What They Call an Academy (11)

My eyes opened on their own. The light beyond the window still belonged to the early hours of dawn.

"...Ahh."

The moment I sat up, strength drained out of me in a rush and my stomach lurched as if it were turning inside out. Then my head began to pound like it might split open, and the first thought that hit me was a hangover. A vicious one—the kind that left you unable to even hold yourself upright.

If I'd actually been drinking, I might have felt a little less wronged. But I hadn't eaten a damn thing recently, so the headache came with a thick layer of irritation on top.

I'd awakened young and never suffered petty ailments like this. That made the pain hit even harder.

I stirred my mana and wrapped it around my body—and suddenly a pitch-black ink began to crawl grotesquely up over my skin.

"Wh— shit. Scared the hell out of me."

The temporary physical reinforcement from the mana brought some strength back into my limbs, but the shock nearly knocked me clean off the bed.

My body had gone rigid so suddenly that muscle pain should have been screaming by now, yet strangely nothing hurt.

I staggered to my feet, and only then could I get a proper look at myself.

The clothes I'd thrown on were stained black as if they'd been dunked in ink, and beneath them something jet-black clung to my skin like a second layer of leggings.

When I tugged at it, I felt an elasticity that went far beyond ordinary stretch.

Watching it elongate exactly as far as I pulled, I understood what it was—and what had happened.

"This is that shadow stuff."

The thing I'd obtained. My head was too scrambled to remember the exact name, but I was certain.

Since it was used through mana, wrapping myself in power must have activated it without me noticing.

As a test, I released the mana from just around my arm. The shadow registered that the force binding it was gone and immediately slid off in a liquid rush, seeping into the floor.

I coated my other hand in mana and caught a portion of the falling shadow. What had been slipping through my fingers like water suddenly stuck fast, like clay.

It stretched as far as I pulled it and melted away the moment I withdrew the mana. I blinked at the mysterious sight.

When I deliberately stopped the mana that was holding the shadow, the body-reinforcing mana remained while the shadow alone drained away like an ebbing tide and vanished.

I stretched out my stiff, aching body and considered why I felt so hollow and why my head hurt so badly.

"...Did I even eat?"

Thinking it over carefully—yeah, I hadn't eaten. No wonder I felt like garbage. After thrashing around for days on an empty stomach, it would have been weirder if I weren't in pain.

The fact that I hadn't collapsed until now might have been a miracle. This agony was my body's way of screaming that it didn't care what I shoved into it—just fill it with nutrients, now.

Growl.

The moment I acknowledged the hunger, my stomach answered with a deep, hollow throb. I opened the refrigerator that had come installed in the dorm room, but of course there was nothing inside—not even a bottle of water.

I had no memory of putting anything in there, so why would there be?

As a stopgap I turned on the sink, washed my face, and drank straight from the tap until the thirst eased.

With my stomach somewhat settled by water, I changed clothes at once.

"...Haa. Nothing ever goes right."

The clothes I'd thrown on were still damp.

I could guess why. The laundry I'd done at the same time as washing myself was the culprit.

I hadn't wrung anything out properly—just hung it up half-assed—so the shirt was still too wet to wear.

I had no choice but to hang the half-on shirt back up and pull on the hoodie I'd been wearing when I first arrived at this dorm, throwing my mage's robe over it.

Stepping outside, I exhaled. The still-chill dawn air filled my lungs.

"Hoo."

If I'd gone out in those damp clothes, I would have caught a cold for certain in weather like this.

Even Awakened get colds. Higher strength stats toughen the body and lower the odds of falling ill, but that doesn't mean the immune system itself is reinforced.

It just means you recover from most things before they can get worse.

Unless you reach the true realm of superhumans, you still get sick the ordinary way and catch ordinary diseases.

"The store's... lights are off."

A quick look around confirmed nothing was open this early.

I powered on my dead device. A flood of texts and missed calls from Ban Taewung, plus status reports through the line, cluttered the screen into chaos. I ignored every last one of them.

