Volume 5- Chapter 1.3

「Well hey, starting out, we see what kinds of courses the academy has, what format the classes are in, etc, and after checking all that we hammer out the details. Sound good?」

Several problems arose, and in order to solve all of them, Makoto proposed they directly examine the school.

「Good idea. Guess we really can’t say unless we see it for ourselves.」

「Exactly. Also, once we get more members and Teres and the other girls have more free time, there’s always the option of having them swap enrolling here every year.」

「Yup, that’s probably what their future will look like.」

Their course of action set for the time being, now they had details that were a bit more fleshed out. While the workshop members couldn’t say much until they directly examined the lecture content and class structure and other systems present in the school with their own eyes, they knew the general direction they were aiming for.

「So first I wanna try actually attendin’ a lecture. Are there any that’re okay for us amateurs to mix in with？」

「Yes, if you wanted to look at the lectures for middle admission students.」

「Then let’s say we take those lectures ‘n then have someone tell us what the course system is like ‘n how units are treated ‘n all those details.」

「Understood.」

And as they were transitioning from planning to action, Mio interjected.

「Hey, Sensei.」

「Mm？ Wazzup？」

「Wouldn’t it be a drag if Rufeus Academy was a boarding system？」

「Ah～、good point. That’s pretty important right there.」

Listening to Mio point that out, Hiroshi looked back at the headmaster, who had also been listening to her as he quickly answered.

「It’s true that our academy is a boarding system. However, that doesn’t mean you absolutely need to live in a dorm.」

「Glad to hear it, mate.」

Hiroshi relievedly smoothed down his chest at the headmaster’s response. Everything else would now be after they examined the fine details of the school system.

「So getting back on track, can we attend the course right now？」

「Not right now, no. It’s already begun, and once it’s over, all lectures from that course are supposed to be over for the day. Also, the middle admission lectures are conducted each with one lecturer per time slot.」

「Then we’ll leave that for when the school gits that back up, and in the meantime how about we check all the details about the system?」

「All right. I will be handing out the materials now. Allow me to explain based on those.」

Right now the group just wanted to get everything over and done with. Surmising this much from Hiroshi’s demeanor, the headmaster proceeded to the next topic. Also, the only reason he had waited this long to hand out the documents was because everything had begun so suddenly and he had missed the timing to do so.

「Sensei, I’m hungry. Before we get into the details, I wanna eat something.」

「Ah, good point.」

When Mio asserted this, Hiroshi remembered they had gone without lunch. The last lecture having already begun today meant that lunch break was already over.

「Right you are. I am terribly sorry for forgetting this. I will have them prepare something right away.」

Apologetic when he heard Mio’s assertion, the headmaster hurriedly underwent preparations. Apparently someone had anticipated this happening due to the group being holed up in the same room even during lunch break, so thanks to that person, not even five minutes after the contact, a fairly exquisite lunch of roast duck and rabbit stew as the main course was carried over to them.

「So the credit system involves you picking a lecture and attending it. Doesn’t seem too different from our world.」

「Really？」

「Yes. The only difference would be that once you take the minimum level of required subjects, it’s up to you when you graduate.」

「So there ain’t a real graduation date.」

「So it would seem. As long as you can pay the tuition then you can pretty much study at the academy as long as you want.」

That very evening. Hearing the explanation and receiving the document, the Japanese finished several procedures and then continued the briefing while drinking tea in the Sages Bell Pavilion.

「Anyhow, I’m glad they got a crash course, mate.」

「Yep. There’s also a month-long course that fits perfectly with our agenda, so maybe have one person try that one out.」

Hiroshi and the others all looked at Makoto when she said that.

「I feel like Makoto-san would be the perfect one for the month-long course. Whadya say？」

「Agreed. Makoto-san is usually free as it is anyway.」

Haruna readily agreed with Hiroshi. When she heard that, Makoto frantically stood up and tried to counter, but–

「Mako, if you don’t take this opportunity you’ll be on a straight path to becoming a meathead.」

「Hey, keep me out of this！」

Makoto snapped at Mio for her extremely savage comment.

「Makoto really does have too much time on her hands though, the most out of us in fact……」

「I admit that I do, but aren’t you just making me do something you don’t want to？」

「I don’t deny that. However, I think I’ll be staying in the library for a while. Now which sounds more tiring; studying at an academy or at a library？」

「……Right, you do have a point……」

Makoto attempted to get out of this tiring task, but Tatsuya thrust an even more terrifying alternative before her. Tatsuya probably had the most work cut out for him in Rufeus.

「Also, while we’re at it Mako, I think you should try and use some of that excessive mana.」

「I admit I have an excess, but it isn’t so abundant that I can just use it all the time, you know？」

「Still, use whatever resources you can.」

Everyone other than Makoto agreed with Mio’s persuasive (?) opinion. You might think that Makoto, who faltered in comparison to haruna’s dexterity, would simply lose her strong point by shifting her focus to magic, but there was always a purpose to increasing the varieties of type attacks. From that perspective, it was difficult to completely deny that viewpoint.

「The school over here is also interesting, so I did want to attend if I could……」

「Well, there ain’t no point in Haruna taking short-term lectures……」

「Yeah, I know……」

Haruna was more than willing to go to Rufeus Academy, as she didn’t necessarily hate study, but she unfortunately already had the knowledge and skills that the short-term courses offered. Even if she didn’t have as much to do as Hiroshi or Tatsuya, there was no merit in it for Haruna to confine herself to this.

「Wait, Makoto-san, ya really hate studyin’ that much？」

「Well yes, it’s true that I don’t like it.」

Makoto could be categorized among the majority of people who are fine with studying their hobbies or areas of interest to the deepest level but do not necessarily enjoy studying in and of itself. Whenever she was pressed to study out of necessity she did what she had to, but everything she could skip out of she also did.

As a result, she only really attended and played around in college, only studying to the point where she wouldn’t fail classes.

「I don’t even like studying, so going to school after all this time is just……」

No one could deny they shared Makoto’s relatable sentiment, quickly going quiet. Haruna, not quite a studyholic but still someone who enjoyed studying didn’t quite empathize, but understanding that there were plenty of people who felt the same as Makoto, she had no intention of countering that assertion.

「Then Mako, let’s change perspective for a moment.」

「What now？」

「Rufeus Academy has quite the number of girls there.」

「So？」

「Don’t you think it would be the perfect environment to influence with your hobbies？」

「……Ah, I see what you’re saying.」

Understanding what Mio was trying to say, Makoto was now wondering why she hadn’t thought of this sooner. It was true that in order to propagate (more like infect if we want to use slang) everyone with her interests, school was the ideal location. After all, Makoto herself was infected during her high school years by a classmate.

「Right. That’s definitely an idea.」

「Mako, are you going to school then？」

「I just got finished with one volume, so I may as well study as I infect everyone.」

Taken in by Mio’s tempting words, Makoto agreed to go to school at Rufeus Academy. Later, she would end up regretting her careless decision when she missed the mark in both schoolwork (starting from lectures) and human relationships, but life is pretty much like this for most people anyway.