"This is the basic physical training classroom..."
This was what the professor of that lecture said when he found me among the students dressed in training clothes. He could have realized immediately that I hadn't come to the wrong classroom by simply checking the attendance record. But it seemed he couldn't believe I had come to take his class, so much so that he didn't even think to check it himself.
'Understandable.'
I looked around at the students standing around me. No matter which way I turned, a muscular giant came into view. When Ríolíkin, who already had huge muscles, said he was taking this lecture, the thought 'no way' crossed my mind, but I didn't expect it to be quite like this. Well, hadn't even I, who was worried about survival, debated whether to take this lecture or not? Of course, the other students would have had the same concerns as me. Moreover, this is an Academy. Whether one can get a good grade in a lecture is also an important factor to consider when choosing it. For me, survival takes priority over grades, so I just signed up.
"I didn't come to the wrong classroom."
"Is that so? If you want to change your schedule, you don't have to worry about me and can leave right now."
As the professor finished speaking, the relatively small-statured students stealthily left the classroom. They had probably thought they could get a free ride in this lecture, but upon seeing the other students' physiques, they must have considered it a lost cause and bailed.
After they left and the classroom door closed, the professor looked at me with surprise.
"Are you really going to take this course?"
"Yes."
"It'll be tough, you know? Both getting a good grade and the lecture itself."
"I signed up fully aware, so please don't worry about it."
"If that's the case... Ah, my words didn't offend you, did they?"
"No, they didn't."
Only after this exchange did the professor start the lecture, and I experienced hell. Even though the professor carefully monitored my condition and adjusted the training intensity, I would have died if I had trained at the same intensity as the other students. The thought of dying crossed my mind repeatedly.
"I'm telling you this so you don't misunderstand, but I wasn't trying to kick you out. In fact, I want fragile students like you in my class. It's fun to watch the muscle growth. In that sense, I hope you don't give up and continue with my class."
After the four-hour taste-of-hell course ended, the basic physical training professor approached me and said the above. But I couldn't respond, because I was in a state where even breathing was difficult, let alone speaking.
"I promise. If you take my class not only this semester but for all remaining semesters, I will help you get wonderful muscles like the other students before you graduate."
I declined such excessive help. What I wanted to gain from this lecture was moderately excellent stamina and muscular strength, not a brawny body that would befit a bodybuilder. I was originally planning to take the basic physical training lecture only for this semester, but now I was even more determined to do so.
"It's lunchtime now, so enjoy your protein intake, and I will see you again next week!"
The basic physical training professor, who had been energetically talking to himself, finally left. Then, Ríolíkin cautiously approached.
"U-um, Lord Karvaldr. A-are you alright? If you n-need help..."
"No, I am fine."
No matter how hard it is, I do not want to walk leaning on a sweaty muscle giant. Even though I am also covered in sweat, what I do not like, I do not like. Moreover, isn't Ríolíkin someone I have decided to keep my distance from? So I pushed myself off the wall I had been leaning on and stumbled forward using only my own strength.
With every step I took, my legs trembled, and the desire to collapse and rest welled up. Of course, the desire to change my registered courses ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) grew with every step I took.
'But it would be impossible to push myself beyond my limits and train my body like this on my own. A semester is 16 weeks, and two of those are for exams... Let us just endure it thirteen more times...'
This was all for fast growth, so I steeled myself and staggered forward.
Ríolíkin walked beside me, fidgeting with his hands and tapping his feet as he didn't know what to do. It seemed he was trying to quickly catch me if I was about to fall. But rather than being grateful, I found it distracting and wished he would just go his own way.
"Ah! L-Lord Karvaldr. The ca-cafeteria is, th-that building is over th-there...?"
While I was gathering my mental strength to walk without needing support, Ríolíkin blocked my path with a useless remark. I had come to the Academy a week before the semester started on purpose and bustled about to learn the geography. Was there any way I could get lost?
"I was on my way to the dormitory."
"A-aren't you going to e-eat?! Pro-protein intake after exercise is e-essential. A-ah, the professor m-mentioned it earlier, d-didn't he? Th-that's..."
"Don't you think I should wash up first?"
"...Pardon?"
I think I said something perfectly normal, but for some reason, Ríolíkin blinked as if he had heard something strange. That look meant only one thing.
"Don't tell me... you were planning to go into the cafeteria without washing up?"
Setting aside how sticky and unpleasant sweat feels, it's a huge inconvenience to others. Don't tell me the other students from the basic physical training lecture also headed straight to the campus cafeteria. If so, then I must avoid going to the campus cafeteria right now.
"Truly filthy..."
The thought of a space where the smell of sweat and food mixed was enough to make my stomach churn, and I covered my nose and mouth without realizing it.
Was he shocked by my reaction? Ríolíkin wore an expression as if he had been hit by a hammer. I walked past his frozen form and continued on my way. A moment later, the sound of heavy footsteps hurriedly followed, suggesting Ríolíkin had also decided to wash up before lunch.
If he had gone straight to the campus cafeteria, I could have used the excuse that I wanted to keep my distance because he was dirty, but it was a shame.
'But do I have to make an excuse? If I just avoid him well, won't he get the hint and stay away?'
