I Became a Genius Mechanic at the Academy

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Imperial Royal Academy.

This academy, newly established by the Emperor’s command, can be considered the starting point of ‘El Pandor Runtera’.

Indeed, when creating an account, players participate in the entrance ceremony as cadets of the academy.

However, I was able to set foot in the academy a bit earlier than that.

The competition for training equipment bids at the Empire Academy.

As Edgar’s father jumped into that bidding competition, I also entered the academy as an assistant.

“Wow, it really is different… It’s amazing.”

The main gate leading into the Empire Academy.

James muttered to himself with a dazed expression, seemingly overwhelmed by its majestic appearance.

And I felt that overwhelming sensation as well.

Even though it was a landscape I had seen endlessly on the game screen, experiencing it in person was on a completely different level from viewing it in 3D graphics.

“James Fix. Confirmed. You may enter now.”

While we were admiring the scenery of the academy, the guard checking our identification allowed us to pass.

James and I immediately stepped into the academy’s interior.

“Huh, what’s this…?”

Inside, a breathtaking view unfolded.

A straight path paved with marble, white buildings clustered on either side.

A massive fountain dominating the plaza and a statue of the Emperor made of pure gold.

And the gardens that harmonized with all of it.

We gazed at the entire scenery with our mouths agape.

“It’s more amazing than I heard…”

As James remarked, the reality was indeed more splendid than the game’s 3D graphics.

The ‘Imperial Royal Academy’, showcasing the Empire’s latest architectural technology, was incredibly beautiful even to an engineer’s eyes.

Is every notable NPC that leads the worldview gathering in this beautiful space?

And am I also among them, creating the main story of the game alongside them?

A strange mix of excitement and tension overwhelmed my entire being.

“Um…! Ugh…!”

However, James seemed to be tense for a different reason.

He was constantly loosening his neck with a stiff expression.

He must be worried about the upcoming ‘equipment demonstration’.

“Father, there’s nothing to worry about. After all, you’ll win this bid anyway.”

James showed a clearly nervous expression, but I knew he would be the final bidder.

After all, throughout my time playing this game, the academy’s blacksmith NPC had always been James.

“Father’s goods are reliable. And above all, they’re cost-effective. Quick to make, too.”

Having lived as James’ son for two months, I came to understand why he became the blacksmith NPC here.

Although he couldn’t make extraordinary equipment, he could quickly churn out cheap and cost-effective items.

In simple terms, the academy needed training equipment for hundreds of cadets, and quick mass production was perfect for James.

No need to exert artisan spirit here.

“Uh… right! Since my son, who will be a legendary blacksmith, is telling me this, I should believe it! Yes! Dad will definitely win! Hahaha!”

…Above all, it’s nice that people are so simple.

Just a little praise makes them incredibly enthusiastic.

Perhaps that positivity and diligence were highly regarded as well.

“If things go south, we can just show them the equipment made by my son! Maybe the professors will recognize my son’s genius…”

I just hope he doesn’t act like a clueless fool.

After bragging about me all over town for almost two months, I felt terribly embarrassed.

I quickly covered my face with my hood and distanced myself from James.

*

Afterward, James and I went through some basic tests.

It was a test to select the final 30 candidates from hundreds of applicants.

We boldly made it into that top 30.

[Waiting Ticket: Number 27]

Eventually, we received waiting ticket number 27, just before the final test, the ‘equipment demonstration’.

It took about 30 minutes for the previous participant number 1 to complete their ‘equipment demonstration’, so that meant we had to wait another 13 hours and 40 minutes.

“I’ll look around a bit.”

With a waiting time of 13 hours ahead, I couldn’t just sit around doing nothing.

Since it was like this, I decided to actively utilize my time.

I made up my mind to explore the academy in earnest.

‘Shall we check Room 5 first?’

Room 5.

This classroom was where Professor Elena conducts her lessons and it was undeniably a top priority to visit.

Her class ‘Fundamentals of Mana’ was reputed even in the game, and simply attending increased skill acceleration—a top-tier option in-game—by 15%.

In other words, there was no better lecture for skill enhancement.

‘Well, Elena is a genius of the century.’

Elena von Elide Rosario.

She was quite young, yet not yet over 30, but she managed to become a professor at the Imperial Royal Academy.

Since childhood, she had shown exceptional talent in magic formulas and incantations, and now she had risen to the level of a Great Mage thanks to that talent.

‘It would really be great if I could learn incantations from Elena.’

And her incantations were something I needed desperately.

This was because high-end equipment required scrolls inscribed with incantations.

*Sigh* If only I were an official student, I could have become her apprentice.

But realistically, receiving lessons from Elena was impossible.

In this academy, my status was merely that of a blacksmith NPC.

And that too, as James’ assistant.

There was no way such a noble professor would teach a commoner like me.

‘In the end, the answer is to sneak in.’

So my conclusion was to sneak in.

Somehow, I’d find a route to lurk into Room 5, and once hidden, I would eavesdrop on the lectures.

Well, I probably wouldn’t be able to follow along with the practical exercises, but that’s a problem for later.

Listening to the theoretical classes might be a bit helpful.

[Room 5]

As I pondered various thoughts, I soon arrived in front of Room 5.

Since I had seen it countless times while playing this game, locating it wasn’t difficult at all.

‘Time to find the route.’

Anyway, since I was here in Room 5, it was time to find a discreet route for entry.

There had to be a ventilation duct somewhere for air to come in.

Should I check the ceiling first?

