How to Survive at the Academy

Chapter 13: Stray Cat (2)

It might be rude to compare people to animals but Yennekar Palerover reminds me of an overly excited Golden Retriever, someone whom people would naturally gravitate towards.

She was similar to a puppy waving its tail to happily greet everyone. And wouldn’t you want to hug or pat such a puppy?

That was probably what our class felt with Yennekar. They always flock to her whenever they see her, hugging her and linking arms with her.

In fact, they would always aggressively stare at me if I so much as stepped within a three-meter radius of her, in fear that I might be a bad influence.

Now, if Yennekar was like a cute puppy, then Lucy Mayreel was a stray cat.

Yes, the sound of her rough breathing while cuddled up did indeed resemble that of a cat, but it wasn’t just about her outer appearance.

You see, wild stray cats could never be tamed.

They were never affectionate or friendly to passersby, or at least, all the stray cats I had seen in my life were.

Street cats had their own rules in life which they followed amongst themselves.

They were always the center of their world, even if they were living in some shabby back alley somewhere. And no matter how dirty and ragged their fur was, their steps were always refined, like that of a princess.

And it wasn’t like such an attitude was due to their vanity, nor were they acting like that on purpose. It’s just… the way they were born.

And Lucy Mayreel was born just like that.

“Ughaaahk-”

She stretched as she sat up.

It had been about 30 minutes since I came back to my camp only to find Lucy sleeping in my shelter.

I spent that time sitting down and thinking about what I was supposed to do about her.

The sun had almost fully set, and on a spring day such as this, the high sky had begun to darken.

“……”

Lucy sat absentmindedly, her eyes not fully awake yet. A few strands of her hair were stubbornly stuck on her cheek.

And as soon as she woke up in someone else’s place, the first thing she said was,

“… I’m hungry…”

Ah… I admire her for such a talent.

We finally met eyes, and for a while, I just sat there on my rock by the campfire and stared at her without a word, chin propped by the palm of my hand. If she were any regular girl, she would’ve already grasped the situation and felt embarrassed.

But this was Lucy Mayreel.

“Out of 100 points… about 90.”

I just sat still.

“I think the way you covered it with leaves was nice because it allowed the sunlight to only subtly pass through. The breeze flowing inside was also refreshing, which was good. As soon as I laid down, I fell asleep right away.”

Did my camp just become one of Lucy Mayreel’s top three places to take a nap in Silvenia Academy?

“But I didn’t have a choice but to sleep face down as the floor was covered with clothes… it would have been nicer had it been a little softer. But it blocks the sun quite well and I also liked the sound of the flowing stream nearby.”

She expertly assessed without changing her blank facial expression.

“It was great.”

There was no change in her expression, but there was a strange twinkling feeling that convinced me she felt quite satisfied.

… Just what the hell am I saying?

Lucy stood up and stretched her limbs once more.

My wooden shelter was wider than one might think. But that’s all it was. Its width was wide but the ceiling stopped around my shoulders. To put it simply, I couldn’t stand inside.

So seeing Lucy stretching inside such a narrow space made me realize our difference in physique. She really was a small girl. Even the sleeves of her school uniform were loose despite her wearing what must have been the smallest size.

Suddenly, Lucy’s stomach started to rumble as she popped out of the shelter.

Yes, ‘popped out’ was the perfect way to describe her action.

Her footwork resembled those of Murim martial arts movies. She was gathering magic at the tip of her toes and was using elemental wind and gravity magic, along with high-level shock absorption magic, just to land her small body in her desired place.

She was using all kinds of high-level magic as she moved around, as if she was a god. She was multicasting five or six spells that even professors at the Magic Department would need to concentrate to use. She was doing everything instinctively, unconsciously.

“Is this dried meat? Can I eat it?”

Lucy picked up a piece of jerky I had lying around and took a bite off it.

She licked her lips as she chewed.

“Eghk–! It’s too salty.”

She stuck out her tongue with a frown.

“…Though, there also seems to be an indescribable taste?”

She then took another bite.

She seemed to start to enjoy the salty taste after chewing for a while, so she ended up eating the whole thing. Then she pointed to another piece.

“Can I have another one?”

“…okay.”

She then sat on top of my drying rack and twirled her feet in the air, as if she truly enjoyed the taste of my jerky.

She frowned at how salty it was at first, hating it. But now she kept on chewing with a completely satisfied look on her face.

…ah. Just what is this feeling? I’m feeling some type of way.

It felt like that unique satisfaction you get when you’re feeding a cute pet.

