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Chapter 53
It was the first week of the new semester, and most students were rushing about, chatting excitedly with their friends.
“Did you hear?”
“Ugh, I already miss the vacation.”
“Should we just skip class today?”
Unlike them, I didn’t have anyone I stuck with, nor did I particularly care to. As usual, I attended lectures and moved around alone.
Then suddenly—
“Hm?”
Catching sight of a familiar face, I immediately walked over.
“Bren!”
“H-Huh? Camon?”
Seeing his awkward expression, I quickly threw my arm over his shoulder.
Smack!
I hadn’t seen Bren once all vacation, and maybe it was just me, but he looked like he’d gained a bit of weight—probably from eating well while hiding away somewhere.
“What’s this, Bren? You’ve been hiding all break? Where were you?”
“Uh, well, I just stayed in the dorms.”
“Yeah? Then why’d you get all chubby? Must’ve been a comfy break, huh?”
“Uh, yeah? Maybe?”
“Come on, even if you’re a shut-in, you should at least meet up with your friends sometimes.”
“Hmm?”
“So what about the magic society seminar? They said they missed you.”
“Oh, um… yeah, I went.”
“Oh-ho, how was it?”
“Uh-huh.”
He nodded awkwardly, and I couldn’t help but chuckle.
“So? How was it? Didn’t I look awesome up there?”
Trying to sound playful, I puffed up a bit, but he nodded vigorously.
“Yeah, you were amazing. I couldn’t believe how perfectly you cast that spell.”
“Huh?”
I’d just been teasing him, but his serious tone caught me off guard, making me feel oddly embarrassed.
I rubbed my nose and said, “Ahem, well, yeah… guess I’ve got some talent, huh?”
“…”
Bren looked at me for a moment, then said quietly,
“Camon, can I ask something?”
“Yeah? What is it, Bren?”
“If you’re that good at magic… why’d you ask me to teach you back then?”
“Huh?”
I froze.
“No, that was, uh—”
“Some people asked me recently. If you, Camon, really can’t use magic.”
“What?”
His tone was unusually serious. I couldn’t say a word.
“I told them no. That the reason you asked me to teach you magic was… just to tease me.”
“Hey, Bren, that’s not—no! It’s not like that!”
I waved my hands frantically, but his expression stayed firm.
“It’s fine. It’s not like that was the first time. Other people did it too, so I understand. But still…”
His voice trembled slightly.
“If you keep treating me like that, I just… I don’t know what to do anymore. I just…”
“I can’t use magic.”
“What?”
“It’s true, Bren. I can’t use magic right now. The specialists said all my mana routes are blocked.”
I decided to tell him everything.
“M-Mana routes?”
“Yeah. Because of that, I can’t feel mana in the air or cast spells properly.”
“That’s… that’s not true. Then what about at the seminar…?”
“You saw the orb I was holding, right?”
“Uh, yeah, I guess?”
“That thing can force open mana routes temporarily. It’s dangerous, but it let me pull off the demonstration.”
“…”
Even after my explanation, he still looked doubtful.
“Bren, whether you believe me or not is up to you. I just want you to know I’m only telling you this because you’re my friend—and no one else knows.”
I sighed and nodded.
“Honestly, I wouldn’t believe it either. But if you want, I can prove it to you later—”
Before I could finish,
“Alright, I believe you.”
“…What?”
“I said I believe you.”
He smiled faintly.
“You said we’re friends, right? Friends are supposed to go along with stuff like this.”
Smack!
“You little punk!”
I instinctively pulled him into a headlock.
“You think you can talk back to your big bro now, huh? ‘Friends’?!”
“Ow—ow! Camon, that hurts! It hurts!”
I tightened my arm a little more before laughing quietly.
God, what am I even doing?
It was embarrassing—being flustered like that, and for not telling him the truth sooner.
Yeah. Friends should be honest.
Just as I was holding him there—
“Camon!”
A familiar voice called out.
“Elliot?”
“What are you doing over there? Are you two fighting?”
“Huh? No, no! It’s not like that!”
I quickly let go of Bren.
“Cough! Cough— I thought I was gonna die!”
Bren coughed hard while Elliot looked between us, puzzled.
“Just messing around, that’s all! Ha, hahaha…”
“‘Fwiends’? Really?”
Elliot muttered skeptically, and I could only laugh awkwardly.
“Bren, do you know what’s for dinner tonight?”
“Huh? Not yet, senior.”
“Steak and chicken, my man. We’re gonna wreck that cafeteria tonight.”
“Whoa, really? Then the chicken’s all mine.”
“Chicken? No way. A real man goes for steak!”
“But chicken tastes better.”
“What?! That’s blasphemy, Bren!”
