episode_0051

3rd place in the meeting.

That was the grade Astron ultimately accepted.

It was a disappointing result, so I could have accepted it.

“Astron! Astron! Astron!”

“Let’s send Fiona to graduate school! Let’s make her a professor!”

“You’re really trying to escape last place before you graduate… … !!”

Half of the Astron students were beyond enthusiastic and bordered on madness.

Fiona, who was only an assistant to Professor Lukesil and an ordinary honor student, established herself as a great person representing Astron, and the smiles on the professors’ faces never disappeared.

In particular, the response from third graders was greater than that of first graders who did not yet know much about Astron.

“Huh? 4th place passes over there. If you got 4th place, you did well, right? Arke is kind of talented, hmm.”

“Hey, last place! uh? Hey, sorry about this! Of course I thought it was Astron, but I didn’t know it was Terra! I’m so sorry!”

“Agni? Arche? Terra? They’re all under us. Now, it’s trash, right?”

As if trying to relieve all the disdain they had received for the past 3 years for being in last place, the 3rd graders literally continued to criticize the magic towers ranked 3rd and lower in all lectures without a break.

At first, even those who tried their best to ignore it by saying, “That’s possible,” couldn’t stand it anymore.

“Hey! You guys have been in last place for 5 years! I guess I was lucky enough to escape… … !!”

“Yeah, you guys are bad~ In the end, you’re lower than Astron at this year’s meeting, right? Are you needlessly clinging to the past? Are the results real now?”

“That’s 3rd place anyway! Not first place, or at least not second place! With such an ambiguous ranking──”

“Then you are not being vague, but clearly low?”

“You son of a bitch!!”

Even though we had to worry about being in last place for 6 years in a row, we didn’t just escape last place, we came in 3rd place.

To be honest, it felt like a miracle had happened to the Astron students who had given up on Kyle Byron, Monopoly, and everything else.

Natura took first place, and Glesia took second place.

“You lost to Astron? What on earth are those guys… … ?”

“Astron? Of course he was strong. Still, not to our level. You… … … Oh, Terra? I was wondering where the smell of last place was coming from, and it was you?”

“You guys are talented at that level too! It was worse than Astron! Well done! It was worse than Astron! Try next year! We have to win from Astron first!”

I was sincere in making fun of the 4th, 5th, and 6th place players below Astron.

Unlike Agni and Arche, who could at least respond, Terra was filled with venom.

“Next year’s meeting event is our turn… … ?”

“Even if you defeat Astron with magic… … … If you don’t win at Monopoly, you’ll have to go through this chaos until you graduate!”

“It’s definitely Monopoly. I will train hard with Monopoly for the next year!”

Already among Terra students, the opinion that next year’s meeting event should be Monopoly was taken for granted.

Although it is clearly a place to learn magic, it is an unconventional declaration that board games, not magic, will be the meeting event for the second year in a row.

Nevertheless, there was no particular noise. Monopoly has already become so deeply ingrained in the students of the academy’s magic department.

As I announced in advance, this trend was further deepened when another Monopoly was installed in Natura’s dormitory, where she won first place in the meeting.

Since it was a hastily constructed product, the quality and details were not as good as those installed in Astron, but it was still of considerable quality.

Astron’s students are cheering, and Monopoly is gradually spreading.

“Honestly, it’s a shame.”

“Are you still like that? Lucesil.”

“3rd place is a good enough grade, but… … … 1st place wouldn’t have been impossible.”

Lukesil, the high-ranking mage of the Astron Tower, was sighing in her office.

Of course, it was a sigh of regret.

Fiona, sitting on the sofa in the office, seemed to take it a little differently.

“Sorry… … Professor Lukesil… … … .”

“Huh? Oh, no. Fion, you did well enough!”

“Kyle and Lucesil also made fun of me for being in 3rd place… … … Since I received private lessons, I should have come in first place… … !!”

“Well, I think there is a bit of a misunderstanding already.”

“Yes?”

“Board games are not for studying or testing. Just because you take lessons doesn’t mean your skills will improve dramatically.”

If you tell me various strategies and tips, my win rate will increase. However, in strategy games like Monopoly, individual judgment is more important.

Unless it is a mystery board game, there is no clear answer. Even if it is a mystery board game, how to solve the middle part is different for each person.

In that respect, even though Fiona had an honors birthday, she was not a great board game player.

“If it were me, I would have stepped forward before Agni was eliminated, rather than in a three-way match.”

“Yes… … ?”

“As a result, there was no hope when Glesia and Natura divided and absorbed all of Agni and Arche’s land and gold.”

Although Fiona used the strategy I taught her, she struck an unexpected blow at Glesia.

In the end, Glesia lost one monopoly, but soon recovered and put pressure on Astron. It was a threatening blow, but not enough to knock him down.

Because other lands were brought from Agni and Arche.

