I don’t really want anything; I just want to roll around in bed.
Dreams or goals? That’s none of my concern.

I don’t want to think about the distant future that hasn’t arrived yet.
In my past life, I spent every day working, believing that happiness would come someday—and in the end, I died from overwork.

I just want to live according to human instincts.
Sleep deeply when I want to, eat as much as I want.
As for… desires, well, whether it’s a blessing or a curse, I don’t really feel anything, so let’s skip that.

To maintain a life full of laziness every day, I’ve set a simple rule:
Avoid entangling with the “named” characters of the original story as much as possible.
I don’t want to get involved in troublesome situations unnecessarily.

Of course, not getting involved at all would be ideal, but that’s impossible.
After all, I’m one of the characters already stepping into the original story.

And it’s best to follow the original story as closely as possible rather than meddling with it.
Knowing the future means knowing what will happen, allowing me to stay stress-free and present in every moment.

This is why I went to the academy despite the hassle.
I do regret impulsively choosing the Magic Engineering Department over the Magic Department…
Ah, whatever. Surely a small choice like this won’t twist the worldline too much.

So far, I think I’ve been following my plan well.
I’ve stayed under the radar, only mingling a little with characters who barely appear in the original story, like the maids or Claire.
I should avoid entangling with weird people from now on.
…Or so I thought.

Of course, I ended up crossing paths with a main character of the scenario.
Estelle, the senior who is essentially the center of the first episode.

Well, being on the same team is unavoidable.
Keep my distance, get the grades I need, and act like we have no relationship.
That’s the plan.

“Luna~ already trying to run away?”

As I tried to sneak out of the hall, Estelle grabbed me.

“The class isn’t over yet~”

A bright smile, sparkling eyes.
And she casually called me by a nickname.
I couldn’t decide if it was amazing social skills or a complete lack of boundaries…

I stepped back slowly, but Estelle didn’t care and instead looped her arm through mine.

“W-weren’t we done earlier?”
“What do you mean? The lecture isn’t over yet.”
“…Huh? But the professor said we could go after forming teams…”
“He said we could leave, not that class was over.”
“???”
“Today’s class is about seniors and juniors getting closer! A spontaneous master-apprentice bonding ceremony~”

Estelle tugged my arm without caring about my expression.

“Come on, Luna! Shall we get a cup of coffee? I’ll treat you. By the way, not many people get something from me, you know?”

A window-side seat in the academy cafeteria.

Before I even sat down, Estelle’s barrage of questions began.

Where’s your hometown? When you have time, tell me about it! I’m curious~
Any hobbies? Maybe we share some?
How’s the lecture so far? Aren’t the common magic professors a bit strict?
How’s the dorm? Your top-student room is really nice~

Not a single moment, really not a single moment, did her mouth stop.
Even when I gave short, half-hearted answers, ten or twenty replies came back, making my head spin.

…How do I get away from this?

“Linea Hall isn’t bad. Especially the bed…”
“Wait, stop. Hey, Luna. Since we’ll see each other a lot, you don’t have to be so formal. Let’s be casual, okay?”
“Alright, got it.”

I relaxed immediately.
I’m not the type to fuss over unnecessary etiquette.

Estelle seemed satisfied and nodded with a smile.
Then, she gulped her coffee like cold water.

“But, Luna.”

Leaning forward, resting her chest on the table, she looked me in the eye.

“Aren’t you curious about me? You’ve been asking all the questions.”

Honestly, not really.
I don’t care much about other people in the first place.
And I already know enough about her.

A genuine master, producing magic engineering tools of a level high enough to supply the royal family, even as a student.
And she successfully restored an ancient magical golem, even if she failed to control it.

If I had to ask something…

‘Is senior’s chest a mana tank? Or a charisma pocket?’
Or,
‘How did you get the ancient golem design?’

But neither question was really suitable here.

If I had to force a question…

“Why did you join the Magic Engineering Department, Estelle?”

Caught off guard, Estelle blinked.
‘Why I joined the department?’ She murmured to herself, then set her cup down.

“Well, with my grades, Magic Department would’ve been the logical choice, right?”

She said the professors even tried to convince her to reconsider, and chuckled at the memory.

“But, honestly, there’s no grand reason. Just… the scholarship~”

A surprisingly practical answer.

“In Magic Department, only tuition is waived. But in Magic Engineering, tuition and dorm fees were fully covered.”

