“The privilege of being the top student. I want to receive the single dorm room and maintenance stipend in advance.”
“State your reason. If there isn’t a valid excuse, it’s not possible.”
“I have no place to sleep and no money.”
“······.”
Did I come off too assertive?
Ludwig’s mouth was tightly shut, refusing to open.
But of course, Ludwig would accept it.
Ludwig von Wermannstein.
He might have a slightly unpleasant personality, but he is undeniably a good character.
In the original work, he helped Hertlocker bring the elders of the magic community to their side, so it’s clear he plays for the good.
Thus, such a request should be something the head professor would naturally comply with.
“According to principle, it’s not allowed, but······ fine. I will grant it.”
“Thank you—”
“However, there are conditions.”
“What are they?”
“You must maintain your position as top student until the end of the first semester. If you lose that position even once, you will face expulsion.”
“······.”
“You must show grades that correspond to my goodwill in breaking the rules.”
“······.”
It was only after seeing Ludwig’s greasy smile that I remembered.
Ludwig wasn’t the good character from the start.
In the original, he did all sorts of things trying to kick Hertlocker out early on······.
Having lived buried in the latter part of the story until recently, I completely forgot the atmosphere of the beginning.
Even when I thought he was just doing it to help me light the fireplace, it turned out he just didn’t want to wet his carpet.
‘What am I gonna do?’
Getting expelled from the Imperial University is definitely the worst-case scenario.
It means I’ll lose any chance to recruit talents gathering at the Imperial University.
Having already lost the protagonist, Hertlocker, I can’t afford to squander any more opportunities.
Maintaining the top position throughout the semester······ honestly, that seems impossible.
In theory, I could get good grades through tricks, but that wouldn’t work in practicals.
How could I possibly beat those who’ve honed their magic for a lifetime?
So, I can’t accept that condition.
Looks like I’ll be spending tonight in the stables.
*Damn it.*
[Quest: Accept Professor Ludwig’s conditions and maintain your top position for the semester.]
[Difficulty: ★★★★☆]
[Reward: Adds a hardening function to the body’s extremities in the internal circuit.]
Just as I was about to speak up and refuse, subtitles appeared before my eyes.
What the heck is this? A quest?
This wasn’t part of the settings in my novel. It must be something that reader inserted.
Looks like they thought they could control me with some quest. That’s a huge miscalculation.
I won’t dance to your tune, you brat.
“Fine.”
“Good. I knew you’d say that······ Wait, what did you just say?”
“Proposal. I accept it. Please guide me to the dormitory. And transfer this month’s maintenance stipend immediately.”
The reward was simply too great to say no.
If the reward had just been some damned shop coins, I would’ve thought about ignoring it.
But adding a function to the internal circuit?
Given that this is a permanent buff due to the innate characteristic of the internal circuit, it’s a reward worth changing the other variable stats of 100.
Of course, my current stats wouldn’t even total 100.
Maintaining the top position for an entire semester?
Let’s give it a shot.
Life, after all, is either feast or famine.
*
“Hu-hum······.”
The hefty envelope of money in my hand makes me wanna *cackle*.
One month’s maintenance stipend as the first-year top student. That’s 10,000 tirion.
It’s enough for living expenses and then some.
I’ll have to invest the leftover money to increase it a bit.
I, the author, know best how the guilds and knight orders prosper, so it’ll grow quickly.
“Is this it?”
As I walk a little into the dormitory building, I come across the garden.
Beyond that, a two-story mansion comes into view.
That mansion is the single dorm room, a privilege of being the top student.
Is it too extravagant?
Considering other nobles share double rooms, it seems excessive.
“Hello.”
“Oh, yes······.”
Upon entering through the front gate, a lady greeted me.
Who is she?
“I’m the caretaker of the single dorm room.”
“The caretaker? What duties do you perform?”
“I only handle cleaning. Starting next week when classes begin, the contract will be terminated, so if you want anything else done, you’ll need to hire an attendant separately. People will probably come forward by then, and you can choose from among them.”
