Chapter 33

A rustling sound woke him up.

An unfamiliar ceiling.

This is Yaroyibarov's inn.

It seemed he had slept soundly in a proper bed for the first time in a while.

The curtains were closed, but light from outside was seeping into the room.

"Good morning, Mika. You seem to have slept well."

"Good morning. Thanks to this nice inn, I feel completely refreshed."

During the journey to get here, he had slept sitting up in dilapidated huts.

There was no way he could have felt refreshed.

"That's good. We'll leave right after breakfast. We don't know what will happen once we get to the dormitory, so it's better to go in the morning."

Yesterday, they had stayed overnight instead of rushing to the dormitory in the evening, which was a strategic decision.

Indeed, if they had arrived and found things to do, it would have been difficult to start in the evening.

It would be better to stay overnight and go in the morning, giving them more mental space.

Leaving Yaroyibarov's inn, they stepped out onto the main street.

Yaroyibarov, knowing Mika was a friend of Ninetiana, had said, "If you have any trouble, come anytime. I may not be able to help much, but I can at least give you some advice."

This kind of considerate nature is why everyone looks up to him.

After leaving the inn, Mika learned that Yaroyibarov is like an older brother to Ninetiana and Diego.

He is apparently a year younger than Diego but incredibly powerful, to the point where even the two of them together couldn't have beaten him in their prime.

Incidentally, both Ninetiana and Diego are C-rank adventurers.

(Didn't Diego say he could take down an Ag Bear alone in his prime?)

Yaroyibarov's strength was beyond imagination.

Walking down the main street with Ninetiana, the road was already crowded with people.

It was around 9:00 AM.

There were so many people that they might really get separated if they didn't hold hands.

The main street of Savenjil runs straight north from the south gate where Mika and the others had entered the day before.

At the northern end of the main street is the lord's mansion, and the magic academy is at the western end of that, making it the northwest corner of the city.

The city is 5 kilometers from north to south and 4 kilometers from east to west, surrounded by the city walls Mika had seen the day before.

Even this huge city is only the third-largest in the country, so one can only imagine what the capital must be like.

"There are so many people."

It felt like walking through a terminal station.

"It will calm down a bit after a while. And it gets better once you pass the center."

"Does it get more crowded as you go to the center? What's beyond it?"

What could be there?

"There's a central square. The further north you go, the more refined it gets. This area has a lot of regular shops, and everyone is in a hurry, right? There are fewer people the further north you go."

I see.

The northern part of the city might be a district for the upper class.

"This is the central square. It's always full of people and food stalls, but it gets quieter the further north you go."

The scene of people moving in all directions was familiar.

(...Really, it feels just like a terminal station.)

For Mika, who is just over 110 centimeters tall, crossing this area felt hopeless.

"Try not to let go of my hand. If you get separated here, even I won't be able to find you."

Ninetiana smiled wryly.

Even she couldn't track Mika's presence in this crowd.

"Let's go around the square. It's a bit of a detour, but it will be easier."

Ninetiana started walking along the edge of the circular central square in a clockwise direction.

Looking around, Mika noticed a huge building on the opposite side of the square.

Stopping, he couldn't help but gape up at it.

It was a magnificent cathedral, the likes of which he had only seen in photos or on TV, and he was overwhelmed.

"That's the Savenjil Cathedral. I wonder how much money they had to collect from believers to build something like that."

Ninetiana made a blunt comment.

But Mika completely agreed.

In this regard, Mika and Ninetiana seemed to have similar sensibilities.

"There are north-south and east-west main streets. They intersect at this square. It seems particularly crowded today, but it will probably calm down by next month."

Is that how it works?

I hope so.

If it's always like this, I might not want to come near.

They continued through the square and headed towards the mansion of the Count Levtein.

Beyond the square, the shops on the street seemed to be mostly high-end, and the number of people on the street suddenly decreased.

It wasn't that there were no people, but compared to the square, there were fewer.

As they approached the mansion, Ninetiana turned left.

Mika was curious to see the mansion, but he would have plenty of opportunities to see it since they were moving into the neighborhood.

Thinking about it, the mansion was in the center of the east-west axis, while their new home was at the western end.

Even if they were neighbors, they were about 2 kilometers apart.

Mika probably wouldn't go just to take a look.

Holding hands, they walked down a street lined with high-end residences. It felt completely out of place.

As they continued, they started to see empty houses and vacant lots, and finally arrived at the grounds of the magic academy.

At first glance, it looked like a school entrance.

There was a stone gate with a weathered stone slab inscribed with "Levtein Domain Magic Academy."

"Finally, we made it. Wow... it's like this."

Ninetiana seemed to be seeing it for the first time.

