Chapter 31: Popular Seed? (1)
"Professor. Could you tell us about the Dragon God?"
"The Dragon God? Why that story?"
"Well, it seems like a story Professor Reirna would know well, but it's unfamiliar to me. I've never heard of it before. Maybe because I was in a monastery for fifteen years."
The cafeteria prepared inside the Academy.
On weekdays, it would be crowded with numerous students, but since the students who had gone out hadn't returned, the cafeteria was quiet.
And Ruel, who had finished a fierce battle, was in the middle of eating with two students.
He scooped some appetizing meatball spaghetti and offered it to Seed.
"Thank you."
"Well, the Dragon God… It's already been twenty years, so it's rare to find someone who doesn't know it. As I briefly mentioned before, it refers to the dragon that started the war twenty years ago. Aah! Let's talk while we eat."
"The mad dragon!"
Reir rolled up spaghetti noodles and put them in his mouth.
The sight of him eating neatly without getting sauce on him was impressive.
The harmony of steaming-hot sauce and savory meat.
Not fitting for a cafeteria that accommodates hundreds of students, the food quality was considerable.
Ruel swallowed what was in his mouth and continued.
"As Reir said, it was a dragon that called itself the Dragon God. And that claim wasn't a joke—it actually destroyed several countries and even reached our kingdom."
"A nameless mage took it down. Though the kingdom's people called him a hero."
"Yes. Thanks to that mage, policies to foster and give preferential treatment to mages were established in the kingdom. Our Academy was also founded under that influence."
Reir nodded, licking the sauce off his fork.
In any case, Seed's interest was drawn to a story he had never heard in the monastery.
"Then what's that have to do with the mana we saw yesterday?"
"Ah, that!"
Ruel raised his finger and took a sip of water.
On the plate, which was now half-empty, red sauce had dripped down.
"We did defeat the dragon, but it didn't end there. The dying bastard scattered his mana in all directions. And things or living beings imbued with it changed under the influence of his will. That's why they call it 'Dragon God's Mana.' Of course, it's rare for it to sprout an ego like yesterday. We won't know the details until the Magic Tower's investigation is complete……."
"I see."
Seed bit into a large meatball and put it in his mouth.
The taste of greasy meat and sweet-and-sour sauce mingled.
Seed chewed and continued.
"Then items imbued with that mana and Ego Weapons wouldn't be distinguishable? They have wills too. If the dragon hides its identity and pretends not to know……."
"Ego Weapon?"
At the name of a tool with a will, Ruel's ears perked up.
Sucking up strands of spaghetti with pursed lips, his round glasses glinted.
But as for whether this was something she knew herself, Reir cut in.
The boy speaking while wiping the corner of his mouth looked very excited.
"Dragon God's mana stands out! That red mana we saw yesterday, right? It can't be hidden!"
"Yes, Reir is right. Dragon God's mana stands out. That mana we saw yesterday—it writhes and squirms nearby. Enough that it definitely stands out."
Ruel nodded in agreement with Reir.
Indeed, with that ominous mana, it seemed impossible for it not to stand out.
Relieved by the certainty that it would be obvious, Seed relaxed slightly.
"Anyway, not knowing how Teacher Vane and that object got entangled, the Magic Tower has started its investigation, so the truth will come out soon. Don't worry too much."
"Yes."
Seed smiled bitterly.
They said she had gone to the Magic Tower one way or another, but there was nothing he could do.
He could only hope the investigation would end well and she would be released safely.
Ruel smiled, tearing the brown bread and dipping it in sauce.
"But is the cafeteria really enough? I was going to treat you to something better since you went through so much."
"No, no. We have to attend class tomorrow too. And you need to rest, Professor."
"Just as Brother said, we stayed up all night, so I'm sleepy!"
Even after going through such a difficult night, to think it was the Academy cafeteria.
Perhaps regretful of such treatment, Ruel smiled awkwardly.
