HTACS 59

Chapter 59

“This concludes my presentation.”

What Regina Sierra presented in the Magic and Social Development practical exam was a ‘Scroll Kit.’

A bundle of five 9-tier skills: ‘Light,’ ‘Fire Bolt,’ ‘Ice Bolt,’ ‘Emergency Treatment,’ and ‘Poison Resistance.’

“Hm.”

Originally, these start selling from Act 3, but going from snacks to scroll kits—she’s jumped ahead a tier.

As for efficiency… well. Selling a bundle of five 9-tier magic scrolls is pretty expensive. And the more you improve them, the more expensive they get.

“I’ve seen Regina Sierra student’s presentation well. We’ll take a short break, then listen to the next presentation—Wolfram von Lohengrin student’s.”

Professor Isilote adjusted her horn-rimmed glasses and said that, and Regina, who had returned to my side, smiled at me.

“I hope it’s a presentation that pleases Your Highness Prince Wolfram von Lohengrin.”

“I don’t like it.”

“……May I, dare I ask… the reason?”

“The purpose is unclear. Who are you selling that to?”

“To the lords of regions where monsters frequently appear.”

“That’s exactly what’s unclear.”

“Due to my lack of insight, I don’t fully understand. Could you please explain?”

She made a slightly sulky expression.

Hoo. This is the only time, got it?

“If it were me—defense for defense, attack for attack, support for support. I’d sell them in three separate parts.”

“……Ah?”

“A bundle of ‘attack magic’ with four 9-tier elemental bolts. A bundle of ‘support magic’ with Light, Shield, Flare, and Search. A bundle of ’emergency kits’ with Poison, Sleep, Paralysis, and Emergency Treatment. Selling them that way is far more efficient. This setup is vague as hell. Looks like it was made by a brat with zero combat experience.”

“…U-ugh.”

“How childish. Young lady of the Sierra family.”

Regina Sierra stared at me intently, gritting her teeth.

“H-how can you have such advanced thinking compared to me?”

“The gap between you and me.”

How, she asks?

Well, because you’ll start selling them split up like that after Act 4?

Sorry, I just pretended to know stuff using what you sell.

If you’re mad, why don’t you become Wolfram instead of me? Haha.

“…Your Highness Prince Wolfram von Lohengrin… you are.”

“……Forget it.”

“How could I forget.”

“I said forget it.”

“I look forward to Your Highness’s presentation.”

No.

Don’t.

Don’t look at me with that pink-loaded gaze.

Please.

“You are…”

And don’t say that line either.

Stop route violence!

—

Regina Sierra’s fandom—commonly called the Regina Corps—was a very unique group among D/Z SAGA players.

The Regina Corps’ characteristic was pushing character psychological analysis to the extreme, and the character they analyzed was, of course, Regina Sierra.

Their concept of “攻略” (strategy/clear guide) was different.

For example, take a normal user’s common route strategy.

In Act 3, when defeating the Rebel Lady Ayla, they consider how many phases to use “Kel-dun-tank”—wrapping Kelterus in immunity gear and throwing him into the middle of enemy lines—as a safe strategy.

That’s a completely normal strategy—a user’s pattern for clearing a boss. Usually, thinking about how to speedrun it from there is advanced strategy.

But the Regina Corps’ discussions aren’t like that.

In Act 3, there’s a scene where Regina Sierra looks at Kelterus and says one line: “…You are.”

And that starts a fight.

“‘You are… able to kill me, aren’t you?’ vs ‘No, isn’t that emotional progression a bit fast? “You are… different from others, aren’t you?”‘”

“But what if Regina felt that feeling the moment she first saw Kelterus?”

“Lol your interpretation is insane, does it really read that way? Are you even using your eyes lol”

“This kid doesn’t know Regina at all lol idiot, you should call her ‘Sierra-sama’ lol”

“What did you say, punk? Wanna go?”

“Ok ok, the loser has to call her ‘Sierra-sama’ instead of Regina.”

“Ok, stay right there, I’m coming lol”

This led to an actual offline fight. They really met up and fought.

Naturally, they live-streamed it in the community.

It was legendary. About eight thousand people watched in real-time.

After it ended, they called each other Regina and went off to eat pork bulgogi rice bowl together.

Later, they became known as the “Pork Bulgogi Rice Bowl Affectionate Gods” and became legends.

Anyway, they’re the real deal. The Regina Corps has a bit of… collective madness? Mental illness? Something like that.

There’s also a group chat—and the entry condition was combining the first letters of the most sincere words Regina said in each act. Crazy bastards.

Naturally, I had no intention of joining that. Why would I go there, seriously?

Anyway, the Regina Sierra route that created such zealots is unlocked by defeating her.

Separate from empathizing with the character Regina Sierra, I know quite clearly what kind of mindset she lives with.

So, actually, it might be good not to win here.

Regina pays attention to opponents who beat her, and being noticed by her becomes annoying.

Losing is better. Losing is the right call here.

Eve said “Just get good grades”—she didn’t say “get first place.”

Even if I lose, Ayla would probably say, “So you were holding back this time.”

But…

But is losing really the right thing to do?

Wolfram von Lohengrin. Ask yourself. Answer without lies.

Q. Is it okay to lose to that Regina Sierra?

A. Fuck that.

“Even if that annoying woman becomes even more annoying to me, I don’t want to lose.”

