How to Survive at the Academy - Chapter 41: Cat, Cat, Cat (2)

Chapter 41: Cat, Cat, Cat (2)

Cat, Cat, Cat (2)

Even for someone like Lortel, who grew up meeting all sorts of people, Lucy Mayreel was a girl that was nearly impossible to understand.

Walking through the school grounds, you would sometimes catch her peacefully sleeping in a nice and sunny spot. She was someone that you would consider an oddball as you walked past her.

However, she was also someone that had once been seen destroying a high-ranking spirit at the top of a mountain on the northwest side of the island. There was also the time that she got rid of a bunch of monsters that resembled sharks with a single motion of her hand…

Lortel had often heard stories of people seeing her around, wielding an immense amount of transcendental strength.

But during the Glasskan or Ophelis Hall incident, she could be found sleeping in a corner—not even thinking of helping out with her powers. There was a limit to how ridiculous a person could be, even if they were the type that lived at their own pace.

In the first place, Lortel’s resources didn’t have a single bit of information about Lucy Mayreel’s identity or life.

She couldn’t even take a guess as to where she came from or what she did before entering Silvenia. 

In addition to that, it didn’t make any sense as to why she would be attending the academy when she already had the strength to destroy an entire city.

She regularly attended classes, but most of the time she was dozing off. Even then, the professor in charge—Glast—would never lay a finger on Lucy.

In the first place, there wasn’t a sign that he was trying to teach Lucy anything. One time Ziggs, who couldn’t stand it anymore, actually went up to complain to Professor Glast about her behavior.

“That student is not at a level where it would matter if I taught her or not. You shouldn’t worry about her. She’s the type that, once there’s something she needs to achieve, she will realize it and grow by herself.”

She was a student at the level that even a professor, whose entire job was to guide and nurture students, would say such a thing. In the end, Ziggs and Lortel had no choice but to leave Lucy to her eccentric ways.

Although the situation bothered her a little, Lucy didn’t really bother Lortel. Actually, they had never even talked before in the first place.

Always walking around school with a blank expression, eating when she was hungry, and sleeping when she was tired… Wasn’t she just like a stray cat?

Before, Lortel had wished that Lucy could become a personal connection to her so that she could make use of her transcendental strength. However, the more she saw her, the more she gave up on her hopes of being able to use her.

Thinking of things like that, she had become quite adjusted to Lucy.

“Mughaaaaak!”

Humph.

Ed lifted up Lucy on his shoulder as he carried her to the wooden shelter outside. He then opened up the door again and entered the building.

“Oh. Sorry. You woke up, Lortel. I guess Lucy came to hide out in the cabin. I got rid of her already, so you can just relax like it’s your own home.”

Ed wiped off his sweat, as if he had just finished all the cleaning that had been delayed.

The Second Morning of Lortel’s Life in the Cabin.

The first day went insanely quick.

For the first time in her life, she washed herself out in a stream. Since her clothes were drying, she wore extremely worn-out clothes as she sat awkwardly in the corner of the cabin. Ed minded his own business as he cooked up some fish and gave it to her. Eating it, she felt a strange sense of warmth and comfort. 

Looking up at the starry sky, she started to soak in the romantic atmosphere… There were all sorts of exciting and heart-racing experiences that had happened to her, so many that it was hard to summarize in just one sentence.

As someone being chased, it was fun to finally go outside. Since she had spent most of her time stuck inside the cabin, just sitting outside in the camp gave her a strange sense of satisfaction… Even though the wooden floor was hard and tough, she was able to get a good night’s sleep on it.

However, calling her life hiding out in the camp a romantic healing experience… it was a bit difficult to call it that. Being on the run from someone had also played a role in it, but the most inconvenient thing for her was her natural enemy.

“I heard that Yennekar stopped by this morning. I guess she came over to read some books at the campfire, then do some spiritual training. If you need anything, you can also just let her know.”

The night before, Yennekar had stayed as late as possible—until curfew, when she had to return to Dex Hall.

She returned to the northern forest early in the morning. She seemed to be spending all her time there, over the full three days that Lortel was there, sitting at the camp.

Occasionally, when they would make eye contact outside the door, Yennekar would smile with the brightest, most positive expression in the world. Not falling far behind, Lortel would respond with her own bright, energetic smile. It felt like they were getting tired of dealing with each other.

