Chapter 35
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 35
“You’ve arrived, Lord Roen!”
After parting ways with Bell, I visited Izelin Academy once again. As I stood at the main gate, Philip came running to greet me.
“Hehe, this way, please. Allow me to show you around.”
He took the lead, chattering away as we walked.
“By the way, Lord Roen, couldn’t you give me a position on the Student Council too? Just like how the princess got the secretary position.”
“It’s not as if there are any real benefits, though.”
A position on the Student Council was effectively honorary. It came with duties but no real authority, and it would only be a hassle for him since he’d have to show up whenever I called.
“Still, if I can be of help to you, Lord Roen, isn’t that a good thing?”
“...I’ll consider it favorably.”
“Yes!”
Philip pumped a small fist and beamed as if he’d accomplished something monumental. Watching him rejoice, Ciel whispered quietly in my ear.
“...Isn’t that a bit cruel? You have no intention of giving him a spot.”
“It would be rude to refuse him to his face. If it comes to it, I can just create a suitable position for him later.”
After all, a position is whatever you name it.
Guided by a beaming Philip, I entered the academy grounds, and a crowd of people immediately swarmed us. The students who had rushed out to see me began to shout.
“Roen?”
“It’s Roen! Roen is here!”
“Lord Roen! Did you see the newspaper article?”
“Thank you, Roen!”
“You’re so cool!”
“Honestly, he’s not even that handsome.”
“What? He’s gorgeous!”
“He’s too thin. He looks sickly.”
“That’s what’s good about him! You just don’t get it.”
“Who cares? Thanks to him, the academy is safe. A war was even averted!”
The students shouted their thanks, each in their own way. I heard some strange comments here and there, but I decided to take them in a positive light. As the students suddenly surrounded us, Philip stepped in front of me like a bodyguard, clearing a path.
“Ahem, step back! Shoo, shoo! Don’t give your gifts here; send them to the Student Council President’s office!”
“...”
Such a warm welcome. It was a feeling I’d never experienced since falling into this world.
Ciel, walking beside me, murmured, “Live long enough and you see everything.”
“You can say that again.”
I was a little dazed, but at the same time, I felt a sense of pride. It really does pay to do good deeds.
It was definitely better to be welcomed than to be cursed at wherever I went. After this incident, even if other students didn't, the students of Izelin would surely support me. At the very least, they wouldn't be hostile.
I would continue to build my base of support like this.
The 60-day grace period I received at the start of the semester.
Already, more than two weeks had passed. Given the current climate, it was unlikely an impeachment vote would happen anytime soon, but one could never be too sure about the future. To win the war of public opinion, I needed to further erode Roen’s notoriety.
Following Philip’s lead, we pushed through the crowd and arrived at an area cordoned off with a police-like line. This was the reconstruction site where the search for the artifact in the basement of the Izelin grounds would take place.
I glanced around and saw several people already surveying the land and checking the foundation.
“Ah, you’ve arrived, Lord Roen.”
“Yes, Secretary Eleina. You look much more at ease.”
As I approached the construction site, Eleina and a few officials greeted me. Perhaps because the worries weighing on her heart had vanished, Eleina’s face was much brighter.
“...It feels awkward. Please, just call me by my name.”
“Alright, Eleina. Where is the civil engineering team?”
“Yes, we’ve hired them from Tulay Academy.”
Eleina pointed to a group of students inside the cordoned-off area.
The Union was a place for the pursuit of all disciplines. There were various specialized academies related to politics, economics, society, and culture, and Tulay Academy was one of them.
Tulay Academy specializes in architecture and civil engineering.
Its foundation was formed by the integration of several industrial and commercial families, centered around the family of Gustav, the Architect King.
A male student dispatched from Tulay Academy, sporting a healthy, bronze complexion, greeted me.
“Oh, so you’re the Roen. Nice to meet you. You’ve been making quite a stir lately.”
The muscular, bald student extended his hand. I took his massive hand and shook it.
Squeeze—
His grip was insanely strong; he definitely had a talent for construction. In reality, architectural skill and the manual labor of a construction site were completely unrelated, but that was the impression he gave. His sturdy build and bronze skin inspired confidence.
As I held his hand, I recalled some information about him.
This student is Klimt Gustav, a descendant of the Architect King Gustav, who built the Great Wall for the Devalis family on the western front.
He was a talented individual hired at a considerable expense for the reconstruction of the Izelin dormitory.
“Nice to meet you, Klimt. You’re as imposing as they say. I’m counting on you for this project.”
“Keke, just leave it to me. I’ll build it to be absolutely magnificent. Ah, what was the budget again?”
“Around one billion Krone.”
Originally, Izelin didn’t have that kind of surplus, but thanks to the reparations they received, they could now afford to spend this much.
“One billion, you say. With that much... well, since raw materials in the Union are supplied at nearly cost price, that should be plenty.”
Klimt quickly finished his mental calculations and nodded.
“By the way, Klimt, do you happen to know who’s in charge of the dormitory design?”
Klimt was the face of this construction project, but the designer was someone else. When I asked, Klimt grinned.
“Why? Hoping I’d design it myself? I’m a bit more expensive, you know.”
“No. I’m well aware of your skills, of course, but there’s a particular designer I have in mind.”
Klimt, with his [Design] trait, was an exceptionally talented individual, but the person I wanted was someone else.
Someone who can design the building I want while keeping the secret of the artifact search.
And someone I would need to recruit for the Student Council later on.
Damian.
He was the right person for this job.
*
Voltimir Territory. Albheim Hall, Room 109.
The designer I wanted wouldn't be available for another week, so for now, I left everything in Eleina’s hands and returned.
