A Wild Man Has Entered the Academy

TLed by NolepGuy

Chapter 157

The crowd froze instantly at Karas’s truly psychotic remark.

No matter how much he might want to punish his sister for her extreme debauchery, suggesting hitting her with a liquor bottle was beyond the pale.

Setting aside what Ellie might have been expecting, the mere fact that such words came out of Karas’s mouth hinted at his personality.

“Ho… hoho. You’re quite the joker, Brother.”

“May I ask when I was joking, Diana?”

“I had no idea this charming gentleman already had a lover. I apologize in advance.”

Diana, looking slightly flustered, bowed her head. It was an apology directed at Ellie.

For a princess to bow her head to a mere commoner like Ellie—it spoke volumes about how terrifying Karas was.

In truth, Karas was a man who almost always kept his word. It was rare to see him lie.

‘He probably doesn’t see the need to lie.’

If I, as a wildling, enjoyed freedom in various situations, then he, being in a position akin to the highest authority, had limitless freedom.

The reason his other siblings couldn’t even open their mouths in his presence was that he held at least one critical weakness over each of them.

Karas tolerated them only because they had helped him secure his position as the heir to the throne, but he certainly didn’t like them.

“Since you’ve apologized, I suppose that’s settled. Now, hand the liquor bottle back.”

“Here you go.”

“Hmm. It’s heavy enough to look quite painful.”

Karas remarked as he tapped his head lightly with the empty liquor bottle, seemingly recalling the recent incident where a prince’s head had been smashed.

Shortly after, Diana hurriedly left the scene, and Karas was about to follow suit.

“Ah. May I take this one with me? There’s something I’d like to discuss privately.”

“What? What do you mean by that…?”

“It’s nothing significant. I’m simply curious about the opinion of someone from the wilderness.”

“I don’t mind, but…”

Grace glanced at me as she spoke, signaling that my opinion mattered most.

Ordinarily, I wouldn’t want to be alone with Karas. Not that he’d hold a grudge like a petty person if I refused.

But perhaps it was the alcohol. Or maybe it was witnessing his truly psychopathic behavior just now.

I found myself a bit curious—what kind of nonsense might this man spew?

The fact that I was tipsy and unable to think clearly also played a role.

“I’ll go.”

“Really?”

“Yes. It’s fine.”

“Damn it. You might be fine, but we won’t be.”

Luna cut in sharply, clearly worried I might make a mistake.

Her words were a bit harsh, but they were true, so I just pouted. It’s not like I’d be crazy enough to hit Karas.

“Haha. You needn’t worry. Even if this one were to strike me on the head, I’d let it slide.”

“…Please don’t say such frightening things, even as a joke.”

“It’s not a joke. In any case, I’ll take them for a moment. Unless someone insists on coming along?”

“Me!”

Ellie raised her hand enthusiastically and shouted. While everyone else hesitated, she alone was brimming with cheerfulness.

Karas, seemingly pleased, nodded in approval.

“Now that I think about it, you’re a commoner too. It’s fine if I share what I intend to do. Anyone else want to join?”

“…I’ll pass.”

“Me too.”

Luna and Grace declined. Luna looked uneasy, while Grace seemed outright wary.

Judging by Grace’s reaction, she seemed to have a rough idea of what kind of conversation might unfold.

Just as we were about to leave, Grace grabbed my shoulder and whispered softly.

“Try to let his words go in one ear and out the other. It’ll likely be too complex for you to grasp right now.”

“Got it.”

Only after hearing Grace’s advice did I get a vague sense of what Karas might bring up.

The day before the banquet, Kara had bluntly explained why Karas was considered a crazy person.

Following Karas with Ellie, I glanced around and spotted a familiar face.

‘Kara… looks really worn out.’

One of the biggest topics of interest at the Freshman Banquet was Kara. She was surrounded by a crowd of people.

Some were drawn to her striking appearance and beautiful figure, while others were captivated by her innate charisma.

It wasn’t just men; there were plenty of women too. Clearly, she was popular with everyone.

