Deadline Is Raining in the Status Window - Chapter 21

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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#The Three-Out Rule was indeed taken from Romance of the Three Kingdoms. (2)

“You should have come obediently from the start.”
The moment I let tears show, he must have thought he’d won. The way Seian Crown Prince laughed so despicably was so adorable I thought I’d die. I wanted to stay with him just a little longer. To talk with him. Could I tease him just a tiny bit more?
I mean, after getting beaten with a dog-like gift by that Satan bastard, tumbling left and right inside a book, scraping together a hundred million, and facing death if I don’t rank first in midterms, surely I could be a little greedy, right?
Just a tiny bit, a hair’s breadth, just enough to let my fingernails show—surely I could exchange a few words. With that resolve, I gripped the bookmark he was trying to snatch away from me.
“?”
As I applied pressure, wrinkles formed on Seian Crown Prince’s delicate brow. He’d think I was picking a fight.
That’s right! I’m picking a fight with you, baby angel!
“Why don’t you go tell your father about this?”
“!”
Seian Crown Prince’s face flushed red and blue with fury, and he raised his hand again—this time I dodged. I wanted to trip his staggering feet, but if I did that, I’d really get caught, so I couldn’t.
“Oh right, the Seian Crown Prince doesn’t meet with His Majesty except at official events, does he? The only chance to tell would be at the Crown Princess’s birthday banquet? That’s still a long way off.”
“You, you!”
“I’m keeping this as a memento.”
I teased him by saying if he wanted it back, he should come find me at the Magic Department, then laughed with an exaggerated cackle before bolting away from the boundary between the Academic Department grounds. Besides, Seian Crown Prince couldn’t run because of his dignity. Even at full speed, he couldn’t catch up to me.
I obtained the bookmark still warm from his touch and felt like I was flying through the sky. My favorite bookmark! My first trophy! Seian Crown Prince really is the best! I love this so much!
Giggling and grinning as my work-study hours ended, I hopped back to my Dormitory room and, overflowing with happiness, performed a solo musical number like I was in La La Land, belting out “Now” from the musical. As I climbed onto my bed and was about to belt out the morning comes and the sun rises anew, Reina Letem—who had been lying on her pillow crying—threw a fireball at me. I countered it with ice.
“Friend, why are you being so annoying next to someone who’s depressed?”
“You were the one being annoying during the last practical exam.”
“Ugh! Everyone else is having fun, so how am I supposed to sit this out alone!”
You can’t just follow along with everything everyone else does. What, would you die if your classmate died?
As I voiced the common saying mothers use, Reina Letem threw a pillow at me, and I let it hit me. Once she saw me take the blow from her own violence, Reina Letem seemed to feel a bit better.
“What were you doing out?”
“I was working my work-study scholarship job.”
“What’s that? I want to do it too!”
“The application deadline has passed.”
I deliberately kept quiet and acted obedient because I knew you’d follow me. When I went to apply, I had to be careful that Reina Letem wouldn’t tag along and struggled to slip away.
While Reina Letem was whining that she wanted to experience something like that at least once, I was cursing her—”You’ve got plenty of money, you damn noble bastard”—and joking around when, not long after, the Dormitory Manager knocked on the door with a tap-tap-tap.
“Is student Evan Laef present?”
“I’m here.”
As I opened the door and stepped outside, the Dormitory Manager, expressionless like a machine, delivered his business without any particular interest.
“The Department Head Professor is looking for you.”
“Why?”
“He says you stole something belonging to the Seian Crown Prince.”
“How did he find out?”
“In the Magic Department, there is only one student with such rustic twin braids, glasses, freckles, and an odd manner of speech—Evan Laef.”
“I see.”
Such rusticity was indeed conspicuous. Still, I’d thought the pretty academy uniform might have washed away some of that countryside roughness.
“What happens if I don’t go?”
“Demerit points.”
“I’ll go now.”
The moment I answered that I would head to the Department Head’s Office, Reina was absolutely delighted that her friend would now face disciplinary action too. I deliberately found a wicker basket and hurled it at her before leaving the Dormitory.
Upon arriving at the Department Head’s Office, I found Seian Crown Prince slouched on a plush sofa, his expression twisted into a deep scowl.
I had encountered Seian Crown Prince twice today. I felt as though I might die from happiness.
“There’s the culprit. Punish her.”
“Your Highness, perhaps we should first hear Evan’s account of what happened….”
“But this woman is a thief! Are you defying the command of the royal family!”
“That’s not quite….”
The Department Head had been dragged into an annoying situation. As a professor overseeing the Magic Department, he’d surely dealt with troublesome matters before, but he’d likely never encountered royalty making an appearance in the Magic Department itself. Especially since Seian had arrived without any guards or retinue whatsoever—his safe arrival alone could be called divine fortune.
“Evan Laef. Did you steal His Highness’s bookmark?”
Rather than answer, I rummaged through my pocket, retrieved Seian Crown Prince’s bookmark, and held it up with a flourish. It was an utterly ordinary bookmark—thick paper with a dried flower pressed against it, emanating a subtle fragrance. The recommended retail price would be around six thousand crowns. It looked like the sort of thing sold two for ten thousand crowns at a general store.
