EP.52
Jin, Altina, and Claire had been gathering in Altina’s room for a week now, preparing for their midterms.
Now, as Jin looked around the room, which had become somewhat familiar to him as if it were his own, he stretched slightly to relieve his stiff shoulders.
‘Seems like I’ve gotten a bit used to studying now.’
After spending the past week pouring over the textbook until it became worn, he found himself unconsciously thinking like a model student.
Goodness, who would have thought that a day would actually come when he’d get accustomed to studying?
If he had heard someone in Korea saying such things, he would have slapped them across the face with a “bad luck for you,” but here in this other world, he never imagined he would become that sort of unfortunate person.
To be precise, it wasn’t that he had become accustomed to studying itself. Rather, he had grown used to “recalling” what he had learned in the past.
Indeed. It was a bit ridiculous for him to realize such a thing now, but astonishingly, the curriculum of Nineveh’s High Department was quite similar to that of Korean high schools!
‘It’s a bit pathetic that I only figured this out now.’
Of course, that did not mean that the educational systems of the Empire and Korea were exactly the same in every regard.
Subjects like literature, social studies, and history, which belong to the liberal arts category, were so dissimilar from those taught in Korea that finding commonalities would be nearly impossible.
However, conversely, in areas like mathematics and basic sciences, where cultural differences were less pronounced, Jin found that they closely matched what he had learned during his high school years in Korea.
Could this be simple coincidence? To be honest, since people live similarly no matter where they are, it’s possible that the educational systems of Korea and the Empire may resemble each other due to chance.
‘There’s no way that’s the case.’
No matter how much he deliberated, it was hard for him to believe it was just a coincidence.
Logically speaking, it seemed more plausible that the educational system of one had ‘imitated’ that of the other rather than it being a remarkable coincidence that resulted in the two systems being so alike.
Of course, he wasn’t suggesting that the Empire had crossed dimensions to mimic Korea’s educational system. Surely there was another culprit responsible for the remarkable similarities between the two countries’ curricula.
‘The game developers.’
Jin speculated that the game he had been pulled into, “Ragnarok,” was based on a school setting where teenagers would joyfully enjoy their youth together.
And within the essence of a school setting, it was inevitable that the content taught to students would be a vital part. Why? If there were no classes and no studying, there would be no need for the game to be set in a school!
It was likely that the developers of the game, as well as the players, wouldn’t want their characters studying within the game either.
With a few exceptions aside, most players engaged with games to empty their minds of thoughts, rather than to memorize something while stressing their brains.
Therefore, it was reasonable to assume that the creators of “Ragnarok” had casually borrowed elements from Korea’s—or Earth’s—educational system and incorporated them directly into this cursed game.
After all, it was probably safe to say that no one would genuinely be interested in examining and closely scrutinizing the course content.
‘Who would have guessed I’d discover another piece of evidence that this world is indeed a game?’
Though it was somewhat astonishing, it could not fail to frustrate him.
The mere fact that if he had shown interest in Nineveh even once over the course of the past hundred years, perhaps he could have already reached the ending by now!
Well, putting that aside, the content Jin was currently studying was remarkably similar to what he had learned back in high school, so he was making good progress without putting in much effort.
What’s more, subjects like first-year high school literature were extremely trivial for him, while history, geography, and social studies were being memorized automatically without any effort on his part.
But it wasn’t simply because his brain was intelligent or remarkable.
Rather, given that the history of this fantasy world felt somewhat similar to reading a world-building guide, it just naturally lodged itself in his mind without any effort to memorize.
Surely everyone has had that experience at least once. You can try memorizing a non-fiction passage or classical poetry endlessly, but some fantasy novel’s setting or plot that you’ve read just once seems to stick in your mind effortlessly.
It was exactly like that. To be honest, studying history or social studies felt more like reading a novel than actual studying.
How could a history book filled with tales of dragons and demons possibly be boring?
“…..”
“…..”
Meanwhile, Altina and Claire were simply looking at Jin with a mix of disbelief and astonishment.
“…What? Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Ah, it’s just….”
“It’s a bit unexpected.”
Altina looked at him as if she’d heard that Tom and Jerry had fallen in love, and Claire, while not as expressive, was smiling wryly as she regarded him.
“I already knew you were smart, but I didn’t expect you to be so focused on studying like this. I mean, no matter how I think about it, you…”
“…Do I not have the image of a model student sitting quietly and studying hard?”
“Yeah… Well, that kind of sums it up, I guess. Ahaha.”
“…..”
I wasn’t sure about other things, but I knew my usual image was in shambles.
Despite appearances, I had graduated from a humanities high school and attended a well-known university in Seoul, making me a part of an elite crowd!
It’s just… just that after rolling around like a dog in this damned world for about a hundred years, my personality had changed a little to match!
Ultimately, Jin let out a sigh and sprang up from his seat, causing Altina and Claire to flinch, but at the same moment, a glimmer of anticipation sparked in their eyes.
