The new students, following the advice of a student who appeared to be from the Knight Faculty, all began walking toward the dormitory building. Their expressions were so blank and dazed that no one else bothered trying to strike up a conversation with them.
Adrian and Mikhail also quietly made their way into their dorm room. As soon as Adrian entered, he sat down on the bed and slowly leaned back against the wall. With his back resting on the cool surface, he stretched his hand out in front of his face and stared intently at the back of it. At that moment, the rhombus-shaped symbol of Tilon faintly glowed in response to his gaze before vanishing.
Just as the professor had explained during the lecture, Adrian blew a soft breath onto the back of his hand. Hoo—
Numbers made of light briefly appeared in the air: “10 Tilons,” before quietly fading away.
“Ten Tilons, huh…”
Adrian murmured as he lay on his bed. From across the room, Mikhail—still very much awake—replied in a clear voice.
“What, you really think we came to the Academy just to learn how to manage money?”
“Right? Kind of ridiculous…”
Surprisingly, the two of them shared a similar view on the lesson.
However, having lived in this world a bit longer, Adrian had developed a certain flexibility when it came to learning new things.
“Still, if we collect a decent amount of Tilons, they could come in handy.”
What? Mikhail shot up from his bed, as if he’d just heard something completely absurd. Sitting on his bed, Adrian turned to face him.
“And what exactly are you planning to use those Tilons for?”
“…Well, apparently you can use them to get into Academy parties, or buy special items and stuff.”
“Seriously? Just skip the damn party. No one’s forcing us to go.”
Fair point. Adrian, who had zero desire to attend some party thrown by a bunch of teenage humans, couldn’t think of a single good reason why he’d need to earn Tilons. But he pushed himself to come up with one more, partly to persuade Mikhail, and partly to convince himself.
What else had the professor said as an example? Adrian narrowed his eyes, trying to recall.
“You could…subscribe to the school newspaper…”
What? Are you kidding me? Mikhail scowled at Adrian’s lame excuse. Adrian scratched his cheek, embarrassed, knowing full well it was just something he said for the sake of saying something.
Mikhail doubled down on his point.
“I’ve gone a whole week without a single Tilon, and I’ve been just fine. Meals, room, everything’s provided. I’m not about to waste my time chasing fake money.”
“I agree with you, honestly.”
Adrian nodded lightly. Damn, this guy’s pretty logical. He was right. Students who needed Tilons could go out and earn them, while the rest could just keep living like this.
“Yeah…”
And yet, the Gold Dragon couldn’t completely shake off the nagging feeling in his gut.
“I guess so.”
That uneasy feeling revealed its true form the very next day.
***
It was Tuesday, the day of their magic class. Adrian and Mikhail woke up quietly as usual, got ready with minimal fuss, and left the dorm building.
As they walked from the dorm to the main building where classes were held, they noticed scenes they hadn’t witnessed before—students making exchanges.
Ah, so placing two fingers on someone else’s hand was the Tilon contract? Adrian finally understood, nodding to himself at the revelation. The Gold Dragon, who had assumed it was just another weird human trend, felt a flicker of pride at having figured it out on his own. Just as he turned his head—
“Has it really already been a week since you guys enrolled?”
It was Hans. Noticing the Tilon symbol hovering subtly above Adrian and Mikhail’s heads, he had come over to greet them.
“Hello.”
Adrian bowed politely and was about to continue on his way… when he paused. He suddenly remembered he had business with Hans. With all the talk about Tilons, he’d forgotten something far more important. He turned around quickly and called out to him again.
“Ah—Sunbae.”
“It’s been a while, huh? Wow, it really has been a week already?”
Catherine was with him.
“Right? Time flies,” Hans said, nodding along with the usual meaningless pleasantries. Adrian quickly cut in, calling him once more.
“You were going to introduce me to the student who knows about that weird door, remember?”
The Gold Dragon wanted to get this business over with as quickly as possible. At Adrian’s question, Hans reacted with a startled, “Ah, right!” Internally, Adrian imagined grabbing the airheaded Hans by the collar, though outwardly, he kept his smile intact.
