The first day of classes starts with a drag. The mandatory courses cover reading, writing, basic arithmetic, and history. Oh, and the Princess is in my section; a count’s son is probably of high enough status to introduce himself, but I’d rather die. There’s some useful stuff to learn here, but it’s not going to be in my morning classes.
I don’t bother getting up after class; there’s half an hour until the lecture series starts in here, so I’ll just meditate and run magic through my body.
“Hummmmmmm…”
I’m not actually humming, but that’s what it sounds like in my head.
“Excuse me, are you staying for the lecture series?” an unknown voice asks.
I look up and see an unfamiliar boy. Mid-teens, blonde hair, blue eyes, and a weirdly kind smile to be making at a stranger.
“Ahem, yes, sorry, I was relaxing since there’s some time before it starts. I’m Alfred Pruss. Are you staying as well?”
Maybe this’ll be how I make my first friend?
“Oh, your father governs the southern territories. I’m Marquis Duren’s eldest, Eric. It’s a pleasure,” the boy says, then bows, “and yes, I’m staying for the course. I heard that temporary spatial storage magic will be covered in the first week.”
“I remember seeing spatial storage for the first time as a child. I thought it was incredible. I wonder what unique way it could be used though…?”
Can the professor copy my teleporting sword technique?
“I’m not sure either, but we’ll find out soon enough.” Eric takes the seat next to me and places a notebook on his desk.
By the looks of it, he was aggressively taking notes earlier. I wrote the date and one historical fact I didn’t already know.
With his things settled, he turns back to me. “Tell me about yourself. I’ve met most of the children of nobility who go here, but the Pruss family doesn’t attend social events like many of the other families.”
Huh? Did we get invited? Maybe Father’s an introvert.
It’d be weird if I didn’t make any friends, but I haven’t done much with nobility aside from the occasional exchange of pleasantries. I’ll try to sound like someone less noble than Eric so he doesn’t try to be my best friend.
“Right, my Father’s region is more remote, so I spent a lot of time reading as a child. When I got older, I begged my father to let me explore the forests and mountains in the south so I could go hunting. It’s probably not your typical noble upbringing, but I enjoyed it.”
But Eric brings his hands together and smiles. “That’s splendid. My father let me accompany him on a hunt for the very first time last year. He said it’s a noble’s duty to be able to traverse the land and command soldiers, should we ever be in wartime. When did your father first take you?”
Balls. Will I sound like a freak if I say I was eight and I went alone? I should’ve rehearsed what I wanted to tell people, but I was too busy redoing my dorm with spell stones. A Marquis is below a Duke; Dukes and Princesses were always in trouble in anime, but high nobles stick together. I’ll be a little honest and add some evasion.
“Well, there was less to do in my Father’s territory, so I started pretty young, but please tell me about yourself.”
“My father’s territory is to the north along the river trade route from the sea. It’s quite lively, and travel to the capital is easy by water. I spent much of my days traveling to and from the capital with my father for his work. We even purchased a residence here since we had so much business with the palace.”
I guess it’s something to brag about, but if he’s friends with the Princess, I should keep my distance…
The small talk continues until the rest of the students attending the lecture series start pouring in. Eric addresses nearly half the students in the class with a familiar but polite greeting. Then comes the disaster.
“Eric, you’re attending these lectures as well?” an unknown girl asks, stopping next to Eric.
She’s beautiful, with long hair that’s so blonde it’s almost pink, and her lips match. She has blue eyes and- AHEM- I’m too old for her.
“That’s wonderful, I didn’t know who I was going to sit with,” she continues.
Hmm, everyone in class is looking at her…
Eric revels in the class’s attention and reveals his pearly whites. “Indeed, and it would be an honor if you’d sit with me, Your Highness.”
Highness? Balls.
But Her Highness frowns. “We’ve known each other since we were babies. Please don’t be so formal. Plus, we’re all students here.”
Please don’t introduce me. Please don’t introduce me. I get it, Eric, you’re an extrovert who breaks bread with Princesses; I am in awe. But please don’t do it.
“Oh, Princess, have you met Alfred? He’s from the Pruss family and is a first-year like us.” Eric turns and gestures at me.
Argh, bastard, I want to learn a bit, hunt the mountains next to us, and smash the occasional bandit. Princesses always ruin the MC’s plans.
“I haven’t. I’m Princess Sylvie.” She grabs the hem of her dress and greets me with a curtsy. “Your father does an excellent job with his territory, and the soap products he introduced were the talk of the Kingdom a few years ago. It truly is a pleasure.”
