The Birth of the Sibal Saegi Club

It was early evening. I gazed down at the Slave Training Center Founding Application in my hand with a deeply satisfied smile. With this document, I had officially formalized seventeen slaves who would obey my every command. In short, I had secured the administrative framework required to work those bastards to the bone.

The setup was flawless. If anything went wrong I could always play the Elena card, and by installing David as president, all the annoying paperwork and responsibilities would land on his shoulders. As vice president, I could simply strap on the armband, stay free of every obligation, and exploit them at my leisure. They had slandered and criticized me plenty; now I would wring them dry in return.

“Still…”

This wasn’t the time to lounge around. A demon species had appeared during the First Outdoor Class Event. An incident that had never once occurred no matter how many dozens of times I had retried this game had finally triggered.

So early…

Far too early. It should have happened in the second semester of sophomore year, after everyone had advanced a full grade. Yet here we were, still in the first semester of freshman year, and the demons had already shown up. Was my explosive growth already warping the world’s timeline?

…Yeah, that has to be it.

It made sense. My relationships with the heroines had accelerated dramatically compared to the original route, and the Dwarf Allied Kingdom and the Empire—two powers that were supposed to remain hostile until the day the world ended—had instead formed an alliance. The world’s flow was speeding up because of me.

The Demon Cult’s movements might accelerate too…

The Demon Cult. Those fanatics usually appeared in the second semester of sophomore year, right around the time the demon species started showing up. Their main objective was to corrupt the heroines. Every single heroine in this game possessed exceptional talent, after all.

I need to keep the Top 30 on high alert.

That meant I had to start paying close attention to any talented students the cult ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠might target. There was no telling when or where they would approach and drag them down into becoming demonic servants.

“Work just keeps piling up. I’m going to die from overwork at this rate.”

Because the events had been moved forward, my schedule had grown insane. I had to attend academy classes, build the suits, manufacture various weapons, construct a computer, and keep tabs on the Demon Cult’s movements. At least one item on the to-do list had been crossed off.

The monthly Equipment Evaluation Assembly had been abolished. I had already proven my technical talent and received the title “Blacksmith of Salvation” from the Dwarf Allied Kingdom, so there was no longer any need to evaluate me. It would have been ridiculous for nobles of equal rank to sit in judgment over a newly minted Count anyway.

Though there is one final assembly left.

The dukes who had funded the academy threw a tantrum and demanded one last session. They clearly wanted to use the event as an excuse to meet me in person. Last time they had only sent their retainers; this time it looked like they intended to come themselves.

Well, it’s not necessarily a bad thing.

It was one more annoying chore, but not entirely without merit. It wasn’t every day you got to gather every duke in one place and present your work on a grand stage. If I used this opportunity well, I might reap unexpected rewards.

When I was a commoner I had to serve the nobles one-sidedly, but now that I held the rank of Count I could negotiate with them on relatively equal footing. What ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠kind of big fish might bite in those negotiations remained to be seen.

“Hmm… what should I make this time?”

Of course, to hook a big fish I needed equally impressive bait. It would have to be something on the level of the air conditioner if I wanted them to bite my hook.

“…Hmm. I don’t have any good bait.”

No matter how much I thought about it, nothing came to mind. Was there really anything else that could have the same impact as an air conditioner during a sweltering summer? I decided to shelve the problem until inspiration struck. Right now I needed to focus on turning the Sibal Saegi members into proper slaves.

The massive research institute and factory I was designing would require workers who would remain on duty until the day they died. I needed lifelong slaves.

“Fix, how’s the work coming along?”

“Weeeoooong~!”

But to become my true slaves, they first needed proper qualifications. They had to possess at least basic physics knowledge. That was why Fix was currently writing textbooks on General Physics, Modern Physics, Classical Mechanics, Electromagnetism, Thermal and Statistical Physics, Quantum Mechanics, Mathematical Physics, Quantum Field Theory, Relativity, Astrophysics and Cosmology, Particle Physics, Solid-State Physics, Solid-State Field Theory, Optics, Quantum Information Theory, and Fashionable Nonconductors.

