episode_0033

The first impression wasn’t bad. It was a scene that seemed far removed from anything malicious.

The welcome party venue, set up in a spacious lecture hall, was filled with all sorts of food. On both walls, tables were laden with food like a buffet. One wall had dishes like sandwiches, pizza, chicken, and french fries. The opposite wall was full of sweet desserts such as cakes, muffins, donuts, and cookies.

“Wow! It’s a party!”

I was worried, thinking they might make us do some strange initiation ritual, but it seems the seniors in our department are generous and kind people. Otherwise, there’s no way they would have spent their own money to prepare all this food.

Just then, some students who appeared to be seniors were tidying up the area. One of them noticed my presence and turned around.

“Oh, are you a freshman?”

“Yes!”

When I answered with a smile, the seniors also replied with smiles.

“By any chance, your name is…”

“It’s Violet!”

As I greeted them, one of the seniors led me to a seat. He looked me over for a moment and asked,

“You didn’t happen to bring any weapons, did you?”

“No, why?”

“Today’s event is important. They’re valuables, right? If you have any, you can check them at the back and come in. If not, just take a seat!”

Several tables were set up in the room, with three or four chairs arranged around each table. I sat and waited for a moment.

Soon after, other first-year freshmen also entered the room where the welcome party was being held.

“Wow… what is all this…”

“It looks like a real welcome ceremony, doesn’t it?”

The bewildered expressions of the freshmen who entered gradually brightened. The seniors greeted them with smiles, and the first-years awkwardly entered and greeted them. As everyone took a seat one by one, the room became packed.

“Uh… hello…”

“Hello.”

Two first-year students also sat in the two seats next to me. One was a black-haired girl with her hair tied in something similar to twin tails, and the other was…

-Agh! It’s an Ogre! Did he have a sibling?- -No, it’s a completely different person! Calm down, Unit 5.-

It was a large male student, reminiscent of the Ogre guard from the research lab days. His appearance, like a roughly carved stone statue, didn’t make him look like a student. He seemed intimidating to talk to.

Once everyone had gathered, the freshman welcome party began. A good-natured looking student with a buzz cut took the microphone set up at the front.

“First-year juniors of 2025! Welcome everyone! I am Camerdin, the third-year department representative of our Dungeon Strategy and Management Department. This welcome party was held to foster camaraderie and friendship among the students of our department. So please, all of you, make yourselves comfortable.”

Another female student next to him took the microphone and explained,

“That’s right! Welcome everyone. It was supposed to be held in the first week, but it was unavoidably postponed to this week. You haven’t met each other before, have you?”

That’s right. They say we’re in the same department, but everyone here looks unfamiliar. It feels like we might have taken classes together, though.

-Well, that’s because the class group only ever checked attendance and messed around.-

“Alright, everyone, you haven’t had dinner yet, have you? We’ve prepared a small meal here for you. Eat deliciously, greet each other, and have conversations. Understood?”

As the senior finished speaking at the front, one first-year student cautiously raised their hand and spoke.

“But… seniors. I heard that if you eat something like this at this freshman management association or whatever it is, they give you some kind of initiation. Can we really eat this?”

At the freshman’s cautious words, one of the senior female students waved her hand dismissively.

“Oh, come on~ Our department doesn’t do that! It’s fine. In this day and age, old-fashioned control like that? Does that even make sense? Don’t you agree?”

“They’re the weird ones. Don’t worry!”

Other seniors around them also chimed in. The one named Camerdin took the microphone again and spoke.

“Alright, we prepared this, so eat it all deliciously without leaving anything behind. And have a good time!”

“Seniors, you’re the best!”

“Thank you!”

The first-year students cheered.

Everyone relaxed and began eating the prepared food. Already, some could be seen leaving their seats to talk with other students.

-Ugh, but something feels awkward.- -Yeah.-

Now that I look, aren’t all these guys already familiar with each other, except for me? I don’t know any peers besides Daphne and Kalia. This is a big problem.

I took some food, sat down, and began to eat. It was mainly greasy and salty food, but it wasn’t bad.

“It’s delicious!”

The drinks seemed a bit scarce, but being able to eat something without having to worry about others in this darn school meant they couldn’t be better seniors.

As I ate, my other selves from different regions began to clamor.

-Wow! The taste is pretty good, isn’t it?- -Me too! Give me some too!-

I immediately appeased my other selves.

-There’s a lot of food here, so I’ll sneak a few!-

Since all sorts of food were piled up like mountains, I decided to discreetly pack some into my inventory. Wouldn’t that save on food costs too?

I frantically shoved food into my mouth, and my plate was soon empty. When I looked up to stand, my eyes met the two people next to me. I felt like I should say something, but the words wouldn’t come out. In the awkward silence, we both hesitated, unable to utter a single word.

“Um… is there a problem?”

When I broke the silence, the girl with twin tails hesitated before answering.

“Ah! Yes! I… I’m Levi! Levi Schneider!”

Hmm, was it time for introductions? I didn’t know who she was, but I had to answer.

“Levi? Alright! Nice to meet you. I’m Violet!”

After I answered, only the rock-sized student next to me remained.

“…Granite. That’s all you need to know.”

The large student, who introduced himself as Granite, picked up his plate and stood up as if it were nothing. He’s big, so he must eat a lot.

I diligently emptied about three plates, secretly teleporting a few more items of food. As the atmosphere of the event intensified, one of the senior students holding a microphone at the front brought up a topic.

“Anyone want to come up and sing a song?”

Amidst the lively atmosphere, an interesting idea came to mind.

“Me!”

“Oh! The female student in the back! Come on up!”

Ordinarily, I wouldn’t have gone up, but just today, I felt like trying it.