Food first.

Throwing likes and dislikes out the window, I searched for whatever was closest and found a twenty-four-hour family restaurant a ten-minute walk away.

"Hmm."

Moving with mana could cut it to five minutes easy, but even moving myself felt like a chore.

This was the Academy, and the restaurant sat inside the city proper, so it should just barely fall within the allowed range, right? I flicked a finger condensed with mana, pictured the one I meant to call, and spoke the name.

"Growl."

Snap!

"Kung!!"

Light burst, and a massive wolf appeared. Pure white fur shot through with faint dark-crimson markings streamed in the wind.

He read my intent perfectly and dropped onto his haunches so I could mount easily.

"I might fall, so if I fix myself with this..."

I drew up the shadow beneath me with mana and shaped something like a saddle to lock Growl and me together. Figuring it would come in handy later, I put real care into the design while keeping the durability only so-so.

The moment I settled onto Growl's back, I guided the mana to pin my body to his.

It was already cold, and moving fast would only make it worse, so I roughly fashioned a poncho-like wrap out of shadow and threw it on. Ready to go.

"Let's move."

"Kung!"

Whoosh!

When he rose straight up, my altitude shot skyward in an instant.

The height was higher than I'd imagined, and with my feet off the ground a full-body tension clamped down on me. As Growl started to move his legs, strength flooded into my limbs on instinct—but the tension melted away almost at once, leaving only a strange, wondrous thrill.

Thud! Thud!!

"Oh..."

So this was how people who rode horses felt? The scenery stretched into afterimages and whipped past while the cold wind rushing at me felt bracing. It was nothing like riding in a car—genuinely new and fresh. Knowing I couldn't fall, the tension in my body loosened on its own.

"Mung!"

"Ugh!?"

Fwoooooosh!!!

Deciding I'd adapted enough, Growl slammed his legs down hard and shot forward at a speed that made everything before feel like a stroll. Pure technique alone could never produce this velocity. Only the solid foundation of immense physical power made it possible.

Unlike me, who had to reinforce my body with mana just to keep up, this was the pure use of flesh itself. A smile tugged at my lips unbidden.

When Growl vaulted up the side of a building, the glitter of the morning sun began to peek over the far side—hidden until now behind the tall structures.

What little drowsiness remained vanished at the sight.

I'd been tense at first, but now that tension felt foolish. It was exhilarating.

In my past life I'd watched people who did extreme sports and wondered why anyone would bother. Experience something like this once, and everything else would feel lukewarm by comparison.

The fact that something this small could move me proved I'd truly been reborn. Back then, even seeing sights like this, I never felt wonder—I just wanted it to be over.

Regardless of mental exhaustion, the body's feedback would still come, and the mind would naturally be pulled along with it. The two could never be separated; they were one.

"Definitely fast."

I reached the destination in under a minute, dismissed the shadow, gave Growl's head a single stroke, and sent him back.

That left me with spare time—time to eat at a leisurely pace.

Today's looking lucky.

Given the hour, the family restaurant was nearly empty.

I ordered the fastest dishes on the self-service machine, picked a seat, and sat down.

Clack.

Then food I hadn't ordered was set down—not in front of me, but across the table.

Steak. And a carefully prepared one at that; the thick cut was beautifully seared. Saliva slid down my throat of its own accord. On an empty stomach it looked even more delicious.

Why was this here? Before I could even voice the question, I spotted someone entering from the distant doorway and my brow furrowed hard.

"My, why that face? My adorable little darling who even ignored his lovely messages."

A girl who looked like she had only just left her early teens behind winked and took the seat opposite me as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

Her platinum hair, long enough to reach her waist, swayed with the motion, and a sweet citrus scent tickled my nose.

It approached with such brazen self-assertion that it refused to lose even to the smell of the meat sitting right in front of her. My brow furrowed again at the fragrance of that aura.

"...Stop playing cute, you filthy bitch. You're killing my appetite."

