Chapter 70

The hiccup passed, and the instructors beckoned the candidates to board the carriage one after another.

This was no ordinary carriage, it was the magic carriage of Carillian, pulled by a unicorn.

For ordinary people, the chance to ride it might come only once in a lifetime.

Unlike Aesphyra, who led the way into the carriage, Winnie followed the crowd and stepped inside slowly.

The interior of the carriage was lavishly decorated, exuding a sense of richness and cultural depth.

The statues, ornaments, oil paintings, and artworks adorning the space gave off an air of sophistication, making one hesitant to approach too casually.

The fear of accidentally damaging something and being burdened with a lifelong debt loomed large.

Winnie was not a cultured person. He had attended few cultural classes, and to him, these artworks and ornaments simply looked elegant, refined, and meaningful.

As for whether they were genuine or fake, or what deeper significance they held, Winnie had no clue.

“This candidate, don’t be so cautious. These ornaments are just replicas,” one of the tutor said with a smile, noticing Winnie’s hesitation.

Really? They were all fakes? Who would put real treasures on a carriage, after all? What if one were accidentally broken?

“Good imitations,” Winnie muttered without opening his mouth.

“Indeed, though they are replicas, they were crafted by masters and are worth over a hundred gold coins each,” the tall mentor remarked with a sigh.

“Ah, I see.” Winnie’s curiosity was immediately stifled.

He had considered getting closer to inspect or even touch them, but the moment he learned their value, that thought vanished.

Obediently, he acknowledged that even these “fakes” were worth more than he was.

Winnie pursed his lips, stepped aside, and found a corner to sit in.

He gazed out the window, content to be a passive observer, like a rice bowl waiting to be filled.

Once everyone was aboard, the candidates were assigned to their rooms.

The Carillian Academy was wealthy enough to provide each student with their own compartment.

However, the space was modest just a lower hallway and a bed, with no bathroom or additional movable areas.

As the carriage began to move, the ride was remarkably smooth.

The unicorn’s pull, combined with the advanced enchantments on the wheels, made for an almost seamless ride, with only the shifting scenery outside hinting at their movement.

The atmosphere among the candidates began to liven up.

Most of them were nobles from various parts of the Camella Kingdom, and as is customary among nobles, a banquet was inevitable.

That evening, one of the leading nobles would host a gathering in the carriage.

The noble candidates chatted animatedly, many of them reuniting with old acquaintances after a long time.

Winnie, however, clutched the key to his room and remained silent, leaning lazily against the window seat.

Though he was technically a noble, his reputation was tarnished.

People avoided him like the plague, and even the commoner candidates steered clear, fearing that associating with him might harm their future prospects.

No one wanted to approach someone who was universally shunned, but Winnie didn’t mind.

In fact, he saw it as a blessing. He preferred the solitude, happy to be left alone.

Upon entering the carriage, he had deliberately noted Aesphyra’s location, ensuring she was at least twenty meters away from him.

However, he didn’t spot her in his line of sight, which likely meant she wasn’t in the same carriage.

Winnie breathed a sigh of relief. As he watched the scenery rush by, the fields around the capital gradually shrinking, his drowsiness grew.

Slowly, his eyes closed, and he drifted off to sleep.

He don’t know how long it had been, but Winnie’s consciousness was hazy.

He touched his drowsy head, looking around in confusion before glancing out the window. It was already dusk.

He rubbed his stomach, feeling the fire of hunger burning inside.

How long had it been? He hadn’t eaten.

He was starving.

Looking around, there was no one in sight.

He got up and walked to the next carriage, searching for something to eat.

When he pushed open the door to the next carriage, the soft glow of the crystal lamps was particularly dazzling, and a wave of noise suddenly hit his ears.

He narrowed his eyes slightly, focusing on the bustling crowd ahead.

Without any particular emotion, he noted that this was indeed the carriage of the Carillian Academy, luxurious enough to house such a grand banquet hall.

Why could the carriage be so large? The answer lay in the unicorn pulling it.

Unicorns possessed magical abilities far superior to most humans.

They didn’t rely on brute strength like horses, instead, they used magic and skill, with physical strength playing only a minor role.

This was why they could pull such a massive carriage.

In fact, if not for some candidates’ discomfort, the unicorn could even lift the carriage into the sky.