I needed to raise the slaves’ level so they could carry out my orders properly.

They’ll complain, of course.

If I told them to learn all of this, there would definitely be fierce resistance. They were already busy with academy classes; they would whine about when they were supposed to find time for all this extra material.

But that wasn’t my problem. When the time came, my repulsor beam would do the talking. People don’t change easily, but maybe that’s just because they haven’t been beaten enough?

Still, I’ll need to offer some carrots too.

If I only used the whip, the slaves would eventually run away. I had to dangle a reward they would receive after enduring the pain. Only then could they tolerate my lashing.

So what reward should I present that would make them willingly volunteer to become slaves?

…That’s it. The one thing every man loses his mind over.

Wednesday, final period—Stress Management and Sleep Techniques.

A silent war was raging inside the classroom, with Ed at its center. The random pairing system had once again placed Ed and Isabella together. Enya was staring daggers at them with an expression of pure indignation. How was it possible that, of all people, Isabella had been paired with Ed twice?

“Khh khh. This is getting interesting. Looks like she’s openly gunning for you now, huh?”

Isabella glanced sideways toward Charlotte. Charlotte wore a similar expression to Enya, staring intently in Ed’s direction. However, her chronic shyness remained uncured; the moment she noticed Isabella’s gaze she flinched violently and lowered her head.

Isabella gave a small snort of laughter and turned back to Ed.

“Anyway, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I’ll be counting on you again this time. I slept really well last session.”

Isabella had to consciously suppress her emotions at all times to prevent them from running wild. Because of that, she could never truly rest. If she failed to control herself even in her sleep, she might lose control completely.

“Um… isn’t it my turn this time?”

“……”

Ed’s answer was unexpected. He was saying it was his turn to sleep first.

“Don’t you remember? During the last practical evaluation, you fell so deeply asleep that I got zero points on the test.”

“Ah.”

Now that he mentioned it, that had happened. Isabella had received zero points in the previous practical. She was supposed to sleep lightly and then help her partner Ed fall asleep, but she had passed out cold and failed to do so.

“So let’s reverse it this time. I’ll sleep first, then wake up and help you sleep.”

“…Understood.”

Isabella nodded obediently. She couldn’t afford another zero on the practical. Ed climbed onto the bed first. But even after he lay down, Isabella simply stared at him without doing anything, so he tilted his head and asked,

“Aren’t we starting?”

“……”

Isabella looked at him with ears so red they seemed ready to burst. After clearing her throat once, she said,

“…Move over a bit.”

“…Huh?”

“I want to try your method too. The one you used when you put me to sleep last time.”

“……”

Isabella, who hated physical contact with others more than anything, was offering to embrace him herself. Heat rushed up to Ed’s face.

“Ah, sure.”

His body moved quickly, making space. Ed turned onto his side and waited for Isabella to climb in. The situation was incredibly embarrassing, but there was no way he would refuse the girl he had loved across multiple regressions.

…Regression? No, retry.

Ed corrected the thought in his mind. It wasn’t regression—it was retry. This was, after all, a game world, and he had only ever interacted with Isabella through a monitor.

-Rustle.

While his mind wandered, he felt a presence behind him. The sound of the bed sheet sliding against her skin. Just hearing it made his heart pound violently. The knowledge that Isabella was right behind him, preparing to hold him, sent heat surging through his entire body.

“……”

Yet even after several seconds, Isabella still didn’t move. Her presence remained behind him, but she did nothing after climbing onto the bed.

Is she hesitating?

Ed could guess what was happening. Isabella was hesitating over whether to embrace him. He could vividly picture her face flushed crimson, fidgeting awkwardly. He wanted to turn around immediately and see that adorable sight.

That would be too embarrassing, though.

Facing each other directly felt too much. Last time, overlapping memories from his previous life had allowed him to act naturally, but with a clear mind he lacked the courage to do it sober.

“I’m doing it!”

With that strange declaration, Isabella’s arms suddenly wrapped around him. Her pale, delicate arms encircled his waist, and he felt something soft and warm press against his back, spreading outward. A jolt of electricity shot up his spine, and a tingling sensation spread across his scalp. On top of that, her hot, ragged breath occasionally brushed against the nape of his neck. It was almost enough to make him lose consciousness.

