The Extra’s Academy Survival Guide - Chapter 90

Impossible.

The weight of that word pressed down on her heart.

While living in Silvenia as a first-year student, Tanya could definitely feel it.

If Penia really did run for student council president, Tanya wouldn’t be able to beat her by any means.

That image of reliability that she had built up while living in the imperial household, the immediate recognition she received from every single citizen of the Kroel Empire the moment her name was brought up. Already having an immense popularity among the first-year students, the amount of support and foundation Penia already had was too strong.

No matter what might happen, Tanya’s chances of winning were zero.

Tanya Rothstaylor could never beat Penia Elias Kroel. That prediction would never change.

Tanya herself knew that better than anyone else.

***

Reality and romance were quite different. As Tanya started her student life, that fact was etched into her heart once more.

Tanya’s fantasies and romantic thoughts of Silvenia before entering school were like a magic castle made up in her imagination.

However, after getting a wakeup call those dreams started to face reality.

It was impossible to live a romantic life all the time. Important tasks that needed to be taken care of right away, along with homework assignments that continued to build up and up, piling onto her shoulders.

Tanya was gradually becoming an adult. The first thing that she realized on her own was that dreams were dreams and reality was reality.

While getting accepted into Silvenia was a great start, after starting school she soon realized the necessity of forgetting the thought that everything in the world would be all fun and games.

“That’s right. There are always going to be things that never go as well as planned… It won’t always be a great result. Even here in Silvenia, there’s no guarantee that it will only be filled with impressive individuals. And not every upperclassman is going to like me.”

Thinking such thoughts, she stopped getting discouraged. As the heir to House Rothstaylor, she must always maintain her image as a confident and dignified girl.

Showing off a humiliating and disgraceful side was no different than dragging the name of her house through the mud.

Tanya nodded her head as she thought that. No matter how difficult her school life was, she was determined from the beginning that she would persevere with a strong conviction.

Of course, her school life never went as planned.

“Oh, Tanya. Are you going to Elemental Studies? Is there anything difficult with that class? The weather is quite different at night than during the day, so be careful not to catch a cold. Let’s have a cup of tea with Elka sometime.”

On the way to her Elemental Studies class with her classmates, Ziggs ran up to greet her. Her classmates that were nearby stared over as they whispered to each other.

“Isn’t that the upperclassmen Ziggs? He’s supposedly really strong not just among the other second years, but the entire school…”

“Oh my, I guess she is even personally acquainted with Ziggs… I guess that makes sense, given that she is House Rothstaylor’s second daughter. Her personal connections aren’t average.”

“I’m glad you look healthy, Tanya. I’m planning to hold a negotiation table in the near future regarding the transaction over the seal. When would be a good time to have that? Just tell me what time is good for you so I can arrange a seat for you at the table as well.”

When she was having lunch with her classmates at the student cafeteria, Lortel came up to her first to speak with her with a smile on her face.

“That person… Isn’t that the upperclassman Lortel, who is also the head of the Elte Company’s Acken Island branch?”

“Wow, Tanya… She’s even on friendly terms with the person that holds the power in the Elte Company.”

“It even seems like she is making a personal transaction or deal of some sorts with her as well.”

“Wow… I’m the same age as her, but… it feels like she has lived a longer life… I’m sure she’s already familiar with taking care of official business like that or even dealing with the empire…”

“Hey.”

She was on her way back to the dormitory after finishing all of her classes.

Watching Tanya walk down the road with her friends, right before the road split Lucy, who walked like an exhausted worn-out zombie, greeted her.

She didn’t do anything special. All she did was wave her small hand at her to say hello before continuing on her way.

“Th-That person… Isn’t that Lucy Mayreel? Silvenia’s greatest genius?!”

“I’ve never seen her talk before. But I guess she does talk.”

“I heard that she isn’t friendly with anyone, but seeing how she exchanged greetings with Tanya, they must have gotten to know each other. I get how she made friends with the other upperclassmen, but how in the world did she do it with Lucy…?”

“As expected, her network is completely different from average, ordinary students like us… How do I say it…? It feels like there’s a wall between us…”

After leaving the other onlooking students that were idolizing her behind, Tanya returned to her dormitory with her friends.

Over the past few days, Tanya’s status and evaluation within the school seemed to have risen absurdly.

Especially among her classmates that idolize their upperclassmen, seeing Tanya make connections with so many esteemed individuals seemed to have raised their opinion of her at the same time.

