*****
NOVELASIUS
- TL: the guild
- Discord: https://discord.gg/GBKEa55867
- Ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/topasius
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ENJOY~ PYUUN~
*****
Love Advice (1)
Germain scratched his head as he looked at the schedule for the upcoming final exams.
“Finals already…”
It’s a nerve-wracking time for all students.
For the average guardians, exam scores lead to better job placements after graduation, so they care about them quite a bit. Of course, this doesn’t matter much to Germain, who is a high-ranking knight of the 2nd class…
“Ah… This is bad, really bad. I haven’t studied at all…”
“You could still start studying now, right?”
“That’s easy for you to say since you only study scriptures! I have to go through all the theory classes too!”
Germain Luther, a first-year certified loner… no, outsider, was one of the few people who communicated with his fellow magician, Melina.
Melina, with her cute freckles and red ribbon-tied hair, was someone Germain had befriended, somewhat to his own surprise. Actually, he knew how it happened.
Melina had asked him to introduce her to their senior, Marie, who was a third-year student in the Magic Department. If he wasn’t a member of Korin Guardians, the most prominent group in Mercaba, he wouldn’t have been asked for such a favor.
For someone like him, who lived a life of strict monastic routines and evangelism, it was like a miraculous connection.
“Wow, Germain. Look at that.”
Melina pointed to a wide grassy lawn visible from outside the classroom.
On nice days, many students would lay out mats and eat lunch, but there was a particularly noticeable group today.
It was none other than the famous Korin Lork and his female seniors.
A group with a serious gender imbalance, sitting on the grass mat, eating lunch, and playing the harp, as Korin accepted rice balls. It was a sight that left people in awe.
“That senior really is something.”
“Korin-hyung is… pretty impressive.”
He was a famous senior and very popular, but…
“But isn’t it a bit… improper to be so promiscuous?”
For Germain, a devout religious person, it was an uncomfortable sight. Not just as a religious person, but as a man as well.
“What’s the big deal? He’s a really good guy.”
Melina, on the other hand, seemed to think differently.
“Thanks to that senior, I was able to get gear that only third-year seniors could use. It made missions so much easier. It expanded my options.”
“Oh…”
It was during the practical training at the hunting ground at the beginning of the semester.
A senior, who had been teasing the first-years with overwhelming skill, generously handed out top-tier magic stones to the entire first-year class.
They said he spent almost all of his savings for that one gesture, and when asked why he did it, he just shrugged.
“It was supposed to be for the Great Mage, but someone unexpected showed up.”
But then, he just brushed it off, saying it was good for the juniors.
‘What kind of senior is he…’
He was a strange senior.
As a spy from the Jeruem Order infiltrating Mercaba Academy, Germain could only guess that Korin Lork was something beyond his imagination.
“Ha…”
“What’s with the sigh?”
“No… it’s nothing.”
He couldn’t possibly say it was because he was envious.
‘I wish I could be like Korin-hyung…’
Germain’s gaze was fixed on the red-haired girl.
The conflict between Dana Si’s demons and the royal family wasn’t completely resolved, but thanks to the active support of Marie and Estelle, it seemed to be gradually being resolved.
Anyway, since one big issue was settled, it was time to focus on life at the academy for a while. The finals were coming up soon, and there was also the fall harvest festival that replaced the festival.
The clash with Ohad Breath. And I still realized that Sebancia Duke’s power wasn’t fully complete.
Its power itself was great, but I had to become even stronger.
Even though I was already being treated as a special-class guardian by the public, my skills were a bit ambiguous without the backing of the principles.
“Hey, hey!”
“Ugh!”
Estelle suddenly hugged me from behind. She seemed to enjoy teasing me with excessive skinship, doing it anytime and anywhere.
The problem wasn’t just Estelle. Since the royal capital incident, more girls had started to approach me actively.
Alicia and Hua Ran, in particular, would link arms with me or hug me whenever they had the chance.
Whenever that happened, I would retreat inwardly and switch to Ran…
Marie, Alicia, Hua Ran, Lunia, and Estelle…
“You bastard.”