"Do you know you're the only one who ever says such cruel things to me?"

"If you don't like it, get rid of that weird aura first and then come back."

At my words she curved her golden eyes in pure delight.

Far from vanishing, the golden aura only thickened, invading the space until my vision nearly spun.

Lucky, my ass.

The good mood I'd had a moment ago soured instantly.

She, however, paid my situation no mind whatsoever. She picked up her fork and knife as if nothing were wrong and began cutting into the steak.

"Haam, mmm~"

Then she started making a show of eating the neatly sliced pieces in front of me—whose food still hadn't arrived—acting like a complete brat.

The violent ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠scent of meat and that deadly sweet fragrance mixed together and assaulted my nose.

On top of that, the sizzle of fat still crackling proved it had just come off the grill, ravaging my ears and stoking my appetite.

"Well? Want some? Shall I give you a bite?"

She speared a piece of meat on her fork and held it out toward me. The aroma right under my nose made my mouth water.

But my gaze stayed locked on her.

The smiling eyes watching me were filled with nothing but the desire to toy with me.

If I ate it, I'd be dancing to her tune. If I didn't, she'd keep tormenting me like this until my own food arrived.

There was no real reason. She was simply doing it because it was fun.

"Not going to eat? Come on—aaahn~"

I didn't like the sticky emotion swimming in those beautifully curved pupils. Even so, I couldn't drive her away.

Just as I was certain Ban Taewung was this world's protagonist, the girl in front of me was one of the very few absolute strongest I believed I could never defeat. She looked young, but even adding my past life and present life together, I hadn't lived as long as the dirt under her nails.

A being infinitely close to a god.

That was the definition I had given her. Maybe because of recent events, the old monster sitting across from me grated on me even more than usual today. But more than that, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠there was a great deal of information I needed to pry out of her.

This latest incident, the unknown god—and above all, any clue about the skill that carried the power of the stars was urgent.

"...Hoo."

I let out a short breath and accepted the meat that had been pushed so far forward it was already stuck to my lips. The instant it entered my mouth, a rich flood of juices burst free, and my furrowed brow eased just a little.

"Ah, you ate it. Heehee."

Flushing, she deliberately opened her mouth just enough for me to see, laid the fork on her tongue, sucked it clean, and went back to eating more meat.

Every single one of her gestures was saturated with affection. Yet her presence forced a completely different kind of heartbeat out of me.

For someone as heavy-assed as her to show herself like this almost always meant something was about to happen.

"Your order is ready."

As if shattering the air that had grown colder than the dawn outside, a waiter appeared and began laying out dishes. None of them were what I had ordered. An entire full course that belonged in a three-star restaurant was set down all at once.

I glanced sideways. Sure enough, the regular staff were gone, replaced by a familiar face—one of her attendants.

He appeared like a ghost anywhere, anytime, and could accomplish anything.

Ask how, and all you got was some ridiculous excuse about being a model servant. Like master, like servant—a matched pair of absolute lunatics.

And beings like that were here as if it were only natural.

In other words, she had known I would come and had arranged everything in advance.

Asking how was meaningless. It was simply something she could do. Reading the future was child's play for this woman... no, this monster.

Once every dish was in place and the attendant withdrew, I spoke first.

"What do you want?"

"Obviously I came because I was worried about Doctor. Do you have any idea how anxious I was when my precious person went completely dark?"

"Get to the point."

At my lowered voice she laughed lightly, pushed her empty plate aside, and looked over the course set in front of me.

"In the near future, a dungeon will go berserk. Compared to the one that opened seven years ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠ago that day, both the scale and the quality of the monsters that come out will be incomparable—so many, so very many."

She began reciting the future the way a fortune-teller reads a palm. It was an utterly absurd story. But the mere fact that it came from her mouth made it truth.

No—even if things went off course midway, as long as it didn't threaten the world's survival, she would force it to happen even if she had to step in personally. That was how this twisted creature enjoyed her amusements.

"...Why are you telling me this?"

