The entrance ceremony was scheduled to begin at 2 PM—later than usual to allow for the elaborate festival preparations—but the Academy grounds had been bustling since dawn.
The 100th entrance ceremony of Starcrest Academy.
While the number 100 didn't inherently possess any mystical power, it was certainly monumental. A milestone that naturally drew attention and celebration.
And perhaps it wasn't entirely coincidence. An unusual concentration of talented individuals who had shown remarkable promise from young ages had all enrolled in this particular batch. Combined with the meteor shower last night—which the clergy were calling a divine blessing—the atmosphere was charged with anticipation.
'Since the game starts immediately after enrollment, I never even knew events like this were happening in the background.'
I walked through the festival grounds, passing by the temporary shops and stalls that had been erected for the day's celebration. My stomach was growling—I had skipped breakfast to sleep in—so I was effectively combining breakfast and lunch into one substantial meal.
The Academy opened the ceremony not just to nobles but to ordinary imperial citizens as well, in a show of public goodwill. One section even featured tents selling reasonably priced food for commoners who came to watch the spectacle.
Since I preferred hearty, flavorful food with strong sauces, I found myself at one such tent, enthusiastically devouring skewered meat while drinking ale in broad daylight.
"Ryan~ Are you already hitting the bottle this early in the day?"
I looked up to see Lilline approaching, her expression caught between amusement and disapproval.
"Isn't this pretty normal timing?" I replied, gesturing with my ale mug. "What about you? And Lark? Is he around too?"
Lilline wasn't wearing her usual practical adventurer gear. Instead, she wore a neat, well-tailored suit—elegant but not ostentatious. An outfit befitting someone attending as a guardian for a younger family member.
She looked uncomfortable in it, I noticed. Like she was wearing a costume.
"Hehe—today, I decided to come alone," she said, a slight blush coloring her cheeks. "Lark said that apparently, my image might suffer because of him~" She waved a hand dismissively. "Though I don't really mind. He's my friend regardless of appearances."
"He actually said that?" I raised my eyebrows in genuine surprise. "Did he take the wrong medicine or something? That doesn't sound like Lark."
"When you get to know him properly, he's actually quite considerate despite his intimidating size and rough manner."
"Living together in a party for years… gag…" I made an exaggerated gagging motion. "I never wanted to know that much detail about his considerate side for my entire lifetime…"
Seeing my theatrical disgust, Lilline burst into loud, genuine laughter. She bought a fruit juice from a nearby stall—probably the healthiest option available—and settled into the seat across from me.
I noticed she hadn't purchased any food despite the delicious aromas wafting through the festival grounds.
"You must have eaten already?" I asked between bites.
"No, it's not that…" She hesitated, looking almost embarrassed. "It's just… it would be embarrassing to have a visible food belly showing up in formal clothes at a place like this."
At her words, my eyes automatically dropped to Lilline's midsection. The suit she wore was fitted but not tight—there was no sign of any such concern.
Sensing my gaze, she quickly covered her stomach with both hands, her blush deepening.
"…If you do things like that to women elsewhere, their face would become red and will start attacking you," she said, trying to sound stern but clearly more flustered than angry.
"What are you talking about…" I genuinely didn't understand what I had done wrong.
"Ah!" my expression shifted as I remembered something. "I forgot to mention this earlier. I got hired as an Academy instructor for a year."
"…"
Lilline froze completely, her drink still raised halfway to her lips. She didn't seem to have fully processed my words yet.
"I'm going to keep being an active adventurer too," I added casually, taking another drink.
"So I'll still be available for commissions when the Academy schedule allows."
"!!!"
Her face went through several expressions in rapid succession—shock, disbelief, concern, and finally settling on something between exasperation and genuine worry.
"Are you crazy?!" The words exploded from her. "Why on earth is a Platinum-ranked adventurer doing teaching at an Academy?! Do you have any idea how dangerous it is to split your focus like that?! What if you get called for a high-level commission while you're supposed to be teaching?! What if something happens to the students because you're not taking the position seriously?! Have you thought about the political implications?! The Guild is going to—"
She unleashed a machine-gun spray of concerns and objections, barely pausing to breathe between sentences.
I waited patiently for a break in the barrage, then calmly refilled my ale and returned to my seat.
By the time she exhausted her initial panic, Lilline looked slightly drained, as if the outburst had taken genuine energy.
"Sigh…" She slumped in her chair, regarding me with weary concern. "No matter how unpredictable you usually are, I don't think it was ever quite this extreme…"
"Actually, it wasn't entirely my decision this time," I explained, feeling I owed her at least a basic explanation. "It's more like repaying a debt of gratitude from several years ago. Someone called in a favor I owed them."
"It's admirable that you're sensitive to debts of gratitude and take promises seriously,"
Lilline said slowly, "But Ryan, you seem to take it too far sometimes. There's honoring commitments, and then there's being self-destructive about it."
"Me? Self-destructive?" I gestured to myself as if the suggestion was absurd. "Where are you going to find someone as normal and well-adjusted as me?"
My expression clearly showed how ridiculous I found her concern.
Lilline stared at me for a long moment, her face completely serious.
"Maybe it's because there's no one around who corrects your behavior consistently," she said quietly, "but the strangest thing about you is that you genuinely don't realize you're the strange one. You think your extreme reactions are normal."
"Why are your words so sharp today?" I actually felt slightly stung by that assessment. "Even for me, that hurts a little."
"Because if I don't phrase it this bluntly—"
—To all honored guests visiting Starcrest Academy. The entrance ceremony is scheduled to begin shortly in the First Grand Auditorium. Please make your way to your designated seating areas. The ceremony will commence in approximately fifteen minutes.
Someone's voice, powerfully enhanced with mana, echoed across the entire festival grounds. The announcement was clear and perfectly audible despite the ambient noise of thousands of people.
Lilline's lecture—which could have easily continued for another twenty minutes—was cut off at an awkward moment.
'Phew—' I exhaled with relief.
"Shouldn't you be heading over quickly?" I asked, seizing the opportunity to redirect attention. "You don't want to miss your sibling's big moment."
"…What about you, Ryan?"
Unable to finish saying everything she wanted to express, Lilline's dissatisfaction was evident. Her eyes narrowed as she studied me, as if trying to determine whether I was deliberately avoiding her concerns.
"I'll head over later," I said casually. "I have somewhere I need to stop by briefly first."
"Then…" Lilline stood, smoothing her suit jacket. "I'll go on ahead. But Ryan—" She fixed me with a serious look. "Please actually think about what I said. About understanding your own limits."
"Sure, sure," I said with a dismissive wave.
She clearly didn't believe me but was too polite to press further. With a final concerned glance, she turned and made her way toward the Grand Auditorium, disappearing into the crowd of festival-goers.
I remained seated, finishing the last of my meal at a leisurely pace.
The truth was, I did have somewhere to go before the ceremony. But it had nothing to do with Academy business.
There was a particular location I wanted to check—a spot mentioned in the game as being accessible during the entrance ceremony chaos, when security was stretched thin and everyone's attention was directed elsewhere.
One of the Hidden Pieces. A minor one, nothing game-changing, but it would be a good test of my updated theory about dimensional rifts and item availability.
I drained the last of my ale, left payment on the table, and set off in the opposite direction from the auditorium.
The crowd flowed like a river toward the ceremony. I moved against the current, a solitary figure heading toward the older, less-maintained sections of the Academy grounds.
Behind me, the sound of ceremonial music began to play.
The story was beginning.
And I had work to do.