The fact that it could pull so many carriages at once showed that this was no ordinary unicorn.

The crystal lamps cast a warm light over the laughter of the candidates.

These nobles seemed to be celebrating their own entrance ceremony before the exams even began.

Unsurprisingly, the center of attention was occupied by the heirs of the kingdom’s most prominent families.

They stood at the heart of the banquet, chatting and laughing with their peers, exuding an air of confidence and ease.

It was as if they already belonged to the Carillian Academy, exuding the attitude that nothing could stand in their way.

Sitting further out were the lesser nobles, also engaged in lively conversations.

As for those in the corners, they could only be the commoner candidates.

Winnie didn’t see Aesphyra, though it was possible he hadn’t noticed her, as his attention was mostly focused on the food.

At the end of the day, the nobles looked down on the commoners in their hearts, believing that treating commoners as equals would demean their own status..

However, just because they were looked down upon by the nobility didn’t mean they could afford to associate with Winnie.

In their eyes, Winnie represented the kind of aristocracy that commoners despised the most.

To put it bluntly, those lofty aristocratic figures were people they could only look up to in awe, not dare to hate.

But Winnie was different. To all the commoners present, he was a source of deep resentment and imbalance.

How could someone like Winnie, who seemed to lack both talent and virtue, be born into nobility?

Why did he get what they had to fight for their entire lives the moment he came into existence?

Even his aristocratic status might be fake. How could a fraud like him, who deceived the world and stole his reputation, obtain what they had to struggle for their whole lives?

How could this not make people furious and jealous?

Forget about the others, they couldn’t afford to provoke the high nobles, nor could they challenge the lesser nobles with some talent. But Winnie? He was someone they could afford to hate.

After all, his identity as a descendant of the goddess was likely fabricated.

If it were confirmed to be false, he would undoubtedly be stripped of his noble title.

When that happened, not only would he lose his fiefdom, but even his title would be revoked.

What these commoners thought, Winnie didn’t know.

All he knew was that he was hungry and needed to find something to eat.

He wasn’t sure if it was his imagination, but ever since he entered the banquet hall, he felt a few eyes lingering on him.

However, he quickly dismissed the thought.

Whatever.

His attention was immediately drawn to a greasy roast goose on the banquet table.

His eyes lit up, and he made his way toward it.

But just as he was about to reach out with his “ruthless iron hand,” he was interrupted.

“Young Master Winnie, you really have quite the appetite,” a voice said, dripping with sarcasm.

“……”

Winnie silently shifted his gaze to the freckled, brown-haired young man standing in front of him.

“Excuse me, who are you?” Winnie asked, his tone impatient.

He was still hungry, and his mood wasn’t great.

“My name is Max. Young Master Winnie, you were quite the center of attention on the platform earlier.”

“Oh, Max. Got it. Can you move out of the way now?”

“Ah, don’t be in such a hurry, Young Master Winnie. I saw you guide Miss Aesphyra to bandage the unicorn on the platform. Quite impressive,” Max said with a smile.

Other students began to gather around, joining in the spectacle.

“With such a unique understanding, it’s truly remarkable. Worthy of a noble,” Max praised, though his tone carried a hint of mockery when he said “worthy of a noble.”

Winnie frowned slightly. A simple wound bandaging technique was being blown out of proportion by this guy. It was almost laughable.

No, he wasn’t the protagonist. Why was the protagonist’s debuff being transferred to him?

Where was Aesphyra? Where was Aesphyra?

This kind of passerby NPC, who seemed designed to provoke the protagonist into a face-slapping moment, should be targeting her, not him!

Seriously, they were both passersby. Was it necessary to pick on each other?

“I don’t quite understand what you mean. What exactly are you trying to say?”

“I’ve heard for a long time that Young Master Winnie is a descendant of the goddess. Seeing you display such remarkable talent, I assume you’ve studied the Soul Armament [Saint Envoy] passed down by your ancestor, right?” Max smiled, his words laced with both praise and ridicule.

Clearly, he was mocking Winnie for not having the qualifications to learn the [Saint Envoy] and for having no real connection to the title “descendant of the goddess.”

Oh, now he saw the picture.

Winnie pursed his lips.

He really wanted to pull off a protagonist-style face-slapping moment, but he wasn’t the protagonist.