“I’ll tell you. Right now—”
That’s when it happened.
“How many Tilons is it worth?”
Catherine abruptly cut into the conversation. Adrian whipped his head toward her, wearing an expression that screamed, Excuse me?
“Hans, are you offering help for free again? Didn’t you say there’s something you absolutely want to buy for the upcoming festival?”
Catherine exuded the kind of cold-blooded pragmatism typical of a mage. Hans gave a sheepish smile and rubbed the back of his neck at her words. Of course, under Academy rules, all favors were supposed to be exchanged for Tilons. However…
“Come on… They’ve only been here a week.”
Hans was the sentimental type—always thinking, It’ll probably work out somehow… Catherine gave a small shake of her head at her friend’s soft heart and then turned to Adrian.
“Adrian.”
Caught off guard by his name, the Gold Dragon answered, “…Yes?” The situation had gotten unnecessarily complicated now that Tilons were suddenly involved in the matter of the “strange door.”
“As payment for the help with my assignment you gave me earlier, I’ll give you 5 Tilons.”
With a smooth motion, Catherine slid her index finger across the back of her hand, then held it out to Adrian.
“…”
She was instructing him to imitate the same transaction process they’d seen students performing in the central garden. Adrian reached his fingers toward her offered hand. Catherine flashed a satisfied smile, as if praising him for doing well. Adrian gently swiped his finger across the Tilon symbol on the back of her hand. A number briefly appeared above his own right hand in glowing blue light—15 Tilons—before fading into the air.
It was his first transaction.
As Adrian curiously stared at the shimmering emblem, Catherine spoke up.
“There. Satisfied?”
It was directed at Hans. Friends were friends, but a deal was a deal. At Basamiel Academy, all favors came with a price in Tilons. Hans nodded, only now beginning to understand Catherine’s reasoning. First-years had a right to learn money management too—and if he kept helping them for free just because they looked pitiful, they might end up turning into clueless upperclassmen who couldn’t manage even basic finances.
“Alright, then.”
Hans straightened up, a determined look on his face as he declared to Adrian and Mikhail with sudden confidence:
“From now on, I’m charging 5 Tilons for every person I introduce you to!”
Adrian currently had 15 Tilons, and Mikhail had 10. Together, that made 25. The Gold Dragon slowly turned his head to glance at Mikhail. The prince wisely stayed still. The dragon calmly extended his arm sideways, blocking the prince from stepping forward.
“What the hell,” Mikhail muttered in protest, but Adrian ignored him, wearing a deeply hurt expression as he spoke up.
“Five Tilons… Sunbae.”
Then, in the gentlest voice imaginable, he added,
“That’s almost half of my entire fortune right now.”
What the hell is that tone? Mikhail flinched, goosebumps prickling across his arms at Adrian’s overly soft, saccharine voice. It was the first time he’d heard him speak like that. Still, judging by how things were unfolding, the momentum seemed to be on their side, so the prince wisely turned his head, making sure Hans couldn’t see the look of nausea creeping onto his face.
“Ah… Yeah, I did start wondering if 5 Tilons might’ve been too much after I said it.”
Hans bit the bait immediately. Catherine, watching her overly generous friend, thought silently to herself: Thank god you come from a rich family, you softie.
She’d told him to make a deal, not to set a price. Hans might have thought he was contributing to the first-years’ financial education, but in reality, Catherine was teaching him how transactions worked. Maybe it was the artist in him, but Hans had the kind of personality perfectly suited to starving to death.
“Could you please lower the price a little? I was honestly shocked—it’s more expensive than I expected.”
Adrian dipped his head slightly, causing his beautiful golden hair to spill over his shoulders in silky waves. The sunlight made his blond strands shimmer even more vividly.
Mikhail remained silent in the face of the bastard’s utterly shameless expression. Even the prince knew that in a negotiation, the side that spoke less had the better odds of winning.
