Chapter 6: ‘The Honor Students’

06

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That evening, I was invited by Tosh to go to the cafeteria, which was in a separate building.
As we were deep in the mountains, ingredients must be hard to come by, but the menu at the cafeteria was quite impressive. There was a stew of vegetables and white bread.

“Woah, there’s meat in there! Is it chicken?”
Tosh’s eyes sparkled.
Apparently, they had a long-term contract with a village at the foot of the mountain to supply them with vegetables and meat.

I looked around the cafeteria, vaguely watching Tosh eat as he sat across from me. There were fewer people than I expected.
I suppose most of the new students had not arrived yet, but the older students were also surprisingly few in number.

I’d heard that the Maldegar Academy of Magic had a two-year program, and apparently it was true.
But what are you supposed to learn in just two years? It had taken me five years to master the basics and graduate from being an apprentice. And I was praised for being a quick learner.

“Hey, To…”
I tried to ask Tosh a question, but was surprised by how he was eating.
“What, Jin?”
“Just look at yourself.”
I pushed the question aside and chided him.

“Don’t put the vegetables on the edge of the plate. And don’t just eat the meat. Eat vegetables, too.”
“Why does it matter, as long as I get full?”
It’s not good.
“It’s bad for your health. You need nutrition.”
“Nutrition?”

Tosh looked at me strangely, so I told him what my master had taught me.
“If you don’t eat a balanced diet of meat, vegetables and grains, your body will break down.”
“But I don’t eat vegetables at all and have never gotten sick?”
Because you’re an idiot.
Stupid people don’t even notice when they catch a cold. I used to be like that.

I sighed.
“You’ll be in trouble when you’re middle-aged. Anyway, just eat them.”
“I finally got away from home, only to have befriended someone who nags…”
We’re not friends yet. And I’m much older than you.

“Come on, don’t waste the food.”
“All right, all right.”
Tosh ate the root vegetables with a sullen look on his face. Apparently, he really doesn’t like vegetables.
Still, it’s a very nutritious meal. A perfect meal for young people. I’m impressed with my fellow disciple..

Tosh swallows the root vegetables with water, and then looks at me.
“Ah, that’s right. The others who were in the second exam are here too. Though, they’re in the girls’ dorm.”
“I see.”
Now that I thought about it, there had been two other girls with us. Spirit arts and ancient magic users, I think.
So they got in as well.

Tosh furrowed his brow.
“I see? You don’t seem to be interested?”
“Not really.”
I’m going to be gone soon anyway.

“You’re a strange one. The only academy where you can study with girls is the Maldegar Academy of Magic.”
“I’m not sure what you want me to say.”
Inside, I’m an old man, you know. It would be quite disgusting for me to be right there with you and make eyes at those girls.

I wanted to say that, but I couldn’t. So I’ll just say something random.
“I’m not interested in anything but magic.”
“You’re really strange, you are.”
Can you please just leave me alone?

But then Tosh smirks.
“Speak of the devil. Will you look at that.”
“I’m not interested…”
But I turned around reluctantly and saw a group of girls walking towards us.

One of them uses spirit arts, and is wearing a bunch of carnelian jewelry that is believed to have the blessings of the fire spirit.
And in spite of being in this cold mountain castle, she is wearing very light clothes.
Well, fire spirit wielders are able to control heat, so they are somewhat resistant to hot and cold weather.

“Woo-hoo…”
“Tosh, keep your mouth shut.”
Apparently, it was a rather exciting outfit for young Tosh, but it’s strictly forbidden to say anything about their clothing.
Spirit arts are often associated with belief in nature. Her dancer-like uniform is that of a shrine maiden who worships the Fire Spirit.

The other one is of the ancient magic arts. She wore a stone necklace engraved with ancient letters. The ancient script makes it easy to keep secrets because other schools cannot read it.
I’ve studied the ancient language as well, so I can read a bit. That was a simple amulet to ward off evil.

Then the spirit arts girl waved at us.
“Nice to see you two again.”
“Aye, I’m Tosh. An elemental magician. This is Jin.”
“You’re number 029. I remember you.”
For some reason, she sighed.

“I am Ajura. A spirit wielder with the spirit of fire as my friend.”
It was Remedia, one of the Eight Wise Men, who started the Spiritual Art, but it was said that after Remedia’s death, the leading disciples had split up.