Come to think of it, she had said she had never been here before.

"Thank you so much, Ninetiana."

Mika bowed to Ninetiana.

Reflecting on the journey, it had been a bit challenging, but it was also very enjoyable.

Without Ninetiana, he probably wouldn't have been able to make such a trip.

"Yeah, my escort ends here."

Ninetiana smiled a bit sadly.

Suddenly, a warm feeling welled up in Mika's chest.

(...This is the only person who didn't avoid me.)

During the "academy escape" incident, Ninetiana was the only one who came to visit him at the church.

She would come and chat about nothing in particular and say, "See you later," before leaving.

She treated him the same as always.

Just that.

But how happy and grateful it made him.

(Ah, no good. I need to control my emotions. From now on, I need to be more careful.)

He needed to learn to control his emotions and impulses.

That was one of Mika's challenges for the future.

"See you later."

Mika forced a smile.

"Yeah, good luck. ...Oh, right."

Ninetiana rummaged through her bag and pulled out three cloth bags.

"This one is from me and Diego, and this one is from Horacio."

She handed over two bags.

They contained silver coins.

Five silver coins from Ninetiana and Diego, and ten silver coins from Horacio.

"It's not much, but it's a parting gift."

"I can't accept this."

Mika tried to return the bags, but Ninetiana looked at him straight in the eye.

"Did you forget what I said last night?"

Don't worry about such things as a child. You can earn your own money when you grow up.

"You'll need things when you start a new life anywhere. Use this to help."

"......Okay."

Mika decided to accept it.

It would be rude to refuse the kindness of these people.

He would repay their kindness in some other form someday.

"And here, take this too."

She handed over the remaining bag.

It was heavier than the two bags combined.

Opening it, he found silver coins, large copper coins, and copper coins.

"Thanks to you, we saved a lot on the trip. We didn't use an inn, and the food was cheap. We ended up with quite a bit left over."

There were about ten silver coins in the bag.

Maybe Ninetiana had suggested the "adventurer-like" trip to save on travel expenses.

She had probably lured Mika with a story he would be happy to join, planning to give him the money later.

(This person... how far...?)

From now on, Mika would have to make it on his own.

While his living was secured, he couldn't rely on Ninetiana or the people of Rich Village for small things.

Ninetiana couldn't help him even if she wanted to.

In such times, a little cash could solve a lot of problems.

Perhaps staying at Yaroyibarov's inn was also to introduce Mika to Yaroyibarov.

She had said she wanted to stay there, but her real purpose was to let Mika know about Yaroyibarov.

If something happened, she wouldn't be able to help him anymore.

(...I can't hold it in!)

Mika couldn't control his emotions, and tears overflowed.

He buried his face in the bag to hide his tears.

"......Thank you......so much......"

He managed to convey his gratitude.

Ninetiana just watched him silently.

Finally, Mika calmed down, and the tears stopped.

His eyes were probably red and his face must have looked terrible.

"You seem to have calmed down a bit."

"......Yes."

"Before you go to the dormitory, you should wash your face. Is there a well nearby?"

Ninetiana looked around the grounds of the magic academy.

"There's no need for a well."

Mika put his luggage down.

"Limit Release, Water Ball."

He created a water ball about the size of a basketball in front of his stomach.

Ninetiana's eyes widened in surprise.

Mika scooped water from the ball with both hands and washed his face.

After washing his face a few times, he tossed the remaining water to the side.

"...It's really convenient."

Ninetiana looked at the wet ground and then checked Mika's face.

Mika wiped his wet face.

"Yeah, ...that's better!"

Ninetiana gave her approval.

Mika picked up his luggage and bowed deeply.

"Thank you so much!"

He expressed his gratitude energetically and with deep emotion.

Raising his head, he saw Ninetiana nod firmly.

"See you later!"

Mika ran into the grounds of the academy.

He waved back occasionally, and Ninetiana waved back.

Ninetiana watched Mika until he was out of sight.

The grounds of the magic academy were quite large, truly like a school.

A straight path extended from the gate, with a grassy area on the left and a forest beyond it.

On the right was a large building, probably a gymnasium.

There was a path leading to the right before the gymnasium, and another building beyond it.

It was a three-story building, which was likely the school building or the dormitory.

Either way, someone should be there.

Mika decided to head for the building in the back.

After passing the gymnasium, he saw another one-story building in addition to the three-story building.

When he faced the three-story building, the one-story building was on the left, and the gymnasium was behind it.

Which one was the dormitory?

If he got it wrong, he could just ask someone for directions.

He decided to enter the three-story building first.

The three-story building was quite old.

The walls were cracked and dirty.

To be honest, it looked shabby.

(Well, I guess this is what a dormitory is like.)

