The 'Five Academy Tournament' was the most important plotline spanning the first four chapters of the original game.
In the narrative structure of the original game, the primary task of Chapter One was to familiarize players with Glory Cael Magic Academy's basic environment, character relationships, and daily systems, while laying numerous foreshadowing hooks.
One of the most crucial foreshadowing elements was Headmistress Olivia departing to attend a high-level event known as the 'Annual Magic Tower Exchange.'
This provided a critical time window and background setting for subsequent plot developments.
Entering Chapter Two, the player-controlled protagonist would experience a series of events within the academy, gradually rising to prominence as their strength and reputation continuously grew, ultimately drawing the attention of the Headmistress upon her return from the Magic Tower Exchange.
This marked the moment the protagonist truly began entering the core circle of the academy.
The narrative of Chapter Three then began resolving the Magic Tower Exchange foreshadowing planted in Chapter One.
Players would learn that during that previous Magic Tower Exchange, the headmasters of the Five Great Magic Academies had jointly drafted a massive academic exchange event aimed at outstanding young mages across the entire continent.
Over a hundred magic academies would each send their best student delegations, forming a massive exchange group of several thousand people to participate in this grand event together.
In the original game, this event was called the 'Hundred Academy Exchange.'
The Hundred Academy Exchange was the first major event in the game that truly expanded the worldview.
Players would leave the familiar Glory Cael Academy and interact with geniuses from other academies across the continent, each with vastly different styles, witnessing a broader magical world and fiercer competition.
And according to the setting, only by achieving an A-level evaluation in the Hundred Academy Exchange would one qualify to be officially selected by the academy as a representative, earning the right to enter an even higher and more brutal ultimate stage—which was the core content of Chapter Four:
The Five Academy Tournament.
This was the real highlight.
The five universally recognized top magic academies on the continent would each send a mere handful of true elite representatives to engage in an ultimate showdown under the spotlight of the entire world, competing for academy honor and potentially influencing the future landscape of the continent.
The victors of the Five Academy Tournament would gain unimaginable honor and resources, while their academy would experience a massive surge in prestige.
It could be said that from Chapter One's foreshadowing to Chapter Two's build-up and Chapter Three's selection, everything ultimately converged toward Chapter Four's Five Academy Tournament.
This was the key battle for the protagonist to prove themselves, as well as the biggest climax in the early story.
Having sorted out this storyline, Greg grew even more confused.
According to the original game progression, even without his involvement, Victoria, as the Hero, was fully capable of standing out in the Hundred Academy Exchange, earning an A-level evaluation, and representing Glory Cael Academy in the Five Academy Tournament, achieving quite impressive results.
So why was Olivia going to such great lengths to have him—a notorious former villainous noble—take this path that was supposed to belong to the protagonist?
Greg carefully weighed his words, his eyes looking straight into Olivia's molten-gold eyes, which seemed capable of seeing through a person's heart:
“I don't understand. Why must it be me? Aren't there plenty of outstanding students in the academy? As far as I know, Her Highness Vivian Kahn in the second year, Her Highness Lilith Kahn in the first year, and... certain highly potential commoner students, like Victoria Cecil and Silvia Lorraine, all have great promise.”
“Especially Victoria. Given enough support and opportunity, she wouldn't necessarily fail to achieve good results in the Five Academy Tournament. Wouldn't it be safer to let them strive for the honor?”
He tried to steer the topic toward the original story's trajectory while also probing Olivia's true intentions.
However, Olivia's response thoroughly shattered his logical deduction.
“Because of those sanctimonious bastards! During the Magic Tower Exchange, they actually ganged up and forbade me from drinking alcohol at official meetings and banquets!”
She spoke in huffy indignation, as if this were some unforgivable crime.
Greg: “...”
He fell silent for two seconds, trying to comprehend her logic. Failing completely, he could only offer a dry response: “...Isn't that completely reasonable?”
Olivia seemed not to hear a word Greg said, continuing to complain on her own:
“They even complained that I wasn't like them! They said I haven't fulfilled my duty as a headmistress to educate students and set an example, lounging around all day and shirking my duties! Ha! What do they know? That's called balancing work and play! That's individual liberation!”
Greg: “They aren't wrong though, are they?”
“I don't care!”
Olivia suddenly slammed her wine bottle onto the desk with a heavy thud, twisting her body in her chair like a child throwing a tantrum. Her molten-gold eyes glared at Greg, burning with unvarnished vengefulness.
“Anyway, I want you to beat down every single so-called genius and elite sent by the other academies at the Five Academy Tournament! Beat them to a pulp until they cry for their parents! It would be best if you break their proud hearts into pieces and stomp on them!”