“I’m proud to say that we wielders of fire spirits are the closest to the Spirit Ruler Remedia. Of course, we can use other spirits as well. It’s nice to meet you.”
Spirit Ruler? She would probably blush if she could hear this.

After Tosh and I greeted her, Ajura introduced us to the girl beside her.
“And this is Nashia. She’s an honor student, just like us.”
“Nice to meet you, I’m Nashia. I’m a member of the Euphratus school of ancient magic.”
Euphratus… Ah, I’ve heard of this one too.

One of Hugo’s disciples who was in the Eight Wise Men was from there.
So that little boy with the curly hair had grown up enough to start his own school. That spoiled brat who grabbed Hugo by the hem and wouldn’t let go.
I’m sure that Hugo is happy in the afterlife or wherever he is.

Tosh added to Nashia’s words.
”The Euphratus School is a prestigious school close to the founder Hugo, right? It’s no wonder you’re an honor student.”
“Hehe, you’re making me blush…”
The founder Hugo, eh? You’ve become a great man as well.

And then Tosh suddenly tilted his head.
“Nashia, are you a foreigner by any chance?”
“What?”
She looked surprised for a moment, and then guarded.

Tosh waved his hands frantically.
“I’m sorry if I offended you. I don’t know what it is, but I just had that feeling.”
“Ah,.. Yes..”
She calmed her breathing and then smiled.

“I have a family home in the far south in Mirende”.
Mirende, I believe, is a peninsula at the southern tip of the continent. It’s a confederacy of merchants formed by a number of trading ports.
Tosh said admiringly,

“Studying abroad, huh? This place is famous abroad, so it’s not unusual. Still, you must be rich.”
“Well, yes. My father is a newly rich trader.”
“Newly rich…”
“Well, it’s the truth.”
You don’t need to tell us.

Nashia burst into laughter.
“I was told that I can enroll here because they have a girls dormitory.”
“Ah, same with me. It feels quite safe here, doesn’t it?”
Ajura nodded in agreement.

There were only a few places where women could study academics. Most of the places were monopolized by men. The only exception to this was doctors, but they were often only allowed to treat female patients.
That was why the Maldegar Academy of Magic was such a great educational institution for women.

Come to think of it, the ratio of male to female students here is about fifty-fifty. You could say that this was an exception among exceptions. In the first place, coeducational schools are extremely rare, and even in such schools, more than ninety percent of the students are boys.
It is not fair.

(Hmmm)
But as I stroked my smooth chin and contemplated social issues, I suddenly remembered that I hadn’t introduced myself yet.
I’d better finish that first.

“I am Subaru Jin. Descendant of a country warrior. I learned magic by just piecing it together at random. It’s nice to meet you.”
“Piecing it together…”
It’s the truth, so it can’t be helped. Unlike the others, magic arts had not been my major.

Ajura stared at me for a moment, then shrugged.
“So you want to keep your secrets then. Oh well, everyone has things they wish to keep to themselves.”
Yes, I’ve been so secretive. Sorry about that.

“Well, I guess we’ll be having dinner as well.”
“Aye, see you later.”
The girls waved at us and then walked to another table. I guess they wanted to eat comfortably together.
Tosh looked a little disappointed as they left, but then he suddenly turned to me.

“Jin, now that I’ve seen them again, they really are pretty, aren’t they?
“Sorry, I didn’t pay much attention to their looks.”
“You…”
You may think I’m being a jerk, but I can’t help it because I’m an old man.
My heart aches with guilt towards young Tosh.

Let’s talk about something else. That’s right. Information gathering.
“What do you mean to study at this school, Tosh?”
“What? Oh, um… Well, just learn some magic and then I’ll get a job.”
“A job?”

Magic and getting a job didn’t really connect in my mind, and so I asked him.
“Will graduating from this place lead to a job for you?”
“You came here without even knowing about it!? If you graduate from here, you’re almost certain to be appointed as a government official. You’ll be safe for life. Though, you can’t choose where you work, and you have to respond to royal summonses, and there are a lot of obligations…”

If that’s the case, I wondered if we would learn magic or something that could be used to organize documents. But if that’s the case, the weird practical test for the entrance exam becomes a mystery.
The mystery deepened even more, but there was also something to gain.
I would keep gathering information at this pace.

Next Chapter

The Hiding Wise Man Can Not Hide