He had never lived in a dormitory, but he had heard stories from people who had, and they were often quite miserable.

He took a deep breath and entered the entrance.

The entrance was in the middle of the building, with a staircase straight ahead.

To the right was a wide floor with tables, probably the dining hall.

To the left was a corridor with several doors.

(...No one around?)

Seeing no one in sight, he took a deep breath to call out, but a door at the back opened.

A woman in her late 50s came out.

She was quite plump.

"Hello, are you one of the new students?"

She wiped her hands on her apron and walked over.

Mika nodded, and she said, "Wait a moment," and went into the nearest room.

She quickly returned with a piece of paper.

"Here, sorry to keep you waiting. Do you have the order from the lord?"

Mika took the order from his bag and handed it to her.

"Let's see... Mika Noisheim... Mika Noisheim..."

The paper seemed to be a list of students expected to move in.

"Ah, there you are. You're on the... second floor? Second floor?"

The woman looked surprised and checked the list and Mika a few times.

(Second floor? Is there a problem with that...? Oh, I see.)

Mika immediately understood.

This had been happening since he left Rich Village.

"...Is the second floor for boys only? Then that's correct."

"Oh my... You're such a cute child, I didn't realize you were a boy. I was surprised."

She said it quite bluntly... this woman.

"The order is supposed to be brought on the first day of school. I'll return it to you."

She handed the order back to Mika.

"Your room is on the second floor, third room on the left. Your roommate should already be there, so ask them about things. We'll give a proper explanation in the afternoon, so come back to this room after lunch."

She pointed to the nearest room.

Mika said, "Understood," and went up to the second floor.

As he climbed the stairs, the woman called out, "Don't go to the third floor, it's dangerous!"

...What could be dangerous about it?

Shrugging, he reached the second floor, where corridors extended to the left and right.

There were five doors on the right and four on the left.

Looking at the name plates on the left, the first room had two names, but the second room had none.

The third room had Mika's name and another name.

Checking the fourth room, there were no names.

(Both neighboring rooms are empty...? Four names, four rooms. They could have given me a single room, couldn't they?)

He thought, but rules are rules.

It couldn't be helped that it was a shared room.

He knocked lightly on the door and opened it without waiting for a response.

He knocked as a courtesy since it was his room too, but he didn't think he needed to wait for a response.

The room was simply furnished.

There was a bunk bed on the left as you entered, and two desks at the back.

The desks faced the left and right walls.

There was a low dresser in front of the desks.

It was a decent room.

As Mika entered, a boy with dark green hair was sitting in a chair with his feet on the desk.

The chair was balanced on its back legs.

It wasn't very polite, but it was better this way.

Mika entered without minding.

The boy froze when he saw Mika but quickly recovered and spoke.

"Um, are you... Mika?"

"Yes, and you must be Mesalight?"

Mika said the name he had seen on the name plate.

"Mesalight is fine. We'll be roommates from today. Nice to meet you."

"I'm Mika. Nice to meet you."

Mika put his luggage on the empty desk.

The desk on the right was used by Mesalight, so Mika's desk was automatically on the left.

There was no point in making a fuss over it, so he accepted it.

Incidentally, the lower bunk showed signs of use, so Mika would probably be on the upper bunk.

"Did you come to the dormitory yesterday?"

"No, the day before. No other new students have arrived yet, so I've been bored."

Mesalight had moved in the day before Mika arrived in Savenjil.

It was Water Day, so he had moved in quite early.

Mika had also left early as a precaution, but the deadline for moving in was the next Sun Day, so he had three more days.

"If you were that bored, why not go to the city?"

"There's nowhere I particularly want to go."

He seemed to have gotten used to it.

"Do you come to Savenjil often? Or are you from here?"

"No, I'm from the Baricosloa Viscount's domain. But I came to Savenjil from time to time."

Baricosloa Viscount's domain?

He had never heard of it.

"What about you?"

"Rimple Baron's domain."

"Rimple Baron's domain? Ah, that place with nothing."

Mesalight seemed to have been to the Rimple Baron's domain.

He seemed to be stating a fact without any ill will.

"Imagine a place even more desolate than what you're thinking."

"Huh?"

Mesalight looked puzzled.

"That's the village I'm from."

"......So it's that rural?"

Mesalight said it in a disappointed tone, and Mika shrugged.

Mesalight found Mika's gesture amusing and chuckled.

"Hahaha, not many people would say that about their own place."

Mesalight laughed, stood up, and extended his hand to Mika.

"I was worried about who I'd be rooming with, but I think we'll get along. Looking forward to it."

"Me too."

Mika thought, "He doesn't seem too bad as a roommate," and shook hands firmly.