Chapter 16

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Translator: penny

Chapter: 16

Chapter Title: Adventurer's Private Tutoring for Her -1-

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The academy has a few unavoidable theory classes, whether you're in the Knight Department, Swordsmanship Department, or Magic Department.

Empire History.

It's the only class during the first year where students from every department gather together.

There are so many years, events, and related figures to memorize that missing even one lecture makes reviewing a headache.

It's the class with the largest number of students, yet it's eerily quiet, filled only with faint breaths and the sound of chalk on the board.

And in the very back row sits Robert Bolt, naturally the center of the first-years.

-

Robert spotted Rike sitting alone in the corner.

Having claimed the back of the lecture hall with his group, Rike was immediately visible.

The little red tail that always followed her was nowhere in sight.

"Oh dear—Robert, are you listening?"

"Yeah. Of course."

He gave a brief reply to the girls and thought back to Rike's appearance today.

From the girl who usually seemed robotic, he could sense an emotion that anyone could recognize at a glance.

Anxiety? Anticipation?

It felt like a mix of two opposing feelings.

Was something going on?

'The timing right now...'

There was still plenty of time before class started.

Robert saw Rike, whom he'd been watching, stand up from her seat and followed her out alone.

He barely shook off his friends who wanted to tag along and stepped into the hallway.

Robert strode toward her as she wiped her hands with a handkerchief, perhaps after just washing them.

'This isn't the pathetic me anymore!'

Human nature doesn't change that easily.

He still got nervous standing in front of others, and talking to people could make him overly excited, crossing lines or making mistakes.

But! This body was blessed.

A statue-like face that drew every eye, exceptional physical abilities.

And proof of divine favor—skills that were extraordinarily extraordinary.

'Here, I have nothing to fear... I can be confident.'

This was about getting the first button right.

There was no other woman who occupied a corner of his heart like she did yet.

The women around him clearly liked him.

That much was obvious at a glance.

But wasn't that just the effect of his skills?

What would they think without the skills?

Was this true love?

Once he started pondering that, the thoughts spiraled endlessly.

Even in his previous life, he'd never had his first romance, so he wanted it to start pure and untainted, without any impurities.

The rest could be just for pleasure.

As he eliminated the lingering possibilities one by one, his fiancée rose clearly in his mind.

The fateful encounter in this fantasy world.

A short but pure relationship, untainted by skills.

The women around him were like products on sale, within arm's reach.

But Rike was like a limited edition not for sale, just out of reach.

'In a way, isn't this like childhood friends? With an engagement added.'

Elements that were realistically impossible in his previous life.

Each one too appealing to let slip away.

The only flaw was the scar on her face, but that was fixable with the family's influence and a request to the Church.

The closer Robert got to her, the more his heart pounded.

"Ahem—"

"?"

Rike glanced at Robert after his fake cough caught her attention nearby, then turned to head back to the lecture hall.

'...She's just leaving?'

No female cadet had ever failed to smile when he spoke to her.

They'd even start conversations if he just made a sound next to them.

That had been an unchanging truth until now.

"H-Hey, have you been well?"

Flustered that his reliable skill wasn't working, Robert stammered as he called out to her.

She halted her steps, realizing he was the only one around.

"...Yes."

"No troubles? If you need my help or anything difficult, just say the word—I'll help!"

Just a short while ago, Rike's life had been such a mess that he'd have grabbed her without hesitation, rotten or not.

Normally, she'd have been tempted by those words and accepted help.

But the story had already derailed.

"Rike! What are you doing not coming in?"

Robert narrowed his eyes at the red-haired girl interrupting their conversation.

Class was about to start—had she run here? Her red hair was disheveled.

Her looks were decent, but she made it hard to catch Rike alone.

An annoying presence.

"Thank you for your words. I'll head in first."

"Uh... yeah..."

'Practical Combat 1' was still a ways off, but having punched in at the academy from dawn, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I was camped out in front of the library.

'Timing the book loan ultimately depends on how you play the gamer...'

Realizing the main story had veered way off course, I'd decided to hustle.

Episode 1 starts the moment Robert borrows a book from the library.

You could push side quests for leveling and farming, then breeze through episodes.

Or for a tense playthrough, ignore all side quests, rush the episodes, and still see Akarite's ending.

Not the true ending, though.

Rike's arc ultimately fell outside the main episodes too.

For the empire's safety, purging black mages was billions of times more important than dimensional research.

