“So, you’re telling me that you guys decided to interrupt my date just because you wanted to see me?! You could’ve just waited an hour and it would have been over by then!”

Erin shrugged as he didn’t feel any guilt dragging Rune from his dinner date. Rune and Sophia had gone through the school to check on the students and staff before they left to go to one of the two restaurants that had been finished.

“Just go back to it.”

Jayn elbowed him in the side and hissed at him.

“That’s not how it works!”

Rena shifted her weight and started to apologize. They very well could have just waited for the date to finish, but they instead walked up to him, literally dragged him out of his booth, and pulled him to the entrance.

“Sorry! We could have also just stayed around where you were sitting and talk, but you said that you didn’t want to talk about your ventures in a “romantic setting”.”

Rune sighed as he crossed his arms and started to lean against a wall.

“So, what did you want to talk to me about?”

“Thank you for saving us!!!”

Three out of four of them shouted and bowed their heads. Jayn had taken a step back because she knew that Hika, Rena, and Erin had to both thank and apologize to him about things that happened on the trip. Since she hadn’t gone, she decided to step out of the immediate scene.

“Woah woah woah! Don’t yell in here! There are other diners!”

Rune hissed at them as he swung his left arm to point at the other seventeen groups of people whose meals were interrupted by loud shouting.

“Ah. Anyways, we are sorry that we were too weak. We have decided that we need to get stronger, right guys?”

Rena and Erin nodded as Hika spoke. While she was the most sane and down-to-earth person out of the three of them, she had been caught up in the heat of the moment and accidentally shouted.

“Oh, really? What are you guys going to do to get stronger?”

“We will kill monsters that appear near the school.”

“We already have a club for it called the Protection Club, but it will actually be used to level up and get stronger!”

“Yeah! We’ve already killed two giant spiders and one Fenrir!”

“Hush! I told you we are in a restaurant with other people would would likely prefer it quiet!”

Hika was the only one of the three who had stopped being loud. Once the other two started to become louder, she tried to make them be more quiet by holding a finger in front of her mouth which didn’t work.

“Are those usually hard to kill?”

“Yeah, A and B rank adventurers generally take care of them.”

“... And aren’t the dragons more powerful than both A and S ranks?”

There was silence as the group was starting to lose faith in their strength. While they had been able to keep up with a dragon hydra for a little while, they couldn’t defeat it. However, it was on par with a pair of S rank adventurers.

The other monsters they killed had been taken care of by them, one on one. Most of the time, there would be a need for a small group of A ranks to take on a Fenrir or one of the giant spiders they killed.

“That is why we will train.”

Erin spoke with such confidence that it seemed like he really thought he would be able to attain the strength to be on par with Rune.

“I see…”

He looked at each of the four teens and spoke after a moment.

“Then, I will wait two months. By then, you should each reach a strength far greater than S rank or you will not come along for the next trip. Is that all right?”

“...”

There was silence among the group. The other diners, made up most of the student body and the other workers, continued on with their conversations. They really didn’t want to get in Rune’s way.

“I don’t need an answer now. Just one when you can, but I would like one by tomorrow.”

He sighed before walking back to Sophia who was sipping tea and watching the whole situation. He sat down in the booth again and started to eat once more.

“You shouldn’t be so hard on them, darling.”

“Yeah… But, y'know, they are around my age and yours.”

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Rune opened his eye. Specifically his left to look at the maid who was shaking him awake.

“Hmmm?”

“A group of students responded to something you told them last night. They said “Yes, we will do it.” I believe that they were Rena, Hika, and Erin?”

“Mmm, yeah, okay.”

The maid stopped shaking him, but still stood beside him.

“Y-you can leave now.”

He was somewhat creeped out by how still the maid was when staring down at him. It reminded him of one of those stone angels from a tv show with a tardis since the maid stood without moving an inch, unblinking and unwavering. He shuddered at the thought.

Once the maid left, he soon realized that he had a problem. He was feeling quite dehydrated after the events that transpired in the bedroom several hours prior and he slowly got up. He had to move Sophia who was clinging on to him.

He moved to the kitchen to get some water. He was surprised by the new things he had found, a sink and a refrigerator which new devices in the room. Being the completely and utterly cautious person he was, he took a cup from a shelf and poured some tap water into it.

He realized that he couldn’t cast several magics when inside his home. Apparently, it helped Jared and Kelly minimize the amount of damage set in the lab. They had already completed the time magic to keep the lab moving at a pace faster than the regular time.

He looked at the water in his cup before downing it without a second thought. It tasted bland, which was a good thing. It would be terrible if it tasted good or bad because there would be something in the water if it did.