Anyways, over the three days that she had given up her life of being a merchant, the only enemy for Lortel was Yennekar. 

…At least, that’s what she thought.

“Lucy seems to come by the camp often?”

“Tell me about it. I just think of her as a natural disaster.” 

“……”

Lortel felt her unique gut feeling starting to growl.

Thinking about the fact that she saw Lucy both that day and the day before, she wondered if she was spending too much time at the camp.

Whenever she had the chance, she would sit next to Ed’s side, pick up some jerky on the drying rack, sleep somewhere like the roof of the cabin, or go over to the rocks that were near Ed while he chopped firewood to tell him random stories.

In the first place, there was no reason to have any suspicions about Lucy, due to her nature. However, that was only with the way things were currently.

Even Ed began to think of her visiting the camp as a natural thing, like a part of the scenery. Whenever she came to her senses, she was always sitting next to him. Wasn’t that pretty dangerous?

As said before, the opportunity for a relationship between a man and women to progress came from a change in perception. If Lucy were to change her behavior and feel some sense of love or desire towards Ed… There would be another disaster, one other than Yennekar. Actually, it could be even more troublesome.

It was one of the many lessons she learned while living in the world of business. If you found the seed of a disaster, it was best to remove it immediately.

However, the way of doing so was troubling. If someone were to ask ‘How?’, she couldn’t help but respond with a vague answer.

“It may get a bit noisy, but I’m very busy, so please try to understand.”

Ed brought over a pile of bricks that came out of seemingly nowhere and began to pile them up.

Lortel nodded her head timidly as she glared at the wooden shelter, barely able to see through the crack of the open door.

Wearing clothes that were completely messy and not straightened, Lucy—who was laying down stuffing her mouth full of jerky—had fallen asleep… Her appearance definitely suggested that she had no interest at all when it came to love, or the desire to keep Ed to herself.

In the first place, it was clear that she had built up some sort of wall for those emotions… Lortel started to wonder if she had just overreacted.

Anyway, Lucy was hard to understand from a normal person’s perspective, due to her unpredictable actions. 

There was no harm in being too careful, but there was also no need to overreact and tire herself out for no reason.

The relationship between Ed and Lucy was a matter between those two, and not for someone like Lortel to intervene in. Even though they weren’t in a romantic relationship yet, trying to restrain her partner’s actions seemed like a tiring move to make.

After some degree of self-reflection, Lortel nodded her head as she leaned back against the wall of the cabin.

She wondered if she had become unnecessarily sensitive to those unfamiliar feelings. Slowly, she started to enjoy her appearance, which was now quite different from the norm.

She held her knees as she placed her chin on them, playing with her hair and taking secret glances at Ed’s back as he carried the bricks.

She couldn’t help but let out a laugh like an idiot, though she didn’t want to ruin her image of being an experienced and merciless merchant by showing off that side of herself. She ducked her head.

Right then, Lortel’s mask was her most powerful weapon.

Either way, she currently believed that she didn’t need to be too sensitive about Ed’s other relationships.

She had more than enough time left.

* * *

[Newly Finished Product]

Handmade Brick

A brick formed by pouring mud into a mold to keep its shape.

After it is thoroughly dried, Ignite magic is applied to burn it into a brick. 

Production Difficulty Level: ●●○○○

《 Production completed. Production skills have increased. 》Succeeded in mastering a skill.Through the Dexterity Stat, the amount in which the proficiency raises at once has increased.

[Newly Finished Product]

Brick Fireplace

A fireplace made by stacking together hand-made bricks.

Because the joints were treated with mud, it’s not sturdy.

However, it appears to fulfill its role as a stove.

If used indoors, it appears necessary to attach a ventilation pipe. 

Production Difficulty Level: ●●◐○○

《 Production completed. Production skills have increased. 》

Crackle, crackle.

I was working on it the entire morning, but I still didn’t have enough time to make a chimney. I had no choice but to make use of the afternoon or work late into the night to do it.

Still, I was satisfied with the level of the finished product itself, which was a great feeling that I hadn’t felt in a while. Just a bit more, and it wouldn’t be long until the day I could move into the cabin fully.

I had a safe environment to live in. What a dream-like thing to say.

