How to Survive at the Academy Chapter 88

Student president election (1)

It is arrogance that has killed the most warriors in the world.

Be wary of those who are confident in their skills and consider it a virtue to charge courageously and courageously.

Do not have respect for those who risk their lives to show their existence to the world.

Fear it, Clevius.

Fear is your weapon.

If the moment comes when you have to run away, run away so that your tail falls out.

Don’t risk your life on pride. Don’t be obsessed with things like honor.

You don’t have to forcefully confront and respond to every crisis and trial that comes your way. There is no need to increase the number of wounds by challenging the impossible.

If you live like that, there comes a time when your feet don’t fall off at some point.

Even though you can run away like you always do, there will always come a time when your feet are stuck to the ground and won’t move.

I feel like I have to stand upright with both legs held on to the trials that everyone in the world calls impossible.

My whole body trembles like crazy, but strangely, the hand holding the sword is strong. Even in a situation where defeat is certain, her body gets caught up in the inertia of trying to move forward.

It’s a completely different kind of belief than pride or honor that makes you that way.

If not, run away. Beg for your life ugly and servile, live cowardly.

Even if you roll in the mud, stay vile and wait for your time. Never do anything that sacrifices your comfort in pursuit of high honor and glory.

Don’t live the life of a hero. Do not dare to walk the thorny path no one forced you to.

The flowers blooming on the cliff look noble, but the tough weeds fill the garden in the end. I hope you never forget that fact.

– ‘Dalian application form’

“…”

after the snow storm. The Ophelis Hall was also buzzing with students who were busy preparing for the next semester.

A sparring application from freshman senior Wade Calamore against Clevius. It was a challenge that arrived in front of Clevius during a snow storm.

Clevius got up from his bed in the private room and sat down at the table where the maids had prepared refreshments.

In a corner of the room that was especially dark because the curtains were always drawn, Clevius picked up a handful of refreshments, put them in his mouth, and chewed on them.

Then, shivering, he bent over, stared at the floor, and cursed several times.

“Why… why X-arm… me…”

A single wisp of sweat squirmed beneath the dark circles that sat gloomily.

Clevius did not even respond to Wade’s request for a challenge from the Calamore family’s genius swordsman.

However, in the end, he could not overcome public opinion demanding an answer, and eventually even expressed his intention to abstain. I didn’t want to fight for nothing and get hurt, and I didn’t want to shame myself in front of people.

As expected, Clevius didn’t even have any complaints about the people’s evaluation that it was Clevius’ style. He might be better off like this.

It’s better to hear a coward and fade out of the spotlight than to be beaten and beaten nasty in front of everyone.

Clevius peeked at the window curtains with a timid gesture.

A warm light sneaks into the dark corner of the room.

The scenery outside the window is the scene of spring, when winter is completely over, but new life is blooming in full bloom.

It was the scene that the gloomy Clevius hated the most.

“If he’s the type of person he is, he’ll come up with a lot of challenges again…”

Rumors about Wade had been heard by Clevius as well.

Rumor has it that he is full of confidence in his skills and wants to be recognized. It is also a bonus to say that the first graders are also in high spirits as they cheerily shout that they will defeat all the seniors.

It was both misfortune and luck that the first batter was Clevius. Now, when the next hitter is decided, the first hitter will be secretly buried.

“A dog’s life…”

Spring arrives and bright flowers bloom in the world.

Locked in the darkness in the corner of the room, Clevius sat with his back turned away from the radiant romance.

Most likely, he is a human belonging to darkness.

As if it was something, the spring petals fluttering outside the window were telling me.

It was a new semester now.

*

Spring comes around the time we forget. So it is a more special law.

Watching the world covered with white snow go away and the warm sunlight sprouting flower petals, I realize that it has been a full year since I have been living this life.

It seems like yesterday that around this time last year, I was kicked out of the Ophelis building and settled down in the forest, but now there are quite decent camps and cabins, and they are filled with useful furniture.

My body, which used to drip like a river of sweat every time I went to school, has already become quite well-trained, and I can easily handle jogging to and from school.

“Oh, what a nice face.”

I was on my way back after purchasing lab supplies in the living room during my lunch break. It was a thought to bring after school.

A familiar girl was sitting on the terrace of Laplace Bakery, Sylvania’s most famous confectionery shop, near the bridge from the Living Building to the Professor Building.

Now that it is famous enough to be famous, there is no one who doesn’t know that there are hundreds of serpents inside that grinning like a good person.

“The opening ceremony has just ended, but are you already working in the lab, senior Ed?”

