Chapter 157: Rest (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 157: Rest (2)
The exams were over, but our daily life on Akensom Island hadn't come to an end.
“You called in even more students?”
“Yeah. The General Department worked hard during the exams, too. They should get to enjoy this together.”
True to the Imperial Academy’s reputation—where most students were nobles—they were allowed to spend about a week resting on Akensom Island to celebrate the end of finals.
“Is that really okay?”
“It’s not like you have anything else to do afterward, right?”
Fair point.
Thinking back to last year, the atmosphere after finals wasn't exactly conducive to classes anyway, as everyone was busy preparing for the Empire’s Founding Festival.
“The summer break will be shortened accordingly, but most students will actually prefer it this way.”
That was also true.
The beginning of the second semester was usually dedicated to festival preparations. Because of that, quite a few Imperial students ended up giving up their vacation time to prepare anyway.
It was better for them to enjoy a vacation now on Akensom Island—a place the Imperial Family used as a resort—under the guise of an early break.
“Well, not for me.”
Except for people like me, of course.
“I just want to go home as soon as possible.”
I wanted to go home a day earlier so I could stay there a day longer.
However, the man in front of me felt differently.
“Personally, I’d like to stay at the Academy for a long, long time.”
He’d only been in the Academy for a year, but he’d already had two breaks. During both, he’d gone through hell abroad where it was hard to even get proper manpower, so I could understand his sentiment.
“Uncle, you didn't plan this, did you?”
“No way. Do I look like that kind of person to you?”
“Yes.”
“This is why I hate quick-witted brats…”
Seeing him react like that, it seemed he hadn't designed this himself.
“To be honest, the Academy is undergoing maintenance again.”
“…It’ll just get breached again anyway.”
“…It’s a sad reality that I can’t even argue with that. But we can’t just do nothing.”
He was right.
If you put in the effort and still get breached, you’re just incompetent despite being prepared. But if you leave it neglected because it’ll get breached anyway, you can’t even wrap that up as mere incompetence.
“And, I think I mentioned this before, but the Imperial Family gave their approval.”
“For what?”
“The long-term dispatch of the Empire’s anti-dark mage unit and the Holy Kingdom’s Heresy Inquisitors.”
“Oh…”
I’d heard rumors they were coming, but they were actually doing it.
“Is the Academy going to be okay like this?”
You could excuse the agents as being there to guard high-priority individuals attending the Academy. But you couldn't even make an excuse for special forces and Heresy Inquisitors.
However, Uncle Aeryun’s expression didn't change at my words.
“It’ll be fine.”
In fact, he was nodding with a bright expression.
“We’ve already been breached so many times, are we really in a position to be picky?”
“Oh…”
Had he leveled up? Or had he just given up on everything? Personally, I hoped it wasn't the latter.
“The higher-ups know it doesn't look great, so they plan to embed them as students or staff like we do. But they said they need some time to set up the necessary facilities and paperwork. And…”
“And?”
“They also said they wanted to give you, Prince Ellen, and the head professors some good memories before you head back, so there aren't any complaints about the mess you all made.”
“……”
I didn't think it was that bad.
…Was it?
“…Well, I guess I’ll just think of it as a picnic and rest.”
The resort facilities I experienced when I was an "eliminated" student were quite good. And since the dark mages on this land had already been wiped out, it would be a peaceful rest compared to a demonic realm like the Academy.
I definitely wasn't accepting this because I felt guilty. Anyway, that was that.
As if to prove the original author was Korean, the heart of the Empire—the center of the stage—had very distinct four seasons.
Of course, come to think of it, the capital of Leon, which was far from the Empire, also had distinct seasons.
Instead, as is typical for places called "great powers," the north was freezing and the south was a jungle… but considering the locations of the Empire, Leon, and Dale, I wondered if the internal consistency of the geography actually made sense.
Well, this wasn't Earth.
To be honest, even if this planet were flat instead of round, I couldn't exactly argue with scientific logic here.
Anyway.
Because of that, the Imperial capital, like Leon’s capital—or perhaps even more so—had seasons that looked like they were pulled straight from a painting.
Unlike my previous life, which was plagued by global warming, the heat here was just right. Moreover, the humidity was strangely low, so as long as there was a decent breeze, you could survive the summer just by resting in the shade.
But I was a noble.
And not just any noble, but the scion of a wealthy Count’s family with history and tradition—even if my presence in the royal center was a bit lacking!
“As expected, you need air conditioning in the summer.”
“It has a different name, though…”
That was why I was occupying the video room—the same one used to show footage to the eliminated students—with Boradori, running a magic tool that blew out cool air.
Spending the summer under the shade of a tree was for commoners!
“No matter how many times I rewatch this, I don't get it. Is this right?”
“How many times do I have to tell you? I don't get it either. That shouldn't be happening.”
Due to the nature of video magic tools, they couldn't save every record, but some footage remained.
The video we were rewatching endlessly was the part where Ellen used his Aura.
“Ellen was a textbook, traditional knight character. And compared to the original work, he’s become brighter and more talkative, but his essence shouldn't have changed.”
“True…”
Boradori’s theory was that because Princess Hestia—who had been beaten by me—didn't hit a wall with her swordsmanship and quit, the butterfly effect had erased Ellen’s gloomy past.
