Fyria sat behind her desk in the principal's office of the Central Moonlight Academy in the city of Moonlight, Silvermoon Kingdom, her arms crossed and her expression cold as she glared at the attendant officer. She raised her hand and pointed to a report on her desk.
"I didn't call you here for no reason. I want an explanation from you. How did this name pass your department's review?"
The nervous, scholarly-looking attendant wiped sweat from his forehead with a handkerchief and glanced at the spot Fyria was pointing to on the document. "Is there a problem with it?"
In terms of position, he held a fairly high rank in the royal court, but facing Fyria, the chief mage of the kingdom and the newly appointed principal of the academy, he couldn't help but maintain a respectful attitude.
The name Fyria pointed to was Shiga Thunder Roar, spelled out in Orcish, Elvish, and the common tongue of the Alliance. It was the name of the Orc, the hero from the Thunderfang Clan, who had been sent as part of a cultural exchange following the peace treaty with the Alliance.
The attendant couldn't understand why such a name was causing such a strong reaction from Fyria. After all, he had no idea why this name had triggered such a response. Even though much of the information about Shiga had been suppressed, Fyria, a top figure in the magical world and the Silvermoon Kingdom, had been angered by it. In just half a day, she had sent several messages via familiars to his department, demanding someone come explain the situation.
"Don't you know who this Orc is?" Fyria asked, her brows furrowing. "Admittedly, much about him has been classified. But as a high-ranking officer in charge of diplomacy, how could you forget about the incident two years ago, when Moonblade Fortress was almost breached?"
The attendant blinked, struggling to believe what he was hearing. "You mean... that Shiga?"
"Yes, that Shiga. The Dragon Slayer, the Undying Giant, the Thunderstorm Disaster, the Demon Lord of Bloodstone Fortress, the Rift of Moonblade Fortress, the Grinder of the Red River Valley..." Fyria enumerated the many titles Shiga had earned in the war against the Alliance, each one making the attendant's face pale more and more. "Does that ring any bells? You can go to the Intelligence Department and check the file. His surname is the same."
"No, no, it can't be him! I have some knowledge of Orcs, and 'Shiga' is a relatively common name among them. There are likely others with the same name..." The attendant waved his hands.
"Then it seems your work is inadequate. Let me teach you something, young man. Orcs have a tradition of avoiding naming their children after heroes who've accomplished major feats. When an Orc is given the title of hero, anyone in their tribe with the same name typically changes it out of respect, except for the deceased.
An Orc can only have the same name as a hero if they've accomplished something equal to that hero's deeds. And the Thunderfang Clan doesn't have another general who nearly breached Moonblade Fortress."
The attendant's face turned completely white. "So... that means?"
"Among the Thunderfang Tribe, there can only be one Shiga Thunder Roar," Fyria said solemnly, nodding.
"But... how could they..." The attendant stammered, "This doesn't make sense. Don't they fear causing trouble?"
"Sometimes cultural differences can be that vast. Even after two years on the front lines, I still don't completely understand their logic. What kind of reasoning do you expect to use to predict their actions?" Fyria shook her head.
Hearing this, the attendant suddenly recalled something.
"Ah, I remember... you've actually had dealings with him..." The attendant stopped midway, realizing he shouldn't have brought this up and immediately closed his mouth.
Fyria, however, seemed unbothered. "Yes, we've clashed. I led the most elite mage forces of the White Tower to attack Bloodstone Fortress, and we couldn't breach it even after two months."
The attendant began wiping his sweat with his handkerchief again. "What should we do now? It's too late to change things. How do we tell them we want to replace the Orc teacher?"
The list had already been submitted and passed initial reviews, and now it was difficult to find a valid reason to reject it.
If they backtracked without a strong justification, it would make the Silvermoon Kingdom's diplomatic position look weak and cowardly, damaging the kingdom's reputation. Someone would be held accountable afterward.
