Reincarnated as a failed hero?! Watch me Defy Fate! - Chapter 35

Chapter 35: Unexpected Reunion Chapter 35: Unexpected Reunion I still couldn’t believe it.

I was actually in the same class as Lyra and Freya.

They seemed so happy, laughing quietly together.

Meanwhile, I stood frozen at the front of the classroom, unable to move.

The classroom itself resembled a lecture hall, with the students seated in a semicircle facing a stage where the teacher stood.

This setup gave me a clear view of everyone present.

Some students chuckled at my awkward self-introduction, while others didn’t even bother to pay attention.

Then, our homeroom teacher, Professor Alden, stepped in.

“Alright, Naoki, introduce yourself again.

This time, try to stay calm,” he said with a reassuring smile.

The professor, a man with dark blue hair and glasses, seemed composed yet strict as he gave me a chance to redeem myself.

“Ugh… Fine,” I muttered, taking a deep breath.

“I am Naoki von Blackmore.

I am the firstborn of the Blackmore family and currently a candidate for the Braveheart Kingdom’s hero.” My voice rang out loud and clear.

The atmosphere in the classroom shifted instantly.

I could feel piercing gazes from every corner.

Whispered remarks began to fill the room-things like “Isn’t he the failed hero who came back?” or “Great, the troublemaker is here again.

He’s probably going to wreck the academy.” Hearing those words made me flush with embarrassment and frustration.

So, the rumors about Naoki still lingered in this place, huh?

It didn’t help that the second- and third-year students here were my former juniors.

Now I was sharing a class with them, like some upperclassman who had failed to move up and ended up stuck with underclassmen.

“Ahem!

That’s enough,” Professor Alden interrupted.

“Please take an empty seat, Naoki.” I made my way toward the student seating area, choosing a spot in the very back.

To be honest, I wanted to sit next to Lyra and Freya, but their seats were already taken.

“Alright, let’s begin our first lesson.

Open your Intermediate Swordsmanship and Magic textbooks,” Professor Alden announced.

At that moment, I panicked-I didn’t have the textbook!

Why didn’t I buy it earlier?

Great start, Naoki, I thought bitterly.

Just then, a male student sat down beside me.

He was muscular, with short dark brown hair.

His skin was slightly tan, his face suddenly changed from serious to friendly.

His imposing figure screamed “knight-in-training.” “You don’t have the textbook, do you?

Let’s share mine,” he offered, sliding his book closer with a friendly smile.

“My name’s Marius Stone.

Nice to meet you, Naoki.” “Uh, yeah… Nice to meet you too, Marius.

And thanks for the help,” I replied, grateful but still feeling awkward.

The lesson continued until noon.

We covered topics like the levels of swordsmanship and magic.

In this world, there is a classification of swordsmanship levels that correlates with Knight rank: -Beginner (Weapon Skill Lv.

1€“3) = Knight Rank C (Level 1€“30) -Intermediate (Weapon Skill Lv.

4€“5) = Knight Rank B (Level 31€“49) -Master (Weapon Skill Lv.

6€“7) = Knight Rank A (Level 50€“79) -King (Weapon Skill Lv.

8€“9) = Knight Rank S (Level 80€“99) -God (Weapon Skill Lv.

10) = Knight Rank EX (Level 100) Magic also had same levels and correlated with Magic Knight rank: -Basic (Magic Skill Lv.

1€“3) = Magic Knight Rank C (Level 1€“30) -Intermediate (Magic Skill Lv.

4€“5) = Magic Knight Rank B (Level 31€“49) -Advanced (Magic Skill Lv.

6€“7) = Magic Knight Rank A (Level 50€“79) -Saint (Magic Skill Lv.

8€“9) = Magic Knight Rank S (Level 80€“99) -God (Magic Skill Lv.

10) = Magic Knight Rank EX (Level 100) Magic was further divided into three types: offensive magic, support magic (including defensive and healing), and forbidden magic.

I suddenly remembered that Freya used a magic sword, which still classified her as a Magic Knight-just like Lyra.

As I looked closer, I was shocked to realize that Lyra could already cast advanced-level magic, such as , which was taught by Rosan.

And yet, she was only Rank B!

Maybe she had a hidden talent that would soon push her into Rank A territory.