"There won't be any victims. The thing Doctor poured day and night into developing—literally shaving years off his lifespan—will finally shine. Reporting it to the person involved is only natural, don't you think?"

She had chosen a clear soup with no solid ingredients.

It held a transparent quality yet glowed with a faint golden light, exactly like her eyes. She brought it in front of herself, took a sip, then held the same spoon she had just used out toward my mouth as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

"So what does that have to do with you showing up—"

"Here."

I closed my mouth on whatever I'd been about to say. From the smile she wore while watching me came a silent pressure: open your mouth right now or you get no answers.

"..."

"Hurry up. My arm's going to fall off."

A lie. She never tired from something like this, and she possessed overwhelming power that could kill the likes of me with a mere glance. Even so, she thoroughly played the weakling. She insisted on a delicate appearance and flaunted a loveliness no one could match.

Realizing this push-and-pull was pointless, I accepted the spoon without further complaint. The clean, refreshing quality unique to clear broth should have settled my stomach—instead it felt like my breath caught in my throat.

"I told you, didn't I? I came because I was worried about Doctor."

"...You're saying I'm going to get dragged into it?"

"Yes."

She stated it flatly. Smiling as if she had already lived the future, she held out another spoonful of soup, and the act continued until I had emptied the entire dish.

"Doctor will definitely get caught up in it. That man at your side—the one favored by the stars—will make certain of it. Because of that incident you'll take a deep wound and be pulled properly into the whirlpool of events. I simply don't enjoy watching you suffer."

In the same way she pushed the empty plate aside, picked up the next dish, and kept feeding me.

It was something even lovers rarely did, yet she performed it without a shred of embarrassment. I accepted every bite just as boldly. There was no affection between us. Or at least, none on my side.

"Did you know? I like you far more than Doctor realizes. At this point it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it love."

She hugged her own body lightly as she let the words slip. I snorted.

"Not just because you don't want to see your favorite toy break?"

"When you put it like that I sound like such a bad woman. This is... yes! Please think of it as a young girl's shy crush."

What she possessed was not ordinary human fondness.

One-sided love. Twisted affection. Abnormal fixation. She whispered love to me solely for the sake of "fun."

"Young girl, my ass. If you've lived long enough to be ancient, try acting with a little dignity."

"Ah-ah! Age talk is forbidden with a lady!"

"Young girl one second, lady the next. You switch whenever it's convenient."

"That's simply how the creature called woman works. Age has nothing to do with a girl's heart."

Conversation was impossible. Smooth on the surface, empty of substance underneath. Talking to a wall would have been more productive. A mild dizziness crept over me.

Dragging this topic out any longer felt like sinking into a bottomless swamp, so I yanked the conversation back to business.

"Enough dancing around it. State your business. You want something from me, don't you?"

At that she beamed with the brightest smile she had shown yet and grinned ear to ear.

"This is why I love talking with Doctor. You always know exactly what I want right away."

Clap clap.

Two claps, and every dish on the table vanished. In their place a towering parfait appeared as if it had been waiting.

She scooped a large bite into her mouth, savored it for a while, then wiped away the smile she had been wearing and fixed her eyes on me.

"I will never forgive anyone who ruins something I love."

Even if that someone is you yourself. I didn't need to hear the rest. She had come to warn me. Don't step forward on your own. Don't get hurt. Don't dance to the stars' amusement instead of hers.

Don't steal my "enjoyment."

"...You think I'm crazy enough to do that?"

Every last one of them only ever did whatever they felt like. Selfish and arrogant beyond belief. I knew I was in no position to say it, but they really were garbage.

My life belonged to me alone. Who the hell did they think they were, ordering it around?

"I'm going to rest. Living somewhere peaceful with nothing to worry about, taking it easy—that's enough for me."

I was someone who wanted to live doing as little as possible. If work existed, I preferred to put it off as far as I could and handle it all at once; if it looked like it would become a real nuisance later, I finished it in advance so the nuisance never arrived.

