The Extra’s Academy Survival Guide - Chapter 68

If a human’s life was like the four seasons, then a spirit’s life was—without a doubt—a long winter.

Watching everything around them cease to exist, the massive wolf of wind guarded the forest.

***

“The problem is that you aretoogood, Yennekar.”

Laplace Bakery, located at the entrance of the commercial district, was a tea shop that shared a long history with Silvenia Academy.

The large store could be seen as you went towards the education district. Even though the Elte Company was eating away at all of the stores in the commercial district, the bakery was still able to survive on its own.

Considering Yennekar’s age, when Clara had offered to treat her to Laplace Bakery, she couldn’t help but follow along.

A three-layered tray of desserts was filled with all sorts of fancy colored cakes. With ecstatic, brightening eyes, she accepted being poured some black tea.

“It’s good to put effort into everything. However, if you’re too good, it becomes difficult. Do you know what I mean, Yennekar?”

“H-Hm?”

“When it’s necessary, you also need to know how to take a break.”

Yennekar’s best friends, Clara and Anise, looked the same as usual. Strangely, thought, it felt as if they were more determined that day.

It was the complete opposite of the relaxing atmosphere that had overtaken the academy now that winter vacation was right around the corner.

“Wh-What do you mean…? Clara? Why are you suddenly so serious?”

“Clara is going back to her parents’ house this break~ She’s just worried about what’s going to happen while she’ll be gone~”

Anise took a sip of her black tea with a pleasantly cheeky expression.

“Is that so? I know how you feel. Last year, I went back home during break to help my parents with their work… and being far away from school, I was also quite nervous about what was happening here while I was gone. I totally get what you are feeling.”

“That’s not it, Yennekar! It’s not my academic schedule that I’m worried about, it’s your love life!”

There was not a hint of hesitation in Clara’s voice as she spoke so directly.

Yennekar, completely taken aback by what she had just heard, gasped. Clara continued to berate her.

“To be blunt, you have gone head over heels for Ed Rothstaylor.”

“Clara! Saying it like that is too straightforward.”

“I’ve already made up my mind today, Anise. Don’t you know why I spent so much preparing all the finest refreshment here at Laplace Bakery? If I wanted to lure in Yennekar, who seems to have been extremely busy over these past few days, I at least needed to be willing to use this much as bait.”

“B-Bait… Saying it like that it sounds like you caught her.”

Strictly speaking, using the term ‘caught’ was the most accurate, but Anise didn’t need to say such a thing so frankly.

“A-And my love life… Just what do you mean…”

“Yennekar, since you have already come this far you can’t give up. I think that you’re slowly reaching a dangerous point.”

Yennekar might have thought that her love life had been kept completely hidden from others, but for Clara and Anise—her best friends—that was not the case. It was as if they had a transparent window that allowed them to see everything hidden inside of her.

“D-Dangerous point?”

“Yeah. Yennekar… To be honest, you are a great ‘friend’.”

Clara spoke starkly, her arms folded, while Anise’s appearance remained elegant as she sat next to her and sipped her tea.

“If you suddenly compliment me like that… I can’t help but get confused…”

“It is a good thing, but… It’s not a compliment.”

Clara responded firmly, looking at Yennekar with a serious expression on her face.

“Seeing you fall head over heels for the first time, for a person like Ed, was extremely frustrating for me… However, as time went by and everyone’s impression of him started to change, I decided to accept it. And in doing so, somehow the situation ended up like this, right?”

“C-Clara…?”

“At this point, it’s meaningless for you to be blushing and acting embarrassed like that, Yennekar. I’ve been bearing with it for so long now, but I think it’s honestly fine for you to keep doing what you want.”

Only then did Yennekar realize it was all a trap set up by Clara and Anise.

The reason they had booked the most expensive private terrace at Laplace Bakery was to bring Yennekar to an enclosed space, just in case there were people nearby that could overhear them.

“But Yennekar, your relationship as a good ‘friend’ has to end now… You are just following a loser’s golden pattern when it comes to a relationship at this point.”

It was as if she heard an auditory hallucination,one that sounded like thunder crashing.

“Wh-What do you mean, Clara?”

“Recently, was there a moment when you werewith him and your heart pounded so fast that youcouldn’t speak? Or, maybe you couldn’t look himin the face.”

“Why are you saying that all of a sudden?”

“Did you?! Answer me!”

Wasn’t that too direct of a question to askYennekar, who didn’t have a way to defendherself?

