Chapter 208
Chapter 208
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 208
Chapter Title: How Many Zeros in 10,000?
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How many zeros are in 10,000?
Obviously four.
‘Why the hell not...’
Philip stared at Lucas with the expression of someone who’d seen every lunatic under the sun.
The Lucas in front of him had wandered into the classroom with a blank face, as if nothing had happened today at all. He froze in front of his desk for a moment before suddenly plopping down and clutching his head.
And then, out of nowhere, he asked this bizarre question about the number of zeros in 10,000?
Even the most ignorant barbarian knew that much.
‘But four isn’t right?’
Was this some ploy to mess with me?
Or had something gone wrong during the exam?
Maybe he’d burned through all his luck and mana for today and lost his mind.
Philip shook his head, feeling the anxiety that came from having a madman right in front of him. Whatever the case, it was best not to get involved with Lucas.
“Ha... haha, ha...”
Lucas slowly lifted his head and burst into mad laughter. Goosebumps prickled Philip’s skin, and he reflexively glanced at Florian sitting next to him. Florian looked just as flustered, staring at Lucas.
He scanned around to see if anyone else had witnessed this freak show, but aside from himself and Florian, the room was empty.
Lucas muttered in his signature emotionless gaze.
“...It’s enough. Worth a shot...”
Whatever he was talking about, letting him go through with this challenge didn’t seem wise.
‘Ah, fuck it, I don’t know, and talking to me means I picked the wrong day to cross paths.’
They usually just exchanged notes silently every day, but sometimes he’d try starting a conversation like this. Sure, Lucas was a decent guy—Philip hadn’t told anyone about using luck during the second training—but given what Philip had done in the past, there were times when things got awkward.
‘So...’
Screw homeroom and bedtime checks.
Philip grabbed his bag with a darkened expression and shot to his feet.
At that moment, something yanked hard on his left arm.
“...Gasp...!”
The reflexive yelp drew every student’s gaze to Philip.
Lucas looked up at him with clear eyes, all traces of his earlier madness gone.
“What’s up, Philip?”
“N-No...”
“Where you going? Sit. Professor’s coming soon.”
“......”
Philip sat back down without another word.
It was his usual indifferent tone, but for some reason, it carried a subtle warmth. Something was definitely off. Philip’s wariness shot to the max.
“Philip.”
He flinched at the quiet call.
Lucas gazed steadily at Philip, who was pretending not to notice, and continued.
“You’re still scared of me, huh.”
“......”
Unbelievable.
How could he not be?
The empire’s top university had ranked Lucas above Leonard as the exam’s top scorer. And that wasn’t all—the imperial family had welcomed him with open arms.
From his expression and tone, Lucas seemed to treat his situation like a casual trip to the imperial salon, but this was no small matter.
Lucas was following right in Adrian Ascanien’s footsteps.
Adrian Ascanien had a power to lead others, even without realizing it himself.
Philip didn’t know how it worked exactly. From what the adults said about Adrian Ascanien, it was about not being swayed by circumstances and creating opportunities on his own—that was the mark of a true leader, and Adrian Ascanien possessed it.
After watching the broadcast footage, Philip got it on a gut level. Honestly, the rest was hazy, but the 1-3 Team’s third exam had clearly been led by Lucas. That’s when the adults’ words clicked.
‘...The mage the emperor wants.’
The pathetic guy who’d groveled at my feet was now a mage the imperial family coveted.
He sat right next to me, but he was in a different world, and he’d only drift further away.
How could a sense of distance not form?
Every student in the school was probably feeling the same unspoken gap right now. Especially toward the entire 1st Team, and above all, the top scorer Ascanien.
And yet, he was pointing out the distance? Wasn’t he proud of his achievements? Energized by his own success? Didn’t his classmates look like fools to him now? And he was asking about this?
Just then, Lucas—who hadn’t taken his eyes off Philip for a second—spoke up abruptly.
“If I’ve made you uncomfortable... I’m not sorry, just kinda baffled. You’ve got a lot to feel guilty about, so yeah, it’d bug you. I haven’t fully forgiven you, your past actions still strike me as pathetic and I can’t shake that, and even now your personality and self-esteem feel like the only constants in this world. But since it’s come to this, I’d like to keep things civil while we’re seeing each other’s faces.”
“Huh? Say that again, slower.”
“Philip. Like I said before, we’ll be seeing each other until university. So...”
Had they agreed to that?
Ascanien had unilaterally declared he “planned to do so” once before.
Of course, Philip didn’t dwell on it. “So...”
What was this silent guy laying all this groundwork for? Something was up.
He’d clearly said before he had no intention of forgiving him. And now he was saying it again, so maybe...
‘No way, is it time for revenge now?’