“See! My bookmark is definitely here! This woman is a thief…!”
“Crunch.”
I ground the bookmark between my steel-like teeth into pulp, then swallowed it whole. With this, Seian Crown Prince’s bookmark would remain with me forever. To be more scientifically precise, human cells completely regenerate every three months, so I could only claim three months of togetherness—but then I could simply consume another of his possessions.
If I consumed Seian Crown Prince’s belongings every three months, I could claim to have lived my entire life alongside him. It was the greatest reward that could be given to someone who loved Seian Crown Prince.
“What, what kind of person does such a thing!”
“I did not steal it.”
After I boldly consumed the bookmark and brazened my way through, the Department Head let out a contemplative sound and questioned me about the circumstances. I explained everything that had happened then, honestly and straightforwardly.
“I obtained it as spoils of war after defeating Seian in combat.”
“As His Highness has stated, it does not appear that this student actually committed theft.”
“No, well, that is to say, but! This woman forcibly took it from me!”
“Hmm….”
I hadn’t stolen it in secret—I’d taken it by force. When even Seian Crown Prince said it that way, the Department Head’s expression grew even more troubled before he reached a conclusion.
“If it was obtained as spoils of war, then there’s nothing to be done about it….”
Department Head Professor, you too are quite the helpless mage….
I was well aware that I myself was spouting considerable sophistry, but the Department Head who was persuaded by my sophistry was far worse than I.
When I’d entered earlier and bowed my head out of Confucian habit, my neck had stretched down unnaturally. The other party wasn’t just any ordinary mage—he was an incredibly powerful mage capable of controlling the students of the Magic Department.
Since I now understood just how incredibly powerful he was, I resolved never to provoke him later. That was my decision.
“Your Highness! Is Evan still here!”
What? Why is even the Academy Headmaster rushing over? Did the situation somehow escalate beyond expectations? But surely Seian Crown Prince wouldn’t have that kind of influence?
Inwardly nervous, I gave a slight nod to the Academy Headmaster as he burst through the door. I had known since the entrance examination that this man was stronger than me. He had a gentle, good-natured demeanor that made him seem like he might not be a mage at all. It seemed his strength lay simply in exceptional physical combat ability.
“Your Highness, there was no need for you to come personally. If it concerns this student’s punishment, I shall handle it myself.”
“But.”
“Should any further problems arise at the Academy, please come find me. You need not involve yourself directly, Your Highness.”
As the Academy Headmaster coaxed and soothed him, Seian Crown Prince rose reluctantly from the sofa and suggested we continue discussing my punishment in the Dean’s Office. It seemed he rather enjoyed having the Academy Headmaster—who possessed extraterritorial authority—defer to him.
After sending Seian Crown Prince out first, the Academy Headmaster approached me with surprising speed, jabbing my ribs repeatedly before leaning in to whisper.
“I heard everything from that Duke fellow. Don’t worry—I’ll handle the Crown Prince myself.”
That Duke? Could he mean Duke Neftis? My father? Unable to comprehend the situation, I stood bewildered as the Academy Headmaster waved his hand, asking me to send his regards to the Duke. Though I had no idea what was happening, I waved back and found myself alone in the Dean’s Office.
“Looks like you’ve caught onto something good.”
“I’m not entirely sure what you mean, sir.”
“Your manner of speech just became quite refined.”
“That’s because you’re far more formidable than I am.”
“Sharp instincts. Those with sharp instincts tend to live longer.”
The Department Head Professor seemed exhausted from dealing with the Crown Prince. He rolled his shoulders and retrieved a cigarette from his desk drawer. After lighting one, he offered me one as well.
“Care for one?”
“I’m a minor.”
“Tsk.”
Did you just click your tongue at me, you bastard of a Department Head? Were you trying to provoke me? What were you planning to do, you madman—dock my points?
“If you survive until fourth year, come find me. I’ll be your advisor through graduation.”
“I’d rather not.”
“Why.”
“Because you seem like you’d treat me like a dog.”
“You’ll understand later, but among the fourth-year professors, I’ll be the easiest to work with.”
Don’t lie to me, you deceitful bastard. I can see right through your lies. You’re grinning wickedly while claiming you’re the easiest—that’s rich.
Since I’d finished my business, I intended to head back to the Dormitory to tease Reina Letem, but a terrifyingly loud sound descended from the sky with a resonant chime.

The progression has changed slightly. Awarding 1,000 experience points.

Teacher, I didn’t do anything?
Bewildered by the points granted without rhyme or reason, I scratched my head frantically.
Did the progression change because of my contact with Seian Crown Prince? No. If that were the case, the timing wouldn’t match. If it were because of Seian, the system window would have notified me back when I bookmarked that moment.
Though it was a fact I desperately wanted to avoid acknowledging, it was clear that the conversation with the Department Head Professor had influenced the progression.
But why? The Department Head Professor wasn’t even mentioned in the original work.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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