First Hidden Piece (3)

It was evening by the time I returned to the Academy.

After parting ways with Aisha, I headed straight to the dormitory without having dinner.

I was hungry.

But I was also grimy, having not bathed for more than a day.

Naturally, the thought of eating in the dining hall in this state was out of the question.

I headed directly to my room on the 20th floor.

"Welcome back, young master. Did you take care of the business you had mentioned?"

Amy, standing in the hallway, greeted me with a subtle expression.

She then looked at me expectantly, as though hoping I would share what had happened.

"Yes. We'll talk in the morning."

There was no need to explain now.

Creeak─

After leaving her with those words, I returned to my room.

"Phew."

I let out a deep breath, taking in the sight of my room.

Perhaps because I'd been roughing it in the damp forest until yesterday.

This room felt truly mine, despite being here for only a week.

I dropped my bag in the corner and headed straight to take a bath.

After bathing, I didn't lie down immediately but dried my hair and applied lotion and other cosmetics.

I wanted to collapse on the bed right away, but doing so would invite a prickling pain.

[Twisted Noble's Dignity]

In the short span of a week, this trait had trained me like one of Pavlov's dogs.

But forming habits of cleanliness and grooming couldn't be a bad thing, so I didn't resist.

"Now let's open this."

I pulled out a glass bottle wrapped in a handkerchief from inside my discarded academy uniform and unwrapped it.

Inside the glass bottle was a brown liquid called 'Natural Power'.

If consumed, it forces you to sleep for 12 hours.

The current time was 7 o'clock.

The time I would wake up again was 7 o'clock in the morning.

I had to drink it now to wake up on time tomorrow.

I immediately opened the lid of the glass bottle.

Glug, glug, glug─

I gulped down all the brown liquid in one go.

After that, I remember nothing.

I fell asleep immediately.

[You have cleared the Hidden Quest. You have earned 3 Shop Gold as a reward.]

: Acquire Hidden Piece (Repeatable)

[You have acquired a Hidden Piece for the first time. You have earned 5 Shop Gold as a reward.]

[Total Reward: 8 Shop Gold]

The following day, the third period lecture concluded.

Now, it was time for an hour-long lunch break.

"Theo, let's go grab some food."

Thud, thump-thump-thud.

Noctar, who had been sitting next to me, spoke as he stretched his neck and arms.

"Sure."

"But you seem different today. Did something happen over the weekend?"

"I took a rather long walk."

Noctar cocked his head.

"Really? As you might know, we orcs are sensitive to such energy. It's familiar, something I've felt from my father. Curious. Anyway, let's hurry up, I'm hungry."

Together with Noctar, I headed towards the school cafeteria.

He said my energy seemed different.

That must be the effect of my Natural Power.

In addition to increasing stats, Natural Power also had various minor effects.

In the original story, descriptions such as 'It leads to favorable negotiations with the opponent,' 'He doesn't seem like a pushover from his gaze,' and 'A heavy presence is felt' would display.

Moreover, since it's an orc who's saying this, it's likely accurate.

Just as elves are more sensitive to mana than other species, orcs are sensitive to the energy a person emits.

In a way, it stays true to the setting of enhancing one's inherent power.

After about a five-minute walk, we arrived at the student cafeteria.

"Yeah, we were on our way back to the academy... and then, out of nowhere, that senior suddenly thwacked my shoulder...!"

"...The line was so, so long. No matter how much the autographed limited edition is in demand, isn't it too much? I went first thing in the morning and only managed to buy it well past lunchtime, ugh."

"Ah, didn't they say they would announce the practical evaluation opponent before today ends? I hope it's someone weak..."

The cafeteria was buzzing with activity.

The students were all talking about their weekend experiences.

Ah, youth.

I ordered the same menu as Noctar.

"One Orc meal set. The usual portion, please."

The cafeteria worker gave me a puzzled look before serving the food.

"Oh? What's the occasion, Theo? You never ordered this even when I tell you to."

"I'm hungry."

"Good, very good. A true warrior should always eat well; always be hungry. The food here is pretty tasty. Nutritious too."

Most orcs are big eaters.

What's considered a small portion for an orc is overeating for a human.

True to its name, an Orc meal set is quite substantial.

It's probably triple the amount I usually eat.

Having not eaten anything since last night, I was terribly hungry... now was a good time to give it a try.

With my meal in hand, I was about to find a seat when,

"Please give me an orc special as well. The regular portion."

A woman ordered the same dish as me.

I cast a quick glance in her direction.

"Oh, what a coincidence to meet you here, Theo."

It was Aisha, a girl who looked far from someone who would order an orc special.

An awkward smile hung beneath Aisha's lips.

... Has she ever eaten in the student cafeteria?

The cafeteria is quite spacious, but I don't remember ever seeing her here.

"Well, enjoy your meal."

After offering a casual greeting, I sat down at an empty table with Noctar.

Noctar chuckled as he looked at the food.

"Then let's dig in! Let us celebrate my friend, Theo, who has embarked on the path of a true warrior!"

"Right... Let's enjoy this."