Getting into the imperial family meant crushing a nobody like him would be easy. Since they’d keep seeing each other, time to pay up? Or make him a lackey in exchange for letting him stay?
Philip’s pupils trembled wildly.
Watching his expression, Lucas paused for effect before curling his lips into a smile. A confident, relaxed grin Philip had never seen in their first year.
“Congrats to Team 2.”
* * *
Philip’s tensed shoulders slumped as he stared at me.
His face froze like time had stopped. Only after a long moment did he slowly nod with a creak.
“...Y-Yeah. So, what’s the point?”
“What’re you talking about? You tired?”
I burst out laughing and continued.
“We might not be on the same team, but let’s do our best as fellow Imperial Second Academy Cadets from here on.”
“......”
“We’ll keep seeing each other, so this much of a greeting’s fine, right?”
“...Y-Yeah, of course...”
Philip grimaced briefly before rolling his eyes and answering.
I nodded, satisfied.
‘This guy just went through some serious inner turmoil all by himself.’
I could read it on his face. Felt like I’d gained insight powers or something.
If he’d voiced that turmoil, I would’ve shut him down like last time with “Who do you think you’re talking to?” but luckily, he kept it inside.
Then, Philip muttered in a crawling voice.
“Me too. ...Shameless, but take care of me.”
“Hm?”
Ding—!
[Affinity +2]
‘...Easy.’
I was starting to get the hang of handling him.
His affinity had been 3 before, so now it was 5.
Better to chip away at it bit by bit during these group gatherings where time would otherwise be wasted.
Now, time to state the real reason I’d called him over.
I dismissed the 0.0002% filled proposal window and smiled.
“Philip. You can keep living quietly in Team 2 like now, right?”
“...Outta nowhere?”
“Outta nowhere?”
I stared at him silently without explaining further, and his face paled again.
He definitely knew what I meant.
How could he not?
It was entertaining watching his color drain. I placed a hand on his shoulder and smiled softly.
“I’m probably overthinking it, right? You, the scholarship kid who used to pull all sorts of stunts on me to prop up the school’s image—you wouldn’t dream of tarnishing the Imperial Second Academy’s reputation now.”
“...O-Obviously.”
Philip rolled his eyes and nodded.
I patted his shoulder encouragingly.
This should drastically lower the odds of Melvin getting bullied in the team. If Philip pulled any crap, I’d submit the character assessment I’d held back at the semester start and push for a disciplinary hearing.
Philip nodded vaguely with a confused look. Fortunately, his affinity didn’t drop. Now he knew exactly where I stood.
Creak—thud—
The front door opened, and I turned my head.
The chattering students snapped their mouths shut and looked forward.
The voices, which had quieted, swelled back up.
“Professor!”
“Huh?!”
Some students couldn’t hide their grins and jumped from their seats.
Our homeroom professor, whose complexion had improved since a week ago, smiled at the students.
“Just two weeks, right?”
* * *
To me, it had only been a week.
They’d known he was coming back, but seeing him in person made them cheer even louder.
What surprised me was the professor giving me +2 affinity the moment he saw me.
Johannes Ron
Affinity +8 [Conquest Possible (Stage 4/5)]
Now it was 8.
Curious about the sudden reaction, I opened the Stage 4 window, but it only showed question marks.
Either the system couldn’t read his thoughts, or Professor Ron himself didn’t know how he felt about me.
‘Interesting.’
As I thought that, I heard the student in front of me ask.
“Do we have to attend school every day?”
“Who knows, probably homeroom at least. And we need minimum credits, so we’ll have to show up for classes sometimes.”
“Got it. Man, you guys have it good.... Anyway, roll call’s soon, so I’m heading out. Congrats on the imperial entry~”
I waved with a smile.
The student chatting with me was someone I’d talked to once or twice in class.
‘Thanks for the +1 affinity.’
I’d learned that from the last affinity farming mission.
Just smiling and speaking warmly was enough to get points from even those with negative affinity.
Makes sense.
Students who’d harbored vague resentment melted some of it away when I treated them like people.
Even those indifferent would toss me 1 or 2 points casually.
Then, someone tapped my shoulder from behind.
“Lucas!”
“Ulrike.”
“You got mobbed by the kids too? Homeroom ended over 30 minutes ago—why’re you still here~”
Ulrike stood there, bag slung over her shoulder, looking a bit tired. She’d probably been receiving congrats like me.
“Happens. Let’s head out now.”
“Yeah. Hey, Lucas.”
“Yeah?”
Ulrike grinned.
“Remember our first exam together? The magic potion experiment contest.”
“Yeah, I remember.”
“Thought it’d just be that one and done, but now we’re teaming up long-term. Feels weird. Today’s exam was a blast.”
“For me too.”