‘Wasn’t there an event that always made Kara snap?’

Maybe it was the alcohol, but my memory was a bit hazy. There was an event involving Kara during the Freshman Banquet.

Someone, whose identity I couldn’t recall, provoked Kara by calling her a barbarian, and she fell for it.

If no one stopped her, she’d end up punching that person. But now, she was surprisingly engaged in a normal conversation.

‘Ah, right. The provocateur was the prince.’

It came back to me. The one provoking her was none other than the prince.

Didn’t he say something about forming a friendly relationship with the Tatars if she became his concubine?

Of course, it was an insult both as a warrior and as a woman, so he got what he deserved.

‘So that’s how it turned out.’

In any case, it was fortunate that one ruffian was gone. As long as everyone was happy, that was enough.

I shifted my gaze away from Kara, who was busy talking. It seemed like it would take some time to speak with her.

Besides, now was the time to talk with Karas. Regrettably, Kara would have to wait.

“This should do.”

Following Karas, we arrived at the second-floor terrace of the auditorium. I hadn’t realized such a place existed here.

It was quiet and sparsely populated, making it perfect for a conversation. Even the few people present were engrossed in their own discussions.

“Ah, what a shame.”

I was gazing up at the sky, which was starting to darken, when I heard Karas’s regretful tone.

Turning my head, I saw Karas with a cigar in his mouth. He had a matchstick, but nowhere to strike it.

Seeing this, I silently extended my hand, gesturing for the matchstick.

“Hmm? Are you interested in smoking as well?”

“Sivar, smoking is bad.”

Karas looked surprised, while Ellie scolded me with a stern expression. But I had no interest in smoking.

Even back on Earth, I had kept my distance from cigarettes. I barely drank alcohol either.

“No. The matchstick.”

“The matchstick?”

“Yes.”

Though puzzled, Karas handed me the matchstick. The floor was too smooth to create friction.

Snap!

So, I flicked my fingers to ignite it. All it took was the heat from friction.

Karas widened his eyes as I lit the match with a finger snap, then let out a dry laugh.

“I’ve experienced all sorts of things, but this is a first.”

Saying that, Karas took the matchstick and lit his cigar.

He then extinguished the remaining matchstick and put it in his pocket, seemingly not one to litter.

“Now, where were we?”

“You haven’t said a single word yet.”

“Haven’t I?”

Karas, showing a slightly absentminded side, took a deep drag from his cigar before exhaling a long puff.

Thick smoke billowed out, filling the air with a pungent smell that made me instinctively grimace.

“It stinks.”

“Don’t you find it aromatic?”

“Ugh.”

“Hahaha.”

Even as I openly expressed my disgust, Karas merely laughed it off. In the end, I had to step back slightly.

Ellie, who also seemed to dislike the smell of smoke, retreated alongside me. Karas, however, continued puffing away on his cigar.

“Sivar, you mustn’t develop an interest in smoking. Got it?”

“Yes. I hate smoking.”

“I don’t understand why you dislike something so good.”

Karas took a few more puffs from his cigar before quietly extinguishing it. The remaining cigar went back into his pocket.

As the thick smoke from the cigar dissipated, Karas looked at us and opened his mouth to speak.

“Before I begin, have you ever heard any rumors about me? Even the most explicit ones are fine.”

“Crazy person?”

“…Sivar. Bad language.”

When I said it outright, Ellie quietly scolded me from the side. Again, she scolded me rather than being surprised.

Even though I had just referred to the Crown Prince as a crazy person, her focus was on the use of bad language.

What was even more absurd was that Karas nodded in agreement. He didn’t seem to mind at all.

“You know me well. Then, do you also know what my creed is?”

“Freedom?”

“That’s correct as well. But to be more precise, it’s this: A person’s true nature only emerges when they lose their freedom.”

It’s the kind of thing a dictator from some space game would say. That guy even massacred millions of people.

If the Crown Prince were a dictator of that caliber, it would be a problem, but oddly enough, he wasn’t. That much I remember clearly.

