Last Gun Alchemist

Chapter 287: Orientation Week IV

A few moments earlier...

Just as one of the boys had instinctively turned around to check whether someone was watching them...

A quiet voice drifted out from behind a thick cluster of bushes not far from the narrow passage.

"Well... well..."

The voice carried a trace of amusement.

"Looks like we’re getting some entertainment on the very first day of Orientation Week."

Another calm voice answered from beside him.

"It was bound to happen. After the declaration he made yesterday... It was only a matter of time before someone came looking for trouble."

"Yeah... That’s true."

For a brief moment...

Silence settled between the two hidden observers.

Then...

The second speaker slowly turned his head.

His eyes landed on the young man standing quietly beside him.

"...Wait. You’re Ezra, aren’t you?"

"Yes."

Ezra answered in his usual flat tone.

His black eyes never left the scene unfolding before them.

The leaves covering the bush concealed both him and the other observer completely, while their Cognis remained carefully suppressed.

Even experienced Novice Alchemists would struggle to notice their presence.

The young man beside him smiled faintly.

"You don’t strike me as someone who would hide and watch something like this."

His tone wasn’t mocking.

It simply carried genuine curiosity.

Ezra remained focused on Maxwell.

"I’m curious about something."

He replied calmly with the answer being as short as ever.

The other boy followed Ezra’s line of sight.

His faint smile widened slightly.

"You want to know his real strength."

It wasn’t a question.

Ezra nodded once.

"We both do."

He answered plainly.

The other boy quietly looked at him for a second before letting out a soft chuckle.

"You know... We’re neighbors."

He said it so casually that it almost sounded random.

"I know."

Ezra replied without looking at him.

The answer surprised the young man.

"...Really? I thought you wouldn’t have noticed."

He laughed lightly.

Ezra finally shifted his gaze toward him.

"Says the person wearing headphones."

His voice remained perfectly calm.

"I’m more surprised you stayed that alert while listening to music every time we passed each other."

The young man blinked.

Then...

He laughed again.

"So, you noticed that too."

He lightly adjusted the music plugs resting in his ears.

"I usually keep the volume low. Since I still like hearing what’s happening around me too."

Ezra quietly nodded.

That matched his earlier observation.

Even while appearing relaxed...

The boy had remained unusually aware of his surroundings.

His movements inside the classroom...

The way he effortlessly slipped through the crowd of girls...

Even the rhythm of his footsteps...

Everything suggested someone who constantly observed his environment.

Ezra quietly filed the information away.

The two stopped talking.

At almost the same moment...

It was the time one of the boys outside suddenly slammed his foot against the wall.

BANG!

The loud impact echoed through the narrow passage.

Both Ezra and the other boy silently returned their attention to the confrontation.

Back to the present...

Maxwell calmly looked down at the boy’s raised leg.

His golden eyes slowly traveled upward until they met the boy’s face.

His expression remained unusually relaxed.

"...Are you trying to bully me?"

He asked with genuine curiosity.

To him...

The entire situation almost seemed funny.

One of the surrounding boys burst into laughter.

"This commoner really doesn’t understand what’s happening."

He covered part of his face with one hand while shaking his head.

Another student cracked his knuckles.

"Why waste time talking?"

He stepped forward.

"We should just beat him up. That’ll teach this loser where he belongs."

"Exactly."

Several of the boys nodded.

They had already decided how this would end.

Maxwell slowly raised both hands.

"Hey...Easy now."

His voice remained calm.

Despite being surrounded by five people...

Not even the slightest trace of panic appeared on his face.

"The academy rules clearly state that random fighting isn’t allowed."

He looked at each of them one after another.

"If you’ve got a problem with me... challenge me properly. That’s what the rules are for."

Silence.

The five boys stared at him with none of them speaking.

Their expressions looked almost identical.

Confused.

Maxwell blinked.

"...Wait."

He scratched the side of his head.

"Don’t tell me... none of you actually read the rulebook."

His eyes widened slightly.

Then...

A helpless smile appeared.

"So... I’m the idiot... and somehow I’m still the only one who knows the rules."

He looked around at the five boys.

"My rich... and elegant fellow students."

His voice carried just enough sarcasm to make the mockery obvious.

The veins on one student’s forehead bulged.

"Who gives a damn about what this loser is saying!"

He roared.

Without another word...

He lunged forward.

His right fist shot directly toward Maxwell’s face.

There wasn’t even a warning.

Only raw anger.

Grab!

The punch stopped completely.

"...Huh?"

The boy froze.

His fist had been caught.

Maxwell’s hand wrapped around it effortlessly.

His expression hadn’t changed at all.

He stood exactly where he had been before.

Almost as though nothing had happened.

"Seriously..."

Maxwell sighed.

"This is only the first day. The very first day of Orientation."

