For the Muscles!
“Adrian! Speaking of which, today’s the perfect chance……”
“Speaking of which, there’s class this afternoon. Reina. Then I’ll head out first.”
Any proper student wouldn’t dare skip afternoon classes.
I fled from Reina, who’d been trying to drag me to the self-study room, and ended up at the small training ground attached to the Magic Faculty’s Lecture Hall Building 3.
“So even in my escape, there’s no paradise to be found.”
The afternoon class I had to attend was Basic Swordsmanship Theory. With my stamina at a measly 5, I wondered what possessed me to take a physical class like this, but if I didn’t push through somehow, I’d be stuck in this stamina-5 swamp forever.
The one and only advantage of Salenium Saga was that there was no such thing as “free rides.” Effort yielded results, and rewards were guaranteed for achievements. To survive the dozens of hardcore infernos ahead without losing my life, boosting my stamina was an absolute must.
Screeech—
A few students stood inside the training ground. As expected from wand-waving spell-slingers, the place was tiny as a rat hole.
“……Is this all the enrollees?”
From the far side of the training ground lumbered a hulking brute with bulging muscles, coppery skin, and sunglasses perched on his nose. A wooden sword slung over his shoulder, he thudded toward us.
He planted the wooden sword on the ground, swept his gaze over the interior, and scowled in clear dissatisfaction.
“……I’m Professor Bedel of Basic Swordsmanship Theory. And they’re all scrawny weaklings.”
Wasn’t that obvious? Mages weren’t the type to bulk up with physical training. Most Magic Faculty students just sat quietly, scribbling magic theory on parchment with quills.
Our Professor Bedel clearly despised that reality.
Basic Swordsmanship Theory.
A liberal arts elective available from second year. First-year Magic Faculty students had no electives—pure hell. But from second year onward, after surviving that gauntlet, some breathing room appeared. Just like how I’d picked Imperial History and Herbology alongside swordsmanship, the breadth of learning expanded.
After all, second years started dipping into mid-tier magic. With basics solid, they eased into advanced studies.
Not me, of course.
My pathetic Adrian could barely wield even a low-tier spell. That was reality.
“Why did you all choose to learn the sword? If you’re mages, don’t you have no need for it?”
Professor Bedel eyed us as he asked.
There were only six Magic Faculty students in Basic Swordsmanship Theory.
Yeah. Six.
Hmm……
Four complete strangers. Me. And as I eyed the last one, lost in thought, a female student raised her hand and answered.
“I believe it’s better to learn than not.”
“……Why?”
“Because if others don’t learn it, and I follow suit, then there’s no meaning to any of it.”
Long straight hair the fresh green of verdant leaves. And slightly pointed ears.
“Good. Very good answer. I’ll remember you—what’s your name?”
At the name that followed, I pressed my eyelids shut for a moment.
“Relbrian, second-year Magic Faculty.”
No way…… Why was a shining member of my hearty stew party in this dingy hole?
* * *
Relbrian, elf descendant.
Member of the “hearty stew party,” wind-element affinity character, classified as a Magic Swordsman.
Not a mage. A magic swordsman. Not your standard wand-waving pure mage, but an indispensable utility support essential who wielded a thin sword alongside wind magic and swordsmanship.
Naturally, as a hearty stew party member, she had her own full heroine route prepared.
“……I see.”
Professor Bedel seemed genuinely moved by her response.
“Right! Truly right! If others don’t learn it and you don’t either, that’s the real ‘speaking the same language as one’!”
Nodding vigorously, he scanned the other students.
“Anyone else? Speak your mind.”
Silence.
……Should I?
A flicker of hesitation, but I steeled myself. Despite his looks, Professor Bedel—alongside Professor Walnut of the Magic Faculty—was a fairly famous flavor character in Salenium Saga.
I hadn’t swapped my schedule for this lecture on a whim.
Bedel. The professor you meet if you take Basic Swordsmanship Theory during the Magic Faculty route as the protagonist. Complete his sub-quest, and your stamina rises at a blistering pace. That was the secret.
Stamina. I had to raise it. No question.
“Hm, alright. Another one…… Name……”
“Adrian, Professor.”
“Right, speak.”
Adrian.
At that single word, all eyes turned to me. A glance confirmed even the elf magic swordsman was watching.
Do I really have to?
But a man doesn’t go back on his word.
I squeezed my eyes shut and recited the game dialogue verbatim.
“Muscles.”
“……W-what?”
Professor Bedel flinched and froze.
“Simply put, muscles. For the muscles, we train muscles.”
Silence blanketed the training ground.
……What nonsense is this? you might think.
But in the Magic Faculty route, when chatting with Professor Bedel, this was the bottom dialogue option.
If Walnut was a romance novel fanatic, Bedel was the ultimate musclehead character. A legendary monster prof who chugged supplements like water. Fitness communities had gone wild calling him a hilarious gem.
Bedel’s brow twitched, then he bellowed.
“……Muscles, you say?”
“Yes. Muscles.”
Bedel strode right up to me. Removing his sunglasses revealed a fierce scowl. His hand rose slowly…… and clamped onto my shoulder.
Immense grip strength. It felt like my shoulder blade might snap.