Seeing him send his regards casually, I waved my hand and sent a greeting.

If you want to check a girl’s condition, just look at her hair. If the sunken reddish-brown hair is well tied to one side and neatly lowered, the shoulders are relaxed.

It’s a contrast to seeing an important job or going out to a formal event with her hair loose and wearing a lot of accessories.

Anyway, since she is a person who occupies a place in the top ranks, she is a girl who cannot be taken lightly.

Lortel smiled and waved, then talked to me as if to come and have a cup of tea.

“You’re drinking tea in a place like this alone, Lortel. I’m surprised.”

“Actually, I stopped by for work and was taking a break. The important conversation was over, and I was about to leave after the staff finished the inventory check.”

“Stocktaking?”

“Would you like another cup of tea here?”

She sat with her chin on her chin and smiled, then Lortel spoke quietly to a nearby employee. Then the employee jumped out like a shot.

It was an employee who jumped out, but it was the owner of Laplace Bakery who returned with tea.

The nobleman, who had once worked in the imperial kitchen and owned several famous restaurants in the imperial capital, put down another cup of tea while sweating profusely.

Then he bowed politely and asked if he needed anything more, bowed his head and went back into the kitchen.

As Lortel said, it seemed that some kind of finishing work was being done in the kitchen.

“It’s the first time I’ve seen him make that face.”

“What… I guess there’s something going on. Because there’s no one who doesn’t come out dust when they shake it off.”

“But what kind of authority do you guys have to look into the bakery’s warehouse?

“We’re just one customer, but since we’re a bakery that orders all important food ingredients from Elte, it’s worth keeping an eye out for. In fact, there’s no other place in Sylvania other than Elte that’s capable of winning orders for bakeries of this size. .”

The quantity is also the quantity, but Laplace Bakery uses a lot of high-quality ingredients. It is also a material that is key to maintaining freshness. With quite a lot of experience in distribution, it is difficult to trust and entrust it unless you are a completely seasoned top tier.

In a city of decent size, you might try to compete with each other to win orders, but the story is different in Aken Island, where the size is limited.

If they do not receive an order for goods from Elte, Laplace Bakery will have a hard time starting tomorrow.

Lortel gave the kindest smile in the world.

“Isn’t monopoly power really fun at times like this?

“Judging from the expressions on their faces, it seems like you’re the only one having fun.”

“Oh, you’re mean. You’re right.”

Lortel chuckled and skimmed the teacup.

“There is some legitimacy from our point of view. It seems that the false order was discovered.”

“False order?”

“Yes. It’s like placing an order for a lot of unnecessary materials in advance, and canceling them all when the delivery date approaches. In the end, it’s all going to be caught, but there are always customers who do this in the end.”

I put down my luggage, sat across from it, and gently lifted the teacup the owner had brought me. Something more fragrant and darker than usual, I feel like I prepared with all my heart.

“It goes without saying, but during the snow storm, there were some difficulties with the supply of supplies to Aken Island. The roads were frozen and the wagons could not go.

“It’s a natural disaster, so it can’t be helped.”

“Yes, that’s right. So, most of the business partners in the commercial districts in the living area were waiting in turn to supply and receive supplies. From our point of view, we were supplying supplies quickly from the point where demand was great and urgent…”

After that, it was an obvious story.

Laplace Bakery, which wanted to receive supplies quickly, inflated unnecessary food materials and placed false orders. As the delivery date approached, most of the orders were canceled, leaving only the necessary quantities.

It was a somewhat complacent decision, as if he thought that the amount of goods handled by the Chamber of Commerce was so large that this would be exceeded.

Currently, demand for food materials is high. Canceled materials can be sold elsewhere, so there is no financial loss for the company.

“It’s the kind of merchants who sell their souls for a gold coin if the payoff is right… but that doesn’t mean there aren’t any commercial morals to follow. From our point of view, they’re all the same business partners.”

Lortel, who was in the ranks of those in power at Elte Firm, rose to a position that was almost like the king of the underworld, at least in the living quarters.

Of course, Lortel does not rule or govern anyone directly. He has neither the status nor the authority to do so.

However, where people gather, chaos also tends to find them. So it is also necessary to control.

Lortel’s means of control is money itself. If you look under the surface of the seemingly peaceful life block, all the money flows into Lortel’s wallet in the end.

– Bang!

Soon after, a man burst out of the kitchen door. It was the chef who had just brought tea. It seemed that the inventory check had progressed quite a bit.

It is not particularly difficult to compare actual usage and order volume.