Turning back to put the cup on the counter, he saw a pair of students sneaking up to him. The reason he placed his empty cup on the counter was due to the fact it needed to be cleaned. The reason why the students were sneaking up to him was because they wanted to tell him about their decision in person, but Erin was a deep sleeper.

“Ah.”

“...”

Rena spoke, but no one else did afterwards. Rune’s eyelids still felt heavy and he was extremely tired. He inhaled deeply before exhaling.

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“Why’re you in my kitchen?”

He yawned before moving past the two of them. He was heading towards the pantry for some food. When he opened the door, he looked behind and saw two students sniffing the sweet smells originating from the door he had just opened.

“Want a cookie?”

He handed them two cookies that Sophia had baked. Since she never really had the chance to bake pastries, she decided to give it a go with the help of the chef. Then, using some ingredients that Kelly provided them.

Rena and Hika both nodded furiously as Rune handed each of them a sugar cookie. They started to eat it and finished it in a few bites. They were both hungry since they had woken up and headed to his mansion without eating breakfast.

“So, what are you here for?”

Clearing her throat, Hika started to speak.

“We just wanted to say that we have accepted your deal! We will train for two months and, if you do not see that we are fit for the mission, we will accept defeat!”

“Yeah, one of my maids told me that you guys accepted it already.”

“What? When?”

“Like, two minutes ago.”

Rena and Hika recollected entering his mansion. A guard was stationed in front and asked them for their reason for visiting. They had responded by saying that they accept his deal.

“Well, that ruined it…”

“I mean, not really. I had expected you guys to do so. But… I’m going to put everyone through this as well!”

He grinned and it seemed like the temperature had went from warm to freezing. The two of them could see his canines that were longer than most, but not large enough that it would stick out of his mouth.

“By everyone, do you mean-”

“This club will be recognized as official, but it will be required that you teach the students. I’ll have Ms. Nuzta set up a schedule.”

Ms. Nuzta was the 8th grade math teacher who also dealt in literature and basic survival.

“I’ll also get some of the GYM teachers to supervise.”

Rune had begun thinking about the future. If the world became chaos due to him failing to kill the evil dragons, he would at least like for the students to be able to survive the fallout.

“Now then, show me what you can do!”

He held his hand up towards them, beckoning them to go forth.

“Yes!!”

“Oh, but I think Roxana’s still sleeping. You’d better be more quiet. Now then, leave. I’ve got to prepare for the first class.”

He said this as he put up a finger in front of his lips to motion for them to be quiet. He then turned around and started down the path he had come from. His work supplies were mainly on the desk in his room.

Rena and Hika started to leave the mansion, but not before bumping into two people first.

“Oof! Oh, sorry about that.”

Rena looked up to see that she had walked into a tall woman in a maid outfit. Poking out from her chestnut colored hair was a horn that was broken about halfway and another horn that protruded outwards.

She looked down at the two of them and glared. Then, another voice spoke to scold her.

“That is not how you treat guests! You must apologize and ask them if they are okay. If they are, bow and walk away.”

It was the head maid who was tapping her foot against the wooden floor in disapproval. Behind her, a girl with pale blonde hair and even paler skin stood. Her bright red eyes darted around, trying to absorb all the new information around her.

Rena looked at the two of them with blank stares until Hika realized who they were. She placed her fist on her palm and a look of realization covered her face.

“You must be the two maids Rune picked up in the Stormy Isle.”

“Hmm? Yes, we are.”

The minotaur girl had started to look back at the head maid before turning back to Hika and Rena to answer her question. The vampire girl behind her nodded as well.

In situations where strangers were about, Bel usually spoke candidly while Mir was silent and usually only gave nods as answers.

“What did I just say? You. Must. Apologize.”

Bel nodded and started to speak once again.

“Sorry for bumping into you, are you alright?”

“Yes. Are you?”

Bel looked back to the head maid to see if she could answer. She was trying to follow her orders, but Hika asked a question. The head maid gestured for her to continue.

“Yes, I am. Thank you.”

Then she promptly bowed and left. Mir watched as the head maid started to chase after Bel and she started to walk after them. However, just a moment before that, she quietly bowed to the two of them and then moved quickly down the hall.

Hika then turned to Rena with a confused look.

“Those two were the ones that Rune hired? I’ve heard that they were already maids, but they seem so… unmaid-like.”

“Yeah, but there must’ve been a reason as to why he hired them.”

While the two maids did not seem at all like maid material, they were most certainly powerful enough to go toe to toe with a group of S rank adventurers each. Bel’s classes were Dark Paladin and Rogue while Mir’s classes were Assassin and Bounty Hunter.

