Twenty minutes on foot from Endex, there's a grove of cypress trees. Behind it, the mountains and streams are clear, and in front, the cityscape unfolds. In that place, there's a particularly luxurious villa.
Five friends who have grown up together since childhood pooled their allowances to build this dwelling, which is too spacious to be a hideout and too open to be a secret room, with just over 100 square meters.
"My dream is—— to be a Knight of Libra."
In the living room of that place, there's a man doing an impression in a deep voice.
"Kuhahaha—! Oh, I'm dying of laughter, because of that guy."
With his reddish-brown long hair and large body, he reminds one of a half-moon bear. He is the eldest son of the Traxil family—'Kain Traxil'.
"But isn't he a loyal one? Raised by Libra's money in Libra's orphanage~ A Knight of Libra. That's quite a story."
This time, it's the handsome blond man lying in the hammock, 'Asher Dread'.
"Loyal my ass. He's a fucking nuisance. Those kinds of guys are actually detrimental to Libra's image."
The Traxil family, who own dozens of magic stone mines all over the continent, and the Dredd family, ranked 52nd in the Edsilla business hierarchy.
They are young masters who have grown up in the lap of luxury.
"Hey! I think he's rather impressive!"
Of course, they can't match Layla, whose family is insanely wealthy.
Lalya Hilton of the forbidden Golden Leaf had crossed her arms, thinking of Shion.
"Shion shaved his head too… Something's changed. He must have received special training during the winter break."
"...Pfft!"
"What could that loser achieve with special training."
At that remark, Asher quietly twisted his lips in amusement, and Kain scoffed, completely ignoring him when.
——Rustle.
A quiet footstep, like a snowflake landing.
"...What are you talking about?"
A voice softly blooming.
The three of them turned to look at the same time.
The railing of the second-floor staircase.
Golden hair, imbued with a white glow, flowing down and luxury artifacts like rings, bracelets, and necklaces ripple like small waves.
"It sounds like you're having fun. I can hear the laughter."
Elise Petra.
Even among the talented and wealthy in Endex, she stands at the extreme end, the daughter of the parliamentary family Petra.
"Elly~ are your studies over~?"
"'Mm"
Layla tried to run to her and hug her but was blocked, and Asher got up from the hammock.
"Ah. Well, it's nothing special. That fella Shion's comedic routine. My dream is to be a Knight of Libra, Kuhuhuh."
"Is that funny?"
Elise asked coldly. Asher immediately shut his mouth.
Layla coughed awkwardly.
"Right. What's so funny about that? Why are you guys laughing so loudly? It's not funny, not funny~"
Asher scratched the back of his neck and made an excuse.
"Ah, yes. That, um. Sorry. You don't like that loser, right? Just-"
"Why do you say I dislike someone."
Elise's expression hardened for a moment. Asher shivered.
He had accidentally touched a sore spot.
Elise dislikes Shion, that loser. She dislikes him so much that she doesn't even want the fact that she dislikes him to be discovered. No, she dislikes him so much that she won't even admit to herself that she dislikes him.
"Why should I dislike such a homeless guy?"
Fortunately, she cut him off without any reaction and headed to the coffee machine with heavy steps. Asher glanced at her and breathed a sigh of relief.
"Elly. Can you make me a cup too?"
Elise handed the coffee she had just made to Layla.
"Thanks~"
"But why the hell did that idiot apply to the College Board without graduating? Does he really think he can go to a college or something?"
Kain muttered as if he was genuinely curious.
"Don't worry about it."
Elise replied, tapping the floor with the heel of her slipper.
"He'll disappear soon enough. He might get hurt or even die. After all, dozens die every year during the College Board."
It was a rather harsh statement. Kain cleared his throat, and Layla sipped her coffee without a thought.
"Elly, this coffee is good. The coffee machine was a good purchase, right?"
"Instead of worrying about strange things, how about studying?"
Elise, who had thrown a sharp remark, went back up the stairs with her teacup in hand.
"Let's study together~"
Layla followed her, and Asher and Kain blankly watched their retreating figures.
"...Sigh."
Indeed, their friend was becoming more dazzlingly beautiful every day.
Even though her personality was questionable.
"Hey, Kain. Didn't Elise change a lot after her dad became a congressman?"
When Asher asked, Kain answered.
"She was always like that, you idiot?"
"Ah, fuck, never mind."
* * *
Endex, one week before the start of school.
I roamed around the school grounds, picking up junk and discarded furniture. If it was somewhat intact, like chairs, drawers, desks, I brought them all to my temporary shelter and disassembled them.
—The skill I will introduce today is 'Curved Wave'. The Curved Wave technique is to finish the wood in the form of a curve...
I borrowed all the necessary tools from Mr. Belthos, and fully utilized the woodworking skills I learned from YouTV.
I disassembled broken desks and doors, reprocessed them, and made a frame for the bed. I made a fireplace with discarded bricks, heat insulators, and dirt and sand from the back mountain. I tore off the wooden tiles from the old pipes to make a desk and chair.
There was a sense of accomplishment, but the happiest moment was when I found a decent mattress in the recycling center.
Because I can't make a mattress with my current skill level.
Thanks to that, my temporary dwelling became somewhat livable.
A bed assembled like a patchwork with materials of different colors and textures, a fireplace and firewood as a boiler substitute, a chair and a desk, but hey.
There's no rent, so it's more than enough.
Oh, I also got a new phone. I only had 50 Ren in my hand, but I paid in full installments.
So, housing and communication were resolved, but the bigger problem was food.
Crazy hunger.
I have a body that needs six meals a day.
