Except for the central plaza, everything beyond the second wall was the domain of Arcadia Academy.
A library one might find in a vast metropolis, an institute where one could learn magic or administration rather than technical disciplines.
Most of the shops, restaurants, even stores selling daily necessities, were all inside the academy’s fence.
It was no exaggeration to say that, in effect, one-third of the capital, Belegrad, belonged to the academy.
It had become a place that bore as much responsibility for the city’s economy as the retail markets and bustling districts of the downtown area.
Which raised the question...
Was it really all right for an academy like that to so willfully and independently cut off the distribution of food ingredients?
“Of course it isn’t all right. Thanks to that, we ended up signing a hardtack contract, but it is a very serious situation.”
“Ah, so that was it.”
The floating lull after dinner.
I asked Kallius about the protest I had seen at the academy during the day.
This was his answer.
“But on the other hand... it also feels as though it was bound to burst sooner or later. The provincial nobles had been making an awful fuss.”
“Is this what you mentioned last time?”
“That’s right. I put it simply then... but there isn’t much more to it. If it had only been one or two families, that would be one thing, but every family controlling the food distribution merchant companies tried to grab the academy and shake it as they pleased. What else could the headmaster have done?”
As expected, being grabbed and shaken around was frightening.
I didn’t know for sure, but if she was the academy’s headmaster, she had to be a highly learned person, and yet even someone like that had gone dark.
Still, no matter what, the aftermath seemed like it would be no joke.
The academy had always been a place where noble influence held strong sway, and now she would have to deal with the anger of the self-employed business owners inside the academy who were on the verge of having to close up shop overnight.
I was going to meet this headmaster tomorrow anyway, but did she even have any intention of cleaning up this situation?
I asked Kallius.
“Do you think this will continue? I don’t know how the academy’s meals or outside commercial districts are structured, but even for the headmaster, forcing this through as is seems impossible...”
“It’s hard to give you a definite answer. After all, as far as I know, there is no one who can stop the headmaster when she’s that angry.”
“Pardon? What do you mean?”
Wasn’t a headmaster just an elderly person wearing magnifying glasses?
She might be unrivaled in connections, knowledge, and refinement, but at the end of the day, she was the chief decision-maker of an educational institution.
If the imperial family, public authorities, or nobles with tremendous influence stepped forward in earnest, wouldn’t that be the end of it?
I asked Kallius back, wondering what nonsense he was spouting.
But instead, Kallius looked at me as if I were the crazy one and said,
“You may be good at cooking, but you’re sorely lacking in everything else. The current headmaster of the academy is the Great Sage Grendel, who made a tremendous contribution to ending the war!”
“Whoa, the Great Sage is the headmaster?”
“His disciple, Headmaster Ermia Belfast.”
“No, what kind of drift was that?”
What the hell... I was surprised, thinking a war-hero archmage was the headmaster, only for Kallius to suddenly swerve like that.
Then wasn’t she just someone with the “archmage’s disciple” achievement? Was that really so impressive?
When I still looked unconvinced, Kallius sighed.
“Hoo... There is something Great Sage Grendel once said.”
“What was it?”
“He said that if Ermia had been born just a little earlier, the war would never even have begun.”
Kallius waited a moment, as if to let the words linger, then continued.
“She is the greatest mage in the history of the empire, a genius truly gifted by the heavens.”
“Uh...”
So she was acknowledged even by the Great Sage who had made a huge contribution to ending a war in the past.
In other words, she was a national-power-level, walking tactical nuclear weapon. A Master-class archmage, basically.
“Master-class archmage” sounded a bit strange.
In any case, it meant she was so powerful that even the public authorities couldn’t touch her lightly.
But... what on earth were those nobles thinking, trying to grab and shake the academy when they knew the headmaster was someone like that?
It seemed tomorrow’s contract would not go entirely smoothly.
It was just that sort of foreboding that descended upon me tonight.
***
It was truly a beautiful day.
The birds were chirping, and the flowers were blooming...
On a day like this, it would be wonderful to go out to Calian Lake and gaze at the eternal snow.
Ermia Belfast, headmaster of Arcadia Academy, gazed out the window as she sipped from her teacup.