He rubbed his forehead with his free hand.

"For the Scholars’ sake... How is this already happening to me?"

He sounded genuinely troubled, even though he knew exactly whose fault was that.

The surrounding boys stared in disbelief.

None of them had even seen Maxwell move.

He slowly lowered his hand from his forehead.

"The Vice Head Master told me... to keep a low profile."

He sighed again.

"I already failed that on the first day."

His smile became helpless.

"But... I’m honestly not worried about it."

His fingers tightened.

"AAARGH!"

The captured boy screamed.

"Let go! Let go of my hand, you filthy commoner!"

His face twisted in pain.

The strength behind Maxwell’s grip increased steadily.

Not enough to break bones...

But more than enough to make resistance impossible.

Hidden behind the bushes...

The relaxed young man quietly clicked his tongue.

"There are five of them."

He muttered under his breath.

"Jump him already."

He pointed toward Maxwell with obvious frustration.

Ezra slowly narrowed his eyes at him.

Almost as though the five boys had somehow heard those exact words...

The remaining four rushed forward together.

"Beat this bastard!"

The second boy threw a straight punch toward Maxwell’s jaw.

Grab!

Without even turning his body...

Maxwell caught the second punch as easily as the first.

Now...

One hand held the first student.

The other held the second.

His posture remained perfectly balanced.

The remaining three boys continued charging toward him.

Not a single step of panic appeared in Maxwell’s movements.

Only calm and only control.

Hidden behind the bushes...

Ezra quietly watched.

His eyes never left Maxwell’s feet.

Or his center of gravity.

Every movement...

Every shift of weight...

Every breath.

He observed all of it in complete silence.

Before the remaining boys could even reach him...

Maxwell moved first.

His body shifted with practiced precision.

Still gripping the first boy’s wrist firmly, he drove a powerful low kick into the side of the boy’s supporting leg.

BAM!

The strike completely knocked both of the boy’s feet off the ground.

Before gravity could pull him down...

Maxwell twisted his wrist sharply.

Using nothing but his grip and the boy’s own momentum, he spun him through the air in a smooth circular motion before releasing him.

BOOM!

The boy crashed shoulder-first into the nearby wall before dropping heavily onto the stone ground.

"Argh!"

He groaned loudly, clutching his shoulder and ribs as pain spread through his entire body.

The third boy didn’t hesitate.

Taking advantage of Maxwell’s brief movement, he leaped into the air and launched a straight Shaolin kick toward Maxwell’s chest.

The kick cut cleanly through the air.

Fast and precise.

Unfortunately...

Maxwell had already moved.

Still holding the second boy’s wrist, he calmly stepped sideways.

The flying kick narrowly missed Maxwell’s body by less than an inch.

The third boy’s eyes widened.

Before he could recover from the missed strike...

Maxwell reacted.

Without wasting a single movement...

He drove his foot into the back of the boy’s supporting knee the instant he landed.

"Ahh!"

The impact forced the boy’s leg to buckle.

He immediately dropped onto one knee.

His balance completely disappeared.

He tried to push himself back up.

But too late.

His vision suddenly blurred from an incoming spinning figure rapidly filled his sight.

Maxwell had already pivoted.

His body rotated smoothly.

Every movement flowed naturally into the next without the slightest hesitation.

BAM!

The spinning hook kick landed squarely against the side of the boy’s face.

His head snapped violently to the side.

The force lifted him completely off the ground before throwing him several meters away.

He rolled across the stone floor before finally coming to a stop.

A thin trail of blood slowly ran from his nose.

Maxwell blinked.

"...Yikes."

He scratched the back of his head.

"Did I overdo that one?"

A trace of pity appeared on his face as he looked at the unconscious student.

Only for a moment.

Then...

His attention shifted back toward the second boy.

The young noble was still desperately trying to free his wrist from Maxwell’s grip.

His face had already turned pale from the pressure crushing his hand.

Without warning...

Maxwell released him.

The boy stumbled backward several steps while clutching his wrist tightly.

He barely had enough time to raise his head.

A shadow suddenly filled his vision.

Maxwell had already closed the distance.

His fist shot forward like an arrow.

BOOM!

The punch buried itself deep into the boy’s abdomen.

The force lifted both of his feet completely off the ground.

Air exploded from his lungs.

A mouthful of saliva sprayed uncontrollably into the air.

His eyes rolled upward.

Consciousness disappeared instantly.

His body collapsed limply onto the stone pavement.

Silence followed.

Only one boy remained standing.

The last student stared at Maxwell with terror written all over his face.

Moments ago...

He had been mocking him together with the others.

Now...

Every one of his friends lay defeated within less than a minute.

His legs instinctively stepped backward.

"No..."

He shook his head repeatedly.

"I don’t want..."

His foot caught against an uneven stone.