Take on unnecessary extra work that had nothing to do with me? I'd dump it on the protagonist before I ever touched it. Absolutely never.

"Pff—"

The girl who had been putting on airs a moment ago burst out laughing as if she had just seen the funniest thing in the world, even wiping tears. My expression curdled into something rotten, but she clutched her stomach and kept laughing as if that too were entertaining.

"Ah, ahaha... sorry. I didn't mean to laugh like that, it just... hoo~"

She even took a deep breath to finally stop, then looked at me with that same mischievous expression.

"You need to be a little kinder to yourself."

"Who's kinder to me than I am—"

Thok!

"You don't actually believe that, do you?"

She cut me off by stuffing parfait into my mouth, then smiled sweetly and opened her own mouth in an "aah."

Sensing the clear intent to smear the entire thing across my face if I refused, I had no choice but to open up and accept it. Cool sweetness melted and soaked into my tongue.

"People say someone like Doctor is 'diligent,' you know. For later, for the future. Lying to yourself like that, clinging to a reward you'll never reach, living every day wound tight—doesn't that sound boring?"

That damn "fun" again.

She seemed to be under some serious misunderstanding. From my perspective the status window and mana and all the rest were far more interesting. Things I had only ever enjoyed in novels and games, I was experiencing firsthand in reality.

If you wanted to call that feeling fun, then fine—there had been unpleasant and painful moments, but ever since I remembered my past life, every single day had been enjoyable.

Was pursuing a peaceful daily life here really so wrong? Was wanting to rest at a leisurely pace such a terrible thing?

I didn't know. Honestly, even sitting here right now felt like a waste of time.

If the being in front of me hadn't been a Transcendent, I would have preferred to spend this empty time creating a new familiar to strengthen my forces and planning countermeasures for whatever today would bring.

All of that would become blood and flesh for me. If I kept growing stronger like this, protecting my family in this insane world would eventually become possible.

"See? You're thinking about work even now."

Poke!

Somehow she had already slid up beside me. She jabbed my cheek with a finger and grinned.

"You grumble out of habit that you want to rest, yet you never waste a single moment. You don't even realize how contradictory you are. Like an old robot that hasn't been oiled, your joints creak and grind, but you never stop moving."

You're truly stupid. That's why you're cute, and that's why I love you. With those words she slowly stroked my cheek. The touch of a hand that looked as if it had never done rough work in its life sent goosebumps racing down my spine.

"Bullshit."

I swatted the poking hand away and dismissed her words.

It only looked that way because entering the Academy had suddenly piled work onto me.

I was simply happy to finally train the self I had never been able to properly grow under the name of the law, and being able to watch the numbers rise with my own eyes only pulled me in deeper.

This was no different from a game. So I was fine. I wasn't wrong.

"Is that truly what you wanted?"

Leaning against my shoulder, she asked as if she had read my innermost thoughts. My brow furrowed. It was hot. Her breath, the temperature where her body touched my shoulder—it felt like it would leave a burn. Contrasted against the endless cold inside me, her passion felt even hotter.

"Yeah. I'm doing this because I want to."

As I answered and shifted slightly sideways, she closed the distance again and pressed herself flush against me. The sweet scent and the soft sensation unique to a woman of the right age dulled my reason. Strangely, though, my heart remained utterly still.

Contradiction, contradiction. Opposing emotions kept coexisting, tossing my jumbled heart into a blender and pureeing it.

That's right. I'm doing this because I want to.

Besides, the chance for explosive growth only existed now.

Like any RPG, the higher the level climbed, the slower growth became, and the path to the absolute limit only grew harder. But once you became strong, everything got easier.

The power I cultivated and piled up, the effort I poured in—none of it would ever betray me. In the end, the only one I could lean on was myself.

I had learned that from my past-life self. With that foundation, I could throw myself completely into building a peaceful future in this life without getting distracted.

No more failures. Even if I made mistakes, I would correct them without fail. Everything for a future without regrets.

