Becoming Professor Reina’s direct slave… I mean, assistant, didn’t really change much in my life.
Even though she kept saying I didn’t seem like a student and all that, she probably thought it was a bit much to make a newbie handle lecture prep, so she told me to live like a regular student most of the time.
In the end, I attended lectures like everyone else and only responded to calls when there was something specific to assist with.
But like, am I really getting paid this much just for that?
Suddenly curious, I asked her, and she casually dropped this bomb:
“I don’t know why you’re downplaying it like ‘just that.’ I think I paid a fair price.”
What on earth is she planning to make me do? Suddenly, I felt a bit scared.
But at this point, my wallet was already thick, so I just rolled with it like, “Whatever happens, happens.”
I mean, it’ll work out somehow, right? I’m with Professor Reina of the Trier family—what could possibly go wrong?
If something does happen, I’ll deal with it then.
After that, the day’s lectures ended without any major incidents.
I packed up my stuff and left the classroom for the next schedule: training with Lilith. Seria and Lilith followed me out.
“…Wait, Seria. Why are you following us?”
Oh, right. I forgot to mention that Seria was joining us.
Seria was the first to answer Lilith’s confusion.
“Starting today, I’ve decided to help out with Lilith’s training too.”
“Why you… Rudion. What’s going on here? Why is she suddenly joining?”
Since there was nothing to hide, I explained the whole situation, and suddenly Lilith got really close to Seria.
Then the two of them started whispering.
“Seria.”
“Yes?”
“You’re just forcing your way in because you want to hang out with him, right?”
“…No.”
“What do you mean no?! It’s so obvious! Geez, you’re so desperate to hide your crush, it’s killing me.”
“W-wait! Your voice is too loud! Can you keep it down…?”
I don’t know what they’re saying, but it’s good to see them getting along. They were so cold to each other before.
I’m glad Lilith seems to have made another friend besides me.
After arriving at the Training Ground, we warmed up and started training. Surprisingly, Lilith’s movements had improved a lot in just one day.
It seemed like she was starting to understand combat itself.
It felt like a newbie in a fighting game who used to just attack randomly but now understands frame data and reach.
She was still a bit stiff overall, but thanks to her natural physical abilities, she was able to put up a decent fight.
I barely taught her anything, and she’s already grown this much? Looks like I might be able to retire from teaching way sooner than I thought.
Thinking that, I glanced at Seria…
…handed the baton to her…
“Wait a minute. If you handle your magic like that, the activation time will be delayed. Try it like this.”
“L-like this?”
“No. Wrong. Look. Miss Lilith is doing it like this, right? Then, just before manifestation, there’s a momentary brake. Can’t you feel it?”
“I can’t feel it…”
She was way more serious than I expected.
To the point of struggling and sweating buckets, in a different way than when Lilith sparred with me.
“Is Holy Power really that different? Don’t lie. I just analyzed it, and the structure is the same as magic. Stop making excuses and just follow my lead.”
…Did I really bring Seria here right? Well, I did, but I feel kinda sorry now.
Sorry, Lilith. I didn’t know Seria would be this strict.
“…How long do we have to keep doing this training?”
Seeing even the usually enthusiastic Lilith say something like this, it seems Seria has the makings of a training villain.
But I can’t tell her to give up, so I’ll just let it slide.
“I guess I’ll have to make you draw your sword faster. Work hard.”
“…Save me.”
Come on, you’ll get it soon. You’re growing really fast right now.
I thought that, but I didn’t say it out loud. This hardship will be another motivation for her.
Get stronger, Lilith. Get strong enough to end this training.
“Ah, wait a second, Miss Lilith. Can you try that magic you showed earlier one more time?”
“…Wasn’t it over already?”
“Since we’re doing it tomorrow anyway, might as well get a head start now. Go ahead and use it.”
“Really, cut me some slack…”
“Yes, I’ll watch, so go ahead and use it.”
“No, that’s not what I meant… Sigh, fine, I’ll do it.”
Until then, hang in there, Lilith!
Due to Seria’s unexpectedly strong passion for teaching, Lilith’s training didn’t end until evening.
“It’s later than I thought. I’ll have to do the campus service after dinner.”
“It’s because you spent too much time tormenting Lilith.”
“It wasn’t tormenting, it was teaching.”
Even with Lilith looking like a zombie right next to her, she can still say something like that.
She’s really shameless. Lilith is going to have a tough time for a while.
But it will definitely help… so it’s a good thing, I guess.
We headed to the student cafeteria for dinner. The ceiling was still broken, and since there were no students who could use light attribute magic, the inside was quite dark.
Noticing this, Lilith reflexively cast a light spell to brighten the surroundings.
Using magic for others is truly praiseworthy, but…
“Miss Lilith. I was the one who cast the light magic…”
“Didn’t I just tell you not to write like that?”