As I watched Noctar heartily tear into a large piece of meat with his bare hands, I picked up my fork and knife.

***

Roughly 20 minutes later, we finished our meals.

Noctar scraped his plate clean, but I had left a quarter of my food.

It was just too much.

The strong gamey smell didn't suit my palate either.

I couldn't eat any more.

"It's okay, Theo! For a human, it's impressive that you ate this much on your first try. Now, let's go have our tribe's traditional elixir for dessert!"

"Sure..."

I stood up from my seat, trying to soothe my unsettled stomach.

As we were leaving the cafeteria, I spotted Aisha.

She was looking down at her mostly untouched food, a gloomy expression on her face.

4:20 PM.

In 10 minutes, all of today's lectures would be over.

Rok, the stern-looking bald professor standing on the podium, pushed up his glasses and declared, "We will end early today."

─Woohoo~!

Cheers erupted from the students.

"Quiet."

Rok raised his hand with authority.

In an instant, the classroom fell silent under his aura.

Rok continued, "Before we wrap up the lecture, I have an announcement regarding the practical evaluation."

Clap, clap.

Rok clapped his hands.

At that, a petite teaching assistant walked into the classroom, a large scroll in hand.

"Should I, should I stick it here, Professor?"

As Rok nodded curtly, the assistant fumbled and affixed the scroll to the wall next to the blackboard.

[3rd Week Practical Evaluation Notice]

Evaluation Start Date and Time: Friday of the 3rd week, 9:30 AM

Every eye in the classroom turned to the scroll.

"I will only explain the essential points. The evaluation starts as written, on Friday at 9:30 AM. Everyone should gather here in this classroom, and we will move together."

Rok's voice was as sharp as ever, but it didn't seem to enter the students' ears.

Every student's eyes were scanning for who they would be paired with.

"Rest assured, the academy's top healers will be standing by, so show off your skills without hesitation. That's all."

With that, Rok left the classroom.

The assistant followed him like a puppy.

Afterward, the classroom buzzed with the students' chatter.

"Ah, this is ridiculous, how am I supposed to beat an orc…"

"An orc is at least manageable, my opponent is Aisha... Truly, there's no hope."

"Looking forward to it, Piel. I hope we have a good match."

"…This time, I'll definitely win."

Hmm.

I wonder who my opponent is.

[39th Match: Ralph Viole vs Theo Lyn Waldeurk]

Ah, it's him.

Ralph Viole.

A notable character who wields a large two-handed mace as his primary weapon.

He becomes a villain in most routes of the original game due to his inferiority complex, jealousy, and envy.

He also falls into villainy in the Spearmaster route.

His current ranking is 37th.

He's a student with formidable close-combat skills, thanks to threatening self-enhancement buffs.

"He won't be an easy opponent. Thanks to his impressive muscles, he's a guy I remember. Do your best, Theo."

Noctar gave my shoulder a hearty pat with his giant hand.

"Well, thanks. By the way, Noctar, you're up against a wizard. Are you confident?"

"Heh, it's a good opportunity to test what I've been studying. I've been especially focused on understanding magic battles as that's where I'm lacking. Let's head to the training field. You're not planning on taking it easy today, are you, Theo?"

"Of course not. Let's get moving."

The odds of beating Ralph are low, but I'll give it my all.

Ralph is not in the top ranks like Neike, Piel, and Aisha, but he's a powerhouse within the top 20%.

The most urgent task at hand is to test my Natural Power.

The stats that have increased due to the hidden piece don't appear in the status window.

So, the strength and stamina shown in my status window remain the same as before, at 7.

In the original story, Neike gained approximately 3 stat points. I wonder how I will fare?

"Alright, let's give it a try!"

Along with Noctar, I headed towards the training field.

Once Theo had left the classroom.

With a fierce expression, Ralph stared at the place where Theo had been.

'Got you, you unlucky parasite.'

Theo Lyn Waldeurk.

Other than his family background, there was nothing to see in this incompetent fellow who had been increasingly irritating of late.

And for some reason today, Theo's distinct presence scraped on Ralph's temper.

"Oh, you're against him."

Because he could feel Piel, who had just approached him, showing a sudden interest in that bastard.

Ralph retorted with a sneer.

"Yeah, gonna teach him a lesson."

Ralph was in love with Piel.

But it was a one-sided love.

Piel had never once initiated a conversation with Ralph.

The fact that Piel had approached him for the first time both thrilled him and sparked his rage.

'What does that parasite think he is...'

To Ralph, Piel was the ideal he had yearned for since childhood, the personification of his dream girl.

The young lady of the great noble Chalon family.

A top-ranking powerhouse, ranked second, possessing skills worthy of her name.

Her petite yet well-toned figure, short red hair that seemed to reflect her strong exterior and delicate interior, soft-looking light brown skin,

Even her light emerald-green eyes.

Ralph found everything about Piel to his liking.

"...I'd like you to watch my duel with that bastard Theo, Piel."

"Sure, I'll watch. Good luck."

With those words, Piel vanished as suddenly as she had appeared.