Listening to Professor Alden’s explanation made me understand that newly appointed heroes typically reached the Saint level in swordsmanship and Rank S in magic.

As for the Godlike tier and Rank EX?

Those were achieved only by legendary heroes who had surpassed the limits of human potential.

Currently, only the leaders of the five hero families and King Lionheart himself had attained such heights.

New heroes like me were expected to gain experience and grow into such greatness.

This realization hit me hard-did this mean I had to reach Level 80 and master Saint-level swordsmanship to pass the Hero’s Trial?!

The thought alone felt overwhelming.

Huhu… It seemed like I would need to spend a lot of time hunting monsters and grinding levels.

…

…

As soon as class ended and lunchtime began, I was suddenly approached by Lyra and Freya.

“Hello, Naoki-sama!

How are you doing?” Lyra asked cheerfully.

“Did we surprise you?

Of course, we did!

Hahaha, you were so funny earlier,” Freya said, still giggling at the memory of my awkward introduction.

“Ehh?

You two already know Naoki?!

That’s unexpected,” Marius said, visibly surprised.

Lyra and Freya exchanged knowing smiles, laughing softly.

“Ugh, you two… I didn’t expect to see you here again.

Did you know this was going to happen?” I asked, raising an eyebrow at them.

“Hehe, yes, Naoki-sama.

Back at the Blackmore Mansion, the Patriarch told us it was only a matter of time before you returned to the academy, and there was a chance you’d end up in our class,” Lyra explained with a grin.

I sighed internally.

So that old man planned this all along?

Maybe he wanted to monitor me… or was just worried?

Overthinking it was exhausting, so I decided to let it go.

As we chatted and joked around, I quickly realized that Marius was a fun and easygoing guy.

The four of us became fast friends, and the lunchtime atmosphere was light and enjoyable.

But then, out of nowhere, a male student stomped up to my desk.

He had a smug look plastered on his face, his dark red hair practically radiating arrogance.

His muscular build screamed “meathead,” and he was flanked by two lackeys who looked just as unpleasant.

“Hey, you!

So you’re the so-called Failed Hero from the Blackmore family, huh?

HAHAHA!

You look weak-and, as the rumors say, sleazy and perverted too!” What?!

I screamed internally.

Sleazy and perverted?

Where on earth does that even come from?!

I’ve been acting nothing but polite!

“Wow, he nailed it,” Envi, my annoying system companion, chimed in mockingly inside my mind.

“Guess you really do give off that vibe!

Hahaha!” Shut up, Envi!

I growled mentally.

“Hey, Naoki!

How shameless can you be, returning to the academy?

You should just go back home!

Leave the hero business to me, Kael von Flamemore, the third son of the Flamemore family and the next hero!

HAHAHA!” Hearing his words made my blood boil.

To make matters worse, I was taken aback-he was from one of the hero families.

“Hey, Kael, watch your tone!” Freya snapped, her voice sharp.

I suddenly remembered that Freya was a branch member of the Flamemore family.

They were probably cousins.

“Silence, you outcast!

I’ll teach someone like him a lesson!” Kael bellowed, raising his voice even more.

Freya flinched under his intense pressure.

“Oh?

So your brain is just made of muscles, huh?” I shot back, my voice dripping with mockery.

“I thought members of the hero families were supposed to be smart, but I guess not.

How could you replace me as a hero when we’re not even from the same family?

Oh, and your family already has a hero, right?

That makes you… incompetent!

Or maybe just L.E.W.K.-Lame.

Egotistical.

Weak.

Knight.

Hahaha!” “WHAT DID YOU SAY?!” Kael roared, throwing a punch directly at me.

Just as I braced myself to take the hit, Marius stepped in, blocking Kael’s punch with his arm.

“Stop this, Kael.

Don’t cause a scene,” Marius said firmly.

“How dare a commoner like you touch me?!” Kael snarled, gripping Marius’s shoulder with inhuman strength and slamming him onto the floor.

THUD!

Marius groaned in pain, and my chest tightened at the sight.

“Stop it, Kael!

I’ll report you to Professor Alden!” Freya shouted, stepping forward to confront him.

“That’s right, back off!” Lyra added, standing beside Freya.

“SHUT UP!

Both of you!” Kael bellowed, swinging a punch toward Freya and Lyra.