At first, I thought about hunting wild animals, but I gave up. Tracking, hunting, disassembling, butchering, roasting… I would starve to death doing all that.
So, I turned my eyes to job postings.
Among them, the one with the highest hourly wage, a very successful meat restaurant near Endex.
I ran straight there and had an interview.
"It might be a bit hard for you. You're too skinny. Do you know how much work we have?"
The job was dishwashing and other miscellaneous tasks.
The boss looked somewhat dubious, but I spoke with confidence.
"So what."
"...Huh?"
"Just give me plenty of food."
Impressed by my spirit, the boss hired me.
The work was indeed a lot.
An insane amount.
Almost hundreds of dishes and countless grills poured in every hour, but for me, it was incredibly easy.
There was no need to resort to using Look-See-Do.
I've done all sorts of jobs, and when it comes to menial labor like dishwashing, I'm beyond an expert—I'm a master.
"It's no big deal."
At 7 p.m., I shrugged my shoulders while sipping on chocolate milk.
It was peak time when the restaurant would be bustling with customers, but the kitchen, or at least the sink, was relaxed.
Why?
Because I'm a human dishwasher.
"I'm going to take out the trash."
"…Huh? Oh, okay. Be careful."
The boss, who had been watching my work from a corner of the kitchen, responded absentmindedly.
I went outside, holding bags of food waste in both hands.
As I was about to throw the bags into the trash bin, suddenly…
"Hey, isn't that Shion?"
A somewhat familiar voice called out to me. I turned to look.
It was Elise's gang.
Kain, Asher, Layla, and Elise.
A sort of silver spoon cartel, made up of the most famous and envied guys in Endex.
"Ugh, the smell. What are you doing there?"
Kain asked, scrunching up his nose.
He treated me as if he had seen me just yesterday.
Which is why it's all the more awkward for me.
Not only was I not used to their young faces, but it had also been years since I had a face-to-face conversation with them.
"Aren't you going to answer, punk?"
Kain asked harshly.
I responded briefly.
"I'm working, you fucking pig. Are you blind?"
"…Wha, what? Hey, did you just say-"
"Pfft."
Kain blinked in surprise, and Layla couldn't hold back her laughter.
Asher, the blond, chuckled and said.
"Wow~ Shion, you've grown quite a mouth since we last saw you. The apron and the trash suit you. Keep doing that job. Forget about things like college boards."
Asher, that bastard, was as disgusting and rude as ever. His condescending attitude, his leech-like face, everything.
"...."
But, the coldest and most irritating gaze was, as always, from—'Elise'.
Elise Petra.
She was looking at me with contempt. She seemed to find me as disgusting as the food waste I had just thrown away, no, even more so. She despised my very existence.
"That, that motherfucker. Hey. What did you just say? A fucking pig? Mountain, a mountain pig?!"
Kain's face turned red as he took a step forward.
"Hey, hey! Don't mess with Shion!"
But then, Layla suddenly intervened.
"Shion is trying hard to make a living! If you can't help him, at least don't pick a fight! Come on, let's go somewhere else!"
With a determined look on her face, she grabbed her friends and pulled them away.
What's her deal?
Asher pointed at the sign of the barbecue restaurant, looking puzzled.
"Hey, we came here to eat meat-"
"Let's go! We can eat somewhere else! I'll pay!"
Why the hell that crazy woman is pretending to be nice… I think I have an idea.
Is she my Secret Friend?
"You, you fucking Shion, hey. You're dead if you cross my path."
"Kain, why is your mouth so foul!"
"Get ready to be punched, huh?!"
I flipped off Kain, who kept berating me until the end.
——No way, that son of a bitch!
Ignoring the fuming Kain, I returned to the kitchen.
"Guys, look at this. It's incredibly clean. Can you believe this was done by hand? I'm not expecting this level from you, but…"
The boss was using the dishes I cleaned to educate the staff.
* * *
11 p.m.
"…When will I ever save up money at this rate."
Back at my temporary residence, I sat on the bed, looking up at the night sky outside the window.
"There's nothing to do."
The seniors, including Elise's gang, would be incredibly busy fulfilling elite magic training and physical training curriculums at famous dojos or academies.
There must be quite a few who have already completed their 'Magic Body'.
They can freely use 'Magic Formulas' as they please.
Not me.
Whether they're talented or not, everyone eventually awakens their 'Magic Body', but I can't even manage that.
Because of the Cancer of the Magic's Core.
Similarly, I can't implement magic formulas… but, in truth, it's not solely because of the Cancer of the Magic's Core.
Firstly, I lacked talent in magic, and I was terrible at studying.
To realize magic formulas, one must necessarily learn the discipline of 'Magic', but I'm practically magic illiterate.
If I hadn't cheated with a 「Notepad」, I would have been expelled a long time ago.
Anyway, my current priority is definitely money. I have to survive, after all.
"…"
I looked at the sword leaning against the corner of the wall.
The Ascal short sword.
A famous sword made of rune steel—a blend of different runes.
In my previous life, that was my surgery fee. Even though I sold it in a hurry, I still got 50,000 Ren.
I won't do that in this life. I won't sell my roots, ever.
"…Is there another puzzle or something."
I suddenly thought of old man's puzzle.
Where does the old man get such jobs? I'm curious for no reason…
"Wait."
A light bulb went off in my head. I jumped up from the bed.
Endex.
Endex Magic High School.
This place is a school attended by young ladies with no economic sense, who would pay 700 Ren just to complete a mere 8,000-piece puzzle.
On the other hand, in my previous life, I was a driver, a delivery man, a cleaner, a detective, and a porter.
"…This might work."
I can do whatever they ask.
As long as they pay me.