The Laziest God Mortal Reincarnation

Elizabeth Aurelius had absolutely no intention of joining the crowd.

Nearly two hundred newly admitted students had gathered around Zenith’s announcement boards, and the plaza below had become a mixture of celebration, disappointment, arguments, and overly emotional parents.

One boy appeared to be questioning every decision that had brought him to this moment.

Elizabeth watched all of it from a shaded terrace overlooking the plaza, comfortably seated with a cup of tea in her hand.

Across from her, James Vellaroux stared toward the crowded boards.

"You know we could simply walk over there."

"We could."

"You don’t want to."

"No."

James sighed while Elizabeth calmly took another sip.

One advantage of arriving early was discovering the small café overlooking the admissions plaza. Another was avoiding having someone’s elbow pressed into her ribs while attempting to read an announcement board.

More importantly, a royal attendant had already copied the complete class assignments and placed them neatly on the table.

Five sheets.

Five classes.

Elizabeth lowered her tea.

"Thirty-eight."

James looked over. "What?"

"My class."

She picked up the first sheet.

CLASS ONE

Leader: Elizabeth Aurelius - SSS

SS: 1

S: 2

A: 11

B: 23

Total: 38

James leaned slightly forward.

"You received one of the SS students."

"So did you."

"And Daphne."

Elizabeth nodded, which meant two classes had received none.

Sophie Trohan.

And Alash Vortex.

She moved to the second report.

CLASS TWO

Leader: James Vellaroux - SSS

SS: 1

S: 2

A: 12

B: 22

Total: 38

James smiled.

"My class is stronger."

Elizabeth looked at him. "Based on?"

"More A potentials."

"One."

"Still more."

"You also have one fewer B."

"Exactly."

Elizabeth slowly placed her tea on the table.

"James."

"What?"

"Please tell me you’re not evaluating an entire class by counting letters."

His smile weakened slightly.

"I wasn’t being completely serious."

"Good."

"Mostly."

Elizabeth sighed.

James picked up Sophie’s sheet.

CLASS THREE

Leader: Sophie Trohan - SSS

SS: 0

S: 3

A: 14

B: 19

Total: 37

His expression changed as he read through it.

"Interesting."

Elizabeth nodded.

No SS student, but three S potentials, fourteen A potentials, and considerably fewer B potentials than her own class.

"Vale balanced them differently," Elizabeth said.

James looked at her.

"Obviously."

"No."

She tapped Sophie’s report.

"Not merely by potential."

Then she placed Daphne’s beside it.

CLASS FOUR

Leader: Daphne Spinster - SSS

SS: 1

S: 2

A: 12

B: 21

Total: 37

Then Alash’s.

CLASS FIVE

Leader: Alash Vortex - SSS

SS: 0

S: 3

A: 14

B: 19

Total: 37

James noticed immediately.

"Identical to Trohan."

"Only in potential distribution."

"Obviously."

Elizabeth ignored his imitation.

Potential was merely the easiest number to compare.

Attributes mattered.

Current core rank mattered.

Experience, professions, combat roles, and team compatibility all mattered, sometimes considerably more than the letter printed beside someone’s name.

A B-potential student possessing an exceptional support talent could easily be more immediately valuable than an inexperienced A-potential student.

Zenith had also deliberately avoided placing all three SS students in classes that were already overloaded with high-potential members.

Which meant...

"Headmaster Vale expects us to figure out the rest ourselves."

James looked at her. "What rest?"

"Why our classes were designed this way."

That interested him.

Before he could answer, however, movement in the plaza caught Elizabeth’s attention.

Silver hair.

Her eyes narrowed slightly.

There.

A boy was moving through the crowd beside a purple-haired girl.

More accurately, the girl was moving through the crowd while the boy was being pulled along by his sleeve.

And tucked beneath his other arm...

Elizabeth stopped.

James followed her gaze before a smile appeared.

"Oh."

Elizabeth stared.

The reports had been accurate.

He really had brought it.

A pillow.

Not packed inside luggage.

Not hidden within a storage ring.

Actually tucked underneath his arm while walking through Zenith Academy in full public view.

Elizabeth slowly lifted her tea.

"Interesting."

James laughed.

"You’ve been saying that about him for weeks."

"I assumed the reports exaggerated."

"Three separate reports mentioned the pillow."