He didn’t have the hardware to back it up when someone came looking for trouble.

But that doesn’t mean Winnie is an easy target.

He won’t go out of his way to bully anyone, but if someone dares to provoke him, they’ve picked the wrong person.

What’s so special about it? It’s fine if the heroines bully him, after all, they’re the main characters.

But as fellow background characters, there’s no protagonist’s luck suppression here.

Did they really think they could mess with him???

If I can’t handle the protagonist, do you think I can’t handle you?

Go ask around, throughout the entire kingdom, whether it’s murder, arson, stealing dogs, or snatching lollipops from children, what wicked deed haven’t I done?

I’m infamous as the greatest villain across generations!

So, Winnie raised his head, tilted his nose up, and exuded his full villainous aura. With a disdainful tone, he said, “What’s it to you? I may not have much talent, but my arms are quite long, huh?”

His direct response caught Max off guard, leaving him momentarily speechless.

“I don’t get it. Why are you all pointing your guns at me? Did I ever mess with you?” Winnie glanced at the civilian candidates who were watching the spectacle.

“There’s a saying: ‘Flies don’t bite seamless eggs,’ especially those who are unworthy of virtue,” one of the candidates chimed in, not naming anyone directly but clearly aiming at Winnie.

“Flies don’t bite seamless eggs? So you’re admitting you’re the flies?” Winnie smirked.

“How many seamless eggs are there in the world? How many of those high nobles have no magical talent in their families and just wait to die? Yet I don’t see you flies biting them.”

“Let me ask you, did I know you before?”

“…No.”

“Did I ever bully you before?”

“…You’re notorious.”

“I’m asking you, did I ever bully you??”

“…No.”

“Then why are you pointing your guns at me??” Winnie tilted his head, his tone mocking.

“What, can’t make friends with those noble lords and ladies at the banquet, so you’re taking it out on me? Let’s be clear, it wasn’t me who pushed you to the corner of the banquet. It was those noble young masters and ladies who did that.” Winnie fired back, pointing at them.

“Don’t act like some little messenger of justice. Stop deceiving yourselves. You’re just venting your frustration on me because you don’t dare to offend the real nobles. I’m just an easy target with no power or influence.”

“If I haven’t bullied you, should you be pointing your guns at me??” Winnie asked.

“If you only dare to pick on soft targets, then you deserve to be bullied, because the people who bully you are just like you, cowards who only pick on the weak.”

“You…” His relentless verbal assault left them speechless, their faces twisted in discomfort as if they’d swallowed flies.

Winnie scoffed, then casually walked around them, grabbing a goose leg from the table before leaving.

However, as soon as he turned around, a stunning face suddenly appeared in his field of vision.

Winnie froze, barely holding onto the goose leg in his hand.

“Young Master Winnie, good evening,” the beautiful silver-haired lady greeted him with a smile.

“…Good evening,” Winnie managed to reply after a moment of silence.

No, isn’t Aesphyra a ghost?

How did she appear so quietly behind him? Was she planning to stab him or something??

Wait, how long had she been standing there listening?

Is that why no one had noticed her??

For some reason, Winnie felt a bad premonition when he saw Aesphyra’s smiling face.

Her flawless appearance always gave people the illusion that “she has a good impression of me” or “does she like me,” but Winnie knew better.

That was impossible.

If there were a favorability bar, the girl in front of him would have a green indicator, with her favorability toward him teetering at nearly -99.

Yet, despite such an abysmal score, she could still smile at him so brightly.

Who knows what she’s really thinking at this moment?

Isn’t that terrifying?

“As you can see, Miss Aesphyra, I’m a little hungry, so I’ll take my leave now.”

“Huh? Where are you going, Young Master Winnie?” Aesphyra tilted her head, feigning confusion.

“If you’re hungry, this is the banquet hall. Why leave?”

“Young Master Winnie, are you afraid of me?”

“Afraid? What nonsense are you spouting? Why would I be afraid of you? What’s there to be afraid of?” Winnie gritted his teeth, forcing himself to maintain his composure.

His character couldn’t collapse now.

“Pfft, Young Master Winnie, you’re too nervous. It’s just a joke,” Aesphyra said with a grin.

Oh, a joke? Sure, let’s go with that. But when the real joke is on me, that’ll be the end, won’t it?