Surviving As A Mage In A Magic Academy [EN]: Chapter 721

“Oh, right, Angalo. I told you not to get involved with the festival, but you kept saying you wanted to participate.”

‘Oh dear.’

Angalo blamed himself, realizing he’d made another slip of the tongue.

Perhaps his intelligence had declined because of the terrible food since the semester started.

“Like this…”

“It requires more magic than I thought.”

“It is quite a bit. I’ll help you recharge whenever I get the chance.”

“It’ll take quite some time, are you sure it’s alright?”

Salco declined Lee Han’s offer.

Just listening to the explanation, adding magic to the artifact seemed harder than he thought.

It would be a waste of time for Wodanaz, who was already busy, to help with each step.

“No. I just meant I’d charge it with my own magic.”

“…Oh, I see.”

After temporarily charging everyone’s paper artifact bundles, Lee Han asked,

“So… what do you think? About meeting regularly?”

“I agree. Moradi might not, though.”

“I agree too. Of course, Tutankha might not understand the situation and cause trouble.”

Lee Han looked weary.

Tijilling, who had been listening, nodded.

“Look at them both. Priest Tijilling is fed up too, isn’t he?”

“…I agreed to the meetings.”

“Ah. I see. Right. I’ll take that as an agreement.”

“Working together is always good, Wodanaz.”

“Indeed. Working together to outsmart our seniors wouldn’t be bad, would it?”

At Nigisor’s words, the other students pretended not to hear and looked away.

Some students had strong opinions. But the second-year students needed to work together now.

They used to think seniors would be helpful and give advice. But they learned that wasn’t true.

More difficult and complicated lectures, greater responsibilities than in the first year, seniors who only wanted to use their juniors…

To survive this, working together was the only way.

“Hey, Wodanaz,” Giselle said, her eyes wide with sudden interest. “Did you really bring in a lot of food?”

She’d just remembered how sure Wodanaz sounded about having food. How could he have gotten any? Enrollment had been so strict.

“A little,” Lee Han replied, a small smile playing on his lips.

“How?” Giselle pressed, leaning forward.

“Oops! Look at the time,” Lee Han said quickly, glancing around as if just noticing. “Class time! See you all at the next meeting. Good luck with everything!”

And with that, he was gone.

“Yeah, you too,” Giselle and the others mumbled automatically.

It was only after Lee Han vanished that Giselle blinked. “Wait a minute,” she said, looking around. “It’s night!”

“Wow,” someone else said, sounding amazed. “He said ‘class’ like it was normal, even though it’s clearly nighttime. I didn’t even notice!”

As morning arrived, Lee Han visited the seventh floor and headed to the Kitchen Club.

He wanted to check the stories he had heard yesterday before classes started.

“Uhaha, Wodanaz!”

Palkurius, who had been stoking a fire under a cauldron as big as himself and preparing ingredients since dawn, was very happy to see Lee Han.

As a junior he had marked as a future talent to lead the Kitchen Club, he was pleased by his appearance.

“Welcome, welcome! Have you come to help with our soup club’s work?”

“Yes, Senior Palkurius.”

“Puh-huh. But there’s no work to be done. One of our soup club’s rules is, ‘You cook your own soup in your own cauldron.’”

Palkurius reached out to stop Lee Han when he tried to help.

People often misunderstood the Kitchen Club as having strict rules.

It was misunderstood because the club had strict membership rules, carefully managed its buildings and grounds, and its members moved in perfect order at every mealtime, but really, it was quite free inside.

Selling food to Einroguard students in the club’s cafeteria was up to each person.

They just needed to get the food, cook it, and sell it.

The club just helped its members.

“So, is the rumor that one gold coin per dish is also false?”

“That’s true.”

……

“Uhaha! That’s the tradition and identity of this Iactus Soup Club, so we can’t raise it any higher. Sorry, but please understand.”

“I was wondering if lowering it was possible, not raising it.”

“???”

Palkurius was surprised by the completely unexpected question.

It was a question that no junior or senior had ever asked before.

Many people wanted to raise the price, but lower it?

“Lowering it is possible?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“…Oh, just curious?”

“Junior. Have you ever wondered why there are no dance halls near Einroguard?”

Usually, near imperial schools, there were social clubs, as well as dance halls and banquet halls attached so that the members of those social clubs could dance or drink.

Basically, students liked to have fun, and those who entered boarding schools were usually from rich families.

Naturally, the people in the cities near the school welcomed these students as money bags.

Einroguard was different. Students rarely went out of the school. The nearest village was far away.

“I haven’t really wondered about it, but…”

“Think about it. Why do you think that is?”

“Students don’t go out, and you can’t go against the townspeople, can you?”

“Puh-huh, that’s right! You know it well. It’s obvious when you think about it. That’s why everyone doesn’t bother asking.”

“??”

“To me, the question of whether you can lower the price sounds exactly like that!”

……

Lee Han frowned, looking annoyed as he watched his senior burst into laughter.

Was it really that funny of a question?

After laughing for a while, Palkurius wiped away his tears and apologized.

“Sorry. You might be curious! Did I laugh too much?”

“So, is it possible?”