Of course, her status as the second daughter of House Rothstaylor wasn’t a business card that she could use to go anywhere and do anything she wanted. But Tanya’s prestige had risen even more because of Silvenia’s unique culture, where your opinion of someone changed with academics and achievements.

Even a ‘follower’, which could be considered a necessity? For the girl fated to be a villain was created.

Two girls, Kylie and Terry, followed Tanya across the hallways of Ophelis Hall as they held hands, talking joyfully.

“As expected of you, Tanya. Even though you have such a wide network of connections, you continue to act with dignity without showing off… you’re too cool…! That type of nobility must have been something you were born with…”

“If only I could be half as graceful as you. How great would that be…!”

Even if that might have been the case with Terry, it was funny to think about Kylie walking about such nobility.

When she reached the front of her room, Tanya looked back briefly. It was impossible for her to put on an energetic smile with a hearty laugh, but she couldn’t show them how exhausted she was from the excessive interest they had in her.

“Uhhum. Both of you have also worked hard today, dealing with your school schedules. You must be really tired, so you should head on back to your own rooms and rest.”

“Of course. You did a great job getting through today as well, Miss Tanya!”

“Let’s work hard tomorrow as well! I’ll follow you no matter where you go…!”

It was a strange feeling to see her classmates of the same age speak to her with honorifics.

“I need to continue working hard tomorrow to become a dignified and capable person just like you, Miss Tanya.”

Hearing Terry speak, Tanya answered back with a smile.

“That’s great to hear. Of course, I am also a person with many shortcomings, but as long as I continue to work on myself every day, I’m sure that I’ll also become a great student just like you, Terry. Let’s both do our best tomorrow.”

Leaving behind her friends, who had a glimmer of respect in their eyes, Tanya entered her room and closed the door.

Then, with her back leaning against the door, she began to sweat profusely. Her eyes began to wander quickly, unable to find a place to settle.

“But… I didn’t even do anything…???”

Coming to her senses, Tanya realized that a random for her already started among the first year.

“H-How did this even happen…?”

Either way, it was something straight out of the twilight zone.

When she raised her head, looking at her desk, it was full of notes that she had written before entering Silvenia.

Items to prepare when moving into Ophelis Hall.School supplies necessary to get through her school’s schedule. Weak subjects that she will need to put more focus into. Points to remind herself to not accidentally disrespect any of the other students. Things like that… Those were all things that Tanya had fervently prepared and thought about before even entering Silvenia.

Most of the notes were taken care of and were now useless, since she started her school life. Now it was time to get rid of the extra ones that she no longer needed.

Looking through the notes, there was still the note about Ed Rothstaylor.

The shame of House Rothstaylor. Trash that needed to be taken care of. Once arriving in Silvenia, the first person she needed to get rid of by any means necessary.

Before starting school, Tanya had recorded a bunch of other insults about him. But looking over the memos again… she gulped.

She wasn’t sure if Ed Rothstaylor had really managed to turn over a new leaf or not.

Human nature wasn’t something that would change so easily. That was why she reported to her father that, for the time being, she would continue to watch over him.

However… The reason Tanya was being treated with such respect during her school life… Most of it was because her older brother, Ed Rothstaylor, played a large part in it.

It felt like she had inherited all of the connections that her older brother had already made.

If that was the case, then making an enemy of Ed Rothstaylor by hurting him in some way or even managing to kick him out…

“Then I’ll just be a complete piece of garbage…!”

That was an issue that even took precedence over the fact that people’s opinion of her within the school would drop to rock bottom. Tanya herself thought that, morally speaking, doing such a thing is unthinkable.

Either way, she wasn’t planning on doing anything insane like making an enemy out of Ed. Just being his little sister, she has already received too many benefits.

“This is strange…? In the first place, why am I even debating whether or not I should become a piece of trash…? The one that is trash… It was never me, it was always my older brother…???”

Tanya sat at her desk, scratching her head with both hands.

“What the…? How did this even happen…?? What in the world happened…??”

***

Two days later, two vassals from House Rothstaylor arrived. They were familiar faces.

“Nice to see you after such a long time, Miss Tanya. I am happy to see you are in good health.”

“I heard that you are having a hard time with your studies. I am very happy to be of any assistance.”

Silvenia Academy was full of noble students.

If they were to give permission for all the students to bring their own personal helpers and maids to help them, the school would be so full of outside personnel that it would become impossible for the students to have a proper school life.

That was why it is strictly forbidden to bring personal helpers or maids into the education district.

