Course Registration
Course Registration
Elody is my favorite character in [Lady Maker].
My favorite is right in front of my eyes.
I can talk to her.
If I miss this chance, I can no longer call myself a fan.
Even if the near future is ruin.
"May I sit next to you?"
"Next to me?"
"Was there an owner for this seat? If so, I can't help it...."
"Ah, no! It happens to be empty. Please, sit. Heheheh."
Elody gave up the seat with her characteristic, peculiar laughter. I responded with a smile and sat down beside her.
"I never imagined a knight-nim would want to sit next to me. Since I'm a commoner, no one wanted to sit with me."
"Don't mention it. I'm a slave, after all."
"Huh? A slave?"
Looking at Elody, who seemed completely lost, I tapped the restraint around my neck.
"Is that not a necklace?"
As if.
It's not like I'm some obsessed slave who was freed but still wears restraints as accessories.
A level of airheadedness that knows no bounds. As expected, she is the Elody I know.
"This is the mark of a slave."
"Weren't you a knight-nim?"
"That's why the world calls me the Slave Knight."
"Wow, a knight as a slave. You were a much more amazing person then? I'm from the countryside, so I didn't know well.... Hehe."
Elody laughed awkwardly, scratching her cheek as if embarrassed.
'This is it. This is what possession is all about.'
A heroine as soft and fluffy as a marshmallow. This is why people come to other worlds.
"Ah, I'm late with my introduction. I am Irion, the slave knight of the Edelheid Ducal House."
"Ahem! I'm Elody! Oh. Gongnyeo-nim, we meet again?"
Elody's gaze shifted over my shoulder. At that same moment, a chill ran through my body.
Turning around, I saw Renoa looking down at me with a cold expression.
"You're here?"
"What are you doing?"
"Um, communication with a classmate?"
"Flirting idly with a woman while your master is working. You always exceed my imagination."
"Ahem, don't just stand there, Agassi, you should sit here too."
I tapped the seat next to me.
Renoa stared at me for a long time with an emotionless gaze, then let out a small sigh and sat down.
Soon, a person who appeared to be the professor entered and conducted a brief OT regarding what would be taught and learned here in the future.
Even though it's the Magic Department, they don't just learn magic; they learn various things.
History, philosophy, mathematics, ethics, and so on—basic things needed to survive in this harsh world.
Like a university, you just pick the lectures you want to hear.
'Of course, the nobles won't need them.'
Since they already learn all of this within their families before coming here.
Instead, they'll probably just spend the whole day opening salons with their close friends to kill time.
They won't have the slightest interest in credits or exams. In the first place, these people didn't come here to study.
"Hmm...."
On the other hand, Elody, being a commoner, pondered with a serious expression over which lectures to complete.
"What's the matter?"
"There are so many classes I want to take. I want to hear this, and I want to hear that, but time is limited...."
"I know that feeling very well."
"You do, knight-nim?"
"Of course."
That's just how nurturing works.
The given turns—no, the time—is limited, but the stats that need to be raised are like a mountain.
You want to raise mana, you want to raise strength, you want to raise intelligence, and you want to take care of charm too.
However, if you just pick anything, you're likely to end up as a jack-of-all-trades character who is good at nothing.
You must set a clear concept and focus your choices to raise a splendid character.
It's the basic principle of raising simulation games.
As someone who had cleared every ending of [Lady Maker] and planned out Elody's schedules, those fresh worries felt nothing but cute to me.
"Shall I help you? I have a bit of a reputation for planning schedules like this."
I felt the urge to create a schedule for her that boasted optimal efficiency based on the big data I had accumulated.
"Really? If you help me, knight-nim, I would be so grateful!"
Elody's eyes sparkled as she slid the paper with the lecture list toward me.
An academy life where I ponder course registration head-to-head with my favorite character.
My efforts so far are finally bearing fruit.
I was happy.
"Irion."
Until Renoa's razor-sharp voice was heard from the side.
She was staring straight ahead. What that meant was that she was looking into empty space.
Then, she slowly moved her head diagonally. Her bangs fell down, covering her eyes like a curtain.
"...Yes?"
"If you followed me as my familiar, wouldn't it be normal to worry about your master's schedule first?"
Renoa's face was as stiff as a carved plaster statue.
However, her two eyes flickered murderously. The emotions flowing through the path were seething.
Because there were many nobles around, she was barely suppressing her anger.
I wondered what wasn't to her liking this time.
"Ah, Gongnyeo-nim hasn't finished her schedule yet either!"
A bright, oblivious, and flawlessly clear voice rang out.
Elody poked her head out from over my shoulder and beamed a wide smile toward Renoa.
"Then shall the three of us plan it together?"
"What?"
"I'm a commoner, so I don't really know which classes are useful. Is there anything you specifically recommend, Gongnyeo-nim?"
"......."
Renoa's green eyes wavered slightly.
She had dared to suggest joining the table to the young lady of Edelheid, the most prestigious family in the Empire.
