Upper Class Common Lectures

Unlike Orknodi, who remained entirely indifferent to the door's temptation, Hestia ultimately succumbed.

Two in the morning.

Shooting bolt upright from her bed, Hestia crept out into the dormitory hallway—only to bump straight into a female drill instructor conducting her late-night rounds.

"Breaking curfew and leaving the dormitory incurs a penalty of five ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠hundred points," the instructor said briskly. "Or, if you're unwilling to pay the points, you can spend twenty-four hours in the disciplinary solitary cell."

"...I apologize."

"I'm letting you off easy because you haven't actually stepped outside the building yet. The academy after dark is dangerous for first-year babies. Get back inside and go to sleep."

Her excursion was thwarted, but her curiosity regarding the hidden chamber did not diminish in the slightest.

How did Orknodi know about that place? And more importantly, why did she tell me?

Could it be ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠that Orknodi had called her out at 2:22 AM because she had something secret to say that couldn't be spoken inside the dormitory? If the academy grounds were truly as dangerous at night as the instructor claimed, wouldn't Orknodi be exposing herself to danger every night while waiting for her in that hidden room?

That won't do!

She could tolerate putting herself at risk, but she could never allow Orknodi to be endangered.

Hestia pushed open a window and slipped stealthily into the courtyard. The very next instant, a crisp fwoosh split the darkness as a blinding white searchlight flared to life from the guard post, pinning her squarely in its beam.

"I had a feeling you'd try sneaking out."

The instructor strolled over, holding out a digital terminal. "Are you paying the points, or are you spending tomorrow in solitary?"

"I'll... pay the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠points..."

Thus, Hestia's late-night excursion ended in total failure.

Chime-chime-chime, chime-chime-chime, chime-chime—

Click.

"Nnnngh."

The moment I shut off the alarm on my magic clock, sleep evaporated completely. Compared to Monday's meat grinder, Tuesday was a relatively forgiving day. My schedule had some breathing room, but slacking off for real would stunt my stat growth and drastically raise my chances of getting wiped out by a developer's troll event mid-semester.

Lecture content forms the baseline. Club activities provide depth. But the real game is surviving the academy's regular events.

Gift Academy triggered special campus-wide events every week that affected players and NPCs alike. Since this was Freshman Orientation Week, no catastrophic events had activated just yet, but preparing well in advance was essential if I wanted to handle whatever random hell broke loose next week.

"Morning, Orknodi! Out for dawn training?"

"Just loosening up a bit!"

After wrapping up a light ten-kilometer jog with the upperclassmen girls in their dolphin running shorts, I headed toward the cafeteria feeling thoroughly refreshed.

"What is this, a prison cafeteria...?"

This was impossible. I didn't have the mental fortitude to choke down a meal like that.

"Where's the meat?!"

"This is point fraud!"

"Aaargh, if I'd known it was this bad, I would've just skipped breakfast!"

Agonized groans echoed through the cafeteria as foolish students, who had swiped their cards without checking the daily menu first, realized their grave mistake. Poor bastards. In a cutthroat environment like this, you always needed a Plan B.

"So you want me to cook something from scratch at this hour?"

"Isabelle unnie makes the tastiest food in the whole world!"

"...Well, I did already scout the flora and fauna in the surrounding woods. Just hold on a minute."

Isabelle had even dragged Giselle and Son Ocheon over from the male dormitory. For a brief second, I felt a twinge of resentment at having more mouths to feed, but Giselle quickly lit a fire using one of his portable campfire kits, allowing us to enjoy a cozy outdoor breakfast in peace.

"Huh? Uncle Giselle, where did you get that survival kit?"

"A merchant has his methods. Children need not worry their little heads over such details."

Lured by the mouthwatering aroma of pan-fried wild mushrooms, ravenous students soon gathered around us like moths to a flame. Son Ocheon flexed his massive bicep veins, his voice rumbling with an unmistakable threat.

"You want a beating before you clear off, or are you walking away right now?"

Intimidated by his terrifying, muscle-bound frame, the male students beat a hasty retreat. The female students, on the other hand, boldly took a step closer, batting their eyelashes.

"Aww, but we're so huuuungry..."

"Just one little bite, pleaaase~?"

Faced with girls putting on exaggerated aegyo as though their tongues had been cut in half, Son Ocheon simply swung a thick wooden branch through the air with zero hesitation.

