Healing at the Academy convenience store

Eve von Roengreen, the youngest princess of the Roengreen Empire, possessed extraordinary potential that promised to leave a lasting mark on her era.

At the age of 4, she sensed mana, learned 9-tier magic when she was 5, 8-tier at the age of 8, 7-tier at 10, and now, at the age of 16, she was an exceptional magician who learned 5-tier magic.

She was a bundle of talent, a talent that was impossible to even dare to envy.

Eve’s brilliance shone particularly bright within the imperial family, known for its strict adherence to seniority. Her radiance stood in stark contrast to the darkness emanating from her older brother, Wolfram von Roengreen. With her talents, she had already gained access to the imperial laboratory and had become renowned for her research in light magic.

Endowed with pride as a member of the royal family, unshakable self-confidence, and a charismatic aura, Eve held the position of the youngest student council president in Jephryn. Her beauty further added to her allure. On this particular day, Eve briefly appeared in the graduate school lab, where she was greeted by a familiar senior.

“Hello, senior.”

“Hello, Princess.”

The senior, known not only for his research but also for his political acumen, exchanged pleasantries with Eve. While she did not particularly like him, she recognized the value of opportunistic individuals in certain situations. She kept him close to develop her ability to discern when someone would seize an opportunity and act in their own self-interest.

“Princess, you truly are amazing. Hehe.”

“What do you mean?” Eve inquired, curious about his intentions.

“Oh, I’m just sincerely grateful to the princess. By the way, would you like one as well?”

With these words, he presented Eve with a round object wrapped in paper.

A sweet fragrance wafted from it—an aroma reminiscent of fruit and sugar. It appeared to be an artificial candy, but its subtle scent did not overwhelm the senses.

“Is this… candy?”

“Yes, hehe. I bought one for myself too.”

Eve hesitated for a moment. Candy was a luxurious treat, even for a princess. Each piece cost an exorbitant sum, surpassing half a million rin. The fruits required for such high-quality candy grew in regions abundant with magic, which naturally attracted dangerous monsters. Thus, the fruits supplied to the royal family were cultivated at great risk. As a result, these candies were not easily accessible, even within the royal household.

After a brief internal dilemma between the fear of disappointment if it turned out to be a cheap imitation and the desire to savor the sweetness, Eve decided to accept the candy.

“I gratefully accept it, senior.”

“Thank you, thank you!”

The naive senior nodded eagerly, and Eve smiled before placing the candy in her mouth. However, as she tasted it, a perplexed expression crossed her face.

“Huh? Hehe.”

“It seems you enjoy it,” remarked the senior.

Eve couldn’t contain her smile. The candy possessed a refreshingly sweet taste—a kindness that touched her heart.

Some might find it excessive to fuss over a single piece of candy, but within the royal family, such a treat was considered a luxury beyond reach.

“Where did you get this?” Eve inquired.

“Huh? You didn’t know? Um… uh?”

“Senior?”

“Oh, I see. I thought you were aware…”

The senior became excessively flustered, prompting Eve to tilt her head in confusion. Who sold this candy that seemed to have caught him off guard?

“Who is it? I genuinely have no knowledge of this…”

“Well… wasn’t it at your command? Since dawn, they’ve been selling items from a cart in front of the magic department…”

“Punishment? I don’t recall anyone around me making such a grave mistake…”

Eve sincerely expressed her puzzlement. The senior stared at her, closed his eyes tightly as if giving up, and finally responded.

“Uh, Wolfram… His Highness Wolfram von Roengreen?”

“Yes?”

“I… I unknowingly bought the fish soup and candies he was selling at dawn. I thought it was ordered by the Princess, so… I bought them.”

Thump.

A strawberry-flavored candy slipped from Eve’s mouth.

Undoubtedly, this was the first time in her life that she had dropped something from her mouth since she embarrassingly discarded a pacifier when she was one year old.

***

Regardless of being Wolfram, even if he had re-qualified as a convenience store manager, he still had to attend classes.

While he could graduate by utilizing the student council president’s privilege of attending class only once a week, this didn’t apply to the commoner Wolfram. He had to complete his major, take elective courses, and earn the required credits.

For Lee Young-jin from the real world, who had never experienced college, this was quite an enjoyable adventure, aside from two factors.

“Ugh… grunt.”

Naturally, intense muscle pain would follow after pushing a handcart to sell items at dawn and then attending class. Wolfram’s abysmal stamina stat of 2 didn’t allow him to do two things in one day.

