Chapter 79

If you thought the festival would just end like this, you were sorely mistaken.

In conclusion, the most enjoyable time was yet to come!

“The after-party is the best!”

It was also one of the few days when the Academy’s wallet opened wide, rewarding us for our hard work during the Flowering Festival.

The dormitory cafeteria was filled to the brim, and so were the expensive dishes bought from outside!

It was no exaggeration to say that the true festival began after the Flowering Festival ended!

I grabbed a heaping armful of food and headed to the hideout.

“Wow! It’s a feast!”

“Senior Laurel?”

Laurel, who had been lying on the sofa as if she had been waiting for us in the hideout, shot up.

Sunbae, why are you here?

Laurel, completely ignoring my question, immediately snatched a piece of steak from the food I brought and began to munch on it.

“Sunbae, you’re the president of the Vivian Rose Society.”

“The vice president kicked me out, saying it’s hard to do business with me around.”

Could the vice president be that person I saw last time?

The hero who speaks her mind even to Senior Laurel, who can tear a person apart with her bare hands.

Ah, am I the only one who gets torn apart?

“Are you going to be so stingy? You can just go get more food!”

“That’s true, but.”

It’s because you were just lying around, Sunbae, and now you’re trying to snatch the food we brought.

“Still, this is the hideout I gave you.”

“You just entrusted the management to us.”

Laurel didn’t deny it and silently picked up a piece of roast beef this time.

Alright, what’s the point of arguing further. Let’s just eat for now!

Lucian, who arrived late, shouted with a bright smile.

“There’s something called a carbonated drink here, too. They say it goes well with meat!”

It’s a drink sold by Golden, so the price probably wasn’t that cheap!

They’re giving us this much? Cheering at the eye-popping event, I drank the carbonated drink in the bottle.

“Delicious!”

I think this has reproduced about 90% of the original taste.

Something crucial is missing, but this is still excellent enough!

We set out the food we brought and handed out three bottles of the drink per person.

We raised the bottles to the sky and toasted together.

“Great work everyone on the Flowering Festival!!”

The eventful Flowering Festival had finally come to a true end.

* * *

We ate and drank boisterously, laughing so hard the hideout could have collapsed.

After enjoying ourselves for a while, I went out to the empty lot, ruminating on the lingering feelings.

As the cold night wind brushed against my collar, I felt the heated excitement subside.

I fiddled with the medal, and since it was metal, it felt cold too.

“A medal.”

I never thought I would be possessed in Lapidemy and receive this medal myself.

“Though I have four in my inventory.”

Is this the fifth one?

I wonder if the me from 10 years ago would have known I would receive this in person.

What’s more, I’m sure he never would have known he would become a character in this world himself and receive it after going through so much hardship.

In the first place, if I had known such a thing, I wouldn’t have played the game—doesn’t seem right. Honestly, I think I still would have.

From the 10th anniversary onwards, it started to get old, but when the game first came out, and until about the 5th anniversary, I played it because it was really fun.

Gamers can never quit a game, even while cursing it to death.

Even if they quit after cursing it, if there’s a huge event, gamers will come back.

So, I probably wouldn’t have been able to stop myself from getting sucked into the game even if I had known everything.

“Are you okay?”

And this damn sweet potato protagonist is no exception.

I wonder what kind of sensibility the me from 10 years ago had to like such a sweet potato.

“Are you full?”

“Yeah. I really ate until I was about to burst.”

Lucian strode over to me and plopped down on the ground.

Since I was sitting on a chair and Lucian was on the ground, Lucian ended up looking up at me.

Seeing Lucian look up at the sky, I too followed his gaze and turned my eyes to the sky.

In the pitch-black sky, a large, blue moon was shining brightly.

“…It’ll be a full moon tomorrow.”

It wasn’t a perfect circle yet, but it would be complete tomorrow.

It would have been better if today was the full moon.

“I know, right.”

“How are your injuries? Are you not hurt anywhere?”

“Professor Artemia is here. I’m fine.”

“I was secretly worried.”

“Do I perhaps have that much of a weak image?”

“That’s not it.”

Lucian is an inherently strong human being. His character is upright, and his body is strong both in mind and body, thanks to the Holy Sword’s enhancement.

So, in the face of any hardship and adversity, he suppresses the desire to run away and takes the lead, willingly pointing the Holy Sword.

That is something an ordinary human cannot do.

At least, a human like me could never do it.

“But it’s okay if you’re a little weak.”

It might be different in a game, but in reality, I much prefer an imperfect friend to a perfect hero.

Even if it’s not very welcome from the perspective of a world that needs to be saved, what’s it to me?

Originally, salvation and revenge are self-service. If the world wants salvation, I hope it takes care of it on its own.

And stop recklessly overworking a kid who isn’t even an adult yet.

“You seem very troubled.”

“Do I?”

It’s normal to get sentimental under the night sky. I guess he’s still too young to understand such emotions?

“It’s because of the Advanced Magic Practice, right?”

“…Huh?”

I think I heard something strange while I was coolly monologuing and setting the mood.

Did my ears go bad in that time?