Instead, there was a separate department for maids in Ophelis Hall, which was a high-ranking human resource center that took care of all living conveniences for high-ranking students.

Thus, there were only two students in all of Silvenia that were free from such rules. The Princess and the Saint.

That was why it was extremely difficult for vassals of House Rothstaylor, who were outsiders, to obtain a residence permit at Silvenia Academy.

“It seems my father was rather worried. It’s nice to see you again. Kadek, Nox.”

The two vassals, whose names were called, fell to their knees as they bowed their heads.

They were both reliable assistants that had served House Rothstaylor since their childhood. Even Krepin, the head of the house that didn’t utilize people carelessly, put his trust in them and believed that they could do whatever was necessary.

Tanya felt a great sense of gratitude because he had sent such people to Acken Island.

“Normally, sending personal assistants to students is prohibited within the school. However, since we have business reasons to do so, we were given permission. The school is well aware of the deal and negotiations with the Elte Company.”

“That’s right. So, once the negotiations are over and the purchase of the Sage’s Seal is complete, we will probably be forced to leave the school grounds as well.”

The new semester was the busiest time of the year for the first years.

There were a lot of classes and events to take care of, but at the same time, Tanya also had to hold a campaign for the student council president position, as well as lead negotiations for the Sage’s Seal purchase.

Even doing just one of them would be too much for Tanya to handle by herself. That’s why it only made sense for House Rothstaylor to provide support.

“I, your loyal helper Kadek, will gather information related to the market price of the Sage’s Seal in preparation for the negotiation. As well as information regarding the financial situation of the Elte Company. I will also confirm and report to you the specifics regarding the negotiation’s schedule.”

“Thank you, Kadek.”

“I, your loyal helper Nox, will be in charge of coordinating your campaign for the student council election while you concentrate on your studies. Right now, rumors of Princess Penia’s candidacy are circulating, so I will look into information on what promises she might be making during her campaign…”

“That’s… It’s alright, Nox.”

“…Sorry?”

As she sat down at her personal desk fixing her hair, Tanya let out a deep sigh.

The hand that was brushing through her hair stopped for a moment when she looked out the window. The clear skies of early spring went out as far as the eye could see.

“Since the two of you have just arrived, it seems that your information isn’t completely up to date. New news came in just this morning.”

It was definitely good news from Tanya’s perspective.

It wouldn’t even be strange for her to suddenly clench her fist as she jumped up in the air, cheering to the skies.

However, Tanya wasn’t excited. And Tanya herself didn’t know the reason.

***

“Princess Penia said she isn’t going to run for student council president.”

“…What?”

This was the so-called ‘a bolt from the blue’.

A disaster that suddenly appeared without any warning.

The largest of the three student center buildings,Nail Hall.

During the first semester of the year before,Yennekar had destroyed it. However, after a yearor so it had been fully restored and returned to itsnormal use.

During the semester, the student center wasnothing short of a marketplace. That was becausemost of the student administration work wasgiven at the student center. Plus, all the studentwelfare facilities were also located there.

In particular, there were many small generalstores and tea shops that were clustered aroundthere. Going out to the commercial district just tobuy some food was too far, so all the students thatwanted to stay within the education districtflocked to the student center.

Two glasses of some fruit juice with ice floating atthe top were placed on a wooden table. There weremany things that I owed Yennekar, so I hadbought one for her.

“Supposedly, today one of the personal assistantsunder the imperial family made theannouncement…? Just a few hours ago, it was thehottest topic going around. I mean, everyone wastalking about it.”

Yennekar sipped on the juice as she smiled brightly. She had the brightest smile in the world as she drank that juice, though I was sure she would have been fine if I had bought her anything.

“Then… That announcement… Can she take it back…?”

“Well, most of the students that were supporting the princess complained and asked her to change her mind.”

I narrowed my eyebrows as I fell into a deep thought.

The final boss of Act 4, Krepin Rothstaylor.

If you were trying to take down one of the strongest and most powerful houses in the continent, House Rothstaylor, then it was difficult unless someone with power like Princess Penia helped. There were an extremely small number of people and houses that could compete on equal footing with House Rothstaylor, after all.

Since the head of the house, Krepin Rothstaylor, did his job near perfectly, most people wouldn’t even suspect him of being a villain. And even if you did have your suspicions, there wasn’t any evidence.

Princess Penia was the first person to notice such suspicions around Krepin and confronted him for it. What started as a mere feeling of intuition turned into conviction as she began to formally run into Krepin more and more as the Student Council President.