To aim for first place, Astron had to directly eliminate Agni and Arche and absorb their lands.

Besides that.

“It’s good to hide your presence, but we didn’t go overboard with our transactions. Since it is a board game played by 6 people anyway, there would have been no problem even if it had been a profitable transaction. Or, you can deliberately act as if you are being caught and induce a large transaction.”

“Ah.”

“And you were too obsessed with the first monopoly. They even built a hotel, but considering the toll tax, it wasn’t a very good decision. As a result, there was more to lose than to capitalize on the advantage of being the first to achieve a monopoly due to an unexpected transaction.”

“Yes… … … .”

“… … Above all else.”

The level of Glesia and Natura was clearly high.

Honestly, it’s hard to believe that this person has been playing Monopoly for a week now.

‘The representatives of Agni, Arche, and Terra were at exactly the level I expected.’

I got a feel for it, but I didn’t really understand Monopoly.

Honestly, that was great enough. If all the other representatives were at that level, Fiona would have won even if the mistakes mentioned above had been made.

However, the representatives of Glesia and Natura were different.

‘Glesia made good use of aggressive investment. At the point where we were targeting only the northern monopoly where tolls were the highest, if we failed, we would have been in last place… … I became successful at gambling and grew in size.’

and.

Natura’s representative… … … no.

My first brother.

‘Unlike the aggressive Glesia, I stayed in prison and played as defensively as possible. There was luck at the right time, and I had a good strategy from the beginning.’

Instead of targeting the North, where it is obvious that competition will be fierce, they aim for the West to achieve a monopoly, and focus on prisons and cheap land as much as possible, aiming for a time when the opponent will stumble.

As a result, while Glesia was reeling by selling the hotel due to Astron’s machinations, I took as much of Glesia’s gold as possible, and that difference decided the final game.

A starting line that comes in with a strategy in place from the beginning, a thoroughly defensive and deterrent play, and yet a determination to step forward when it is time to do so.

To be honest… … It was great.

He was a really great board game player.

It’s hard to believe that he’s the oldest brother I know.

‘He was a very calm person.’

If I understood Monopoly to that level, I would have been obsessed with Monopoly all day and night.

Why was my eldest brother so focused on Monopoly?

Because it’s your brother’s board game? Or purely out of preference? If not, is it related to the second child who is currently in Eunkwang?

Since she had always been quiet and expressionless like Adela, it was impossible to understand her true feelings.

The eldest brother, who hardly ever talked to me or Frederick.

What on earth is the eldest son, who will inherit the title of Viscount Byron, thinking?

I left myself on the sofa with endless questions.

──… … Gotta go… … … Kyle… … …

──… … … Joe, fuck… … … Shut it off… … …

“Huh?”

I immediately got up from my seat when I heard a rare sound coming from outside the office.

Because both voices were heard before.

“Sally?”

“Do, master! Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it. Drink… … !!”

“What kind of processing is that…? … .”

ah.

“Brother?”

“… … … Kyle.”

“Sally, you didn’t say you would deal with your brother, did you?”

“Well, that’s… … … .”

It’s probably because of Frederick’s work.

After that child’s second gambling incident, Sally seemed to harbor considerable hostility towards her eldest brother. Unlike Frederick, it didn’t bother me, but in Sally’s thoughts, the first and second children would both be there.

After lightly hitting Sally on the forehead, I looked at my eldest brother standing in front of the office door.

He’s much more handsome than me or Frederick, tall, with long flowing black hair, and Adela’s tall expressionless face.

I couldn’t believe it even more because he really looked like he had no interest in anything other than studying or magic.

Why did a model student who didn’t seem to pay attention to games like entertainment focus on Monopoly to the point where he appeared as the representative of Natura?

I came back into the office with Sally, who was sullen but stayed right next to me and watched over my eldest brother until the end.

“Lukesil, I am a sudden guest, but will you be okay?”

“Um… … ? Are you really that genius from Natura?”

“This is an undeserved evaluation.”

“Why are Natura’s professors making such a fuss? There was an uproar that coming to the Academy instead of the Magic Tower was a loss for the magic world.”

Lukesil looked at his eldest brother for a moment.

He quickly nodded and continued speaking.

“Yes, you too were Viscount Byron. You came to see Kyle, right?”

“… … That’s right.”

“Then I’ll just talk without worrying about it. Rest comfortably.”

It was a bit of a strange feeling. My eldest brother is treated poorly by Lucesil, but I am treated with the utmost respect.

Although it was natural due to the difference between the students and professors at the academy and the difference between the invitee and the invitee.

It was quite a strange feeling to hear embarrassing praises showered on my eldest brother, such as calling him a genius and a loss to the magic world that the professors had been making a fuss about just a moment ago.

Especially because I once dreamed of becoming a magical genius like my eldest brother.

