Why Did I Have to Enroll - Chapter 8

Lesson 2. This is Your Roommate - 4

"It was an impressive feeling, wasn't it? The principal's congratulatory speech."

"The principal?!"

As the sudden appearance of the giant eyeball left them confused, the entrance ceremony quickly passed by, and before they knew it, Professor Yumina, with her striking red petal-like hair, was standing in front of the four lower-dimension special admission students.

Why is she here?

No, more importantly, what did she just say?

"Is that giant eyeball... I mean, is that being really someone we can refer to with such a friendly title as 'principal'?"

"You saw their eyes?"

Yumina was startled and asked in return to Ban Yu-won's question.

What's this about? How could anyone miss that giant eyeball?

Thinking this, he looked around to find Light, Luciel, and Dokgo Yeon all staring at him intently.

"I couldn't even bring myself to look up."

"I-I was scared."

"That being was completely concealing their appearance through special means. But... how?"

Light, Luciel, and Dokgo Yeon spoke in turn.

Especially terrifying was the way Dokgo Yeon's cross-shaped pupils contracted as she stared at him.

"Uh..."

Oh no, I've seen something unnecessary again.

Ban Yu-won, having gained this chuunibyou-like realization, made up an excuse.

"I just meant it felt that way. Like a huge eye was looking down on us..."

"Is that so? Your senses are... quite impressive. I've heard that truly great artifact creators are born with delicate senses, and indeed. This might mean we can expect growth in combat abilities as well."

Professor Yumina seemed to accept Ban Yu-won's excuse, nodding repeatedly in admiration.

However, Dokgo Yeon was still staring at him intently, as if fascinated...!

"Anyway, that person is indeed the principal. Considering the nature of the academy, it would be more appropriate to call them the Chancellor, but we prefer friendly expressions."

"Friendly."

"You probably won't have many chances to meet them in the future... That's right, you'll only meet them if you achieve something special at the academy, or if you do something terribly wrong."

After saying this, the professor added with a mischievous expression while looking at Ban Yu-won.

"I have a feeling that student Ban Yu-won will someday have a private meeting with the principal."

"Isn't that a curse, Professor?"

"Hehe, the achievements of my assigned students become my achievements as their professor. Please work hard from now on."

At those words, the group of four, including Ban Yu-won, flinched.

"Hmm?"

"Y-yes?"

"Could it be that you're in charge of us, Professor?"

Light stepped forward to ask the question, and Professor Yumina nodded without hesitation.

"That's right."

"One of only nine full professors in the academy is in charge of us?"

"That's right. Let me introduce myself properly. My name is Yumina, and I'm in charge of magic combat studies. I'll be the professor in charge of your class of four students for the next 5 years until your graduation."

"For 5 years?!"

Fortunately, Ban Yu-won had thoroughly read the guidebook containing basic information about the academy on his way home, so he knew well what a 'full professor' was.

The Union Academy, known as the best academy across all dimensions, had a faculty that was far from ordinary.

The nine full professors, all graduates of Union Academy, had passed the principal's strict tests, and each one was said to possess enough power to bring an entire dimension to its knees.

All important matters of the academy were their responsibility, while the other faculty members, the associate professors, were merely assistants to the professors and managers of the students.

Union Academy consists of five grade levels, with about 300 students in each grade, so even if you group them into classes of 30, there are a total of 50 classes.

Naturally, most classes are handled by associate professors, with the exception being the special classes that gather only the most outstanding students from each grade.

And now Professor Yumina is saying that she will personally be in charge of them, a class of only four students who passed the lower-dimension special admission. How could they not be surprised!

"Students, aren't you misunderstanding something? Originally, the lower-dimension special admission students in each grade are managed separately. This is not to discriminate or give special treatment, but to protect them from the malice of other students. For fair education, we have no choice but to do so."

"But that's all done by associate professors..."

"That's correct. The reason I'm in charge of you is because this year's special admission students are exceptionally special."

Professor Yumina readily agreed, then blatantly stared at Ban Yu-won with sparkling eyes.

"To the point where I wonder how we ended up selecting only such individuals."

It's fortunate that those present weren't jealous, because the blatant interest made Ban Yu-won himself want to hide out of embarrassment.

That's when an unexpected movement occurred.

Light subtly stepped forward to shield him from Professor Yumina's gaze, as if trying to protect him.

What a gentleman-like guy in such a strange way. It's not unpleasant, which makes it even more awkward.

"But Professor, if you show such excessive interest, won't it make the regular admission students try to check us even more..."

"I believe the students can overcome that much on their own."

Professor Yumina cut him off.

Her red jewel-like eyes were staring intently at Light, who had pointed this out to her.

"I'll block all external pressures. I'll also fundamentally prevent any bullying that doesn't help with studies and growth. But I can't interfere with internal competition protected by school rules."

"Ugh."