“Can you handle it?”
Yeah, this was expected.
Even Jaeger and Lork, who knew me well, had relatively mild reactions.
Even the students who were friendly towards me lately looked at me with expressions that said, ‘Wow… what’s with this guy?’
Isn’t it typical in school life that 90% of the guys haven’t even dated once? Yet here I was, walking around with the academy’s most beautiful girls linked to my arms…
-That bastard. He’s been seducing all the girls at the academy.
-And not just the girls. Even the professors seem to adore him.
-He acts like he doesn’t care, but…
Lately, the evaluation and rumors about me had become increasingly harsh. It was like this in the previous cycle too, but the atmosphere had become even worse recently, with all sorts of absurd rumors floating around.
“There’s no way I’ve dated 100 girls…”
“Stop bullshitting.”
“Do you really think that?”
This was the kind of reaction I got every time I said anything to Jaeger and Lork. Friends, huh? They didn’t even try to comfort me.
“Rumors have gotten too out of hand. Sure, things have gotten a bit tangled recently, but…”
“There’s a report from Mr. Suit, the manager of the hidden cafe in town, saying you’ve brought over 30 girls there. What do you think about that?”
Including the previous cycle, it was more than 70, but that’s a misunderstanding.
“It’s a misunderstanding. I just wanted to show them the strawberry milk latte that girls might like. But isn’t it a bit funny that a latte is called a milk latte?”
It’s actually written like that on the menu.
“Hey, Korin. You shameless bastard. Instead of that, explain your absurd behavior.”
Jaeger, who recently failed at dating, was taking out his frustration on me. It’s not that difficult; why has he been stuck in a half-year-long fling?
“Jaeger may have had his fling destroyed, but how about you, Lork?”
“Hey, look at this bastard trying to change the subject?! You fucking Casanova! Explain yourself!!”
Ignoring Jaeger’s outburst, I focused the conversation on our goody-goody mage friend.
“Ha… Would you have any romantic ties?”
“You’re handsome enough and have a bright future──”
“Excuse me, Korin? My dream was to work at the Mage Tower, but you destroyed it by blowing up the Mage Tower, remember?”
“Oh…”
Right, he did intern at the Mage Tower during the vacation.
“Hey, hey, the Mage Tower was a terrible place to work at. It’s better you didn’t go.”
“What’s the point of working as a 3rd-class mage? The only way to rise in status is to get into research.”
“But if you got in as a 3rd-class mage after entering as a 5th-class mage, that’s a big achievement, man.”
“Am I as good as you, a special-class mage?”
“Hey, officially, I’m 1st-class.”
“What kind of 1st-class mage can stop an entire army on their own and alter the terrain with a spear?”
Anyway, by disintegrating the Mage Tower, I had also blocked Lork’s career path.
“If you want to go into research, why not try being a teaching assistant under a professor from the magic department or go down south?”
“Being a teaching assistant is one thing… But the south? Isn’t that just for farming?”
“There’s a research institution with slaves who will work for me and Senior Marie for life. You could build a research institute with those mages and study there.”
“…Weren’t you using them as salt farm slaves?”
Lork shuddered and looked horrified.
Well, even high-ranking mages were beaten and turned into slaves at the salt farm, so when I mentioned it, his face turned pale.
They were supposed to be his future bosses.
“They’re putting the model prisoners into research work. Especially those who did well in the recent missions. Should I get you one at the professor level? You can ask them to teach you all their visions.”
“Craz…”
Lork was shocked at the idea of being given a professor-level mage like a lunchbox.
Anyway, my friends Jaeger and Lork will go far in life, thanks to having a good friend like me. I’m known for taking good care of my friends.
Even on Earth, when Sangwoo got injured and said he was quitting baseball, I took care of everything! I’m such a loyal guy.
That guy succeeded and even mentioned my name in his interview after winning the Asian Games.
“I dedicate all this glory to the friend I love the most.”
Ah~ Honestly, it was touching. The “love” part was a bit cringe, though.
