Bab 658
"Kudengar siswa Baldurguard datang?"
Tepat saat itu, Alcicle masuk ke gedung resepsi sambil mengunyah sarden.
"Mereka sudah pergi."
"Sudah?"
Alcicle kebingungan.
Sungguh aneh mereka pergi begitu saja tanpa menemui Alcicle dari keluarga Pengerin, padahal tahu dia ada di sana.
"Benar. Mereka bahkan meninggalkan kantong reagen mereka."
"Kurasa aku harus mengantarkannya."
Tanpa disadarinya, Alcicle telah menyelamatkan nyawa dua siswa Baldurguard itu.
Itu adalah perbuatan baik yang begitu besar sehingga kelak dua keluarga anonim akan memberikan dukungan penelitian besar-besaran kepada Alcicle.
"Kalian tidak merundung mereka, kan?"
"Mereka bilang ingin menunjukkan sihir, jadi kami melihat sedikit sihir, dan kami menunjukkan sedikit sihir sebagai balasannya."
"Astaga..."
Alcicle menyadari kesalahannya mendengar perkataan para siswa Einroguard.
"Kalau begitu tentu saja mereka patah semangat."
"Hah? Sihir apa yang kami tunjukkan sampai bisa membuat mereka patah semangat?"
Yi-Han tidak bisa mempercayainya, tapi teman-temannya sedikit bersimpati.
Bukankah tepat di depan mereka ada teman dari keluarga Wardanaz yang sejak awal semester telah menghancurkan harga diri para siswa yang berpikir 'Mungkin aku berbakat?' di antara mahasiswa baru tahun lalu?
"Anak-anak Baldurguard tidak terlalu pandai sihir. Lagi pula, banyak yang melakukannya sebagai hobi."
"Bukankah Baldurguard, bersama Einroguard, dianggap sebagai salah satu dari pilar kembar di antara sekolah sihir kekaisaran?"
Siana memiringkan kepalanya.
Dia tidak bisa memahami perkataan Alcicle.
Mereka yang datang tadi juga seperti itu, dan dia sesekali mendengar rumor seperti 'Baldurguard adalah salah satu dari pilar kembar sekolah sihir kekaisaran bersama Einroguard!'
"Itu rumor yang disebarkan oleh siswa Baldurguard?"
"..."
"..."
Yi-Han dan teman-temannya terkejut.
Rumor kekaisaran benar-benar tidak bisa dipercaya.
"Pertama-tama, semua sekolah sihir lain mengaku sebagai pilar kembar bersama Einroguard. Hanya saja siswa Baldurguard menyebarkannya dengan sangat baik karena banyak di antara mereka yang berstatus tinggi."
"Bajingan hina!"
Gainando melompat-lompat.
Menyebarkan reputasi dengan cara hina seperti itu alih-alih melakukan sihir!
"Apakah itu diperbolehkan?"
"Tidak. Itu menghina kalian semua. Tuan Gonadaltes juga sangat membencinya."
"Kepala sekolah pasti membencinya."
"Ya. Waktu itu, seorang lulusan Kalaroguard mabuk dan berbicara tentang pilar kembar di depan Tuan Gonadaltes, lalu dikubur hidup-hidup di bawah makam. Kalian juga harus menjaga perkataan di depan Tuan Gonadaltes."
"..."
Para siswa berpura-pura tidak mendengar, karena itu cerita yang jauh lebih brutal dari yang mereka duga.
Yi-Han, penasaran tentang Baldurguard, bertanya,
"Tapi Tuan Alcicle. Meskipun begitu, itu kan sekolah sihir, apakah mereka bisa lulus ujian hanya dengan melakukannya sebagai hobi?"
"Ujian?"
Alcicle mengepakkan siripnya dengan kebingungan.
Dia tidak mengerti apa yang dikatakan Yi-Han.
"Ujian apa?"
"Maksudku ujian internal Baldurguard."
"Ah. Baldurguard tidak punya ujian."