“Oh my. The smell is quite unique. Did you add basil?”

“Bell gave me some last time. You could figure it out just by smelling it?”

“I’m quite confident in my sense of smell.”

Lortel, who was humming a song. Yennekar, who was glaring at her. And finally, me. The three of us gathered around the fire as I finished preparing lunch.

It was a dish made from raw fish, cut into filets and then grilled on a grate with various spices as seasoning.

As my cooking skill proficiency increased as time passed, as well as the fact that I was in an environment where I could gather and use a variety of ingredients, it felt like the types of food I could eat had risen quite a bit.

Well, it was still all food that came from the wild… But anyway, the taste had been improving each day, which was a positive. Once I finished constructing the cabin, maybe it wouldn’t be a bad idea to try and grow some small vegetables myself.

Taking a bite with a stick, it proved to be full of juice, which seeped into my mouth and made it water.

“I haven’t seen any sort of significant movement this morning. I think things are probably going as well as planned.”

Lortel covered her mouth with a modest movement as she chewed on her food and continued speaking. Yennekar seemed to be upset, as she was pouting without saying anything.

“After coming this far, all that’s left is to wait it out for the results.”

“Alright. That’s a good thing, but don’t let your guard down.”

“Of course, Ed.”

Lortel smiled brightly as she spoke in a cheerful voice, which was unusual.

“Well, there’s a lot of work that needs to be done now. There’s lots of things to clean up in the aftermath, and I also need to pay you back.”

“Twenty gold coins isn’t a big deal for your wallet though, is it?”

“No matter how small the amount is, it must be paid back thoroughly. After all, I’m a merchant. Is there anything else you want, other than the cash? There is some remaining inventory in the branch warehouse that I can allow you to have.”

“I’m not sure. I feel like you’ll take advantage of me by giving me goods instead of money.”

“Oh my.”

Lortel twisted her reddish hair as she laughed aloud.

“I wouldn’t play a game to try and trick you. Why are you trying to make me sad?”

“Hmm… As for something that comes to my mind right now… Maybe construction materials? … No, I know what I want. How about leftover magically engineered goods?”

“Magically engineered goods?”

I had already finished deciding on what to choose for my production skill slot. Magic Engineering and Spiritual Infusion.

Between those two, the Magic Engineering related skill required you to be exposed to as many magically engineered products as possible if you wanted to increase your proficiency. That was why it was a lot easier if you knew someone who could distribute them.

“Doesn’t have to be practical. Just any cheap leftover items you have.”

“Hmm…”

Lortel put her hand on her chin, seemingly lost in thought.

“You can let me know after you check your inventory.”

“No, I’ll think about it now. I’ve pretty much memorized everything already.”

“You’ve memorized all of that?”

“Watching and checking the inventory’s stock everyday, I can always memorize certain items that don’t have much of a change.”

I wasn’t sure. It wasn’t something that I was seriously considering at the moment, but Lortel was already considering my request more seriously and aggressively than I had expected.

“But is there a reason for why you’re asking for cheap, unpopular items?”

“Well… It’s not going to be all that useful, and it would be ridiculous to ask for something expensive, creating another debt or a burden.”

“Ahh~. If that’s the case, then… Just wait a moment as I try to find something…”

Lortel smiled as she stepped out of the way for a moment, falling into thought. I waited for a minute or two… but after she sat there thinking for a while, I reached out to grab some more food.

“Come to think of it, Yennekar—I would like to ask you for a favor.”

“Hhmng?”

Yennekar, who was eating a piece of fish, trembled. Perhaps she was surprised by me suddenly calling her name, or maybe she was just choking. I quickly handed her some water.

“Puhaaaaa!” 

“……”

“You have a favor to ask?”

* * *

* * *

I had been hesitant to bring it up, but after thinking about it for a bit, I realized that there was no reason for me to be so worried. 

“These days, I’m trying to learn more about spirit-type magic. I also want to try making a contract with a low-ranking spirit. I was wondering if I could get some help with that.”

“Yeah.”

Yennekar twisted her braided hair, humming thoughtfully. Suddenly, she let out an ‘aha!’ and nodded her head.

“Thinking about it, Takan has been talking about you so much, Ed. His neck is still a bit stiff after you cut it.”

