I Became the Academy Chapter 54

Chapter 54

The city of rchants—Skedum.

It was a vast city located about a day’s distance east of Lysquare, the capital of the Arium Empire.

The reason Skedum was called the city of rchants was simple.

‘Because it’s the city where every rchant of the Empire gathers.’

The Arium Empire was enormous.

It was self-sufficient enough to thrive solely on its own resources, even without trade with other nations.

Because of that, countless goods were produced all across the Empire.

And the place where all those goods converged was right here—Skedum.

‘rchants trade their goods here, then distribute them throughout the Empire.’

From its very founding, Skedum was designed to be the center of distribution.

Thanks to that, countless roads leading to every region of the Empire were constructed with Skedum as their hub.

‘And since foreign rchants also conduct trade through this city…’

As the center of Arium’s distribution, there was no better place for rchants from other countries to conduct business.

Perhaps because of that, several foreign rchants had already caught my eye.

“Sir Gideon, among the first-year students, a total of three have reported missing luggage.”

“Go check the carriages for Class 2-A. That’s where you’ll find them.”

“Uh… how did you know that?”

“Just trust .”

I’d gone through this school trip episode countless tis, and I’d already found those three students’ missing luggage dozens of tis in the sa spot.

If this were still a ga instead of reality, I could’ve found their bags with my eyes closed.

In fact, I had once actually tried it out of boredom—and I really did find them.

“See that first carriage at the front of the second-year section? Check the cargo compartnt there. You’ll find two black trunks and one green trunk.”

“Ah… yes, understood.”

The first-year student from the Student Council quickly hurried off in the direction I pointed.

Seeing that, I couldn’t help but chuckle faintly.

‘Was that kid’s na Jim? One of the few commoners in the Student Council, if I recall correctly?’

Still, it felt oddly unfamiliar to have soone speak to

so respectfully.

Until now, I’d only ever interacted with people ranked above , so being on the receiving end of formality was rare.

‘Now that I think about it, I am technically a noble.’

Though, of course, I was the lowest-ranking kind of noble.

Well, that aside.

“…Looks like everything’s just about wrapped up.”

I glanced around.

There were a total of five large hotels in Skedum.

Lysquare Academy had rented three of them, assigning one to each year group as their lodging.

My current task was to ensure the first-years checked into their hotel safely, and—

“Looks like it’s almost done.”

Everything was proceeding smoothly.

Judging from how the second- and third-year groups were still busy, it seed clear the first-years had finished their tasks the fastest.

Well, that was only natural.

Because I was here.

‘I already know when, where, and how every problem will happen—of course it’s going to go fast.’

Skedum was one of the stops on the first-year school trip.

I’d seen this scene far too many tis in the ga.

And because I knew every possible problem and its solution, nothing could really escalate here.

‘Should I contact Nia? Or maybe check if the instructors have encountered any other issues…?’

I was lost in thought when—

“Gideon.”

“Hmm? Ah, Lady Sedna.”

Hearing soone call my na, I turned my head to see a group of first-year Student Council mbers gathered beside .

The one who’d spoken to

was Sedna Elinas—the de facto leader among the first-year council mbers.

“Is sothing wrong? Ah, if there’s not enough space to park the carriages, as I ntioned earlier, we could ask one of the nearby nobles to—”

“That issue’s been resolved. It worked out right away once we followed your advice.”

“Ah, that’s good to hear. Then what brings you to ?”

“…I ca to apologize.”

“Apologize?”

Tilting my head, I saw Sedna lower her voice slightly.

“For doubting your ability. I’m sorry.”

Scratching her head, Sedna continued awkwardly.

“When the Student Council President assigned you to lead the first-year council mbers, I had a lot of doubts and complaints. But I think I misjudged you. Seems like the President really knew what she was doing.”

For reference, during this school trip, the Student Council had been divided by grade to oversee different tasks.

