Chapter 16

■ Chapter 15. The Picture (1) □ ᓚᘏᗢ

Despite the unexpected encounter with Leort, it couldn't hinder my writing. Instead, it gave me a boost, and I continued the story smoothly.

'Here, Count Castelac will shout, "A nation is its people."'

In my past life, there was a famous movie. It was about a lawyer who fought resolutely for those who had been victimized by a military regime.

I vividly remember being deeply moved by a particular scene. The level of immersion was so great that I wondered if it was really just acting.

'Even if I get a bit of criticism, as Leort said...'

The conflict between Zaneon, a commoner, and the nobility is an unavoidable situation. After all, those who hold power are extremely wary of someone taking their place. It's a realistic story.

Still, it doesn't matter. As the saying goes, "carrot and stick," showing the good side of the nobility will be fine.

Moreover, I can tolerate a certain degree of justified criticism. After reading books in the library following Leort's advice, I found that satire against the nobility was widespread. Although there are no direct criticisms, that's a minor flaw.

'For the appearance of the steam locomotive... I'll just draw it. I can practice on my notebook.'

Zaneon's conflict with the nobility spans from the early to mid-part of Volume 8. After that, he travels to the dwarf country for a break and to experience new things, where he meets an eccentric dwarf who tries to invent a 'steam locomotive.'

Zaneon helps the eccentric dwarf, who is ridiculed by everyone for his invention. Despite various misjudgments and trials, they eventually invent the steam locomotive. The story of Volume 8 ends with Zaneon suggesting a new path of 'mechanical engineering' instead of 'magic.'

'Here, they use carriages for logistics, right?'

Throughout history, whether on Earth or in a fantasy world, the importance of logistics in war is self-evident. Even in a fantasy world, an army must be well-fed to advance.

One might ask, "Why not use teleportation or warp magic to solve logistics?" However, that's impossible. Using teleportation or warp magic for logistics is extremely inefficient and dangerous.

While it's fine to use it on oneself, problems arise when moving other objects. It requires an enormous amount of mana, and failure results in disintegration into sand. Such risks are only taken in critical situations; otherwise, carriages are used.

'Of course, except for the demons. Come to think of it, they really are a cheat race.'

One reason the demon nation, Helium, became a powerful country that even the Minerva Empire couldn't touch is due to their unbelievable transportation ability. While other countries use carriages for logistics, demons use magic to ignore distance.

This is all thanks to their ability to use magic as easily as breathing. For them, magic is almost like a 'power' that realizes whatever they imagine.

Although I've never seen magic before, it must be incredible.

'Magic... '

I placed the completed manuscript on the edge of the desk and checked the clock. It was 10:30 PM. It would be better to sleep now for tomorrow.

After a quick wash, I threw myself onto the bed. The soft mattress sensation spread through my back.

'Tomorrow, I only have humanities, magic studies, and... anthropology.'

I had already planned which majors to take.

Humanities, magic studies, history, theology, alchemy, anthropology, philosophy, psychology, public administration, military studies, and international relations.

In total, 11 subjects. Among them, 'alchemy' is something everyone would be unfamiliar with. Simply put, it's the chemistry of this world.

In Earth's history, alchemy is called the father of modern chemistry. Here, in the fantasy world, alchemy has advanced significantly. Just knowing that potions are made through alchemy should give you an idea.

'Although it's not as established as chemistry... it's still amazing.'

Without a clear understanding of atoms or molecules, I wondered if someone in the distant future would establish it. I stared at the dark ceiling and slowly closed my eyes.

With the start of the formal classes, I felt both nervous and excited. With 11 majors, my head already ached, but I had to work hard to avoid failing.

Fortunately, the grading is close to absolute, not relative. If I work hard, I can get a perfect score.

'Zaneon's biography... I'll have to write it only on weekends for a while... zzz...'

Lying on the bed, I felt sleepy, and my eyelids closed.

Eventually, in the complete darkness, I felt my consciousness falling and drifted into sleep.

* * *

The next day, I had breakfast at the cafeteria and headed straight to the lecture hall. As I entered, familiar faces caught my eye first.

As everyone knows, they were Marie, Cecil, and Lina. The three beautiful and unique girls chatting together seemed to radiate their own light.

Are they all taking humanities together? I looked around for an empty seat and noticed something strange.

'There are no seats?'