-Squeeze…

But when he noticed how tightly her hands were gripping his shirt, some of the tension eased. She was clearly nervous; her palms were so sweaty they were staining the fabric.

“Then I’ll begin.”

Yet her voice remained calm. She was doing her best not to show her nervousness. In a way, it was very much like her. Inside that powerful exterior was an ordinary girl forced to live the life of a witch.

“The whole world is a snowy kingdom.”

Isabella repeated exactly what he had done before—the unique imagery association technique he always used to help her sleep.

…This isn’t bad.

It actually felt pleasant. The familiarity made it even more comforting. The sensation of her body holding him, the warmth transmitted through it, her breathing—everything felt like the familiar, longed-for embrace he had known in his previous lives.

“Inside a cave, the two of us are together.”

Before long they had pushed through the blizzard and entered the cave. Isabella said they were warming themselves by a bonfire, melting the chill from their bodies.

-Squeeze…

She pulled him even tighter. She had become fully immersed in the imagery she was describing.

-Nod… nod…

Ed gradually began to doze off. Memories from the previous round flooded his mind, blurring the boundary between past and present.

-Whooooooosh…

His consciousness drifted into the past. A snowy kingdom where blizzards raged. He was clutching Isabella’s ice-cold corpse tightly. Demon corpses littered the ground in every direction, but more were already swarming in. There wasn’t even time to mourn her death.

-UAAAAAAAAAA!!!

HAAAAAAAAA!!!

Filled with rage, he began swinging his sword. He wondered whether game characters were really capable of expressing emotion this vividly, but soon dismissed the thought. Since he had possessed a character inside the game, maybe his memories had been adjusted.

-Aaaa… Aaaaaaaaa…

Once again he was screaming in the middle of a mountain of demon corpses. With one arm missing and a hole through the center of his chest, covered head to toe in demonic blood, he howled toward the place where Isabella lay.

What the… is that…?

The moment he saw the message window, crushing drowsiness slammed into him. The game character was laughing madly while staring at the window, shouting something into empty air.

[…! ■■■! In my settings…! ■■■…! ■■■■■!! ■■ ■■…]

What is this… what are you saying…?

Even as his consciousness grew hazy, the past version of himself continued to shout. Then his body began to glow. Wrapped in light, he trembled while making a bizarre sound that could have been either crying or laughing.

Now… I’m really… sleepy…

That was the last scene before his consciousness cut off.

-Flash!

In an instant, thousands upon thousands of images flickered past like photographs playing at 0.0001-second intervals. Among those thousands of images, Ed managed to catch a few specific ones: a futuristic building with a sign reading [■■■ Laboratory] and a research uniform with a name tag that read [Professor Ha Do-yun].

Professor…?

The final image was strange. Ha Do-yun was his real name from Earth, so why was the title “Professor” attached to it? He was clearly just a university student who had topped the mechanical engineering department. It had passed by so quickly he must have seen it wrong.

Yeah… I must have seen it… wro—

Before he could finish the thought, Ed’s consciousness was severed. It cut off cleanly, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠as if someone had pressed the power button on his mind.

“……?”

When he opened his eyes again, he remembered nothing. The only thing that entered his vision was Isabella’s face, which looked slightly annoyed.

“…Hah. You slept really well. Even though I was hugging you from behind.”

“…What time is it now?”

“Class is over. You were sleeping so peacefully I couldn’t bring myself to wake you.”

“I see.”

“Heh. Now we’re even. Since you’re awake, I’ll be going. See you next week.”

With those words, Isabella quickly stood and walked out into the corridor. Once the sound of her footsteps faded, Ed stretched widely and let out a huge yawn. He tried to recall the dream he had just had.

“…Was that a weird dream?”

Nothing specific came to mind. The only thing he could faintly remember was his game character screaming in despair over Isabella’s dead body. Ed scratched the back of his head and stood up.

Wednesday’s classes were over. That meant he had free time from Wednesday night through Sunday. It was time to begin training the Sibal Saegi slaves.