The leaders were Nia for the third years, Lisa for the second years, and

for the first years.

Since Nia was the Student Council President and Lisa was the respected Disciplinary Committee Head, no one questioned their authority. But when Nia appointed

to lead the first-years, there had apparently been quite a bit of murmuring.

‘Still, I didn’t care. I just wanted to get the work done as fast as possible.’

And I had to finish quickly.

Because that rebel faction was going to cause chaos later today, and I needed every spare mont to prepare.

So I’d efficiently handled every issue using my ga experience, and thanks to that, my reputation seed to have improved sowhat.

“There’s no need to apologize. I only did what I was supposed to do. By the way, Lady Sedna—since the lodging and carriage issues are all wrapped up, does that an the first-years now have free ti?”

“Probably, yes. Once the headcount is done, it’ll be free ti.”

“Understood.”

Thanks to our quick work, the first-years would likely enjoy free ti earlier than the other grades.

That ant I could get a few things done before the second- and third-years ca out.

“Then, we’ll head in for now. Ah, I’ll take care of the headcount and report to Lady Nia, so please don’t worry.”

“Oh, okay. And hey… Gideon.”

“Yes, Lady Sedna?”

“Let’s drop the formalities between us. We’re in similar positions—let’s be friendly.”

“I don’t know if I should, Lady Sedna…”

I hesitated, but Sedna’s expression was sincere.

“Co on, whether you’re a viscount’s son or a baron’s son, there’s not much difference between us. Since we’re working together, let’s get along.”

“In that case… alright.”

“Good. Let’s be friends from now on.”

After chatting a bit longer with Sedna, she left with the other first-year Student Council mbers.

‘Sedna’s pretty much the sa as in the ga—easygoing. Still, I didn’t expect her to ask to be on friendly terms.’

Not that it was a bad thing.

It was always better to have more allies.

Sedna might not be much help later on, but having one more person on my side could always co in handy soday.

“…Let’s finish this up quickly.”

After organizing my scattered thoughts, I began to move as well.

From this point on, it was unlikely I’d have much ti to relax.

---

“Are you referring to the group that has been staying at this inn for over a month?”

“Yes, are there any?”

“I can’t disclose that information. Revealing guest details without permission is—”

“Are there?”

I slid a single gold coin across the counter toward the innkeeper.

The man hesitated for a mont before discreetly pocketing the coin.

“About a month ago, a group of roughly twenty people checked in. They looked like rchants, but for so reason, they’ve been staying here for over a month. Must be taking a while to finish their business.”

“Were they the group wearing green masks?”

“W–what? How did you know that…?”

“Let’s just say I have my ways.”

It seed I’d found the right place.

Every ti the school trip episode played out, the rebels’ hideout location changed.

In other words, each new playthrough assigned their inn at random.

There were generally ten possible locations, and—

‘I’ve already checked three of them.’

This one was the fourth.

Finding them faster than expected was fortunate.

If I’d had to visit all ten inns before finding them, I would’ve wasted far too much ti.

“They’re not here at the mont, are they?”

“No, they shouldn’t be.”

“I see.”

Just like in the ga.

In that case, I simply had to follow the sa pattern.

“They’ll probably check out tonight.”

“Ah… will they?”

“You have a communication crystal, right?”

“Eh? Ah, yes, I do.”

“Let

see it for a mont.”

I practically took the innkeeper’s crystal from him and entered my own contact information into it.

“You can reach

directly through this now.”

“Ah, understood. But why all of a sudden…?”

“When you notice them starting to prepare for checkout, contact

right away. Understood?”

“Eh? But why would I—”

“Please do it.”

I handed him another gold coin.

“I’ll trust you to handle it.”

“…If they start packing their things, I’ll send you a ssage through the crystal.”

The innkeeper accepted the second coin with a helpless expression.

Satisfied, I smiled faintly and stepped out of the inn.

‘Having plenty of money sure makes things smoother.’