“Hmm! I guess not. Other members would lose out.”

“Indeed. Then when do we make the oath?”

“What oath?”

“The oath not to sell cheaply…”

“Ah. Did you hear about it from someone outside the club? Uhaha! Half the rumors in Einroguard are nonsense. Why would we even swear something like that? What idiot would sell cheaply!”

It was just a spoken agreement. The Kitchen Club wasn’t rich enough to make people take a serious oath not to sell food cheaply. They used expensive things to cook.

“Puh-huh. Don’t believe the rumors too much. I once heard that a mythical creature was in Einroguard. But I searched for over a year and couldn’t find it.”

“That’s…”

“Senior. We’re here.”

With tired voices, other members appeared from behind.

Even though it was morning, the seniors’ faces looked exhausted.

Looking down, one hand held a bronze goose, and the other held a basket full of screaming mushrooms.

“Wodanaz? You’re Wodanaz, right?”

“Yes, I am.”

“Nice to meet you! I really wanted to meet you.”

“We had to give in a little because of the other clubs’ interference, but you’ll like our club the most.”

The seniors smiled brightly.

Thud!

Then one of them collapsed to the side. Lee Han was horrified and shouted,

“Are you alright!?”

“Ah. I’m fine. Don’t worry. I just heard too many screams on the farm.”

The sound from the screaming mushrooms was toxic, and even wizards could faint or be seriously hurt if they heard it too much.

“I wanted to pick some crescent honey fruits, but there were too many monsters there today.”

“We really need to increase the number of mercenaries. If we keep going like this, we won’t even be able to enter the east side of the farm and will have to abandon it.”

“…Wait. Senior.”

“Oh. Why? Is there something you’re curious about?”

“Why are there monsters on the club’s farm or ranch?”

“Hmm? Of course, monsters appear on farms or ranches…”

The senior, tilting his head, paused.

“…Come to think of it, monsters don’t usually appear on farms or ranches outside, do they?”

“That’s usually the case. Unless a monster wanders in from outside.”

“Ah, right. Sorry.”

The senior apologized and explained again.

The ranches and farms owned by the Kitchen Club were a bit different from those outside.

How could one get food easily in Einroguard?

Usually, one would have to farm and raise livestock, but it was not easy for busy students to get enough food through such hard work.

However, magic sometimes created miracles.

Unpredictable changes and strange things happened in places where magic gathered, like crops and livestock growing quickly.

It was a miraculous land where crops and livestock grew well even if left alone.

Kitchen Club students had found several such places and were using them as farms or ranches.

‘I feel like I’ve seen something like this before?’

Lee Han thought as he listened to the seniors.

Come to think of it, Lee Han had a similar experience.

Didn’t the crops grow much better than expected when he was taking care of Professor Uregeoreum’s garden?

He had thought it was because of the staff given by the tree spirit, but listening to the seniors, it seemed that Lee Han’s magic had also had a big effect.

“But monsters also come to places where magic gathers. It can’t be helped.”

“It’s nothing once you get used to it. Haha.”

As much as magic gathered, the Kitchen Club’s farms and ranches were like monster dens.

Whenever members wanted to get ingredients, they formed a group, prepared for battle, and went in.

‘I shouldn’t have expected anything else.’

Lee Han closed his eyes tightly, having expected a normal farm or ranch.

He had built up unnecessary expectations again.

Looking behind him, the senior who had collapsed because of the screaming mushrooms was still unconscious.

“We’re late! Did you guys go without us?!”

“Yeah. You lazy bum.”

“M-My bad. Can you share some just for today?”

One senior who arrived late looked at the ingredients the members had brought and begged.

However, the members were cold. Palkurius roared with laughter and shouted,

“Uhaha! You’re quite the comedian!”

“S-Senior. Please help me just once.”

“I’ll help you if you’re preparing food!”

“I don’t have any ingredients! If you lend me some ingredients…”

“Isn’t there an ingredient over there?”

Palkurius pointed his finger. The senior who arrived late turned his head.

There was a stone on the ground.

“You can put that in and boil it!”

“…Who would eat that!”

“Then you should have woken up early and gotten the ingredients. Puh-huh. Why else would your friends be attacked by bronze geese and faint from screaming mushrooms since dawn!”

Palkurius laughed and patted the back of the senior who arrived late.

“If you don’t have any money today, you can earn it tomorrow. Puh-huh.”

“I have equipment I need to buy today. Senior! Then lend me some money!”

“Uhahaha!”

“Senior!”

“Uhahahahaha!”

The senior who arrived late realized that there was no point in saying any more and hung his head.

“Huhu. One less competitor.”

“I’m going to dominate the cafeteria today.”

Lee Han, not understanding why the seniors were muttering with such motivated voices, asked,

“Is there a reason to compete?”

“Of course, there is. Junior. We’re all selling food for one gold coin. Then which food will the students buy? Delicious and plentiful food? Or soup made with just a stone in water? If you prepare poorly, you won’t get a single penny.”

“…!”

Lee Han realized as he watched the seniors preparing with a burning sense of competition.

The Kitchen Club was not a friendly social club.

Rather, it was a fierce battlefield that seemed to have brought Einroguard as it was!