Anise, who was sitting still and listening to theconversation, also felt worried. However, she hadchosen to not intervene right away.

“Th-That’s…!”

Yennekar swallowed her breath.

Right. Compared to when she had first met EdRothstaylor, she had definitely shared a lot of timewith him… When she sat next to him nowadays,she felt warmth and comfort rather than beingexcited and nervous. It was a feeling of security and healing. Thinking back to how she was when she had first gotten involved with him, it was safe to say that things had changed dramatically.

It wasn’t a particularly negative feeling, so she didn’t think of it as being dangerous. In fact, she actually thought that it was an improvement.

“Do you know what they call such a comfortable and trustworthy relationship? They call it being family or a best friend. Yennekar, this is just a relationship that helps you as you want!”

“Th-Then… Is that bad…?”

“Ughh, you moron! Just what is the point of exchanging emotions if it only goes one way? You have to make him think anxiously about you, too! Is a relationship between lovers one where only you skip around while talking about how much you like him? That’s just a relationship where you’re following him around!”

Those words stung like a dagger flying right into Yennekar’s chest.

All of a sudden, there was the sound of applause and the cheers of animals started to erupt. Clara couldn’t hear it at all, but Anis, who had a spiritual resonance to some extent, was vaguely able to hear it.

The low-ranking spirits that had signed a master and servant contract with Yennekar must have had a lot to say, even though they couldn’t. This must have been a great relief.

“All this time, you’ve been thinking about it from the wrong approach, Yennekar. The charm that you have comes from the fact you are always gentle, bright, and nice. Of course, trying to play hard to get so suddenly would just work against you. Certainly… for something like this, Ms. Bell’s opinion would have been more appropriate.”

“Just what kind of conversations and opinions were you exchanging without me…?”

“Well, just forget that, Yennekar. Either way, it’s already winter break. At this rate, you’ll just get caught like a sitting duck. He is decently good looking and strangely popular with girls, so you can’t drag this on any longer. We need to slowly start making some progress. But during such a crucial time, I have to go back home. How could I not be nervous? Hm?”

In front of Clara, who was venting her pent-up frustrations, Yennekar could only sit quietly and listen.

She couldn’t figure out why Clara was so upset, as if it had happened to her, but since the atmosphere made her seem like a sinner she stayed sitting.

Plus, above all else, Yennekar trusted Clara.

“C-Clara. Since you know a lot… and you are skilled with these types of relationships… what you’re saying must be true…?”

“That’s right, Yennekar! So, listen well!”

All the worries Clara had over going back home had reached their limit.

“Anyway… Seeing you recently Yennekar, I started to think… you are hopelessly untalented when it comes to playing hard to get. No matter what, we need to change your strategy.”

“Oof…”

Yennekar was left speechless and unsure of what else to say.

The skill of throwing bait out at your love interest to go on the offense at a critical moment, playing with their heart and making them feel anxious… from an image standpoint, Lortel was much more likely to be proficient in that than Yennekar. After all, she was a girl whose job involved playing with other people’s feelings.

She understood that she couldn’t expect similar results by poorly following her steps.

“So, in that sense, you’re going to have to change your approach… Like I said at the start, you are good at everything, Yennekar.”

“Just what are you trying to say…?”

“Listen, Yennekar. You have to act like you are at least a little bad.”

When people first saw Yennekar and how bright and lively she was, they expected her to be childish or clumsy. In fact, that was partially true. She was terrible with directions, and in some strange way was fairly timid.

However, when it came to important things, she was surprisingly sound and astute.

Either way, she was definitely good at managing herself, put effort into everything, she was altruistic, and also quite versatile. She was popular for her cute looks and being at the top of her year. And one couldn’t forget just how strong she is.

She was proud to have someone so perfect as her as a best friend, but… Being so perfect wasn’t working as an advantage!

“Listen carefully and follow along, Yennekar.”

Clara got serious and began to pronounce, syllable by syllable, as she kept her eyes fixed on Yennekar.

“Protective Instinct.”

“P…Protective…?”

“Protective Instinct.”

Yennekar, who gulped down her saliva, repeated the words with difficulty.

“Originally, guys all have the same type of mentality. Do you think they would like to have someone like you, Yennekar, who is reliable and always helping them? No, they don’t. Actually, what you have to do instead is constantly make sure to show them that you’re struggling. Your weaker side. ‘Oh, I’m helpful to this girl. She’s depending on me, and she’s relying on me emotionally.’ You have to make sure that he is constantly thinking about these things. That way, his self-esteem will grow and his protective instincts will kick in.”