Nothing much else to say, so I gave my best genuine smile and replied.
Ding—!
Affinity +1
Unlike the window’s info, Ulrike stared at me blankly. I waited for her to speak, then shrugged.
“What?”
“No, I’ve never seen that expression before? You always had a deadpan face back then.”
“You remember the weirdest things.”
“No one forgets. It actually suits you. Don’t go smiling everywhere—let’s go~”
“Alright. See you tomorrow.”
I waved and watched Ulrike’s back.
‘Just congrats and she gives +1.’
Total so far: 35 points.
Couldn’t be easier.
‘If only it wasn’t 10,000...’
Hollow laugh.
It’d be a lie to say it wasn’t daunting.
I had no intention of wasting this chance at 30 points after a month.
Last time it was 500 affinity for 25 points.
Now 10,000 for 30.
Was the system plotting to rob me blind? Or just not handing it over easily?
‘Freaked me out at first...’
Now it was clear.
This demand wasn’t different from before.
The only change was focusing more on the masses than individuals.
My stage as Lucas Ascanien had expanded to all of Berlin. The 10,000 matched my new scope.
Win over the faceless masses, in other words.
If that’s it, I’ve got this.
“Ready to go?”
I approached Narke, who’d been waiting for my conversation to end.
Even as Narke took my hand and warped us, I kept my eyes closed, thinking.
‘Still, can’t take it lightly.’
1,000 at school vs. 20 million in Berlin—scale’s different.
But luckily, opportunities existed.
“Oh, right. I’ll come at 6 tomorrow. Cool?”
Narke’s words made me open my eyes—we were already at the mansion entrance.
I nodded.
“Yeah, fine.”
“Haha, exam today and launch prep tomorrow? Brutal.”
Narke laughed and led me inside.
The Eschet launch was on the 12th, a Monday. Then, from the evening of the 12th launch to the morning of the 13th, a celebration banquet for all Imperial Second Academy Cadet Corps participants.
‘Perfect.’
If the rules held from before, this affinity proposal only tracked changes from people I could easily access.
Someone in Baden getting a good impression from my article wouldn’t count toward the 10,000.
So, I’d use launch day to meet masses in the capital directly.
“Huh?”
Narke opened my room door in the mansion and let out a surprised laugh.
“Oh, they’re here now~”
“Here?”
Elias waved a liquor bottle in greeting.
A sigh followed right after. Leo sat far off with a resigned face—the reason was obvious.
New bottles lined the room table.
“Why’d you guys show up 30 minutes late~”
“30 minutes? It’s only 11:30.”
“Yeah. Means we’ve got just 6 hours 30 minutes left to drink.”
“......”
We really stayed up those full 6 hours 30 minutes.
Not drinking the whole time as Elias intended, though.
‘Time for drinking means time for analysis.’
The system wouldn’t toss this proposal out of boredom. No complacency just because it felt familiar.
And at dawn, 6 AM.
I realized exactly why this proposal had come.
[Lucas Ascanien, 2nd in Anhalt Succession, Enters Imperial Family]
[Imperial Second Academy Rep Team ‘Eschet’ Launches on 10th]
[‘Pleroma as Empire’s Guardians?’ Berlin Anti-Pleroma Alliance Slams Imperial Second Academy]
[‘Much Still Unverified... Ideological Checks Needed,’ Berlin Gymnasium Teachers’ Union Voices Concerns]
[Anhalt Educators’ Union: ‘Cannot Accept Imperial Second Academy’s Decision’]
The day’s Imperial News and regional papers I’d bought in advance filled quickly with mana-inscribed text.
‘Hm.’
As expected.
The problem: this meant ditching the proposal.
Seeing me silently scan the papers, Elias—sprawled on the bed—caught on and snatched them.
“...Ah~ Why’re these idiots at it again? We saw the exact same backlash before.”
“Haha, yeah...”
Narke, sitting beside Elias, read the papers with a troubled look, checking my face.
Unnecessary worry. I shook my head.
“It’s temporary.”
“Huh?”
“Won’t last. Like you said, Eli, it’s recycled controversy.”
Elias shook his head, thinking I was too casual.
“Still, it won’t die out till we stamp it. Right, Luca?”
Yeah.
Spot on.
So, time for a different approach.
No need to run around on foot forever.
Gaining affinity by being friendly? Great.
But that’s that. Why rely solely on my demeanor forever?
If there are other tools, why not use them?
That’s why I’d prepared for days like this—with an unused card up my sleeve.
Before launch prep, I grabbed my binder of collected files and headed back to school.
First time at the faculty dorms.
Knock knock—
“Professor Stefan Trout.”
Saturday, 9 AM.
I knocked on Professor Trout’s door.
“It’s Lucas Ascanien.”