Vice-headmaster

(I can't remember if I referred to the country the MC is in as the Empire or whatever, so I'm just here to let you know it's called the Eisendorfer Reich for continuity)

Once again, Mark did not sleep, mostly cause he physically couldn't anymore.

It's rather odd how little one appreciates such things, he used to be a lucid dreamer, doing crazy things in his dreams he would never dare to do in real life, only now did the realization of this never happening again cross his mind.

He may not even be able to eat food, let alone enjoy it in the same way he once did, blood tasted incredible though, that much he can say.

He subconsciously licked his lips as he continued reading the book in front of him while sitting on his bed.

This book is about history.

Sadly he only had one about basic history, but it would have to do for now.

He read about the history of the various nations mentioned in the book, getting only a surface understanding of them, but it would have to do for now.

The one that intrigued him the most was the Eisendorfer Reich, mostly cause it fit the look of where he currently is.

The German-themed state is an absolute monarchy with a very rigid system, rising through the ranks is possible, but difficult. Your only real chance of becoming a noble is to join the army, which is extremely hard for women to do due to biology and the system being built to support femininity in women, effectively demanding they become housewives.

Damn, if only he had a male body right now, maybe he could finally find a decent partner without a severe case of brain rot.

Nonetheless, a woman can still be a potent mage, and if one shows an ability to slaughter, well, why should they say no to such a talented attackdog?

...And yet, Adam can't even feel the Eternum, or magical energy if you prefer, around him. And he is supposed to be a killing machine? One so powerful that even as a woman, The Reich had no choice but to enlist him?

"That's rough buddy." Pervert then patted Mark on the back. Mentally.

Mark sighed.

Momma pipped up: "Think happy thoughts, honey! Your family isn't mentioned here, maybe they aren't important? Or they aren't around? Either way, that means you won't have to worry about them for, hopefully, a while!"

Mark hummed to himself and spoke: "I guess that's true... Thanks Momma."

Asshole then, of course, had to speak up as well: "Right right. Now back to learning!"

Everyone else sarcastically shouted: "Sir yes sir!" and went back to learning.

The nation did not have many more interesting facts, after all, the book only covered the basics.

there is the typical Archduke to Knight hierarchy, the culture is mainly centered around war, honor, sacrifice, and responsibility, which is admirable if nothing else.

And while not exactly mentioned, Mark suspected gay, lesbian, and other LGBTG+ identities are not... "welcomed" to put it lightly.

Some of the other countries looked more hopeful, but Mark didn't bother reading through those right now, mostly cause he did not have the time to do so.

Mark could suddenly hear the stairs outside creak as Alena walked up them, he quickly closed the book and opened up a random one without reading the name of it.

Alena walked in after knocking, she could be seen wearing her previous outfit, which consisted of a white apron and a comfortable brown dress that went down to her knees.

In her hands, a warm

She looked at the book Mark was reading and quickly looked away, a slight blush on her face.

She said a hurried "Good morning" and put down the food on the small table as Mark made room for the food.

He gave a kind smile and also said "Good morning," Alena then left the room.

Asshole spoke up, his tone filled to the brim with confusion: "What book did you pick up to make her so shy?"

Momma remained silent, but Pervert spoke up, anticipation and hope filling his voice: "Please. Please tell me it's..."

Mark then turned the book around to look at its cover-

"YES! ITS SMUT!" Pervert shouted in triumph, if he, God forbid, had his own body, the whole town would have heard him.

Mark read the title aloud: "The smut adventures of Tony Blaire..."

"Of all books to pick up..." Mark then sighed with defeat.

"HAHAHA!" Pervert continued to laugh like an ecstatic maniac.

Mark spoke up with a voice that promised violence: "I will burn this thing if you dont shut up."

"HA-"

-The silence was deafening.

Mark opened up the book, giving it a quick skim, and he was horrified.

Momma spoke up, wording herself very... carefully: "...Well... Ms. Markaleria von Girtunont was a... woman of culture I suppose...?"

"..." x4

"How about you do something productive now and look over the food? You need to see what you can eat."

Mark gladly accepted the diversion from the horrifically awkward moment and sat on the edge of the bed, he then lowered his head and tentatively sniffed the food, which was a delicious-looking, homemade soup placed to the left of his bronze cup with a piece of bread on the side.

