How to Live as a Genius Scholar in another World

Chapter 5 – How to Live Like a Master’s Degree Holder (4)

—–CROW—– 

“The research grant is paid annually at the end of each year.”

Professor Brammaton said, confirming that I had secured my identification card.

“The monthly salary can be collected at a bank affiliated with the university or the Kingdom of Britannia.”

“Yes. Thank you for the information.”

I already knew this, but I thanked him anyway. It didn’t cost anything to bow and express gratitude.

“…Could you wait here for a moment?”

“Yes. I understand.”

I waited, assuming there were more procedures left, but Professor Brammaton left his seat and returned to the office with an unfamiliar book.

“Take it.”

“Yes? Are you giving this to me?”

He just handed it to me as if returning a book borrowed from the library.

Was it a handbook that listed the laws that field archaeologists shouldn’t break? It might be similar to the booklet given to soldiers discharged from the military regarding reserve duty.

But the title of the book was [An Adventurer’s Alchemy].

“…Is this a book on alchemy?”

“No. It’s a memoir I wrote for adventurers. You could say it’s a guidebook containing my experiences and some tips.”

What? A guidebook written by a Gold-class adventurer? For real?

That serious, hardcore, fitness machine wouldn’t lie to me about something like this, so it must be true.

Unbelievable. A book written by an active adventurer about his own experiences!

And it wasn’t some illiterate Bronze or Silver adventurer who asked some adventurer named Johnson who frequented a local bookstore to ghostwrite it.

This was a book written by a Gold-class adventurer and a professor at Carmine University himself!

Professors usually only studied and didn’t have a knack for writing, but Carmine University professors were the rare exception. The elite professors at this university were multi-players of this era who could write STEM-type papers in a literary style.

So, this book must be perfect in terms of readability and content.

“It’s a book I reorganized in my doctoral years from a part of the thesis I used to obtain a silver-ranked master’s degree. I removed the parts related to our department and filled it with content that would be useful for adventurers.”

My heart swelled at Professor Brammaton’s next words.

Paper manufacturing was advanced in this world, so books themselves were common. But the price of books containing advanced knowledge increased exponentially.

The reason was simple. Everyone in this world was obsessed with tiers, the type of people who would ask their ex they met after 10 years, “So, what’s your tier?”

People in this world were stingy about sharing tips that could help others.

They didn’t like the idea of people who should be beneath them climbing up and obtaining a higher tier than them.

Money-grubbing mages even sold three or four sheets of A4 paper for a few gold coins.

It cost tens of millions of won to learn a single spell. Those fuckers must be planning to use the money to replace their dead parents with new ones.

In this stingy, unethical, and nasty world where there was no Wikipedia and people made a big deal out of teaching you how to do something,

For him to give me, who wasn’t even a student of his department, such a precious book!

And for free!

That two-faced bitch Yernara didn’t give me anything before she left. In fact, she took my paper and ran off before I could even leave!

“Sniffle!”

I wiped away the tears that welled up. I couldn’t be seen sniffling in front of this great senior who walked the path of a real man.

I held the guidebook to my chest with one hand and bowed 90 degrees to Professor Brammaton.

“Thank you… for everything!!!”

“Yes. Please take care of yourself.”

We parted with a solemn atmosphere, like a master and disciple who had spent three years together through thick and thin.

Anyone who saw us would think he was my thesis advisor.

***

After receiving the certificate, I packed my things and headed to the dock where the ship bound for Sardis was waiting.

Since Carmine University itself was located in a trading city, it wasn’t far.

I didn’t buy separate equipment to use for my adventurer work.

‘I have supplies from the university, so I don’t need anything else.’

The composition of the supplied equipment was quite substantial.

An iron breastplate, arm and leg guards, and a sword.

It wasn’t standard-issue armor. It was a cheap product, like the razors given out in the military, and it didn’t even have the university mark on it. Still, it was sturdy and perfect for rough use.

─Thud, thud.

I went to the dock and looked for the ship bound for Şehir.

Şehir was a stopover point on the way to Sardis and a coastal city in the south. I would get off at Şehir and then transfer to a carriage to go to Sardis.

“Oh, you’re here?”

“Huh?”

But surprisingly, Dana was waiting for me at the harbor.

“What? Did you come to see me off even after drinking so much yesterday? I guess I haven’t lived my life in vain.”

I was secretly touched that Dana had come to see me off.

Yesterday, Dana, me, and other research students gathered in the lab for my farewell party.

Since there was no thesis advisor to watch over us, we gathered as much food and alcohol as we could.

