Isn't the Beginner's Mindset Important?

Isn't a beginner's mindset important for everything?

"What did you just say?"

"Lend me some points, please!"

I looked up at Charlotte from where I knelt on one knee.

"Points? What are you talking about... Ah. You mean the ones for the Achievement Shop?"

"Ahh, the brilliant Lady Charlotte understands me perfectly even when I speak like an idiot."

"...I still can't get used to that way of talking. Anyway, why do you suddenly need points?"

Charlotte brushed her bangs aside and narrowed her eyes halfway as she asked.

"There's a very long and complicated reason for that..."

"Summarize it in three lines."

"I finally obtained a new skill, but it puts so much strain on my head that I can't use it. I was going to buy a trait or item from the Achievement Shop that affects intelligence stats, only to realize just now that I'm broke."

"So... you want me to buy something for you with points from the Achievement Shop?"

"Exactly!"

"Sorry. Not happening. Actually, I'm not even sorry. I don't do deals that only benefit the other person."

Charlotte rejected me coldly.

But I wasn't the type to back down just because I'd been shot down once.

"Come on now. When have I ever done anything that only benefited me? Of course there's something in it for you too, Lady Charlotte."

"Is that so? You should have said so from the start."

Only then did interest spark in her eyes. She gave a faint smile and tilted her head as if telling me to go on.

I rose from my aching knees and spoke.

"Lady Charlotte, are you aware of the upcoming Mock Occupation Battle?"

"Of course. It's the event where the entire student body participates at once. Though calling a test an 'event' feels a bit off, doesn't it?"

"Most of the students are looking forward to it, so calling it an event isn't much of a stretch."

The Mock Occupation Battle was Luin Academy's large-scale exam held once every semester. The entire student body was divided into four teams that had to defend their assigned territories while seizing those of the others. Each team's territory was split into a total of fifty estates. If every member of the team currently occupying an estate was eliminated, ownership of that estate automatically transferred to the team that had eliminated the last remaining member. The teams continued ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠nibbling away at one another's holdings until, at the end of the exam period, the team that controlled the most territory was declared the winner.

The battlefield was the entirety of Luin Academy. There was no need to worry about buildings collapsing or students getting seriously hurt, however. A prohibitively expensive, cutting-edge magical engineering device designed solely for the Mock Occupation Battle—the Matrix—would transport everyone inside the school into a specially constructed exam field. That field was an exact replica of Luin Academy, and the pain the students felt was reduced to one-tenth of the real thing. It had been created personally by a 7-Star illusion mage, so its performance was guaranteed.

"As you already know from the novel, Lady Charlotte, groups of about ten usually form squads during the Mock Occupation Battle to either guard their assigned estates or launch expeditions to seize enemy ones."

"Right."

"Then do you also remember this? That supply crates filled with all sorts of useful materials periodically drop into each estate."

"I remember. You mean those supply crates that only open after you solve a bunch of bizarre problems? Last semester I thought I was going to die trying to crack them."

Supply crates containing potions and various scrolls were generated periodically in every estate. Securing one was a huge help for both offense and defense, but opening them required solving the notorious problems crafted by the professors of Luin Academy themselves.

"Exactly. It's a system put in place for students who aren't specialized in combat. That's why every squad always has at least one smart student assigned to it."

"So? Your explanation is getting longer and longer."

"I have a secret method that can unlock those supply crates in an instant."

Charlotte let out a hollow laugh at my words.

"What, did you invent some formula that solves every problem?"

"No. There's no way someone as thick-headed as me could accomplish something that impressive. I'm simply planning to..."

I pulled the Master Key from my inventory—the item I had obtained earlier by opening a generous random box.

"...use a simple cheat."

"And that is?"

"I once bought a random box from the Achievement Shop. This is the item that came out of it. It's called the Master Key. With this, I should be able to open the supply crates without any trouble."

"Oh... a Master Key."

Charlotte reached toward my Master Key as if entranced. Not a chance. I immediately raised my arm high so she couldn't touch it.

"You have sticky fingers, I see."

"Stingy."

Charlotte glared at me and grumbled. Heh. If you're so frustrated, grow a few more inches and come ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠back—wait, huh?!

Something snatched the key away in a flash.

I looked up in shock to see Charlotte's hand emerging from a dimensional rift filled with pure darkness, snatching the key from me.

Seriously. That magic is way too broken.

"Heh. Who told you to let your guard down so ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠leisurely? Let's see here... Appraisal."

Charlotte wore a triumphant expression as she muttered. A blue current of energy rose from her body and settled into the key.

"Oh...? It really is a Master Key in the literal sense—ah!"

Suddenly the key slipped free of Charlotte's hand and settled back into mine.

"Heh. Who told you to let your guard down so leisurely?"

I had snatched the key back with Tao Power and, just as she had done moments earlier, smirked smugly as I stored it in my inventory.

"Haa. I can never win against you in a battle of words. Anyway, I just confirmed that key is the real deal. Pulling something that good out of a random box... you're lucky."

Haha. I even pulled a legendary-grade item once, so this is nothing. Ahahaha.