Her smile seems genuine, but I’ve seen this before. In anime.
“Your Highness, it is an honor.” I stand and greet her with a formal hand across my chest bow. “I hope we can enjoy our time together at this academy.”
It’s a stiff response, but stiff is good. No misinterpreting, we’re not friends.
“Yes, I hope so as well, but as I said to Eric, there’s no need to be so formal when we’re all students.” She glares at Eric, then looks back to me with more warmth. “The academy is funded by the royal family, and it’s our wish to develop positive relationships between the noble students without so much ceremony.”
It’s a heartfelt appeal, but I’m not a believer just yet. “I’ll do my best, Your Highness.” I throw in a small bow for fun.
“Alfred’s a special case, Princess. The Pruss family keeps to themselves, so he isn’t used to being around royalty,” Eric interjects.
He came to my defense. Eric could be a good one.
Breaking up this awful introduction, a slender man with dark features and darker bags under his eyes rushes to the front of the room. “Ahem, everyone, I’m Professor Lowen. I’ll be your instructor for the first week of this course. I am a researcher devoted to the study of temporary spatial storage magic. It’s a rare affinity, so I will give a demonstration.”
The professor moves his hand to his bag and takes out a fruit, which looks like an orange. But it isn’t totally ripe.
He tosses it into the air and pushes a significant amount of magic out of his hand. It forms a small circle just bigger than the orange before interacting with the energy in the air to make a spatial storage opening that catches the fruit.
“Now, as you’re all aware, the lecturers for this course can uniquely use our magic. I am able to adjust my spell once it’s open.”
With another push of magical energy, he surrounds the spatial opening before making his magic interact with the energy in the air to expand the opening.
“Common knowledge about my affinity would tell you that once a spatial storage opening is created, it cannot change in size or shape…”
I think this guy’s a dud- I make a small spatial storage opening under my desk, then imagine it growing slightly larger, and it does so instantly. Maybe at a range where my magic wasn’t already in the air, I’d need to follow his approach, but I don’t see the value, and he’s using a ton of magic to make his. I hold most of my magic in, but I don’t need to let any more out to create a spatial opening.
Whatever, I’m taking this course to see the healing lady who can give people acid trips and make them take naps.
The rest of the class watches intently as though Professor Lowen is putting on a real spectacle, then he launches into his hypothesis for how he’s able to do something so special. “My research has led me to believe that the unique phenomenon I can create is due to particularly high magic levels in my body, or the ability to manipulate more of it at once compared to other spatial magic users.”
Wrong. Well, definitely half wrong. His magic glow isn’t anything special. He threw out a bunch of magic for the spell, but it doesn’t take anywhere near the amount he uses.
“Today we’ll go over how I developed this ability, and the rest of the week will focus on my research and findings.”
Yea I’m gonna take a nap.
***
Today was a snoozefest. I deserve some lobster.
“Hey Alfred, Princess and I are going for lunch in the dining hall, care to join us?” Eric asks.
“My apologies, but I prepared a meal for this afternoon already.”
But the Princess tilts her head at me. “You prepared it yourself?”
I nod. “Yes, I chose to live in the old dormitories that have kitchens.”
“Oh, I see. Is your attendant not here yet then?” Eric asks.
“Nothing like that. Since I started hunting as a child, I requested lessons from the family chef and found cooking to be enjoyable. I love to try new recipes, so I’ll be cooking for myself most of the time.”
“My mother used to say that cooking for yourself and your family held special significance. I find it commendable, though you’ll have a longer walk to classes...” the Princess says.
“The distance isn’t ideal, but the old dorms are rather comfortable.”
“Right, you grew up in a more remote region - those dorms probably feel more like home,” Eric adds, his hand on his chin.
“If you discover any great recipes, I hope you’ll share with us; we can always drop by on our way into the merchant districts,” the Princess says.
Balls, a royal visitor would be a problem. I’ll need to hide all the spell stones, but if I interrupt the magic to the spatial toilet, I’ll have a disaster.
“Of course, if I discover anything worthy of our Kingdom’s Princess, that is.”
“Let’s get going, Princess. I need to pack snacks for tomorrow. That was too long to go without food,” Eric interjects.
“Yes, let’s. See you in class, Alfred,” Princess Sylvie says.
They wave as they leave, and I wave back. I make my way down the stone path to my dorm. Looks like I’m in for a boring week, but that’s nothing lobster can’t fix.