Anise was deeply impressed.

Clara didn’t have a lot of dating experience, but surprisingly, what she said was straight to the point…!

After reading and ‘learning’ from all sorts of fantasy love stories and romance novels… that was the intuition that had blossomed…!

“Rather than hopelessly trying to play hard to get, this is more suited for you, Yennekar.”

“I… I’m not sure about this…”

Unlike she usually would have reacted, Yennekar ended up disagreeing with what Clara said. When Clara had asked what she meant, Yennekar started to squirm around and fiddled with her fingers. She was having a difficult time explaining it all.

“Uhm… So… Actually… I kinda am already leaning on him emotionally, though…?”

The reason she could feel relieved and healed, even while walking on thin ice while dealing with her academy life and living at Dex Hall, was because Ed had always greeted her the same way at the campfire whenever she visited his camp.

Hearing the news that Ed had withdrawn his plans to enter Dex Hall, she was disappointed. But at the same time, she also thought,Isn’t this still fine…

“But isn’t Ed Rothstaylor completely unaware of that fact…?”

“M-Maybe… I’m sure that Ed is already tired, having to maintain his academy life and camp life at the same time…”

That was also one of her major problems.

Because he was living his life like an iron man, there was no time for him to even think about love. The fact that Bell Maya had previously pointed out was exactly right.

“Then it’s just a lack of stimulating him. Show your inner self and take his comfort! Don’t you have any particular concerns, Yennekar? Something that’s like… Wow, without having you here to help me this would have been too difficult on my own?”

“There’s no way I would just wake up one morning with that type of concern…! Most of mine have already been settled to some extent!”

“You can just make one up, then…! If you make a concern that you don’t have, it will just become real!”

“But then I would feel too sorry for having made up a lie that worried him!”

Previously, when she exaggerated the truth Ed would bow his head and sincerely apologize. She had decided to stop doing that.

Yennekar’s conscience couldn’t stand telling such an absurd lie. However, if she did have a sincere concern, she would normally be able to solve it herself since she was quite competent.

“B-But I guess if I did have a concern…”

“If you did, then…?”

As Yennekar thought it over, she eventually ended up confessing it all.

“These days, Ed has been planning to use some kind of expedient to sign a contract with a high-ranking spirit…”

“……”

“Before, when I made my contract with Taken, for a few days after I was stuck in bed. For Ed, who is still lacking in resonance, wouldn’t he just end up ruining his body if he were to make a contract using such a method…? But Ed is someone that has a lot of greed when it comes to his own individual growth… Also, it could end up working out well… So, since he has made up his mind, the right thing to do is to resolutely push him forward in support… I don’t know if bringing up my opinion would just end up getting in his way… I was just a little worried about that…”

Hearing her speak so seriously in her own way, Clara leaned back and tapped her forehead with both hands.

Anise let out a deep sigh as she drank another sip, bringing the cup to her mouth. In the end, hearing the story and how things had turned out, that girl would always be the same. Just what could they do when her nature was like that?

That innocent girl tilted her head as she looked back at Clara and Anise. Thinking back on the fact that they had all become friends because they actually liked that side of Yennekar, they just couldn’t be upset with her.

“I’ll think about it a bit more.”

After eating a bunch of high-end refreshments from Laplace Bakery with satisfied expressions, they said goodbye to Yennekar. Clara and Anise walked side-by-side as they headed off to the commercial district.

Clara didn’t think Anise’s words were completely out of the blue. That was because Clara also had her own intuition to some extent.

However, the fact that Anise didn’t say a single word in her conversation with Yennekar was quite unusual.

After all, the three of them would always chat together… But Anise had only calmly sipped her black tea.

Unlike Clara, Anise actually had a decent amount of knowledge when it came to the relationship between a boy and girl, yet she was the last one that had noticed that Yennekar was in love with Ed.

It was all because she was busy with her work as an assistant, and her grades that were on the edge, so she was out of her mind.

Clara, whose face was full of freckles and had protruding hair, looked like she was overflowing with vitality. However, her family was actually unexpectedly well off.

On the other hand, Anise had a higher-end aura and elegant appearance to her despite coming from a poor environment. That was why she couldn’t neglect her duties as an assistant.