"Ah!"

He lost his balance and fell onto his backside.

Maxwell calmly walked toward him.

Each step echoed softly against the pavement.

The terrified boy instinctively crawled backward.

His breathing became uneven.

Maxwell eventually stopped directly in front of him.

His expression became unusually serious.

Without saying anything...

He slowly bent down until both of them were almost at eye level.

The frightened student swallowed hard.

Maxwell quietly smiled.

"Take your friends to the infirmary."

His voice sounded gentle.

Then he continued.

"When they ask what happened... tell them they did it to themselves."

The boy blinked.

"Huh?"

Maxwell smiled even more warmly.

"You can always say they started fighting over a girl."

He shrugged casually.

"You know... It happens."

The frightened boy couldn’t tell whether Maxwell was joking.

He simply stared blankly.

Maxwell lightly patted his shoulder.

Once.

Twice.

Three times.

Each pat felt strangely heavier than the last.

To Maxwell...

It was a friendly gesture, but to the frightened student...

It felt more like a warning.

The boy nodded so quickly that his neck almost hurt.

"I-I understand."

"Good."

Maxwell stood back up.

He casually dusted off both hands before rolling his shoulders.

Then he cracked his knuckles one after another.

His ankles followed.

Crack.

Crack.

"Now then..."

His smile slowly disappeared.

"I’ve been wondering..."

Before the sentence even finished...

His body suddenly disappeared.

WHOOSH!

He shot toward the nearby bushes with explosive speed.

"...who our visitors ar..."

He abruptly stopped.

The bushes swayed gently.

Leaves slowly drifted back to the ground.

Nobody was there.

Maxwell blinked.

"...Eh?"

He carefully looked around.

Nothing.

His brows slowly furrowed.

I definitely felt two presences here...

They were suppressing themselves well...

But I know I wasn’t imagining it.

His eyes narrowed thoughtfully.

When did they leave?

He quietly replayed the fight inside his head.

The last boy...

He suddenly remembered the boy had fallen down because of a small stone.

While I was talking to that last guy...

They left then.

A faint smile slowly appeared on his face.

"So... They noticed."

He chuckled quietly.

"I wonder who you two are."

He stood there for another few seconds before finally turning away.

Without another thought...

He calmly walked off in the opposite direction.

Far ahead...

Ezra and Cyrus were already walking toward the main road leading to the residential district.

Neither of them spoke.

The quiet afternoon breeze gently stirred the academy trees as students gradually dispersed around them.

Ezra’s black eyes quietly shifted toward Cyrus.

His gaze carefully studied him.

He noticed Andraver’s Disciple’s awareness from the very beginning and his reaction speed isn’t ordinary either.

The moment Andraver’s Disciple rushed toward the bushes...

He had already moved.

Ezra’s eyes slowly traveled downward.

His attention settled on Cyrus’ hands.

Then...

His walking posture.

The rhythm of his footsteps.

The way his shoulders naturally relaxed.

When I first saw him inside the classroom...

He remained quiet the entire time.

He also moved surprisingly fast while slipping through that crowd of girls.

Even now...

His footsteps remained incredibly light.

Almost silent.

Everything about his movements suggested long-term training.

Not ordinary family training...

Maybe personal specialized training.

Before Ezra could continue his observations...

Cyrus suddenly glanced sideways.

A playful smile spread across his face.

"Hey... Young Inventor."

Ezra calmly looked at him.

Cyrus laughed.

"If you keep staring at me like that... you’re going to drill holes through my body."

He pointed dramatically at himself.

"I’m still perfectly healthy. I’d like to stay that way."

His playful tone carried no hostility.

Instead...

It sounded like someone casually teasing a new friend.

Ezra looked at Cyrus with his usual blank expression.

"...Sorry."

He replied plainly.

There wasn’t the slightest change in his face.

His apology sounded sincere, but it was delivered so flatly that it almost didn’t feel like one.

Cyrus stared at him for a moment before letting out another quiet laugh.

He really is an interesting person.

Scratching the back of his head, Cyrus casually walked a little faster until he stood in front of Ezra.

"Hey."

He smiled lightly.

"Since we’re both heading in the same direction..."

He pointed toward the residential district behind Ezra.

"...can I..."

"No."

Ezra answered before Cyrus could even finish speaking.

His response came without the slightest pause.

It was immediate.

Almost instinctive.

Cyrus blinked.

"...You didn’t even let me finish."

Ezra calmly walked past him.

"I already know what you were going to ask."

His tone remained completely flat.

"And my answer is still no."

Without another word...

He continued walking toward the roadside where the Noble Steam Carriage he had reserved was already waiting.

Lucy stood beside it.

The moment she spotted Ezra, her face immediately brightened.

"Master!"

She enthusiastically waved both hands above her head.

