The Protagonist's Party is Too Diligent-Chapter 296

I had no complaints about how things worked—the Imperial Household and nobility provided the funds, while the academy and student council handled the actual management.

After all, I was never good at managing money. Back in my old world, I used to budget my living expenses to the extreme, only to end up spending everything on games and merchandise, leaving me with nothing when unexpected expenses popped up—so much so that skipping meals became routine. Things had changed a lot since I started making my own money, but at least until I graduated from college, I had spent a significant amount of time hungry.

Even in this world, I had never really paid attention to budgeting. Thinking back, the sheer amount of money I had spent must have been staggering—from buying firearms, to refining Maramaros into bullets, to wearing a reinforced exoskeleton made with technology that didn’t even exist in my previous world.

None of that would have been possible without the Imperial Treasury backing me.

If I had been part of the student council and had access to that budget, there was no doubt I would have burned through it recklessly, causing all sorts of problems.

Besides, the student council members weren’t exactly desperate for money. More importantly, no one in their right mind would dare embezzle from a budget that mixed noble donations, imperial funds, and even foreign royal contributions. That meant I had nothing to worry about—I could simply sit back and ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ watch the academy slowly transform as it prepared for the Cultural Festival.

At least, that’s what I thought—until a student council member came looking for me.

"H-H-Her Highness...?"

The girl stammered as she approached, looking like she was about to collapse in fear just from speaking to me.

"What is it?"

Hearing my voice, she flinched hard—as if I had suddenly jumped out to scare her. You’re the one who called me, though.

"T-The teacher... s-sent me to get you... Her Highness... um... she asked to see you..."

"Me?"

I quickly ran through the list of academy instructors in my head.

It wouldn’t be Carolyn—there was no reason for her to call me specifically. Not that we had a bad relationship, just that our paths didn’t really clash.

Sure, we had stolen a relic from House Northwood, but the Duke himself didn’t even know about it.

That meant the only teacher who could have called for me was Jennifer.

And as soon as I reached that conclusion, an uneasy feeling settled in. Jennifer knew my abilities were gone, so she wouldn’t be calling me to send me back to the battlefield. But that didn’t mean she wasn’t about to throw me into something just as troublesome.

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"The teacher?"

Alice, sitting beside me, also asked. The student who had approached us shrank even further—she looked like she was about to sink into the void and disappear entirely. And when Charlotte also turned her gaze toward her, she visibly choked as if someone was physically strangling her.

I knew her name—she was from Class B.

And come to think of it, Jennifer was Class B’s homeroom teacher.

So, it really was Jennifer.

I rose from my seat.

"Then, I’ll be going."

"...Do you want me to go with you?"

Alice offered, and I seriously considered it for a moment.

"...No, I don’t think it’s necessary."

If it had been someone truly troublesome, I might have reconsidered. But Jennifer? She wasn’t exactly easy to deal with, but at the very least, I hadn’t done anything I needed to feel guilty about in front of her.

I owed her a debt, sure—but I had already repaid it by obliterating the battlefield back then. Not that Jennifer even realized I had paid her back.

"Alright, then. Lead the way."

"Y-Yes, understood!"

The girl snapped upright as if I had just issued a military command.

"Oh, yeah, you’re here?"

Even though I was now second-in-line to the Imperial Throne, Jennifer’s attitude toward me hadn’t changed at all.

And for that, I was grateful. If she had suddenly started treating me with the same stiff, overly formal deference as the headmaster, I would have turned around and run for my life.

Honestly, knowing Jennifer, even if I became Emperor, she’d probably treat me the same way. Like teacher, like student.

"Why did you call me?"

"Eh, it’s nothing big."

Jennifer casually grabbed a document from her desk and handed it to me.

"Looks like we might be hiring a new teacher."

"...And why are you calling me about that?"

I took the paper and glanced over it.

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"Because the person applying is someone you know."

"......."

I looked at the document.

It wasn’t so much a resume as it was a barebones application. Most of the sections were completely blank, except for basic personal details and a minimal self-introduction—as if the applicant didn’t think they needed to fill anything out.

Or maybe they simply didn’t care.

Even without reading the name, the photo in the upper corner told me everything I needed to know.

"...The Sword Saint wants to be a teacher?"

Jennifer shrugged.

"Beats me. That’s why I called you."

"And what makes you think I’d have the answer?"

I couldn’t help but ask, baffled.

Jennifer just shrugged again.

"Dunno. Just figured you might have some insight."

"......."

How?

Sure, I had spent a decent amount of time around the Sword Saint—practicing, rewinding time to train, learning techniques. He even came to the imperial palace later on to help train us.

But that didn’t mean I was the most qualified person to answer.

If we were talking about true students, there were plenty of better candidates—Jennifer herself, Claire, Leo, Alice... people who had far greater talent than I did.

So why me?

"I don’t claim to understand everything about the Sword Saint, but—"

Jennifer started to elaborate, seeing that I still wasn’t convinced.

"He doesn’t only care about talented students. He’s had plenty of disciples before—most of whom died in battle."

"......."

"Every time he talks about you, he calls you ‘untalented.’ But at the same time, he’s never denied that you’re his student. In fact, I’d say he naturally considers you one."

Jennifer paused, briefly glancing at me—as if hesitating.

She had called me untalented multiple times now, and maybe she was starting to feel guilty.

But I didn’t react.

Because she was right.

"A man like the Sword Saint doesn’t just take in anyone. The moment someone asks to be his disciple, they instinctively measure their own talent."

"And if they think they’re not worthy, they don’t even try."

Because that was how masters were perceived.

"That’s why he might see you as different. You had no talent, yet you still sought him out and forced yourself to learn. You’re one of the few who did."

"......."

Hmm.

When she put it that way, it did kind of make sense.

But that Sword Saint caring about me?

Him?

Jennifer smirked at my skeptical expression.

"Anyway, that’s why I called you. It’s not exactly objective reasoning, but I still want you to talk to him."

"...Talk?"

"If we’re hiring a teacher, we can’t just skip the interview. But the Sword Saint isn’t someone who easily opens up."

"So, you want me to pry it out of him?"

"You seemed like the best candidate."

Way too much faith in me.

I sighed loudly, making sure she saw it.

Jennifer just grinned.