Unexpected Encounter
The Imperial Academy.
Established by the Emperor’s decree, this academy served as the starting point for El Pandor Runtera.
After all, the moment players created their accounts, they began as academy cadets attending the entrance ceremony. I, however, had managed to set foot inside a little earlier than that.
It all began with the bidding competition for the Imperial Academy’s training equipment. When James entered the competition, I accompanied him as his assistant.
“Whoa, it really is on another level… Absolutely massive.”
At the main gate leading into the Imperial Academy, James stared up at the majestic facade with a dazed expression, muttering to himself.
I felt the exact same overwhelming pressure. I had seen this scenery countless times on a screen, but experiencing it in the flesh after possession was an entirely different dimension from viewing 3D graphics.
“James Fix. Identity confirmed. You may enter.”
While we stood there admiring the view, the guard inspecting our IDs granted us permission to proceed.
After retrieving our identification, James and I stepped directly into the academy grounds.
“Hah, this is…”
Inside lay a breathtaking panorama.
Straight marble pathways stretched into the distance, flanked by clusters of pristine white buildings. A massive fountain dominated the central plaza, crowned by a pure-gold statue of the Emperor. Gardens wove through it all in perfect harmony.
We stood speechless, utterly captivated by the sight.
“It’s even more incredible than the rumors…”
Just as James said, reality far surpassed the game’s 3D renderings. The Imperial Academy, showcasing the empire’s cutting-edge architectural techniques, was stunning even through an engineer’s eyes.
In this beautiful space, every named NPC who would shape the world’s story would eventually gather. And I would stand among them, helping craft the main storyline.
A strange mixture of excitement and tension coursed through my entire body.
“Ahem…! Hmm…!”
James, however, seemed tense for an entirely different reason. The way he kept loosening his neck with that stiff expression made it obvious.
He was clearly worried about the upcoming equipment demonstration.
“Father, there’s nothing to worry about. You’re going to win this bid anyway.”
Though James looked visibly anxious, I already knew he would become the final selected blacksmith. After all, throughout my entire playthrough of the game, the academy’s blacksmith NPC had always been James.
“Your work is solid, Father. And above all, it offers the best cost-performance ratio. Your hands are fast, too.”
After living as his son for two months, I had come to understand exactly why James became the academy’s blacksmith NPC. He might not craft exceptional equipment, but he could produce cheap, practical items at impressive speed.
In other words, the academy needed training gear for hundreds of cadets. James was the perfect candidate for mass-producing that kind of standardized equipment. There was no need to obsess over artisanal perfection.
“Hmm… Right! If my son—who will become a legendary blacksmith someday—says so, then I’ll believe it! Of course! Dad’s definitely going to win this! Hahaha!”
…Above all, his simple nature was a blessing. A little praise was enough to ignite his enthusiasm. That positivity and diligence had probably earned him high marks too.
“If it looks like it won’t work out, we can just show them the equipment my son made! The professors might recognize your genius and—”
Still, I really wished he would stop being such a doting father. For the past two months he had bragged about me to everyone in the village. The embarrassment had been unbearable.
I pulled my hood down over my face and quickly slipped away from James.
*
Afterward, James and I completed the basic tests. They were designed to narrow hundreds of applicants down to the final thirty. We proudly secured our places among them.
Waiting Number: 27
We received number twenty-seven ahead of the final test—the equipment demonstration. Since the first participant’s demonstration took roughly thirty minutes, we would be waiting thirteen hours and forty minutes.
“I’m going to look around for a bit.”
Thirteen hours was far too long to sit still. Since I had the time, I decided to make full use of it by exploring the academy properly.
Let’s start with Lecture Room 5.
Lecture Room 5 was where Professor Elena taught. It was my highest priority. Her class, Basics of Mana Studies, was famous even within the game. Simply attending it granted a fifteen-percent increase to skill acceleration—one of the highest-tier options available.
In short, there was no better lecture for improving one’s abilities.
Well, Elena is a genius of the age, after all.
Elena von Illide Rosario. Though she had not yet reached thirty, she had rightfully earned her position as professor at the Imperial Academy. From a young age she had displayed exceptional talent in spells and magic circles. Now that talent had elevated her to the rank of archmage.
It would be incredible if I could learn magic circle engraving from her.
Her magic circles were something I desperately needed. High-grade equipment required scrolls inscribed with them.
Sigh. If only I were a proper student, I could have become her disciple.
Realistically, however, receiving her instruction was impossible. Within the academy I was nothing more than a blacksmith NPC—specifically, James’s assistant. There was no chance an archmage like Elena would teach a commoner blacksmith.
Which means the only answer is sneaking in.
I would find a way to hide inside Lecture Room 5 and steal the lecture. I wouldn’t be able to follow the practical exercises, but that was a problem for later. Even absorbing the theory would be helpful.
Lecture Room 5
Lost in thought, I soon found myself standing in front of the very room. Having seen it countless times while playing the game, navigating here had been easy.
Time to find an infiltration route.