"That does not make carrying one into the Academy reasonable."

James looked toward Alash.

"I don’t think reasonable concerns him."

Elizabeth continued watching.

Alash Vortex didn’t appear nervous, excited, or particularly impressed by anything surrounding him.

Students repeatedly glanced in his direction.

Either he hadn’t noticed...

Or he simply didn’t care.

The purple-haired girl beside him clearly noticed.

Penelope Declair.

Elizabeth remembered the name.

B potential.

Alash’s fiancée.

Daughter of Lord Declair.

And, according to the reports, already an unusually competent administrator for her age.

Elizabeth’s gaze returned to Class Five.

Penelope Declair.

Class Five.

Her eyes narrowed.

Convenient.

Very convenient.

"James."

"Hm?"

"Penelope Declair is in Vortex’s class."

"So?"

"She’s his fiancée."

"I know."

"She’s also spent months working directly with him."

"And?"

Elizabeth gave him a look.

James paused, then understood.

"Someone arranged it?"

"Possibly."

"His father?"

"Possibly."

"Vale wouldn’t allow it."

"Headmaster Vale wouldn’t knowingly allow it."

James smiled.

"You approve?"

"I appreciate successful manipulation when I see it."

"That’s worrying."

"It should be."

Elizabeth returned her attention to Alash.

He was now standing before the announcement board.

Then, without warning, he stopped moving completely.

Elizabeth’s attention sharpened.

It lasted only several seconds, but his entire demeanor changed before his eyes slowly moved across the plaza.

Searching.

For what?

Elizabeth followed his gaze but found nothing obvious.

Eventually, he relaxed.

Penelope said something to him.

Alash answered, and they returned their attention to the board as though nothing unusual had happened.

Elizabeth stored the moment away.

"Did you see that?"

James was reading his own roster.

"See what?"

Elizabeth looked toward Alash one final time.

"Nothing."

***

Sophie Trohan had already read her class distribution three times, and she still wasn’t entirely sure whether she should be pleased.

"No SS."

The boy beside her nodded solemnly.

"Terrible."

Sophie looked down.

Theo had somehow attached himself to her side despite being repeatedly informed that only incoming students were supposed to approach the results boards.

Their mother stood farther behind them, very obviously pretending not to notice.

Sophie pointed at the report.

"I have three S students."

Theo nodded.

"Still terrible."

"Fourteen A."

"Horrible."

"Nineteen B."

Theo gasped dramatically.

"You should come home."

Sophie flicked his forehead.

"Ow!"

"Stop helping."

"I was supporting you."

"Go support Mother."

"No."

Sophie sighed and returned her attention to the list.

Thirty-seven students.

Thirty-six people she would apparently be responsible for.

That part was significantly more frightening than receiving no SS student.

She was supposed to lead them.

Her.

The same girl who, four years ago, had needed her mother to explain which fork nobles used for fish.

Apparently Zenith believed leadership was the natural next step.

Sophie scanned the other classes.

Elizabeth had an SS student.

James had one.

Daphne had one.

Her own class and Alash Vortex’s didn’t, although both had three S potentials and fourteen A potentials instead.

Balanced.

Probably.

She wasn’t particularly worried about it.

If Headmaster Vale had wanted five identical classes, he would simply have created five identical classes.

Theo suddenly tugged on her sleeve.

"Sophie."

"What?"

"Is that him?"

She followed his finger.

Silver hair.

Blue eyes.

Pillow.

Ah.

"Probably."

"You said the pillow might be fake."

"I said the rumors might be exaggerated."

The silver-haired boy passed several meters away from them.

The pillow was extremely real.

It was also enormous compared with a normal decorative pillow.

Sophie stared for a moment before smiling.

"I like him."

Theo looked up at her.

"You haven’t met him."

"He brought a pillow to Zenith."

"That’s why?"

"Yes."

Theo thought about that.

"Can I bring mine when I awaken?"

"No."

"That’s unfair."

"You don’t have SSS potential."

"You don’t know that."

Fair.

Sophie watched Alash disappear farther into the plaza beside his fiancée.

Something about him seemed strangely...

Normal.

Oddly normal.

Elizabeth Aurelius looked exactly like someone had designed a princess and then decided subtlety wasn’t necessary.

