sighed deeply to myself.

‘I just want to rest now.’

I felt empty, as if there was a hollow void inside me, and my head was foggy. Far from replenishing, my mana was continuously draining, leaving me feeling dazed.

“Damian.”

Just about five minutes before class began. I thought I might finally get a short break, but a voice calling me made me turn my head.

It was Tio.
Unlike his usual smile that he maintained at all times, his expression was quite serious.

“…?”

“You’d better stay away from that guy.”

I almost clicked my tongue in disbelief. Of all people, was he really the one to say that?

I looked at Tio with a puzzled expression.

“…What do you mean by that?”

“The Dens family isn’t made up of good nobles.”
Tio muttered with a bitter expression.

What a strange guy. Seriously.
Does he know something?
I was about to ask for more clarification but swallowed my words. Anyone could tell that Rathio Dens was a villain, so that was probably what he meant.

And… above all, I hadn’t forgotten that this guy came from a family that made demonic beings.
Better not get involved.

I calmly answered,
“Yeah.”

Then Tio, as if nothing had happened, went back to smiling brightly and said,

“Anyway, Damian, I’ve been curious about something.”

“What is it?”

“What did you say to Riword earlier?”

Ah, that.
“I just told him to bring something for me.”

I didn’t want to go into detail, so I kept it vague, but Tio, after thinking for a moment, clapped his hands as if he understood.

Clap!

“Oh! I get it.”

“……?”

“You told him to bring bread after class, didn’t you?”

“……”

What kind of nonsense is that?

I stared at Tio, dumbfounded, but he just kept nodding, grinning, and even patted me on the shoulder as he said,

“Deep down, you wanted a subordinate too, huh?”

Could I get away with hitting him just once?
As I glared at him in silence, Tio quickly added,

“Sorry, sorry. I was just joking.”

Moments later.
Click.

The door opened, and someone entered, covered in dust.

Round glasses. Big, curious eyes. A woman with light green hair mixed with pink strands that made her look like a flower.

She was the professor for Herbology.

“I’m Hera, your Herbology professor! I lost track of time while doing an experiment. Anyway, sorry for being late! Let’s start class right away.”

Professor Hera, looking a bit down as if her experiment hadn’t gone well, continued with a hint of gloom in her voice.

“Before we begin, there’s an announcement. You all know that the scoring system used for midterm evaluations applies to every subject, right?”

“Yes!”

Unlike in Professor Morax’s class, the students answered energetically.

“For your Herbology evaluation, you’ll be making potions in groups! The key will be to create the most creative potion! We’ve hidden ingredients all over the place, outside the school! Students who bring back the same ingredients for a potion will form a group!”

The students exchanged glances, signaling to work together to find the ingredients.

“And if you can’t find the ingredients in time, you won’t be able to participate in the class! In other words, you’ll lose points!”

The students nodded repeatedly, whispering among themselves.

“Whoa, she might be stricter than Professor Morax.”

“How did everything change so drastically starting in the second semester?”

“Seriously.”

As the students just stood around talking, Professor Hera asked with a puzzled expression,

“Hm? The announcement is over. Why aren’t you all going to look for ingredients?”

At that moment, the students jolted and shot up from their seats.

“……!!”

“Damn it, it starts now?”

“We’re screwed. Hey, let’s go search together.”

In a rush, the students left the classroom and headed outside to search for herbs, knowing that they’d most likely be in the grassy areas.

Meanwhile, I walked in a different direction.
Towards a place devoid of people: the staircase at the far end of the corridor that led to the rooftop.

As I climbed the stairs and reached the rooftop level, the presence of others became faint.

I took a moment to catch my breath and then summoned the achievement window I had put off.

After all, I had left my part to Riword, and with the rooftop doors open, there were plenty of herbs lying around, so I figured I might as well claim my rewards in peace where no one was around.

[Achievement Unlocked: Victory in a Simple Duel]
You’ve won your first duel.
– Difficulty: D
– Reward: Random Trait Box (Common)!

“A common trait, huh.”

The system’s reward tier changes depending on the difficulty, and this time it seemed to be a common-tier reward. This also meant that I now had access to the system store, which contained items of the same tier.
Of course, there wasn’t much I could buy right now.
The prices were ridiculously high, and most of the items weren’t very useful anyway.

Honestly, it was better to focus on earning quest points early on and boosting my stats rather than wasting them on the store.

“Let’s open the box first.”

I lightly tapped the air, and the box with a question mark on it in my status window began to tremble on its own.

Rumble—

After a few moments, the trembling subsided, and the top of the random box opened like a lid. From inside, fireworks exploded along with a dazzling light.

“…Huh?”

This feels… promising.
Please, let it be something useful.

[Trait: The Rogue Wants to Live (D)]

– Your words and actions cause emotional agitation in those who hear them, triggering sympathy and improving their perception of you.

I stared in shock after confirming the effect.

…What is this?

I looked at the continuously bursting fireworks, thinking.

So, does this trait make people think, “Oh, this guy’s actually a pitiful soul,” and make them believe that Damian’s environment turned him into a rogue?
I couldn’t quite wrap my head around it.

Just as I was feeling flustered, someone approached.
“What are you doing here?”

It was Princess Yuri Elloa.