Ch.113113 – Just Made Up My Mind

# 113 – Just Decided

Wednesday’s class schedule began.

That means the Cultivating an Eye class is starting!

I came to the classroom expecting what kind of lecture our justice-minded professor would give today, but for some reason, the atmosphere in the classroom was tense.

“Oh. You’re here, Oknodie?”

“Hello, senior!”

“That thing from last time, I put it to good use.”

“Hehe. Me too.”

After exchanging brief greetings with Senior Bigstone, Senior Rizna, who was sitting next to him fixing her hair, looked at me suspiciously with a “Hmm-“

“What’s this? When did you two get so close?”

“Senior gave me something good!”

“Something good?”

“A mushroom that’s small but makes a full portion!”

“…Mushroom?”

Senior Rizna glared at Senior Bigstone.

“What did you do to this kid? Surely not… right?”

“Of course not! We just made a win-win deal after class.”

Senior Bigstone exclaimed in horror.

“Ah, I didn’t mean the quality was bad. It was small but an excellent mushroom!”

Senior Rizna’s gaze grew even colder.

“What do you mean ‘of course not,’ you trash? You wanted to show a ‘small but excellent mushroom’ to a ten-year-old kid?”

“Say red-toothed mushroom! Oknodie!! Quickly say red-toothed mushroom!!!”

“It was a red-toothed mushroom!”

“…You should have said that from the beginning. If you just say ‘small but excellent mushroom,’ people can’t help but think strange thoughts.”

Senior Bigstone crossed his legs and avoided her gaze, apparently conscious of Senior Rizna looking down at his waistband.

“Senior, why are you suddenly crossing your legs?”

“I’m sorry, junior. I don’t know what crime I’ve committed, but it must be a mortal sin. Can’t you just forgive me and go away?”

“Oknodie. Why are you tormenting this innocent senior so early in the morning?”

Thanks to Isabelle’s admonishment to take it easy, I stopped teasing the naive senior and got back to the main point.

“But why is the classroom atmosphere like this?”

“You’re asking because you don’t know? Obviously because of the assignment.”

“Ah, I see.”

Due to Titosoga’s unintentional trolling, the assignment now had both additional bonus points and penalty points.

To avoid group penalties, everyone had to go through the trouble of preparing reference books and official documents related to “Cultivating an Eye for Property Valuation.”

The awkward distance and chilly atmosphere among the freshmen was due to the tension and wariness toward each other to avoid receiving penalty points.

“Ah, hello, Oknodie…”

“Titosoga. Why are you standing at the entrance?”

“Ugh. Somehow it’s hard to go in.”

Well, the freshmen had said a lot of harsh things to Titosoga after the last lecture.

“Everyone! Titosoga is here, so apologize!”

“Aaaah, Oknodie! How could you announce it so loudly!”

“It’s better to reconcile quickly in situations like this!”

If left alone, people get sulky with each other, and later they fight more insidiously. As they continue fighting, they become enemies, and the academy atmosphere becomes hostile.

Although future conflicts between classmates are inevitable due to fixed events, there’s no need to be on edge from the beginning of the semester.

“Why should we apologize?”

“We might get penalty points because of Titosoga.”

The freshmen grumbled and expressed their dissatisfaction.

“If you get penalty points, it’s not because of Titosoga, but because you were lazy and didn’t prepare for the assignment!”

“Y-you! What do you know to say such things!”

“I’m the group’s top student, so you should obviously listen to me about studying and assignments!”

At school and academy, grades are everything.

“What’s your class ranking?” One sentence is enough to establish the hierarchy!

The students reluctantly apologized while grumbling.

Neither Titosoga nor I expected sincere apologies.

It’s something that the proud Gift Academy students would even pretend to apologize.

After all, a student’s main enemy isn’t the model student.

“Now, let’s check how well everyone did on their first assignment. Take out the reference books and official documents you brought.”

The professor with a handsome face and large justice pocket who cruelly works students to the bone is the real enemy!

The students each took out books and documents they thought necessary for checking nobles’ property details.

A great thief must develop an eye for identifying what assets wealthy households have!

…According to Professor Bronze’s theory, students had prepared for the assignment in their own ways.

“Professor. I brought land registers to identify territories owned by noble families!”

“Well done, Vivian. Since local lords tend to accumulate wealth and assets from land income without markets, understanding land is the most basic foundation.”

“I determined that a lord’s vassals are the core of their assets, so I looked up the vassal contract lists submitted to each country’s central government!”

“Good work, Adolf. The vassals protect the lord’s land. Understanding the status of command ranks is also important.”

However, these students had merely gotten by with document inquiries.

