A Wild Man Has Entered the Academy

Since Kara had joined, nothing of particular note had happened.

Grace and Yeonhwa, who had not slept well, dozed off now and then, but there were no issues.

The same held true for the evening when the safe zone had shrunk to its smallest. There were almost no other survivors left, nor was there any willingness to fight.

"Are you going to fight? We don't mind either way."

"A peace treaty doesn't sound too bad."contemporary romance

This was Elvin speaking, one of the last to survive like us. As soon as he saw us, he immediately proposed a peace treaty.

It was as if my presence was a nuclear bomb—too big of a factor, hence the treaty.

We also didn't need to exert our full strength, which allowed for a peaceful continuation of the practice.

"What have you been eating to survive, Elvin?"

"Just water."

"…Aren't you hungry? It must be tough."

"I’d rather starve than eat frogs or snakes."

Elvin had survived somewhat foolishly. He had held out eating nothing at all.

He solved his need for water with the potions he had brought. Hunting was too difficult, and he didn’t want to eat bugs—it was his way out.

"How about this?"

"Get that away from me, fast! I'm not eating it!"

So when I offered him a nicely roasted grub, he was horrified. Everyone seems to hate bugs for some reason.

I passed the insect, which had turned Elvin's complexion to a pale shade, over to Kara. She accepted it gratefully and popped it into her mouth.

"Mmm. Mmm. Delicious as expected. Why would anyone refuse something this good?"

"I don't know."

"…"

Elvin gave us an indescribable look. It wasn't a lie; the bugs truly did taste good.

As time passed and evening approached, with the sun about to set, we heard an announcement.

"Great job, everyone. The survival practice session ends here."

The professors found us when we were cracking jokes and relaxing in the safe zone.

The eventful survival practice was over. Now we could finally rest comfortably in our beds.

"Keep your bracelets on for a while longer; it's better that way. They enhance fatigue recovery and temporarily halt natural bodily functions. So go to your dorms to remove them, and then return them the next day."

"…Why put a function to stop natural bodily functions?"

Grace asked, mirroring the puzzled looks of others.

When the environment changes even slightly, people's bodies are affected in various ways, especially their natural processes.

In the case of survival practice, the environment underwent extreme changes. Most had not realized what had changed.

"There are several reasons, but mainly it’s to avoid embarrassing situations. We were watching over you, after all. Does that make sense now?"

"Yes."

Grace nodded. She must have somewhat predicted that the teaching staff was overseeing the students. That allowed everyone to focus solely on the practice.

There might be some discomfort with that method, but there was no major opposition. Those who had decided to focus on survival rather than unnecessary matters were in the right.

"Don't worry too much about it. We don’t concern ourselves with students’ personal issues. It’s one of the principles of the academy."

Marlboro said this with a sideways glance at me. Even the other professors subtly directed their gaze my way.

Why were they looking at me, I wondered, and then realized.

"Ah. Luna."

I momentarily forgot Luna was lingering in the back of my mind. It was highly likely that they had overheard every word she had said to me.

Luna had inquired about the cave paintings I lived with, but to others, it could be interpreted as more than enough for a serious confession.

For the professors who had been watching everything in real time, it must have been quite the show. I wondered how they'd score that.

‘They'll handle it with aplomb.'

The professors were never the type to blabber. They might offer advice directly to the individuals concerned, but they are not the kind to spread rumors.

However, as the saying goes, ‘unkind rumors travel far’. So with a little time, those whispers could swell to reflect actual events.

Nothing the professors can do about that; that's just the way rumors work.

Regardless of how things unfold, I just need to focus on what I'm supposed to do.

"Again, great job today everyone. Tomorrow we have free training in the afternoon, but you can rest until then. Dismissed!"

Following the professors out of the woods, we received the dismissal order.

The students glanced at each other briefly before drifting back to the dorms one by one.

We prepared to leave as well, up until Grace called out to me.

"Sivar."

"?

I paused my stride and looked at her. Kara did the same.

Grace's face was weary with fatigue. She had not eaten properly over the last two days and had hardly slept.

Nevertheless, she couldn't hide her sharp and splendid beauty, though her sharp eyes seemed a little softened, looking rather pitiful.

"Um…"

She hesitated, her mouth moving as if she wanted to say something. I quietly waited for her to speak.

Finally, Grace glanced at Kara beside me and managed a bitter smile. It was an unusual expression for someone who always radiated confidence.

"…It's nothing. I look forward to working with you in the future."

"Sure."