The more she spoke, the more excited she became, even waving her fist.
“When the time comes, I can stand on the award podium—no, better yet, right at the post-tournament celebration banquet, right in front of their headmasters, crossing my legs, sipping wine, and using the most punchable tone to mock them back: 'Oh my, look at your carefully cultivated darling students. How come they couldn't even last three moves against a problem student from our academy? Is this the result of your dutiful, example-setting education? Tsk tsk tsk...' Just imagining that scene makes me feel returning early this time was totally worth it! It feels amazing!”
Greg: “What kind of troublesome brat are you?! Just for a reason like that?!”
He understood completely now.
Olivia approaching him had no deep, far-sighted strategic considerations or noble ideals whatsoever. It was purely driven by her extremely willful personal self-interest!
She wanted to use him to give the other academies a fierce slap in the face on the highest stage of the Five Academy Tournament, all to vent her internal frustration and satisfy her twisted desire for revenge!
He had to admit... this really fit her disappointing beauty persona...
Greg griped inwardly.
Griping aside, a practical problem immediately presented itself.
Olivia's plan sounded exhilarating, but it contained a fundamental contradiction.
To be sure, with the power Greg currently commanded, even outside the dungeon, if he went all out, he indeed had considerable confidence in launching a dimensional strike against the geniuses of other academies in the Five Academy Tournament, fulfilling Olivia's evil desire.
However, the prerequisite was—he had to be able to use dark-attribute magic in broad daylight before the public.
Yet wasn't the fundamental reason he was here making this deal with Olivia to prevent his secret of being able to use dark-attribute magic from being exposed, avoiding endless trouble?
If he exposed the secret just to win the Five Academy Tournament, what would be the point of agreeing to this deal?
Wouldn't that be putting the cart before the horse?
“No.”
Thus, Greg decisively shook his head:
“I cannot accept this condition. If winning the competition requires me to publicly use... that kind of power, what is the point of agreeing to your terms? There is absolutely no benefit in it for me.”
“Oh? Do you really think... doing this holds no benefit for you at all?”
The chuunibyou expression on Olivia's face vanished instantly, restoring her lazy yet sly demeanor.
She picked up the wine bottle again, gently swirling it in her hand as the leftover wine produced a soft sound. Her molten-gold eyes looked at Greg with a half-smile.
“What do you mean?” Greg frowned, a hint of vigilance rising in his heart, though mostly confusion.
Olivia did not answer directly, instead beginning her analysis unhurriedly, as if stating a simple fact:
“Look, if you successfully stand out among the academy's many students and are then personally appointed by me—the Headmistress of Glory Cael Academy—as the representative to compete in the Five Academy Tournament... then from that moment on, your identity will completely change.”
She leaned forward slightly, lowering her voice with an alluring edge:
“You will no longer be Greg Sass, the former villainous young master expelled by his family. You will be the top student representative personally discovered, cultivated, and placed with high hopes by me, Olivia Moore—a Great Archmage. You will be the talent I value most, or even... my front.”
Greg's eyes flickered slightly, as if he had caught onto something.
Olivia satisfactorily noted his change and slowly continued:
“When that time comes, your strength, the power you command... no matter how special or unusual it seems, as long as it wins honor for the academy under my tacit consent, how will the outside world view it?”
She paused, letting Greg digest the words on his own.
Greg's eyes gradually brightened.
A possibility he had never considered before clearly surfaced in his mind.
“They will think... it is your arrangement, Headmistress—that it is Glory Cael Academy's heritage or secret weapon.”
Greg's voice carried a hint of enlightenment:
“Even if someone covets it, as long as I carry the halo of 'a talent valued by the Headmistress,' before they make a move, they will be forced to weigh whether it is worth offending a Great Archmage standing at the peak of human combat power, along with the entire Glory Cael Academy bound to you, just for a special power possessed by a single student.”
“Bingo!”
Olivia snapped her fingers, her smile brilliant:
“Exactly! Once you become the academy's representative and gain this protective charm, your secret will no longer be something that must be hidden away. On the contrary, it can become power you use openly, becoming part of the academy's glory. And I will become your strongest backing and shield.”
She leaned back, resting against the chair back again in a relaxed posture:
“You could say... this is your only chance to turn things around and use my power and status to protect yourself. How about it, Greg Sass? Don't you want to seize it?”
Greg fell silent.
He had to admit that Olivia's words held an irresistible allure for him.
For a long time, dark-attribute magic had been like a double-edged sword; while granting him strength, it hung above his head like the Sword of Damocles, capable of bringing fatal disaster at any moment.
But if... if he could secure the open protection of a towering tree like Olivia, the situation would be entirely different.