“Lo, Miss Lortel! Please listen to me! The person in charge seems to be asking too much! I can’t say anything about the amount of orders… but if you limit the amount of future orders… !”

Even the man would know. Without Lortel’s approval, there was no way the staff in charge would have arbitrarily placed a limit on the order quantity. Everything was done with Lortel’s permission.

Nevertheless, with a feeling of grabbing at least a straw, he came out to appeal to Lortel.

With a half-empty attitude, he explained the situation in detail to Lortel.

Over the course of several minutes, I explained my personal circumstances to Lortel, made excuses for the amount of orders, and talked about the store’s operation. Lortel just sat still, closed her eyes, and held a cup of tea to her mouth.

“Please… consider the store situation just once…! If this happens, we will…”

“right.”

Lortel, who had been drinking tea and listening, opened his mouth, and the man quickly swallowed his breath.

And the words that followed were directed at me, not at the man.

“I also have classes in the afternoon. Would you like to go to the faculty building together?”

From the start, Lortel hadn’t even listened to the man.

Rising from her seat, Lortel glanced at the man, but her gaze was infinitely cold.

*

“The election for student president is coming soon.”

“You don’t seem to want to run?”

“I covet the power of the student council, but if I don’t get my hands on the business of the student council as a student council president, the main guests will be evangelized.”

If you cross the student square in the professor building, there are so many crowds that you wonder if it’s really a new semester.

During the vacation, it was empty and would resonate if you shouted at it, but now you can’t even see the overall appearance of the plaza.

“The best thing would be for a person who is kind to me to become the student council president. Senior Ed, don’t you want to do it? I can push you.”

“I don’t mean that. There’s no guarantee that it will happen.”

“It’s unfortunate. I thought you would.”

Lortel wore a semi-robe over her school uniform blouse and walked with a couple of books in her arms.

Lortel, like Lortel, seems to be busy with business and studies. Anyway, since I’m a student, and I’ve decided to train my magic, I’m putting my best effort into this side as well.

I don’t know if you know it, but this kid also lives by dividing the day into minutes.

“My senior’s younger brother said he was running. Was it Miss Tanya? I want to push her.”

“Tanya?”

Lortel glanced around a few times, then lowered her voice and spoke softly to me.

“Even if I beat her to death, I don’t want to support Princess Penia’s side. Well, most of the undergraduates seem to support the princess… Once I run, I’ll be the strongest candidate.”

“I’m not going to explain it in detail, but…”

“I know, senior.”

Lortel spoke quietly.

“I don’t know if Miss Tanya herself knows, but once Princess Penia is running for office, it’s safe to say that Miss Tanya has little hope. Still, it’s probably not enough. Even if you’re the second daughter of the Ross Taylor family, the difference in status is too big.”

At that, I nodded.

Even in a love affair, Tanya loses with a really ridiculous margin of votes.

They mobilize all the numbers they have, and make a fuss to get even one more vote by making ugly and pathetic outbursts, but the overwhelming difference in votes does not diminish at all.

The daughter of the lesser evil, Tanya Ross-Taylor.

In the face of a hopelessly overwhelming difference in votes, in the end, he is just a stepping stone villain from Roth Taylor who endures resentment and exits with a shudder.

“Could it be… does Senior Ed support Princess Penia?”

“Me…? Well, there’s no question of who to support in the first place, and if I had to say it, I’d rather support Tanya, my blood relative.”

“That’s fortunate. I was a bit uneasy because I thought even seniors would be able to support Princess Penia. Most of the undergraduates look up to Princess Penia… well, if it wasn’t seniors, that’s fine.”

It’s been a while since I’ve been involved with Princess Penia. There were incidents like this and that, but I couldn’t say that I left such a good impression even with empty words.

“In the first place, he must have hated me very much.”

“is that so?”

“I’m not sure either… Considering that I was in the position of the princess, it seems difficult for me to have good feelings for me… Yes, I think she probably has a grudge against me, or at least has a bad feeling for me… ?”

“I’m relieved if you say so…”

“…relief?”

“…”

Lortel wrapped her hand around the book and bowed her head.

“You know that I see senior Ed as the opposite s*x, right?”

“…”

“Jealousy is a more universal emotion than you think? Even so, I’m a woman too.”

Then, he wraps his arms around me and raises his gaze slightly lowered.

She closed and opened her narrow eyes like a fox bewitchingly several times and looked up at me with a sinister smile.

“Was it valid?”

“…”

“Can I check your heartbeat?”

In the middle of the plaza, Lortel, who tried to bury her ear in her chest, was blocked with one hand. Pushed aside with a whimper, Lortel grinned and shook her head.