“……”

“You don’t have to look like that, Ed. Takan may be a bit grumpy, but I still made it clear to him. Because of the circumstances, you didn’t have a choice. I told him to quit being so emotional, or I’d get mad!”

Picturing her getting mad, all I could picture is her just stamping her feet and puffing her cheeks out. Of course, that wasn’t very trustworthy.

There was nothing good that came from being on bad terms with a high-ranking spirit, but… He probably wouldn’t take his anger out on me, right?

“Takan still hasn’t fully recovered his strength yet. Still, I know that you were the one who was able to block him while he was affected by Berserk… He’s grumbling a bit, but I don’t think he has any hard feelings. Anyway, Ed. Your Spiritual Resonance must be quite high.”

“I guess that’s right.”

That was the result of defeating not only Takan, but also all the other spirits that were under Yennekar’s control.

I was sure that Yennekar knew quite well that it was a situation that I didn’t have another choice in.

In the first place, Yennekar still seemed to hold a significant amount of guilt over what happened, and she didn’t want to keep talking about it anymore.

“Then… Can you see it…?”

Yennekar suddenly spoke, spreading her arms wide.

“… Huh?”

“Hmm… I guess your sensitivity to see spirits that haven’t been manifested yet is too weak… Do you want to try grabbing my hand, Ed?”

“Your hand? All of a sudden?”

“… No, no. That’s not what I meant! It’s because there is something I want to show you. That’s all!”

I didn’t really have any suspicions in the first place as I grabbed her hand.

“O-oh. Ed, y-your hand is bigger than I thought.”

“Your hand is just small.”

Saying that, I closed my eyes for a moment before opening them back up. I couldn’t help but be startled.

“Fifty-three animals… that’s a bit less than usual…”

Rabbit, hawk, deer, tiger, eagle, puppy, sparrow… numerous animals, the number of which was difficult to list, were all around us. Each of them had a different size and element making up their body. It was an incredibly rare sight to see.

Sitting on Yennekar’s shoulder was a sparrow made of wind. Wrapping around her right arm was a baby boa constrictor. A puppy, who had dirt falling off its feet, was hanging around her feet. There was a deer made of fire rubbing its face against Yennekar’s cheek.

“…Is it always like this?”

“Usually they are more spread out, but whenever I come into the northern forest they always come here and gather like this. This snake, you can see it clearly, right? It hasn’t been long since it changed into a low-ranking spirit from a fluid spirit.”

“How many spirits did you make a contract with in the first place?”

“Hm? I’m not sure… I haven’t made a contract with all of these guys here… Hm… There’s one high-ranking spirit, six mid-ranking spirits, and as for low-ranking spirits… I haven’t been counting each and every one of them. Though, I think it has definitely passed triple digits.”

Reaching the lowest level of the Spiritual Resonance and Spiritual Understanding skills, you get two spirit slots at most.

Really, she was just a girl that was born loved by the spirits.

There are around 15 spirits that I could see, but also considering the ones that I still couldn’t detect, just how many are there?

“Anyway, if you’re interested in spiritual studies, I can teach you some things. But I feel that I am much better in terms of the sensory aspects, rather than the theoretical aspect… If it’s just simple magic theory, Ayla is much more knowledgeable than I am… But even then, it’s still more important for you to develop your practical Elementalism sense…”

Taylee’s companion Ayla was a bit uncertain when it came to fighting power, but she had a deep knowledge of magic. 

Just like the way areas of science and senses were different, Yennekar was an Elementalist type that is extremely developed in terms of senses.

If you wanted to learn spiritual studies, which had a thick barrier of entry, then it was best to get help from another elementalist.

In terms of spiritual studies, nobody had a more developed level of sense than Yennekar. At least within Silvenia.

“Anyway, seeing as how you’re already thinking about your first contract, you must have quite a high level in terms of Spiritual Resonance. When I first met you, you were a complete stranger to it all. You’ve grown up so fast, Ed. It seems like you have quite a bit of talent.”

I’m sure Yennekar knew why I was able to grow so fast… More than anything else, the biggest reason was because I cut off Takan’s head.

“Other than that, I’d also like to get some help from you in terms of senses. There’s a limit to how much I can do in a simple academic spiritual studies class.”

