An Outing
We decided to sort out lunch first.
It wasn't even twelve yet, but it wasn't too early for lunch either.
"I've got three places in mind. Quick Mill, Big Meat, and Bills' Restroom."
Quick Mill was a solid, cheap, fast option with good value for money.
Big Meat was, as the name suggested, a meat specialist that served enormous portions.
Bills' Restroom was on the pricier side, but they said the atmosphere and quality matched the price tag.
"Straightforward."
"A little tacky, though."
Sorry, Bail, but Bills' Restroom was already dead in my heart.
It looked expensive.
Now that I'd lost my wallet, Cecil was footing the entire bill.
She was a friend, but we hadn't known each other long, and she probably wasn't loaded either. I didn't want to keep running up debts.
I needed to find some kind of work. A work-study position, maybe?
Anyway—
Even so, taking girls to Big Meat felt a bit much.
"How about Big Meat? I've never had my fill of meat before."
"Hehe. Me neither."
"…Then let's go there?"
Yeah.
Right.
Thinking about it, the place was about as far from "girly" as you could get.
Two blocks to the right of the main gate.
A building with a picture of a burly man giving a thumbs-up, labeled "Big Meat."
Pushing the door open, a wave of greasy, meaty aroma hit us.
"Welcome! Please, make yourselves comfortable!"
A server carrying a heaping plate of barbecue shouted cheerfully.
There was only one four-person table left, so we headed that way.
"Jeden. What do you want to eat?"
"Show me the menu first, then I'll decide."
"Ah. Right."
Cecil grabbed the menu the moment she sat down, flipped through it, and handed me a copy.
"I'm getting this. The Bulk-Up Pork."
She pointed at one item and set the menu down.
The Bulk-Up Pork she'd pointed at was… well. Simply put, it was a mountain of meat.
I couldn't describe it more accurately than that.
It was pork, given the name, but the cut was unrecognizable. A mountain of meat.
The price was a bit steep for one meal, but looking at the gram count listed alongside the description, it was absurdly cheap.
"I'll have this one."
While I was staring at the meat mountain, Bail had also picked her order.
"The Triple Meat Special, please."
That was also a mountain of meat.
Well, more like a meat hill, at least.
What the hell.
Where did the delicate girl who used to fill lunch with sandwiches go? Was a growing beast now sitting in a human chair?
How did you two survive yesterday without starving?
"And you, Jeden?"
"Hurry up and pick. I'm hungry."
Looking at them, they were undeniably young girls.
"…Then I'll have this."
I flipped through the menu and ordered the one that looked the smallest.
It was still more than a normal single serving, of course.
"Huh? You're really going with just that? Is it a side dish?"
"Um, are you… not satisfied…?"
No.
Don't think I'm weird.
Don't pity me.
I'm the normal one here, you freaks.
In the end, we ate it all.
Both of them. And me.
"Whoa! Finally getting some grease in my system!"
"Right? I can't even remember the last time I ate my fill."
"Your fill?"
That was your fill?
That was clearly overfill. It should have been.
"But why do you look like that?"
"Huh? No, I'm fine."
"It wasn't enough, was it?"
"That's not it."
Definitely not.
That guy Luke knew how to manipulate people. He understood that you had to feed someone properly before you could push them around.
Thanks to that, I'd thought my appetite had grown quite a bit.
"Want dessert? We've got the calories stored up, so it's fine."
"Oh! Then let's go here! I've been looking into it…"
Was I really that much of a commoner?
"You're coming too, right, Jeden?"
"Huh?"
A sudden crisis. My stomach was pretty full, but not to the point of being unreasonable.
Probably thanks to nearly ten years of being pushed around, my basal metabolism had gone up.
But that didn't mean I could eat ice cream on top of everything.
No. Actually, how much had these guys who used to live without even bathing ten years ago really developed into?
No. Not the time for random thoughts. Deal with the crisis first.
I glanced at my watch.
"We've got ten minutes before class."
"What? Seriously? Can we really get from here to there in ten minutes?"
"I don't know."
"Ugh. Let's get ice cream later, Bail! I'm going first!"
"Huh? Okay! See you at the fountain!"
Cecil grabbed the collar of my shirt and dashed off, disappearing in a blur.
We'd known each other for less than two days, yet she was already that close with me. It was funny, and a little envious.
After watching her go for a moment, Bail also turned toward the Academy.
Class was at three, so I'd just hide behind Thunder Hall and kill time before heading to the lecture building.
Then it struck me how fast time was flying.
I'd felt like it was around one o'clock, but it was already two.
Was this what happened when you were with friends?
Thinking that, Bail checked her watch without a second thought.
01:08
"…Huh?"
……?
…….
……Oh.
Jeden had said he didn't have a phone.
He'd said he first heard about it from Cecil.
Maybe he didn't know how to read a clock.