James Vellaroux looked as though someone had placed a sword in his hand before teaching him how to walk.

Daphne Spinster’s official portrait looked as though smiling had personally offended her.

Alash Vortex carried a pillow.

Somehow, that made him seem like the least intimidating of the five.

Probably dangerous reasoning.

"Sophie."

She turned.

Duke Trohan had approached, and Theo immediately straightened beside her.

The Duke looked toward the board.

"Satisfied?"

"No SS."

"I can see."

"You don’t look concerned."

"Should I?"

Sophie considered it.

"No."

"Then neither should you."

His gaze briefly shifted toward the path where Alash had disappeared.

Again.

That strange reaction.

It was incredibly small, but Sophie had already noticed it twice now.

She would ask him eventually.

Just not today.

Tomorrow was orientation, and she already had thirty-six classmates to meet.

That was enough trouble for one day.

***

Daphne Spinster disliked crowds.

Not enough to avoid them entirely, but certainly enough to wonder whether Zenith’s rules explicitly prohibited using gravity magic to push everyone three meters away.

They probably did.

Probably.

She stood near the edge of the plaza with her arms crossed while her class list floated before her.

Thirty-seven students.

One SS.

Two S.

Twelve A.

Twenty-one B.

Daphne’s attention settled on the SS student’s name.

That one would matter.

Not because SS potential guaranteed competence, but because someone who had spent their entire life being called extraordinary might not enjoy suddenly being placed beneath an SSS class leader.

Especially an adopted commoner.

Wonderful.

She continued reading through the roster.

Attributes.

Names.

Families.

A few she recognized.

Most she didn’t.

Good.

Unknown people came without expectations.

At least initially.

"Daphne."

She didn’t turn.

Lucien had found her.

Of course he had.

"Your class looks strong."

"So I’ve been informed."

He stepped beside her.

"One SS."

"I can count."

"Two S."

"I can still count."

Lucien exhaled.

"I was trying to have a conversation."

"Unfortunate."

His mouth tightened slightly.

Better.

Daphne moved to the neighboring panel.

Alash Vortex.

No SS.

Three S.

Fourteen A.

Nineteen B.

Then Sophie Trohan.

The exact same distribution.

Daphne frowned.

"Vale is balancing something other than potential."

Lucien looked toward her.

"Obviously."

Daphne slowly turned her head.

"Did you come here specifically to irritate me?"

"Apparently I don’t need to try."

Fair.

Movement nearby caught her attention.

Silver hair.

Daphne’s expression immediately flattened.

"No."

Lucien followed her gaze and then saw it.

His eyebrows rose.

"He actually has one."

Daphne stared at Alash Vortex.

More specifically, she stared at the silver pillow tucked comfortably beneath his arm.

She had read about it.

Twice.

The first report had made her assume the writer was incompetent.

The second report had confirmed that the first writer was, unfortunately, telling the truth.

Apparently House Vortex’s SSS heir genuinely carried a pillow everywhere.

Daphne watched him move through the plaza.

Students stared at him.

He didn’t care.

People whispered.

He didn’t care about that either.

One boy openly pointed at the pillow.

Alash looked at him.

The boy quickly lowered his hand.

Daphne narrowed her eyes.

"Why?"

Lucien looked amused.

"Why what?"

"Why bring it?"

"Perhaps he likes pillows."

"That is not an explanation."

"It is literally an explanation."

Daphne ignored him.

The pillow bothered her.

Not because it existed.

It bothered her because Alash carried it with complete seriousness.

If it was a joke, he wasn’t performing for anyone.

If it was an affectation, he showed no interest in whether people noticed.

And if he wanted attention, he certainly appeared to dislike receiving it.

None of those possibilities made sense.

Daphne disliked things that didn’t make sense.

"Maybe it’s an artifact," Lucien said.

"It obviously is."

"How do you know?"

"No noble heir carries an ordinary pillow through the greatest Academy in the kingdom."

Lucien considered that.

"Perhaps he’s simply strange."

"Those are not mutually exclusive."

Alash suddenly stopped.

Daphne noticed immediately.

He had been reading the board beside his fiancée when he abruptly froze, his expression changing so slightly that most people probably wouldn’t have noticed.

His eyes moved through the crowd.

Searching.

For several seconds, his gaze swept across the plaza.

It passed near Daphne.

