Back to the Grind
By the time the carriage arrived at the academy's main gate, the moon hung high in the midnight sky. Tap tap. The carriage slowed to a stop, and the coachman knocked on the door. Stirred by the sound, the kids gradually woke up, straightening their clothes.
"Yaaawn... We there yet?"
"Mmmph—."
"Ahem...."
As the children roused one by one, the coachman opened the door after a moment.
"We've arrived."
The chilly dawn air seeped into the carriage, making the kids—who had been cozy in the magically warmed interior—shiver and hug themselves tightly. Stepping out, they huddled against the biting cold.
The academy gate was shut tight. The coachman said he'd sent word ahead, so a teacher would come soon, then drove off somewhere.
"S-St-Stella... C-Can't you ask Salamander to light a fire or something?"
"...Salamander."
Noah, trembling from the cold, made the request to Stella. It was an awkward ask, but Stella summoned Salamander anyway, warming the air around them.
While they thawed out by Salamander's flames, someone approached from afar, lantern in hand. Swoosh. The light glinted off a bald head.
That alone told me it was our homeroom teacher.
"You're late."
"We came as fast as we could, sir."
"You're the last ones."
Oliver opened the gate as he spoke. It was the academy's most vulnerable moment, so it only unlocked with teacher authorization.
Finally inside, the kids gasped at the rush of warm air. The barrier set by the Emperor's summon didn't just block demons and monsters—it had all sorts of conveniences added on. Of course, those were tacked on later by mages...
But keeping all that running without upkeep? That's the real cheat.
Cars need fuel. Electronics need power. Yet this top-tier barrier ran maintenance-free? Infinite energy, ruled impossible back on Earth, was right here.
After resealing the gate, Oliver turned to us.
"Paperwork can wait. Head back and get some rest."
"“Yessirrr.”"
Despite dozing the whole ride, Noah and Senior Dinua stretched and complained of exhaustion.
"See you tomorrow."
"Yeah...."
"See ya, Ian!"
"...Yeah, tomorrow."
Noah and Dinua headed straight to the dorms. Stella lingered like she had something to say, then followed them. I watched their backs for a moment before heading to my own room.
Narrow room. My quarters felt cramped. Pathetically so.
No, it's not actually small...
Everything's relative. Strength, power, wealth—even time and space. A week at the Iritz Duke's mansion, one of only four on the continent, had wrecked my sense of scale.
Going back to Earth... might be a shock.
This dorm room was about the size of my old place on Earth, yet it felt tiny. The emptiness I'd feel returning home? Unimaginable.
As those thoughts swirled, the demon of sleep dragged me into the abyss. I passed out.
The next day, I woke at dawn, stretched lightly, and got ready to head out. It was the weekend, and we'd agreed to hit the Infinite Dungeon every weekend.
Breathing the crisp morning air, I reached our meetup spot to find the principal, exhausted, dozing off with her head bobbing.
She didn't notice me approach—clearly wiped out.
"...Principal?"
"Eek—! ...Oh, Ian."
She wiped drool from her mouth and glanced around. No one else yet. Makes sense—they might still be recovering from the trip. Or forgotten we were meeting.
"Where's everyone?"
"Dunno. They're not coming together."
"...True, dorms are spread out."
Mmmph— Confirming it was just me, she stretched freely, then—still tired—spotted something, dragged me over, propped me against a tree, sat me down, and leaned on my shoulder to nap.
"...Principal?"
"Shh."
"Kids'll be here soon."
"Wake me when they do. Problem solved?"
It'd cause a scene if seen, but she dozed off casually. Each gust of cold wind made her shiver closer. I kept watch, eyes wide, just in case.
My shoulder grew heavier. Eyes strained. Iron will stretched like rubber.
Warm sunlight filtered through leaves. Frayed mind couldn't hold. Eyes closed briefly.
"...Ian?"
Poke poke. Someone nudged me. Snapping awake, the kids stood before me.
"Ahem...."
The principal, waking, smoothed her hair—creased from my shoulder—and cleared her throat. The kids glared coldly, like old spinster eyeing the young bucks.
"Haven't been sleeping well lately..."
"...Really?"
"Of course! With cadets on the trip, I handled backlog..."
They scrutinized her face, nodded, convinced.
What'd they see? To me, just heavier makeup. Girls notice different things.
Sensing the chill, Sheera chattered lightly. "Haha, kids. If the principal had any conscience, she wouldn't eye students. Right?"
Twitch. Principal averted her eyes.
"Plus, Ian's a guy. Guys like 'em young."
Right? She grinned at me. I stared at the dungeon silently.
"Let's go in."
"H-Hey? No answer? Don't tell me you actually..."
"Shut it."
Grabbing Sheera's yapping mouth, I led the group into the Infinite Dungeon.
Behind the noisy kids, I reflected on the Iritz mansion.
High-rank demon... Way too early.
Story-wise, this was super early. High-rank demons were unbeatable for normal players—those gacha-spending thousands or grinding forever. Not for whales dropping millions. Time to power up faster.
No more holding back.
These people lacked system help but also its limits. Game couldn't pit 200 summons against one demon—but here? Possible.
Add system power to that.
Not recklessly, though—no way to anyway. Only via Infinite Dungeon, which system-affected had entry limits.
Once daily, 3 companion NPCs max.
No nameless extras here. All story heroes with names. I raise heroes.
And—
"Let's go."
I opened the 1st floor door. Knowing what awaited, they summoned without hesitation. We formed a proper party.
30th floor.
[Kieeeek—!]
Anna stabbed her sword into the thrashing monster at her feet. It shuddered, then died.
Sheera eyed it curiously.
"This... Never seen before. New species."
"...Yeah?"
I knew nothing of this world's monsters beyond the game. If it showed, it showed.
But to locals, it was huge.
"Means this tower's got real research value."
"So what?"
"Monster research is hot right now. Didn't know?"
"Nah."
Mobile games don't need that—bosses fall to raw DPS. Or you just need more cash.
I picked up the lesser demon byproduct and spoke.
"Head back?"
We emerged around lunchtime, after hours of fighting. Hungry kids grumbled. Sheera jumped on it.
"Perfect! Lunch together? Swap stories from the week?"
Share what happened apart, other territories' trips. Info exchange.
"Mm...."
Iritz near-invasion was classified—Stella hesitated.
I nodded. "Got it."
"Cool! Village at 1!"
Sheera left. Stella grabbed me.
"What was that?"
"What?"
"...Iritz stuff's secret. Got it?"
"Won't spill. Relax."
Chuckling, I soothed her. Acting suspicious like you is worse. She nodded. Fair point.
"See you soon, then..."
"Hey."
"What now?"
"...You planning uniform anyway?"
"Duh."
"Let's shop."
"...Only an hour left?"
"Plenty."
Stella strode ahead. I followed wordlessly.