It seemed like that was all Seria could see.
With another round of nagging, Lilith’s training for the day was finally over.
…I thought I saw tears welling up in Lilith’s eyes as she ate, but it must have been my imagination.
After finishing the meal, as soon as we left the student cafeteria, Lilith bolted away, leaving just Seria and me alone.
Now we had to help with campus service… but since the sun was already setting, it honestly didn’t make much sense to start campus service now.
“It’s fine. Rudion will be with you, right?”
But Seria just smiled brightly and said stuff like that.
What does it matter if I’m with her? She’s not the type to be scared of ghosts or anything, so darkness shouldn’t bother her. Is she just bored going alone?
I’m not sure, but it’s better to finish this quickly and head back before it gets any darker.
“So, what’s the campus service about?”
“There’s nothing specific assigned. Professor Reina just tells us to handle whatever tasks she assigns each day.”
“What’s today’s task?”
“Cleaning the faculty grounds.”
But the academy janitors probably already took care of that, right?
They really handed us a freebie service task.
Since it’s the faculty grounds, there won’t be any students around to see what we’re doing anyway. Just go, pretend to do something, and come back.
When we arrived and looked around, the faculty grounds were spotless. Cleaning? What cleaning? There wasn’t even a single piece of trash to pick up.
“Well, it feels like we just came out to hang out.”
“It’s nice not having to do anything. Let’s just wander around a bit and head back.”
“Sure. Oh, right. Rudion, by the way, yesterday at the dorm…”
In the end, we counted it as completing the campus service and just started walking around while listening to Seria chatter.
Since professors are provided private residences instead of dorms, it felt like we were strolling through a residential area.
“This happened every day, you know? But even when others complained, nothing changed, so I just froze the person’s window shut so they couldn’t open it.”
Listening to her, she’s more of a villain than I thought.
Wait, no, she countered a villain, so is she a dark hero?
Others just think about doing stuff, but she actually goes and does it. People with no hesitation are really something else.
As we walked and chatted, the sky had completely darkened, and the lights around us started turning on one by one.
“Shall we head back soon?”
“Sure. Thanks for helping out today, Rudion.”
“I didn’t do anything.”
If anything, you worked harder helping Lilith with her training. And Lilith suffered even more for it.
“Just coming along is enough to be thankful for.”
But Seria seemed genuinely thankful.
Well, if she says so, I guess I’ll just go with it. No need to stubbornly argue against her gratitude.
“It feels like we’re stuck in the same loop as yesterday. See you tomorrow, Rudion.”
“Yeah, take care.”
I parted ways with Seria at the same spot as yesterday.
‘Today was a pretty peaceful day, huh.’
Thinking that, I returned to my dorm room, only to be greeted by a collapsed wall.
Oh right, the wall broke this morning… Scratch that “peaceful” comment.
Feeling suddenly exhausted, I sighed and glanced over the wall, only to lock eyes with Frank, who was busy packing his things.
“Ah, Mr. Rudion, you’re back? I’m just organizing my stuff to move to my lab.”
I’m not really interested in your personal life.
Can you maybe fix the gaping hole in the wall first?
///
After that, things were genuinely peaceful for a while.
Every day, I attended lectures, helped Lilith with her training, and tagged along with Seria for her campus volunteer work.
Occasionally, I exchanged a few words with other upperclassmen, but I never really got close to them. There was a sense of distance, like they found me intimidating.
Well, I *am* Professor Reina’s direct assistant now. Even if we’re taking the same classes, it makes sense that regular students would feel a bit pressured.
Not that I went out of my way to approach them either. I have plenty of time, and there’ll be plenty of events to get involved in later.
Also… the dorm wall is still wide open.
But since Frank hasn’t returned to the dorm since he moved his stuff, it’s like I have a bigger room now.
When I ran into him at the student cafeteria and asked, he said he had no plans to come back and told me to just treat it like my own room.
But honestly, having more space just means more area to clean. So I haven’t really been using it.
And so the weekend passed, and a new week began.
Finally, on the day the student cafeteria’s ceiling repairs were completed, Seria’s campus volunteer work also came to an end.
At the same time, the Student Council’s break period ended… and that’s when things started going wrong.
[Alkiné: If you see this message, come to the Student Council immediately. There’s a new Rift.]
I wasn’t too surprised that a Rift appeared earlier than it should have—by the end of the first semester. Things have already diverged from the original story in more ways than one.
Given that the difficulty level has changed, it was within expectations that dangerous elements would occur more frequently.
“Grain. Do you know why that’s happening?”
“…President. I think we’re screwed.”
“What?”
*Crackle crackle crackle—*
“That thing’s about to explode any second now.”
But I didn’t expect the Rift to suddenly reach that state.
Why is it acting like that?
