The Professors Are the Easiest to Conquer
Kael let out a soft whistle of admiration. A spacious, impeccably clean room greeted his eyes. It reminded him strongly of the rooms back at the Aberwin ducal estate.
A plush carpet covered the floor, and at the far end sat an enormous bed. Beside it stood a wooden desk and chair, neatly arranged with ink, pens, and stacks of paper.
One wall held a massive bookshelf. Kael walked over and scanned the titles.
“Basic Aura Manipulation, Foundations of Magic Circles, Advanced Mana Circulation, Understanding Magical Power, Fundamentals of Swordsmanship. Hmm, not bad at all.”
Though the collection leaned heavily toward swordsmanship and magic, these books alone would allow him to study productively on his own.
Well, I’ll read them properly later.
Since he would be stuck here for the next thirty-three years, boredom would become a problem even after the food situation was resolved.
Kael set the book down and continued exploring the room. A door on one side led to the bathroom. When he opened it, a surprisingly large bath appeared before him.
“Oh~”
The bathroom’s design seemed even better than the one at the Aberwin estate. Back there, maids had to haul and heat water manually—an endless hassle. But this place was astonishingly close to modern Earth standards.
Glazed tile floors, a large glass mirror mounted on the wall, a sink, and even a proper shower stall. Inside the stall was a metal nozzle that appeared to be magically operated.
Whoa! A showerhead!
Feeling a surge of genuine delight, Kael twisted the nozzle. Warm water immediately cascaded from the ceiling. The clear, clean stream was preset to a pleasantly moderate temperature. It looked like turning a dial could adjust the heat as well.
This… is actually excellent.
Kael was impressed. He had heard that while Tartaros Academy was infamous for its hellish dining conditions, the rest of its facilities were surprisingly comfortable. The dormitory and bathroom he was seeing now exceeded even those expectations.
He turned the nozzle again to stop the water, left the bathroom, and settled down at the desk and chair.
“Time for a little snack, I suppose?”
Muttering to himself, he selected a warm canned coffee and a pack of sweet chocolate Home Run Ball cookies.
> Purchased Warm Canned Coffee (240ml). 1 point deducted. Remaining points: 1000
> Purchased Chocolate Home Run Ball. 1 point deducted. Remaining points: 999
Kael popped open the canned coffee and savored the rich aroma that gently filled the room.
“Mmm~ That coffee smell!”
He took a sip. The smooth, subtly sweet flavor wrapped around his tongue, and a comforting warmth slid down his throat.
“Ah… perfect.”
While drinking the coffee, he nibbled on the sweet chocolate cookies. The crisp outer shell crumbled, followed by the rich sweetness of the chocolate filling.
After enjoying the treats for a while, he relaxed lazily. He deliberately skipped the cafeteria at lunchtime. The students probably hadn’t yet fully grasped the true misery of the coarse black bread.
“Lunch should be something hearty.”
He decided to treat himself to the most appetizing option available.
> Purchased Convenience Store Lunch Box (11 side dishes). 5 points deducted. Remaining points: 994
A lunch box materialized on the desk in a flash of light. The plastic container looked exactly like the ones he remembered from Earth convenience stores. When he lifted the lid, a colorful array of perfectly prepared side dishes greeted him.
“Grilled tofu, stir-fried spicy pork, tteok-galbi, kimchi, rolled omelette, stir-fried anchovies, seasoned greens, fish cakes, potato-vegetable stir-fry, and even breaded fish cutlet… Damn, this is incredible.”
Disposable chopsticks and a spoon were neatly packed beside it. He picked up a piece of the spicy pork and put it in his mouth. The heat hit him immediately. Unlike his previous body, his current one wasn’t yet accustomed to spicy food.
“Ugh.”
> Purchased Bottled Water (2L). 1 point deducted. Remaining points: 993
Kael quickly bought water and drank it, slowly acclimating to the fiery taste of the kimchi and spicy pork as he enjoyed his meal. He savored each side dish at a leisurely pace until the lunch box was empty. With a pleasantly full stomach, he disposed of the trash and stood up.
“Whew~ That hit the spot.”
Stretching his arms, he smirked at the thought of the other students currently suffering over the coarse black bread in the cafeteria.
“That bitch Irina is probably chewing that disgusting bread and wallowing in despair right about now. Hehehe~”
A short while later, he began doing basic stretches inside his room. After loosening his arms and legs, he pulled a book from the shelf.
