Ch.26Someone Has to Eat Alone if Others Are Eating Together…

Perhaps it was because it was still a bit early for dinner, but the spacious dining hall was quiet and empty.

A faint lavender scent permeated the entire room, and chandeliers decorating the ceiling swayed gently, casting bright light below.

In the center of the dining hall, six-person round tables with red tablecloths were arranged in two rows of three each. At every seat, crystal glasses and silver cutlery were neatly placed on white napkins.

One wall of the dining hall was blocked by a metal door connected to the kitchen, and through the gap, the appetizing smell of meat subtly wafted out.

Asha, who was sitting at one of the tables, spotted me and waved.

“Ah! It’s been three days, Haschal. Are you here for dinner?”

“Yes. Are you eating alone, Asha?”

I didn’t mean it as mockery.

Surely eating alone in a dining hall couldn’t be something worthy of ridicule in this world too, right?

“Kalix said he doesn’t eat meat, so he’s eating separately. I haven’t met anyone else yet.”

“Where did you leave your guard?”

Setting aside Kalix, special admission students can have one guard, so couldn’t she eat with that person?

I came to eat with Nigel after all.

“My guard is an automaton! It doesn’t need to eat. Would you like me to show you sometime?”

“Ah, I see…”

Asha smiled brightly as she waved her fork.

As expected of a Dwarf. It was a fitting statement for a race that had undergone their own technological revolution in a world that was closer to medieval times.

I sat down next to Asha, and Nigel headed toward the kitchen, saying he would place our dinner orders.

“Oh? Looks like Frider came for dinner too.”

“The silver-haired woman?”

Following Asha’s words, I looked toward the entrance and saw Frider walking in alone with determined steps.

She had removed the fur coat that had looked so hot, but even inside the dormitory, she was still wearing a neat academy uniform.

Meanwhile, Asha had removed her mechanical equipment and was wearing simple clothes.

My eyes met with Frider’s as she briefly scanned the dining hall.

She frowned sharply and turned her head away.

“Frider seems to be alone too. Should we invite her over?”

“Would she come if we called? I’m sitting here. We’d just make each other uncomfortable.”

“I suppose you’re right. That’s a shame.”

Frider sat down far away from us and let out a small sigh.

Come to think of it, why is she eating alone too? Doesn’t she have friends?

Soon Nigel returned to the table, and the three of us chatted until dinner arrived.

Nigel seemed conscious of his position as a guard and mostly gave short answers to Asha’s questions without initiating conversation himself.

Soon a servant brought a metal cart with four roast duck dishes, serving them to us and Frider.

It was a simple composition of just the main dish, white bread, and wine, suggesting they didn’t provide full course meals.

I tore the greasy roast duck with my knife and chewed it.

The sweet and savory meat juices and the stimulating aroma of spices filled my mouth.

Glancing at Frider, I saw her cutting her meat into tiny pieces and chewing elegantly with her eyes closed. Right, that’s what nobles do, I guess.

“In two days, we’ll have our first class. Will you be attending, Haschal?”

“The first class was ‘Understanding Weapons Utilization and Physical Techniques,’ right? I thought I’d listen once to see what it’s about.”

“From what I’ve heard, they start with basic sparring on the first day. I’m not sure if they’ll make us spar too.”

“Sparring…”

Suddenly my thigh seemed to throb, and I glanced at Nigel.

Nigel, who was chewing his meat, tilted his head curiously, then swallowed what he was eating.

“Lord Haschal? Did you want to say something?”

“…It’s nothing. The meat is delicious.”

“Yes. The cooks seem to be quite skilled.”

Nigel nodded and speared another piece of meat with his fork.

Surely it won’t be like that time again.

This is the Empire’s premier educational institution, so they can’t be that lacking in common sense.

Still, just to be safe, I should leave Frosting in my room.

I have a feeling that bringing it would somehow lead to bloodshed.

Sparring, huh. I wonder if anyone will challenge me.

Well, that Dane person is concerning. Knut, was it?

I haven’t seen him since the entrance exam, but I’ll probably see him again when classes start.

He was staring at me with such intense focus.

…Well, I probably don’t need to worry too much.

It would be difficult for him to openly try to kill me inside the academy with so many people watching.

After finishing dinner and parting ways with Asha, I headed back to my room.

Frider was still cutting her food into such tiny pieces that she hadn’t even finished half of it.

…I think I understand why she eats alone.

—-

“By the way, Nigel. Is it possible to get a longsword?”

After returning to the room, I suddenly thought to ask Nigel to get me a sword.

No matter how I think about it, my original sword seems like something that could cause trouble if someone recognized it.

Fortunately, no one has recognized it so far since it looks like an ordinary high-quality longsword until you see the blade itself.

But if I keep using it in the academy, someone might see the inscription on the blade and recognize the sword’s identity.

“A longsword? If it’s an ordinary one, that wouldn’t be difficult, but wielding two longswords simultaneously wouldn’t be very efficient.”

Nigel shook his head lightly.

He must have thought I was trying to attempt dual-wielding with longswords.

Well, I suppose that makes sense. If someone who already has a perfectly good longsword at their hip asks for a new one, dual-wielding would be the natural assumption.

“That’s not it. This sword is something I cherish. I want to use an ordinary longsword at the academy.”

“I see? Then I’ll get you a similar longsword by tomorrow. I’ll request one from the academy. They should have plenty of steel swords.”

“Oh, are ordinary steel weapons provided for free? Then could I also request something like this?”

While I was at it, I described the form of Frosting to Nigel.

An arm guard that extends from the shoulder to the fingertips, covered in scales with sharp edges at the end.

Hersella’s original fighting style involved using Frosting and a longsword simultaneously to unleash a series of attacks.