The next issue was… the whispers around him.

“What… Isn’t that Wolfram?”

“Didn’t he leave school?”

“I thought Eve was the student council president?”

“How dare he still come to school after doing such a thing.”

“…Shh! Don’t make eye contact!”

Despite having done nothing wrong, he was being insulted and stared at, as if he had committed some grave offense.

He was being treated like a caged monkey even though he had done nothing wrong. Yet, there was a peculiar sense of malice and energy.

He understood. He understood, but… deep down, he had a small glimmer of hope.

Lee Young-jin from the real world was a high school graduate, and the academy in Jephryn also included a university.

So, wouldn’t he be able to experience campus life? He had held onto that tiny hope.

But how was it?

Looking around, to his surprise, no one made eye contact with him.

“Well, there are eight types of magical properties. This is how you can infer the concepts. So…”

That professor, who could have been a companion even in the original work, was unusually cheerful, despite being talkative. But right now, he focused intensely on explaining the content on the blackboard. Why? Because if he turned around, their eyes would meet.

Furthermore, as soon as he glanced briefly at the students, they averted their gazes.

Murmurs murmurs.

The teacher was speaking.

Scribbling scribbling.

The students were taking notes.

An eerie silence filled the classroom, and in this suffocating atmosphere, he continued to take notes.

Regardless, Wolfram was the one who made the mistake, but Lee Young-jin had to clean up the mess in this miserable situation.

His long-awaited campus life had turned out to be a solitary existence from the very beginning.

***

When the lecture ended, and I returned to the convenience store, I let out a deep sigh.

Evidence of candy-making was scattered all over the store, and the overwhelming sweetness within the convenience store was driving me insane.

“I hate it when it’s too sweet… Should I change the inventory?”

Although the pollock soup and candies brought in decent money, that wasn’t the main issue.

But soon, I shook my head.

“…Instead of investing in new things, let’s get what we have in order.”

Of course, there were ‘certain’ items that followed trends. The Sharp Destruction event in Act 2 was a prime example.

A significant magical incident where Milfiyu, a fourth-year student from the magic department who was always in second place, temporarily contaminated all students’ pens because she wished for the exams to disappear.

That’s why the very concept of a ‘pen’ existing in the Magic Castle was completely shattered, and items from the outside world that could be written with a pen but weren’t actually pens had to be supplied.

It was a truly astounding incident.

Anyway, when it came to ordering items, caution was necessary if it wasn’t something essential.

First and foremost, this convenience store needed to attract customers. To do that, it needed to have an advantage, something that made it stand out. It needed appealing points.

If only my stamina were a bit better, I could pull a handcart and sell things every day. However, I would end up too exhausted to attend classes afterward.

There was much to consider for future schedules when…

Ding. Ding. Ding.

A clear sound rang out, indicating that a customer had entered.

Could it be a customer in this store? I looked up in astonishment, only to see the customer…

“It’s been a while, Wolfram. I never expected to find you in a place like this.”

It was my younger sister, the current student council president, glaring at me.

***

“I was curious what you were doing, running a convenience store in a place like this. What’s the big idea?”

Oh, there she goes, throwing a fastball right off the bat. I shrugged my shoulders.

“Big idea, huh? That’s harsh. I took over this convenience store according to my contract and I’m running it through legitimate means.”

“Can you guarantee that there are absolutely no illicit factors involved?”

“Absolutely. Should I tear up my resume? I’ve already paid taxes for this quarter. I expect a proper tax refund later.”

“What… What did you say?”

“Forget it. Anyway, I’m running this business conscientiously.”

“So, you’re not up to anything shady?”

“Of course not. Check the documents.”

With that, Eve grabbed the documents in front of me, took a moment to examine them, and then clenched her fist.

“That can’t be true.”

“Yes, it can.”

Anger flushed her face.

Well, you could say that Eve is a biased, iron-fisted, charismatic leader.

To put it simply, she firmly establishes her own ‘answers,’ such as ‘Wolfram is a villain. ‘Aila can’t be trusted.’ ‘Kelters can be trusted.’ ‘The school is corrupt.’

And based on those beliefs, she gathers ‘grounds for judgment’ and takes action accordingly.

She’s a tyrant who allows no room for mistakes. That’s why Eve is incredibly cautious when making decisions, and once she makes up her mind, she never wavers.