The two of them—yeah, Bren and Elliot—were bickering noisily beside me.
They’d met through me, and somehow they’d gotten close really fast.
I had no idea how, but—
“Camon! You prefer steak or chicken?”
“Obviously steak.”
Like I cared which tasted better.
I just shook my head at the two of them arguing so freely.
“Sigh…”
“Hey, Elliot-senpai, you’re making Camon uncomfortable with your pressure.”
“What? Pressure? When did I—”
“Just now! You said steak’s the best. That’s gaslighting.”
“G-Gaslighting?!”
Since befriending Elliot, Bren had become noticeably bolder.
Though, he still had no idea Elliot was the heir candidate to the Frenn Trading Company.
Not that it was my problem.
“Hey, if you’re gonna keep chatting, just leave me out of it. Poor commoners like me have to go gnaw on bread scraps.”
“No, that’s not what we meant—”
“C-Camon, sorry!”
They both panicked at my joke, which only made me laugh.
“I’m kidding, relax. Don’t take it so seriously.”
“Oh… it was a joke?”
“That kind of joke’s not funny, Camon Bede.”
Elliot muttered dryly, then asked,
“So, you still eat alone most of the time?”
“Well, yeah. Sometimes I get unwanted company, though.”
“Unwanted company?”
“Ah, it’s nothing.”
I brushed it off and turned to Bren.
“Bren, what’re your afternoon classes today?”
“Hmm, Rhetoric and Magic Circles.”
“Wow, tough ones. Rhetoric nearly broke my brain last year.”
“You took Rhetoric too, senpai? Then maybe…”
Bren’s eyes sparkled, and Elliot gave a sly smile.
“Of course, Bren. The ancient law of academia: the ‘past exam papers’ always exist. Heh.”
“Senpai, I love you!”
Elliot chuckled.
“Love’s a bit much. Just come by my dorm later, I’ll give you my notes.”
“Yes, senpai! But, uh… where do you live again?”
“You don’t know? I told you—it’s…”
While the two of them got along swimmingly, I slipped away to eat dinner alone in the commoners’ cafeteria.
Later, when I returned to the dorm, a crowd had gathered in the first-floor hall.
‘Ah, right. The big cleanup.’
I heard bits of conversation from the gathered students.
“They said there’s a student council election this semester, right?”
“Yeah, President Elric’s term ended. They’re picking a new one.”
“Who’s running? Maybe I should try.”
“Yeah right. You’re a commoner. That’s for nobles.”
“Well, technically there’s no rule against it. A commoner can apply.”
“Then go ahead. Let’s see how bad you get humiliated.”
“I didn’t say I was actually going to—”
“What, chickening out already? Hah!”
As they argued, the phrase student council election caught my ear.
‘Student council election…’
Right, in the original story, Princess Fransia became president, didn’t she?
With Kyle’s help, she became the first-ever first-year president of the academy. That event led to a bunch of new story arcs and character connections.
‘Still, that’s got nothing to do with me.’
Whoever became president didn’t matter to me.
Clap clap!
The sound of hands clapping drew everyone’s attention. The dorm maid supervisor stepped forward.
“The cleaning areas have been assigned and posted. Please collect your cleaning tools and tidy up your designated zones. Once you’re finished, come to me for inspection.”
At that, the students muttered among themselves.
“Inspection? Ugh, what a pain.”
“Don’t worry, it’s fake. They never actually check.”
“So we can half-ass it?”
“Yeah, last time too. It’s all for show.”
They snickered, already plotting to slack off. I shook my head.
‘Yeah, not falling for that. No need to give anyone an excuse to pick on me later.’
“Alright, please begin cleaning.”
Everyone checked their assignments and grabbed supplies.
I glanced at mine.
‘Fourth floor, section B hallway and rooms?’
The dorm had seven floors total. Usually, the higher the floor, the higher the student year.
Assignments were always given starting from the upperclassmen.
‘Just like the real world—even here, higher floors mean higher status.’
“Ugh, fourth floor again? This sucks.”
I turned toward the voice and saw a first-year commoner, sighing deeply. Another student clapped him on the shoulder.
“I got the fifth floor, man.”
“Ah, sorry.”
I nodded, understanding.
From the third floor up, second and third years were mixed in, and the fifth or sixth floor probably housed seniors.
For a normal freshman, cleaning upperclassmen’s dorms would be nerve-racking.
But for me—
“Please. They’re just kids.”
I was in my thirties in my past life and had worked office jobs.
Cleaning a hallway was nothing—just some sweeping and wiping, right?
It couldn’t be that hard.
Or so I thought.
The moment I stepped onto the fourth floor—
“…Fuck.”
I closed my eyes tightly and cursed under my breath.