We used the alcohol as an excuse to scream “Eek!” and “Squeak!” all night like freshmen who had just entered university, and in accordance with the natural law that drinking alcohol leads to hangovers, we all passed out until noon today.

But to endure that hangover and come see me off, could it be that this girl had feelings for me?

“I didn’t come to see you off. Since there’s no thesis advisor, I used seeing you off as an excuse to legally skip work.”

Oh, fuck this.

“That’s so smart. As expected of a gold-ranked master.”

“Do you feel the difference in intelligence?”

“Wow, is it true that you’re using the same words I used on you before? Where did your pride as a scholar go?”

“People grow by imitating others.”

“What? Was I your role model? Hoho. I’m truly moved that you wanted to emulate me.”

“In terms of being an asshole, you’re number one in our university.”

“Huh? I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“This bastard’s personality is a mess.”

We chatted and chuckled as usual. Thinking that I wouldn’t be able to have these conversations after leaving for Sardis made it more enjoyable.

“Hey, let’s not just stand here. Let’s get a drink or something.”

I spotted a bar nearby and pointed to it. It was a place that sold light alcohol and drinks like a cafe during the day and turned into a bar when the sailors returned.

“Follow me, slave. I, Nord, who has completely escaped slavery as of today, will treat you to a drink.”

“Treat? What are you going to treat with when you’re broke?”

“Ahem. My wallet is the crystallization of the sweat and tears of a former slave. Be grateful and cry.”

“Tears are a bit much, but I can grin.”

“Fuck.”

I sat down at the bar and ordered a light drink. Dana looked at the menu and grinned.

“Oh, I’ve been here before.”

“Really? Who with? Don’t tell me you came here alone, you old hag with no boyfriend.”

“Watch it. If you keep running your mouth, I’ll order a hot drink and pour it on your face to make a burn scar.”

“Wow! An adventurer-style scar! Now, when someone asks what kind of scar it is, I’ll brag that it’s a wound left by my old friend.”

“Oh? What? Does your face get you a Gold-class? Is the adventurer ranking based on ugliness?”

“Then I’d be Iron-class forever. Because I’m so handsome.”

“You’re funny, you mentally ill fucker.”

Dana chuckled and called the waiter to order drinks. Two of them, including the one I would drink.

“Hey, why are you choosing my drink for me?”

“Trust me and try it. It’s really delicious.”

“What are you talking about when you drink the beer in this town so easily?”

It’s Dana who easily gulps down the beer that tastes like watered-down Cass. Can a drink that suits her taste really be called delicious?

“Your Citrus Corona, please.”

─Clink.

The waiter placed two teacups in front of me, who was feeling doubtful. Why the fuck is the drink called Corona?

I hesitantly looked at the drink the waiter had given me.

It was a green liquid with what looked like fish eggs floating on top.

“Wow, what a fucking visual shock.”

“Why? It looks delicious.”

“Fish egg juice looks delicious? Try to live your life.”

“It’s not fish eggs. It’s a fruit that looks like this. It’s given to people going on sea voyages as a wish for their safety.”

“Ugh, fuck. They give you this? Are they trying to give you parasites?”

I felt like throwing it away, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it because of our past.

I decided to trust Dana and just try it.

The first taste was a bit like alcohol.

Did they add alcohol? In this world where even distilled spirits were precious, how did they get alcohol to put in a car──

“Ah, these fucking British bastards!! They put beer in this!!!”

Gwaaaaaaaack!!

As soon as I took a sip, I twisted my body like a salon dog whose balls had been stepped on.

Fucking sour, bitter, otherworldly mojito-like taste!

I should have been suspicious when Dana said it was delicious!!

“What the fuck is this!!! It’s sour!! It’s bitter!! It’s salty!!”

“Puhahahahaha!! Ahahahahahahaha!!”

At my reaction, Dana burst into laughter, throwing all semblance of femininity to the wind.

This fucking bitch. I hope her paper gets ninja’d by the next professor, too.

“Ugh… This is… discrimination against masters…”

I bet these weren’t fish eggs but bug eggs.

It was sour, so it must be rich in vitamin C, which was essential for sailors, but it felt like it was ruining my sense of taste in exchange for preventing scurvy.

Or was it that? Since you could only eat things like salted and smoked food on a ship, they were fucking up your sense of taste in advance?

“Hehehe. It gets better as you drink it.”

Dana smiled and drank her share of the drink.

It was a drink that seemed like it was made by a motherless orphan who had never learned the taste of food, but she drank it so easily.

“Fuck it… Fine, whatever. I wouldn’t drink this shit with my own money, let alone if you were buying. It’ll make me seasick.”

“Tsk. I knew you’d say that. If you don’t like it, take this and eat it.”