Could it be? Has his patience finally run out?
Well, honestly, it’s impressive that he’d been stuck to the desk for a whole week without saying a word.
Come on, just say it! Actually, studying isn’t to my taste, and I didn’t want to do it at all!
“…..”
What was it? Why were Altina and Claire looking at me with such skewed expectations?
Could this all be the karma I had built up?
Ah… yes, I’ve wasted my life. Absolutely wasted it. Watching my supposed friends not trust me even a tiny bit feels pretty much like a slap in the face.
“Hey, where are you going? You’re not saying you don’t want to study anymore, are you?”
“I’m going to the bathroom! To the bathroom!”
In the end, Jin couldn’t hold back any longer and shouted at Altina and Claire.
Oh, really.
You guys are making me feel like a damn fool.
Look at this. I haven’t done anything wrong. The world is turning me into a fool. I’ve lived a life without any regrets, I tell you!
I suppose if I don’t convince myself of a mental victory like this, I might actually go crazy.
Just… that’s it. That’s all there is to it.
*Sigh.*
It might sound obvious, but currently, Jin was studying in Altina’s room, which was located in the girls’ dormitory.
In Nineveh, the male and female dormitories were strictly separated.
Why is that? With all the passions of youth, if the rooms were right next to each other, who knows what might happen between guys and girls?
Of course, those who are inclined to cause trouble will find a way to do so, even if you separate them like the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl. But at least there are minimal restrictions, which the school has put in place to prevent such incidents.
And the fact that the boys’ and girls’ dormitories are separate means—
There are no male restrooms in the girls’ dormitory.
“…..”
Of course, there’s no rule stating the girls’ restroom is strictly off-limits to boys. In an emergency, using the restroom in the girls’ dormitory wouldn’t be a problem at all.
But… no matter how you look at it, it feels a bit off for a man to suddenly intrude into a restroom meant only for women.
Even if Jin is a person who doesn’t care much about social reputation and judgment, he certainly wouldn’t be able to greet another female student inside the women’s restroom with a nonchalant expression.
He thought of himself as a bit of a scoundrel, but he wasn’t the kind of jerk who would get angry at other girls for simply being in a restroom that he had just entered.
So, there was nothing he could do. Ultimately, he had no choice but to return to the boys’ dormitory to use the restroom.
In fact, Jin didn’t really need to go to the restroom urgently. He just used it as an excuse to step out of Altina’s room and get some fresh air.
As he exited Altina’s room and was on his way back to the boys’ dormitory, he unexpectedly made eye contact with Erekaya, who was sitting on the sofa in the lobby.
“…..”
“…..”
What was Erekaya doing here?
Ah, thinking about it, this was the girls’ dormitory, so it made perfect sense for her to be here. It was rather strange that he was the one in such a place.
“Hello.”
“Uh… Hi.”
To be honest, Jin found Erekaya a bit intimidating.
Altina had been his girlfriend before his regression. Given the long time they spent together, being next to her didn’t feel burdensome at all.
As for Claire… well, he wasn’t quite sure about her. Their strange relationship had started from a victim and perpetrator dynamic, which had brought them to this point without much natural camaraderie.
Still, Claire always had a smile on her face, was approachable, and even brought him food regularly, so there was no reason for him to feel pressured around her.
But Erekaya still felt somewhat intimidating.
Perhaps it was because her usual expression was so cold that it was hard for him to gauge what she was thinking, or maybe it was the pressure of feeling responsible for her happiness.
However, one thing was certain: even though he acted recklessly around others, he couldn’t afford to be that way with Erekaya.
“…What are you doing here? This is the girls’ dormitory, not the boys’ dormitory.”
Erekaya looked at Jin and then at the staircase from which he had just come down, displaying an incredulous expression.
Look at this. A guy came to the girls’ dormitory? At this late hour, and he claims to have a reason to visit a girl’s room?
No matter how he thought about it, there seemed to be only one reason for a man to visit a girl’s room at such an hour.
Could it be… that he was contributing significantly to the Empire’s declining birthrate?
Seeing Erekaya with that kind of expression made Jin sigh.
“I can guess what you’re thinking, but it’s not like that. I just came to see Altina for a moment regarding a matter.”
“…Altina.”
In that moment, Erekaya mumbled Altina’s name as if coming to some sort of realization.
Thinking it over, Erekaya must know that Jin and Altina share some kind of master-disciple relationship, so he wouldn’t really need any further explanation.
It’s not unusual for a master to briefly visit their disciple for a matter.
But that’s exactly why he hadn’t noticed her expression change. The moment she heard the name Altina, Erekaya’s eyes subtly, yet certainly, took on a different hue.
“…Jin, I’d like to ask you something personal. Is that okay?”
“A personal question? What is it?”
When Jin tilted his head in confusion and repeated the question, Erekaya looked at him with an oddly somber gaze and quietly opened her mouth.
“Are you and Altina… perhaps… in a romantic relationship or something like that?”
“…What?”
