Chapter 38

It had been just over a month since the start of the school year, on a certain morning.

The Royal Academy's general dormitory, commonly known as the "loser's dorm," was overflowing with people.

Allen had decided to stay in the general dormitory with a light heart, thinking, "Well, this will do," without giving it much thought. However, his classmates, who greatly overinterpreted his decision, moved in en masse, with the exception of Ryeo and the others, all 19 of them.

Among them were those who had left their well-equipped homes with private tutors to move here.

To Allen, it was completely incomprehensible, but it was still better that his classmates had moved in.

However, the impact of the entire 1st Year A Class moving into the general dormitory was tremendous.

Moreover, rumors began to spread that the secret to Allen Lovain's decision to stay in the general dormitory was hidden in the dormitory's breakfast. These rumors led to more rumors, and before long, the general dormitory was fully booked.

The general dormitory, which could only accommodate 40 people, was suddenly at full capacity.

Students in classes D and above could live in the noble dormitory, which offered superior facilities and services, for the same dormitory fee as the general dormitory, 1000 reals per month.

Even students in class E could live in the noble dormitory by paying the regular fee of 5000 reals per month.

There were 60 students in class E across three grades, but the noble dormitory only needed to accommodate those who could not afford the 5000 reals, so this number was sufficient.

Most students who entered the Royal Academy were from wealthy families, including upper nobility.

This was natural, given the correlation between economic power and academic ability.

Occasionally, there were students from poor baronial families or commoners who had entered the academy through talent and hard work. However, in this capital, where Royal Academy students could hold multiple part-time jobs, such as private tutoring, earning the 5000 reals required for the noble dormitory was entirely possible.

Furthermore, paying the 5000 reals regular fee was still a bargain, considering the excellent facilities and services provided by the noble dormitory.

The noble dormitory's facilities and services were so well-equipped due to the generous budget provided by the state, accumulated through the solid track record of graduates over a long history, and the substantial donations from alumni.

Given the high salaries they would earn after graduation, it was only natural for students to choose the excellent environment of the noble dormitory, even if it meant taking on some debt to focus on their studies.

Therefore, the people who stayed in the general dormitory were either oddballs like Allen and Ryeo, or those who, like Allen, were from the countryside and still had a poor mentality, or those who, like Allen, had relationship issues with their classmates in the noble dormitory.

Originally, this dormitory, which had 40 rooms, had only five residents.

Two of them were Allen and Ryeo.

When the 19 other students from 1st Year A Class, excluding Allen, moved in, the remaining slots were suddenly reduced to 16.

These 16 slots were quickly filled by students who were quick to act.

When supply cannot meet demand, prices naturally rise.

Before long, the right to stay in the dormitory, which had been virtually worthless, was being sold for exorbitant amounts by students from wealthy families who had been slow to act.

Thus, the right to stay in the dormitory, which had been like an abandoned shack in the mountains, suddenly became as valuable as the Ginza district.

◆

"Really!

Because of you, I'm so busy I'm spinning!

Why do you have to be so extreme?

Learn to have some moderation!"

Sora was saying her usual complaints, but her sharp eyes looked pleased.

She was probably thinking about how to proceed with the experiments with the increased equipment.

It wasn't my fault at all, but I was helping Sora set the table.

The dormitory's breakfast menu varied from day to day, but today's menu was particularly bad, even by my standards.

The main dish was bread and a huge piece of fish, about 800 grams, fried to a golden brown with unsalted butter, and a yellow, viscous milk that was too scary to ask about.

Additionally, there was a purple fruit, like a dragon fruit, that looked poisonous.

Incidentally, when the dormitory was peaceful, I was the only one who ate, so the menu was focused on what I wanted as a mage.

However, with the sudden explosion in the number of residents, it was impossible to prepare different meals for each course, so the current menu was a general one for all courses.

"Even if you successfully learn external magic, you're going to be a magic knight, so it won't be a waste.

Since it's your fault, you should accept it!"

It wasn't my fault at all, but it was true, so I reluctantly agreed.

The main dish, the fish, emitted a pungent, fishy smell that suggested it was rotten.

The exhausted dormitory residents, who had just finished their morning training, entered the dining hall with a look of despair on their faces.

