Chapter 90
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 90
Chapter Title: The Great Mage of the New Semester (2)
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Recently, there are three... no, four axes of evil disturbing my sweet sleep.
First off, there's this really annoying one called Arke.
It always hovers within a ten-meter radius around me, nagging for mana at every opportunity.
The moment I tune it out even a little, it starts vibrating with a loud whirr, desperately trying to get my attention, like a starving cat meowing its heart out.
And it's a particularly picky cat at that.
Speaking of cats, that reminds me of the second culprit, which is no slouch either.
It's the Nebula egg I impulse-bought at the Mage Tower auction house just to mess with those Black Mages.
This thing devours mana just as voraciously as Arke.
But it's even fussier— it flat-out refuses natural mana from the environment.
It's a picky eater that only chows down on the mana from my body, which is a real pain.
Honestly, I was planning to deal with this damn magic beast egg ages ago.
I even took it to senior Gaius to make egg tarts, but the thing was way too tough.
It wouldn't crack even with a sword, and blasting it with magic did nothing.
In fact, it absorbed the mana coating the sword and even the mana forming the spell.
In the end, I gave up on cooking it and just carried it back as is.
Anyway, because of these two, I haven't slept for 24 hours straight once during the entire break.
If it weren't for them, I could've slept the whole vacation away. What a shame.
And while not as bad as Arke and the Nebula egg, there are two other minor annoyances...
"Nngh..."
I laid my head back on the pillow, rolling my stiff neck side to side as I opened my eyes.
"Already 7 a.m....?"
The third culprit.
The Academy protection barrier, which kicked into full gear the moment the break ended and the second semester began.
This damn barrier had one utterly ridiculous function.
It suppressed my mana usage between 7 and 9 a.m.
Of course, it didn't really hinder spellcasting. I could just draw in natural mana anyway.
But the heaviness and stiffness in my body was seriously irritating.
At exactly 7, it felt like someone was pinching my nose shut, forcing my eyes open.
And right as the barrier activated...
-Knock, knock.
"Miss Lunaris, time to wake up."
Odette's voice came from outside the door, as if she'd been waiting.
I squirmed under the covers without responding, and the door opened as she entered the room.
"It's been ages since break ended, and you're still like this. Your lecture starts soon."
I mumbled sleepily that I was still debating whether to attend classes, and Odette...
"Don't first-year students have all subjects mandatory except elective liberal arts?"
...hit me with a fact bomb.
Then I'd remind this rigid head maid that skipping the first week's classes is the supreme rule for freshmen.
She'd sigh softly, say okay, but you must go tomorrow, and that was our scripted routine— our daily WWE showdown.
...Or it should have been.
-Knock, knock.
Today, the knocking rang out without fail.
"Doesn't it get tiring coming to wake me every morning... when you know I won't get up anyway?"
I yawned lazily, pulling the blanket up over my head.
Nothing different today, right?
...But.
-Click, creak.
The door opening sounded unusually ominous today.
Footsteps entered the room—one, two, three...
Wait, hold on. Ten? Twenty? How many are coming in?
I cracked my eyes open under the blanket, peeking out to survey the situation.
"...Did war break out or something?"
Whoa, it's been forever. The fully armed anti-magic maid legion. Come to think of it, I saw them every weekday before break too.
But not just maids—knights in full plate mail swarming in was unexpected.
...Whatever, doesn't matter.
One person or a hundred, knight or swordmaster—makes no difference.
I'm not getting out of bed anyway.
And I'm confident they can't drag me out.
"Miss Lunaris."
Leading the maid-knight alliance was, as expected, Odette.
"Time to wake up."
Her wake-up call was unusually chilling today.
Like she was saying she wouldn't tolerate it anymore, that she'd endured enough.
Yeah. Definitely UFC-level today.
"Like I keep telling you..."
I poked just my mouth out from under the blanket and muttered.
"The first week is orientation, so..."
"The first week is already over. Today is the second week's Monday."
Odette cut me off sharply.
"...Already?"
A whole week, gone in a flash.
"Yes. And per the boarding study support regulations, we maids and Princess Celestina's escort knights are here to fully assist with your morning preparations."
This situation, and the lines Odette and I were exchanging— it felt oddly familiar.
"If you get up obediently now, we'll politely and properly help you prepare for school."
Odette placed a hand on her waist, issuing a cold warning.
"If you keep holding out in bed... we might have to get a bit rough."
On Odette's signal, the maids and knights stepped forward in unison.
The synchronized stomp was impeccably precise.
What, did they do group training or something?
Come to think of it, it felt just like this at the start of first semester.
The difference now?
Not just maids—imperially appointed knights had joined the fray.
"You sure that's okay?"
And I wasn't some pathetic freshman who just took it lying down anymore.
"What... do you mean?"
I yawned widely at the resolute Odette.
"Linea Hall might end up in pieces."
Odette's eyebrow twitched upward at my words.
"Even if Linea Hall—or the entire dormitory—collapsed."
But this iron-blooded head maid didn't back down.
"It's our duty as maids to get you to the classroom on time."
That's my Odette.
"What a hassle..."
The moment I rolled over.
"Formation A-3! Everyone, swiftly subdue Miss Lunaris!"
Odette shouted.
The instant the maids and knights charged at the bed.
-Whirr!
Arke, floating lazily around me, suddenly emitted a bizarre noise.
At the same time, the colors of space inverted.
The ceiling vanished.
The floor and walls too.
The dorm room scenery submerged into black ink.
Countless stars embedded themselves like grains of sand atop the darkness.
"Wh-what...?"
The lead knights halted.
A galaxy flowed beneath their feet, vast cosmos stretching overhead.
I recognized this scene— it was exactly the one from the inauguration ceremony.
Not my will, of course. Arke had just copied it.
And it used my mana to boot.
"D-don't be fooled! It's just an illusion spell!"
The frontmost knight yelled, stepping onto the galaxy.
Splash— stars splashed as he reached out his gauntleted hand toward me.
Then, red light flashed from Arke's tip.
One star—no, dozens—broke from their orbits in the night sky.
A meteor shower poured down like rain.
-Boom!
"Gah?!"
A heavy explosion sent the knight tumbling backward pathetically.
The knights gaped, seeing the steel plate dent from the impact.
-Weeeeen!
As the stars rained, an ear-piercing alarm blared from outside.
A warning from the Academy protection barrier.
"...Ugh, seriously."
So much for sleep.
"Ease up on the power. No need to advertise to the whole neighborhood."
I thwacked Arke with my fist—bonk—and it trembled indignantly.
Hey, after scarfing down that much mana, you'd better earn your keep.
Anyway, the room was a mess now.
The first knight got blasted trying to grab me, and everyone else following met the same fate with shooting stars.
"A staff that moves on its own..."
"This is basically fighting two great mages!"
Then, murmurs from somewhere.
"What happened? Another explosion?"
"Did someone attack here?"
"Top-grade magic reaction detected from Linea Hall!"
"Whoa, what's that black thing...?"
"Who the hell?!"
"Who else? That Lunaris girl causing trouble again!"
Squinting outside my world, I saw students and staff crowding around Linea Hall, buzzing.
And then.
"Haa, really. I heard from the head maid you'd be properly handled starting today, but..."
Someone slowly entered my (well, Arke's) created world.
It was Department Head Raymond.
"I never imagined I'd have to step in personally on day one."
...This just got annoying.
I scratched my head and stretched fully.
No more sleep.
I groped around, snatching Arke floating by my side.
"..."
"..."
In the suffocating silence.
My gaze locked with Department Head Raymond's in midair.