After taking a shower, changing into a clean school uniform, and even styling my wet hair, I clung to that hope. I thought that after this much time had passed, I wouldn't run into Ríolíkin at the cafeteria again.
But what's this?
Ríolíkin was waiting right in front of my room.
He should have been in a hurry to get his protein intake to prevent muscle loss, so I assumed he would have run to the campus cafeteria right after washing up.
To make matters worse, I also ran into Tryggdrik at the campus cafeteria. He said he was waiting for me and hadn't even gotten his food yet.
'What if I had decided to skip lunch...?'
I had an ominous premonition that shaking off these two characters would be really difficult.
Unaware of my inner turmoil, Tryggdrik chattered on throughout the meal about how beneficial his morning art history lecture had been. He then pestered me to quit basic physical training and take the same lecture as him, but of course, I let all his words go in one ear and out the other.
If I were to write about this moment later, I'm sure I wouldn't be able to record Tryggdrik's lines and would just gloss over them. Why? Because I didn't listen properly, so nothing stuck in my memory. That's how thoroughly I ignored Tryggdrik's words.
'This afternoon's lecture is a required theory course, so I'll have to attend with these two characters... The same goes for the protagonist Reisir and the possessed body's fiancée, Vigdís. Will it be okay?'
Unlike my morning lecture, I failed to shake off the possessed body's lackeys and headed to the lecture room with them. And we even sat right next to each other. For that reason, I couldn't relax my guard until the lecture started and remained wary of my surroundings. I feared that Tryggdrik would spot Reisir or Vigdís before I did and pick a fight with them.
'I told him not to yesterday, but just in case.'
Fortunately, what I had worried about didn't happen. In fact, there wasn't even room for it to happen. Was it because they had a hard time last semester? Both came in just before the professor called attendance and sat near the back door. They seemed to know very well how to avoid Karvaldr and his lackeys.
'Good, then I can sleep in peace.'
You might wonder why I'm talking about sleep in a sacred lecture room, but the required theory lecture, "History and Ethics," was known as sleep time. According to the original story's description, the professor simply opened the textbook and read from it.
'That's not a lecture; that's a reading session.'
In other words, listening is nothing more than a waste of time. I can just cram for the exam later, so it's better to get some good sleep now and recover the stamina I used up during the morning lecture. My day's schedule doesn't end just because the afternoon lecture is over.
"So, Lord Karvaldr, you couldn't stay awake this semester either and fell asleep!"
While I was waiting for Reisir and Vigdís to have enough time to leave the lecture room, I was rubbing my arm, which had fallen asleep after being used as a pillow for three hours, when Tryggdrik struck up a friendly conversation. According to the cunning bastard's words I had overheard, it seemed the Karvaldr of last semester was one of the few diligent listeners during the textbook reading session.
'As much as I've resolved to imitate Karvaldr, I don't think I need to go that far.'
Anyway, I'm only taking combat-related lectures, so what's the big deal if I sleep a little during a theory class where everyone else is sleeping?
"But Lord Karvaldr, didn't you say you have insomnia? For someone with insomnia, you seemed to be sleeping quite soundly."
Maybe that was a big deal.
Come to think of it, I had forgotten about the insomnia setting. The morning lecture was so grueling that I forgot about it and just fell asleep.
While I was blaming the basic physical training lecture for this predicament, that very lecture ended up solving the awkward situation.
"I-it's d-definitely because of the b-basic physical training lecture... B-because it was s-so hard. H-he must have been s-so exhausted that he pa-passed out and fe-fell asleep."
It was a perfectly timed excuse. I nodded in agreement with Ríolíkin's words, and Tryggdrik quickly dismissed his own suspicions.
"By the way, it's free time now. Do you have anything planned? If not..."
"I've rented a personal training ground—not just for today, but I plan to go there after lectures from now on to train alone. So if you're going to play, you can do it on your own."
If I kept my mouth shut, I would have to listen to Tryggdrik's after-school plans that he had made up on his own. So I quickly cut him off. And while I was at it, I decided to make it clear that I would be holed up in the personal training ground for the rest of this semester, so they shouldn't bother me.
'You probably thought you could drag me around and treat me like a pushover or a money bag, but not a chance.'
I fought back the urge to scoff, trying to maintain an indifferent expression. At the same time, I glanced at Tryggdrik's face and saw his facial muscles scrunch up, then contort strangely and harden. Did it displease him that it would be difficult to stick close to me and act friendly this semester...?
"Lord Karvaldr, you're not planning on becoming a meathead idiot like Ríolíkin, are you? That's absolutely not allowed! You look perfect just the way you are, Lord Karvaldr! You must maintain that elegant, sensitive, and noble figure! Even if you exercise for your health, you should only build a tiny bit of muscle! Promise me, okay?"
Tryggdrik, who had made a huge misunderstanding, exclaimed in a very desperate voice. It seemed he really wanted to avoid the fate of being a twig-like existence among muscle masses.
In contrast to the frantic Tryggdrik, Ríolíkin gave me a look full of expectation.
"...I'm not trying to bulk up like that, so mind your own business."
I corrected the misunderstanding while unable to hide my displeasure. This time, Tryggdrik sighed in relief and stroked his chest, while Ríolíkin swallowed his disappointment with a regretful look.