But that only affected his personality; the training he received in Leon shouldn't have been any different from the original.
“If you had been stronger, or at least strong enough to give him a sense of crisis… Ellen might have felt pressured. But that wasn't the case, was it?”
“…Am I really that weak?”
“You know the answer better than anyone.”
“……”
It was a painful truth, but a truth nonetheless.
Although I had the experience of teaching him a lesson with my magic sword, that was literally the power of the magic sword.
Both Prince Ellen and I knew that I’d be beaten like a dog without it. That was why I spent my days running away whenever Prince Ellen asked for a rematch on days I wasn't carrying it.
“Then why is he like that?”
“I’m rewatching the video on loop because I don't know…”
“Ugh… you’re useless…”
“…You don't know either.”
I was contemplating whether to flick Boradori’s forehead as she pouted and munched on popcorn with a dissatisfied look.
“So you’re here… Whoa, it’s cold!”
A wild exhibitionist appeared.
“Ah, it’s a pervert.”
“Who are you calling a pervert?!”
The name of the pervert, even recognized by the wild exhibitionist Violet, was Daisy.
“What are you two doing here? Alone. D-don't tell me, an affair?!”
“Miss Daisy. There are things you should and shouldn't say.”
“Do I look crazy?”
“……I’m sorry?”
Daisy apologized at our cold responses that left no room for doubt, but…
“Achoo! It’s too cold in here!”
She immediately started shivering from the cold air flowing out of the magic tool.
“Well, if you walk around dressed like that…”
“I totally understand Daisy’s tastes.”
“Hey, don't look at me like that! This isn't weird!”
“……”
“……”
Violet and I looked Daisy up and down with icy stares.
“No matter how I look at it, it’s weird.”
“For once, I agree. A grown woman out in public… in her underwear…”
“It’s not underwear! It’s a swimsuit!”
She spoke confidently, but our gazes were as cold as the air coming from the magic tool.
Meaning, very cold.
“How is that any different from saying ‘It’s not embarrassing because it’s not panties’?”
“Panties or swimsuits, they’re both just scraps of cloth.”
“Of course, I’d admit it’s fine depending on the situation…”
“But walking around inside a building in a swimsuit, not even at the beach, is a bit…”
“Why are you two so perfectly in sync only at times like this?!”
Daisy cried out in frustration at our naturally flowing criticisms.
“Well…”
“It’s just common sense.”
Who goes into a theater wearing a swimsuit?
As we looked at Daisy with those eyes…
“Everyone except you two is dressed like this!”
“……?”
“……?”
Apparently, there had been some kind of dark mage conspiracy.
Fortunately, it wasn't a catastrophe where a dark mage’s hypnosis app had made wearing swimsuits in public common sense.
The problem was…
“…Why is there a swimming exam during the vacation?”
You can deal with a dark mage by stabbing them with a sword, but the cause of this problem couldn't be stabbed.
Because…
“I heard the Sword Emperor and the head professor of the Magic Department said there were too many mediocre people in this exam, so they’re holding a swimming exam as a way to earn extra points.”
The culprits were the very people who would end me the moment I tried to stab them.
“No, I mean, why would they…”
“It’s obvious, but this exam was a bit… no, it was a total mess, wasn't it? So there were surprisingly many students who couldn't get any points.”
To save those people, they had introduced swimming as a minimum safety net.
Naturally, many students jumped in to secure at least some points through the exam, but…
“The thing is, it gives surprisingly many points.”
When they actually checked, the points were being handed out so generously that those in the middle ranks were guaranteed to fall behind if they didn't take it.
And once it became known that it could even change the rankings for the top students…
“It feels like you’re an idiot if you don't participate.”
So, the Swordsmanship and Magic Departments had jumped into the sea en masse wearing swimsuits.
The General Department students, who arrived late and saw everyone walking around in swimsuits, thought it was a rule and hurriedly changed into swimsuits themselves before heading to the beach.
“…So that means I don't have to wear one.”
“Aren't you taking the exam?”
“I’m already guaranteed a top spot even without doing that.”
“Wow… how obnoxious…”
Even Daisy naturally called me obnoxious, but it was an unchangeable fact. No matter how high the points for the swimming exam were, there was almost no one who could drag my score down.
“……?”
At least, in a normal swimming exam.
“That’s supposed to be a swimming exam?”
“Ha, haha.”
Having arrived at the beach, I finally understood why the points for the swimming exam were so high.
That was because…
“Gwaaaaah! Help me!”
“It’s stuck to the suction cups?!”
“No, why is there a Kraken here?!”
An octopus, with tentacles that looked at least 10 meters long each, was thrashing about wildly.
Since it was in shallow water not far from the sandy beach, its main body was exposed, making it even more intimidating.
And near that Kraken, there were students swimming for their lives, students caught by the Kraken, and even students trying to capture the Kraken itself.
“…This is swimming?”
“A-ahahaha.”
Even for a RoFan, this was a bit much… or so I thought.
“I’ll give them that.”
Seeing the dedication it took to haul a Kraken from somewhere for three days straight, I had to admit that taking things this far was practically an art form.