He could utilize this power with far greater composure, allowing himself to... survive better.
Furthermore, forming a deeper connection with a peak-tier powerhouse like Olivia was by no means a bad thing for him.
This might help him evade many potentially lethal crises in the future.
Risks and opportunities coexisted.
Yet at this moment, the scales of opportunity seemed to tilt in his favor.
After pondering for a moment, Greg looked up, his gaze growing firm once more.
Looking into Olivia's molten-gold eyes, which were filled with anticipation and amusement, he slowly nodded.
“Alright.”
He spoke simply and firmly:
“I agree. I will fight to secure the qualification as a representative, and then... fulfill your wish at the Five Academy Tournament.”
“Splendid!”
Olivia's eyes lit up, the smile on her face becoming increasingly villainous and expectant.
Leaping up from her chair, she extended a fair and slender hand toward Greg.
“Then the deal is struck! I really look forward to... seeing you beat those proud beautiful girls from other academies until they cry aloud under the gaze of thousands!”
“You are so wicked...”
A matching expression immediately appeared on Greg's face. “But I like it!”
A peculiar tacit understanding began to flow in the air.
However, this harmony lasted for less than three seconds.
Olivia: “Ah, right, I forgot to mention. Before you came, I seemed to have drunk too much and ran off to throw up once. When I came back to tidy up... well, I guess I was so focused on opening a new bottle that I forgot to wash my hands.”
“.......”
The smile on Greg's face froze instantly.
He violently yanked his hand back as if touching something filthy. His face turning green, he frantically wiped his hand on his trousers, his eyes filled with unbelievable disgust.
Olivia couldn't care less. Laughing heartily, she turned and lazily sank back into her high-backed chair, letting out a comfortable sigh. Casually picking up a freshly opened bottle of wine, she waved her hand carelessly in Greg's direction, as if dismissing him:
“Alright, alright. Well then, remember to attend your academy classes properly from now on, Student Greg. I will keep an eye on your attendance and performance. I look forward to the day you openly become an academy representative through outstanding academic work and strength~”
Greg's action of wiping his hand abruptly froze. He raised his head, an expression of even greater shock and resistance appearing on his face than before.
“Wait! What did you just say?! I still have to go to class?!”
“What else?”
Olivia took a sip of wine and looked at him as a matter of course, as if he were asking a stupid question:
“If you don't even attend basic academy classes, yet suddenly defeat all the diligent students in the selection and become the academy representative... wouldn't that make Glory Cael Academy's teaching standards and selection mechanism look terribly flawed? How could I righteously mock the other academies for bad teaching then?”
Greg felt a wave of suffocation. “But you didn't mention this condition earlier!”
“I'm mentioning it now. Is that not allowed?”
Olivia blinked, her face wearing a shameless expression of 'what can you do about it':
“It's just attending classes, not asking you to die. Is there any need for such a big reaction? How many people wish they had the chance to take our academy's classes?”
Greg: “Is there a possibility that this is asking me to die?”
“Oh, don't be so dramatic.”
Olivia waved her hand with a light tone, but her molten-gold eyes narrowed slightly, a sharp light flashing through them that brooked no argument:
“Anyway, it's too late to back out now. The deal is struck, and I call the shots. If you dare to go back on your word now...”
Setting down her glass, she leaned forward slightly, propping her chin with one hand. The fingers of her other hand gently brushed against Greg's handsome, nearby cheek with an ambiguous and dangerous force.
Greg's body stiffened, not daring to move.
Olivia leaned closer, her warm, alcohol-scented breath almost blowing against his earlobe. Her voice was pressed extremely low, carrying a magnetic rasp and an unvarnished laugh like a beast locking onto its prey:
“Then, according to our cowboy custom... before finally executing the hostage, I might first... enjoy myself thoroughly~?”
Having said that, she even deliberately darted her tongue out to quickly lick her plump lower lip. Her molten-gold eyes reflected Greg's instantly petrified face.
Greg: “What kind of bizarre cowboy movies have you been watching?! You devil in beauty's clothing!!!”
Olivia burst into loud laughter, her voice echoing in the room piled high with wine bottles, filled with the delight of a successful prank.
“That's not your concern, my dear candidate representative~ Now, roll on out of my office. Remember to attend class on time starting tomorrow~ I'll have the Student Council President take special care of you~”
Greg shot one last glare at this troublesome woman laughing so hard her body shook. Carrying a heart full of grievance and deep anxiety over his future school life, he turned around and stepped with heavy feet across a floor covered in empty wine bottles, leaving this magic den that had exhausted him mentally and physically.
Rate on N.U.