“I’m sure you know this well, Clara…”

“Yeah. Yennekar really seems to be really emotionally bothered.”

Was it an issue with her life at Dex Hall? Or was it for another reason?

Once in a while, they started to feel like Yennekar was overdoing it. Thinking about the last time, where—during the Glasskan Incident—she couldn’t hold it in anymore and exploded, it was highly likely that Yennekar’s concerns hadn’t been fully resolved yet.

The difference was so subtle that an average person wouldn’t be able to tell, but Anise and Clara could definitely feel it.

If there really was some kind of reasoning, then she could end up reaching her limit again… It felt as if the source of her concerns hadn’t been fully resolved yet…

Though, they could also tell that it felt as if she was being treated regularly. It was as if her mental stress was being lifted somehow.

And the one responsible for that must have been Ed Rothstaylor.

Even though they were such close friends, it was rather heartless to not open up about such worries or rely on them mentally. Even though they had deliberately set a date to have her open up about her worries to them, in the end she couldn’t open up to them simply because of her personality. However, that wasn’t something that could be considered Yennekar’s fault.

However, Anise’s opinion was somewhat different from Clara’s.

“Clara, you were the first to find out about Yennekar’s love interest. You got in contact with Ms. Bell and other faculty members from the academy, which eventually led you to change your opinion about him, but… my opinion is different.”

Only then did Clara finally understand what Anise was thinking.

The reason she didn’t say anything special while drinking her black tea as Clara and Yennekar argued back and forth.

“I’m not sure if I can completely trust that man yet.”

“Is that so…? I guess it can’t be helped. It is a bit uneasy, seeing the way his reputation is improving so suddenly.”

“Well, that’s true, but… The main reason is actually…”

Anise raised her thumb and index finger on both hands making a square. Then, looking through them, she put the faces of those passing by inside the square.

“His countenance.”

“……”

“When you look at him, he definitely looks like a playboy. If Yennekar ends up relying on such a fickle man, in the end she will be the only one that gets hurt.”

She debated on whether she should say ‘isn’t it too much to judge him purely because of the way he looks…’ It was true that, when you thought of Ed Rothstaylor’s appearance, it was a fact that was hard to refute. The truth was the truth.

“But even then, it’s still too much to judge him just on his face…”

Maybe Anise had happened to read Clara’s heart, as she answered back right away.

“I think I will definitely need to do some investigation into him. At the very least, I need to make sure he is not a man that takes advantage of girls.”

“How are you going to do that?”

“What method is better than this?”

Anise loosened the ribbon from her hair, her straight, grayish-brown hair falling across her shoulders. Blinking with her moderately long eyelashes and casually smiling with a sly expression.

“Wow. Are you serious? Isn’t this going too far? You’re not even someone that can act so shameless.”

“Well, just what type of particular skills would you need for something like this anyway? If he really is that type of man, he’ll fall for me with just a bit of flirting, right?”

“What if he really makes a move on you, and you’re sure that he is actually that type of man?”

Anise gave a distinct aristocratic type of laugh, as if it were all too natural for her.

“If that ends up being the case, then I’ll have to take responsibility and make sure he splits up with Yennekar.”

…Terrifying.

Clara and Anise’s opinions weren’t always right, but no one expected them to bethatdetermined. Though the way they thought about Yennekar was always the same, the difference in their methods as they went about helping her was another thing.

“Anise, you don’t even have much contact with him. Plus, I heard that since he doesn’t live in the dorms, he just appears and disappears all the time…”

“Well, just because I won’t see him often doesn’t mean I won’t be able to seduce him, but… itiseasier to do if you spend a lot more time together. Don’t worry, Clara. Because I’ve thought of it all.”

When Anise had that level of confidence, that was when you should be most nervous.

You shouldn’t get fooled just because her appearance made her look like an elegant and graceful person.

“You know the professor that I always help with, right?”

“Assistant Professor Cleoh?”

“Yeah. She decided to use the support from students that are a part of the academy’s scholarship program since there is quite a heavy workload. Compared to before, we are way busier in the lab and don’t have enough people.”

Anise was Cleoh’s best assistant. Since they had been together from the first semester of the first year, Assistant Professor Cleoh had a lot of confidence in Anise.

“I also heard that he applied to be a part of the academy’s scholarship program. If I recommend him to the professor, we can take him as a member of our lab. The academy seems to be giving us a lot of helpers these days as well, so it should work out.”