It wasn't just the smell.

The moment they stepped into the dining hall, the smell was so strong that it made them feel nauseous.

After helping with the table setting to some extent, I sat down at a six-person table with Al, Jue, Faye, Ryeo, and Dol.

All five of them were standing still, knives and forks in hand, as if facing a formidable enemy.

"Are you not going to eat?"

I stopped breathing through my nose, which had become somewhat numb from helping with the table setting, and convinced myself that this was just a strongly scented kusaya (a type of fermented fish) before putting a piece of the fish, which smelled rotten, into my mouth.

"Do you eat such things in the Lovain Viscount's territory?"

Ryeo asked me, looking as if he had received a severe cultural shock.

I swallowed the contents of my mouth and waited for the aftertaste to fade before answering.

If I spoke during the process, the smell would flow into my nose, and I would definitely vomit.

"There's no such thing.

It's all about mental preparation.

My tutor, Zold, used to say, 'When the mind is extinguished, the fire is also cool.'

...That's why I said you guys aren't ready for this training yet.

It might be better to run away now.

With your tail between your legs... you know."

I used a famous quote from my previous life, attributing it to Zold, to provoke my classmates.

"Ah, I see!

This is part of mental training.

When the mind is extinguished... it means that you won't lose to fear in any difficult situation...

What a great saying!"

Al, determined, cut the fish and quickly put it in his mouth, chewing it.

"Mmm. Yeah, indeed—

Ugh!"

Al, trying to speak with the fish in his mouth, vomited spectacularly and fell to his knees.

"Huff, huff, huff, huff..."

Seeing my classmate, who looked as if he had just completed a 100-man kata, with bloodshot eyes and heavy breathing, the other four, who had started to move, stopped again.

I watched them and took another bite of the fish, waiting for it to disappear from my mouth before giving advice to my classmates, who showed no signs of moving.

"You can't make up your mind because you don't have a clear purpose for eating.

I asked Sora earlier, and it seems this menu has an effect that assists in the transformation of mages.

Faye, who doesn't aim to be a mage, aside, the other four should try a bit harder, don't you think?"

Upon hearing my words, Faye's face brightened, while the other four looked even more despondent.

"Allen, you're so mean.

If you had told us this from the beginning, it would have been better.

I'll just have bread and fruit this morning.

You all should try hard, okay?"

Faye smiled and looked down at the table, peeled the fruit, and bit into it with enthusiasm.

"Ah!" I said, but it was too late.

"Ugh!"

Faye spat out the fruit, laughed dangerously, and dived towards the plate of rotten fish, apparently fainting.

"Faye!"

Jue hurried to help her.

"Too late...

That fruit is very sour, so it's better not to put so much in your mouth without thinking."

I warned my classmates a bit late.

I remembered the intense sourness that resonated in my head from when it had appeared before they moved in.

"Very sour?

Why would someone faint from sourness..."

Dol muttered, looking at Faye, who was convulsing on the floor.

"She has a pulse..."

Jue reported Faye's survival, pinching her nose, as Faye was covered in fish.

"...Can you give us more advice, Allen?

Do you have any tips?"

Ryeo asked for advice.

This kind of honesty is one of his good points.

"There's no perfect strategy.

The most important thing, as I said earlier, is mental preparation.

If I talk about techniques, it's best not to breathe through your nose for strong-smelling foods, and not to speak while chewing, like Al did.

For strongly flavored foods, it's better to take small bites and chew as little as possible.

Under no circumstances should you use a body-strengthening magic to quickly finish the meal.

If you concentrate magic around your mouth, unless you can focus it precisely on the muscles, your senses will become more acute, and your movements will become rough, leading to disaster."

Of course, I had also caused a disaster.

Experience speaks.

Ryeo, after hearing my advice, seemed to make up his mind and started to eat the fish.

He slowly put the fish in his mouth, chewed, and swallowed.

...That's good, but I wish he wouldn't eat while glaring at me with tears streaming from his bloodshot eyes...

While eating breakfast, I had a sudden thought.

Excluding Faye, who had fainted, the people here were all, by chance, blessed with the talent for external magic.

"I want to start an External Magic Research Club. What do you think?"