As soon as I got on stage, I grabbed the microphone and began to sing a legendary masterpiece.

“If~ I go to Jongno~ If I approach Myeongdong~”

“…Alright! Next person!”

As soon as I murmured one or two lines, the seniors sharply chased me off the stage.

“Whine…”

No way, it was clearly a song that worked! Why didn’t it work here? This world must be too emotionally barren. In some novel I read, everyone loved it.

I muttered to myself as I returned to my seat and put more food into my mouth.

Before long, as time passed, people gradually started to leave their seats one by one.

No, they tried to leave. One student opened the door and was about to step out, but the door was locked.

-Click!-

“Oh? The door’s locked. I’m going out.”

“Where do you think you’re going?”

The seniors’ faces suddenly twisted into menacing scowls. The third-year department representative, the guy holding the microphone, suddenly spoke.

“Alright, alright, attention! Everyone, please look at the shelves?”

The shelves were still piled high with a large amount of food.

“Since we’ve already prepared it, I’d like you all to eat everything before you go. It would be a waste if it were thrown away, wouldn’t it?”

“But I’m full?”

-Bang!-

As one student spoke, the seniors each grabbed a weapon and began to cause a disturbance. It was nothing short of a threat.

“Do you know how much this is worth? Are you ignoring our sincerity?”

Some of the students could be seen fumbling at their waists. However, those spots were empty. It was clear their faces were turning pale.

Come to think of it, those guys told us to check our weapons outside before coming in, didn’t they?

-These bastards, they planned this, didn’t they?- -I wondered why they asked about that!-

It didn’t matter to me since I had an inventory and teleportation abilities, but all the first-year students were completely disarmed!

The first-year students, realizing the situation, despaired. The seniors now forced their juniors to eat.

“What a disappointment. Did we ask you to do anything weird? Is it really that hard to hear us say not to waste food?”

“Alright! It’s nothing major, just think of it as being able to go home once you eat all of this. Understood?”

Perhaps thinking it was better to just force the food down, the students picked up the food and began to stuff themselves.

Unfortunately, most of the students were already full, and it seemed like there was no more room left in their stomachs.

Oh, for goodness sake. I should have abandoned my expectations the moment I heard that incomprehensible, messy name, “Dungeon Strategy and Management Department.” These guys were the same kind of people.

Other first-year students also began to stuff themselves with food, eating mustard while crying [meaning doing something reluctantly or under duress]. It was an absurd situation they were experiencing for the first time, so they must have been angry and afraid.

Only then did I realize the intentions of those senior bastards.

‘These bastards, they were planning food torture!’

It was a method of breaking in new recruits, also known as ‘akkibari’ [a military hazing practice involving forced overeating]. I never expected to encounter this in a game world.

With a thud, a huge cheesecake was placed on the table. It looked to be about 50cm in diameter.

“Alright, juniors. Eat deliciously. Don’t leave a single, bit, behind.”

Wow, when did these bastards prepare something like this?

Now that I think about it, the menu selection was intentional too.

-Chicken, pizza, sandwiches, and all the desserts are cakes, muffins, or cookies.- -They’re all salty and sweet, and full of dry food, aren’t they? They planned this.-

These guys are trying to play tricks with food.

The girl next to me, Levi, with her two-sided updo, was eating tearfully, perhaps scared of the seniors’ glares.

The guy named Granite next to me was stuffing food into his mouth, but judging by how he wasn’t hiding his discomfort, it felt like he was about to explode.

Looking at those senior bastards from afar, they were openly snickering at us. The third-year department representative looked like he was struggling to hold back his laughter.

-This is ridiculous. To see this here.- -Guys who haven’t even gone to the military are doing this?-

Why on earth are they doing something like this?

The more I thought about it, the more outrageous it seemed.

As I pondered, a way to prank these guys came to mind.

I don’t know about anything else, but I can’t stand to see those bastards laughing anymore.

-Alright! If leaving leftovers is such a grave sin, then let’s eat it all!-

I went to a shelf, piled a huge amount of food onto a plate, and returned. One plate didn’t seem like enough, so I took two, carefully bringing them back to my seat so they wouldn’t spill. When I set them down on the table, a thud sounded.

“Hold on! Violet! Can you eat all of that?”

“Hey, you said your name was Violet, right? That… looks like too much for you.”

Levi and Granite, who were sitting next to me, were startled the moment they saw my plates. It was understandable. I had piled up every kind of food imaginable like a mountain. They must have wondered how it would all fit inside a small girl like me.

“It’s fine! I’m actually a former food fighter.”

“A food fighter…”

I carefully picked up the food with my bare hands and began putting it into my mouth. To be exact, I teleported it right before it entered my mouth. The inventory required a preparatory action of putting items in and taking them out, so teleportation was faster in this situation.

-Wow! It’s free food!- -Since it’s come to this, let’s sweep it all away!-

A moment later, all the cheesecake on our table vanished. Immediately, the food at the welcome party venue began to disappear in an instant.

“Huh…? When did it decrease so much?” “They’ll finish it all quickly, won’t they?”

The first-year students, who had been looking tearful under duress, suddenly brightened. In contrast, the seniors’ faces twisted again. This was because every item I picked up was immediately teleported away.

“What? Already…”

Meanwhile, in the Central Violet Barracks, we screamed with joy. Food was continuously teleported from hand to hand.

-Wow! Food is being duplicated!- -Thank you, senior!-

We organized and put it back into our inventory. It looks like we won’t starve for a while!

As I diligently scooped up and swept away the food, the seniors’ gazes gradually turned to me.

“You, what’s your name?”

“It’s Violet!”

The third-year department representative, the guy who introduced himself as Camerdin, approached me with his colleagues.