Selecting an attendant······.
I just remembered there was an event like that.
The attendant hired at that time ends up being quite an unexpected character.
This was a setting where they assisted the protagonist who would become the top student from the midterm onwards.
Though the actual protagonist isn’t here now.
“As the caretaker, I’ll help guide you today.”
“Thank you. May I ask your name?”
“Mary Ayle.”
Mary Ayle.
A name that doesn’t ring a bell.
Of course. I’ve never written about the caretaker who managed the mansion before the attendant was hired.
Meeting a character I never created myself in my own novel feels strangely eerie.
“This is the living room. And this is the kitchen.”
Following Ms. Mary, I moved through the long corridor.
The exterior has a medieval look, while the interior is filled with my modern taste.
Except for the fireplace, it could easily pass for a pricey apartment in Gangnam.
“Upstairs, there are two identical bedrooms, plus two slightly smaller guest rooms.”
Looking at it like this just feels absurd.
How is this a single dorm room? There are four rooms just for sleeping.
I really didn’t think through my settings.
“And if you go out the back door, there’s a special room.”
“Oh.”
“It has a barrier set up, so others usually use it as a storage or training room.”
And then finally to the coveted special room.
Surrounded by top-tier barriers, anything done inside is absolutely unnoticeable from outside.
I have a feeling I’ll spend a good part of my day in there······.
“Because of the barrier, I can’t go inside the training room. Please take care of the cleaning yourself. That’s all. Now, I’ll be heading home.”
“Yes. Please be careful.”
After receiving the key from Ms. Mary, I watched her leave the mansion.
The moment I realized I was alone, I headed straight for the special room.
“Ugh······.”
As soon as I entered the special room, a sharp pain shot through my head.
It’s said that powerful barriers emit strong mana waves, but could this be the cause?
Still, I never wrote that I felt dizzy every time I passed through a barrier.
Could it be that Schlus has a particularly sensitive body to mana waves?
I don’t know.
“Looks nice.”
It was as if the previous top student’s belongings had all been cleared out and the place had undergone a thorough cleaning; the interior was spotless to the point of shining.
It was so spacious it seemed like I could play basketball in here.
Though the problem is that there’s not a single person around who knows how to play basketball.
“First, I should assess my abilities.”
[Ability: Translation]
[Ability: Inquiry]
[Ability: Selection and Concentration]
[Ability: Memory of True Self]
Just as I thought.
Simply thinking about my abilities caused the list to appear.
I plan to test all those abilities today.
Starting with [Translation].
[Ability: Translation]
[Grade: Rare]
[Description: You can understand and fluently speak any language you hear for the first time.]
[Reader’s note: I thought we should at least understand each other.]
If I didn’t have this, I would’ve had to learn the local language first.
As there’s no cooldown or usage limit mentioned, it seems this ability can be used indefinitely.
However, the note states “any language” rather than “Continental Human Language.”
So theoretically, I could also converse with magical beasts or spirits.
According to my settings, they also have their own independent language systems.
This could turn out to be more useful than I imagined.
[Ability: Inquiry]
[Grade: Legendary]
[Description: You can acquire brief information about a target.]
[Reader’s note: As a writer, I shouldn’t die from eating poisonous mushrooms on the way, right?]
Is this also an unrestricted ability?
Looking at the description alone, I can’t really grasp what kind of ability it is.
I took a 10 tirion coin from my pocket and looked at it while activating the inquiry.
[10 Tirion Coin]
[Mint Year: Empire Year 542]
[Description: Slightly rusted, but its value is unchanged.]
“Ooh.”
So this ability has no limits on usage?
Legendary grade surely boasts utility that transcends rare grade.
Just as the reader said, I shouldn’t have to worry about being poisoned.
“What if······?”
As soon as I caught sight of the mirror in one corner of the training room, I felt drawn to it.
I approached and activated the inquiry while staring into the mirror, meeting the eyes reflected back.