Mendengar kata-kata mengejutkan ini, sekeliling menjadi hening dan udara terasa dingin.
Meski Alcicle tidak menyadarinya, semua siswa menatap dengan mata terbelalak karena terkejut.
"Itu aturan internal sekolah bahwa tidak pantas untuk sembarangan mengevaluasi para bangsawan yang terhormat."
"B-bajingan gila!"
"Pendeta Siana..."
"M-maaf."
"Bagaimana bisa mereka melakukan itu? Bagaimana bisa?"
"Kirim surat rahasia kepada Yang Mulia Kaisar! Dasar anak-anak haram itu!"
"Ayo kita pergi saja dan bakar tempat itu!"
"...Apakah ini hal yang perlu membuat semarah itu?"
Alcicle gelagapan melihat reaksi yang begitu intens di luar dugaan.
Apa hubungannya Baldurguard tidak punya ujian dengan Einroguard?
Tapi kemarahan para siswa tidak mereda. Gainando menghentakkan kaki dan melempar grimoire-nya ke udara, lalu dipukul sekali oleh Yi-Han.
Yi-Han menghentikan teman-temannya dan bertanya lagi.
"Tapi ada siswa di antara mereka yang bilang keterampilannya termasuk yang terbaik, kalau tidak ada ujian, apakah mereka menilai sendiri di antara mereka?"
"Yah... Para profesor Baldurguard akan memberi tahu semua siswa bahwa mereka termasuk yang terbaik kalau mereka bertanya tentang keterampilan mereka."
"..."
"M-mungkin aku seharusnya masuk Baldurguard?"
Gainando bergumam tanpa sadar.
Teman-temannya, yang menemukan seorang pengkhianat, mengecamnya dengan suara penuh amarah.
"Yi-Han! Gainando bilang dia ingin pergi ke Baldurguard!"
"Dasar pengkhianat! Aku sudah merasa ada yang mencurigakan sejak dia mengundang kita!"
"T-tidak! Itu bercanda! Bercanda!"
Alcicle merasa sudah terlalu banyak menjelek-jelekkan Baldurguard dan berdeham.
"Aku tidak akan menyangkal bahwa pengajaran Baldurguard agak... longgar."
"Agak?"
"Mungkin Anda tidak tahu arti kata 'agak'..."
Mendengar reaksi marah para siswa, Alcicle menutup telinganya dan berpura-pura tidak mendengar.
"Tapi mage hebat juga muncul dari Baldurguard. Siswa tahun bawah tidak tahu kekurangan mereka, tapi seiring berjalannya waktu, beberapa orang mulai menyadari bahwa mereka kurang."
Para siswa Baldurguard yang menyadari bahwa keterampilan sihir mereka tidak begitu hebat seiring naiknya tingkat terbagi menjadi dua kelompok.
Satu adalah tipe yang menikmati aktivitas sosial sambil meyakinkan diri secara mental bahwa 'Yang penting bukan sihir melainkan garis darah bangsawan'.
Yang lain adalah tipe yang terlambat mencurahkan diri pada pembelajaran sihir.
Dan biasanya, tipe yang kedua jauh lebih sedikit.
'Aku tidak boleh memberi tahu mereka hal ini.'
Alcicle dengan penuh kesadaran berusaha menyembunyikan fakta bahwa tipe yang kedua jauh lebih sedikit.
Dia merasa sudah terlalu banyak mengatakan hal buruk tentang Baldurguard.
"Apakah mereka benar-benar muncul?"
"Bukankah sekitar satu per tahun?"
"..."
Melihat para siswa Einroguard yang tajam, Alcicle mengganti topik.
"Sihir apa yang kalian tunjukkan? Kau tidak menunjukkan sihir, kan, Wardanaz?"
"Aku tidak menunjukkan apa pun. Teman-temanku yang lain yang menunjukkannya."
"Fiuh. Syukurlah."
Alcicle menghela napas lega.
Seandainya Yi-Han sendiri yang mempersiapkan dan menunjukkan sihir, guncangan bagi para siswa Baldurguard akan di luar bayangan.
