Ch.37Group Project (1)

Even though I created my first embarrassing moment in real life at the gathering, my daily routine remained unchanged. Despite suffering from a hangover all weekend, it didn’t significantly affect my writing.

I just had to make frequent trips to the bathroom. I’d heard that wine causes worse hangovers than other alcoholic beverages, and I experienced that fact painfully.

Anyway, despite some issues, my writing progressed smoothly like a ship with the wind in its sails. The historical knowledge I learned while teaching Cindy composition techniques and the information about demon races that Cecilly Drat Isillia Vin shared were extremely helpful.

However, my progress was inevitably slower since I had less than half the free time compared to when I was at home. It was natural, as I had dedicated my entire daily routine to writing when I was home.

‘Certainly… the next volume will take at least two months.’

At home, I could submit manuscripts every two weeks, or at most once a month, but given the current circumstances, that was extremely difficult. In fact, even two months would be considered remarkably fast.

This situation often made me wish for a machine like a typewriter. In a world where paper manufacturing and printing technology were advanced enough to produce newspapers, why was it so lacking in machinery?

‘Well, what can I do? This era is still medieval.’

This world hasn’t even experienced an industrial revolution, let alone developed proper “machines,” so the concept of “engineering” doesn’t exist. The refrigerator in my lodging, the temperature control function, and even the magic pen I use are all products of “magic studies,” not engineering.

Even if they reached an industrial revolution, I suspect their machines would still incorporate some magic, unlike in my previous life. I recalled the steam locomotive I wrote about in volume eight, then shook my head.

‘That’s not something I need to worry about.’

I just need to focus on my job. I was writing with the magic pen my father had given me when I suddenly stopped.

‘Come to think of it, don’t we have group projects starting tomorrow?’

Just thinking about group projects made me frown. In my previous life, I never had a single good experience with group projects.

It was like clockwork—during group projects, people would claim their parents were sick, they had to attend funerals, or their phones were broken so they couldn’t be contacted.

Various excuses for not participating were common, and some even disappeared completely by enlisting in the military.

The most infuriating memory was when I did everything alone, but the professor gave me a C. He scolded me, saying that as the team leader, I should have demonstrated leadership and guided my team members instead of doing everything myself. That memory still haunts me.

I just hope that kind of situation doesn’t happen here. If someone says they can’t do it, I’ll do everything myself—I just want them to show up.

‘I’m a fucking writer, can’t I handle at least that much?’

The trauma of group projects made me curse involuntarily. That’s how negative my feelings were about group projects.

Some might ask if things would be different in this completely different world. Unfortunately, the fundamental nature of “humans” remains the same everywhere. Moreover, with the existence of social classes here, it might even be worse.

‘But there’s no PowerPoint here, so how should we do this? Should we draw pictures?’

Visual effects make an enormous difference. As the saying goes, seeing once is better than hearing a hundred times.

It would be wise to ask the professor about this later. If possible, I’d like to present with at least some rough drawings. After all, higher grades are always better.

‘We need to select a topic too… this might be harder than I thought.’

Not for me, of course. I put aside thoughts about the group project and focused on my writing. Right now, my priority was developing the setting for the Seven Deadly Sins.

‘Let’s make Lust a demon race. And for appearance…’

I suddenly stopped moving my hand with the magic pen. Thinking about a demon who governs lust made Cecilly Drat Isillia Vin appear in my mind, wearing the dress from the gathering.

According to rumors I heard during the entrance ceremony, she was a descendant of succubi. Judging by her behavior and seductive aura, that seemed highly plausible.

‘…I should describe this differently to avoid suspicion. I’ll add a setting where she was betrayed by a human man who had treated her, a demon, without discrimination. And for the name…’

Obviously, Lilith. After all, if the beastkin in charge of Wrath is named Satan, what’s the problem?

‘A beastkin named Satan. That’s something…’

I chuckled inwardly and continued writing my story without interruption.

****”

There’s a saying about group projects:

Unite and die, scatter and survive.

Normally, the opposite would be true, but not for group projects. Paradoxically, when two or three people cluster around a task that one person could handle, efficiency plummets.

Of course, that’s just a saying—not every group project experience is terrible. Sometimes you might become friends by chance and build connections, or even develop better relationships.

The problem is that I always ended up with terrible teammates during group projects. Thanks to that, I got to experience firsthand how one comes to hate humanity.

Anyway, I’ve gone on long enough. To make group projects even slightly more efficient, you must first limit the number of people. This is non-negotiable.

As the saying goes, too many cooks spoil the broth. Up to four people is fine, but problems start arising with five or more. People start thinking, “Surely someone else will handle it,” and disappear.

I plan to report such people to the professor.

“As I mentioned last time, today I’ll randomly assign groups and give you an assignment. The topic is predicting the development of the Biography of Xenon. Explain how you arrived at your hypothesis and provide evidence to support it.”

As soon as Monday’s humanities class began, the professor brought up the group project. Sitting in the front row as usual, I smirked internally after hearing his words.

‘Finally, the inevitable has arrived.’

Even in my previous life, where social classes didn’t exist, group projects were perfect for developing trust issues. I was genuinely curious about how things would unfold here.

The professor counted the number of students in the classroom one by one, then spoke in his characteristically gentle voice.