… … Now that I think about it, this guy is a genius who even knows how to use Aurors, right?

Even though Frederick’s right of succession passed to me, there was a reason why the family was not greatly shaken. What use is second place when the eldest son is already a genius who has established himself at this level?

The eldest son of a promising self-author and a genius in both magic and Auror. Even if he tried to make a difference, he was in a difficult position.

“… … Professor Lukesil, is it Kyle… … Would it be okay for the two of you to talk?”

“Hmm? Are you asking me to vacate the office?”

“I think it will be Byron’s story.”

“Brother?”

No, if you’re going to do that, you can go to my guest room or your brother’s room. Why are you having this conversation in Luke’s office?

This is an unprecedented situation where a student unexpectedly visits a professor from another department and asks him to leave the office because he is going to have a sensitive conversation with his family.

The reason Lucesil didn’t protest right away was because of me.

Lukesil looked at me, the ‘guest of honor’, for a moment between his eldest brother, who was a ‘student’, and me.

“… … good. Anyway, I had a place to go with Pion.”

“Thank you for your generous consideration.”

“But keep in mind. If it weren’t for Kyle, it wouldn’t have been surprising if he had been kicked out of the office right away. You are a genius too, but Kyle is even more evil… … You’re a genius.”

Is it to cheer me up, who seems a bit discouraged in front of my brother?

Lucesil gave me a somewhat excessive lift and left the office with Fiona, who was still bowing her head.

The only people left in that spacious office were me, my brother, Sally, Adela, and the water tiger.

“… … … I would like Kyle, Sally and the others to leave as well.”

“Hyung, what on earth are you talking about? I don’t know about Adela or the water tiger, but even Sally?”

“Please.”

It wasn’t me who answered that question, but Sally and Adela.

“I am the master’s escort maid. I will never fall.”

“As a high-ranking wizard of the Arche Mage Tower, I also have a duty to ensure the safety of the man who is an honorary elder of the tower.”

Sally and Adela coldly refused.

[Rung.]

The water tiger took a clearly hostile stance.

Nevertheless, my eldest brother was looking at me until the end.

With a deadpan expression, I still don’t know what he’s thinking.

“… … Everyone please leave.”

“Do, master!”

“You.”

“We’re family. Is there anything wrong? or not… … Brother, even if it’s Sally and Adella, the water spirit is okay, right? Is it really not possible to do that?”

“… … … … … .”

“Brother?”

“… … … Yes, I understand.”

“Did you hear that? The water tiger will protect you no matter what happens, so please wait outside the door for a moment. Otherwise, it looks like they’ll never talk about it.”

“… … … … … .”

“… … … … … … .”

Even if my eldest brother is against me like Frederick, having a water tiger could buy me some time.

It’s not like you’re going far, it’s just outside the door, so it should be okay.

Sally, who kept fiddling with the hilt of the dagger on her waist at my request, and Adela, who was glaring at her brother, barely managed to get out.

He never seemed to agree, so I’m sure he’ll suffer quite a bit from now on.

To be honest, as I got to this point, I was curious about what my eldest brother had to say.

“That’s it now, right? There really is no one except the water tiger.”

“… … This is the last time.”

Wow.

“This?”

“It is soundproofing magic. With this, it will be difficult for Sally and that high-ranking wizard, who has their ear against the door, to eavesdrop on the conversation.”

“Okay. Then tell me something now. Byron’s story? What on earth are you talking about?”

I sit across from him on the sofa and look at my eldest brother. Even though I asked, I had an idea of what my brother was going to say.

‘It must be Frederick’s work.’

From the eldest brother’s point of view, while he was at the academy, the second brother committed gambling, had his hand cut off and was sent to a silver mine, and the third took over the second son’s succession. Since I came to the academy in such a situation, of course they would want to hear my story.

You must have received a letter from your father… … … perhaps.

‘You might think of it as challenging your brother’s right to succession.’

You may be wary, saying that since you have passed the second brother, it may be the first brother’s turn next.

In the end, my eldest brother and I didn’t know each other very well.

The eldest brother looked like he was thinking for a moment.

“… … … Kyle.”

“Okay, bro.”

“No, Kyle.”

“… … Huh?”

for a moment.

what?

For a moment, I was dumbfounded, wondering if I had heard wrong.

The eldest brother put his hand inside the coat.

[…] … Urrung!]

At this moment, the water tiger showed its teeth in case he took out a weapon from inside his coat.

The eldest brother took out a pen and a Monopoly land document, held it politely with both hands and handed it to me with the same expressionless expression.

“Sign, please… … .”

“… … … … brother? What about Byron? Wasn’t it about Frederick?”

“That’s… … It’s a lie.”

“No, then why did you send Lucesil, Sally, and Adela away?”

“I’m embarrassed… … … .”

“… … … … .”

This bastard.

what… … ?