"Kalau begitu mereka akan baik-baik saja."
"Kuharap begitu. Kami cukup banyak berbicara tentang sihir, jadi kuharap mereka akan tertarik pada sihir bahkan setelah pulang."
Teman-temannya saling bertukar pandang dengan ekspresi rumit.
Mungkin akan lebih baik kalau Yi-Han sendiri yang menunjukkannya...
***
Beberapa hari setelah kunjungan para siswa Baldurguard berakhir (anehnya, para siswa Baldurguard tidak berkunjung lagi setelah itu), Yi-Han dipanggil oleh Nyonya Kraha.
"Aku memanggilmu seperti ini karena penasaran apakah kau baik-baik saja."
"Saya baik-baik saja berkat perhatian Anda, Nyonya Kraha."
Nyonya Kraha merenung sejenak, lalu melipat kipasnya dan bertanya dengan hati-hati.
"Omong-omong, apakah semua siswa yang berkunjung ke mansion benar-benar teman Gainando?"
"...Ya."
Yi-Han sedikit gelagapan. Merasakan hal itu, lawan bicaranya berdeham.
"Aku hanya penasaran."
Chapter 658
"I heard Baldurguard students came?"
Just then, Alcicle entered the reception building, munching on sardines.
"They left."
"Already?"
Alcicle was puzzled.
It was quite strange for them to just leave without meeting Alcicle of the Pengerin family, knowing he was there.
"That's right. They even left their reagent pouches."
"I guess I'll have to deliver them."
Without realizing it, Alcicle had saved the lives of the two Baldurguard students.
It was such a good deed that two anonymous families would later provide massive research support to Alcicle.
"You didn't bully them, did you?"
"They said they wanted to show magic, so we saw a little magic, and we showed some magic in return."
"Oh no..."
Alcicle realized his mistake at the Einroguard students' words.
"Then of course they'd be discouraged."
"Huh? What magic did we show that would discourage them?"
Yi-Han couldn't believe it, but his friends slightly sympathized.
Wasn't there a friend from the Wardanaz family right in front of them who had been shattering the self-esteem of students who thought 'Maybe I'm talented?' among last year's freshmen from the beginning of the semester?
"Baldurguard kids aren't very good at magic. After all, there are many who do it as a hobby."
"Isn't Baldurguard, along with Einroguard, considered one of the twin pillars among the empire's magic schools?"
Siana tilted her head.
She couldn't understand Alcicle's words.
The ones who came earlier were like that too, and she had occasionally heard rumors like 'Baldurguard is one of the twin pillars of imperial magic schools along with Einroguard!'
"That's a rumor spread by Baldurguard students?"
"..."
"..."
Yi-Han and his friends were shocked.
Imperial rumors were truly not to be trusted.
"To begin with, all other magic schools say they're the twin pillars along with Einroguard. It's just that Baldurguard students spread it particularly well because there are many with high status."
"What vile bastards!"
Gainando jumped up and down.
To spread their reputation with such vile methods instead of doing magic!
"Is that allowed?"
"It's not. It's insulting to you all. Lord Gonadaltes really hates it too."
"The principal would certainly hate it."
"Yeah. Last time, a Kalaroguard graduate got drunk and talked about twin pillars in front of Lord Gonadaltes, and was buried alive under a tomb. You should watch your words in front of Lord Gonadaltes too."
"..."
The students pretended not to hear, as it was a much more violent story than they had expected.
Yi-Han, curious about Baldurguard, asked,
"But Mr. Alcicle. Even so, it's a magic school, can they pass tests just doing it as a hobby?"
"Tests?"
Alcicle flapped his flippers in puzzlement.
He didn't understand what Yi-Han was saying.
"What tests?"
"I mean Baldurguard's internal tests."
"Ah. Baldurguard doesn't have tests."
At these shocking words, the surroundings became quiet and the air chilled.
Though Alcicle didn't know, all the students were staring with their eyes wide open in shock.