“Sure! Don’t worry about that!”

Yennekar Palerover was someone who was hard to make a personal connection with on purpose. Having such a reliable fellow student, I should have been benefiting from her.

Where else could I get one-on-one tutoring from an elementalist at that level? If I could take advantage of it, then I needed to do as much as I could… but I didn’t think it was right to say it like that.

Anyway, Yennekar was helping me out of pure goodwill.

“Then, I’ll be Ed’s master!”

Yennekar laughed before clearing her throat.

In order to act dignified, she put her arms on her hips and she cleared her throat, all while huffing confidently. Though, rather than dignified, her expression and appearance was more cute than anything else.

Still, I didn’t want to provoke Yennekar—who was starting to feel better—unnecessarily, so I clapped my hands while exclaiming, ‘Ohhhh!’

“Don’t worry! When it comes to spiritual magic, I’ll take responsibility and raise your senses! I’ll make it so you can make a contract with a mid-ranking spirit in no time!”

Seeing her smile while clearing her throat, I inclined my head in gratitude.

“Then… I guess you’re having a hard time when it comes to communicating directly with spirits?”

“Sometimes my voice seems to reach the lower-ranking spirits that I see, but I can’t really hear what they are saying to me.”

“Really? Hm… Considering the level of magic you deal with, that shouldn’t be the case. Your Spiritual Resonance and Mana Resonance have raised to a pretty decent level already, no?”

“…Yeah they did.”

“Then… Are you sure that it’s not just that the spirits aren’t talking with you? Even if you can’t hear them clearly, you should at least be able to hear the spirits vaguely…”

Yennekar said that as she thrust her index finger at the sparrow sitting on her shoulder.

The cute sparrow quickly moved onto Yennekar’s index finger.

 “Charis! Will you try to talk to Ed?”

[Lady Yennekar! This guy… because… can’t!]

Oh…! I really could hear it vaguely…!

As I started to focus on my senses with magic power, the voice started to become clear.

[In the first place, in order to hear what we are saying, he will need to raise his resonance to a higher level!]

“Is that so? But I think Ed’s rate of growth is already quite fast.”

[Think about this man’s daily life! Just how much time would he have to train in magic! You know it, too! At our weekly report meeting at your window in Dex Hall, room 203, there were reports that he was running out of food in his storage and that he needed to focus on the construction of the cabin immediately. So he didn’t have time to put his mind to anything elseaughka—]

The flow of magic power began to twist as the sparrow-shaped spirit, once sitting on the palm of her hand, disappeared in an instant. 

“… Did you hear that?”

“Vaguely?”

Pure Silence.

“But what is this weekly report meeting?”

“Well, as you know, the northern forest is a place where a lot of spirits live. So, it’s like a meeting to report on any major changes that occur, or something else they want to report to me, so I can check in on the place? It’s also where they can report to me if they feel uncomfortable with something. While it happens sometimes, just a little bit, news about you may come up. Though it’s really not a whole lot. How should I say it…? They just bring up you briefly, for the sake of manners…? It’s like the feeling of greeting a neighbor that you met in passing?”

“… Is that so?”

It seemed that she was speaking in a weird, roundabout way. What was important right then was ultimately my spirit-type magic training method.

“Anyway, I’ll regularly check on things like your Spiritual Resonance. I’m probably the best within this academy when it comes to senses. In the first place, there aren’t many people who have even developed spirit sense.”

“Alright. Thanks for that.”

In any case, with the help of a skilled elementalist, my spirit-type magic would improve quickly in a short amount of time. It really was great that I could become friends with her.

Though, I’m still thinking quite a bit about Magic Engineering.

“Oh, are you finished talking?”

Still grinning like always, Lortel entered the conversation.

“Yeah.”

“So, let’s finish discussing the magically engineered items. It seems that we have way more left over than I thought, so I can provide you with more than enough.”

I was getting good news from this side, too.

“And most of the products are actually being treated as useless assets, since they have either already expired or have not been sold for more than a certain period of time.”

“Oh. Then, can you sell it to me for the lowest price possible? You can calculate using the twenty coins you promised me and take it from that.”

“Selling at a lower price? I’m quite upset hearing those words come from you. Anyway, it’s not a huge amount of money, and they are practically just dead assets… So, even for free…”

After saying that, Lortel shook her head for a moment, looking back and forth between Yennekar and me.

