Niles

  Niles sank down until the hot water was almost up to his chin. The hot bath felt wonderful after the three-day hunt. At least there was one good thing about the academy. No, that wasn’t fair. The food was good, too. Aside from that, though. There was little about it that Niles found appealing. The first week of classes had been interesting in its novelty, but the fifth-year magic classes were way over his head, and frankly, once he’d found out he couldn’t cast magic, he’d stopped paying much attention. Mathematics was easy enough to follow, but he’d already taken more advanced math back in his world, so it was boring. But at least he felt useful in that class, since Birgit needed his help.

  That was the real crux of the problem. He didn’t feel useful here. Oh, he knew Birgit needed him to be her magic battery, but that was such a passive thing. Now, the hunts, they made him feel like he was really doing something. That was the isekai experience he’d expected, and it was profitable, too. They’d gotten back too late to cash in the crystals from this hunt, but they had thirty-four of them, and they were all mostly high-value ones, from what Birgit said. This was by far their best haul yet. Niles wondered how much gold it would net him. But the real question was what to do with it.

  Some of the gold would have to go toward new clothes to replace the ones that had gotten pretty much destroyed on the hunt. He’d have to get his armor repaired, or maybe even replaced, too. It had a few sizable holes and tears, not to mention the charring. He definitely liked the armor, though. It made the fights a lot less painful. His fast healing had let him recover from everything he’d taken so far, quickly, but it still hurt, so anything that made it hurt less was good, and of course, he didn’t think he could heal from dead. Maybe he should look into getting some heavier armor. But beyond that, what should he do with his gold? Should he save it up for when he got sent home, or spend it here?

  Niles wished he knew how soon, or even if, he was going to get home, and if he’d be able to return here if he did. So far, it didn’t seem to him that much progress was being made on that front. Although this weekend Birgit had seemed more engaged in its pursuit, for some reason. Not that she’d been able to do anything about it, but she’d actually brought up the subject herself a couple of times and even apologized that it was taking so long. That was certainly a change. Until then, she hadn’t even seemed to think about it unless he brought it up. She’d done some research in the library, but only after prodding from him. This weekend was the first time she made it sound like it was a priority for her.

  He didn’t know what had caused it, but there had been a definite shift in their dynamic, and it wasn’t just Birgit. Hilaria and Uma had been acting funny around him, too. The three were sneaking off to gab more often and giggling more than usual. He didn’t get the sense they were laughing at him, but there was some subtle context he was missing, like there was an inside joke he wasn’t in on. And then there’d been this morning. He’d woken up in their shared tent with Birgit much closer than usual, and her hand on his arm. He didn’t know when she’d done it, though. Had she just rolled over to him and ended up like that in her sleep, or had she intentionally moved there before she went to sleep? It had been a chilly night, so maybe she’d unconsciously rolled toward a warm body. Even if it had been intentional, it was probably just a matter of wanting to drain his magic. During the hunts, she had less time to hold hands with him than during the week, so maybe she was just trying to make up for that.

  Niles was still having a little trouble thinking of their frequent physical contact as purely a business arrangement. Not being the touchy-feely sort, back in his own world, Niles kept a pretty large bubble of personal space and normally didn’t like to be touched. Previously, the only people he’d had as much physical contact with as he now had with Birgit were girlfriends. He just needed to adjust his thinking. Realizing the water was no longer hot, Niles decided it was time to get out. He had best get to bed. Tomorrow was Monday, or Firstday, as they called it. So, it would be back to boring classes. At least they’d be cashing in the crystals between classes, so that would be something to look forward to. On the downside, though, they’d be meeting with Professor Fenhopper again, ugh.

  “Good morning, Birgit, Niles, did you sleep well?”

  There it was, that sly smile and almost mocking tone Hilaria had as she greeted them. If this were an old sitcom, this is where they’d cue the laugh track. Niles got the distinct impression that he was missing something.

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  “I slept well,” Birgit replied in her normal, pleasant tone as they joined Hilaria and Uma for breakfast. If there was a hidden joke, she did nothing to acknowledge it.