“……”

“We already have too much paperwork to take care of in regards to the conference, and we don’t have enough people helping out for the incoming first-year class assignment examination that’s taking place over the break… So, this all kind of ended up working out. Two birds with one stone.”

Saying that, Anise nodded with a determined expression.

Clara looked back at Anise nervously.

Was it really a good decision to go back home over the break? After the break ended and she came back, there wouldn’t be any drastic changes to their relationship, right?

Was it really okay to bring Ed Rothstaylor into Assistant Professor Cleoh’s laboratory for such a trivial reason?

She couldn’t get rid of that thought.

***

[ Newly Finished Product

Lumber Wall

After making a groove into the plywood and fixing it together by interlocking it, it was tied once more with rope and stood upright.

It prevents wild animals from being able to get any closer to the camp and blocks the draft to some extent.

Production Difficulty Level: ●●◐○○ ]

[Production skills have increased.]

Winter had come.

With all the snowflakes that first appeared cozy starting to pile up, it soon became a disaster.

After waking up in the morning, I had to clear away all the snow that had piled up in the camp and raise up the walls to block the draft. Then, before I knew it, the sun was already up in the middle of the sky.

It had been quite a while, since I decided not to push myself too far even if I have a lot of work to do.

Until late in the afternoon, I would lay down in the cabin with the intent of resting. After enjoying the heated room for a while, I would then stand up and head outside.

Once it became nighttime, it became extremely cold… I decided I should finish preparing the firewood and food by dusk. The cold weather had even ended up improving the preservation of the food itself.

I had been called over to take care of some work regarding my job as a student of the academy’s scholarship program the next day. He said that they wouldn’t make me do anything physically difficult, and I could finish the work without wasting too much of my time.

He also said it would be fine if I took the paperwork back to the dormitory to take care of… Well, I would be able to manage the work and my moderate lifestyle out in the wild somehow.

There was a lot of work to do.

I need to go to the Elte Company’s branch in the commercial district to check on the situation with the magically engineered items, and I still need to check my grades from the end of semester exams.

There weren’t any issues with my lifestyle at the camp right then, but… Periodically having to clear away the snow was decently hard labor.

With the roof of the cabin, the shelter outside, and other simple facilities, if I made a mistake and the weight of the snow built up too much, they could have ended up collapsing. I had to make sure to check their condition constantly.

But even then… with the scholarships from the academy, I was able to be exempt from a partial amount of my tuition. Plus, for the rest of the money I needed to pay, I was able to negotiate giving up my right to enter the dormitory for a tuition benefit. With that, I somehow managed to solve the tuition problem for the next semester.

Just that fact alone felt like a major mental liberation, so my shoulders had been feeling very light.

I’d spent some of my money on replenishing supplies. There was even room for me to spend my time at the camp leisurely. I no longer had to live like a crazy bastard, planning out every single minute of the day while working just like I had at the start of it all.

I stopped dividing the day into hours. At that point, I only divided it into five different parts. Morning, Lunch, Afternoon, Dinner, and Night, making a somewhat broader schedule. Well, I was still somewhat busy, but… now that I had grown accustomed to my lifestyle than I had been before, it wasn’t a big deal.

When I opened my eyes in the late afternoon, Lucy was lying on top of the blanket.

She was lying diagonally on top of me, sleeping in a somewhat cross shape. Hearing the sound of her light and peaceful breathing, I didn’t want to wake her up.

“……”

I picked Lucy up and thought about throwing her back into the wooden shelter outside that was reserved for her, but… I then started to think that throwing her outside in the freezing cold weather wouldn’t be right.

Though, with all of the protective magic she was wearing, the cold wouldn’t be that big of an issue for Lucy anyway… But still, I didn’t feel right about it.

I ended up throwing Lucy on the bed in the cabin, opened the door, and walked out into the cold air to wake myself up.

Taking in a deep breath, as I exhaled I could see my breath. The fresh air of the forest in the winter woke me up all at once.

“…Should I get started?”

There was going to be a risk no matter when I decide to do it.

And if I hesitated and missed the timing, I would only grow more uncertain.

There was no better timing than now.

I reminded myself of that over and over as I took out the golden ring, which was carved with the shape of a phoenix.

And with my fist clenched tightly, I brought it up to my chest.

“Are you listening?”

I didn’t know if she was even there, but I boldly called out her name.

“…Merilda.”

The wind blew by. Even in the cold winter, it felt strangely warm.