The Princess Knight is Too Strong

“The class experience system?”

“Yes.”

Delphina nodded and began her explanation.

At Polaris Academy, there exists a special tradition called the class experience system.

Instead of participating in classes or training in your own department, you can attend classes in other departments by exchanging class days on a one-to-one basis.

To put it simply, if I were in the Knight Department, I could skip one class and choose to attend a class in another department held on the same day.

However, you end up missing the entire content of your original department’s class, and the academy doesn’t provide any separate supplementary classes for the missed class time.

Since Polaris Academy’s grades are mostly determined by test results alone, and the reflection of attitude during classes is extremely minimal, operating such a system causes almost no problems.

But while listening to Delphina, I had one question.

“But then, isn’t this a system that’s essentially useless unless you’re extremely confident in your grades?”

It’s essentially a system that only top students with confidence in their grades can use, and even those students don’t gain anything special by using it.

“Why create such a system?”

“Every year, there are consistently people who want to use this system.”

Delphina shrugged and answered.

“There are always such eccentrics. Geniuses who want to gain as much as possible from Polaris Academy, who love learning itself so much that they’re itching for more.”

Well, isn’t this an academy where geniuses filtered from across the continent gather?

It wouldn’t be strange for one or two eccentric bookworms to appear each year.

…That’s what I thought, but Delphina’s subsequent words were the opposite of my expectation.

“And this year, you’ll probably be the protagonist of that system, Princess.”

“Me?”

“Think about it.”

Delphina looked at me and said.

“Even at Polaris Academy, how many instructors in the Knight Department have enough experience to teach you?”

“…Still, it’s Polaris after all. There should be some, right?”

“Anyway! Isn’t it true that even if you don’t diligently participate in academy classes, you can easily pass the tests that are held only three times a year?”

“That depends on what the test content is…”

“Oh my, you’re so frustrating!”

Delphina shook her head and said.

“How little do you know about Polaris Academy?”

“…Almost nothing?”

Well, six years have passed since my reincarnation, and I spent four of those years on the battlefield.

During the two years, I was busy enough just getting familiar with the various aspects of the Kingdom, so I’ve only heard the name and history of Polaris Academy, nothing else.

Even if I wanted to research it, this isn’t a world where you can easily search the internet, and I just came with the mindset of following what they tell me to do…

Having nothing particular to say, I just smiled vacantly.

“Ehehe.”

Delphina stared at me blankly for a moment, then put her hand on her forehead and began explaining with a voice mixed with a sigh.

“You know that Polaris Academy is a four-year higher education institution, right?”

“Yes.”

Even I know that much. I nodded briefly.

“And that depending on what you learn, the department you belong to and complete the curriculum in differs?”

“Knight Department, Military Science Department, Literature Department, Magic Department, Political Diplomacy Department, Cultural Anthropology Department, Engineering Department…”

“There are many more, but you should enter either the Knight Department or the Military Science Department.”

As I recited the few departments I knew, counting them on my fingers one by one, Delphina held up two fingers and said:

“The Knight Department is all about physical work like weapon techniques and physical training, so you won’t fall behind, and even the Military Science Department teaches things like tactical manuals and supplies as military officers.”

“I learned theory for 2 years, and practice for 4 years.”

“Exactly.”

But I shook my head.

“Still, I don’t like the Knight Department or the Military Science Department.”

“Why?”

Delphina asked, looking at me as I hesitated. I voiced something I didn’t really want to say.

“…I’m tired of war now.”

Delphina closed her mouth. She looked like she was dying to say something, but perhaps reading my mood, she merely shrugged.

“…Still.”

I opened my mouth again.

“Just staying still doesn’t give me any answers either.”

Delphina looked at me somewhat surprised.

“And… I’m prepared for the fact that war will break out again someday.”

How long would it take for the Demon King’s Army, which had suffered a major defeat losing two of the Four Heavenly Kings and fled beyond the Death Swamp, to begin another invasion?

10 years? 15 years?

Perhaps even that is too optimistic, and in reality, it might not even take 5 years.

“I’ll go to the Knight Department. I can’t just keep running away forever.”

Delphina, who had been silently watching me, stretched out her arms and hugged me tightly.