"It's an internal school rule that it's not right to arbitrarily evaluate dignified nobles."
"Th-those crazy bastards!"
"Priestess Siana..."
"I-I'm sorry."
"How can they do that? How?"
"Send a secret letter to His Majesty the Emperor! These sons of bitches!"
"Let's just go and set it on fire!"
"...Is it something to get so angry about?"
Alcicle was flustered by the unexpectedly intense reaction.
What did Baldurguard not having tests have to do with Einroguard?
But the students' anger didn't subside. Gainando stomped his feet and threw his grimoire up in the air, then got hit once by Yi-Han.
Yi-Han stopped his friends and asked again.
"But there was a student among them who said his skills were among the best, if there are no tests, do they just judge among themselves?"
"Well... Baldurguard professors will tell all students they're among the best if they ask about their skills."
"..."
"M-maybe I should have gone to Baldurguard?"
Gainando muttered without realizing it.
His friends, discovering a traitor, condemned him in angry voices.
"Yi-Han! Gainando says he wants to go to Baldurguard!"
"You traitor! I thought something was suspicious from when he invited us!"
"N-no! It's a joke! A joke!"
Alcicle felt like he had badmouthed Baldurguard too much and cleared his throat.
"I won't deny that Baldurguard's teaching is a bit... lax."
"A bit?"
"Perhaps you don't know the meaning of 'a bit'..."
At the students' angry reactions, Alcicle closed his ears and pretended not to hear.
"But outstanding mages do come out of Baldurguard too. Lower year students don't know their shortcomings, but as time passes, some guys start to notice they're lacking."
Baldurguard students who realized their magic skills weren't that great as they advanced in years were divided into two groups.
One was the type that enjoyed social activities while mentally convincing themselves that 'What's important is not magic but noble bloodline'.
The other was the type that belatedly devoted themselves to the study of magic.
And usually, the latter was much fewer.
'I shouldn't tell them this.'
Alcicle conscientiously tried to hide the fact that the latter was much fewer.
He felt like he had said too many bad things about Baldurguard.
"Do they really come out?"
"Isn't it about one per year?"
"..."
Seeing the sharp Einroguard students, Alcicle changed the subject.
"What magic did you show? You didn't show magic, did you, Wardanaz?"
"I didn't show any. My other friends showed it."
"Phew. That's a relief."
Alcicle let out a sigh of relief.
If Yi-Han had prepared and shown magic himself, the shock to the Baldurguard students would have been beyond imagination.
"Then they'll be fine."
"I hope so. We talked quite a lot about magic, so I hope they'll take an interest in magic even after going back."
His friends exchanged glances with complex expressions.
It might have been better if Yi-Han had shown it himself...
***
A few days after the Baldurguard students' visit ended (strangely, the Baldurguard students didn't visit again after that), Yi-Han was summoned by Lady Kraha.
"I called you like this because I was curious if you were doing well."
"I'm doing well thanks to your consideration, Lady Kraha."
Lady Kraha pondered for a moment, then folded her fan and carefully asked.
"By the way, are all the students who visited the mansion really Gainando's friends?"
"...Yes."
Yi-Han was slightly flustered. Sensing this, the other cleared her throat.
"I was just curious."
"I-I see."
"I'm wondering what you plan to do today. If you haven't decided where to go out, I'd like to recommend a place."
"Ah. I have somewhere to go today. I'm planning to go around the shopping district with my junior."
Yi-Han was thinking of going around the shopping district with Eandurde along with his friends.
He wanted to get various necessary things for Eandurde because she had so few belongings.
As it was such a prosperous commercial city, they would be able to buy many things that couldn't be bought elsewhere.
"Junior? As far as I know, you shouldn't be able to meet Einroguard juniors right now..."
Lady Kraha said, sending a puzzled look through her veil.
Yi-Han briefly explained what had happened this winter break.
"...So I've been taking care of her simply until she enters."
"!!!"