It smelled... strange. It didn't smell like anything he had smelled before. Like his mind created a new scent to cope with his new senses and needs. The best way to describe it is like mint, except thicker and more out of place.

"Huh, well, I dont feel like throwing up... It's also weird I only smelled it when I got close, was my brain just ignoring it or something?"

Asshole answered: "Dunno. Now, bon appetit!"

Mark then took a deep breath, leaned back a bit, closed his nose with his right hand, and with his left hand, he picked up a wooden spoon inside the soup and put it in his mouth.

He waited a few seconds, ready to violently throw up, but no such thing happened.

The food tasted like nothing, like extremely thick air, not bad but not good either.

However, as Mark stood up, he felt a tingle in his stomach. He then stood with horror as the soup started speed-running through his digestive tract.

He rushed downstairs, where Alena could be seen speaking with a very well-dressed man with grey hair and a grey beard with silver eyes.

Alena looked at Marka as she suddenly appeared in front of her, while the man looked at her not with shock, but with recognition.

"I'm sorry to interrupt, but Alena, where is the bathroom?"

"Over there-" Alena then pointed to a small room inside the store, Mark rushed inside and shut the door.

Alena turned to the man, and luckily, since she wasn't in an extreme hurry, she could see his appearance properly.

Before she stood a dignified gentleman wearing a dark grey top hat along with a matching dark grey trenchcoat and pants, his boots were black and sparkling in the light thanks to how clean they were, his undershirt was white.

"I apologize Sir. She's usually better than this, I probably just made the food poorly."

A deep refined voice spoke, a little on the drier side: "It's quite alright, it seems she was in a bit of a hurry so I will not fret over it."

Alena bowed her head slightly: "Thank you for your magnanimousness." she said.

'She was as quick as I expected.' Viktor Tesar Dragan, the vice-headmaster of the Gregonian Eternum Wizarding Academy, nodded to himself.

'Though for a noble to show such an image...' It left a bitter taste in his mouth, nonetheless, things happen, and he could tolerate this much without issue.

If she disgraced the noble image further, then it would be a different story.

"Would you like something to drink while you wait?" Alena asked.

"No, I'm fine, thank you." As if a noble would accept a drink from a mere plebian inn, the fact that Markaleria did so was enough for him.

Well, she is a fallen noble, a noble whose noble family had fallen, but still. He held the bare minimum expectations for her.

This is just plain embarrassing.

After a bit, Mark walked out of the bathroom and looked at the gentleman before him, immediately, it was clear this guy was a cut above the rest, and he instinctively felt a bit threatened by him.

Mark immediately shared his thoughts with the voices:

"His back is as straight as an iron rod, his eyes are full of confidence, and he has a slight sneer. This guy is a douche extraordinaire."

"Yeah." They all agreed with his observation.

Asshole then added:

"Still, he looks important, make sure to suck up to him a bit if you want that job in the academy."

Mark nodded internally, he then returned to the present moment.

Mark approached him, luckily the bathroom wasn't medieval and there was some water present where he could wash off, so his hands wouldn't be filthy.

It's a good thing Mark's ears are more sensitive than a human's, thanks to them, he knows this man is here for him.

Mark bowed his head slightly in respect and stretched out his right hand to the man, "I apologize for the shameful display sir. It is an honor to finally meet you."

The man stretched out his hand too, "It is quite alright. I understand I came a day earlier, it is my fault."

Mark nodded, as if this was something he knew all along, and quietly gestured for the man to sit down.

"Oh. No thank you, I already have another appointment here today, hence why I came early. I only wished to check up on you and make sure you haven't... Reconsidered joining our prestigious academy."

Mark sneered inside, this guy didn't want him in the academy for some reason, but he didn't care.

"I haven't," Mark said with a pleasant smile yet a firm tone to back it up, "It would be my honor to work with you."

"...I see, very well, excuse me then."

The man then walked to the door, before he left, however, he turned to Mark.

"Oh, and Miss Markaleria?" Mark turned to him after a short lag, "I hope you recover quickly."

He then left.

Mark then sighed, "...What a douche."

"W-Well, he's gonna be your boss in the future so..." Alena awkwardly laughed.

"He's the headmaster hm?" Mark asked genuinely, though it came out somewhat sarcastic.

Alena rolled her eyes, "Yeah yeah, I know he is just the vice-headmaster, but still, you're gonna be seeing him more than the headmaster himself. So he might as well be your boss instead."