"Let me give you one obvious piece of advice: from now on, stick together as a group of four. You are not only unique special admission classmates, but also party members who will climb the tower together for 5 years until graduation."

Party members?

I knew the Babel Tower was a dungeon, but hearing such game-like talk suddenly made me nod involuntarily.

"Hmph, it's certainly better than climbing the tower with those who've fallen into such pathetic delusions, but..."

Dokgo Yeon muttered sarcastically, in place of Light who was exhausted from directly withstanding Professor Yumina's pressure.

Her disapproving gaze swept over Light and Luciel.

It was something to be grateful for that her terrifying gaze didn't fly towards Ban Yu-won as well.

"Pro-Professor."

Luciel spoke timidly, avoiding her gaze.

"Ev-Everyone's looking at us. Can't we quickly go somewhere... else?"

"You're right."

The gazes of other incoming students were already unfriendly due to their status as lower dimension special admissions.

And now that Professor Yumina, a full professor, had approached and was chatting with them, everyone was watching with gazes mixed with both curiosity and hostility.

As Ban Yu-won inwardly sighed, wondering why they were making such a fuss over upper and lower dimensions,

"Then let's move right away. To our classroom."

As Professor Yumina snapped her fingers, the surrounding environment melted away, and walls appeared, enclosing them.

'No, we weren't enclosed, but rather moved to a closed space?'

Like Professor Yumina's room, one wall was made entirely of glass, through which various academy facilities, forests, lakes, a small spacecraft dock, and a towering tower were clearly visible.

The peculiar point was that there was no door.

They couldn't enter or exit.

"From now on, all the education and notices you receive from me will take place in this room. It's a room that can't be entered by normal methods. First, I'll distribute your student IDs."

The student ID was in the form of a pendant with a jewel attached to the end of a thin silver chain, and it gave off a very sophisticated impression as the jewel was not large and did not sparkle excessively.

Inside the intricately crafted jewel, mysterious strings of characters were swirling, and when he tried to observe them closely, his eyes began to hurt as if they were about to pop out.

[Due to the excessive number and complexity of concept characters condensed within, immediate conversion to Chinese characters is impossible. A considerably long time is needed to fully recognize and accept the new language system.]

It was the first time his language ability had failed to interpret something.

Still, the surprising point was that it didn't seem completely impossible to interpret.

Perhaps this could be an opportunity to delve into magic as well?

As Ban Yu-won confirmed this new possibility and smiled, Light once again asked a question on behalf of the group.

"Is there a specific way to handle it?"

"Of course. The student ID is registered by accepting your magic power. After that, you can simply inject magic power to prove your identity, and with that, you can exercise most of the permissions granted to you within the academy. And above all, as long as you're within the academy's domain, you can move directly to this room from anywhere."

An artifact with spatial movement capabilities!

No, come to think of it, last time spatial movement was possible just by tearing a single piece of paper, so there was no need to be particularly surprised.

"Spatial movement is possible by injecting magic power into the student ID while simultaneously uttering a special keyword. Let's see, say 'Professor Yumina is beautiful.' I just decided that now."

"......"

"Ah, it's the same when leaving this room. If you recite the same spell while injecting magic power into your student ID, you'll return to the place you were before entering this room. Neat, isn't it?"

Unlike Ban Yu-won, who could tolerate this level of aegyo since she was actually a beautiful person, Light and Dokgo Yeon failed to manage their expressions.

It was hard to tell whether that guy Light was being mannerly or rude.

Fortunately, Professor Yumina cleanly ignored the students' agitation and continued speaking.

"And this is the most important part, you can't enter the tower without your student ID. Occasionally, dimensional pirates invade and target academy students' IDs, so be especially careful in keeping your student ID safe."

Luciel's eyes widened.

"Di-Dimensional pirates invade even this highest dimension...?"

"There are surprisingly more crazy people willing to risk death if they can enter the tower than you might think."

Ban Yu-won became rapidly anxious upon hearing those words.

He didn't know what dimensional pirates were, but they didn't seem like good guys.

Isn't this what's professionally called foreshadowing?

Even the Russian playwright Anton Chekhov said it.

If in Act 1 you end up living with a roommate whose behavior is suspiciously strange, by Act 3 at the latest, it should be revealed that the roommate was actually a woman in disguise!

Unable to suppress his worry, Ban Yu-won cautiously raised his hand and asked her a question.

"What happens if we lose our student ID?"

"Good question. First, regardless of the reason, you'll receive one academic warning, and you'll have to pay a fine and make a donation to the academy to get it reissued."

"Eek!"

It was excessively harsh and realistic!

Luciel, who was already terrified, hunched even more and hid the student ID hanging around her neck.

Meanwhile, Dokgo Yeon hooked the chain on her hand and spun it around, her black eyes flashing.

"So you're saying there might be those who'll come after this?"

"Seizing or hiding another student's ID is grounds for immediate suspension."