"Thank you for the compliment. That aside, Lady Charlotte—doesn't this key tempt you? With it, you could open not only the supply crates but any other complex locking mechanisms later on. It would be extremely useful."

"True enough. Honestly, I want it badly. What do you want?"

Perfect. The fish had taken the bait for sure. Time to reel it in hard.

"Buy me one intelligence-related item from the Achievement Shop. In return, I'll lend you this key whenever you need it from now on."

"Deal. That way I benefit plenty too. Wait a second. Hmm..."

Charlotte nodded and stared fixedly into empty air. She was probably browsing the Achievement Shop.

"Ah, there's something decent on the discount list. The name is... Nerd's Ring?"

Nerd's Ring. I remembered that item. Even though it was only rare-grade, it raised intelligence far more than other items of the same tier. It did have a drawback, though.

"It boosts intelligence pretty well. But it has a bit of a defect... it greatly reduces the damage of attack skills of rare grade or lower. Do you have a lot of rare or normal-grade attack skills?"

Exactly—the damage reduction for attack skills of rare grade and below. Of course, that didn't apply to me. The only attack skill I possessed was the hero-grade Retaliation. Actually, it was debatable whether a counter skill even counted as an "attack skill" in the first place.

"Not particularly. How many points?"

"The twenty-five-percent discounted price is two thousand points. Is that enough?"

"I'll gratefully accept whatever item Lady Charlotte chooses to give me."

"Then I'll buy this."

Charlotte half-ignored my smooth reply and tossed a small ring my way. I caught it and immediately slipped it onto my finger. Then I activated Nature Realm right away.

"Oh, the strain on my head definitely feels lighter than before. But..."

A faint throbbing still remained. As expected, a single rare-grade item wasn't enough to solve the problem completely.

"Judging by that reaction, it doesn't look like the problem is fully fixed."

"Heh. Once again I have to say—you should consider becoming a detective."

"Shut up and take this."

Charlotte opened a dimensional rift, rummaged around inside, and tossed several regular dodecahedron cubes at me.

"What are these cute little toys?"

"Tools to raise your intelligence. You said you can touch objects with that Tao Power or whatever it is, right?"

"Yes."

"Float the cubes with Tao Power and solve them one by one. Once you can finish one, move on to two at the same time, then three, and keep increasing the number."

I stared at her blankly for a moment in pure confusion. So she wanted me to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠solve these twelve-sided cubes with Tao Power? I wasn't even sure I could do it with my hands.

"...How am I supposed to do that?"

"What's so hard about it?"

She lifted the cube I was holding with mana and began spinning it at high speed. At first the faces were a chaotic mix of colors, but before long those colors gradually unified. I couldn't hide my shock.

"...And we're both possessors."

"I was clumsy at first too. In other words, if you put in the effort, you can do it just like me. Once you can solve four cubes at once, your head problem should be resolved to some degree. At least that's how I see it."

"Haha... if you say so."

Having finished the cube in no time, Charlotte tossed it back to me, opened another dimensional rift, and slowly walked into it.

"Well, do your best. I'm heading out."

"Take care."

The dimensional rift closed, and Charlotte—who had been talking with me just moments earlier—vanished without a trace.

"...It really hits me every time, but Lady Charlotte is every bit as much of a monster as Miss Shina."

I floated the cubes she had given me with Tao Power and put every ounce of effort into recreating the absurd spectacle she had just performed. And of course, the cubes only kept scrambling; there was no sign they would ever align.

"Ha. Looks like it's impossible for me after all."

For the first time in a long while, I muttered not as Shion but as "myself." The limits of talent felt overwhelmingly cruel. No matter how hard I worked, I couldn't find any certainty that I would actually move forward. Could I really survive in Luin Academy, a place overflowing with geniuses?

"......"

I quietly stored the cubes Charlotte had given me into my inventory. Today I just wanted to return to the dormitory in silence. That was simply how I felt.

"...Hm?"

As I walked with my hand in my pocket, something caught against my fingers. Without thinking I pulled it out and checked it. It was the note Alice had left for me. Charlotte's sudden appearance had made me forget all about it.

I didn't particularly feel like doing anything right now, but someone had gone to the trouble of leaving me a note. Checking it was only polite.

I unfolded the paper.

You're not alone.

"......"

Cutting straight to the point without any beating around the bush was so very like Alice.

"Haha. That wasn't like me at all."

I covered my face with my hand and laughed under my breath. Losing motivation because I lacked talent? Since when had I ever cared about something like that?

Just moving forward was enough. Even at a snail's pace, it didn't matter. The fact that I was improving little by little was what counted.

My goal had never been some grand dream like conquering the world. It was simply to take proper care of this one body of mine and grow strong enough that I wouldn't become a burden to others. That had always been my original objective. Lately so many things had happened that I had temporarily lost sight of it.

"Even little by little is fine. I just have to keep moving forward."

I took one of the cubes back out of my inventory. Then I floated it with Tao Power and began solving it once more. Compared to Charlotte my speed was pathetic, but that was fine. I wasn't competing with anyone.

All I had to do was give it my best.

"Ugh, it's still ridiculously hard, though."

I muttered while rubbing my head. Yet my expression had brightened beyond all comparison to before.