How do I know? I’ve seen it many times while playing the game. It’s also written in the settings book.

In other words, because Eve believes that Wolfram is a villain and up to something sinister, she must have come here suspecting some kind of trickery.

“So, your first move was to set up shop in front of the Magic Castle and sell food and candy? Is there something fishy about that candy or food?”

“Here’s the Magic Castle Ingredient Comparison Table. I used it exactly as it was when the previous owner ordered it.”

I handed her a piece of paper that stated ‘No abnormal ingredients.’

Eve clenched her fist in frustration.

“Ugh… but what if you added something strange during the cooking process…”

“Don’t nitpick, and are you trying to insult your seniors?”

“What did you say?”

“They may be rotten, but they are still graduate students from the Magic Department. They are skilled in detecting and manipulating all forms of contamination and alteration. Verifying, comparing, and blocking all variables is their most common skill, isn’t it? If they ate something problematic without realizing it, wouldn’t it be better for the Magic Department graduate students to drop out of school right away?”

“Ugh…”

Eve’s face turned beet red, and tears welled up in her eyes.

The fact that Wolfram, whom she had deemed a villain, had no weaknesses must have been the greatest humiliation for Eve.

“According to the rules, someone like you, who isn’t even a Maestro in the Department of Magic, shouldn’t be doing such things. It’s against the regulations!”

“But it complies.”

“Huh?”

“Article 3, Clause 1. All students of Jephryn have the duty to independently discover and develop their abilities. Article 17, Clause 6. Even if it’s not their major, if they judge themselves to have talent, they can prioritize cultivating their talent, even if they have to postpone their major change. However, they need to demonstrate their achievements in this case.”

“Wha…?”

“I have already taken over a failing convenience store and made a profit from the first day. Is there a problem?”

“Uh, uh, uh!!”

Eve stomped her foot on the ground and then rolled around, displaying her usual habit.

“If you have no complaints, then leave.”

“What about that candy then?”

“That candy?”

“The candy that the seniors bought! I tried it too! Where did you get such luxurious candy? I’m going to trace the illicit funds!”

“Ah…”

Luxurious?

The candy I grew myself?

“Um, uh. Did you enjoy it?”

“Of course! It was incredibly more delicious than the candy supplied to the royal family! Did you use some kind of drug to brainwash the seniors?”

“No, I see. It was good.”

“What? So, you used some dirty black magic trick. Did your fiancée Aila make you do it? Ha!”

“It was made from the fruit I grew.”

“············?”

Eve tilted her head in confusion.

“It was made from the fruit that I grew using my secret method.”

“Yours?”

“Yes, mine. Here, have a taste.”

Saying so, I picked a fully ripened fruit from a nearby tree, cleaned it, and handed it to Eve.

Eve accepted it, took a bite, and…

“······Hehe.”

She laughed like a little kid.

I remembered that expression.

It was the same innocent look Eve had when Kelters gave her something sweet. It was a cute aspect of her personality trait.

But then…

Is it because she’s my sister? Or is it my body rejecting her?

It’s a bit unsettling.

“Anyway, thank you for saying it’s delicious.”

“······Uh. There’s no way… The fruit you made···”

Saying that, Eve held the fruit and trembled.

“Are you going to throw it away?”

“I’m going to take it and investigate it!”

“···Do as you please. Dispose of the waste properly after you’ve eaten it all.”

“···Y-you!!”

Her ears turned red as she stomped on the convenience store floor.

Hey. Hey. If that tile breaks, it’s my money on the line, lady.

“Ah, I’m going to keep an eye on you. If I catch even a single hint of your dirty tricks, I’ll shut this place down immediately.”

“Go ahead.”

“Y-you!!”

Eve turned her back to me in anger at my response, and I addressed her.

“Eve von Roengreen.”

She tried to ignore my words and walk out of the convenience store, but she stopped in her tracks at my following words.

“If you liked it that much, wouldn’t you buy a bag of candy? I’ll give you a huge discount, one for a thousand Rin.”

“······You!!”

Watching Eve, who angrily left the convenience store holding a bag of candy, I shrugged.

“I sold them to the graduate students for fifty thousand Rin per cup, and she bought a hundred for a thousand.”

Truly, long live the royal family.

If she’s going to buy so generously, I should have thrown in a few more as a bonus.

“No. If I did that, I would have to see that terrifying smile many more times…”

Maybe it’s because she’s my sister after all.

I didn’t want to see that terrifying smile too often.