“Ugh…!” Before his fist could reach them, I moved.

My body reacted on instinct, positioning myself in front of Freya to shield her.

I released a flicker of my dark aura to counter Kael’s strength.

With incredible speed, I landed a punch squarely in his gut.

The impact sent Kael flying across the classroom, slamming into the back wall.

“NICE PUNCH!

Hahaha, you’re already this strong, Nao!

These arrogant losers are just fodder for you!” Envi cackled with glee.

For once, I agreed with him.

At Level 45, that means i was Knight Rank B, but i think my power are equal to Knight Rank A-much stronger than I expected for someone at this academy.

The sound of the wall cracking echoed through the room.

I’d thought I only used a fraction of my power, but apparently, even that was overkill.

“KAEL!” his lackeys screamed, rushing to his side.

They glared at me, preparing to attack, but as soon as I flared my aura again, they froze.

Fear overtook them, and they backed off, tending to their unconscious leader.

The classroom fell into stunned silence as everyone stared at me.

I scratched the back of my head awkwardly and said, “Uh… I think he slipped.

I just touched him, and he fell.

You know how high these back rows are, right?

Hahaha, what a clumsy guy.” My excuse didn’t fool anyone, and the other students continued to gape at me in disbelief.

Then, a female student stood up and spoke to me, her voice firm but calm.

“Kael is causing trouble again.

What a nuisance!

I’m sorry about this, Naoki.

I’m Luna von Solarblade, the class president.

I’ll take Kael to the professor’s office.” A blonde-haired girl with bob hair style, brown eyes, good body, medium chest size, her expression looks flat, her way down the rows, grabbing Kael and his lackeys before escorting them out of the classroom.  “Phew… Thank goodness the class president saw everything firsthand.

Now you won’t be blamed for this mess, Naoki-sama,” Lyra said with a relieved smile.  “I’m sorry, Naoki-dono.

Kael is my cousin, and he’s always been like this-showing off his strength.

I should’ve done more to stop him,” Freya said, her expression filled with guilt.  “It’s fine.

Don’t worry about it, both of you.” I gave them a reassuring smile before turning to Marius.

“And Marius, thanks for stepping in earlier.

Are you okay?” I extended my hand to help him up.  “Hehe, it’s nothing, Naoki.

I was just shocked to see you take him down like that!” Marius said, his voice brimming with excitement as he stood up.  “It was just luck.

He fell because he lost his balance, haha,” I said, downplaying the situation.  We all laughed together, the tension from earlier slowly fading away.

…

…

After that, Lyra, Freya, and Marius accompanied me on a tour around the academy.

As expected, the place was enormous and grand.

It had everything: academic buildings, a faculty hall, swordsmanship and magic training grounds, a coliseum for duels, lush gardens, and separate dormitories for boys and girls.

We ended our tour with a pleasant lunch together.

When classes resumed, we returned to our studies.

Once the lesson ended, Professor Alden approached me to confirm the events that transpired earlier during lunch.

I explained everything to him in detail, and he apologized for what had happened.

I assured him that I wasn’t bothered by it.

As the day concluded, I parted ways with Lyra and Freya, who headed back to the girls’ dormitory, while I made my way to the boys’ dormitory.

Tonight, I would be moving in with my assigned roommate.

I packed up my belongings and climbed to the second floor, heading to room 21.

When I opened the door, a familiar voice greeted me with a hearty laugh.

“We meet again, Naoki!

From now on, we’re roommates!

HAHAHA!” It was Marius, and he seemed genuinely thrilled about the arrangement.

That night, we stayed up sharing stories before eventually falling into a deep sleep.

The next morning, I walked down the academy’s corridors, making my way to class.

However, something felt… off.

The stares from the other students were cold and unwelcoming.

I could hear whispers and snide remarks behind my back.

Their words were sharp, their gazes piercing, and their presence suffocating.

What’s going on?

Why are they treating me like this?

I shouted internally, confusion and unease gnawing at me.

…

…

CREATORS’ THOUGHTS NAVIRUNAVIII Hello everyone, author Navi here!

This is the opening chapter of Volume 3: Braveheart Knight Academy Arc.

I hope you all like it!

Please continue to support me.

I guarantee Nao’s academy life will be very interesting!

Thank you for your support!