“Anyway, just hit the iron wall. Did I do anything wrong?”

“You haven’t done anything wrong to me…but I’m in a bit of trouble until the day I graduate.”

“…until graduation day?”

She is a girl who snatches the weak points of opponents by catching even the slightest sense of tone at hundreds and thousands of negotiating tables. Even her slight tone of voice and every word choice are clues and information to her.

“What if you graduate?”

“…”

“Oh, this feels like catching a big piece of information.”

The way he wraps his arms around him and smiles Bessi is himself a nerd. Lortel rested her chin on his shoulder and looked up at me with a sullen expression.

“It’s a kind of time constraint. Is it okay to hand over such tremendous information? I don’t know what meaning you attach to graduation, but I’m sure you’ll make some kind of progress emotionally after your studies are over.”

“…”

“Actually, I’m not sure if you’ll be able to hit the iron wall by then.”

Lortel untied her arms and swung back. And he often took a step, turned around, put his hand to his mouth, and smiled like a fox.

“I’ll leave it at this, well… Graduation seems far away, but anyway, it’s the next year. Surprisingly, it’s coming in an instant, right?”

“I don’t know what to say about it…”

“I guess so, well. Anyway, it seems that you are not in any trouble with your health, and that you are making steady progress in your studies, so I am relieved. What happened to the magical engineering supplies I gave you the other day?”

“I wrote everything. I did some magic engineering training during vacation.”

“Oh, did you have any good results?”

I thought about what to answer… and nodded. In terms of results, it was a huge success.

With a really ridiculous schedule, he only trained in magic engineering all day long, and on the day before school started, he finally completed a prototype of a legendary magic engineering item. I haven’t used it in practice, so it’s a prototype.

“It’s fortunate. It’s a good thing for me to say that it was helpful. Unfortunately, I had so many problems that I couldn’t handle them all during vacation.”

“Are there so many problems? Things like Laplace Bakery earlier?”

“Well, that’s only part of the problem. The main problem right now is the lack of cash. I’m running out of money in my wallet.”

Lortel is in need of money. I would like to think that this is a proposition that can be established, but in fact, if you think about it, it is clear what the problem is.

Assets and cash are completely different concepts.

“There are still plenty of places to use the cash, but to make matters worse, a carriage carrying gold chests from the store’s head office got caught in an accident. Let’s go. That’s why the available funds are running out.”

There was a problem with the distribution channel on the upper side that periodically receives cash. This kind of disaster seems to happen periodically when you roll a business like this.

“Thanks to that, I have so many assets, but in reality, I have to tighten my belt. The branch side avoids unnecessary expenses. Personally, I never spend unnecessary expenses, and I reduce my expenses as much as possible. It’s scheduled.”

“Are you that low on cash?”

“It’s just a temporary bottleneck. Still, it’s not like I’m running out of money dramatically. The basic upkeep to maintain my normal life remains comfortable. But I just can’t afford to spend extra.”

In fact, even for the basic maintenance cost, if Lortel was the standard, the unit of the amount was different.

Most of these variables are the aftermath of a snow storm near Aken Island. Spring has arrived, but the aftermath of winter still lingers steadily.

“It’s not a very pleasant situation. Yesterday, an uneasy customer asked me to repay the transaction amount with a long due date, so I refused.”

“I guess things weren’t so good either.”

“It’s a tough time for everyone, especially a difficult time to manage money.”

Lortel brushed her hair that was blowing in the spring breeze.

“Well, money management is my specialty. Once I’ve made up my mind, I have no intention of increasing unnecessary expenses.”

“Still, spending isn’t going to be like the heart… I’m going to have a hard time.”

“What are you talking about, Senior Ed. Who am I? Can a person who can’t manage spending manage the upper management team properly? Aren’t you underestimating me too? Don’t worry, I will never increase my spending unnecessarily.”

Lortel said that and smiled like a fox again.

The eyes that looked down at the man coldly at the bakery came to mind. Whatever it is, Lortel has a tendency to be a cold, metal person when it comes to business.

“Don’t worry, senior Ed, but why don’t you bring your book with you on your way to class?”

After entering the faculty building, there was not much distance left until the classroom where the class was being held.

“Me? I have to stop by the library and borrow it.”

“No, borrow books and take classes? If it’s a student library, you have to go almost to the outskirts of the faculty building.”

“You should think of it as just running around for exercise. If you don’t take care of your stamina a little, your body will quickly become weak.”