“Advanced Magic Practice…?”

There are no separate practices in the 1st year—but the story is different for the 3rd-year lectures.

“I heard while getting the carbonated drinks that a dungeon burst open in a nearby barony. Was it the Belmir Barony?”

Lucian dropped a bomb on me with a bright smile.

“They say the Advanced Magic Practice is going to be held there?”

And a very large, massive bomb at that.

* * *

After the Flowering Festival ended, the 3rd years began their practical training in earnest.

The Academy’s purpose was twofold: to nurture students ‘fairly’ and to ‘save’ people by resolving dungeons and gates.

“A while ago, a dungeon appeared in the Belmir Barony, and Baron Belmir requested help from the Academy.”

According to a long-standing oath, the Academy cannot refuse requests from the lords of the Empire without a valid reason.

Some people criticize the Academy students as being state-sanctioned child soldiers, but the system itself ran smoothly without any major problems.

The money the Academy received from resolving dungeons and gates went back entirely to the students in the form of benefits.

The tuition was incredibly cheap compared to the actual benefits.

If one wanted to avoid danger, they could simply take lectures that did not have practical training.

“Last night, Professor Lisitoel went ahead to check, and as a result, he determined that it is of the lowest grade, Ripple , and is suitable as a practical training site for the lecture.”

In fact, it was such a simple place that I wondered if this should even be called a 3rd-year practice.

Without even needing to check, Evan could just go and solve it by casually casting a couple of spells.

But then, the students cannot grow.

No matter how much of a ripple, a dungeon is an unknown territory. There was no shortage as a practical training site for the students.

“If you have any questions, please speak.”

“When should we start preparing?”

“We will be moving within today.”

“Isn’t the Belmir Barony a three-day carriage ride away?”

“We will be moving using Professor Lisitoel’s teleportation magic.”

Teleportation magic! A special magic permitted only to those with a blessed talent.

Murmurs spread as they realized they could experience even a fragment of it.

I had also used teleportation magic as a skill, but I was in a state of confusion and fainted right after using it, so I was secretly looking forward to it.

Just then, the front door opened and Evan strode in.

In his hand was a staff that he would never normally be seen with.

A slight commotion began to stir among the students who had been thinking a little complacently, ‘Well, if it’s the lowest grade, there won’t be any problems’.

“I have something to take care of here, so you all will be moving first. Follow the assistant’s instructions well.”

An overwhelming, no, a transcendent amount of mana gathered in Evan’s staff.

“Let’s move right away.”

Evan, with a strangely stiff expression, lightly swung his staff, and in an instant, a giant teleportation magic circle appeared above the classroom.

For a moment, the students gasped in admiration at the complex and elaborate magic circle that seemed like their heads would explode just by looking at it.

A light flashed, and the classroom that had been bustling with students became quiet.

“Tsk.”

Should I have at least said ‘have a good trip’?

The face of his son, who had been flustered every time Evan spoke, flashed in his mind.

But now, it was time for Evan to work not as a professor of the Academy, but as a retainer and teacher of the Emperor.

“I should hurry.”

It was a simple matter to resolve. And yet, for some reason, he felt as if he had fallen into a swamp that was difficult to escape from. It was a truly strange feeling.

* * *

Without any preparation, a strong light flashed before my eyes, and in an instant, a castle I had never seen before appeared.

“What is this.”

It’s too sudden, even for a sudden event.

Is it a good thing that I forcibly brought the napping Albedo in my pocket?

I could see an old man in a butler’s uniform running urgently from a distance, sweating profusely.

“Are you from the Academy?”

“Ah, yes. We are.”

The assistant who had somehow ended up leading the students looked truly pitiful.

Is that the fate of a graduate school assistant?

“Lapis Academy, 20 people. We are here to resolve a Ripple-grade dungeon.”

“I-I’ll go get the Baron right away!!”

Perhaps judging that there was a limit to what he could do alone, the butler rushed back to the mansion.

Not long after, the Baron also came running, having thrown away all his dignity.

“I didn’t expect you to provide support so soon! By any chance, His Excellency Count Lisitoel…”

“He is away on business within the Academy.”

At the assistant’s words, the Baron’s complexion brightened in an instant.

Perhaps he feels burdened because Father is a Count and he is a Baron? Moreover, Father also has a rather special position as the Emperor’s teacher, so it might be even more so.

“Please come inside! We will prepare dinner shortly!”

“We’ll just resolve the dungeon and return right away—”

The Baron promptly grabbed the assistant’s hand.

“We cannot treat the heroes of the Empire poorly! You, go inside immediately and prepare a feast!”

At the Baron’s command, the butler once again ran to the mansion, and the Baron, grinning, led us inside.

Just before we were about to move as a group, the assistant, who had suddenly stopped in his tracks, pleaded with hollow eyes.

“Don’t cause any trouble, let’s just resolve the dungeon and hurry back. Please, okay?”

Are there really any guys who would cause trouble?

Still, this is a practical training, and it will have a big impact on their grades. Right…?

For some reason, my track record is so splendid that I can’t easily answer.

—————–

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