I wake up to the sun's light in my eyes. I try to move, but a terrible pain hits me.
— Ugh… This still hurts so much… — I murmur, checking the condition of my arm.
I'm currently in a coastal city called Maralto, located in the south of the continent. From what I understand, the island where I was found is in a little-explored area, and almost nothing is known about it. That's why, when I said I was trying to fish in a new spot and the waves carried me to the island, they believed me.
— Even so, even if I knew I'd be rescued, I need to go thank that old man.
It's only been one day since I left the island, rescued by a fisherman who brought me to this city. Even without knowing me, he let me stay at his house after I went to treat my injuries at a local church.
— If the treatment wasn't so expensive, I would have already recovered…
Since I didn't have money to pay, the church just gave me a simple dressing, bandaged my arm, and sent me on my way.
— Haa… Forget it. I'd better go see the old man.
I get up from bed with difficulty. My body is still sore, but I can move without so much agony. Looking around, I see that I'm in a relatively simple but cozy room that even looks like a inn room.
I open the door, follow a small corridor, and arrive in the living room. There, I see an old man with white hair and sun-tanned skin, sitting at a table.
— Good morning. — I say, moving cautiously toward him.
— Oh, you're finally awake? Come on, have something to eat. — he replies, pushing a plate with a ham sandwich toward a chair.
— Thank you.
I go to the chair and sit down slowly so my injuries don't hurt as much. Once I'm in a good position, I grab the sandwich and start eating for a while before speaking again.
— … I wanted to thank you for your hospitality and for saving me yesterday. — I say after swallowing a piece of the bread. — Later, I'll look for a job.
— A job? — the old man replies, taking a sip of coffee. — Seriously? What were you doing fishing alone on that sea? You should be in school!
— School? Why should I go there? Look at my appearance!
— Kid, you look younger than my granddaughter, you know? And she's going to start high school next month!
— Huh!? Do you have a mirror around here?
The old man points to the bathroom, and I follow slowly. Arriving in front of the mirror, I see my appearance for the first time since I arrived in this world. Although I had tried to see my reflection in the water on the island, there was never a place with still water.
— It's me, just… younger?
As I touch my face and analyze it in the mirror, I confirm that this was what I looked like when I was younger.
— Did I get younger? Did something happen on the island or when I was transported here?
Doubts arise in my mind, but I need to finish the discussion with the old man.
— You know, I may have this appearance, but I'm already a graduate! — I say, confidently.
— Really? So where's your diploma? — he replies with a smile.
— …
— See? A brat like you needs to go to school!
— Go to school? I'm already tired of living in schools, old man.
— Tired of living in schools!? Look at your current situation! Who would hire a minor with a broken arm!? At least in school, you can live there with everything paid for!
— …
Just by arguing a little with the old man, I realize I can't win. Besides, what he said is true: my situation, injured, looking like a teenager and with nothing to prove otherwise, will prevent me from getting any kind of work in the region. I would probably have to seek shelter in a place like the church or just sleep on the street and beg for food until, at the very least, my arm recovers.
— But when will my arm recover? — I think, before sighing and saying, — Haa… So, old man, how would someone who has never studied pass this school's entrance exam?
Since I'm not from this world, there's a lot of knowledge I don't have that will probably be on the admission tests. That's why it's better to just say I've never studied.
— You could go to a local school, but you wouldn't get a place to live… — the old man comments, seeming to think. — Maybe it's a good idea to bet on my granddaughter's school?
— And which school is your granddaughter going to?
— The Royal Academy of Noctis.
Hearing that name, I remembered the story this world was based on and that it was at that school where the protagonist studied. An institution made exclusively for the elite, where entry was only possible with strong connections to the nobility or by being a genius, like the protagonist.
Therefore, there was only one thing I could answer now.
— Forget it, old man.
[To be continued…]