Chapter 4: The Academy’s Digital Companion and the Currency of Knowledge

As items were distributed, our tables quickly became laden. The three books, in particular, took up the most space. The book on alchemy materials was especially thick, with remarkably thin pages that promised an immense number of entries.

As I took the phone-like device into my hand, I realized it truly was indistinguishable from a smartphone. I tried a long press on what appeared to be the power button, and after a few seconds, the screen flickered to life.

“Damn it…” I quickly flipped the device face down onto the table. I couldn’t risk breaking it right after getting it.

“Oh? You know how to use that thing?” Kereiya had clearly noticed my quick movement. The sudden glow from the screen had naturally not escaped her attention.

“I have no idea. I just pressed random buttons,” I admitted, finding myself unable to offer a better explanation. “I hope I haven’t broken it.” I then cautiously observed the device, having already mentally categorized it as a phone.

The screen displayed elements that were somewhat familiar to me, though the user interface design itself was unlike any I had ever encountered.

‘It really is a phone.’

As I silently mused, Teacher Qieluo, standing before the podium, spoke once more.

“Now that you all possess this device,” Teacher Qieluo began, “I don’t care whether you’ve used one before or are familiar with them. What matters is that this item will accompany you throughout your future studies. Treat it like your identity card; keep it safe and don’t lose it. As for breaking it…” She paused, a faint smile playing on her lips. “If any of you manage to break it, you’ll be granted an early graduation.”

Her words struck me with surprise. ‘Graduation, from what I understood, meant becoming a full-fledged witch. Does that imply this phone requires a witch’s destructive power to be truly broken?’

‘That’s absurd. Couldn’t it simply be used as a weapon, like a brick?’

“Returning to the main topic,” she continued, “this device is called a ‘phone.’ Of course, you are free to call it whatever you wish, as long as you understand that ‘phone’ refers to this particular item. A long press on the power button, indicated here,” she gestured, “will cause a window to pop up after a brief moment. Simply input your student ID number, found on your identification card, into that prompt.”

Teacher Qieluo meticulously explained the device’s functions. Observing the many confused faces in the classroom, I wondered if advanced technological products like smartphones hadn’t yet become widespread among other races.

She then proceeded to illustrate the various operations on the blackboard, using both diagrams and text. This included powering on the device, entering the student ID for binding, and other essential steps.

I paid close attention to her demonstration, as I couldn’t be certain if the smartphones I was familiar with operated identically to those in this new world.

However, once I had successfully bound my student ID, that was seemingly the extent of it.

The phone itself didn’t seem to have many applications installed.

Beyond the basic information like time and date, the homepage offered little else. There was, of course, the crucial ‘Witch Academy’ icon. Upon tapping it, I found myself in my student information profile, which contained numerous options: electives, course schedules, achievement queries, and most notably… academic credits.

‘Is Witch Academy operating on a credit system?’

When I tapped on the ‘Credits’ section, I discovered I possessed 1000 points. This seemed like a substantial amount. ‘Could academic credits actually be the internal currency of the academy?’

My eyes then landed on options for ‘Credit Transfer and Payment.’ ‘Alright, it truly is money.’

I only wondered about the purchasing power of these 1000 points.

Just as I began contemplating how to utilize my newfound credits, I felt a poke.

“Is something wrong?” I asked, turning to Kereiya. ‘Could this elf really not know how to use a phone?’ I watched her holding the device upside down, still unactivated. My suspicions were confirmed.

“I’m terribly sorry, but how exactly does this phone work?” she asked, a faint blush dusting her cheeks. She seemed a little embarrassed, perhaps recalling how she had just offered to guide me, and now found herself asking for my assistance. “You seem so familiar with it; could you possibly show me?”

“Actually, I’m not all that familiar with it myself,” I replied. “Didn’t the teacher just demonstrate how to use it? You need to long-press the raised button on the side. Also, it looks like you’re holding it upside down…”

“Upside down? Oh!” Kereiya quickly corrected her grip, then attempted to power it on. Only after the screen illuminated did I continue speaking.

“Now, just follow the steps displayed on the screen and input your student ID.”

After a period of bustling activity, once everyone had successfully activated their devices, Teacher Qieluo began explaining the phone’s usage and its various functions. I had already familiarized myself with most of these, having tried every accessible application. There wasn’t much to them, truthfully, until the teacher started discussing academic credits. Only then did my attention truly sharpen.

If academic credits served as currency, then it was imperative to understand how to earn them within the academy.

“Everyone, pay attention to the ‘Academic Credits’ section,” Teacher Qieluo announced. “Credits are extremely important, and I urge you to remember this. From now on, everything you require – your food, clothing, housing, and travel – will necessitate the use of credits. Meals in the cafeteria, defensive gear, tools, and even your dormitory will all cost credits. Of course, your current dorm assignments are complimentary for the first month. And most importantly, borrowing books from the library, or acquiring any form of knowledge, will also require credits. In essence, credits are paramount.”

Having delivered that lengthy explanation, Qieluo continued, “Now, for the most crucial aspect: how to earn academic credits. The academy will issue credits monthly, starting with an initial allocation of 1000. This means your monthly allowance begins at 1000, but this amount is not static. Your allowance will fluctuate, increasing or decreasing based on your performance in future quizzes, examinations, and various other assessments. Naturally, should your allowance fall into the negative, corresponding credits will be deducted each month. If your total remaining credits also drop below zero, you will be expelled and lose your status as a Witch Academy student…”

Qieluo patiently elaborated on these intricacies, making certain that the majority of the class grasped the implications.

In essence, academic credits functioned as currency, and the monthly allowance represented a salary, with its distribution influenced by ongoing evaluations. Should I ever find myself completely devoid of credits—effectively, penniless—I would face expulsion.

‘This situation could prove rather inconvenient. I had assumed the Witch Academy provided full room and board, but it seems I was mistaken.’

My original intention had been to maintain a low profile and develop discreetly. However, if I wished to accumulate more academic credits, I would inevitably need to distinguish myself and demonstrate my worth. Regardless of whether I could even aspire to such excellence, even if I did, it would undoubtedly lead to a multitude of future troubles.

‘As for my future achievements… surely they wouldn’t be too disappointing, would they?’

I gazed at the text that slowly materialized before my eyes.

I could now confirm that I hadn’t been hallucinating when I first transmigrated. There truly was something appearing before me, a cheat, perhaps? A golden finger? I continuously attempted to interact with possible options, yet these displayed statistics remained stubbornly unchanged, simply existing as raw data.

No, that wasn’t quite right. There *must* have been changes. I distinctly recalled the previous data, which had now been neatly categorized under ‘Achievements.’

‘So, the goal is to unlock achievements?’

It was possible there were other functions, but I couldn’t discern them at the moment. This peculiar device, after all, came with no instruction manual.

Everything relied solely on my own understanding and experimentation.

For now, ‘achievements’ were my only lead. However, the methods for achieving them remained unclear, and I had no idea what specific achievements even existed. Currently, I possessed only a single achievement, the effect of which had simply boosted my spiritual energy by a small amount.

[Physique: 0.8 Spirit: 2.3]

These were my current statistics, showing my spiritual energy to be significantly higher than my physique. A single achievement had nearly doubled my spirit, which was certainly not a loss.

‘Never mind,’ I decided. ‘I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it.’ Given how subtly this ‘golden finger’ manifested, I would set it aside for now. I would only delve deeper into its patterns once it showed more discernible activity.