Whack!

"Eek!"

"Ouch!"

"Bwahaha! Did you truly think such crude flirting would work on this great one? Stop fooling around and get lost!"

"Eunuch bastard!"

"Stingy ape!"

Regardless of his questionable social graces, his ruthless enforcement ensured that we finished our hearty meal without being badgered by hungry scavengers.

"It seems we have one common lecture for the Upper Class in the morning, and another in the afternoon," Giselle remarked, reviewing the schedule.

Even the ever-genial Giselle couldn't manage his usual calm smile upon reading that lineup.

"A lecture taught by that Headmaster... My stomach aches just reading it."

"Gwahaha! I agree completely," Son Ocheon barked. "That monster possesses truly absurd momentum. Seeing him firsthand made me realize why the drakes we called forest beasts back in my homeland are only referred to as lesser dragons."

Honestly, you guys aren't worrying about the right class.

Having cleared all these courses back during my hardcore gamer days, I considered most theory classes easy freebies. But Tuesday's Period 1 mandatory class was an entirely different beast. A physical hell awaited us—one that even a brisk ten-kilometer morning jog could never prepare anyone to endure.

"The classroom is at the foot of a mountain? What an odd course," someone murmured as we arrived.

"Perhaps we shall simply practice deep-breathing exercises while absorbing the mountain's fresh mana?" Giselle suggested mildly.

"Giselle-ssi, no matter how optimistic you are, do you really think this academy would ever offer a lecture that generous?" Isabelle replied dryly.

"Haha. A mere wish, nothing more. As someone who has neglected physical conditioning, I merely hoped for an easier curriculum."

At the trailhead of Mount Omine, beneath the looming shadow of a towering muscle statue, the forty-four elite freshmen comprising the Upper Class gathered in the clearing.

Depending on course selections from the previous day, some students had already met face-to-face in lecture halls, while others had only glimpsed each other in the corridors or heard wild rumors about who had enrolled in what.

Among them all, the student with the most thoroughly drained complexion was Andersen Pretzel.

"Listen to me, all of you..." Andersen groaned, his handsome face looking hollow. "Whatever you do, never take the Magic Faculty's course on How to Cast Divine Magic Without Faith."

"Why? What happened?"

"Just don't do it. If you value your life, do not take it."

Suffering through grueling physical labor without the grace of faith versus swearing fealty to the Marque Warrior Order to take the easy way out with blessed divine magic. It seemed those fanatical zealots had shown their true colors from the very first hour.

A male student from Group B, who had clearly fallen into the exact same trap, nodded along in grim, traumatized solidarity.

"Haaah~? Publicly disparaging a course you chose with your own two hands? Isn't that just the absolute worst~?"

The male student flinched as a teasing, patronizing voice rang clearly across the clearing.

Just as Arcadia served as the spiritual figurehead for the female students from the outer kingdoms, the speaker was the cornerstone of the Imperial faction—the Holy Central Empire's 2nd Imperial Princess, known among veteran players as the ultimate mesugaki brat.

"Whoa, she just blasted Young Master Andersen straight to his face."

"Even those of us who took the same course refrained from badmouthing him out of respect for his noble standing..."

"I suppose Imperial royalty doesn't care about tiptoeing around foreign dukes."

"Wait, isn't she super short?"

"Yeah, she's barely any taller than Orknodi, isn't she?"

"Haaah?! Who are you calling a shrimp?! How dare you show such insolence before a princess of the Empire!"

Yeah, right. Next in line, one hundred and forty-five centimeters.

"Hmph. Talking big when she's tiny herself," I muttered.

She was a pipsqueak I was fully ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠slated to outgrow within a few short years. A character born from the developer's mandatory mesugaki quota, boasting a delightfully aggravating personality to match her archetype.

"Whaaat?! Hey, you little brat!" the Princess snarled, pointing an accusing finger at me. "Listen and engrave this in your tiny skull! The tens digit of our heights is fundamentally different!"

"I'm still in my growth period, you know."

"I'm in my growth period too, you know?!"

Nope, you're not. Your official developer codex profile clearly states '145 cm — Growth Phase Concluded.'

"Cheeky little squirt! Don't get cocky when you're barely one hundred and thirty centimeters!"

"I am one hundred and thirty-three centimeters, thank you very much!"