Titosoga, apparently quite upset about being bullied by everyone, had borrowed three reference books.

“I compiled a list of territories where wealth accumulates by checking rental business operators who manage private storage of surplus agricultural products in each region, and I also made a list of territories where surplus yields aren’t redistributed to farmers based on minstrels’ testimonies about regional festivals!”

Professor Bronze applauded for the first time.

“Excellent. The more a lord fails to invest in the welfare, convenience, and development of his territory, the more likely that unjust wealth accumulates and the people suffer. You’ve shown an excellent eye that doesn’t miss the ‘righteousness’ of a righteous thief.”

The students found Titosoga’s praise annoying but acknowledged his thoroughness.

Even Isabelle, who had heard about borrowing books from the school store, hadn’t prepared as thoroughly as Titosoga.

Even the second-year seniors Bigstone and Rizna didn’t receive as much praise as Titosoga.

“Does that kid only take the Cultivating an Eye class? Why did he prepare so intensely?”

“Don’t make excuses, Bigstone. You look extremely ugly right now.”

As the assignment submission and inspection continued, it was soon Sing’s turn.

Everyone was watching expectantly to see what this solitary Eastern swordsman had prepared, but Sing had nothing on his desk and kept his arms crossed.

“Sing. Do you have nothing to show?”

“This assignment doesn’t help with sword training.”

What incredible audacity to declare to the professor’s face that he prepared nothing because the teaching wasn’t necessary for him!

“Wow. That’s fucking charismatic.”

“Isn’t he cool?”

Despite the seniors’ admiration, Sing naturally received the lowest score and penalty points.

Finally, it was my turn, the last in order.

“Freshman Oknodie. Did you also not prepare anything?”

“Of course not.”

Few people can live with such a my-way attitude like Sing.

Even I, a player, don’t have that level of audacity, so I obediently presented the books and documents I had prepared.

At most three books.

Unlike other students who just brought a few official documents, I built a tower of books and documents.

“This is a certified copy of the land register, this is the vassal contract list, warehouse rental status and surplus yield redistribution list, and I also brought precious metal sales and auction records for each territory!”

Of course, I had memorized everything the NPCs had researched while taking this class and borrowed the same materials.

“Now I see why the top student is the top student.”

“Wow. So that’s what it takes to be number one.”

“She has everything we brought.”

I feel a bit guilty for stealing others’ efforts, but the professor himself is a righteous thief!

[You have completed the Cultivating an Eye class assignment most excellently.]

[Professor Bronze becomes more convinced that he should make you his disciple.]

[You can advance to the class ‘Righteous Thief’s Disciple’.]

…But wasn’t the reward supposed to be different?

Where are my points?

Where’s the reward and why am I only getting punished?

I pouted in frustration, but Professor Bronze found it cute and smiled contentedly.

He’s truly a wicked professor.

“Titosoga. You’ll be the top student from the next lecture.”

“No thanks. How could I match Oknodie’s preparedness? I don’t think I could win even if I died and came back to life.”

“No. Even if you don’t want to, I’ll make you the top student.”

“Oknodie. Do you want to help me that much?”

“Let’s say that’s the reason.”

“Oknodie…!”

This is groundwork to pass Professor Bronze’s aggro to Titosoga, but since the person in question is so happy about it, it should be fine!

* *

After diligently attending the lecture, I came out to find first-year students with long faces during lunch time. They should have been hunting Giant King Crabs as a class, pooling their strength and wisdom, but instead they were just sucking their fingers.

“What are you all doing here?”

“The third-year seniors took all the Giant King Crabs.”

“!!”

Hungry seniors swept away the prey, leaving them suddenly starving!

“Then why not catch fish?”

“That’s impossible too, nya.”

The cat-person Zenya complained with a sad frog-like face.

“The second-year seniors launched fishing boats and are taking all the fish, nya. If we want fish, we have to buy them with points…”

The 980th generation second-year seniors have started playing dirty tricks.

They’re using their power to impose unreasonable demands, like large guilds monopolizing hunting grounds and charging seat fees.

What? Are they looking for a fight?

My heart ached seeing my classmates starving and licking salt from their fingers.

“Oh dear. That’s too bad!”

“Oknodie needs to eat well to grow tall too, nya. Poor thing.”

“I’m fine. I was invited to Arcadia’s tea time!”

Fill my food catalog and my stomach—two birds with one stone.

I went to find Arcadia thinking hunger was someone else’s problem, but devastating news awaited me.

“I’m sorry, Di. Given the situation, I’ve decided to exercise noblesse oblige and go hungry today too. The tea time to taste yakgwa from the East is canceled.”

I’m going to crush the second-years threatening the first-years’ right to survive.

I just decided.