Namgung Se-ga, the warrior, was reincarnated in Romance

I was nervous about what kind of exam Professor Cedric, who taught the Hunting and Camping class along with Alchemy, would come up with.

There was so much I had learned in his class.

However, he would often drop little pieces of advice during the lessons—such as how to start a fire, what to be cautious of when picking certain herbs—without any formal notes to organize them. So, I hadn’t written anything down.

As always, Cedric gathered the students in the classroom and leaned on the podium with his elbows, resting his chin in his hands, giving an odd body posture while cheerfully announcing, “Alright, the midterm for our Alchemy and Hunting class will be replaced with an assignment!”

An assignment was better than an exam because it wouldn’t require memorization, so I sighed in relief.

However, now I was curious about the topic of the assignment. The other students remained silent, neither cheering nor sighing.

Apparently not satisfied with the reaction, Cedric straightened up and started writing on the board with a clack-clack of chalk. I read what he wrote:

– “The events and reflections from the first camping and first experiment.”

“Now, some of you might think that we didn’t really have a camping experience since we didn’t spend the night outdoors or encounter any monsters or wild animals. But I’m sure there are some of you who’ve never experienced starting a campfire in the wilderness.”

Around the room, some students nodded in agreement, or quietly responded with a “yes.”

“If doubt is the most important thing in alchemy, then in adventure, the most important thing is recording. The habit of consistently recording what happened, how you resolved the situation, and how you felt about it is the most crucial.” Cedric circled the words ‘events’ and ‘reflections’ on the board.

“What you focused on, what you might have lacked—these records become a part of the wisdom our successors will use to navigate the world. So! I expect you to pour your blood, sweat, and tears into this assignment. There will be no class next week, and the assignment is due the week after, at this time.”

Although Cedric usually seemed playful and cheerful, his words felt surprisingly grounded and meaningful, which made me feel rather impressed.

It then occurred to me that when I had wandered the Central Lands, I had never paid much attention to keeping records.

When I was Namgung Jeongyeon, I would often go to an inn, sip a cup of tea, and eavesdrop on the gossip of passersby when I wanted to know about local bandits or any ongoing events.

Everyone gathered based on rumors and left based on rumors.

But these days, if I wanted to learn something, I headed to the library… and that was a good thing.

I was at ease until Cedric’s next words interrupted my thoughts.

“The required length is at least 50 pages. The more detailed your writing, the better your score will be. You can discuss it with your team members, but the reflections should be individual. If you hand in identical assignments, it’ll be boring. And don’t make the font size too large, or you’ll fail the assignment. I warned you beforehand!”

That was insane.

Writing 50 pages would be a challenge, let alone just organizing the outline for the report. Cedric distributed a notebook to each student, saying we could write the assignment in it.

When I opened it, I saw the lines were closely spaced, and every other page had a page number at the bottom right.

Filling up 50 pages seemed impossible, and I wondered if this assignment was really something that could be done in two weeks.

It seemed like I wasn’t the only one thinking this way. Many students groaned and moaned, burying their heads in their desks. Cedric laughed heartily, grinning as he left the classroom, saying, “Alright, good luck with your work!”

As soon as he left, my team members exchanged worried glances and started complaining.

“Okay, so how do we even start solving this assignment?”

“50 pages? If he restricts the font size this much, how are we supposed to study for other exams…”

“He probably thinks we’re only taking his class.”

Damien, with his naturally vague expression and gray hair, did his best to calm the bustling atmosphere as our team leader.

He let out a heavy sigh and took out his academy notebook, flipping it open to the calendar page at the front.

I sneakily glanced at Damien’s notebook, where the exam schedules for other law department subjects were densely written in different colors, and I felt secretly relieved that I was in the swordsmanship department.

“…For now, let’s try to fit the camping and experiment schedules into the available slots… If we establish the basic framework, writing the reflections between the activities should be easier,” he suggested.

“Right. Let’s write down who did what and what we felt about it in order. If that’s not enough, we can just add some simple reflections like ‘It was fun,’ ‘It was enjoyable,’ or ‘It was satisfying,’” another team member added.

“Everyone still has the alchemy experiment sequence guide we received earlier, right? When shall we meet?”

“We all have time Friday afternoon, right? It might be easier for everyone to meet during the day rather than at night to work on the assignment. We don’t know how long it’ll take.”

Everyone was quickly discussing, but I didn’t have much to add.

I just sat there silently, feeling lost, while Marianne tapped my arm.

“Mikael, we have the duel on Saturday. Do you think it’ll be okay to work on the assignment on Friday?” she asked.

“…I think this assignment might be harder than the duel, so let’s tackle it first,” I replied.

“That’s a good idea. Then, let’s meet this Friday. Before then, if possible, I’d like everyone to jot down what they remember about the order of events and tasks from the camping,” she suggested.

“Sounds good.”

“Let’s do that.”