The day after my visit to Izelin, I was once again attending my Spiritology class. As I got ready for the lesson to begin, Kiriel, sitting next to me, struck up a conversation.
“Hey, did you study for the pop quiz?”
Without even looking at her, I stated the plain truth.
“I didn’t prepare separately. A test is merely a formality to confirm what one already knows.”
“Ugh, you’re all talk.”
Kiriel grimaced as if she wanted to smack me.
“You’ll see.”
When it came to written exams, at least, there was no way I would lose to Kiriel. My confidence seemed to annoy her, as she brought up our previous bet.
“You remember the bet we made, right?”
“Of course.”
How could I forget a golden opportunity that fell right into my lap? We had bet a 'wish' on our midterm exam scores.
“Then do you want to include this pop quiz score in the bet? We can throw in performance assessments and participation scores, too.”
“Why the sudden change?”
What was with her? Was she that confident?
“Whatever. Are you in or out?”
At Kiriel’s proposal, I readily nodded.
“...I see no reason not to.”
Like the Giving Tree, Kiriel just kept digging her own grave. She was a real sucker.
“Great. No take-backs.”
“Same to you. Don’t come crying to me when you lose.”
“Whatever. I know you’ve been busy preparing for the territory war and haven’t been studying. Your grades will be obvious. I, on the other hand, have been studying hard.”
“...”
I had to struggle to keep from laughing. So that was the petty calculation behind her proposal. How cute.
As Kiriel and I were bickering, the sound of footsteps echoed.
Clack, clack—
A deer wearing glasses stepped up to the podium and greeted us.
“Good to see you all again today. I’m happy to meet you once more.”
The classroom, which had been buzzing with chatter, quickly fell silent. Once Professor Isley confirmed the students were quiet, he continued.
“We have a pop quiz scheduled for this period. I assume you are all aware of the announced scope?”
“Yes!” the students answered in unison.
Professor Isley then said something that shattered their expectations.
“However, life isn’t fun if everything goes according to plan. I trust you have all been diligent in your reviews and preparations? This pop quiz will cover a range about thirty percent larger than what was announced.”
“What? That’s unfair!” Kiriel shouted, and other students joined in, grumbling in agreement.
Isley snorted. “Everyone, the world is inherently unfair. That is why you must cultivate the habit of preparing for anything. You must look back on the path you’ve walked and anticipate the road ahead.”
He tilted his head and continued. “Besides, I fail to see what’s unfair when the test scope has been changed for everyone.”
“...”
Isley’s single remark silenced the students. When you thought about it, he had a point. If you really wanted to talk about fairness, a student who had studied consistently would have an advantage over one who had simply crammed for this specific quiz.
And that was likely exactly what the professor wanted. He preferred diligent students over those who relied on last-minute cramming.
“Now then.”
Fwip—
As Isley looked up, the test papers floating beside him were automatically delivered to each student’s desk.
“Cheating or any other form of academic dishonesty will not be tolerated,” Isley added. “Do not forget that the spirits are always watching. We will now begin the exam. You have forty minutes.”
With his declaration, a deep silence fell over the classroom. I focused my mind and began to read the questions.
[Question 1. Which of the following does not correctly match one of the 5 Great Elements with its symbolic color?]
As expected of the first question, it wasn’t very difficult. Even Kiriel could probably solve it. It only took me a few seconds.
But as I progressed, the questions became increasingly mind-numbing.
[Question 14. Figure (A) is a table showing the change in atmospheric mana concentration over time within an isolated system. Regarding the mana consumed when summoning a spirit within this area and the resistance values of each elemental spirit...]
What the hell is this even saying?
I furrowed my brow as I read. This was supposed to be an introductory Spiritology class; why was there a question like this?
Hmm...
After studying the question for a moment, I grasped its true nature. It looked complicated at first glance, but it was actually a standard calculation problem. It was a math problem disguised in the skin of Spiritology and mana.
I’m sure this was in the practice exams, too.
I remembered seeing it in the Spiritology practice exams I had stored in the System Encyclopedia. I felt I could solve it with my own abilities without needing to cheat.
Scratch, scratch—
The sound of pens gliding across paper filled the room.
“Ugh.”
Kiriel was fidgeting restlessly, glancing around at the other students. She was either shaking her leg nervously or chewing on her quill. The latter half of the test was simply too difficult for her. No matter how much her friends helped her study, her skills wouldn't improve overnight. Subjects closer to mathematics required building a solid foundation, step by step.
As I watched her with a look of pity, our eyes met.
“Heh.”
When I let out a small smirk, Kiriel growled, her body trembling with rage.
‘You. Just. Wait,’ she mouthed silently.
And what are you going to do while you wait?
Time passed, and the exam ended.
“Alright, please put your pens down.”
Declaring the end of the test, Isley had the spirits collect the papers. Small, squirrel-like tree spirits scampered over, took the papers in their mouths, and gathered around Isley. Watching the spirits was a cute, heartwarming sight. It would be convenient to have one myself.
...Come to think of it, I did make a contract with a spirit.
The Dark Spirit Kavelthar. I had successfully contracted with it on the first day of Spiritology class with the system’s help. Since then, I had been too busy to try summoning it or looking into the contract. The spirit hadn't tried to contact me either.
I would have to look into this in detail when I had the time. The Epic Trait [Black Lotus] and the Dark Spirit—things even I hadn't known about. I had a feeling that information about the original Roen was hidden there.
While I was lost in thought, Isley spread the test papers out in mid-air and, with the help of the spirits, finished grading them in an instant. He checked the results, his clear, deer-like eyes widening in surprise.
“Ho... now this is quite an unexpected result.”