Her cheerful voice naturally drew the attention of several nearby students.

Ezra simply raised one hand in response.

It was only a small wave.

Yet Lucy smiled as though she had received an enormous compliment.

She happily opened the carriage door for him.

Before entering...

Ezra turned slightly.

His black eyes landed on Cyrus once more.

He gave a small wave.

Then he stepped into the carriage.

The steam engine released a gentle hiss before the vehicle slowly pulled away from the roadside.

Cyrus remained standing where he was.

A quiet laugh escaped him.

"So... That expression really is always blank."

He watched the carriage disappear into the distance.

"When I first watched him during the Unveiling party... I thought he was simply acting serious."

He slipped both hands into his pockets.

"But after talking to him... that’s just how he normally is."

The corners of his lips slowly lifted.

"He’s really quite an interesting neighbor."

Turning away...

Cyrus calmly walked toward the Noble Steam Carriage he had ordered earlier.

The coachman respectfully opened the door.

Cyrus casually climbed inside before placing his music plugs back into his ears.

A slow orchestra quietly began playing once again as the carriage rolled away from the academy grounds.

***

The following morning...

Orientation Week resumed almost immediately.

Unlike yesterday...

Kent personally accompanied the students throughout the day’s activities.

Walking beside him...

Was his apprentice.

The young woman who had guided everyone around the academy on the previous day.

The students quietly gathered together in the open assembly square while Kent stood before them with his hands folded behind his back.

His calm gaze swept across the group.

After making sure everyone had arrived...

He turned toward the young woman standing beside him.

"This..."

He gestured toward her.

"...is Miss Karla."

Karla immediately straightened her posture.

Kent continued speaking.

"She is both my assistant... and my apprentice. Throughout your first year... she will help manage many of your daily academic matters."

He slowly looked across the students.

"Homework. Practical reports. Examination supervision. And various administrative responsibilities. Most of those duties will pass through her before reaching me."

His expression became slightly more serious.

"So... I expect every one of you to treat her with the same respect you would show me."

Silence followed.

Then...

Karla stepped forward.

She politely bowed toward the students.

"I..."

A nervous smile appeared on her face.

"I hope I’ll be able to do a good job."

Her voice sounded gentle.

But...

Anyone paying close attention could easily notice the nervousness she was trying to hide.

Yesterday...

She had only been responsible for leading the students around the academy.

There had been little pressure.

Today was different.

Now...

She stood before the future heirs of Britannia.

Royalty.

Members of the Duke Houses.

Counts.

High-Ember nobles.

The kingdom’s greatest young talents.

Simply looking at the crowd made her heart beat a little faster.

Even after becoming Kent’s apprentice...

Standing before so many influential students at once was still something she hadn’t fully gotten used to.

Her fingers unconsciously tightened behind her back before relaxing again.

She silently reminded herself to stay calm.

Just then...

A gentle voice broke the silence.

"Please take good care of us, Miss Karla."

The Third Princess smiled warmly.

Her arms remained folded gracefully as she inclined her head ever so slightly.

The smile on her face carried both elegance and kindness.

Karla’s eyes widened.

"Y-Yes..."

She quickly bowed again.

"Yes, Your Highness!"

The respectful reply came out a little faster than she intended.

Her nervousness became even more obvious.

The Third Princess simply smiled gently.

"There is no need to be so nervous."

Her voice carried a comforting warmth.

"We’re all students here and you are our instructor."

Karla forced herself to smile.

"I’ll do my best."

She answered honestly.

Those simple words slightly eased the tension she had been feeling.

Not far away...

Soft whispers quietly spread among the students.

Most of them came from the section occupied by the high-ranking noble families.

"So, she’s Instructor Kent’s apprentice."

"I heard she graduated from the Royal Academy only a few years ago."

"No wonder she’s so young."

"Still..."

"She looks incredibly nervous."

One student chuckled quietly.

"Wouldn’t you be?"

His friend answered in a low voice.

"If I had to stand in front of all the future heirs of Britannia every morning... I’d probably be even more nervous."

Several students quietly nodded in agreement.

Meanwhile...

Ezra calmly observed Karla.

His expression never changed.

His black eyes quietly noticed the small details most people ignored.

The way her shoulders stiffened whenever someone of higher status spoke to her.

The slight tremble in her fingers before she hid them behind her back.

The controlled breathing, she used to calm herself.

She wasn’t lacking confidence in her abilities.

She was simply overwhelmed by the identities of the students standing before her.

After silently making that observation...

Ezra looked away.

For him...

There was nothing more to analyze.

Kent glanced toward his apprentice for a brief moment before giving a small nod of approval.

Then he turned back to the students.

"Now then...Let’s continue today’s tour."

Without another word...

The group once again began making their way deeper into the vast grounds of the Royal Academy.