At my words, Dana held out a paper bag she had brought.

“Ugh. What is it this time?”

I openly expressed my suspicion. Dana urged me to take the bag with a nonchalant look.

I placed the bag on the table and looked inside.

─Rustle.

The bag was full of fruit. Citrus fruits that seemed to be rich in vitamins.

“Geez. It’s only a few days’ voyage. Why did you buy so much?”

“Just eat it. It’s not like you usually eat fruit.”

“Yeah. I’m so grateful that I’m tearing up. It would have been a good memory if you hadn’t given me this juice.”

I should eat them all during the voyage, if only out of gratitude for her thoughtfulness.

As I packed the paper bag, I suddenly remembered that Dana was also in the middle of writing her paper.

“Oh, right. So, Dana, are you almost done with your paper?”

“Paper?”

Dana frowned as she drank her tea.

“What’s the point of talking about it? There’s no one to review my application for a doctorate until the next professor arrives anyway.”

“What? Is she looking down on me for being demoted to a bronze-ranked master because that bitch Yernara ran off?”

“That’s a misunderstanding. There’s an old saying that you shouldn’t make fun of death row inmates and terminally ill patients.”

“You fucking bitch.”

“Hahaha.”

Even though this was the last time we would see each other for a while, our conversation was the same as usual.

The daily life of a research student was like that of a slave, so there was no way for any new topics to come up between two people who had seen each other’s faces for over three years.

But it wasn’t awkward or boring, and we continued our conversation with a pleasant feeling.

BooOOOOOO─!

But pleasant times always pass quickly.

“Passengers bound for Şehir! Passengers bound for Şehir, please board!!”

The sound of a horn announcing that the departure time was near echoed in the harbor. At that, Dana frowned and grumbled quietly.

“What the. We waited so long, but it’s already time to leave even though we haven’t talked much.”

“Hahaha. My dear Dana woke up early in the morning, even taking hangover medicine, because she didn’t know when I’d be back, but is she sad that I’m leaving so soon?”

“Oh, shut up. Just go roll around with monsters, you bastard.”

Dana, her earlobes red, pushed me on the back. I must have hit the nail on the head.

“Anyway, Dana, don’t cry because I’m gone. Try to get your doctorate this time and escape slavery.”

“Don’t talk nonsense. You do well. Get a silver rank by the time we meet again. Then I’ll treat you to a nice meal.”

“Silver? You mean a silver-ranked doctorate? I can do that in three years, no problem.”

“If a master dies, do they get a two-rank promotion? I didn’t know that.”

“Hey, are you cursing someone who’s leaving?”

“It’s okay to curse a former slave who’s trying to escape slavery all by himself.”

“Wanna try field work?”

“Do your grave robbing by yourself.”

Dana pushed me on the back until I reached the front of the dock. The shopkeeper didn’t chase after us to ask for payment, perhaps out of consideration for us.

Maybe they had seen many people like us who were leaving or seeing someone off.

Thinking about it that way made me feel ridiculous for being sad about parting.

“…”

“…”

After a brief silence, I said to Dana, whose eyes met mine.

“Well, I’m off.”

“Yeah. Take care.”

BooOOOOOO─!

The sound of the horn announcing the ship’s departure time echoed in the harbor again.

Creak. Creak.

I walked on the wooden plank that replaced the pier.

And when I reached the end, I looked back one last time and shouted with a smile.

“When we meet again, be prepared to call me Dr. Nord! I’m going to accumulate some fucking awesome achievements and become the youngest doctor ever!”

“Ha! What’s a bronze-ranked master talking about! I’ll get there before you!”

Dana, who was standing at the harbor, smiled and replied.

“If you think you’re going to die, just give up and come back!! If you bow your head and beg, the university will probably give you a research student position!!”

“Yeah~ Even if I die, I won’t be a slave~!”

As I got on the bow of the ship, the scheduled departure time quickly arrived, and Dana waved at the ship I was on.

“Take care! Nord!”

“You too, Dana!”

I waved back at my friend who was waving at the harbor.

The ship left the harbor where Dana was standing and headed for the southern region of Britannia. Soon, as the ship moved away from the harbor, the city came into view.

The trading city of Einher.

The land where I spent three long years as a slave, going through all sorts of hardships and making memories.

Carmine University was also visible in the distance.

It was hard and tough, but it was also my second home that allowed me to make many connections and gave me a chance to adapt to this world.

Thinking that I was leaving that place made me feel a strange sense of nostalgia.

“Whew.”

But I had no intention of being lost in clumsy memories or nostalgia.

My life in this fucking world had only just begun.

—–CROW—–