As I was reminiscing about old memories, a stiff-looking boy approached me. It was Germain Luther.
“Ah, hello, uh… senior.”
Germain corrected himself, hesitating to call me “hyung” because of Jaeger and Lork.
“What brings you here, Germain?”
“Um… I need some advice.”
“If it’s something I can help with.”
It seemed it was time to reap what I had sown.
Well, let’s see what kind of advice our cute junior is seeking.
“Uh… I need some advice on love!”
“Oh my.”
“Wow~”
This was a first…
…
…
…
Anyway, after ordering drinks for Germain, we invited him to join us.
“What’s with the sudden love advice? Are you dating someone?”
“Uh… something like that.”
“Wow! First-year students are dating now? Back in my day, we couldn’t even imagine it, man!”
Jaeger was indignant. Lork, on the other hand, bluntly struck him with a fact.
“Jaeger, you couldn’t date because you messed around with mushrooms during home economics class.”
“Ugh…”
“And because of you, I got lumped in and was judged by the same standard.”
“Korin, this guy! This guy is my friend too!”
“He’s the exception among exceptions. The guy is naturally… what was it… a bastard?”
“Isn’t that a bit harsh?”
Where could you find someone as kind-hearted as me?
“Anyway, Germain, why come to me?”
“Well… this is my first time dealing with something like this. The only senior I could ask is you, Korin-senpai.”
“You know, I haven’t really dated much myself…”
“Hey, you liar? Are you kidding?”
“Show some conscience.”
“Sheesh… You guys are always on my case.”
Anyway, from what Germain told us, it seemed he had recently gotten close to a first-year female student named Melina.
The connection was made through helping each other in their theology class, and they had eaten together and chatted a few times.
When Germain mentioned that they had even gone shopping together in town, Jaeger and Lork reacted positively, but…
“Were you just carrying her bags?”
I had a different opinion.
“R-really?”
“Think about it. You’re not that close, but she asks you to carry her bags in town? She’s using you──”
“Kor, I don’t think that’s the case…”
Jaeger interrupted my thoughts. Lork, on the other hand, seemed intrigued and asked for my opinion.
“Then what do you consider a ‘fling’?”
“…Kissing?”
“Are you insane…”
Lork immediately cursed me. Shouldn’t a mage who values logic and reasoning behave differently?
“Maybe not a full-on kiss, but at least a peck…”
“Hey, Korin, you crazy bastard, who starts with a kiss in a fling?”
“…It happens.”
“Before that, there’s probably some playful flirting!”
“S-senpai! No matter how you look at it, a peck is too soon in a fling, isn’t it?!”
“Well… not really?”
My response left the three of them frozen, as if time had stopped. Jaeger, the first to realize something, asked me.
“You… is this from experience?”
“…!”
How did they know?!
“Wh-who was it? Who did you kiss?!”
“Ah, um… where should I start?”
“Where should you start?!”
“There was more than one?!”
“Korin-hyung?!”
It was a misunderstanding… No, it wasn’t, but still…
“This isn’t what’s important right now. And I didn’t start with a kiss. There was some playful flirting, but it didn’t last long.”
“K-Korin… just answer one question.”
“…Go ahead.”
“How many?”
…
…
The room fell silent as everyone stared at me, forcing me to answer.
“Um… if it’s just a peck, then four, no, five…”
Alicia, Hua Ran and Lan, Lunia… and Estelle.
Marie and Miruam, who was pregnant in the previous cycle, don’t count, right?
…
…
There was a long silence as their eyes filled with awe and confusion.
“Maybe… we’ve been wrong all along?”
“Maybe Korin’s world is the true world, and we, the ones without love lives, are just missing out on it.”
“A peck is the start of a fling… noted…”
Noted… Germain then asked.
“Then… Master of Love.”
“Master of Love… that’s too much.”
“If a guy who takes dozens of girls to cafes isn’t a Master of Love, then who is?”
“It’s a misunderstanding. They’re all just friends.”
