[Bead: Geueu… I suppose that’s the reason.]

As I raised my head at Bead’s sigh-like message, a massive screw-over awaited me.

[Would you like to initiate a cohabitation event to increase your affinity with Michael?]

So to force cohabitation… it destroyed… my room? How am I supposed to interpret this insane logic?

Do they think I’ll go mooch off the Protagonist just because my room disappeared? Huh?

“Prof C. If you don’t have a place to stay, you could use my room…”

“No. I have a place to stay.”

“Of course, I’d give you the room and move out, so you don’t have to worry-“

“I said I have a place to stay.”

Was it really important to have a cozy chat with Narrow Eyes on his bed right now? I turned my steps back.

I had no intention of dancing to the System’s mockery to this extent. Therefore…

‘The sky is now the ceiling of my room, and the earth is my floor.’

In other words, I was going homeless.

* * *

The hen that left the yard. She essentially rebelled against this world through her escape.

I was no different. A Roleplay Addict who left the Academy would rather go homeless and protest the System’s tyranny.

‘Most importantly, it’s against Chris’s roleplay to borrow someone else’s room.’

Well, I did feel a bit sorry for taking over the basecamp the kids had already set up.

But what could I do when there was no place quite like this? Just imagining Chris lying sprawled out on a hallway floor or a bench made it seem like someone would report it immediately.

It was close to the Academy, there were no monsters around, and there was even a tent to shelter from the night dew.

‘Should I just use this as my lodging and classroom from now on?’

However, I soon changed my mind after hearing a wolf’s howl in the distance.

Yeah, let’s just clear the dungeon quickly and go back. The blessings of civilization—cool in summer and warm in winter—were the best.

‘I had to come out at night anyway. There’s something I can only get at this hour.’

I opened the new Bedallua Academy map I had crafted using the Item Combination Recipe.

The Item Combination Recipe was, quite literally, a tool that allowed me to combine items I owned to create a new product with different functions.

‘True to a trash game, the results were unpredictable, and there was a chance the combination would fail, destroying the ingredients.’

Fortunately, this one survived. Made by combining a rotten Mandragora root with a Bedallua map…

‘A map that displays recovery items near Bedallua Academy!’

With this alone, this dungeon run was as good as done. Over.

I checked the recovery item markers on the map that hadn’t been visible during the day. They were ones that could only be obtained at night.

‘Are there only a couple of these nearby?’

I had no intention of going far. If I just plucked this one shining right next to me…

“Ah, it’s a Mandragora.”

What was a Mandragora? Wasn’t it that herb that screamed when pulled, driving people mad?

Setting aside the fact that I’d need to cover my ears, it would definitely draw the most aggro.

Right, I heard howling earlier. What if it summoned a wolf under the full moon?

The moment I shook my head and looked forward.

‘Oh.’

My eyes met with two glowing circles in the darkness.

I hadn’t even pulled the Mandragora yet, but it came early…

‘Shit…’

Not even a scream escaped my lips. A scene from a crisis survival program simply flashed through my mind.

A certain Mr. Kim, who suddenly encountered a wild beast in the mountains. He made a ■■ response and tragically died. What goes in the ■■?

‘I don’t remember.’

Soon, in a dramatic fashion, the clouds obscuring the moon slid away, allowing me to clearly identify the entity before me.

Speak of the devil, and the wolf appears instead of a tiger, hahaha…

[Bead: This guy is so scared he’s losing his mind. Hey, snap out of it! What are you supposed to do when you encounter a wolf? Slowly back away? Huh?!]

Bead was making a fuss, but surprisingly, I was keeping my composure.

How many monsters had I faced so far? Would I really be scared of a mere wolf?

Of course, a ‘Wo-wo-‘ almost rose to my throat, but fortunately, I realized something before that.

Those eyes and that fur color. They were identical to a Wolf-human I knew.

“Bell Freesia. What are you doing outside at this hour?”

“……!”

In other words, the tables had turned. In this situation, the one who should be scared was her, her! Not me!

[Bead: This guy suddenly got cocky once he realized it was his student. How pathetic…]

Quiet. I needed to focus on my act from now on.

I lowered my voice and stared at the Healer without blinking. If the Healer bolted now, I had no way to chase her, so I intended to suppress her spirit.