In addition, the academic power she held as the president brought an absolute advantage when it came to protecting the school from Krepin’s attacks. Although the imperial family’s power was massive, it was still difficult to influence the small and minor details that take place within the school.

Imperial power vs School power. Only when Penia had both powers within her hands was she able to properly lead the school’s defense in the battle against Krepin.

“Hmm…”

In order to defeat Krepin, it was necessary for Princess Penia and the Rothstaylor Household to be on opposing sides.

If things were able to become like that, then Princess Penia will become an even stronger ally than she currently was. In fact, that was how it was supposed to be in the first place.

“Ed.”

I was lost in my thoughts for a moment, so Yennekar had to jump in front of my face. Sticking her head out and puffing up her cheeks, she grunted as she talked.

“You’re worried about something again. You’re making that anxious expression of yours.”

“What?”

“Listen, Ed.”

Yennekar quickly got up from her seat as she came to the seat next to mine, sitting down.

With her hands on her hips, she looked at me with an angry expression. Though, since Yennekar rarely gets seriously angry, it was closer to her just making a point.

“I’m starting to get that feeling again. The feeling that you are going to do something reckless again.”

“Hey… That’s…”

“Whatever you do, it’s your choice so I can’t really tell you not to. But still, I can’t stand it when you get hurt by yourself and start bleeding without knowing anything.”

Yennekar continued to speak with her cheeks puffed out.

“If you want to do something, tell me. Whatever it may be, I’ll help you.”

“Yennekar. I already owe you so much already. With Elementalism, chores back at the camp…”

“Don’t think of it as a debt you need to pay off. I’m involved in all of it as well.”

It sounded a bit cheeky, but looking at Yennekar, I could tell she was sincere.

“I don’t want you to get hurt and go through trouble. I know that it’s impossible for you to not go through some hardships, but I don’t want it to be any harder than it has to be.”

“……”

I thought about it for a while, but it was very difficult to pretend to ignore what she was saying with her gaze on me.

“I believe that it would be a good idea for Princess Penia to become the student council president.”

“…That… makes sense. But it’s not just you, many other people think the same thing.”

Even though it was a sudden answer, Yennekar seemed to be satisfied with it.

“But that’s surprising to hear. After all… Princess Penia wasn’t all that nice to you. I never imagined that you would support her.”

“Is that so?”

Being treated like an idiot and driven to the point of being excommunicated by Penia… though, in reality it wasn’t because of her, instead all because of me. Well, it wasn’t really me since I wasn’t Ed Rothstaylor at the time.

“Yeah. Besides, there’s also Tanya. I was going to support Tanya since she was your sister. And I did something bad to her that I feel sorry about, plus her reputation during the first years is really good.”

Yennekar spoke as she played with her braided hair.

“And… if she doesn’t want to run, what can we do about it?”

“That’s true…”

Originally Princess Penia should have run for student council president without any hesitation.

She would then compete against Tanya in what might seem like a bloody battle, but in reality, she won by an overwhelming margin of votes.

The gap between Tanya and Penia wasn’t something that could be shortened easily. You could say that the moment Penia announced her candidacy, she had won.

“At the very least, it would be nice if we could at least hear her reasoning for not trying.”

“It’s because her self-confidence is gone.”

Clink.

Another drink was placed on the table. The person sitting across from me was Ziggs Eiffelstein, a second-year student in the magic department.

“It sure is spring now. I guess there’s no need to wear a coat during the day anymore. Phew. I didn’t realize it would be so hot I would start sweating. Also, why are there so many people here in the Student Center?”

Ziggs took off his coat as he held it in one hand, taking a sip from his drink with the other. He then let out a deep exhale.

“Ziggs?”

“It’s nice to see you two again. Though, during the daytime aren’t there too many eyes on you? And isn’t it too hot? Though, it seems you two are fine with the heat.”

Saying that, Ziggs put down his cup.

Hearing those words, Yennekar quickly stood up straight as she quickly stepped away from me. Only then was I aware of how close Yennekar was to me before.

“Hm?! Was I too close?! I had no idea…?! I guess I was…? M-maybe I was too close, so people might have m-misunderstood…? B-But still, saying that we were getting too heated next to each other!”

Yennekar fanned her face quickly as she avoided anyone’s gaze, looking down at the ground.

“Seeing two of my upperclassmen talking so intimately. I know it wasn’t polite of me to intervene, but…”

Ziggs put his arms together as he took a deep breath.