“Incredible! Hahaha! Muscles for the muscles! Yes! That’s the answer I wanted!”
Grinning wide, he slapped my back hard—whack whack.
“Guhk.”
“Why’s your body so frail, kid?”
I wiped my mouth. Blood smeared.
“Enough! I’m in a great mood now—let’s start class! Muscles today too! Grab your wooden swords!”
I watched his cheerful back, wiping the blood from my mouth with my sleeve.
* * *
Exactly one hour later.
I staggered out, utterly drained.
Stamina 5. No way I could keep up with this insane class.
—You’ve got the will, but your stamina’s pathetic. So what! From next class, I’ll prep a special muscle-training menu just for you!
The special menu was the sub-quest I’d mentioned. I’d gotten what I wanted, but joy was a foreign feeling for once.
Leaning against the training ground wall, hacking away, someone offered me a canteen.
The elf magic swordsman, Relbrian.
“……This?”
“You look too beat to fetch water yourself.”
“Thanks.”
I lifted the canteen overhead, gulping the cascading water. Careful not to let my sweat touch the leather, I handed it back. She gave a faint smile.
“You’ve got manners.”
“Just basic courtesy.”
Relbrian the elf—or more precisely, half-elf—had a severe germaphobe trait. Normally, she wouldn’t share her canteen unless affinity was sky-high.
The mystery solved itself soon enough.
“Nothing else, but I sensed a familiar aura.”
Ah. Got it.
“Elf aura, you mean.”
My Mana Wave was currently tuned to spirit-like frequencies thanks to the Spirit Tree branch. Owning the branch granted an option to align your mana wave with the Spirit Tree’s—that was it.
So the half-elf magic swordsman—practically full elf—had taken notice of me.
……In a way, another key figure entangled.
“Sorry, but I know nothing about the Great Elf Migration. Born in the west—never even seen an elf.”
“……You anticipated that question too.”
Relbrian looked faintly disappointed.
The Great Elf Migration: about 200 years ago at this point, all elves relocated to the “forest” beyond the empire’s eastern borders, per the setting bible. Later humans chased them there but found nothing. Obviously—Elven spirit realms and the World Tree were dimensionally separated even in that forest.
Relbrian’s ultimate goal: reunite with those elves. Thus, Great Migration lore was the main quest to unlock her heroine route.
“Looking for elves?”
“Yeah. Got something crucial to ask my ancestors. It’s my duty.”
I pondered briefly before speaking. No intent to dive deep, but sharing a name couldn’t hurt. Every connection built networks.
“If I dig up info later, I’ll let you know.”
“Appreciate it. You’re a better guy than I thought? Rumors really are unreliable.”
Relbrian flashed a bright smile and left the training ground. I watched her go, then hauled myself up.
An hour of relentless wooden sword swings and laps had my body screaming in agony.
At least…… no more classes today.
But I couldn’t head back yet. One routine task remained.
Dragging my weary body, I stopped by Melwood Elion’s secret hideout for my standard magic training.
Repeated magic use has raised Wind Blade to Level 2!
Mana consumption decreases, power slightly increases.
Repeated efforts bring a minute change to mana.
“Phew…… progress.”
Three days of grinding like mad had finally borne fruit. Just one level up, but for me, it was monumental.
I could now cast Wind Blade four times! And a message about mana stat change too.
That meant I could look forward to mana growth.
Master Wind Blade this semester, and get all other low-tier spells to at least Level 3.
Low-tier mastery was Level 5. If time allowed, aim for full mastery; Level 3 would still yield solid efficiency.
Then I’d need skillbooks for other low-tier spells—luckily, nothing rare. Low-tier stuff was easy to snag. Body would ache, sure.
At mana 7, stamina 7, perks like weekday attribute dungeons opened up. Plenty more ahead.
Smooth sailing from here…… but one snag.
……Melwood Elion.
Heard the imperial magic corps practical exam results dropped this afternoon. Probably out by now.
Act 1, Chapter 1 was two days away. Time to plan a fix.
Lost in those thoughts en route to the dorms, someone called out.
“Lord Adrian!”
“Ah, Kalen. Heading back now?”
“Yes. You too, Lord Adrian?”
“Mm.”
I nodded in reply.
Fresh from training, he wore gym clothes with a sword at his waist.
“Ah, no need to come close. I’m sweaty.”
“What of it? We’re both men.”
“Ah, y-yes. R-right……”
I walked alongside Kalen down the night street. It was pitch dark already, lights scarce.
Scarce?
Almost none?
That’s when it hit.
“Ah, Lord Adrian?”
“……”
No response, so he shook my arm.
“C-can you see it?”
“I see it.”
I stared blankly ahead.
Merin Hall. First-year dorms.
A crowd there. No—fleeing from it.
Why……
Act 1, Chapter 1 should’ve had two days’ buffer.
Then—
—KABOOM!
An explosion rocked the air, thick smoke billowing. Screams tangled with chaos as a wolf-shaped monster emerged from the rubble, throwing its head back at the moon.
—Awooooooo……
“That’s…… a Lycanslope? Why’s a monster at the dorms……!”
Two days early.
Main story Act 1, Chapter 1 had begun.