But heroines were optional for gamers— if your control was good enough for solo play, Robert alone was fine.

Entanglements with black mages could be avoided by skipping Rike and a few side quests, letting you reach the end without them.

Dodge well until graduation, and he'd become irrelevant to this world.

Akarite's main path revolved around dimensions.

The protagonist's struggle to return to Korea was content no gamer could ignore.

'What else is there...'

As I racked my stiff brain for anything I might've missed, footsteps approached the library.

"My goodness—Instructor!"

"Librarian. Heading to work?"

"Hoho, time to open up. Didn't expect you this early. You must really love books?"

"I read a bit."

I stood behind the wrinkled-handed librarian as he unlocked the door, waiting for it to open.

"The cadets should take a page from you. Yesterday, those rascals were borrowing books unrelated to studies..."

"Yesterday?"

"Yes?"

"Wasn't the library opening today?"

The librarian chuckled as if it all made sense now, resuming the unlock.

"Heh heh—preparations finished sooner than expected. Didn't want the bored dorm cadets wasting away, so at the dean's urging, we soft-opened yesterday afternoon."

Had this old man eaten rat poison?

Something was off.

I started feeling the dread of being screwed.

Ignoring him, I hurried into the library.

No time to savor the faint scent of books from the vast space.

The moment I saw the layout, I recalled where the book I wanted ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠was.

Old notes refreshed my memory—it wouldn't be wrong.

Zigzagging through the shelves, I headed for the one in my recollection.

-

This had to be the shelf.

I scanned the titles with my finger.

Back and forth several times.

Checked nearby shelves just in case.

'It's gone...!'

No matter how many times, it wasn't there.

I approached the librarian, who was settling in and sorting papers.

"Librarian, during yesterday's soft opening, did a cadet named Robert Bolt come by?"

"...Sorry, I can't disclose that."

Of course.

Leaving the troubled librarian, I returned to the rows of shelves.

'Getting outplayed like this...'

Was transcendent will forcing the protagonist's main episode?

Or was protagonist luck unbeatable by mere diligence?

'He's hardly protagonist material now...'

Forgetting it was too late, I searched for other books.

Were there hidden pieces unrelated to the main episodes?

-

I popped the casually ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠scattered service elixirs like candy, chewing them down.

Good for the body, but bitter as hell.

The overwhelming bitterness made my tongue ache.

"Sluuuurp—whew, that's brutally bitter."

Elixirs were just service items.

I moved on to hunt the main course.

"Oh—!"

I pulled out a book titled Weapon for Her.

A thick, rigid cover.

The front had a black circular ornament embedded seamlessly.

Like a bracelet or a choker.

Firmly attached to the cover, hard to remove but detachable.

Click—

A tiny bit of mana, scraped with my nail, and the ornament lifted.

This was the real item.

The book itself? Just a bland romance novel about a blacksmith and knight commander. No interest.

I stowed the item in my Inventory and returned the book to the shelf.

'What was the golden ratio again?'

Gamers had derived optimal metal ratios from thousands of trials.

Not always best to stuff in the best ores.

"Hmm—"

I'd memorized the recipe as an acronym, but it wasn't clear now.

Time to borrow the power of notes.

'This makes up for it.'

The regret of losing first move vanished cleanly.

This was one of the items for crafting dedicated ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠weapons for Akarite heroines.

'What would come out if Rike used it now?'

I didn't know the outcome.

Varied by tech tree, emotions, and user.

In-game, trial and error gave you a feel.

Guides for swords here, spears then—but reality was unpredictable.

Still, an excellent hidden piece.

Satisfying.

Heading to the exit, I checked the stairs too.

'Upper floors and basement still under construction...'

Planned to pull everything from other spots, but only the first floor was open.

Basement was the real treasure.

Licking my lips in regret, I left the library for the dean's office.

-

Practical Combat 1 ended, more exhausting than the first day.

No outright rebels today, but attacks brimmed with killing intent.

Maxime brought two more annoyed priests, and Rike's focus was scattered compared to day one.

I understood.

She was full of expectations today.

After my class, I leisurely headed to the Adventurer's Guild alone.

Submitted the commission form pro forma, paid the consultation fee and a sum to the guild on her behalf.

Chatted idly with the slackers, waiting for Rike.

And soon enough, she arrived.

'Why so fast?'

She entered the guild still in academy uniform, breathing hard.

"Class?"

"I can skip until this week's classes..."

"..."