The first place Elena led Ian to was a building near the student council.
It was a state-of-the-art club hall made of marble.
The dazzling white stones were almost blinding.
An empty club room located in a corner of such a building.
“This is the best remaining club room.”
“It does look clean. But isn’t the competition for places like this intense?”
At Ian’s question, Elena confidently put her hands on her hips.
“Yes! I secretly obtained the information from the student council and only told Brother Ian!”
Elena’s eyes sparkled as she looked at him, her expression saying, ‘I did well, right? Praise me!’ Ian couldn’t help but point out.
“Is that okay? Isn’t it kind of unfair?”
“That… that is!”
Elena’s face turned red, her mouth opening and closing without a sound.
“…If you’re going to get flustered so easily, why did you do this?”
“Well, because…”
Desperately searching for an excuse, Elena finally closed her eyes tightly, as if she had no other choice.
Her true feelings slipped out.
“Because of Sister Danya!”
“Danya?”
“Yes! I can do better than Sister Danya! I wanted to show that!”
Despite having already lost the fight against Danya, Elena didn’t give up. It’s not like Danya was always with Ian, and if she got closer to Ian, she would have more opportunities to approach.
Therefore, the priority was to work hard to gain an advantage in Ian’s heart.
Elena’s mind was particularly sharp that day.
‘In the end, everything depends on a person’s heart!’
It was the firm will of a small priestess to monopolize a divine blessing-like fruit.
Meanwhile, watching Elena, Ian felt proud.
It was a result mixed with a slight misunderstanding.
‘Are they competing to see who becomes stronger? How admirable.’
Becoming stronger meant training!
Come to think of it, wasn’t there a state-of-the-art training ground nearby?
Elena was this dedicated to training!
“I can feel your commitment to endless training, Elena.”
With a slight misunderstanding, Ian nodded proudly.
“…?”
“But it seems difficult to live here.”
“Live here?”
Some club rooms were designed for living as well.
“They have showers and toilets nearby, and there are facilities for cooking with water and fire.”
“Oh, this place doesn’t have that, but others do. How did you know?”
Well, in Fantasy X Academy, club rooms were used as bases.
Players could stay there, and characters they collected would gather in the club rooms.
‘Of course, school dramas should have clubs.’
Ian wanted to find a decent club room where the dream of such a school story could be realized.
In fact, he was also starting to feel tired of wandering around to meet the kids.
“We can use the club room as a base for our promotion team.”
“That, that’s not allowed… club rooms must be used for club purposes only.”
“Okay, okay.”
“…Are you sure you understand?”
“Yes.”
Elena started nagging, and Ian, led by her, explored various possible club rooms.
The condition Ian set was that the place should be livable and spacious enough to accommodate a group of people without feeling cramped.
However, finding such a room proved to be difficult.
“The further from the Academy’s center, the larger the rooms, and the closer, the smaller.”
“Indeed.”
“… They’re all a bit vague.”
Ian and Elena wandered all over the Academy.
They had inspected about six rooms when Elena hesitantly spoke up.
“… I know a place that meets the criteria.”
Elena trailed off.
“It’s large and has various facilities. But…”
What’s the issue?
“Is the deposit too expensive?”
“No! That’s not it…”
“Then why are you so anxious?”
“Well, you’ll understand once we get there!”
Elena led Ian to the old Magic School building.
“Isn’t this place good enough?”
It did show signs of age, but it didn’t feel dirty.
The leaves and vines covering the walls gave it an antique atmosphere.
As Ian was about to enter through the main door without hesitation, Elena pulled on his sleeve.
Elena’s eyes widened in surprise at Ian’s comment.
“Brother Ian, haven’t you heard the rumors about this place?”
“Huh?”
“It’s one of the 10 Wonders of Lichten Academy….”
“Oh.”
Of course, he had heard of the Academy’s ten wonders.
He remembered about two or three being covered in the story.
But the old Magic School wasn’t one of them.
“Why is this place a Wonder?”
“G-Ghost…”
“Ghost? A human ghost?”
“No, not that!”
Elena looked around nervously and whispered to Ian.
“A g-ghost. There are rumors that this building is haunted.”
“I see. But why are you whispering?”
“The ghost might be listening!”
Ian momentarily had a puzzled expression before straightening his face.
Elena flinched at his look.
“Of course, as a servant of God, I don’t believe in ghosts! Even if one appears, I can purify it!”
“Really?”
“Of course!”
“Then let’s go in.”
“Go in? Really?”
“Are you scared?”
“Deus is always by my side, so I’m not scared…!”