“I, too, once lost my freedom. I lived a life that was almost like that of a wanderer. I was confined by my brother, barely had anything to eat, and couldn’t sleep properly due to assassination threats. It was a time when I feared death every single day.”

“… …”

That sounds just like me. That’s exactly how it was when I lived in the wilderness.

Finding proper food was a constant struggle, and even if I did, it often came at the risk of my life.

Sleep? That was a luxury I couldn’t afford. Thanks to my wild instincts, I would wake up at the slightest sound.

“It was then that I realized. When people can’t eat or sleep, they’re no better than beasts. Whether it’s a Crown Prince, a prince, a noble, or a commoner, everyone is the same. Strip away their freedom, and they all become beasts.”

“Are you perhaps talking about Sivar?”

Ellie, seemingly having similar thoughts to mine, cautiously asked. Just listening to him, it sounded like he was describing me.

However, Karas shook his head, denying it. It wasn’t a story limited to just me.

“Quite the opposite. Sivar, was it? That person could be considered the epitome of a free person. Eating when he wants, sleeping when he wants, acting as he pleases. How free is that?”

“And yet, Your Highness…”

“I had to acquire power out of necessity to achieve that. To ensure that no one could interfere with my affairs.”

Even those in the power class aren’t entirely free. The moment they lose their power, they are distanced from abundance.

“You were a commoner, weren’t you? What do you think freedom is?”

“Well… As you mentioned earlier, eating well, living well, and doing what I want.”

“Simple but accurate. And if you were to lose that freedom?”

“I wouldn’t be able to eat, live well, or avoid oppression.”

“Also accurate. Then, what would you do to regain your freedom in such a situation?”

Ellie tilted her head, her expression suggesting she hadn’t thought that far yet.

When faced with such situations, people usually split into two groups. Those who lose their lives, or those who resort to plunder.

Humans have been like that since ancient times. It’s only thanks to the vast fence of civilization that this isn’t the norm. Without civilization, humans are no different from beasts.

“You don’t know yet, do you? Because you’ve never lost your freedom. I, too, once wanted to strip the people of their freedom to make them realize its value. But I decided that was far too cruel and abandoned the idea.”

This is the decisive reason Karas is far from being a tyrant. At the very least, his head is screwed on straight.

The problem is that some screws are loose here and there. It’s a truly peculiar way of thinking.

“After much deliberation, I came up with one solution. To create a nation where all the people can achieve freedom on their own.”

“I don’t quite understand.”

“Simply put, it’s about receiving rewards proportional to one’s efforts.”

“Isn’t that already the case now?”

“As expected of a commoner, you don’t know much.”

Though the statement was tinged with elitism, Karas is the Crown Prince. It’s not unusual for him to make such remarks.

Moreover, even if his words carried elitism, they weren’t arrogant or overbearing. He never looks down on commoners.

“Achieving freedom means that with effort, one can rise to greater heights. Just as my brothers and I united to restore our power, commoners, too, can overthrow nobles and kings if they band together.”

“Hmm…”

“Of course, such situations mostly arise when freedom has been lost. If one can eat well, live well, and do what they want, they’ll think, ‘Why bother?’”

“It feels… like everything is all jumbled together.”

Even Ellie, who is quite intelligent, seemed to find Karas’s ideology difficult to grasp. Honestly, so did I.

However, upon closer inspection, it’s a somewhat dangerous yet romantic ideology. Granting freedom to all, but with the right to fight for it.

It might evoke images of the Western Frontier Era, but it’s not quite that. It would still operate within the fence of civilization, under the rule of law.

“Grant freedom, but with it comes responsibility. However, taking away someone else’s freedom without cause will never be forgiven.”

If it’s hard to understand, it can be explained through the nickname users have given him.

“Suppressing the beast-like instincts of humans with the fruit of freedom, and forging stronger, more resilient ideals.”

A communist who has realized those ideals, or—

“To achieve that, an unbreakable ‘Iron Man’ must stand at the top.”

Lucky Stalin.