“Last time there was something I needed to tell you that I couldn’t because of a situation. But recently, I feel a bit more certain, so I thought I should let you know.”

“What?”

“Since I’m the same age as her, and we go to many of the same classes, I tend to see Princess Penia quite often.”

Ziggs was a man that spent his entire childhood living in the wild up in northern grasslands.

But now, he seemed like a gentleman that knew how to be polite. All of the rules of etiquette that he learned came from living with House Islam.

Living a life as a beast before becoming human.The intuition that such a life gave Ziggs was at a level higher than any of the regular five human senses.

“Have you ever seen a chief wolf that lost his pack, Ed?”

The eloquent tone of his voice suddenly subsided.

“A leader that had the experience of killing his own, hurt after making the wrong decision. The life that’s drained from their eyes… It’s completely different from the gleaming, murderous, energetic eyes typical of a baby wolf. It comes to the point, when they meet prey, they don’t hunt. And when they meet another beast, they show no hostility.”

Seeing Ziggs speak such words with his arms crossed, I could tell it came from experience.

He closed his eyes as he thought back to a time.

The experience of encountering a wolf with scars larger than its own body off in the corner of a grassland.

He tried to grab a weapon with his hands, which were trembling in fear, but it was difficult to find any real purpose in going any further.

“Even when I grabbed the bow and aimed it, it still wouldn’t react.”

Immediately, Ziggs opened his eyes and spoke quietly.

“Princess Penia’s eyes looked just like that to me.”

Having said that, he got up from his seat.

“Sorry for interrupting you. I was just passing by and saw you, so I wanted to say hi. I’ll get going now.”

“You weren’t interrupting anything. It was great to see you, too.”

“It will rain tomorrow, so be careful when leaving the dormitory.”

Ziggs grabbed his empty glass. After bowing his head and saying farewell, he left the Student Center.

I wondered if she had a fever, but Yennekar kept on fanning her face as she sat next to me… I started to fall back into my own thoughts.

The worst possibility was… Princess Penia lost all sense of hostility towards House Rothstaylor.

If that was the case, I needed to come up with a reason to rekindle her suspicions towards House Rothstaylor.

At that point… There was no way I could come up with such a reason.

“I think I will have to think things over.”

“Hm? What do you mean, Ed?”

The head of House Rothstaylor, Krepin Rothstaylor.

The reason he summoned the evil Mebula earlier than he had planned in such a weakened state was because he couldn’t withstand all the political pressure that came upon him.

The reason behind all that pressure came from the Imperial power, led by Princess Penia. Going against Krepin without creating such a situation… that would be entering a completely unknown territory.

It was a situation that needed to be avoided at all costs, but if such a situation did arise… I’d have no choice but to face it head on.

“Anyway, he said that it will rain tomorrow, so that should be a good environment to practice training with water spirits.”

There were conditions that needed to be met before I could take action. So, I need to think about what I should do first.

“If possible, it would be better if it’s near the sea. I’ll try and handle a mid-ranking water spirit near the northern cliffside tomorrow.”

“Alright, I’ll also head over there once I finish my Elemental studies class.”

“Alright. Thanks. I have to head back to the camp first.”

Yennekar smiled as she nodded her head.

Anyway, even if she didn’t think so…. I still owed Yennekar a lot.

***

“Hmm.”

Sniffing from the tip of her nose, she could smell the scent of the flowers blooming. Spring was her favorite season.

The warm sunlight and the gentle breeze that tickled her cheeks. It warmed her heart and made even the most mundane passage of time feel like you were buried in a warm blanket.

Pit Pat, Pit Pat

The sound of footsteps came from a little past the camp.

The girl lying on the roof of the hut looking up at the sky wiggled her feet. With a few pieces of jerky in her mouth, she hummed a song, thinking of lying down in that boy’s lap.

Suddenly a feeling of humidity reached the back of her nose. That strange feeling she had was never wrong.

Lucy put her hat on tight as she looked up at the sky again. Even though it was spring, it seemed that it would be difficult to go outside tomorrow.

“It’s going to rain.”

I hate rain.

The rain that fell against her body made Lucy feel depressed. If it was going to rain, hopefully it passed by quickly.

As Lucy had such thoughts, she jumped down towards the campfire.

She then laid down next to fire, staring blankly at the blonde-haired boy walking through the grass in the distance.

She flicked her fingers to the sound of her humming.