But for the two boys smiling brightly, even this meal wasn't bad.
Because their desire to collapse in the dormitory and rest right away was desperate.
Soon, the three who had finished eating stood up.
"I'll clean up, so go on ahead. Rest well today and see you tomorrow. Great work!"
Ruel smiled, picking up the dishes.
Even in such trivial actions, his kindness shone through.
"Thank you for your hard work!"
"Great work!"
Receiving the greetings of the two students, Ruel headed to the counter.
Reir stretched, yawned, and stuck close to Seed's side.
"Haaah… Brother, are you going to the dormitory? If I sleep now, I'll probably wake up in the evening. I'm going to see my sister at the library."
"I have somewhere else I need to go."
"Huh? Where?"
Seed smiled and kept his mouth shut.
Due to last night's incident, Seed had one more problem to solve.
And he was just about to solve that problem.
* * *
"Phew… nice."
What emerged while letting out an old-man-like sound was Seed, a fifteen-year-old boy.
What Seed had entered was an ordinary bath.
Shwaaa……
The bath and the stream of water giving off faint mist.
The marble lining the floor and the beautiful architecture caught the eye.
In truth, that place which looked like a bathhouse was no ordinary place.
It was a very special recovery facility called the 'Mana Spring.'
The boy placed the Passbook beside his head and slowly immersed himself in the water.
"Puhheuu……."
With a deflating sound, a smile spread across his lips.
The moment he immersed himself in the turquoise water, mana recovered along with a faint light.
A light that gently tickled as it stimulated his magic circuits.
It was a pleasant sensation he was experiencing for the first time in his life.
Seed checked his remaining mana and grinned.
[Details] Deposit
[Amount Withdrawn]
[Amount Deposited] *840
[Balance] *111,186 (Eirena Academy)
'Whew. It works well.'
Perhaps due to what happened yesterday, Seed's mana capacity had risen to about '870 Mana Coins.'
Was it because he had poured out such a huge amount of mana?
Perhaps borrowing and pouring out huge amounts of mana occasionally wasn't bad either.
And the moment he immersed himself in the Mana Spring, his max capacity of '870 Coins' had recovered.
The amount he would normally have to wait a full hour for had gathered in his Passbook.
"The remaining 110,000 coins from yesterday, and 2,000 coins! I'll pay you back, Ma'am."
This was exactly the loophole Seed had come up with.
Using the Mana Spring to cover his loans!
But perhaps not having caught on to the boy's scheme, the Passbook's reaction was indifferent.
"[112,000 Mana Coins. Repayment successful. Remaining amount is 888,000 Mana Coins.]"
"I know."
Seed entrusted his body to the gentle current.
The water current reacting with his magic circuits glowed.
The water pouring down like a waterfall had various spells cast on it for the students.
It was said that the original was a spring made by spirits for elves, but now that neither spirits nor elves could be seen, such a primordial Mana Spring could not be found.
Only this artificial Mana Spring replaced it for him.
'Another 870 coins!'
But how long had it been since the repayment when Seed's finger went up?
In that brief instant, a smile spread across his face—he had recovered his capacity of '870 Mana Coins.'
"870 coins. I'll pay you back, Ma'am."
"[You don't need to repay so anxiously like this. You may repay slowly.]"
The Passbook's tone was subtle.
She finally caught on to the boy's trickery, but it was already too late.
Paying off mana with the Mana Spring!
It was exactly like drawing river water to put out a fire.
"No, Ma'am. Didn't you say financial transactions must be clear even between parent and child? I have to pay it back right away. Huh? It's 1,200 coins. Repayment? It's called repayment, right? Repayment!"
But Seed was firm.
There was no fool in the world who wouldn't use a loophole he had finally found.
"[.......]"
At the boy's tone, the Passbook reacted as if dumbfounded.
To most mages, the Mana Spring only recovered up to 'their own capacity.'