But Frosting itself had issues with cold, and there was something unsettling about it every time I looked at it, making it uncomfortable to use.

So I thought I’d get similar equipment and try to adapt to Hersella’s fighting style.

In an emergency, I’d use whatever I had to, but it didn’t seem like something I should bring out for sparring.

“Hmm… for something like that, there won’t be any stock items. We’d need to request a custom order.”

“Custom order? How long would that take?”

“At least four days, I’d say. And it would cost something too.”

So custom orders require payment.

What should I do? I don’t even have half of our monthly living expenses left.

“Can we afford it with our remaining living expenses?”

Since we don’t need to pay for food or lodging, we don’t really need living expenses for now.

“If you cut your daily smoking in half, we’ll have enough for this month. However, we’ll need to find a solution before next month arrives.”

“Then please do that. I can cut back a bit, no problem.”

“Understood. I’ll go downstairs to submit the support request form, then I’ll be in my room. If you need anything, please call for me immediately.”

I bet he’ll just exercise in his room.

Since he’s a guard, he probably can’t go down to the training room by himself.

“Alright, I got it. Thanks for your help.”

After sending Nigel off, I sat at the desk and organized what I needed to do for the time being.

Establish dominance in the first class.

Pay close attention to academy lecture content.

Become friends with Demian. But not too friendly.

Get acquainted with other main characters too.

Figure out what Knut is planning.

Adapt to and become familiar with Hersella’s instincts.

Go outside the academy and find ways to make money, spending about two days a week on it.

And what else was there…

Right, I should check the state of the underground waterways. There probably won’t be any traces yet, but just in case.

Below that, I wrote down all the events I could remember.

I didn’t know much about the academy’s training content since it was mostly skipped over in narration, but I still remembered the major events that would happen outside the academy over the next few years.

Yes, this should be enough. This will suffice for now.

I folded the paper with my notes and put it in the desk drawer.

The sun must have completely set, as it had started to get dark.

While the outside of the academy walls was brightly lit with all kinds of lights, the inside was quiet and dark, as if cut off from the outside world.

I went to the bathroom, added bath salts to the tub, and soaked my body.

A subtle rose scent rose up, and the warm water gently embraced me below the nape of my neck.

Half-submerged in the water, I enjoyed a leisurely bath with a cigarette in my mouth.

The exhaled smoke drifted through the air before escaping through a small ventilation duct above the bathroom.

Two days from now, huh. Tomorrow I should visit the training room.

I need to get my body accustomed to movement. Whether it’s sparring or fighting for my life, I’ll have quite a few battles ahead.

After finishing my bath and doing some light stretching, I changed into nightclothes and went to bed.

—-

The entrance ceremony arrived.

The central area of the academy was bustling like a marketplace, filled with incoming freshmen, but in contrast, the special building remained as peaceful as ever.

Kalix was still training his muscles, making his scales resonate; Perneisia remained lost in alcohol; and Asha had shut herself in her room again to create something.

The other two hadn’t even returned to the dormitory.

The saint candidate aside, what was that Evian fellow doing?

When I asked Kalix, he clicked his tongue conspicuously and said that Evian was probably making his way through the entertainment districts.

He added that if I happened to meet a man with murky blonde hair and southern brown skin, I should ignore him if possible.

Yes, he definitely seems like someone I should avoid getting involved with.

I spent the day with Nigel in the training room, swinging my newly received longsword until its weight became familiar in my hand.

It was a sturdy, well-balanced longsword, better made than I expected.

Frider, who had come to the training room, asked Nigel something on the opposite side, and after hearing his answer, she stared at me with wide eyes for a long time.

It wasn’t her usual irritated gaze filled with hostility and contempt, but a strange expression mixing bewilderment and disbelief.

She seemed like she wanted to say something to me, moving her lips for a while, but eventually turned her head and left the training room.

What on earth did Nigel tell her?

Curious, I asked Nigel what conversation he had with Frider.

“She said she thought she had seen me before. She asked for my name and position, so I answered her.”

And that made her so shocked?

Hmm. Come to think of it, I’d forgotten because he’s been following me so faithfully like a servant, but Nigel was actually quite a high-ranking knight, wasn’t he?

He himself had mentioned being the tenth sword of Landenburg or something.

“You said you were the tenth sword of Landenburg, right? I don’t know what that means, but isn’t it something impressive?”

“I’m not that impressive. Being a sword of Landenburg is just an honorary title given by Lord Landenburg.”

Nigel lowered his face slightly, seeming a bit embarrassed.

A faint blush colored his cheeks.

“If it’s an honorary title given directly by a lord, isn’t that impressive?”

“Compared to the other nine, I’m still just an inexperienced knight. Lord Landenburg simply evaluated me highly.”

His voice was quiet but quite resolute.

So, the lord has at least nine knights stronger than Nigel.

…I’m really glad he’s on my side.

If I had been hostile to the lord there, I would have been captured and killed without even putting up a proper resistance.

Anyway, although Nigel was being modest, judging from Frider’s reaction, the title of a sword of Landenburg was definitely quite impressive.

It’s hard to understand why such a knight would quietly serve as my attendant.

I should treat him better from now on.

—-

The day dawned.

I got up early, put on my new longsword and armor, and headed to the main lecture hall with Asha.

I left Frosting in its case under the desk.

Asha had the mechanical bag I’d seen before on her back, and in her right hand, she held a collapsible lance connected to a metal frame on her arm.

The mechanical bag seemed to have been modified during this time, as its form had changed somewhat.

Compared to before, it had more nozzles and pipes, and parts that had been exposed were now covered with metal plates.

She said she had improved it to allow for quick direction changes even while hovering.

As she happily explained technical knowledge that would be strange for a Ka’har to understand, I pretended not to understand and just agreed appropriately.

Soon, the main lecture hall building came into view.