Late evening, the last day of the weekend.
We moved the items we obtained from Yurha’s Golden Carriage to the lounge.
Each of the three classmates gathered what they needed and headed to their respective rooms.
I, too, took the box containing the clothes I had formally ordered.
“Hmm.”
I inspected the box.
I examined the clothes.
I ran my hand along the inner lining of the shirt, checking the seams.
‘Nothing?’
Surprising.
I thought there might be some sort of thinly embedded listening device.
The Silverstar Group usually attaches a tag to their clothes that looks like a receipt but is, in reality, an information tag for the product.
Players in the real world would think it’s just a product tag.
Among those tags, some are specially enchanted with [Eavesdrop Magic] mana circuits, which Silverstar uses to spy on various people.
They don’t do this with all clothes, but when they do, they certainly commit.
‘If they didn’t do it to me, it means they didn’t do it to the other students either.’
Did they perhaps put it on Yunia’s, Ludmila’s, or Evangeline’s clothes instead?
Or maybe, because of [Cutting Wind] and their sensitivity to mana, they thought installing the devices would be too risky and restrained themselves?
‘With the Angel incident, it seems they’re being cautious.’
Not Yurha, but other members of Silverstar.
‘It seems the Academy gave them a warning.’
No matter how strong Silverstar’s economic influence may be, the Academy is steadfast when it comes to matters related to the “Apocalypse”.
Selling mana lenses to students under the table might be acceptable, but tampering with students who have faced angels, especially in the Old School Building where the first angel appeared, would not be tolerated.
‘Yurha must be facing some pressure from the other board members.’
Yurha wishes to gobble up the other board members’ shares and take 100% control of Silverstar.
But that’s only wishful thinking. To absorb the divided shares, Yurha would need to cooperate with the other members at times, wielding the blade of opportunity when the moment strikes.
Right now, Yurha is probably crunching the numbers.
Should they respond moderately to the information requests of the other board members while subtly hiding our details? Or should they fully commit to forming a strong relationship with us from the start?
Either way, Yurha is the better option.
At least Yurha provides a bed, three meals a day, and some entertainment for those who are forced to have their mana extracted.
In other words, the other board members don’t even do that much.
Some treat those they drain resources from like black sl*ves on a cotton farm, and others see them as mere parts, saying, “We can just secure more raw materials.”
Especially the “Twins”, the main villains of Yurha’s route, are too problematic to describe.
Among them, the “boy twin” is personally unsettling, not as the Red Sol Phoenix, nor as the Demon King of the Demon World, but as a person.
Because—
“This bread would cause an uproar if sold.”
“Do you mean it will sell out because it’s so delicious?”
“No. Silverstar will undoubtedly threaten you to hand over the recipe.”
As soon as I took a bite of the egg tart I baked using the tools and ingredients I got from the Golden Carriage, Instructor Esta commented, sensing that it would pose a threat to Silverstar.
“It doesn’t seem like you used any special ingredients, but why does it taste so much better than the ones Silverstar sells? Is it just because theirs are mass-produced?”
“It’s a combination of factors.”
The ingredients are the same.
The facilities here are more primitive. We use basic ovens and hand tools, while Silverstar uses machines powered by mana to mass-produce.
“To survive in a competition with a food factory that churns out hundreds of tarts at once, you’d need to at least make something that could be served as a dessert in a restaurant, right?”
“You’re more serious than I expected.”
Instructor Esta took another bite of the egg tart.
“Mind if I record this?”
“Record?”
“Some people are skeptical about your special admission through [Baking]. There are rumors among the instructors, and the students are buzzing about it too.”
“I don’t usually pay attention to rumors, but if it helps your track record, feel free to add it to the educational log.”
Esta quickly opened her magic pad and started entering data.
“Honestly, you could make a fortune selling these just within the Academy. Though I suppose that wouldn’t matter much to someone with plenty of magic stones.”
“It’s a bit different from that.”
Very different.
“Magic stones can be drawn out of thin air like pulling something from your pocket, but this—this is money I’ve earned purely through the skill of [Baking].”
Even someone born with a silver spoon will appreciate the value of money earned from a month of part-time work differently.
“Money earned purely through my own labor and skill, through a profession I believe I have expertise in, feels different from money earned with just a ‘click’.”
“‘Click’?”
“Yes.”
I made a gesture with my fingers, mimicking the shape of a magic stone.
“Catching magic beasts isn’t as difficult as you might think. In fact, I might be able to catch them more easily than others.”
“Hmm.”
