Chapter 8
Chapter 8
I opened my eyes.
The air smelled like cigarette smoke. A familiar game screen was still on, and a controller was in my hands. Had I fallen asleep while playing?
Ignoring the confusion, I slowly looked around. Even through my dull senses, I could clearly tell—my room was damp with cigarette smoke and patches of mold on the wall.
Ah. So this was my room.
While I stared blankly at the monitor, my phone started buzzing. I put down the controller and picked it up. Two messages.
Why didn’t you show up for the interview today? (11:24 PM)
You promised me. (11:24 PM)
Interview?
Did I have something like that? Maybe I did. A part-time job interview, probably. I stared at the screen for a moment before typing slowly.
Me (11:27 PM)
What can I do with this leg? (11:27 PM)
The reply came much faster than mine.
Looks like it. (11:27 PM)
You can’t do anything. (11:27 PM)
Just die already. Please. (11:27 PM)
No need to worry about that.
I wasn’t really living anyway. I just… hadn’t died yet.
“Start!”
My eyes snapped open.
I lifted my head and saw a clean white wall. I placed a hand on it and swallowed hard.
“Huh.”
No suicidal urge.
A12’s voice sounded in my head.
“You’re not going to hit your head today?”
“Seems like I don’t need to today.”
“Really? That’s great! You know I was actually pretty worried about that?”
“I know.”
Of course she was.
I had slammed my head into a wall yesterday morning too. If not for A12 screaming through my smartwatch, I might’ve kept going.
After things calmed down and the bleeding stopped, I explained it. She said she’d try to look up psychological counseling programs.
“I forgot about it.”
You were just worried a second ago.
I sighed and checked the time.
7:00 AM. Class starts at 9.
Perfect.
The professor and the princess both said the same thing. For a pilot, the most important thing is physical strength—more precisely, the body’s ability to withstand acceleration forces.
I needed a strong body. As someone focused on high-speed maneuvering, physical conditioning mattered more than piloting skill itself.
“177 cm, 52 kg… you’re basically a skeleton, you know!”
Thanks for pointing that out.
First step was obvious. Eat a lot. Move a lot.
I shoved protein bars into my pocket, changed clothes, and stepped outside.
“Don’t push yourself too hard, okay?”
“Just 30 minutes.”
“You sure? You okay after yesterday?”
“I’ll go slow.”
My legs still hurt from yesterday, but I had to move anyway. Sometimes slow movement helped recovery more than rest.
I strapped on an exoskeleton walker and started running.
The academy only had lectures in the afternoon on Mondays. Tuesdays started in the morning.
Not long after I sat down in the lecture hall, the princess took the seat beside me again. I decided not to care.
Because I liked this class.
“Good morning. I’m Sumeragi, in charge of Titan Modification Theory.”
So this was a Titan build class.
Sumeragi. That name sounded familiar. In the previous game, there was also an NPC named Sumeragi who handled Titan customization.
Someone raised their hand.
“Why do pilots need engineering classes?”
Sumeragi smiled.
“Good question. First—how many of you already own a personal Titan before entering the academy?”
More than half the class raised their hands.
“Now—how many of you have customized your own Titan design?”
Almost all hands went down.
Even the princess lowered hers and glanced at me.
“You did, right?”
I didn’t answer.
Sumeragi continued.
“That difference is exactly why this class exists.”
She projected a Titan hologram.
“Today’s assignment is simple. Instead of adjusting yourselves to the Titan… adjust the Titan to yourselves.”
The class immediately activated their systems and began modifying builds.
Everyone except me.
Sumeragi smiled quietly.
‘Average. Or below.’
Most students only patched weaknesses. Few enhanced strengths.
That was the problem.
War wasn’t solo play.
“Let’s see what you’ve got…”
Her eyes moved across the room.
Then she stopped.
Right in front of me.
“D-Did you ever go to war?”
I blinked.
No.
I shook my head quickly.
“You’ve never been to war… yet you produced six Titan builds in under an hour?”
I froze.
Everyone else had maybe one build. Some hadn’t even started.
