MHP 09

Chapter 9

“Apparently the sorting criteria are a secret no one knows, but they say it has never changed since the academy was founded. The sorting method, however, changes every year.”

Because of that, Spellmore’s dorm assignment was such a major event that the entire empire waited eagerly each year to see what new, creative method would be used.

“A hat is new to me.”

Before they started changing methods every year, they apparently used a magical catapult. You’d sit on it and—whoosh!—get launched straight into whatever dorm tower matched you.

But about 450 years ago, a few batches of students were caught mid-air and bitten by wyverns waiting with their mouths open. After that, the catapult was forcibly retired.

Shiver.

“They’d definitely shut the school down if that happened nowadays.”

“Don’t worry. That doesn’t happen anymore.”

…And yet why did both of them look like they thought those were the good old days?

“The tradition of the four great dorms was abolished five years ago.”

“Ah, I should’ve been born six years earlier.”

At Selly’s mutter, the second-years nodded in agreement.

“But why was it abolished?”

Before answering, the seniors glanced around and motioned for her to come closer.

Was this something they weren’t supposed to be heard?

“Well, there wasn’t actually much difference between the dorms. But since there was competition, a ‘our dorm is the best!’ culture formed, which escalated into ranking systems…”

“And then preferences and avoidance lists started forming among prospective students and parents…”

“Ah…”

“And six years ago, a parent even sued Headmaster Lexarion.”

“…Huh?”

“They demanded transparency, claiming the dorm assignment wasn’t fair.”

Complaints from parents unhappy with their assigned dorms had started about ten years ago, slowly intensifying until it eventually escalated into a lawsuit.

In this strange Western fantasy world… it smelled suspiciously like real-world entitlement behavior.

Enraged, the headmaster—normally obsessed with efficiency and cost-cutting like a bureaucrat—joined forces with the vice headmaster and abolished the entire dorm tradition.

So now, first and second years only had gender-separated dorms. At least third to sixth years still had major-based dorms, so remnants of the old system remained.

‘So even this world shuts down entitled behavior fast.’

Thanks to this refreshing institutional attitude, Selly felt strangely choked up over a dream she never got to fulfill on Earth.

‘Waaah… I came here excited for dorm life.’

Still, at least they didn’t shut down the whole magic school out of spite.

“Thank you for explaining!”

“See you again.”

Selly said goodbye and headed up the eastern stairs.

Thinking about the girls’ dorm she had seen in the tapestry made her earlier disappointment vanish, replaced with excitement.

A tower floating in the sky… so cool.

The dorm, called the “Dreaming Tower,” was connected to the main tower by a single bridge and floated in midair.

Being high up means the view must be amazing.

But that thought didn’t survive past the fifth floor.

“Huff… huff… in a world where airships fly and identity is verified by fingerprints… there’s no elevator?”

At least her forest-trained stamina helped.

Otherwise she would’ve ended up like the student she saw on the eleventh floor—collapsed on the stairs like a rug, sucking on a lollipop while desperately refueling sugar.

“Ah… eighteen… floors!”

Finally, she reached the 18th floor.

She opened the heavy wooden door, and a stone bridge stretched out ahead, crossing the sky. At its end, another floating tower stood like a miracle, making her forget all the effort it took to get there.

“Wow…”

Following the room number on her key, Selly’s eyes widened again.

‘This is exactly the medieval magic school dorm I imagined.’

The room had a tall arched ceiling and a fireplace—classic and cozy. It wasn’t large since it was for two people, but it felt just right.

What about the view?

She walked straight to the window, where thick black velvet curtains were tied back with golden cords.

Outside, she saw a lush forest glowing in sunset light and a city illuminated at dusk at the same time.

A split view? Perfect.

Now it was time to inspect the room.

On both sides of a large window, identical furniture sets were arranged: desks, bookshelves, wardrobes, and beds placed on top.

“Bunk beds!”

Selly’s eyes sparkled again as another dream came true.

There were two full sets of furniture—but only Selly was there. Judging by the luggage, her first roommate must have gone out for dinner.

“Huh?”

Just as she was about to place her things on the other side, she paused.

There were already neatly arranged belongings there.

For a moment she thought the dorm supervisor had assigned the wrong room, but everything looked untouched—no signs of use.

‘Oh… the school provides everything.’

New textbooks lined the shelves, and the clothes in the wardrobe were clearly uniforms.

‘They even give uniforms for free!’

What a good world.

But seriously—why no elevator?

And more importantly, what if the size doesn’t fit? Did they not even check?

…That worry turned out to be pointless.

The moment she put the uniform on and thought it was too big, it adjusted itself, shrinking smoothly into the perfect fit.

Magic size adjustment. This world really was better than Earth.

Still—no elevator?

Selly stood in front of the mirror inside the wardrobe door.

She wore a white shirt, a dark green tie diagonally decorated with the school crest, and a sweater.

She sniffed slightly.

“I can’t believe I’m finally wearing a school uniform…”

In her past life, her middle school had no uniform. High school would’ve been her first uniform experience—but she died before she could ever wear it.

“Actually, this is better. Science high schools don’t even have this.”

She draped a long robe over her shoulders and put on a pointed wizard hat.

She looked like a proper mage.

“Whoa! This is a magic wand!”

She pulled out the wand from its box and swung it immediately.

“……”

Nothing happened.

“So I’m not a mage yet…”

And where was the broomstick she expected after flying earlier today?

‘Do they not teach flying?’

She glanced at her schedule for first semester:

• Basics of Magic

• History of Magic

• Introductory Magical Biology

• Basic Combat Magic

• Understanding Magical Engineering

No flying class.

Still, just the names alone were exciting.

I hope tomorrow comes quickly.

After quickly unpacking her few belongings, she grabbed a thin book from beside the timetable and climbed into the bunk bed.

“Wow… so soft.”

Whether it was the school bed or sheer exhaustion, the mattress and blanket felt like marshmallows.

She melted into it like cheese between warm toast—

Then snapped back to reality when the book slipped onto her stomach.

No. I don’t want to get expelled on the first day.

The purple leather cover gleamed with gold lettering:

Spellmore Rules & Dormitory Regulations

The moment she opened it, terrifying red text appeared:

All Spellmore rules were written in someone’s blood.
Unless your life goal is to write new rules with your own blood, you must obey all regulations. In matters not covered here, use common sense.
This academy is not responsible for incidents caused by insufficient common sense.

“…It’s not actually real blood, right?”

Carefully avoiding the red text, she turned the pages. Normally, rulebooks were supposed to be sleep aids—but not this one.

“What kind of things happened to make rules like this?”

Sleep didn’t come. It ran away instead.

Then she saw a warning:

During Professor Crowley’s classes, do not nod.
The last student who nodded is still unable to leave his office.

“…What kind of professor is Crowley supposed to be?”