We quickly agreed and parted ways. I ate dinner and began jotting down notes about the events during the camping session. Afterward, I changed into my practice clothes and headed to the training ground.

I spent the night swinging my sword, trying to calm my mind. I now understood why upperclassmen looked so drained and unsteady during exam periods.

This new realization wasn’t exactly a happy one.

* * *

As always in advanced swordsmanship class, we practiced dueling.

In Mana and Aura, and Aura and Mana classes, we had always focused on awakening aura and peering into the immaterial world, so I had assumed there wouldn’t be any written exams for this class.

I was wrong.

Professor Douglas Mustang, always kind and gentle, handed out materials to the exhausted students.

“You all know that the exam is in two weeks, right? The handout I’ve given you contains the similarities and differences between Mana and Aura, along with the exam questions. The exam questions are listed on the fourth page, so make sure to check.”

“Ughhh…”

“The goal for this exam is to review the content at the front of the handout, add your own opinions, and write answers for each of the four questions in advance, making sure to memorize them thoroughly. I’ve already given you the exam questions, so no cheating. On the day of the exam, you won’t be able to reference the handouts or any other materials. It will be strictly monitored.”

I felt like I had aged forty-five years as I stood there, now thirteen, facing an exam method I had never imagined.

Had exams been like this in the past? No, I think they just presented the topic on the spot…

It all felt so distant, and I blinked as I looked down at the handout. Meanwhile, one of the students who had been groaning raised their hand and asked a question.

“How much length is appropriate for the answers?”

“There are four questions, so I think ten lines per question would show that you understand the concepts. However, if you write out your answers in advance and memorize them, the knowledge will become the foundation for the next three years and even beyond when you graduate from the academy, so I hope you’ll study hard,” Professor Douglas answered kindly as always, smiling.

“I’ve reserved Classroom 5 on the first floor of the administration building for the exam. We’ll meet there in two weeks, not in this training hall.”

I stared at the handout, flipping through it slowly.

Sure enough, the contents Professor Douglas Mustang had mentioned many times were neatly organized with more professional terms and knowledge.

Well, it was still better than the general world history class. The required length wasn’t excessive, and since it was about something I was interested in, memorizing it wouldn’t be a problem.

Learning is only bad when it involves theft or murder, and I already knew how to do those things…

I tried my best to calm my mind, though it wasn’t easy.

And so, on Friday, the day before the long-awaited duel with the magician, I gathered with my camping class teammates in a small meeting room next to the library.

Marianne Philodendor, always cheerful and confident, had her short hair swept up into a ponytail, while Ivan Holmos from the Business Department, who usually remained calm, looked like he had pulled an all-nighter with dark circles under his eyes.

The only ones who still looked somewhat normal were Damien from the Law Department, with his gray hair, and Jenny from the Academic Department, who had bold blue hair. I was curious as to why they were the only ones looking fine, and when I stared at them, Jenny shyly smiled and casually spoke.

“Well, I’m naturally strong at memorization. I’ve already heard from the seniors how the Academic Department classes are conducted, so… I did some prep work,” Jenny explained.

“The Law Department sounds even more intense,” Ivan added.

“Ah, I can’t study unless I get some sleep. I make sure to sleep at least three hours a day,” Damien said with a shrug.

I was at a loss for words at Damien’s reply. He managed to study and stay in shape while only sleeping for an hour and a half a day. It was clear that people like him were the ones keeping peace on this continent.

After a brief exchange of updates on each other’s lives, everyone took out blank sheets of paper.

We all knew that time was tight.

“Where should we start? Should we begin from when we arrived at the clearing behind the mountain?”

“Since the professor said every camping trip starts with preparation, we should start from when we began gathering our gear. What did we each bring?” Damien asked.

“Gear? We bought stuff after our first camping trip, right?” Ivan said.

“Anything we can use should be written down. And for the next trip, we’ll just note what we brought.”

“We all bought firewood, insect repellent, and… what else?” Jenny added.

“Thermal blankets?” Ivan offered.

“We didn’t even use those. It was warmer than we thought.”

“True, but what about the sleeping bags? Let’s just note that we packed them, even if we didn’t use them.”

“The lamb meat Ivan brought should be included.”

“Oh, that was really delicious. Should we also write about what the professor gave us?”

“Just in case, let’s write it down, but whether we include it in the final notes is up to us. The professor gave us a pot and ladle, and… I remember we just threw everything into it as he said.”

“Some of the reagents we picked from the forest weren’t listed in the manual…”

It was easier when everyone’s heads were together.

If I were alone, I wouldn’t have remembered even half of what we were discussing. Sometimes I just nodded, saying, “Hmm. Right. Hmm,” and quietly took notes.

Since I had never contributed much beyond physical work in the camping class, the others understood, and occasionally, if I misspelled the name of a herb in my notes, they’d kindly correct it for me.

By the time the sun was setting, we had completed our first draft, had dinner together, and were able to call it a day.