"I don't take things from others."

When Professor Yumina warned her, Dokgo Yeon retorted as if she had heard something unpleasant.

"I just won't hesitate to use force to protect what's mine."

Her statement was nothing short of a declaration of intent to cause bloodshed in the future, not even foreshadowing.

"Well, I hope you'll act within the bounds of school rules."

"Of course."

The smile Dokgo Yeon wore was truly ominous.

A truly sinister smile.

Ban Yu-won restrained his gaze that was about to be drawn in and fiddled with his own student ID.

"Now, what was I going to say next...? Ah, right, I hadn't distributed the schedules yet."

Distribute? Surely it's not analog?

Just as he thought that, several holograms appeared above the student ID, shutting Ban Yu-won up.

"Classes are held from Monday to Thursday. Except for exam periods and weeks with special activities, mandatory tower exploration must take place on Fridays, and this exploration schedule can be adjusted from a day trip to up to 2 nights and 3 days after discussion among party members each week. You should adjust the schedule appropriately, keeping rest in mind, right?"

"The tower."

Ban Yu-won's eyes sparkled.

As expected of an academy built solely for the tower, the investment in the tower was enormous.

The moment the word 'tower' was mentioned, the looks exchanged between the members were not ordinary, making it clear that the firm resolve towards the tower was not Ban Yu-won's alone.

"Ah, if you place your hand on the corresponding subject in the schedule, you'll be able to see the location of the classroom and how to get there. The textbooks for each subject will be prepared when you return to your dormitory. Now, any questions up to this point?"

"Professor, what about entering the tower alone?"

Surprisingly, it was Light who asked this question, as if he had been waiting for it.

"That's not allowed."

Professor Yumina answered promptly with a smile.

"Exploration must always be done in party units. Only in truly special cases can a student explore alone with the principal's approval. Does that answer your question?"

"Ah... yes. Everyone, I'm sorry. I just wanted to test my individual strength, not because I dislike being in a party with you."

"Hah."

"Ugh..."

If that was the case, it would have been better to ask the professor in a one-on-one situation later.

Ban Yu-won decided on a nickname for Light in his mind.

Zero Sense. That guy might not even know the concept of reading the room exists!

But what could he do about it?

At first, seeing his peers who seemed far more capable than regular admission students, he thought things might go more smoothly than he had worried...

A terrifyingly strong girl whose thoughts were impossible to read,

A roommate who seemed nice but had a strangely self-centered side and lacked tact to boot,

And a timid puppy curled up as if ready to compete in a pill bug rolling contest.

Add to that himself, who dreamed of being a diplomat but got dragged in without knowing better, and it was quite a variety show disaster!

"Come on, everyone, focus. We're almost done."

As if trying to dispel the awkward atmosphere caused by Light, Professor Yumina clapped her hands to get everyone's attention.

"From the moment you received your student ID, you've been able to use most of the facilities within the academy. The student cafeteria, library, store, cafe, and even the training grounds. The most important is the training ground. Make sure you don't neglect self-discipline even when you don't have classes. The regular admission students might look down on you at first, but if you prove yourselves with overwhelming grades, they'll have no choice but to acknowledge you."

"Now that's something I like to hear."

Dokgo Yeon said, putting on the pendant she had been spinning on her finger until now.

"So, are we dismissed for today?"

"No, I've prepared some refreshments, so let's have a get-together... Oh my."

At that moment, Professor Yumina's pendant emitted a faint light and vibrated.

The professor's jewel eyes blinked rapidly, looking quite perplexed.

"Oh my, perhaps I should change careers to become a fortune teller."

"Professor?"

"Ahem. I'm sorry, everyone, but let's have the get-together another time. You may go now. It might be good to look around the academy's facilities."

After declaring the meeting over, Yumina turned to Ban Yu-won.

"Ban Yu-won, please come with me."

"What? What do you mean... Whoa."

By now, he had grown accustomed to the space in front of him changing abruptly without time to prepare.

In an instant, Ban Yu-won was dragged to a quiet corridor where his classmates were no longer visible. As he stared blankly at Yumina, she spoke with her jewel eyes twinkling.

"Remember when I said earlier that Ban Yu-won might have a private meeting with the principal someday?"

"Yes, you did...?"

"Well, that prediction has come true."

"What?! But why?"

"Who knows? Perhaps..."

Yumina smiled mischievously and reached out to give him a gentle push.

Unable to resist the unexpectedly strong force, Ban Yu-won was pushed back.

His body was passing through what had seemed like a solid wall in the middle of the corridor, being sucked into a secret room.

Yumina's voice seemed to come from far away now.

"Maybe the principal sensed Ban Yu-won's gaze too."

—That is correct.

A voice was heard.

The very same voice he had heard at the entrance ceremony.

On his first day at the academy, Ban Yu-won was about to have a personal interview with the principal.