“Currently, there are exactly 46 students attending my lecture. We’ll divide into groups of four, and the remaining two students will be randomly assigned. I’ll distribute papers for you to write your names on, then place them in this box.”

Professor Virus Ar Tristan finished speaking and handed a small stack of papers to the student in the front. I took one sheet from the stack and passed the rest behind me.

“I hope we end up in the same group. You’re the most comfortable person to work with.”

Marie Housen Reckyless, who was sitting next to me, spoke as I was neatly folding the paper with my name on it. I nodded in agreement with her sentiment.

I’d prefer to work with someone I know rather than strangers, even if it meant doing everything myself.

“I hope I get in the same group as Issac too. I bet Issac has already predicted the entire development of the Biography of Xenon.”

Cecilly Drat Isillia Vin, who was sitting behind us, spoke in her characteristically playful tone, apparently having overheard Marie’s comment. I couldn’t help but flinch slightly at her words.

I didn’t understand why she said that, but it wasn’t good for me. Plus, it somehow felt like there was a hidden barb in her comment.

“Cecilly, are you saying you want to get help from Issac without doing anything yourself?”

Rina Urmi Christine, who was seated next to Cecilly, asked in her characteristically gentle voice. Cecilly nonchalantly shrugged her shoulders and replied.

“Who knows? What about you, Rina? Since you’re the princess of this country, I imagine others would do everything for you, right?”

“That would be nice, but I do have a conscience. I should at least help.”

When Rina responded with a faint smile, Marie’s expression rapidly hardened. She turned around to glance at Rina, then quickly faced forward again.

She then muttered under her breath, clearly revealing her discomfort.

“…Conscience? What a hypocrite.”

“…”

I pretended not to hear. Marie had expressed her displeasure with Rina so many times that I could now let it go in one ear and out the other.

Shortly after, Professor Virus Ar Tristan collected the papers with our names and placed them in the box. To ensure they were thoroughly mixed, he shook the box vigorously and stirred the papers inside with his hand, as if making bibimbap.

“Now, let’s start drawing. The first person is…”

As soon as the professor unfolded the neatly folded paper, his eyes lit up and he looked directly at me. I had somewhat anticipated this when I saw the perfectly folded paper, and it seemed I was right.

While I was thinking this, Professor Virus Ar Tristan tugged at his mustache with interest and announced the name.

“Issac Dukar Mayshall. And next…”

Please let it be someone I know. Ah, except for Jackson.

While I was waiting anxiously, the professor pulled another paper from the box. Then, just like before, he announced the name in a strong voice.

“Aira Ben Mathius.”

“Yes!”

As soon as the name was called, an energetic response came from the back. Judging by the name and the voice, it seemed to be a female student.

I turned my head to see who my group member was. A female student with brown hair and a cute appearance was raising her hand.

Naturally, she was someone whose face I didn’t recognize. Given her middle name, I assumed she was from a noble family.

“Next, Benjamin Blank.”

“Y-Yes!”

A response came from not too far away. I craned my neck to look in the direction of the voice.

I saw a boy with dull blonde, curly hair. For some reason, he appeared extremely nervous.

Unlike me and the girl named Aira, he didn’t have a middle name, suggesting he was a commoner. I know that for a commoner to enter Halo Academy, especially in literature rather than martial arts, they must go through an extremely difficult process.

Compared to my previous life, it would be like a student who only completed middle school getting into Seoul National University through regular admissions. It’s almost impossible unless you’re a genius.

That means he’s at least not incompetent. I considered this somewhat fortunate.

“And finally… Leona Lions.”

Wait, what?

I blinked as soon as I heard the name the professor called. While the surname was unfamiliar, the first name was very familiar.

I looked around to find a familiar face and ended up making eye contact with a woman. Her usually expressionless face clearly showed surprise.

It was Leona, the beastkin woman who had her identity as a beastkin discovered by me.

‘…I’m not sure if I should be happy about this or not.’

If this is fate, then so be it. After making eye contact with Leona, I wasn’t sure how to react, so I gave her a small wave.

In response, Leona quickly erased her surprised expression and hastily turned her head away. I felt a bit hurt at having my greeting ignored, but given her situation, I understood.

“These four will form one group. Next… Jackson Mirelle Carryson.”

Once our group was determined, the next person called was Jackson, someone I was keeping an eye on. I was about to stop paying attention since I wasn’t in the same group as Jackson.

“Marie Housen Reckyless.”

Surprisingly, Jackson and Marie were placed in the same group. Was this also a coincidence?

I checked Marie’s reaction as soon as the professor called her full name.

“Of all people, why him…”

Marie was frowning deeply with a disgusted expression. Well, it’s understandable since she had witnessed Jackson flirting with Rina and Cecilly.

For reference, Jackson had approached Marie once but never again after she openly cursed at him to go away.

But the problem didn’t end there.

“Rina Urmi Christine.”

“Hmm?”

Even Rina, whom Marie disliked so much, ended up in the same group. Glancing back, I saw that Rina also seemed surprised, raising one eyebrow.

This was already problematic enough, but the final touch came right after.

“…”

Professor Virus Ar Tristan, who had been calm until drawing Rina’s name, hesitated when he checked the next paper. He then made a bewildered expression before turning his head in my direction.

I waited for him to speak, internally thinking “no way,” but then…

“…Cecilly Drat Isillia Vin.”

Against astronomical odds, a complete disaster party had been formed.