Dual-Wielding Blossoms #3
It was full spring. After lunch, the classroom bathed in gentle sunlight felt drowsy, the scratch of pens on paper the perfect lullaby for a nap. Yet the students of Class A-1 were burning with enthusiasm; not a single one dozed off or let their attention wander.
“Neva, stay awake. Demerits for you.”
“S-sorry…!”
“Just because it’s Saturday, you think you can slack off? Thanks to some rookie called Pogo or whatever, we’re behind schedule, so you’ll all be doing makeup classes this weekend.”
Aside from Neva, the perpetual bottom-feeder of Class A, the rest of the students maintained remarkably passionate attitudes toward their studies. This was nothing like the school days I remembered. Then again, the classes themselves were nothing like those days either.
Teacher Berjurac spoke. “Ludens is dotted with dungeons known as labyrinths or underground prisons. Our seniors have discovered a total of four. Among them, the Black Dragon’s Nest is…”
The Black Dragon’s Nest. That was where the black dragon Fafnir lurked. I used to run it often because the rewards were generous. It was a difficult dungeon to clear, but by the time you reached it, your party’s specs were so high that you could simply brute-force it with damage. And now we were studying such a place. A world where playing games raised your grades? I loved it.
Still, the other students’ faces were grave, and some even looked pained.
“Ugh, I don’t understand any of this.”
“Allecto, can I see your notes during break? I missed everything after the middle…”
“…No.”
To me it was all game knowledge, but to them it was real studying. Students hating to study was the same in Ludens as it was in reality. There had been a few kids back home who claimed they enjoyed studying. Most of the ones who got into Seoul University were like that. Enjoying study—what weirdos. …Though, wasn’t I one of them now?
Should I make summary notes during exams and sell them for cash?
“Of course, this dungeon is far beyond the reach of rookies like you. That said, this evaluation will be a dungeon clear. Visit one suited to your level. In exchange, there will be no makeup class tomorrow, Sunday. Fair?”
At Teacher Berjurac’s words, the classroom erupted with reluctant groans.
“Teacher. Number 23, Daily Rumor. I have a question.”
“Speak.”
“Is there any way to substitute something else instead of going into a dungeon? That’s how classes worked until first year. Dungeons are dangerous!”
“No. Defeat the core inside the dungeon or powerful elite monsters and bring back the Spirit of Play as proof. Anyone who fails to bring it receives an F.”
Even I thought the assignment was absurdly high-handed. If they tried this in reality, everyone would have revolted on the spot.
“Um, well…”
Just then, a student raised a hand. He was an ordinary-looking boy with plain brown hair. Was he about to protest this strange class?
“You are number 40, Neva. Do you have a question?”
“What exactly is this ‘Spirit of Play’ you mentioned?”
“Good grief. And you call yourselves Class A. I’m deeply disappointed. Has anyone here ever entered a dungeon? Raise your hands.”
Why was he asking for a show of hands? I couldn’t afford to waste my daily quota of lies, so I raised mine. Besides me, Melvin, Diarmuid, Megaira, Luke, and Enril also lifted their hands.
“Only seven? If you aim to become heroes, you shouldn’t have come to Ludens with such half-hearted resolve—without even the determination to live or die.”
As Berjurac spoke, his gaze met mine from the very back row. Those eyes, shrouded in deep shadow, held a certain expectation. Why was he looking at me? The teacher opened his mouth as if to say something, then simply declared, “Class is over for today,” and strode out without another word.
Once the teacher left, an awkward silence lingered for a moment before a wave of noise crashed over the room.
“Melvin! Party with me! You guys have been diving dungeons together every day lately, right?”
“W-what are you talking about?”
“The rumors are everywhere! Diarmuid too—come with me! Please! I’ll buy dinner!”
Everyone was scrambling to form parties. Dungeons usually required a standard four-person party, so even with just the forty students of A-1, at least ten parties could be made. Why did every evaluation have to be a group project? At this rate, introverts would be too miserable to study at all.
At least the assignment aligned perfectly with my own plans. Forming a party would be easy.
“Victor, did you already know Berjurac would give us this assignment? We were supposed to go to the dungeon today.”
Enio wondered whether the Tropical Jungle we had planned to visit was connected to the eccentric teacher’s task.
“No.”
I hadn’t known either. Pure luck. I had just obtained new ingredients and wanted to test my new sword. And now I had been given the perfect assignment to do exactly that. It felt as though someone had breathed good fortune into me. Well, there was such a thing as regression to the mean. If I had the misfortune of owing two hundred million in debt, then surely an equal amount of luck should come my way.
* * *
Dungeons varied, but most in D&A followed the standard of four entrants. That meant with Victorica, Enio, and myself, three spots were already filled. One remained. Choosing who to add was proving troublesome.
Adding one of the Three Sisters like Megaira or Allecto would clash with Victorica’s compatibility. Bringing in Shadi, Victorica’s friend, was no good either—Shadi didn’t get along well with Enio.
“Should I ask Nike after all?”