Wait, was this… did I just become a cat mom?

What is this addictive feeling all of a sudden…?

“……”

No! I frantically shook my head. Get it together… This is Lucy Mayreel!

She was a key character in ‘Silvenia’s Failed Swordmaster.’ Nothing good would come out of getting involved with her.

“It was too salty at first, but now I actually really like it because it’s salty. It’s quite a sensational taste.”

“……”

“This salty taste… I love it.”

Ah… I understood it now.

Lucy Mayreel was an unprecedented genius with overwhelmingly high grades among the first-years. This meant she must be living in Ophelis Hall where they allowed only the best students to stay.

Ophelis Hall boasted of having the best facilities among the three major dormitories in Silvenia. You couldn’t stay at Ophelis without either a high status or a high grade.

Therefore, the student cafeteria at Ophelis Hall only served the best food from the best chefs in the kingdom. The taste was often sophisticated and refined, suited for high-ranking nobles.

But there was a taste that such high-quality food cannot offer.

The ‘Salty, Spicy, Sweet” combo.

A taste outside the realm of a sophisticated palate that only cared about the freshness of ingredients, the harmony of tastes, and a balanced nutrition. It was a provocative taste that didn’t care about one’s health.

It was like a whisper from the devil.

“Can I take all of this?”

“No.”

That would be crossing the line. That’s my lunch, you kid!

“Ughhh…”

I felt sad at seeing her disappointed face. But it may just be a snack to her, but it was my means to survive.

She could just eat a lot of the high-quality food back at Ophelis Hall.

Suddenly, I had a brilliant idea.

“Come to think of it…”

Lucy was indifferent to hardships, and she wasn’t afraid of anyone in the academy. The Benevolent Princess Penia, The Golden Daughter Lortel, and the renowned evil Professor Glast—they were all equals to Lucy who had a carefree soul.

But that didn’t mean there was no one who could control the unpredictable Lucy.

“Uhm… I actually heard the Ophelis Hall maids were looking for you.”

Lucy’s face turned blue as soon as she heard those words.

And with a kick that pushed her off into the air, she disappeared in an instant.

Then she reappeared right back and flew into the shelter to grab her wide-brimmed witch hat.

“I think I have to go.”

“Okay… Good luck.”

“I’ll come again later.”

No, please don’t come back.

“But before I go, I have something to say. She asked me to tell you.”

I already wasted too much time with Lucy.

I was in the middle of preparing to wash the casual clothes I need to wear tomorrow.

Lucy pointed at the forest.

“What?”

I looked in the direction Lucy was pointing, but there was nothing but trees.

“……”

“That wolf that’s the size of a house, it keeps on watching over you.”

Goosebumps ran down my back in an instant.

There was a whole realm not yet visible to me as someone who hadn’t trained my spirit resonance just yet.

“Someday, by all means, please save Yennekar.”

And then Lucy disappeared again, leaving me with that message as if it was nothing.

I slowly turned my head back to where Lucy was pointing to.

It was filled with the sound of crickets crying through the overgrown trees.

Other than that, there was nothing else I could see.

* * *

[Announcement]

There will be a joint combat class for the first and second-year students. Please check your assigned group through the distributed list.

Who: Students enrolled in the Intro to Basic Cooperative Combat Class and the Advanced Cooperative Combat Class at the

Where: Common Combat Training Facility in the Nail Hall

※ Participation from the Alchemy Department students is too low! It’s great to practice Alchemy, but please participate in common classes as well!

– Professor Claire Elfin, Assistant Professor of Combat Practice

The announcement was made during the second-year students’ meeting at the student center the next day.

Was it already time for the joint combat class?

Things were progressing quite fast. This was the event where Yennekar Palerover first appeared in the game.

Apart from the monster battle that would take place, this was where the second-year political drama began. What would happen was quite obvious, given the circumstances.

Both combat and politics were important variables in this world. One must always keep an eye on them.

Anyhow, I wasn’t able to get a proper look at Taylee since I was called to the dean’s office last time. But since this was a joint combat class, I would definitely be able to see the faces of the main characters from the first-years.

It was an opportunity for me to check if the story was moving along ‘properly’ and if nothing had been changed.

I stretched my stiff shoulders as I walked out of the student center, aching from staying up all night trimming my arrows.

I would continue living this hellish lifestyle, but humans were adaptable creatures. I could feel that my body had somehow started to adjust. It would be nice if I could significantly raise my Vitality stat.

But I was sure everything would work out well in the end.

Ah… I was even able to think of such hopeful thoughts for quite a bit.

____