Not directly.

Then continued.

Daphne’s eyes narrowed.

What was he looking for?

A person?

A threat?

Someone he recognized?

Then, just as quickly as it began, the moment ended.

Alash returned his attention to the announcement board.

Odd.

Very odd.

"You’re staring," Lucien said.

"I’m observing."

"That’s what people say when they’re staring."

Daphne looked at him.

Lucien wisely stepped away.

"Well."

He straightened his coat.

"I should leave."

"Excellent idea."

He paused.

"Daphne."

"What?"

"Good luck tomorrow."

She waited for the hidden insult.

It didn’t come.

Annoying.

"...Thank you."

Lucien nodded before disappearing into the crowd.

Daphne looked at the Class Five roster one final time.

Alash Vortex.

Aegis Healer.

Healing.

Barrier.

Three constitutions.

And a pillow.

Ridiculous.

But somehow, she suspected that the pillow would eventually become everyone else’s problem.

***

Elizabeth had almost finished her tea when Sophie Trohan walked past the terrace.

The two girls noticed each other at nearly the same moment.

Sophie stopped.

Elizabeth smiled politely.

"Sophie Trohan."

"Princess Elizabeth."

Sophie bowed.

Correctly.

Not perfectly, but correctly.

"You may simply call me Elizabeth while we’re at Zenith."

Sophie’s eyebrows rose before she smiled.

"That feels like a trap."

James nearly choked on his drink.

Elizabeth stared at her.

Sophie apparently realized what she’d said a second too late.

"Oh."

She immediately straightened.

"I didn’t mean..."

Elizabeth laughed.

Genuinely.

"I think we’ll get along."

Sophie visibly relaxed.

Then another figure approached the terrace.

Daphne Spinster.

Unlike Sophie, Daphne’s bow was technically perfect.

It was also considerably colder.

"Your Highness."

"Daphne."

Daphne’s gaze moved toward the reports spread across the table, then James, and finally Elizabeth.

"Comparing classes?"

"Naturally."

Daphne glanced at her own sheet.

"Mine is acceptable."

"High praise," Sophie said.

Daphne looked at her.

"My standards are reasonable."

Sophie smiled.

Elizabeth quietly watched the exchange.

This was the first time all three girls had stood close enough to speak casually with one another.

James leaned back in his chair.

"We’re missing Vortex."

Daphne’s expression changed immediately.

Elizabeth noticed.

"The pillow," Daphne said.

Sophie laughed.

"I like it."

Daphne looked at her as though she’d just admitted to eating rocks.

"Why?"

"He brought a pillow."

"Yes. That’s the problem."

"Why is that a problem?"

"Why does anyone need a pillow while checking exam results?"

Sophie shrugged.

"Maybe he was tired."

Daphne stared at her.

Elizabeth lifted her tea.

"I admit I’m with Daphne on this."

Sophie looked betrayed.

"You too?"

"I’ve spent several weeks trying to understand why an SSS heir voluntarily carries a pillow through noble society."

"And?"

Elizabeth took a sip.

"I currently have no answer."

Daphne nodded once, and although she said nothing, her expression clearly conveyed one thought.

Finally.

A reasonable person.

Sophie looked between them.

"You’re both thinking about this far too much."

Elizabeth and Daphne answered at exactly the same time.

"No."

Silence.

James started laughing.

Daphne looked irritated.

Elizabeth slowly smiled.

Sophie grinned.

For several seconds, the atmosphere became strangely normal.

Four SSS students.

A princess.

Two adopted ducal daughters.

A Duke’s son.

People the kingdom had spent the last five years discussing as though they were future weapons rather than teenagers.

And they were currently arguing about a pillow.

Eventually, James looked toward the residence district.

"We should go."

Orientation began tomorrow.

Elizabeth’s smile faded slightly.

Tomorrow, the real competition would begin.

Five classes.

Five leaders.

Five separate residences.

She looked toward the path Alash Vortex had taken.

They still hadn’t actually spoken to him.

That would change soon enough.

Elizabeth collected the reports while Daphne started walking toward the residences.

Sophie followed beside her, continuing to defend the practical value of pillows.

James remained near Elizabeth.

And somewhere inside Fifth Residence, the final SSS student was probably doing exactly what every report claimed he did best.

Sleeping.

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!