Students were sitting all around the three girls, front, back, and sides. Last week, no one was near them, which was puzzling. Moreover, there were many empty seats in the front.

I sat in an empty seat, but the mystery remained. I turned my head back and, as soon as I did, caught Marie's eye.

"Ah! There's Isaac."

As Marie shouted, Cecil and Lina also looked at me. I waved to greet them.

"But why isn't he sitting next to us... What? When did it get full?"

"Huh? Yeah."

From their reactions, it seemed they just noticed the situation. I looked at the three puzzled faces and then at a male student sitting to their right.

His name was Jackson, I think. He was the one who hit on Cecil and Lina on the first day and got thoroughly rejected. When our eyes met, he smirked.

I could tell from his despicable smile that this was his doing.

It seems he was jealous that the girls, who had embarrassed him, were showing interest in me. Whether he had recruited the students or had connections with them, it was utterly pathetic.

'Is a faction already forming?'

Since he's the son of a wealthy viscount, he probably used money to buy their loyalty.

'He's not a kid... No, at 17, he is a kid.'

I didn't want to get involved in unnecessary trouble, so I turned my head forward. I wanted to enjoy a peaceful academic life.

"Ugh."

"Huh?"

"Hi?"

As soon as I turned my head, someone sat next to me and greeted me warmly.

The beautiful girl with white hair, Marie, smiled at me.

I blinked a few times when she sat next to me. I wondered why she chose to sit next to me instead of her usual spot.

While I was thinking, Marie looked at me with a bittersweet expression.

"Aren't you going to greet me?"

"...Hi."

Marie nodded in satisfaction. I stared at her for a moment and then looked back.

Cecil looked uncomfortable, narrowing her delicate brows, and Lina had a subtle expression.

Finally, when I looked at Jackson, he was full of annoyance. I felt a sense of satisfaction for inadvertently causing him trouble.

"What did you do over the weekend?"

"You?"

"I went around with my brother. There were many interesting things. What about you?"

"I read books in the library. There were many interesting ones. I also went to the training ground with my sister to watch."

"You have a sister?"

"Not just a sister, but a brother too."

"You're the youngest? I see."

Before the class started, I had a pleasant conversation with Marie. It was definitely easier to talk to her than others. She was far from authoritarian and had a straightforward personality, making it easy to converse.

Just talking to a beautiful girl with such a strong personality was a blessing. Fortunately, we also had good chemistry.

"Isaac, you said you read Zaneon's biography up to Volume 5, right? I can lend it to you if you want."

Occasionally, there were surprising topics, but fortunately, they were questions I had anticipated, so I could answer smoothly.

Before I knew it, Professor Virius entered the lecture hall. As expected, he was the humanities professor.

"Good morning, proud students. Let's start the formal classes today."

As the lecture began, the lecture hall filled with applause from the students, just like last week.

After a moment, Professor Virius cleared his throat and began the lecture with his characteristic calm voice.

"Last week, we discussed 'knowledge.' What will we learn today? It's simple. Tell us what knowledge you gained from a book or an experience. If you think it's too sudden, don't worry. I'll give you plenty of time."

The professor set the time limit to exactly 40 minutes. Although it was a short time, the students grumbled, but Professor Virius dismissed their complaints.

"Also, if you relate your presentation to a book or experience other than Zaneon's biography, I'll give you extra points. Of course, if your presentation is excellent and related to Zaneon's biography, you'll also get extra points. Just be clear about what knowledge you gained. Now..."

"Start!" As the professor shouted, the students, after a brief moment of confusion, began to organize their thoughts in their notes or mumble to themselves.

I also wrote down my thoughts in the notebook I had prepared. I was confident because I had read many books and gained a lot of knowledge from them.

"Um... Isaac?"

"Hmm?"

Then Marie quietly called me. I looked at her with a questioning expression.

When I looked at her, she seemed hesitant but then smiled awkwardly and asked.

"Can you lend me a page of your notebook? I only brought a magic pen..."

"Sure."

I gladly tore a page from my notebook and handed it to her. Marie looked delighted and thanked me.

After receiving her gratitude and refocusing on my notebook, I heard a voice.

"Huh? Hey, what's this?"

"What?"

Marie showed me the back of the page I had given her. When I saw the drawing, I couldn't help but be surprised.

Marie, full of curiosity, asked me.

"Did you draw this?"

On the back of the page was the steam locomotive I had sketched for practice yesterday.