“Creak, whine…”

The Healer fidgeted anxiously and lowered her tail. Then, she obediently sat down and hung her head low.

‘Ah, this makes me go soft.’

Maybe because I knew her identity, but she just started to look like a large dog. You know, like a puppy that made a mess and was now watching its owner’s reaction.

But Chris never melted at the cute antics of a furball.

“I didn’t ask for an apology; I asked about the situation. Have you always gone out without permission like this?”

“Whine…”

“Tsk.”

I took off my outer garment and threw it toward the Healer. Only then did the Healer in her human form, the one I knew, appear before me.

“I-I’m sorry. That is… it’s not just today, but…”

[Bead: Hey, she obviously has a story behind this. Did you really have to push her so hard? You’re being too harsh on such a fragile young girl.]

That fragile young girl possessed the strength to tear me apart with her bare hands, though. Still, her flushed face as she made excuses was certainly pitiful. I could roughly guess what her circumstances were, too.

After all, noticing the Healer’s nightly strolls was originally the Protagonist’s role.

“You’ve been gathering and selling herbs around here all this time.”

“…….”

I didn’t expect the Healer to raise her head.

Perhaps it was only natural. The tuition at Bedallua Academy was astronomical.

Someone with a special admission like the Protagonist could receive financial support, but…

‘The Healer is hiding the fact that she’s a Wolf-human, so drawing attention is problematic. Moreover, as a traitor to her race, she can’t receive support from her family either.’

In short, she was in a position where she had to handle both her tuition and living expenses on her own.

To do this, the Healer secretly earned money with minor magic or utilized her advantage as a Wolf-human to gather herbs.

‘Since transforming into a wolf allowed her to pull things like Mandragoras without issue.’

“That’s right… But I really have circumstances… Of course, just hiding my identity for me is already something I should be incredibly grateful for, but…”

The Healer’s shoulders were trembling. Was she crying?

“I heard news recently. My family is looking for me. They said their era will come soon, so if I return immediately, they won’t kill me, but I was so scared…”

Hmm. This was information worth listening to.

The Wolf-humans had sided with the Demon Lord in the past, and when the Demon Lord was vanquished by the Holy Emperor, they were driven to a corner of the continent along with him.

If they had regained enough composure to threaten the Healer?

‘The revival of the Demon Lord’s army might be progressing faster than expected.’

The face of Bandage, whom I had seen recently, came to mind. If he was forcing reckless experiments out of a desperate need to gain new power, was this just a wild guess?

“I-I have nowhere else to go but this Academy! It’s the only place that can protect me, so if I get kicked out for not paying…”

Jeez, she must have had a really hard time alone. I almost patted her head without realizing it.

[Bead: So what are you going to do? It’s not like herbs aren’t scattered all over the place here, so why not just yield this much to her?]

I wondered if Bead’s type was blonde girls like the Healer, considering the active support I’d been getting from him.

Don’t worry. From my perspective, she was a valuable asset too. Why would I let the likes of the Demon Lord’s army snatch her away?

“If you wander around as you please and cause trouble, it ends up being a nuisance to me. Are you aware of that?”

“Yes…”

“Therefore, from now on, you will move only with my permission. In exchange, I will purchase the herbs you gather.”

“Uh, yes…?”

“I will provide you with the locations, so gather them all as soon as possible.”

The Healer blinked and looked up at me.

‘My salary might be peanuts, but I did squeeze some compensation money out of the Principal last time.’

And there were quite a few things I’d be picking up in the dungeon. This teacher had enough leeway to pay for your hard work, student.

I took out some paper and a pen from my coat and scribbled out an outing permit. There was probably a standard format, but was Chris the type to follow such things?

“Take it.”

“Ah… T-thank you…”

I turned my head away from the bewildered Healer without lingering attachment. This was the end of what I had to say. It was the Chris way—say what needs to be said and leave.

“Get lost for today. The first day of the semester is already giving me a headache.”

“M-me! Professor, thank you so much…”

I made a shooing gesture as if swatting away flies, looking thoroughly annoyed.

The Healer hesitated for a moment before transforming back into a wolf and disappearing. Taking my outer garment with her.

‘Ugh, the Protagonist was the same, why does no one ever think of returning clothes once they take them off? I don’t even have that many clothes to begin with.’

Was vintage fashion trending among kids these days? I grumbled as I sat down leisurely.