  “I cannot wait to go to the crystal dealers this morning after Arcane Theory,” Hilaria said, returning to her normal tone.

  “I am afraid you will have to, or you will have to go without me,” Birgit said. “I have to meet with Professor Fenhopper after class.”

  “Or we could skip the meeting,” Niles suggested.

  “I cannot do that,” Birgit objected. “You know she wants us to check in after every class, and she is giving me extra credit.”

  “Fine,” Nile sighed.

  “Do you not like Professor Fenhopper?” Uma asked in a surprised tone. “I always thought she was one of our nicer professors.”

  “That’s because she treats you as a person, not a lab rat,” Niles pointed out. “I swear she doesn’t even think I can understand her or speak for myself.” Niles switched to his best impersonation of the old kappa. “Birgit, please have your familiar sit on the stool. Birgit, please have your familiar stand on one leg. Brigit, please have your familiar hold still while I probe him.”

  “It is not that bad,” Birgit objected.

  “Not for you, maybe,” Niles grumbled.

  “So, what are you going to do with all the money from your crystals this time?” Hilaria asked. “I still cannot believe how amazing the crystals we got this weekend were.”

  “I will probably keep a good number of the crystals instead of selling them,” Birgit answered. “I want to have them in case I need them for the end-of-semester tournament, and I have some big projects coming up. As for the ones I sell, I will probably save most of it for expenses.”

  “Oh, but you have to spend some of it on a new dress for the end-of-semester ball,” Uma insisted. “It is not even two weeks away now.”

  Birgit sighed. “I am not even sure I will go. No one has even asked me yet.”

  “There is still plenty of time,” Uma said with an encouraging smile. “Hardly any of the young gentlemen in our class have asked anyone yet. I am sure someone will ask you.”

  “And if they do not, you could always go with Niles,” Hilaria added with a smirk.

  Uma clapped her hands. “Oh, that is perfect. We will all have to go dress shopping, and we can get something nice for Niles, too. That way, should any of us not get invited, we can still go and dance with Niles. That is perfect… You can dance, can you not, Niles?”

  Niles rubbed his chin. “I’m going to guess that the dancing I’ve done in my world is a little different from the dancing you do here.”

  “Then we will have to teach you our dances.” Uma said decisively. “We have plenty of time, and as nimble as you are in combat, I am certain you will be wonderful at it.”

  “I think our time might be better spent getting ready for the end-of-semester tournament,” Birgit objected.

  Uma waved her hand dismissively. “Nonsense, it will not take that long. I am sure there will be time for both. If need be, we can always skip this weekend’s hunt. With all the crystals we have brought in the last three weekends, we can afford to take a weekend off.”

  Before Niles could object to canceling the hunt, Hilaria spoke up. “I do not think we will need to cancel the hunt. We could always practice dancing at our campsite if we need to, and I find I am rather enjoying having more money than I absolutely need for a change.”

  Niles was not particularly happy about getting roped into the ball without even being asked, but he decided to find out more about it before he objected. “So, tell me more about this ball?”

  Uma’s smile grew as she turned her one-eyed gaze on Niles. “The mid-year, end-of-semester ball is always one of the biggest social functions of the year, but for us fifth-year students, it may well be the most important social function of our lives.”

  Hilaria rolled her eyes. “I do not know that I would go that far.”

  “Oh, but it is,” Uma countered. “It comes just before the start of our final semester. It is the time when the male students will finally begin seriously thinking about their future spouses. Over three-fourths of our class will have a marriage lined up by the time they graduate, and this is where it all begins. We will need to mingle and dance with as many potential suitors as possible.”

  “Wait,” Niles cut in. “I thought you were all hoping to get someone to ask you to the ball?”

  “We are,” Uma assured him. “It looks far better to show up for the ball with a date, and the higher their station, the better. It will make us look more desirable. But no one really expects to dance every dance with their date, not at this ball. Everyone will try to move up the social ladder at this dance and attract the very best potential partners they can for each dance. Making a good impression at this dance could change our lives forever.”