The Kyrgram Family had no one left but , but at least they’d left behind quite a fortune.

Being able to easily buy people’s cooperation was undeniably convenient.

‘I should drop by the Imperial Bank later and withdraw so more.’

Considering how much gold I’d likely need soon, it wouldn’t hurt to prepare in advance.

Well, that aside—

‘Now that I know where the rebels are staying, I should check the locations where the kidnappings will occur.’

The green-masked rebels’ goal was to kidnap students from Lysquare Academy.

To be precise, they intended to use those kidnapped students as sacrifices.

All to resurrect a powerful monster that once existed long ago.

If I failed to stop that resurrection here, the future

would probably have to risk my life fighting that monster soday.

That was why I needed to crush the rebels completely during this school trip episode.

‘Of course, if things get out of hand, I could switch to the Rebel King route… but that path is way too risky.’

That route was my last resort. For now, my goal was to make sure there were no casualties.

Which ant I needed to scout out all the kidnapping sites in advance.

---

It was a cityscape I’d seen countless tis in the ga, but seeing it in reality felt completely different.

A city where all sorts of exotic sights and sounds mixed together.

Combinations that should’ve clashed sohow blended perfectly here—that was Skedum’s unique charm.

If I could, I would’ve loved to simply enjoy this beauty for a while.

But I didn’t have that luxury.

I was busy checking each of the kidnapping sites ahead of ti.

Getting familiar with the terrain beforehand would help prevent mistakes when the fighting began.

‘The problem is, I don’t know who will be kidnapped this ti.’

Just like the rebels’ hideout, the kidnapped students were randomized every playthrough.

There were six possible candidates, and three of them would be taken each ti.

‘Technically there are ten total, but the rebels aren’t stupid enough to kidnap the children of three ducal families and the Princess.’

For reference, the rebels always targeted the three nobles with the purest bloodlines as their sacrifices.

At Lysquare Academy, excluding the heirs of the ducal families and the Princess, that left six possible victims.

‘Anyway, let’s check each kidnapping site.’

In the ga, visiting those places in advance never triggered any events, but this was reality.

That ant there might be differences this ti…

“Gideon.”

“Hmm? Ah, Lady Lisa.”

Just as I was gathering my thoughts to move again, Lisa approached from afar.

“Have the second-years finished their tasks?”

“Yes, we just wrapped up. We’ll give them free ti soon. I got permission from the instructor to step out a bit early.”

Lisa spoke with her usual calm, expressionless tone.

But sothing felt off.

For the past week, she’d deliberately kept her distance from , acting cold. Yet now she was approaching

of her own accord.

“Um… Gideon.”

“Yes, Lady Lisa?”

“Would you, uh… that is…”

She hesitated, visibly tense, before finally gathering her courage to speak.

“D–do you have ti? I’d like to look around the city with you.”

“Oh, sightseeing, you an?”

I quickly ran the numbers in my head.

There was still ti before the kidnapping would occur, and I could check the target areas while touring the city with her.

‘Besides, Lisa isn’t the type to go sightseeing for no reason. If she’s asking

specifically, there’s got to be a reason behind it.’

After thinking it through, I nodded.

“Of course.”

“…Really?”

Her face remained stoic, yet for the briefest mont, I saw a glimr of happiness flash in her eyes.

“Yes, really. Speaking of which, have you eaten dinner yet? If not, perhaps we could—”

I was thinking of taking her to a restaurant in Skedum that I knew she’d like.

But before I could finish my sentence—

“Oh? Gideon, Lisa! What a coincidence!”

Voices called out from afar.

Turning my head, I saw Jason and Sara, with Layla smiling brightly between them as she approached.

“Are you two working? If not, why don’t we all go sightseeing together?”

“…Tch.”

The heirs of the ducal families always showed absolute loyalty and deep respect toward the Royal Family.

And right then, for the first ti, I saw Lisa cast a resentful glare in Layla’s direction.