"Really, as soon as I took over this academy, I already had so much to deal with. Now I'm faced with such a problem," Fyria sighed, looking at the name on the document, shaking her head.
Meanwhile, in one of the academy's classrooms.
A group of students gathered together, discussing a major issue seriously.
"My senior in the government office found out that they really hired an Orc as a teacher, and it's likely..." A short-haired Elven girl hesitated before adding, "He's here to replace that old woman we got rid of and take over our Class 13."
As soon as this was said, the students immediately groaned in despair.
"Are you joking? The academy's leadership has really lost their minds?"
"Just having an Orc step into this academy is an insult!"
"I've heard that Orcs get excited when they see females of any race, it's disgusting..."
"I can't take this anymore, I'm quitting school!"
Suddenly, a human male student slammed his fist on the table. "I really don't get it. We won the war, so why do we have to promote some humanitarianism with these barbaric races? Giving them land was already enough. Why on earth are we doing cultural exchanges? It's humiliating!"
The Thunderfang Tribe claimed victory in the war, forcing the Three-Nation Alliance to recognize the legitimacy of their claimed territory. The Alliance, on the other hand, also claimed victory, successfully limiting the Orcs' settlement to a designated area, preventing further territorial expansion and showcasing the might of the Alliance nations.
For the students, far from the front lines, their impressions of Orcs were based solely on the official propaganda they had been fed. The Orcs were portrayed as brutish, barbaric, and primitive.
As the war went on, civilian works even attributed... certain "special" traits to Orcs.
For the students who had never encountered a real Orc, their knowledge of them was formed only from these sources.
Thus, the young and impulsive students could not understand why the Alliance did not finish off the Orcs completely. They could not fathom why the Alliance would stop fighting and sign a peace agreement with the Orcs, acknowledging their land.
And now, they were even going to have an Orc teacher in the name of cultural exchange?
This was the greatest joke the gods had ever played on them!
"Quiet, trash. No one wants to hear your political speech," a blonde Elven girl suddenly spoke up, leaning back in her chair with her feet on the desk and her arms crossed.
"Filin..." The boy looked at her unhappily, but dared not argue. "What's up with you? I didn't provoke you today, did I?"
"Don't misunderstand, I'm not targeting anyone. I'm talking about all of you here, you're all trash!" Filin took her feet off the desk, straightened up, and scanned the room.
"What are you saying? You're in this class too..." The boy muttered.
"I'm not like you who got stuck in this class because of your low level. If you're not happy, we can settle it," Filin pointed her short staff at the boy.
The boy glared at her but dared not respond, knowing he couldn't win. If it weren't for repeated rule violations, Filin would have been one of the top contenders for the chief position in this year's mage program.
"Alright, Filin, you usually don't talk like this. I know you're angry, but don't take it out on us," another more composed half-Elven girl tried to mediate.
"Hmph," Filin put her staff away. "What I'm saying is, sitting here whining like a bunch of sparrows doesn't help. If you want change, you need action!"
"What can we do? Protest? Don't forget we're the 'abandoned Class 13'," the boy shrugged.
"The academy doesn't care about our opinions, but we can make that Orc 'hear' us. If he voluntarily steps down from being our teacher, we won't have to see him again," Filin sneered. "It's that simple. How do you not understand that?"
The other students looked at each other in confusion.
"So I'm calling for everyone to unite. When the time comes, we'll show that arrogant Orc what we think," Filin said, standing up and pressing her hand on the desk. "I've said my piece, who's in favor, who's against?"
"This... this is not right..." The half-Elven girl spoke hesitantly.
Filin immediately waved her staff, and the girl's chair tipped, causing her to fall with a cry.
"I'm in favor," the boy declared first.
"I'm in favor!"
"Favor!"
"Let's kill that Orc!"
The rest of the group quickly joined in.
Seeing this, Filin's lips curled into a satisfied smile. "Good, let's prepare a little 'welcome gift' for him."