[Schlus Hainkel]
[???]
[??????]
[??????]
“Tsk.”
As expected.
Only question marks popped up; I couldn’t glean any information about Schlus.
I thought I might see something akin to a profile by using inquiry on myself.
Looks like the reader anticipated that little trick and set up a countermeasure.
Cunning little brat.
[Ability: Selection and Concentration]
[Grade: Legendary]
[Description: Once a day, for a moment, you can amplify a specific stat. Time Limit: 3 seconds. Amplification Amount: 99]
[Reader’s note: This is to encourage you to focus and concentrate well enough to rush toward the ending this lifetime.]
And now, the turn for that ‘particular ability’ has come.
Even if it has a ton of restrictions, the reason it’s legendary grade is self-evident.
It boosts one stat beyond 100.
With that, I could at least have a fair fight with a Majin, and compare it to the protagonist’s stats in the later parts of the story.
Of course, it’s just one stat······.
“······can’t do it.”
I tried to activate the ability, but no matter how much I chanted it in my mind, it wouldn’t trigger.
In the first place, ‘Selection and Concentration’ wasn’t lighting up at all.
It must be due to the restriction of being usable only once a day.
I’ll have to test that again tomorrow.
[Ability: Memory of True Self]
[Grade: Rare]
[Description: Once a day, awakens memories related to a specific action concerning the true self. Time Limit: 1 hour.]
[Reader’s note: There should be a little consideration for the owner of the body that was embodied, right?]
This one is really vague in description.
It’s hard to intuitively grasp its purpose from just the description.
Guess I’ll have to try it out.
“What’s related to a specific action······.”
As I was muttering this, I noticed a wooden sword leaning against one side of the wall.
I wonder if Schlus has any memories related to swordsmanship.
If I want to confirm, there’s only one way to find out.
I immediately grabbed the wooden sword with both hands and activated the ability.
“······.”
I waited for about 10 seconds.
Nothing happened?
Could it be that he had absolutely no connection with swords?
Just as I thought about lowering the sword, that’s when it happened.
“You’re wrong.”
“······?!”
I quickly turned around at the voice that rang out from somewhere.
Looking around, there was no one else in this training room; it was just me.
“You’re holding it wrong. Like this.”
The deep voice sounded again.
And this time, figures of two men appeared in the center of the training room, almost like a hologram.
A tall man wielding a great longsword, and a child holding a wooden sword.
Though they were too hazy to discern their faces, it was evident.
Schlus Hainkel and his father.
“······Huh.”
It felt strange.
As the child in the footage corrected his grip on the sword, my hand naturally followed along.
It wasn’t that my hand moved on its own. Rather, it was almost like I instinctively knew the correct way to hold the sword.
“I’ll teach you the basic stances. First, step your left foot forward. No, not that far. Just watch me and follow along. And the sword should be above your head······”
I found myself following Schlus’s memories, enchanted by his actions.
As I got into position, I felt swordsmanship becoming mine with every swing.
It felt like I wasn’t just picking it up for the first time today, but rather like I had once learned it long ago.
Still, all I knew were a few basic stances and a downward strike······.
“You’re using too much strength. Slice at eye level. Keep the sword horizontal to the ground. That’s right······”
The more I listened, the familiar yet heart-wrenching emotion swelled within me. Even though it was undoubtedly the first time hearing those voices.
This was truly my body responding. Unconsciously.
Maybe Schlus had lost his father too.
Perhaps Schlus and I are similar in more ways than I realize.
······As that thought crossed my mind, goosebumps ran down my body.
“Damn.”
I bit my lip.
I felt warm liquid trickling down my pinched lips.
Using Schlus’s body to speak his language and embrace his memories was dulling my own fading consciousness.
I am Jin Kim.
Not the character in the story, but author Jin Kim.
Let’s remember this. I must not immerse myself. I must not waver.
I live solely to finish the ending of this novel. And to return to reality.