In the face of Elody's characteristic high-purity naturalness, even Renoa seemed visibly flustered, as if she had missed the timing to push her away.
As if she didn't care about her flustered state, Elody stood up from her seat and squeezed in between me and Renoa.
"Which lectures are you going to take, Gongnyeo-nim? Advanced Mana Circuits...? It looks incredibly difficult just by the name; are you planning to take something like this? As expected of a Gongnyeo-nim, your level is different!"
An attitude far removed from flattery or sucking up with some hidden purpose.
It was just pure admiration and curiosity toward the noble lady in front of her. It was the polar opposite of Renoa's personality.
Perhaps that's why her interest was piqued. Renoa stared intently at Elody.
"You.... Even though you're a commoner, you treat a noble without any fear."
"Ah, I'm sorry. I was famous for being a chatterbox even in my hometown. Was I being rude...?"
Elody's voice suddenly became dejected.
If she were a dog, her tail and ears would be drooping helplessly right now.
Renoa, who had been looking down at Elody silently, let out a short sigh.
"Forget it. It's better than a slave who abandons his master."
"No, Agassi, you learned everything at your house anyway."
I tried to say a word in my defense because it felt unfair, but Renoa immediately retorted.
"Even if your mouth is crooked, you should speak straight. Did a tutor ever even visit the mansion?"
"They didn't...?"
Oh. Come to think of it, I've never seen Renoa learning anything from anyone.
She was always just reading books by herself.
"I self-taught everything from A to Z. All by myself, without anyone's help. Don't put me on the same level as those common nobles. It's unpleasant."
"Hmm......."
"Wow! You self-taught all those difficult things? You were a much more amazing person, Gongnyeo-nim!"
"It's nothing to make a fuss about. This much is basic."
Renoa lightly brushed her hair behind her ear.
"Was your name Elody?"
"Yes!"
"How much magic have you learned?"
"I self-taught everything too. But I didn't have a teacher or books, so I just did it as it came to me."
"What do you mean you did it on your own without even a book?"
"Um, just by feel? I thought about wanting to use magic, and then it just worked?"
"What?"
Renoa might not know, but Elody is an out-of-spec genius who boasts the best magical aptitude in this world.
Even without knowing the complex structure of mana circuits or magic formulas, if she just thinks, 'I wish fire would come out,' fire comes out.
For that reason, Elody's Archmage route was incredibly easy. Because additional corrections were applied to her training.
To put it more simply, it's 'Baby Mode.'
'That's why Renoa hated her so much.'
A nobody in her family.
A nobody among the noble groups.
Then, where is the place that would raise Renoa's self-esteem?
It's magic, I tell you.
Renoa's last bit of pride, self-esteem, and confidence itself. Since that was taken away by a mere commoner, there's no way she wouldn't be fuming.
"That means you have no basics at all. In that case, you should start from the fundamentals."
Fortunately, she hasn't noticed Elody's potential yet. Thinking it's just a child's bluff, she kindly picks out lectures for her.
"This much should be enough."
"Thank you. You're taking them with me too, right, Gongnyeo-nim?"
"I am...."
I stared intently at Renoa as she trailed off. She must have felt my gaze, as she glanced at me.
I understood why she was doing that in an instant.
"You scolded me for not planning your schedule, so you're not planning to say some nonsense about not taking classes now, are you?"
"......I was planning to take them. The lectures."
"Right? Of course you should. Give it here. I will do my best to plan your schedule. Agassi, do you happen to know what a Space Gap is?"
You're dead.
I'll make sure you stay at the academy for 4 hours with absolutely nothing to do.
After planning the schedules, we submitted our participation applications to the professors in charge of each lecture.
There were classes I took with Elody, and there were some I didn't.
Still, I planned the schedule so we could at least eat lunch together.
Eating alone at school.
That's worse than being a slave.
"It's just in time for lunch, so let's go to the cafeteria. I heard the academy food is really delicious."
"You. You're talking as if you've already eaten at the academy."
That's because Elody said it was delicious every time she ate in the game.
If it weren't delicious, she wouldn't be able to make such a happy expression.
"With His Imperial Highness the Prince and other nobles attending, wouldn't the academy be in trouble if the food wasn't good?"
"...That's not wrong."
"According to rumors, the vegetables are incredibly fresh. The reason is that the herbalism students use mana to breed and grow the ingredients in the back of the cafeteria——"
"It's a rumor, right?"
I enthusiastically explained to Renoa and Elody like a geek talking about an anime he knows.
Elody responded with constant reactions and agreement.
Renoa acted as if she were barely listening, but seeing as she didn't scold me for being noisy, she was listening intently in her own way.
We were heading toward the cafeteria side-by-side like that.
"You there. Wouldn't you let me join that company?"
"...Your Highness?"
"Huk! A very high-ranking person...!"
Prince Aether walked toward us with a good-natured smile.
What is this now?