No matter how much I explained it was a misunderstanding, they didn’t believe me.
“So… what’s the secret?”
“The secret…”
What kind of vague question was that? What could I even say?
I’ve never had a proper relationship. Miruam was an exception because I was assaulted.
Even on Earth, I never paid attention to romance because I was always hanging out with friends. Strangely, none of my friends were interested in dating.
“Hmm…”
But, I was married once… If I share my brief fling with Miruam… There’s nothing much to tell.
“We just ate together, danced a bit, and things naturally progressed…”
It’s not like we got married and had a child or anything.
“Are you trying to get yourself killed?”
I’m serious! We got married and everything!
“How do you eat together? How do you dance together? How do you make it natural?”
“Hmm…”
It’s actually not that difficult.
“First, put aside your selfish intentions.”
“Put aside selfish intentions?”
“Noted… put aside… selfish intentions.”
Luther, don’t write everything down.
“Anyway, people can quickly sense when someone has ulterior motives.”
“You’re not one to talk.”
“Quiet down. This guy is special.”
“You sure talk a lot.”
“Yes, yes, Master, please bestow your wisdom upon us.”
My logic was simple. This wasn’t really a dating tip, more like my way of dealing with people.
“At a good restaurant or a shiny cafe. It’s a bit awkward for a guy to go alone, so you say you’ll treat them if they come along.”
-Ohhh.
-It sounds natural.
-But what if they say, ‘Why should I eat with you’…?
“Try to find out if there’s anything you can help them with. If there’s a heavy bag or something, offer to carry it and ask if they need help.”
And don’t get taken advantage of, I added, as I passed on some tips on handling human relationships. Germain was thrilled and bowed with a note filled with scribbles in hand.
“T-then! I’ll try what you said, senpai!”
“Sure, give it a shot. When you eat together, you naturally get closer.”
The next day.
“…Senpai, it didn’t work.”
Germain confessed his failure with a disappointed look.
“Even eating together didn’t work? If that doesn’t work, there’s no hope, right?”
“No, Korin. That’s not as easy as it sounds…”
“Eating together is pretty high-level, isn’t it?”
Jaeger and Lork, who had been involved in Germain’s love advice since yesterday, chimed in.
“Follow me.”
Today, my class happened to overlap with the first-year students. Their fifth period started at 1 PM, so they should be in the cafeteria. I took the three of them to the cafeteria and soon found Melina.
The red-haired girl with freckles. Since we weren’t complete strangers, I approached her and greeted her.
“Melina, what’s for lunch today?”
“Oh, Korin-senpai?”
“No need for formalities, just drop the honorific.”
“Oh… sure, senpai. It’s meatball spaghetti.”
“Really? Hey, did you change your hairstyle? Did you go to the salon in town?”
“Yes, I got it done recently.”
“Anina perm?”
“Wow, how did you know?”
“A lot of girls go there. The head stylist does a great job. I go there too. Do you need a scalp care coupon? I have a 10% discount.”
“Oh! I’d appreciate that!”
“If you go on weekdays, they’ll give you a scalp massage too. By the way, do you know any good restaurants for meatball spaghetti? The cafeteria food is okay, but it’s just average.”
“I know a lot of good places! I didn’t know you liked spaghetti. Should I tell you about some restaurants?”
“I do like it, but it’s awkward going alone. I also need to ask you about something only a girl can answer, so could you help me with shopping? I’ll treat you to dinner afterward.”
“Shall we? Let’s get our hair done and have dinner the day after tomorrow.”
“Sounds good.”
As I casually made dinner plans and returned, the three of them were staring at me, mouths agape.
“What just happened…?”
“I don’t know…”
“How about it? It’s really easy, right?”
I shrugged, but Germain still looked downcast.
“Why can’t I…?”
Did he really just ask her to have a meal out of the blue?
“…Hey, this can’t be…”
“…Don’t say it.”
“…Interesting.”
*****
NOVELASIUS
- TL: the guild
- Discord: https://discord.gg/GBKEa55867
- Ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/topasius
*****
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