Makes sense. Money matters.
Besides, dorms would be different.
Even if Sepia Hall’s quality was a bit lower, Linea Hall’s bed quality was far superior—a very important issue.

“Nothing else, really. If anything…”

She trailed off, gazing out the window.
Her bright smile had softened slightly.

“After graduation, I don’t plan to work in the capital. I’ll return home.”

Her voice softened.
If she spoke this calmly all the time, it wouldn’t be so tiring to hear.

“Learning to create tools using magic will help my village more than just learning magic alone.”

A faint pride showed on her face as she admitted it awkwardly.

“It may be a small village, but it’s my precious home. I want to help everyone.”

I stared at Estelle.

“You really are amazing.”

A yawn escaped me before I could stop it.
Estelle looked at me, puzzled.

“Watching you, senior…”

I tapped the edge of my cup and continued.

“It feels like you carry the expectations of many people.”

Expectations from the Magic Engineering Department.
Expectations from your hometown.

Her eyes widened.
I lowered my gaze to my reflection in the glass on the table and added quietly:

“Living up to others’ expectations.”

Isn’t that exhausting?

“…Isn’t it hard?”

I realized what I said and felt slightly embarrassed.
But Estelle spoke softly.

“Luna…”

She whispered my nickname.
I looked up to see her lips twitching.

“You’re worried about me~ I’m so touched! You’re so cute!!”
“Eh?!”

Suddenly, she hugged me across the table.
Wait, senior? My cup… oh no, my milk. Half-drunk… spilled.

“Is it hard? Hmm? Not really?”

She shrugged cheerfully.
“Expecting something is just encouragement, right?”

Her expression… slightly, just slightly… reminded me of myself.

Knowing her future made my mouth taste bitter, just a little.

If I had to pick the hardest day of the week, it would definitely be Thursday.

Other weekdays still required effort to protect my morning sleep.
The battle with Linea Hall maids repeated every day.

Still, clever strategy usually let me win against the maids.
But the “formidable foe” that came every Thursday was impossible to handle.

“Lunaris student!”

A loud crash accompanied the sudden opening of the door.
A rough entrance, utterly lacking dignity.

I buried my head under the covers, eyes tightly shut.

“I know everything inside. If you don’t get up now, should I really break the door down?!”

Her high-pitched voice pierced the blanket and my eardrums.
No… she was already inside…

“You could have at least knocked…”
“I know you wouldn’t open it anyway. Didn’t you also refuse to get out of bed last week? We had the orientation right here in this room, didn’t we?!”

I peeked out from under the blanket.
Last week, she had magically forced the locked door open anyway.
And there, Professor Raymond of the Magic Department stood in front of me, giving a three-hour orientation and speech.

He crossed his arms, sighed, and spoke:

“You’ve clearly grown lazy since joining the Magic Engineering Department. If you had gone to the Magic Department, I, as the head, would have personally supervised you as a research student.”
“…Hic.”

Cold sweat ran down my spine.
Good choice picking Magic Engineering. One wrong choice and my dorm would’ve been the research lab, not Linea Hall.

“I really don’t understand. Why didn’t you join the Magic Department?”
“…”

Is that… a question?

“It’s a waste to waste such talent! You realize how important each year is at your age, Lunaris!”
“I didn’t think I’d learn anything useful in the Magic Department. Learning something different seemed fine too.”

My indifferent answer raised his eyebrows slightly.

“Didn’t you say in the interview that you wanted me to teach you? That I’d make you a Grand Mage in a year?”

So I didn’t go. All that effort sounded exhausting.
…I didn’t say that out loud.

“I don’t see the point of relying on others to gain insight.”
“…!”
“The path to becoming a Grand Mage is one you must forge yourself, isn’t it?”

My words hit him straight in the chest.

“T-true… well, it’s correct… Crhm!”

He coughed repeatedly, flustered, then raised his voice.

“But! Using a mentor’s guidance would help you organize your thoughts much more efficiently, wouldn’t it? Or are you saying you don’t like my guidance?”
“No, it would be an honor to receive guidance from someone like you… Haaam…”

My uncontrollable yawn sparked visibly in Professor Raymond’s eyes.

“Huhu… still half-asleep, huh? Good. I’ve prepared a class to wake you right up.”

Oh no, I think I provoked him.

“It’s a special class. So…”

Now perched on my bed, Professor Raymond smiled meaningfully.

“Let’s have a little magic duel.”

This guy… wants to show the authority of a mentor.

Judging by his gaze, there’s no escape.

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