Instructor Esta paused, lifting her gaze from the magic tablet where she had been taking notes.
“If this is something I shouldn’t record, I’ll stop. Unless, of course, you’re luring magic beasts with bread and then poisoning them through it.”
“I don’t mess with food.”
Not with food.
“Some people might accuse me of ‘messing around’ with the bread I make or claim it’s ‘something that shouldn’t be sold,’ but that doesn’t mean I’ll back down.”
“…In any case, I hope things work out for you.”
Esta finished the last bite of the egg tart.
“Perhaps Yurha—she might end up being a good ally for you. If she sees you as a promising business venture, she’s not the type to impose losses on you.”
“You seem to know her well?”
“Of course. We’re acquainted both privately and professionally.”
Esta lightly tapped the sword at her waist.
“But don’t worry. I won’t let my personal connections influence my decisions as an instructor.”
An instructor of the special class.
A personal acquaintance of Yurha.
“If Yurha tries to use her relationship with me to manipulate you, I’ll be the first to protect you. After all, you are my students.”
If I had to ask which aspect of Esta’s identity—[White Sword Saint] or instructor—is closer to her core, Yurha might not know, but she’s definitely more aligned with being an instructor.
“Just know this. I’ll bring it up tomorrow, but…”
“But?”
“At this point, one week later…”
Instructor Esta held up three fingers.
“Three students from the special admission group have already inquired about transferring to the Old School Building.”
“…Hah.”
I let out a brief laugh.
“All of a sudden?”
I gestured around us.
“After we’ve cleaned up the Old School Building so thoroughly?”
“I understand what bothers you. I feel the same way.”
“…Is there some reason behind this?”
“Everyone has their reasons. It’s just a matter of how the other person perceives those reasons.”
Instructor Esta answered calmly.
“If the numbers increase, that’s fine. If not, that’s fine too.”
“Hmm…”
It wasn’t the fact that more people might be coming to the Old School Building that irked me; it was the sudden change of heart after a week that felt off.
Well, I feel the same way.
“So, who’s looking to join?”
Could it be the protagonist?
“It’s not really my place to comment on the Academy’s administrative decisions, but as someone who cleaned the Old School Building myself, it’s a bit… curious.”
“Two of them just inquired casually, but one seemed quite desperate.”
“Just to confirm, even though I already know the answer…”
It might sound odd for me to ask, but…
“Is it a girl?”
“It is.”
Ah.
“Is she pretty?”
“Very. You’re lucky. Word is, she’s the daughter of a count who’s never dated a man before.”
Oh.
I think I know who it is.
“Did she, by any chance, specifically request a ‘single room’?”
* * *
[Meanwhile, at Dorm 13-4, Room 602, Academy Dormitory.]
“Hey, Lady Commissioner, what do you think?”
“…”
A young woman with long lavender hair, quietly lying on the bed, slowly sat up.
“Even if you ask what I think…”
She adjusted the round horn-rimmed glasses that had been resting on the bed beside her, her purple eyes—darker than her hair—glimmering as she shrugged her shoulders.
“What’s the big deal about taking classes separately from the male students starting tomorrow…?”
“I won’t have a chance to meet any of the male students directly anymore!”
“…”
“Ugh, seriously. Lady Commissioner, don’t you have any interest in that sort of thing?”
“Not really…”
The girl called Commissioner shook her head slightly.
“Argh…! This won’t do! I’m going to go find my friend!”
The girl who had been sharing the room stormed out angrily, leaving the room with only one occupant.
“…”
The girl took off her glasses, her gaze sharpening slightly as she reached between the bed and the wall.
Click.
The fairly large magic pad lit up, and she immediately moved her face toward the password-locked home screen.
[Welcome, Shuri Commissioner.]
“…Hmph.”
The female student, Shuri, covered herself and the pad with her blanket.
Quietly, she pulled out the magic pen connected to the pad.
Click, Click.
The pen moved quickly across the pad, and the moment she retrieved some stored data from within…
“…Heheh.”
The young lady of the Commissioner Count family, Shuri, let out a low chuckle.
“Heheh…ah.”
On the pad, the screen was filled with images of a certain color, predominantly skin-toned, and she puffed out her cheeks in mild frustration.
“If only I could work comfortably…”
On the pad was a depiction of a woman—, but drawn in an art style distinctly different from reality.
The woman was clad in dangerously revealing underwear, almost completely exposed.
“Hah.”
Shuri let out a sigh as she covered the tablet with her hand.
“The environment for [Output]… is lacking.”