Now that I had reached Lecture Room 5, I needed to locate a discreet way inside. There had to be a ventilation shaft somewhere that carried airflow.
I looked up at the ceiling first.
“Ah, there it is.”
Just as expected, I found the air vent. A square grille marked with a ▦ pattern allowed internal air to circulate through its dense openings.
“Then… let’s head in.”
Having located the opening, it was time to explore the route. If there was an entrance, there would be an exit. That exit would become my infiltration point into Lecture Room 5.
“Inventory.”
The ceiling was quite high, so I needed something to stand on. I activated the Player’s unique skill Inventory and pulled out the ladder I had prepared in advance. It was a good thing I had made it ahead of time.
—Clank.
I climbed the ladder and successfully removed the ▦-shaped panel. The screws came out easily with a screwdriver.
“Inventory.”
I stored the ladder back inside to erase any trace of my presence. How convenient that the system treated me—the possessor—as a Player. Without Inventory, this would have been incredibly inconvenient.
—Rustle… Rustle…
That aside, I began crawling through the narrow ventilation shaft. Of course, I didn’t forget to mark the path with a specially treated pen.
After crawling for some time, I finally discovered the exit.
Surprisingly, it led directly into the forge where I would soon be working.
“Jackpot.”
I cheered quietly as I emerged. Since the infiltration route to Lecture Room 5 began in my own workplace, sneaking in would be far easier than anticipated.
Hmm… Still, some modifications will be necessary.
It had taken a full twenty minutes to reach this point. The thought of crawling through that tight space every day made my brow furrow. I would need to renovate the ventilation shaft for easier access.
Yes. Let’s overhaul it completely.
There was still over a month until the entrance ceremony. I would be working here with James until then, so I would have plenty of time to make the changes.
“Why~yong!”
A cat’s cry suddenly echoed through the forge.
When I turned toward the sound, I saw a cat with its right hind leg severed. The moment I laid eyes on the creature, rage surged through me so fiercely I could barely contain it.
“What the—! How could anyone do something like this!”
Who in their right mind would commit such a cruel act? The prosthetic attached to the cat’s right hind leg was an absolute disaster. From its biomechanical design to its construction, it was completely botched.
“You’ve been living with this thing all this time?”
“Why~yong!”
The cat’s meow sounded almost like an affirmative. I couldn’t imagine how difficult it must have been to move around with such a poorly made prosthetic. I couldn’t simply ignore this.
“Hoo… Wait here a moment.”
Perfect timing. This was a forge, and I had time to spare. I had already secured my infiltration route to Lecture Room 5. Now I could do what I wanted.
I would fix this cat’s prosthetic during the remaining time.
At the very moment I resolved to create a new prosthetic, the hidden skill Engineering Thought activated. The cat’s leg transformed into a detailed schematic in my vision. I instantly understood the number of bones, their exact measurements, their strength, and every possible movement they could perform when working together.
Once I had absorbed all the information, I smiled and gently stroked the cat’s head.
“Wait for me, little one. I’ll get rid of that piece of junk right away.”
***
“Hoo-oo. I could really use a cigarette right now.”
Elena von Illide Rosario had just finished evaluating the fifteenth blacksmith candidate. Her expression was deeply troubled. The thought of enduring this ridiculous equipment demonstration fifteen more times made her want to resign from her professorship immediately.
Maybe she should have refused the position after all.
“No, I had no choice at the time. Sephilia made it an ‘order,’ after all…”
Sephilia. The imperial princess and Elena’s own disciple. Elena rubbed her forehead as the girl’s face rose in her mind. She could still see her sitting proudly on the high seat, coolly commanding Elena to accept the role of chief professor.
Normally Elena would have refused outright, but an order issued by a member of the imperial family could not be declined. Too many eyes had been watching.
“Sephilia… Just you wait…”
Her devious disciple had used her status as princess to force Elena into this position. Elena’s body trembled as she clenched her fist. The next time she met her disciple one-on-one, she would grab that pretty head and give it a good yank.
“Haa. I should go pet Waeyong…”
But that day was still a month away. Until then, she would have to endure. Elena decided to soothe herself by stroking her beloved cat, Waeyong-i. Petting that affectionate creature always calmed her mind.
She stopped by her temporary office to find the cat.
“Hmm?”
The moment Elena opened the door, she tilted her head in confusion. Waeyong-i should have been sitting obediently on the desk, yet the cat was nowhere to be seen.
Where could a cat with a bad leg have gone?
—Flash!
She searched every corner of the office, but Waeyong-i was nowhere in sight. In the end, Elena activated Mana Tracking, a wide-area detection skill capable of locating any living being that possessed even the slightest trace of mana.
Yet she felt nothing. Waeyong-i’s mana had completely left the detection radius.
“Waeyong!”
Elena kicked the door open and began searching in earnest. She scoured the entire building, tracking the cat’s mana signature. Finally, she sensed it.
Approximately two hundred meters away—at the forge—Waeyong-i’s mana pulsed clearly.
“Waeyooooong!”
Elena hurried toward the forge without hesitation.