Since I had decided to go to the Knight Department, I decided to properly receive training in the Knight Department for the first class.

The Knight Department’s training time is three hours, and the assembly time is 10 minutes before the scheduled start time.

Delphina stepped in to manage the students who didn’t know what to do seeing me, and after waiting in line for 10 minutes:

“Welcome, freshmen who have chosen the Knight Department.”

And the first training in the Knight Department I faced was a bit different from what I had imagined.

“I am Bell Lore, the First Instructor who will guide you cadets of the Knight Department for one year starting today.”

No, let me correct that. It was very different.

‘Well done, chickens!! Welcome to hell!! We’ll start marathon training now!! For those who fall behind, every time you lag, you get an additional 69 minutes of jogging!!’

…I had imagined a rough, hairy giant instructor shouting such ignorant yells.

“I look forward to working with you.”

In reality, what stood before the Knight Department freshmen was a fine-looking young man with white hair.

‘Wow, damn. He’s so handsome.’

‘Shut up, you crazy girl! The Princess Knight is right here.’

Among the female students, some were already half out of their minds.

I wanted to tell them it’s okay, don’t worry… but saying that would be worse than not saying anything.

‘…Or is this actually more natural?’

But thinking differently, it wasn’t incomprehensible.

If you pass the Knight Department test at Polaris Academy, it’s highly likely that you’ve already mastered some physical training or one or two weapon techniques suited to your inclination.

For students who are already somewhat established, an instructor with a flexible attitude who can conduct training in a way best suited to each individual might be much more appropriate than treating them as complete novices and working them hard.

“Without further ado, shall we start by loosely warming up our bodies?”

As the brief applause subsided, Instructor Lore quietly opened his mouth.

“Then… let’s start lightly by running 100 laps around the training ground.”

I take back everything I just said.

The overall size of Polaris Academy is tremendously enormous.

Including the academy’s main building, dormitories, shops established by some general residents living for cultural life, and separate residential areas, it’s almost the size of a small city-state.

Unlike other departments, the Knight Department’s training takes place in an outdoor training ground, and its size is also so large that it’s hard to find something to compare it to.

In terms of simple scale, it’s a wide rectangular shape with sides measuring approximately 200/300m.

For an average adult male, running around the outer edge of the training ground is about 1km.

Even those who are not members of the Knight Department sometimes run around the training ground for a simple morning exercise, and for students of the Knight Department at Polaris Academy, running 20 or 30 laps is something they can easily complete without changing their breath.

But 100 laps is a different story.

100km.

Even if you brought a carriage to run 100km, it would take over 5 hours.

Even for freshmen of the Knight Department who can exhibit almost human-weapon level physical abilities by mastering circular breathing, it’s certainly not a distance to “run lightly.”

As expected, all the Knight Department freshmen sprawled on the ground as if it were their own living room as soon as they completed the 100 laps.

Even Delphina, from the middle, threw away all pretense and dignity and ran while subtly grabbing my collar.

I was the only freshman who didn’t collapse and sprawl on the ground.

It was a bit odd to classify me as an ordinary freshman, but well, I was a student after all.

Still, with my experience running on the battlefield. I couldn’t sit down just for pride.

Although I desperately wanted to sit down right then and there.

As I was catching my breath leaning against a wooden post, Instructor Bell approached me slightly and said:

“As expected of the Princess Knight. In over 5 years of seeing freshmen, you’re the only one who hasn’t collapsed immediately.”

No, it’s natural that I don’t collapse… but why push active-duty level training on freshmen?

I shook my head while catching my breath.

“Isn’t this too harsh for freshmen who have just entered?”

“This is Polaris.”

Instructor Lore answered my question in one sentence.

“I see.”

He smiled and then turned his head toward the students.

“Now, everyone!”

While mixing in somewhat roughened breathing, Bell Lore continued in a normal voice.

“We’ve only spent an hour and a half of the three-hour training time! We’ll rest for 10 minutes and then reassemble to continue training!”

Let me correct myself. Not a normal voice, but a brazen voice.

Unfortunately, none of the freshmen had enough energy left to shout back that he was talking nonsense.