“Oh, there it is.”

As expected, I could find the vent letting the air out.

The ‘▦’ shaped hole in the ceiling,

It circulates the internal air through those closely spaced openings.

“Well then… shall I try going in?”

Having found the hole, it was time to enter and look for the route.

If there is an entrance to get in, there must also be an exit, and that exit would be the entrance to sneak into Room 5.

“Inventory.”

However, since the height of the ceiling was quite high, I needed something to step on.

I used the player’s unique skill ‘Inventory’ and took out the ladder I had stored away.

Good thing I prepared it in advance for situations like this.

-Clank.

Finally, I climbed the ladder and successfully removed the ‘▦’ shaped metal plate.

It was easy to unscrew because it was fixed with screws.

“Inventory.”

Afterward, I stored the ladder back in the inventory to erase any trace of my infiltration.

I’m so glad to have been treated as a player by this possession since I’m a reincarnation.

Without the inventory, it would have been such a hassle.

-Swish… Swish…

Anyway, that aside.

I began crawling through the narrow duct.

Of course, I didn’t forget to leave marks with a specially treated pen to indicate the route.

How long have I been crawling?

Finally, I was able to find an exit.

Surprisingly, the exit led to the very blacksmith shop where I would work.

“Score!”

I cheered as I stepped out.

Since the entrance to sneak into Room 5 was actually the blacksmith shop where I was to work, it seemed easier than expected to sneak in.

“Well… I still need some modifications, though?”

However, it was too early to get too happy.

It took me far too long to escape from this point.

That alone took about 20 minutes.

Thinking that I would have to crawl for 20 minutes every day made me cringe involuntarily.

I needed to modify the duct for a more comfortable entrance.

“Right, let’s completely change that.”

After all, there’s still over a month until the entrance ceremony.

Since I’ll be working here with James until then, I should have plenty of time to make modifications.

“Wyoyong!”

Just when I was thinking about the modifications.

Out of nowhere, a cat’s meow echoed.

Turning my head in the direction of the sound, I saw a cat missing its right hind leg.

And upon seeing that cat, a surge of anger welled up inside me.

“No way! How could this happen?!”

Who on earth would commit such a heinous act?

This was nothing short of a mess.

Indeed, the artificial leg attached to the cat’s right hind leg was scarily designed.

Just from its appearance and engineering, it was completely ridiculous.

“Has it lived like this all this time?”

“Why~yong!”

The cat’s meow seemed to imply ‘yes’.

Just how hard must it have been to walk around with such a terrible prosthetic?

This couldn’t be overlooked.

“Whew… Just wait a moment.”

Luckily, this was a blacksmith shop, and I had plenty of time.

Having just discovered the route to sneak into Room 5, it was time to do what I wanted.

I should use the remaining time to work on its prosthetic leg.

-Ding!

[Level 2 Engineering Thought is activated.]

It was in that instant that I resolved to make the cat’s prosthetic leg.

Suddenly, the hidden skill ‘Engineering Thought’ activated, and the cat’s leg began to appear in the form of a blueprint.

How many bones made up the cat’s leg.

The precise length and strength of those bones.

And how those bones would work together to create movement.

All of that began to come into understanding.

Once I had finished grasping everything, I smiled as I ruffled the cat’s head.

“Just wait, butterfly. I’ll take that shabby thing off you in no time.”

***

“Whew. I need a smoke.”

Elena von Elide Rosario.

After just finishing judging up to the 15th blacksmith, she had a quite troubled expression.

Thinking that she would have to do this miserable equipment demonstration another 15 times made her want to quit her professorship right away.

Maybe I should have rejected the position of a professor.

“No, I couldn’t have helped it there. Sephilia had ‘commanded’ that, so…”

Sephilia.

The Empire’s princess and Elena’s student.

Elena pressed her forehead in thought of her pupil’s face.

With a dignified visage, sitting in a high seat, she had commanded Elena to be the academy’s chief professor.

Normally she would have outright rejected such a command, but since it was an order coming from the princess, it had to be accepted.

There were just too many eyes watching.

“Sephilia… Just wait…”

Elena balled her hands into fists, shaking with anger at her student who had maliciously used her status as a princess to get her in the position.

If she ever met that student one-on-one, she would surely knock some sense into her pretty little head.

“*Sigh* I guess I should go pet Wyoyong…”

But that day was still a month away.

She needed to find a way to control her anger until then.

Elena decided to go and pet her beloved cat, Wyoyong.

Because stroking the fur of that adorable little creature calmed her down in no time.

Just as she entered her temporary office to see Wyoyong.

“Hm?”

As soon as Elena opened the office door, she tilted her head.

Originally, the little creature should have been comfortably seated on the desk but wasn’t anywhere to be seen.

Where could that little one who struggled to walk have gone?

-Piao!

Even after searching all around the office, there was still no sign of Wyoyong.

Ultimately, Elena used ‘Mana Tracking’.

It was a wide-area detection skill capable of sensing the location of any creature with even a tiny amount of mana.

But Wyoyong’s mana could not be perceived anywhere.

It had drastically exceeded the detection range.

“Wyoyong!”

In the end, Elena burst out of the door and started searching for Wyoyong.

She scoured the entire building while tracking Wyoyong’s mana.

And as a result, she finally found Wyoyong’s mana.

It was about 200 meters from here.

That is, the location where she sensed Wyoyong’s mana was near the blacksmith shop.

“Wyoyongaaa!”

Elena hurriedly made her way there.