I had been too focused.
Sumeragi grinned.
“Want to be a teaching assistant?”
“No.”
Instant rejection.
Her expression froze.
“WHY NOT?!”
“B-because it’s stressful!”
“You said no because it’s stressful?!”
Lunchtime.
I had planned to eat alone, but somehow ended up with Lan and Ian again.
Now Lan was furious.
“I don’t get it! A teaching assistant position is basically free money and connections!”
“I just… don’t want it.”
Ian snorted.
“Coward. Loser.”
I had no comeback.
Then—
“Hey, you!”
A water bottle flew at me.
I caught it without thinking.
The table went silent.
A noble-looking guy stood there. Black hair, green eyes. Confident face.
Aron Dyke.
The fiancé of the princess.
He pointed at me.
“Why is a lowborn like you sitting next to the princess?!”
I didn’t know either.
“Answer me!”
“I don’t know.”
“Then why is she always sitting next to you?!”
“How would I know?!”
Ian kicked the table.
“Eat.”
Then—
CRASH.
He flipped the table onto Aron.
Silence.
“…What the hell…”
Aron got up, furious.
“You bastard!”
He tried to kick the table back.
Ian didn’t move.
He just pressed it down with his foot.
“Eat your damn food.”
Aron trembled.
“You’re fighting me?!”
Ian pointed at me.
“This guy. Engineer.”
Me?
Aron pointed at me.
“YOU! I challenge you to a simulation duel this Friday!”
Why me?!
I looked at Ian.
Ian shrugged.
“Do it.”
Why are you deciding that?!
“FUCK…”
Yeah.
This world was starting to get annoying.
Chapter 9 – Instructor
For example, a high-mobility Titan.
“W-whoa! Isn’t this too extreme?! Are you sure about this?”
“Let’s strip it further.”
We stripped everything except the frame, thrusters, and core structure.
Then added ultra-light aerodynamic armor focused only on speed.
One arm was reinforced for high-power weapons. The other was fitted for ranged suppression.
Then a siege-type Titan.
“It’s too heavy to even move properly!”
“That’s why it’s good.”
We removed arms entirely, replacing them with cannons.
Added ground anchors, missile pods, railguns—everything for firepower.
A Titan build was basically a character build.
Small changes decided victory or defeat.
Now there were far more parts, far more complexity than before.
Even thrusters required calculations—fuel routing, tank expansion, weight balance.
My spatial perception and rapid data processing broke everything down and rebuilt it in hologram space.
It was on a completely different level from controller-based gameplay.
Then—
“Hey, Deep?”
I didn’t respond.
“Diiiiip?”
Suddenly—
BANG.
Sumeragi was right in front of me.
“Have you ever been to war?”
What?
No.
Of course not.
“Then how did you design six builds in under an hour?”
I froze.
“…Yes.”
The room suddenly felt different.
Everyone else had one hologram. Some had none.
Sumeragi laughed.
“Want to be my assistant?”
“No.”
Immediate rejection.
Her expression froze.
“WHY NOT?!”
“B-because it’s too stressful…”
“Too stressful?!”
Lan slammed her hands on the table at lunch.
Ian casually tapped his spoon.
“Eat.”
I explained the situation.
Assistant position. Money. Access to the professor.
It was good.
But attention was worse.
Ian muttered:
“Coward. Weakling.”
I had no response.
Then—
“Hey, lowborn!”
A water bottle flew.
I caught it.
Silence.
A noble boy stood there.
Aron Dyke.
He was already known.
Princess’s fiancé. Elite candidate. War veteran family.
He pointed at me.
“Why is she sitting next to you?!”
I didn’t know either.
Ian sighed.
“Eat.”
Then—
He flipped the table.
Chaos erupted.
Aron got up furious.
“You bastard!”
Ian pressed the table down with one foot.
“Eat.”
Aron shook.
Then pointed at me.
“You! Friday simulation duel!”
Why me?!
I looked at Ian.
Ian nodded.
“Do it.”
Why are you deciding this?!
“…Fuck.”