Chapter 14
Chapter 14
It was obvious in hindsight, but I realized something surprising.
The academy actually had a plan.
I had thought the delay in announcing the top student rankings was strange. It only came out after the club application period ended. I assumed it was some coincidence.
It wasn’t. It was intentional.
They deliberately delayed it so students wouldn’t rush into clubs just because of the top student.
How did I know?
Just looking at the café that was currently overflowing with people made it obvious.
“Drinks faster! Hurry!”
“Do you even know how long the line is outside?!”
“We don’t! We can’t go out and check!”
Levan shouted toward the senior students.
The elegant and calm maids who worked smoothly in the hall turned into beasts the moment they entered the kitchen. The same people who smiled politely at customers were now yelling like they were at war.
And Aila-senpai, who was supposed to manage the hall, was standing at the very front shouting toward the kitchen. Though unlike the others, she was smiling while doing it.
“Look how many customers we have~ Please hurry up and help us!”
That woman probably just wanted to act like a maid more than anything.
Even while thinking that, I had no time to look around the hall. I just kept brewing coffee and moving cups. Without my past part-time café experience, this would’ve been impossible.
And of course, the source of all this chaos was also suffering from it.
“Kyaa… hoo…”
It wasn’t excitement. It was exhaustion. She was just forcing her energy up somehow.
From outside, voices kept spilling in.
“Is Levan here?!”
“I’m his friend! No, seriously!”
“If you are not related to the maid, please wait in line properly.”
“I’m literally his friend!”
Villain. Villain. And another villain.
The situation outside didn’t calm down at all. Maids and butlers were desperately trying to control the crowd, while Aila-senpai calmly said things like, “Even such lowly people are still our guests.”
And she looked like she enjoyed it.
I felt like my sanity was leaving my body.
“You don’t come to a café just because you entered the academy…”
Levan, who had been trying to hype himself up earlier, muttered.
“Why… why are there so many people coming?!”
Yeah. Good question.
Probably because you’re the top student.
“WHY IS BUSINESS SO GOOD?!”
No one answered him.
Two weeks after joining the club, I had already realized something.
Being in the same club as the top student, Levan, didn’t really help me socialize with him. But I benefited quite a bit.
It wasn’t as bad as I expected. So I didn’t regret rejecting Professor Smeragi’s assistant offer.
The only annoying part was having to reject Aila-senpai’s constant requests to help with maid training after café hours.
At least it wasn’t manual labor or getting beaten up.
When I told Ran how much I was earning from the café, she looked genuinely surprised.
“A profit-making club? Deep-san really had a plan! Honestly, when you rejected the assistant offer, I thought you were just being stupid!”
“Yeah, that guy was definitely stupid. No way that was planned.”
This bastard.
Anyway.
Soon, the joint training for the year would begin. More money was always better. With more income and information, I could upgrade my Titan in advance.
“W-what kind of training is it?”
Ran activated her smartwatch as if she had been waiting for the question. A hologram floated in the air.
“We’ll be in teams of five! A second-year top student will act as leader!”
Ah.
Ran smiled as I reacted.
“Basically a team battle! Don’t worry, you did fine in group work before!”
No, the only reason our previous group work didn’t fall apart was because we never actually reached a full five-person team.
In a five-person team, there is always one useless member. If you don’t reach five, you avoid that problem entirely.
Explaining it wouldn’t help anyway, so I stayed quiet.
But one word caught my attention.
“The training goal doesn’t matter for now. The main thing is winning. It’s a team battle format.”
Team battle.
That system existed in Titan Core as well.
Single duels were the standard PvP format, but team battles were just as popular. Five-person squads fighting until one side was eliminated or completed an objective.
The ultimate goal was simple.
“Survive until the last team remains,” Ran said.
So it could last days.
My body tensed slightly. There was no way I could operate a Titan continuously for days like that.
In other words—
“We’ll need communication and rest management,” Ran continued.
Yes. That’s what it meant.
“Maybe we should have proper team meetings,” she added.
My expression tightened slightly.
Ran noticed and quickly added, “If it’s too much, I can go in your place?”
Good suggestion.
Normally, the pilot leads the team, but they don’t have to attend every meeting. Ran understood that.
There was no reason to refuse.
“If you’re willing to…”
BUUURRRT.
My smartwatch vibrated violently.
All three of us froze.
A familiar voice came from the speaker.
“No way. You have to go yourself!”
“A-Aili?”
Ran looked confused.
“No, no, you don’t have to—other teams will send pilots, but it’s fine if you don’t…”
“That’s exactly why it’s a problem! It’s a power issue!”
What kind of logic is that?
“It’s a status battle! If other teams send pilots and we don’t, we lose momentum! Of course Deep has to go!”
“By that logic, shouldn’t Ian go instead since he’s the strongest?”
“Engineers don’t go to meetings! They build things!”
Ran and Ian both fell silent.
Then both spoke at the same time.
“Why does Deep talk normally to A12?”
“If I had hands right now I’d break your…”
Ran quickly covered Ian’s mouth.
The room became chaotic again.
I leaned back and watched.
Aili was right about one thing.
Rank matters in Titan teams. Pilot first, then operator, then engineer.
But still—
This was just annoying.
“…I’ll go.”
I said it before I could reconsider.
Ran blinked in surprise.
Aili cheered over the smartwatch.
“Good choice!”
I wasn’t sure if it was good or not.
“Then we’ll place Deep on standby combat duty. Honestly, it doesn’t seem like he’ll be that useful anyway.”
Ah.
Maybe I should kick the table like Ian would.