"Hehe. My little siblings can read a clock, you know."
I'd have to teach him properly later.
As the eldest sister, I'd taught countless younger siblings.
Jeden would probably learn quickly too.
…He should.
If he hadn't just been confused about the time, but had been lying instead.
"……."
Tight.
A little. I felt like I might be sad.
"What? It's one-thirty?"
"Really? I must've misread it."
"Aah. It takes twenty minutes to get there, so we can't go back. My ice cream…"
"You ate enough, be satisfied."
"I converted calories knowing I'd have dessert!"
This girl had a weird way of saying "digested."
Looking thoroughly disappointed, Cecil flopped onto the bench and pouted her lips.
After watching her for a moment—
"Um… Bail, you have class at three, so you could pick some up to go after it ends."
"Should I?!"
Cecil sprang up as if she'd been waiting for that.
Oh.
I didn't want to eat.
In the end, I bought it.
A half gallon.
Green tea, Shooting Star, and mint chocolate.
Even ice cream had to be the same kind of thing as me.
"What? Did you get it on your face?"
"I didn't mean to, but yeah, it got on there."
How did you even get ice cream on your face while eating it?
"Come here."
"Oh. Thanks."
"…There. Done."
Wiping off messes was familiar.
Enter was a boy, so it was only natural he'd get things all over his mouth.
I cleaned up the finished ice cream.
Not that there was much to clean up. Just wiped off the mess, balled up the spoon and napkin, and tossed them in the bin. Time to throw it away.
"But, do you have money? To buy something like that."
"Not much left. I need to get a part-time job. I heard the Academy has some openings."
"Oh, that work-study thing or whatever?"
"Yeah. That one. I already applied."
"Huh? When?"
I'd never seen it. When would there have been time to apply?
"Oh. You wouldn't know. It's online. I did it from the dorm."
Oh.
"Then what about me?"
"Figure it out yourself?"
"I don't have a phone."
"You'll have to buy one."
"Can't I use yours?"
"Nope."
…Huh?
Phone requires money → need a part-time job → need a phone to get a part-time job.
Wait, can I even eat tomorrow?
"I'm screwed."
"I know."
Day two of Academy life.
A penniless bum who'd lost not just his money but also his means of income.
No. Didn't they say the Production department made good money?
That it was safe money?
Was I going to starve before I even learned to sell anything?
Inside my head, I ran through a list of names.
It was a list I'd made just in case: "Students who look approachable and well-off, but wouldn't cause trouble if you didn't get caught."
Damn it. Was I going to wake up as a quick-witted scammer named Jeden?
"Um…"
"Ah. Bail. What is it?"
"You can also apply in person with paperwork, right? Even if it's online."
"Huh? Really?"
At those words, Cecil was even more surprised than I was. She tapped her phone a few times—
"Oh. It's really true."
She checked something and made an embarrassed expression.
"Hehe. Sorry. I didn't know."
Someday, I was going to squeeze this little rat.
"Quick-witted" was already in there. Not yet, though.
Get a job first, then we'll see.
After finishing the ice cream—
I thought we were parting ways, but I got dragged along anyway.
"Where are we going?"
"We're here."
"Where is… the training room?"
I'd heard the Academy had a training room.
I'd been planning to visit it occasionally to put the skills I'd learned over the past few years to use—for hobbies and self-defense.
"Huh. If you've eaten that much and converted calories, you should use them!"
Wait. Was "calorie conversion" not just a way of saying "digested," but an actual technique?
I'd have to look into that privately later. I hadn't forgotten the look she'd given me when I was supposed to teach her about phones.
"But do you even fight?"
"What's with you? Like an amateur. You faced a first-tier monster in the entrance exam, didn't you? Goblins, kobolds, slimes. Bail's in the Magic department, so she probably got something stronger?"
…Ugh.
I didn't fight, so I don't know.
"And it's basic literacy in this industry, right?"
"I was picked up as a kid."
"That's enviable."
The sparring ring attached to the training room.
Cecil had already arrived and completed the rental, then led me by the hand to start the sparring settings.
"Should the two of us go first?"
"We're Production, and she's Magic, so…?"
"Ah."
Right. Bail was combat-focused.
It made sense for the two of us who'd eaten to fight, and the winner would face Bail.
"This is my first time in a big sparring room like this."
"I figured, so I brought a summary."
Cecil tapped away at the sparring settings, reciting them one by one.
1. Sparring settings can be adjusted to the user's preference.
1-1. Some elements cannot be changed, such as the user's life preservation effect and user status.
2. Monsters can be summoned, but we'll be fighting each other.
3. Therefore, use Academy-issued standard weapons. Knock your opponent down within the sparring ring. They won't die, so don't hold back.
So, to summarize—
"A device that lets you fight for real without worrying about dying?"
"Something like that."
What the hell.
That's completely broken.