Nike maintained a suitably distant relationship with both Enio and Victorica; she would provide decent synergy in a party. Above all, I was curious what title the game would assign if I gathered the three main heroines together. D&A granted special names to certain party compositions. Melvin and Diarmuid simply became “Duo.” When the Three Sisters—Tisiphone, Allecto, and Megaira—were together, they were called “Erinyes.” Forming the three main heroines? There had to be a unique title for that. Discovering a new party name as a veteran player… I couldn’t resist. Holding back would make me a fake veteran.
“Mokemoke?”
“Mokemoke has some strange talents, I’ll grant you that. But she’s in Class C. Will she really be useful in a dungeon? It’s a place where lives are on the line—she could be in danger.”
“I hate agreeing with Victorica, but I think the same. Nike is that black mage, isn’t she? A black mage…”
Both Enio and Victorica were lukewarm at best. They clearly doubted bringing a Class C student into a dungeon that even A-class students feared entering.
I recalled the skill Nike had used—Thorny Root. Roots had burst forth in an instant, binding and subduing her opponent. That level of ability was more than enough to match A-class students. The Tropical Jungle we were heading to was a forest field, so Nike’s earth magic might have good compatibility as well.
Still, Nike had asked me to keep her druid powers a secret. Even so, it was best to ask her directly first.
“Moke~moke~.”
“So, Nike. What exactly are you doing here?”
“Eek—V-Victor! Didn’t you have makeup class today!?”
I had found Nike in the shopping district, wearing a bizarre costume.
“Victor, what brings you here…?”
“Nike, so you were working a part-time job.”
“Th-this is…”
Nike seemed to have been keeping her part-time work a secret. She appeared to be handing out flyers while dressed in a full-body mascot costume. The head resembled a radish with leaves sprouting from it. Was this the mascot for a vegetable shop?
Just then, a voice barked from inside the store.
“Nike! What are you doing over there? Slack off and I’ll cut your hourly wage!”
“Y-yes, boss! Moke~moke~. Fresh produce, moke~moke~.”
What on earth? While I stood puzzled, Enio, who had been watching beside me, let out a snort of laughter.
“That’s a mokemoke, isn’t it? A beast from the western forests of the mainland. Mokemoke wearing a mokemoke costume—how funny.”
“……”
…So mokemokes were real creatures? Was that a DLC setting? That explained why the others had reacted more sensitively than I had when they heard the name. If my name had been something like Victor Malamute or Victor Rhino, they would have found it strange too. Actually, Rhino sounded kind of cool. Anyway.
Nike finally removed the costume around one in the afternoon, just after lunch hour.
“Whew, that was hot!”
“Nike, you never mentioned you had a part-time job.”
“…I only do it on weekends. I promised I’d work hard to pay off my debt too, remember?”
Come to think of it, Nike had once declared that she would do her best—that was her self-definition. So she had been working part-time without rest, even on weekends.
“Working is fine, but manage your condition properly. Overworking yourself will only cost more in medical bills later.”
“Mm-hm. So, Victor, what brings you all the way here? You don’t look like you came to buy turnips. And Enio and Victorica are with you too…”
Nike’s emerald eyes darted nervously between Enio and Victorica. She seemed tense. Having two famous figures from the academy appear at once must have been overwhelming. No—more than that, she looked anxious, as though she had committed some crime.
To put her at ease and save my precious time, I got straight to the point.
“Nike, I’m thinking of visiting a dungeon this weekend. One party slot remains. Would you like to come with us? If you agree, we can prepare quickly and depart immediately.”
“…A dungeon?”
Nike glanced around at us, then beckoned me closer. Did she want me to lend an ear? When I leaned in, she cupped her hands around her mouth like a trumpet and whispered.
“I have to keep being a druid a secret, so I might not be much help in the dungeon. Is that okay? I could just be a burden…”
I answered just as quietly.
“That’s fine. With only Victorica and Enio, we’ll have more than enough anyway.”
After all, the real purpose was to test the power of my swordsmanship; I probably wouldn’t even need Nike’s help in combat. What I needed from her was lifestyle content, not battle content. The Tropical Jungle. When you thought of the tropics, you thought of tropical fruit. Harvesting fruit was something Nike, with her Pharmacy skill, would excel at.
Just then, Victorica spoke in a slightly displeased tone.
“What are you two whispering about? Anyway, Mokemoke looks troubled. A dungeon is a dangerous place for a Class C student. It was a thoughtless request after all.”
Enio nodded in agreement.
“Indeed. It may have been too soon for Nike.”
Whenever the topic of Nike came up, Enio and Victorica’s opinions strangely aligned. Their unity only appeared in the later episodes, near the tenth act. With that same feeling, the two began debating again.
“Shadi is good with a bow. She has detection skills too, so she’d definitely help in a dungeon. She also has recording skills, so mapping would be easy.”
“No, Megaira or Allecto—or even Tisiphone—would be better. They have no dungeon experience, but they’re full of real combat experience. Combat is different from theory.”
Everyone was pushing their own friends forward while leaving Nike in the background. That was just how the world worked—people with connections rose faster. If our goal had been to clear the dungeon, I might have gone along with Enio and Victorica. But I still needed Nike’s Pharmacy skill, so I opened my mouth to say “No—” when—
“…I-I want to go too.”
Nike stammered, yet spoke with clear determination.