Hika opened the front door and the two of them quickly exited to get ready for their first class.

----------------------------------------

“This new schedule was created today!? Ms. Nuzta must have a lot of time on her hands.”

The teen threw his hands up in the air to show his surprise and disappointment. He really didn’t like the idea of having to actively fight monsters once every seven days.

The students were all mostly confused or frustrated by this change in schedule and the fact that it said on the sheet that they would fight monsters in the nearby areas. That meant Fenrirs, giant spiders, Orthruses, and much more. They were mostly high ranking monsters that many had no knowledge of due to how little they were fought.

“Yeah! It also interferes with the time I get to spend with my girlfriend!!”

The two teens whined about the situation as so many others around them did as well. That was the majority, but the minority, about 20% of the student body, actually wanted to improve via fighting monsters.

The entire student body, for high school, had arrived in the colosseum that had been built a while ago, but wasn’t used aside from some training and Rune’s class meeting. 105 people stood and looked up at where Rune stood.

After clearing his throat and grabbing the microphone, Rune started to speak.

“I want to get this speech over with quickly; it’s a bit hot with the sun over us. So, starting from next week, you students are going to complete live training exercises where you kill monsters and beasts and things like that. There will be a reward for the people who hunt the most, kill the fastest, and defeat without getting hurt. Those are the three categories and they will be marked for each month. There will only be one winner in the category and, yes, people can win more than once. The prizes will be posted on the bulletin board in the entrance of the school. That is all.”

Rune handed the mic back to Kelly who placed it to the side. Then, using her remote, she turned off the speakers. The two of them headed out of the arena as the students started to leave.

“Prizes?”

“I want a new axe!”

“He was right about it being quick…”

Each student had been given a sheet that had their modified schedule, but the entire Honor’s Freshman class had been given another notice telling them to meet up with Rune in room A-1, Rune’s homeroom class.

Hika and Rena walked through the near empty halls together. There were some people who were in clubs and they met up in different classrooms. Room A-1 was the room that Rune stuffed all his things in, mostly on the desk, and many teachers did not want to supervise clubs in his room because of that.

He placed his cursed pistol under his desk, taped to the ceiling of it. A set of throwing knives were in a glass container next to the computer that had been recently installed. Several swords hung from the walls and there was a poster of an anime girl, that Tyler had drawn, behind his desk.

It was easy to tell which teacher hosted homeroom in which class mainly due to the decor. Sophia had vials on the shelf and some small photographs of Rune and Roxana on her desk. Mr. Ophen Ryden, the history teacher, had some old paintings and maps on his room walls. Mrs. Kely Ryden, the literature teacher, had shelves of books. And, lastly, Mr. Hugri Leo, the math teacher, had a blank room void of any personal objects except for his favorite hunting bow.

So far, they only had five teachers who worked in the classrooms and only for Freshmen. There were some people who were being taught how to be teachers for the next couple grades, until 12th, but there was still some time until they were put into the field.

Also, it was planned that Gaira would teach 9th grade literature and Mrs. Ryden would move up to 10th grade. Gaira was able to take in knowledge and put it to use immediately.

They each arrived at around the same time, but Rune was already there when they showed up. As soon as Hyht and Yula entered the room, Rune closed the door with [Gravity Control] and turned to the students.

“As I said, your classmates will start training next week, but you all will start now. Strike the iron while it’s hot or something like that.”

Rune waved his hand as he spoke, but then his face morphed into that of a serious expression.

“I’ve agreed to your terms, two months or you won’t come with me. Gaira and I will personally train you along with Bel and Mir. It seems that they know many different monsters and have fought strong enemies before. Gaira will oversee your training on the weekends, from 12:00 to 4:00 and I will train you on the weekdays from 3:30 to 5:00. Do you understand?”

Many of the students had actually already met Gaira when she was taking a tour of the school. After the tour, she holed herself up in the library where Jared and Kelly and Ms. Flustern had written many books. Then, with the next few days, she was known as the Book Dragon whose curiosity was greater than her hunger.

The reason why Jared, Kelly, and Ms. Flustern wrote books was to increase the students’ knowledge. Ms. Flustern mainly wrote essays, simple stories, and poetry. Jared wrote about Earth, fantastical stories, and what would have been considered fantasy books on Earth. Kelly wrote about theories and helped created some of the math and science textbooks.

“Yes!”

All of them replied with confidence. Rune clapped his hands together.

“Great! Since today is monday, we’ll start training in 20 minutes. Go grab your weapons!”