Lortel looked at me with a puzzled expression, before smiling again with that foxlike smile.

“Free… Having the title of a merchant, maybe that’s a bit too much for me, hm?”

“That’s fine. I already completely understand your position, anyway.”

“Still, I’ll sell it to you for the lowest price possible. Whenever there is a useless piece of inventory, we can continue making business. However, since it involves the exchange of money, we need to write a contract… Also, whenever I sell it to you, I need to write a certificate of sale.”

“Do you usually go that far just for a contract of sale?”

“Well, it’s because we have a special compromise, that’s why. Because I’m giving it to you for cheap? Hahaha. It’s just…”

Lortel smiled happily as she continued.

“Since you’ll have to renew the contract every time, you should visit the Elte Company’s branch in the commercial district every so often. Well, since you’ll be going anyway, it’ll be great for us to have a cup of tea and exchange stories with each other. Considering the change in sales, the more frequent the contract the better, so how about once a week… No, how about once every three days?”

“Well, since it’s a contract, I guess it can’t be helped but be a bit cumbersome. Don’t even think about trying to take advantage of me.”

“Oh my, as I told you last time… The secret to Elte Company’s longevity is having a conscience.”

It was really important that I have a place in which I could be provided with magically engineer items safely. 

I would just have to fix up the details when I went there later. It wasn’t not that I didn’t know how to look at magically engineered items.

“But… Is it really okay to give this much to me for free…?”

Suddenly, Yennekar butted into the conversation.

“Ed helped you so much this time. If it’s an amount that won’t cause too much damage to the books, then there’s no need to be so strict on the contract.”

Yennekar spoke in a strangely stiff tone, and Lortel responded in a firm tone.

“I’m still a merchant. Even though he may be my savior, I can’t just give away items for free. That is against my work ethic.”

“You’re lying! That’s just making excuses!”

“Excuses? What excuses?”

Blinking her eyes with an innocent expression on her face, Lortel looked at Yennekar as if she was a girl that didn’t know anything about the world.

Of course, there was no way Lortel would be such a girl.

In fact, there seemed to be room for further consideration in regards to negotiating the price.

There was a high chance that, if Lortel was grilled about her involvement with the Occupation of Ophelis Hall, I would have a more advantageous position in the contract.

That was quite a sharp point that Yennekar realized. You couldn’t ignore Lortel’s heart, which would do anything evil just to make a single coin more.

I sat around thinking for a while, considering how I should end the conversation.

“Oh my. I didn’t expect to see Lady Lortel here.”

Turning my head and looking into the forest, I saw the face of a familiar visitor.

“… Ms. Bell?”

“Hm…”

“… What’s the matter?”

Seeing me, Lortel, and Yennekar all sitting around the campfire, Bell suddenly pressed on her temples and closed her eyes gently.

“No, I apologize. I feel like my head is already spinning, seeing all of you here.”

“… What?”

“This situation doesn’t seem to be very peaceful. I apologize for coming here so suddenly.”

Lortel was the first person whose eyes went cold.

She didn’t want to see anyone related to Ophelis Hall. She didn’t want her location to be discovered.

Though, actually, at that moment Lortel’s victory was pretty much guaranteed. It was already time for the sale of the equipment to be finished. If Elte was trying to defeat Lortel, he should have made it to the cabin by the night before.

Nevertheless, just in case something had happened, she was waiting to come out of the cabin for a little longer. She wanted to be sure to enjoy the fireworks, she was just waiting for concrete news of her victory.

Still, Bell’s uniform seemed to make Lortel feel uncomfortable.

Compared to her usual neat and tidy senior maid uniform, this one was fancier. It was the outfit of the head maid.

The fact that Bell had already taken over the position as the head maid after Elris meant that the Ophelis Hall incident had finished up well, at least according to the original timeline.

Bell arrived looking as elegant and peaceful as ever as she sat down carefully across from the party.

“… I’m sorry that I have come to bring you some unfortunate news, but…”

And with her eyes closed… she continued to slowly talk.

I could already guess what Bell was going to say, so I looked away from her quietly.

Staring at the crackling bonfire, I threw in a few more pieces of firewood.