And for that, I first needed to get back to the Academy. The morning would be packed with the tournament. I would apply myself just diligently enough not to get expelled.

"Move."

Snap!

"Ow!"

While I was lost in that brief reverie she had cheerfully linked arms with me. I loaded a flick with mana and cracked it against that platinum head. She looked up at me with the world's most wronged, teary expression.

"It hurts. It hurts so much I might die. But this is a form of affection too, right? I'm fine. Because I love you, I'll accept anything no matter how painful or hard it is."

"It barely even hurt, so quit the damn theatrics."

"...Heheh, you caught me?"

At my scolding she brightened as if the tears had never existed. Then she smoothed the hair she had mussed while cradling her head and stood.

"Never forget what I said. And if it ever gets truly hard, don't forget to call my name. My offer hasn't changed from back then."

She looked me up and down with lingering eyes and licked her lips seductively. I made a face of genuine disgust.

"Crazy bitch. Pedophile. Complete psycho pervert."

"Keep that up and I really will eat you? Grr!"

Apparently trying to look scary, she raised both hands with clawed fingers and snapped her teeth.

The problem was that, playful gesture aside, the killing intent that leaked out for an instant was anything but a joke.

I rubbed the goosebumps on my arms and heaved a long sigh.

"...Cut the crap and tone it down."

"Kyahaha, ah... this is fun! So much fun!"

Even when I cursed her she liked it—exactly like that protagonist bastard. Pervert, lunatic, or both. Why were the only people around me like this?

Twitch!

The moment that thought crossed my mind, a chill far colder than the earlier aura crawled over me.

Before I knew it she was straddling my lap, completely pressed against me and blocking my front, her expression icy and unfocused as she pointed a finger ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠at my chest—precisely where my heart was.

"You were thinking about that kid again, weren't you?"

"..."

Honestly, I was genuinely terrified. For a Transcendent, even the lightest brush of a fingertip made it feel like my heart was being crushed in a fist. And given the position, I couldn't move a muscle.

"Here I am, this pretty, pouring my whole heart into chasing you, and you're thinking about someone else inside. That's just too cruel."

One finger, then two. She increased the count and finally pressed her entire palm flat over my heart, stroking slowly as if handling a delicate piece of craftsmanship that might shatter at any moment. By the end of it the goosebumps had gone past the point of rising—my teeth clenched hard on their own.

"...Don't tell me you're actually gay?"

"Fuck, didn't I tell you never to say that shit again? You really want your mouth ripped open?"

She dared call me gay? Not once—twice. Heat flooded my head and the chill vanished in an instant.

At my sudden change she widened her eyes and stammered. I clamped a hand over her mouth hard enough to silence her, forced her chin up with a tight grip, and locked eyes with her at point-blank range.

Endure three times and you avoid murder. This was her second. One left.

"Last chance. Say that garbage one more time and I really will tear it open."

Lick.

Instead of answering she dragged her tongue across the palm sealing her mouth, narrowed her eyes into a seductive smile, and sent a mana-borne whisper straight into my mind.

Clap!

A single clap rang out, and suddenly nothing remained in my grip.

No—proof that I had covered her mouth lingered clearly as faint traces of cosmetics on my palm. She had left that behind on purpose too, no doubt.

Furious at having been played yet again, I snatched a napkin from the table and scrubbed my hand raw. I rubbed hard enough to nearly break the skin, yet the sensation still seemed to cling, which only pissed me off more.

Then I happened to glance outside. The morning sun had fully risen. It was still early, but people were beginning to pass by here and there.

...Time to actually head back.

I steadied my scattered mind with a deep breath and started walking toward the Academy.

I'd eaten far too much for breakfast; my stomach felt heavy. I needed to walk off at least a little of it if I wanted to function properly in class.

I deliberately chose the long way around and headed for the Academy at a brisk pace. I wanted the scent still lingering at the tip of my nose and clinging to my entire body gone as soon as humanly possible.