"Princess Mesgaki," Andersen interjected coldly, stepping forward. "Should you not apologize before raising your voice any further?"

"Huh? What on earth should I apologize for?"

"It appears the princesses of the Empire possess exceptionally thick skin, readily belittling the direct heir of an allied grand ducal house without a shred of shame."

"Oh, so it's perfectly fine for you to openly insult the professor of the class you picked~? Cat got your tongue? Feeling stupid now, are we? Checkmate, argument destroyed♡"

She was irritating enough when I played as a 230-centimeter towering juggernaut, but staring up at her from 133 centimeters made her tenfold more infuriating. The sheer audacity of the academy's shortest student strutting around like a peacock just because someone slightly smaller had appeared!

"Vile Imperial scoundrels," Andersen ground out between clenched teeth. "Using factual statements to undermine my dignity... I shall never forget this disgrace..."

"I completely agree," I chimed in solemnly. "To suffer such humiliation from a vertically challenged runt whose growth plates have already sealed... We must teach her a proper lesson one day."

"Orknodi. When the opportune moment arrives, I shall permit you to assist in my retribution."

"And if an opportunity arises to pull a prank on that princess, I'll be sure to call you over, Young Master Andersen."

While Andersen and I were forging a deadly alliance of mutual spite, quiet murmurs of "How cute" drifted from nearby.

I thought it was the Princess's sycophants cooing at her antics, but their reactions were completely different.

"Your Highness... Squabbling with a child who barely turned ten hurts your royal dignity..."

"At times like this, you shouldn't stoop to a child's level! You must show the dignified poise of an adult!"

"Indeed. If this continues, people might start treating Your Highness like a child as well."

"I-Insolent fools! Treating an Imperial princess like a child?!"

"We said people might, Your Highness! We certainly haven't!"

Seeing her retainers scrambling frantically to save face, the murmurs definitely hadn't come from their side. Straining my ears, snippets from our Group A faction drifted over: "Did that statue's eyes just move?" "I'm craving gimbap." "When is the professor getting here?" "How cute."

Found you.

The culprit calling me cute and treating me like a mascot was right here!

I spun around with righteous determination—only to lock eyes with an entirely unexpected person.

"Whoa. What happened to your eyes?"

"It's nothing..."

The culprit was Hestia, her eyes ringed with pitch-black circles.

"Those aren't just dark circles, they look like bruises!"

"I just... tossed and turned all night."

Just how long did this girl spend talking to the wall last night?

She undoubtedly thought every word she'd spoken had been a heart-to-heart with me. We weren't close at all, but what if she assumed we shared some profound bond and started showering me with sudden, uninvited emotional intimacy?

...Well, what choice did I have?

I had to play along and act like her best friend to prevent her villainess awakening flag from triggering!

Seeing Hestia nervously rub the corner of her eye, I seized the moment and gave her a bright, calculated wink.

"...Cute."

It really was her! Saying that with a completely hollow, sleep-deprived zombie face made it genuinely terrifying. Still, a wink ought to be enough acknowledgment for now, right?

"How unfair," Arcadia grumbled behind me, puffing her cheeks.

"Di! Why do you give that crude mercenary woman the lovely winks you've never once shown to me?"

"I just got dust in my eye, that's all."

"Take that, then!"

"Aaaah! Stop! Don't whip up dirt with your folding fan!"

"Hey! I'm getting covered in dirt too, you know?!"

"Oh dear. My apologies, Miss Isabelle."

Amid the chaotic bickering, the bell finally chimed for the start of the period. At that very second, a tremendous presence stirred before us.

"Waaaah! The—the statue moved!"

"The sculpture changed its pose!"

"I am no mere sculpture!" a booming voice roared as the indestructible living muscle statue cracked its metallic joints into a classic bodybuilding pose. "I am Professor Platon, your instructor for Upper Class Physical Conditioning! None of you should harbor the foolish delusion that you will walk out of this class on two feet!"

Panic rippled across the students.

"W-Why would you do such a thing?!" Arcadia cried out in terror.

Professor Platon grinned ferociously, his metallic teeth gleaming in the sunlight.

"Because watching students crawl all the way back to the dorms without even the strength left to walk is simply too amusing!"

"He's a demon! A demon incarnate!"

And thus began one of the top five most physically brutal lectures in the entire history of Gift Academy.