"And you too, Yeonhwa. I’ll be counting on you."

"Yes, yes…!"

Grace’s friendly smile at Yeonhwa suggested the words weren’t what she really wanted to say.

Awkwardness is something I dislike. Even if I got closer to Grace and it turned out well, there was nothing to lose.

I wasn’t sure what she wanted to say, but I felt like ending the conversation here would make it hard to increase her favorability.

My instincts told me not to cut this short but to keep the conversation going.

"Grace."

"Oh? Me?"

Perhaps because she was tired, Grace pointed to herself in a daze.

This was so unlike the noble grace she was known for. It was like a peek at one of her genuine sides hidden behind a mask.

With her eyes wide in surprise, I brought up what I wanted to say.

"Cake."

"…Cake? You mean cake?"

"Yeah. It's a promise."

We had made a promise before. If we did well in survival, she would buy me a cake.

Thanks to me, she had managed to escape crises and completed the practice without any issues. It was time to fulfill the promise.

It took a while, but Grace realized this and exclaimed in surprise. Then she made a perplexed face and eventually let out a chuckle.

"Sorry, I completely forgot. When shall we meet?"

When would be a good time? I had prior commitments with Luna, not to mention upcoming episodes.

Considering all that, it might take a while to set a time. I had sessions with Ellie and Rod scheduled for the weekend.

"Sorry to interrupt but what promise did you make with Sivar?"

Kara interjected as I pondered. It was probably new to her and aroused curiosity.

To this, Grace nonchalantly explained the situation.

"Sivar said he'd cooperate actively, so I promised to buy him a cake. And Sivar held up his end splendidly. That's all there is to it."

"Cake? That sweet, fluffy thing?"

"Yes, exactly that."

"Hmm…"

After hearing the answer, Kara turned her gaze to me. Her green eyes were agitated with thought.

Whatever she pondered, it didn't seem to be negative.

"Alright. Promises are promises, I get it. Decide some other time not now though. You're tired, and we're tired. We have plenty of time, right?"

"Let’s do that. Yeonhwa, do you want to join?"

Yeonhwa hurriedly shook her head no. It was decidedly clear she was not interested.

Grace let it go; it was a courtesy offer after all.

‘When was Yeonhwa's episode again?'

As I recall, it was related to a visit from prominent figures of the Hwan Empire. A high-ranking individual would make an appearance.

That person would instantly recognize Yeonhwa and events would unfold. It would be a mess if that person weren't relatively sensible.

"Once again, I say good job everyone. I'll probably not get up tomorrow, so let's meet in two days."

Following Grace's final words, we all headed back to our dorms. Naturally, I moved along with Kara.

‘I just hope that person doesn’t show up.'

The survival practice was over, so the next episode was inevitable. The one related to the cleric.

In Soul World, that route allowed access to cleric-related professions, though one needed a bit of faith.

As someone whose faith was scraping bottom, it wasn't really of concern to me. The real problem was me being a follower of ‘Chaos.'

"Sivar."

"?

As I deepened into my thoughts, possibly contemplating if that person would really come, Kara called out to me. Snapping out of my reverie, I turned to look at her.

For some reason, Kara seemed annoyed. Puzzled if I had done something wrong, her advice took me by surprise.

"Ellie taught you already, I presume, but if someone offers you tasty things or tells you to follow them, you shouldn't, okay?"

"Um?"

Her warning caught me completely off guard. It was bewildering advice, to say the least.

As I stood there confused, Kara scratched her head and provided some sort of explanation.

"Grace, right? She seems nice enough… but don’t just go following people. Especially not if someone you don't know offers you food or promises something good. Got that?"

She talked as if I were a child. I stared back at her incredulously.

Kara misinterpreted my expression and tried to drill the point home.

"Now, repeat after me. What if a stranger tells you they will buy you a cake if you come with them? What will you do?"

"Yeah."

I should just take the cake and leave, I thought. But Kara didn't seem pleased with my response.

"No! You say ‘no' to them. Let's try something else. If a stranger offers money and suggests doing something good, what would you do?"

"Yeah."

"No! You're supposed to say ‘no'! Wow. You really might have gotten into trouble, you know? It's good we caught this in time."

I knew I could defend myself no matter what; I couldn’t fathom why she was reacting this way.

Regardless of my thoughts, Kara muttered to herself with genuine concern in her voice.

"I'm scared someone might take away our dear Sivar. I'll have to keep a closer watch."

"?"

Who would take whom away? If someone tried to force me, I’d simply bite to escape.

done.co