It was titled Foundations of Magic Circles.
Hmm, I don’t understand any of this. Wait… actually, I get this part.
He had no talent for magic, nor for swordsmanship. Still, he had always paid more attention to the sword. Unlike swordsmanship, which he had practiced for several years at a civilian level, magic was something he had only briefly touched before giving up early. Once again, he felt the malice behind the Duke of Aberwin sending him to the magic department.
Time passed quickly as he read.
I can earn extra points through praise and gain experience as well. It’s almost dinner time, so I should check on the students’ conditions… but first, it’s better to target the professors.
The professors had endured decades—some even centuries—of surviving on coarse black bread, dandelions, and nettles. They had already suffered enough to view real food as nothing short of salvation.
Kael rose from his seat and immediately went looking for them. The magic department lecture halls weren’t far from the dormitory. Since the headmaster and professors didn’t always stay on the first floor, he had no idea how many he might encounter.
Just one. Let me run into at least one.
With that hope, he walked past the lecture halls and soon spotted a female professor with light blue hair that fell to her shoulders.
Even by objective standards, she was strikingly beautiful. Yet the woman wearing a blue mage’s robe looked far from well. Her complexion radiated the kind of deep resignation that came from repeated exposure to hell.
“Hello, Professor.”
Kael didn’t know her name, but he approached her with a bright smile.
“Who are you?”
Naturally, the female professor didn’t know his name either. But Kael didn’t mind. After today, this woman would never be able to forget it.
“Hehe, I came to show you something truly wonderful, Professor. Please stay quiet and don’t be startled.”
“If this is a prank, get lost. I’m not in the mood for games.”
Her voice was icy. Instead of answering, Kael opened the shop window and purchased a convenience store strawberry cake.
> Purchased Convenience Store Strawberry Cake (Single Serving). 2 points deducted. Remaining points: 991
A plastic case containing a strawberry cake appeared in Kael’s hand. To him, it was just an ordinary cake topped with soft whipped cream and bright red strawberries. But to the professor’s eyes, it must have looked like a fragment of heaven.
“I-is that… cake?! H-how…!”
Her eyes widened dramatically. She nearly dropped the books she was holding and looked ready to scream. It made sense. For someone who had survived on coarse black bread for decades and could only enjoy proper meals for a few days during vacation, cake was something she could barely even dream of.
Her gaze filled with desperate longing and raw hunger. The way she licked her lips made her look like a predator about to pounce. Any trace of the elegant, elite female mage was gone.
“Shh!”
Kael pressed a finger to his lips, signaling her to stay quiet.
“Professor, why don’t we talk somewhere private? You can eat this cake while you listen to what I have to say and answer a few questions. How does that sound?”
The professor covered her mouth with her hand and nodded frantically.
“S-somewhere quiet… Yes, let’s go to my lab. Hurry! Come quickly!”
She grabbed his arm and practically dragged him along. Kael was surprised by how strong her grip was.
Or maybe it’s just the power of her desire for cake?
The professor’s laboratory was cluttered with books and magical tools. Fearing someone might enter, she locked the door and sat Kael down in front of the desk.
“G-give it to me! Quickly!”
She looked ready to snatch it by force if he didn’t hand it over. Kael calmly passed her the cake. With trembling hands, she accepted the strawberry cake.
Her eyes were entranced by the soft whipped cream and the vivid crimson of the strawberries.
“There’s a fork attached underneath.”
“Th-thank you!”
Kael detached the small plastic fork and placed it in her hand. She then used her shaking fingers to slowly lift a piece of cake to her mouth, as if performing a sacred ritual.
“Hah!”
Her eyes flew wide open. The moment the soft, sweet cake melted on her tongue, all dignity vanished. She began stuffing the cake into her mouth with frantic urgency, not even bothering to wipe the cream from the corners of her lips.
If there was ever a perfect example of eating like a starving demon, this was it.
Watching her, Kael pulled out another warm canned coffee from the shop, opened it, and offered it to her.
“You might get a stomachache. Have some coffee with it.”
“C-coffee?!”
The professor accepted it with a mixture of shock and overwhelming gratitude. She took a sip, and soon tears welled up in her eyes.
“Sob… So this… this is what real food tastes like…”
Tears streamed down her face as she lost herself completely in the flavors of the cake and coffee. Kael smiled as he watched her.
The effect is definitely working.