If she becomes annoying, I’ll deal with it when the time comes.

Even if there’s a future where someone becomes annoying to me—I want to win in this moment!

“Yeah. That’s enough.”

My mind is made up.

Let’s think about it after I win!

—

“Next is Wolfram von Lohengrin student’s presentation.”

After Professor Isilote called my name, I stood before the podium.

To be honest, I barely attended this class. There was only one written exam question recently, so I just pieced together what I knew based on that. It’s all lies, fraud, and silver-tongued bullshit.

I just brought one handicraft I made with Handy Worker because I had nothing else to do at the convenience store.

Honestly. I half-assed it.

No, think about it—I just got back from that damn 2-1 expedition and suddenly it’s midterms. And not just written—there’s a practical too.

On top of that, with 2 stamina wrecked by muscle soreness, what the hell was I supposed to prepare? It’s a miracle I even made this.

“From now on, I will speak of a fantasy.”

But it was worth a shot.

No—I’ll pull it off with my hellish silver-tongued bullshit.

“What I’m about to present today is difficult to realize. As someone from the imperial family, frankly, I’m not sure if I should even bring this up. So please think of this not as Prince Wolfram von Lohengrin, but as just a regular student named Wolfram von Lohengrin rambling about the thoughts he had.”

At my words, the students who had been staring at the floor, showing no interest in others’ presentations, glanced up at me.

“There may be differences in interpretation, but I interpreted this semester’s class as follows: ‘Minimum equality.’ Yes. The imperial family is wealthy and the capital flourishes, but at the eastern edge of the empire, there are only forests and monsters—not even good meals, let alone guaranteed sleep for the night. I know this.”

Clap clap. The professor’s applause and interjections came in. Good.

“To achieve that, the first thing that must be addressed is the stabilization of supply routes. More precisely, stabilizing the prices of the most basic daily necessities must take priority. 【Black bread.】 【Water.】 【Clothing.】 【Herbs that repel monsters.】 【The most basic medical tools.**】

With the skill activated, my voice gradually rose, and the moment my MP hit 1, I spoke one line with force:

“**【The supply of everything that makes the people of the Lohengrin Empire truly feel they are under the imperial family’s protection.**】

Here, I cut off abruptly. Three. Two. One. Skill off.

“The biggest problem in achieving this is, of course, the limited supply routes. Warp portals require magic stones of quality proportional to the weight of the goods. The farther from the capital, the more expensive it inevitably becomes.”

At my words, several students nodded. They must be from rural areas.

“With this, I wish to discuss a childish fantasy using a toy. However—even knowing this cannot be achieved—it is a story about a future that must be pursued.”

With that, I placed it on the podium.

A palm-sized train model and rails.

A very small toy made from a 100,000-lin magic stone that emits 0.3 MP per hour.

It was the lowest-grade ‘Train Model and Rail’ set I could make with Handy Worker.

When I pressed the button, the train started moving with a *beep-beep* sound.

*Gulp*.

While everyone was focused on the toy, I drank the mana potion Ayla had prepared and restored my MP.

“Lay these ‘railroads’ across the world, run cargo-laden trains, and 【deliver the most precious things to the farthest places, and the most necessary things to where they are most needed.】 【Connect the world—from the Lohengrin imperial capital to the eastern forests, the southern deserts, the northern snowfields, and the western mountains.】 Isn’t that an interesting fantasy?”

“…Is that toy really capable of that?”

Here came the professor’s question. With tears welling in her eyes, moved and choked with emotion, she asked me.

I didn’t answer with words—I placed a palm-sized stone on the train.

A weight overwhelmingly heavier than the train.

Yet the iron horse never stopped, circling the circular rails again and again.

“This train never stops even when carrying something heavier than itself. I believe it’s possible.”

At those words, a chorus of *oooh* from the students and the professor’s applause formed a beautiful harmony.

“W-with this, truly…”

At the professor’s words, I shook my head.

“It’s a fantasy.”

“P-pardon?”

“Don’t get your hopes up too high. As I said before, this is all just a dream and an illusion. What about monsters on the tracks? How do we handle attacks during transport? We’d need new taxes for the budget, and it would become a battle of interests over which territory gets rails first—those that paid taxes first. It’s fantasy. It’s an impossible realm. A dream.”

I stopped there and paused. When the visual effect of the professor’s face sinking into despair was fully conveyed, I grabbed the mic again—skill on.

“**【Isn’t turning this dream into reality exactly what Social Development and Magic is all about?**】

“……Ugh!”

“That’s why we who take this class must dream. We must discuss fantasies. We must debate illusions. 【The dream of traveling safely from the capital to the eastern forest.】 【The fantasy of children in the poor western mountains having all the water they can drink.】 【The imagination of clothes produced in the northern snowfields helping people endure the cold nights of the southern desert.】 【That is what this subject—what this exam—is all about, in my judgment.**】

I stopped breathing, turned off the skill, and scanned the room. Then I continued.

“That concludes my presentation. Thank you for listening to a regular student’s dream.”

Truly thunderous applause erupted. So loud that Wolfram’s 2-stamina body flinched at the sound—it struck my ears.

The children’s eyes sparkled, and even the professor was in tears—there could be no greater joy.

From afar, that annoying blonde-haired girl was clapping while crying, which is quite unsettling.

But anyway.

It worked.

Massive profit.