Despite clinging to him, she claimed not to be scared.
With a smirk, Ian moved forward without hesitation.
‘The conditions are just too good.’
Close to the Academy’s center but slightly northeast.
It was convenient for getting supplies from the northern market and expanding into the Academy’s eastern luxury shopping district.
Additionally, as an older building, it was likely to be quite spacious inside.
The front door of the building exuded an aura of age.
Desks and chairs were scattered haphazardly.
— Creeeeak!
“Yaaah!”
Elena screamed and clung to Ian’s back.
“It’s just the wooden floor creaking, Elena.”
Elena blushed and let go, though she still held onto the edge of Ian’s shirt with her fingertips.
“H-here it is.”
Elena, who had been continuously checking something on her Kirtos terminal, stopped in front of a classroom.
“This place has been empty for about three years. No one wanted to start a club in a building rumored to be haunted.”
Ian opened the door without hesitation.
“It’s quite spacious.”
The room was as large as an average classroom, larger than Ian had imagined for a club room.
“We can put basic furniture like sofas and tables over there.”
Ian imagined the furniture arrangement and spun around.
In one corner, there was a sink and a small kitchen area.
“That corner can be used for equipment for the Dessert Research Society.”
Even with those additions, there was plenty of space left.
‘This place is so big we could practically live here.’
Even if they only used half of it, it would be larger than his current lodging.
Moving here might not be a bad idea.
Ian thought it wasn’t a bad idea at all.
It would save a lot of time commuting to the Academy, the training ground was nearby, and it would be a bit safer within the Academy’s restricted access area, away from threats like the Blood Witch.
However, the room was a bit dusty from being neglected for so long.
But that could be easily cleaned with a thorough scrubbing.
‘If it’s too much, I can use my divine power to clean it.’
While exploring, Ian noticed something.
“Hmm?”
Ian found a small box on a shelf in the corner.
It was a palm-sized, antique wooden box with a luxurious but old look.
The gold lock on the box was quite intricate.
“… Why is this here?”
“What is it?”
“One of the ten Wonders of the Academy you mentioned.”
“Eek!”
Elena, who had shown interest and peeked over, immediately backed away, looking at it as if it were a bomb. But Ian knew this box was a highly valuable item.
It was one of the rare “Numbers” items obtainable at the academy.
「Number 777: Mystery Box」
‘I didn’t expect to find this here.’
Ian was genuinely surprised.
Number 777, the Mystery Box.
As the name suggests, the box itself is an “item.”
If you put valuable items like gold coins or magic stones into the box, it would convert them into other items of equivalent value.
‘It’s like a gacha tool.’
Ian had wanted to find this item when he played the game because it offered a similar experience to spending real money for in-game currency.
‘To think it was hidden in such a corner.’
Ian recalled the painful memories of his extensive but fruitless search for this box.
It was hidden in an old classroom drawer, making it understandable why he never found it.
“But we need a key to open it.”
Looking around, there was no sign of a key.
At that moment,
— Creakkkk!
“Kyah!”
The door suddenly opened, and Elena screamed, clinging to Ian again.
“Calm down. It’s not a ghost.”
Ian calmed Elena down and looked towards the open door.
A large, muscular young man with bronze skin stood there.
His raised blond hair and earrings made him look quite menacing.
The guy stepped into the room and greeted them.
“New neighbors?”
“We’re considering it.”
“Your manner is short.”
“So is yours.”
Their brief exchange gave them a sense of each other’s feelings.
The guy smirked and shrugged his shoulders.
“Don’t be so wary. I’m just here to give some guidance.”
“… Guidance?”
“Yeah. If you want to use this place, you need to pay a development fee and a passage toll.”
“… Development fee?”
Instead of answering, the guy pulled something out of his pocket—a sharp dagger.
Like a villain from an old tale, the blond youth licked the blade with his tongue.
“T-that weapon violates school rules—!”
Ian stopped Elena.
He wanted to resolve this through dialogue if possible.
“Development fee? Why should I pay that?”
“If you want to use a building managed by our club, you need to show some goodwill.”
“I don’t know what your club is, but what if I refuse to pay?”
“If you refuse, you’ll have to leave, immediately.”
The blond thug brandished his knife threateningly.
Elena, gathering her courage, stepped forward and shouted.
She’s not afraid, unless it’s a ghost.
“P-please calm down! If you act like this, the student council won’t stand idly by! Just having such a weapon is grounds for disciplinary action. There are no combat clubs in this building, so which club do you—”
Ian cut off Elena urgently.
“Elena, shield!”
The blond guy threw the knife and charged.