Mark nodded after a short pause "...That's fair. I just hope the headmaster is nicer." He then sat down on a chair in front of the bar.

"I heard he's a pretty nice guy yeah! He is a wild mage even!"

A wild mage, Mark read about this in his book. A wild mage is a mage who is connected to the Eternum in the air significantly more than normal mages. Their emotions radiate through the physical world like natural phenomena, and while they can control their power, unleashing it only while casting spells, blind mages cannot.

While it is possible to be both a wild and blind mage at the same time, it is rare, and such people are usually killed by the state or have their magic restricted by a powerful curse for being a walking time bomb.

"Huh, he sounds more and more interesting."

Alena then grew a sly smile and leaned forward slightly while whispering, "...He is single too..." Mark immediately knew what she was suggesting.

Mark spoke with a firm tone, "No."

Alena backed off, "I wasn't suggesting anything you bad child!"

Mark pressed X to doubt, his face radiating it.

Alena giggled slightly but then her face became a bit more somber, drawing Mark's attention.

"What's wrong?"

Alena sighed, "Well, it's been nice having someone to chat with every day for the past month so I am gonna miss you. Not to mention I'm worried about how you'll do in the academy."

Mark sighed, he wasn't the one this concern was for, but he still appreciated it.

"I know you'll be fine, I'm just concerned is all."

Mark clasped her hands in his and looked her in the eyes, "Dont worry about me okay? I'll be fine if anyone fucks around, they'll find out quicker than you can say..." Mark struggled to think of anything.

Alena laughed, "I dont think I can say 'nothing,' dear."

Mark also laughed, "Well, I'm short on words right now, so too bad!"

The two spent a few more hours, joking as customers started filtering in and filled the place with life.

Before Mark left, he asked what the man was called, learning that he was known as Viktor Tesar Dragan.

Afterward, Mark re-read the book about the history of the Reich, searching for any mention of a "Viktor Tesar Dragan" and he found what he wanted. Albeit only a short passage.

The man she met before truly is the Vice-headmaster, and he is a known noble superiority advocate, which directly conflicts with the Headmaster's "Everyone is equal" policy.

Asshole spoke up as Mark read:

"Well, seems like those fancy assholes aren't all that united."

Momma then spoke up:

"Shush you, we can't judge things based off of one book."

Pervert responded:

"Well, you can. It's just human nature, that's what's going on here."

"..." x4

Mark then heard a whistle outside his window, since it was night, he could approach to look outside.

As he did so, he noticed a familiar doll-like face looking up at him, black and purple umbrella in hand.

"I didn't tell her what colors I wanted..." Mark realized in horror.

Well, it didn't look terrible, the top of the umbrella, the part that deflected water, was purple and black, with the colors interchanging in large triangles, with the tip of each one being at the center of the umbrella.

The "Stick" connecting the handle and the deflecting part itself is pitch black, while the handler is made out of a soft, purple material that looks like lizard scales.

Mark opened the window and jumped down.

"Here you go miss, I gave it all the enchantments you wanted, it was quite a job to do so!"

"Thank you for your hard work, you may go."

The two then went their separate ways as the woman left and Mark jumped back up into the window.

Mark admired his umbrella for a bit, as he focused his mind on the handle, the umbrella suddenly transformed into a cane.

It was pitch black, except for the top part, which was still purple with that lizard skin esthetic.

"Well... I like the look." Mark was pretty pleased with her taste in looks, if it was with cute flowers and kittens or something, he would have demanded a refund.

Mark put down the cane on his bed-noting that its form didn't change even as he let go of it-and he continued to study.

The silence returned for a while until Momma spoke up as Mark was enjoying a cup of human blood.

"Honey, you should rest for a bit, meditate, or something similar, working constantly is not good for you."

"I know, but that isn't a concern in this body. I don't need rest."

"You have an undying body, yeah, but your mind is human, not to mention your opposite gender, just take a second to get as close to sleep as you can, for me."

Asshole then spoke up, sounding outright offended.

"Why are you trying to make him less productive? He's doing a great job working hard!"

"Yeah, but that isn't good for him. Not mentally."

"...Fine." Asshole knew there was no point arguing with Momma, mostly cause she won all the arguments no matter what he did.

"...Well okay, if that's what you want." Mark then laid in bed and closed his eyes, pretending to sleep.

"Thank you."

And so, he rested.