Lady Kraha looked at Yi-Han with surprised eyes.
To think the Wardanaz family boy would take such good care of someone else!
No matter how she looked at it, she couldn't believe it.
"By any chance, do you have a hobby of taking care of people who look pitiful?!"
"Huh? No, I don't."
"Gainando too..."
"..."
Yi-Han was at a loss for words, unable to believe the other's words.
"That junior won't have any money, how do you plan to pay for the items?"
"For now, I'm planning to pay."
Imperial rich people might laugh, but by Yi-Han's standards, he himself had accumulated quite a fortune.
It was thanks to working hard for the past year. Not just anyone could save over a hundred imperial gold coins.
As such, he could spend this much on his junior.
And...
"That won't do."
"Pardon?"
"The Kraha family will pay. We can't not do this much for a guest who came to our mansion."
"Oh, it's really fine. I was planning to bill the principal when we return to school."
"..."
Lady Kraha was surprised once again.
To think a boy who would soon become a 2nd year would go to present a bill to the skull principal.
It was not only gutsy but impossible without close friendship.
"...You really don't have a hobby of taking care of people who look pitiful, right?"
"No, why do you have such a misunderstanding?"
"It's nothing... Then let's do this. I'll gift gold coins to you, Wardanaz. You use them for your junior. Since you used your own money, you can submit a bill to the principal."
"My goodness! What a good method! I'll do that!"
"..."
Lady Kraha, who had planned to push if the other refused out of courtesy, was slightly taken aback by Yi-Han's immediate acceptance.
...Is he on bad terms with the principal?
"But is it really okay for you to do that? I'm worried you might be wasting too many gold coins..."
"It's fine. I have places to save."
***
"Mother cut off my allowance!"
Gainando walked among his friends with a tearful face.
"What on earth did you do?"
"Yeah, you should have stopped oversleeping so much."
"Gainando. You may not be from a knight family, but waking up early is..."
"Ah, it's not that! It's all because of you guys!"
"???"
His friends were puzzled by the sudden accusation.
What did we do??
Nillia hesitantly said,
"M-maybe she got angry because you ate too many cookies?"
"She says most of you work and earn money on your own without receiving allowances even during breaks, so I should learn from my friends!"
"..."
Yi-Han quietly slipped the pouch he received from Lady Kraha into his clothes.
Gainando might realize the truth if he saw the family crest engraved on the pouch.
"Gainando. I'll buy you cotton candy over there, so cheer up."
"Yi... Yi-Han...!"
At Yi-Han's words, Gainando was about to be moved but then stopped.
"I don't have to study that much if I eat that, right?"
"No. I'm just buying it for you."
"Yi-Han...!"
Gainando's tearful expression cleared.
He had at least one real friend after all.
"What does Eandurde need?"
"Should we buy some more clothes first? All the clothes received at the mansion are too uncomfortable formal wear to move in... She'll need comfortable clothes."
When the topic of clothes came up, Eandurde struggled, saying she didn't like dresses. Yi-Han soothed his junior and said,
"No, no. We're not going to buy clothes. We're going to buy weapons."
"...Weapons are fine..."
Yi-Han signaled with his eyes. It was a signal to drag her to the clothing store before the junior realized.
"She'll probably need a small cauldron and mortar for alchemy too."
"Why's that?"
"She could earn money with alchemy when she comes out during breaks."
'Couldn't she not learn alchemy...?'
Yonaire thought inwardly but nodded.
In fact, Yonaire also greatly enjoyed choosing alchemy tools for her junior.
"I have something I'd like to recommend too. Lock picking tools..."
"Hmm. Then I'd like to recommend some useful armor."
"Mage cards! She needs mage cards too!"
It was enjoyable shopping for everyone except Eandurde. Yi-Han nodded with a pleased expression.
"Let's go around one by..."
At the end of the road in front of Yi-Han as he was about to walk, the figure of a familiar mage appeared.
It was Professor Boladi.
"...Let's return to the mansion today, and go around tomorrow?"
"??"
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