But the scheme king Seed had a Passbook that rapidly absorbed this mana.
Indeed, people's brains worked best when they discovered a loophole.
"[This is irrational. If you repay the loan like this, aren't you paying with the Spring's mana rather than the customer's mana?]"
The voice that had never once raised a complaint until now was sharp.
Indeed, as she said, paying off mana with the Mana Spring was irrational.
But since there had been no clause saying 'the Mana Spring may not be used' even when taking out the mana loan, there was nothing she could do either.
A contract was not supposed to have loopholes from the start, after all.
"Hey now. There was no such content! Hurry up and take it. Huh? It's 2,300 coins!"
Seed smiled broadly and kicked his feet.
Perhaps because he had actually absorbed 2,300 coins worth of mana, the spring's water level had dropped slightly.
But since it wasn't enough to be very obvious, Seed grinned.
"[Very well. 2,300 coins repaid successfully. Remaining amount is 885,700 Mana Coins.]"
"Hmhmm~."
Seed even hummed, showing his cheerful inner thoughts.
It was mana he had borrowed last night after arguing so much.
Paying it back like this felt like he had pulled one over on her.
And perhaps because his max capacity had recovered in the meantime, Seed's finger went up.
From the creditor's standpoint, it was enough to grind one's teeth.
"Ma'am? Repayment!"
"[Please stop. I will deduct it myself.]"
"Pfft!"
Anger could be felt in her mechanical tone.
At the obviously sulking Passbook, Seed burst into laughter.
Just two months ago, she had been stiff and devoid of emotional expression, but last night when recommending the loan, and now, he increasingly felt human emotions from her.
Could it be that the Passbook's ego had grown while being with him?
They had been together for a long time, but he was full of things he didn't know about the Passbook.
"…"
"[…1,000,000 Mana Coins. Repayment successful.]"
"Oh, I dozed off. Thank you, Ma'am!"
Seed opened his closed eyes.
The water level that had come up to his thighs had already dropped to near his calves.
He didn't know what kind of scolding he would get if caught by Eirena.
Splash!
The boy got up holding the Passbook.
With this, paying off the huge sum of '1 million coins' was complete.
"[We will report the issues found in this service to our service center and have them corrected. This sort of loophole is allowed just this once. Elixir and Mana Spring. Their mana will no longer be stored in your balance.]"
"Ah, Ma'am. I'm sorry. Are you angry?"
"[I am not angry.]"
Smiling playfully, Seed got out of the Mana Spring.
Then he put the clothes he had been wearing in a basket and changed into clean clothes.
'Well, this loophole is only for this once. What a shame.'
It was a shame that a fraudulent loophole was blocked, but it couldn't be helped.
There was no point in pushing his luck and ruining his relationship with Ma'am.
Besides, if he kept evaporating so much of the spring, it would obviously show eventually.
Not being too greedy was the boy's motto.
"Ah, you're angry. Please don't be."
Imagining the Passbook's grumbling, Seed moved his feet.
But just before leaving the spring, someone's voice rang out.
It was an unexpected voice.
"Huh? Who's this? Hi!"
"Huh?"
Seed's surprised gaze turned.
A girl wearing a bathrobe and drying her hair.
With her still-damp hair hanging down, she blinked her green eyes.
It felt like encountering a celestial maiden straight out of a folktale, but Seed's expression was not bright.
"Ah. Hi."
"Hmm? That's the Mana Spring, isn't it? Right, I heard you did something big last night? No wonder. Hehe."
"It wasn't anything big. Just, there was an accident……."
Seed fussed with his clothes unnecessarily.
That girl was someone who had had no points of contact with Seed until now.
She had merely left an uncomfortable impression at the beginning of the semester.
The female student who, on the first day of the Academy, had blown away Reiya with a pre-cast Fire Ball and, together with Jii, had looked down on and bullied weak students.
It was the appearance of Iris Cloudsinger.
- To be continued in Chapter 32 -