“No, it’s not a distance to run around. The bachelor’s side just buys it for a few pennies…”

Lortel stopped talking. Certainly, the price of books is not a small amount of money for a student to afford. This is because the textbooks in Sylvania are all high-end books.

That said, running between the library and the classroom at a sprint is not something I would do with my mind. From my point of view, it’s normal, just like everyday life.

Suddenly, Lortel broke out in a cold sweat. Then he took out his wallet and checked its contents with trembling hands.

What is so painful… I agonize to the end and tremble my eyes, and then hesitantly ask.

“Uh, how much is it… If you put it all together…?”

“…”

I just politely declined.

*

“Did you check the library arrangements? Senior Ed.”

It’s been a while since seeing Jiggs’ face after the new semester begins.

After finishing the elementology class, we made our way through the crowds to the plaza in the faculty building.

“Oh, yes. You handled it well. Thank you.”

“It’s not a big deal. It didn’t take long because it was done with magic. By the way, senior Ed. Did you hear about Wade?”

“Wade? First year chief?”

Ziggs nodded.

After hearing Ziggs’ words, it slowly comes to mind.

Act 3, Scene 3, the episode that kicks off the student council president election.

Breaking the seal of Wade Calamore. As far as I know, this seal breaking continues until Act 3, Scene 5.

As the son of a corps commander guarding the northern border, Wade, who was born with a natural talent for swordsmanship, occupied the position of first year chief with overwhelming force.

Unsatisfied with the position of the first year senior, Wade challenged the chief of each faculty to a duel and defeated them all, and eventually challenged the seniors in the senior year to a duel.

Wade, who was raging to beat them all as long as his limits allowed, challenged the famous and top students of the bachelor to a duel and knocked them out one by one… Even Ziggs barely won after a close battle in which he was devastated.

Of course, Ziggs was so exhausted that he couldn’t use his full power, and if he was intact, he didn’t know what the outcome would be, but anyway, a loss is a loss.

It was Wade who ran rampant as if he was going to knock down all the strong men in The Bachelor. However, in the end, he is defeated by Taily in a joint combat practice.

It’s really a performance that can be said to have vomited spirits for a freshman. Until he was defeated by Taily, none of his opponents he defeated could be seen as water. He was a student who could be called the ace of the first year.

“I’m a freshman who sends all the students who want to be promising lately to the arena. Listening to it, it seems like you’re interested in the seniors as well.”

“Yes, thank you for telling me in advance. Take care of yourself too.”

“They say they’re having a welcome event for freshmen this evening. Would you like to come and see their faces?”

Wade’s face was familiar anyway.

“No, that’s okay. I have a separate appointment during this evening.”

“You mean the promise?”

“Yenika has decided to take care of spiritism.”

Since the mana suppression caused by the ring has subsided to some extent, I can now fully utilize my magical power.

After finishing the middle rank spirit contract, at least among the 3rd years, there would be only one Jenika left that could be said to be better at spirit magic than me.

In addition to that, if you learn intermediate magic, fill the remaining basic magic proficiency, and make a little more progress in magic response training… I think I can really enter the top ten among the 3rd years.

Thanks to the progress, there was a taste of spurring training these days. If there are visible results, the training itself is also interesting. I wonder if people who stick to the gym all day feel this way.

Shaking my hands, I said hello to Ziggs and left the plaza.

Suddenly, I turned my head to see the whole view of the square, and it was the scene of a lively bachelor.

I thought he had a personality that didn’t really care about things like this, but after seeing the lively bachelor, I feel a little energized.

The fresh air unique to the new semester makes our steps lighter.

I walked over the hill and across the gallows.

*

“Hmm… I should have told you.”

It’s really hard to ride the line between human relationships.

Jiggs murmured softly as he let Ed go, leaning against a tree.

In addition to the story about the library, he also conveys a warning about Wade… I wonder if I should have told you about Princess Penia.

Since Ziggs and Fenia are in the same grade, there are times when the class flow overlaps. Normally, it is difficult to get close to Princess Fenia because she is surrounded by escorts, but the story is different when taking her lessons.

She is Princess Fenia, who seems to be toxic after vacation.

However, when Ziggs or the people around him are talking about Ed, he often tilts his head to look in that direction, or pretends to listen.

At first, I wondered if it was an illusion, but the more I watched, the more I felt that he reacted to the name Ed Roth Taylor to the point where I thought it was excessive.

“It’s still a bit too much to be sure…”

Ziggs leaned against a tree in the corner of the plaza and stared blankly at the sky. It was a clear, lofty sky for the first time in a while.