The tea brewed from Snowfragrance herb and the hardtack she was enjoying.
Coincidentally, all of it was a specialty product of Silvaelin in the northern empire.
Specialty product, indeed. The north was so busy struggling to survive, aside from Snowfragrance herb, and yet they had managed to create food like this.
It was truly fortunate that she had gone to the market not long ago and, by luck, purchased the last of the stock.
Crunch—!
Ermia’s snow-white hand picked up a piece of hardtack and brought it to her mouth.
Unlike its crisp, breaking surface, the inside was crumbly and sweet.
Just as the moisture in her mouth was being stolen away and it began to feel dry, a sip of Snowfragrance tea struck the perfect balance.
To be honest, half of the hardtack contract had been concluded in a fit of anger, but now that she thought about it, she felt that choice had been excellent.
“Making such a racket over nothing. They cross the line, they really do.”
Arcadia Academy occupied one-third of Belegrad and had established itself as an economic key point of the capital.
Because of that, merchant families hoping to make a huge profit had tried to set foot in the academy since long ago.
Their pretext was their own children enrolled at the academy.
Not only food ingredients, but daily necessities, stationery, even families in the labor service industry reached into the academy.
At first, it had not been bad.
They had all packaged it as goodwill, saying they were entrusting their family’s children to the academy, and sent gifts, and they had not made unreasonable demands.
But the academy’s goodwill became a right, and several families began to show signs of trying to seize control of the academy’s market as they pleased.
The academy’s regulations promoted equal education.
If the market were monopolized by certain families and the balance of influence broke as a result, there was a risk those regulations would collapse as well.
Unable to endure their overstepping any longer, Ermia finally resorted to an extreme measure.
She cut off all food ingredients distributed to the academy by noble merchant companies.
That near-reckless action became a major topic both inside and outside the academy.
Whether it did or not... Ermia no longer wanted to care.
‘Just... leave me alone to research magic...’
A human mad for magic, someone who would leap into a pit of fire if it were for the sake of magic.
Beloved by mana from birth, an unparalleled talent who had placed most mages beneath her feet by the time she was ten.
That was why Ermia Belfast had taken the position of academy headmaster.
As headmaster, if she simply went click and approved the documents submitted by her subordinates, it would be a far more convenient environment for researching magic.
But once she actually became headmaster, there turned out to be no end of troublesome matters.
Complaints from parents coming in almost every day, suspicious forces trying to grab and shake the academy...
And even the bizarre accidents and incidents caused by hot-blooded students.
She might have been mad for magic, but she had not forgotten the virtues a civilized human ought to possess, so she could not ignore such matters.
Hate them though she might, they were still students gathered here to learn, and she herself was also a human starved for learning new things.
‘It’s about time... they arrived.’
While reviewing various official documents and approval papers, Ermia looked at the clock and tidied the headmaster’s office.
Knock, knock, knock—
Before long, a knock sounded on the thick door of the headmaster’s office.
‘Headmaster. Merchant Company Head Kallius and the chef have arrived.’
The head of finance, who was in charge of managing the academy’s budget and contracts with external companies.
His voice, steeped in exhaustion, announced the visitors.
“Come in.”
Creeeak—
As soon as Ermia’s concise reply flew out, the door to the headmaster’s office opened.
“Greetings, Lady Ermia. I look forward to working with you today.”
The guest who had come for the contract, Merchant Company Head Kallius, entered with an affable greeting.
Behind him followed a black-haired man she had never seen before.
‘He must be the chef who made the hardtack.’
Just as the secret knowledge of mages was passed down in an extremely closed manner, the same was true of chefs’ recipes.
Since this was a contract to purchase in bulk hardtack made from his recipe, he had every right to participate in the contract directly.
Ermia instinctively assessed the black-haired chef.
‘Huh? His mana is... alien.’
She did not know who had bestowed it, but there was also a magical blessing on him.
And for a human, he had a rare constitution that spirits liked.
But putting all that aside, his mana was exceedingly alien.
Ordinary people had mana contained within their souls circulate, and that appeared after being converted into magical power.
But the chef before her did not have mana dwelling in his soul itself.
That did not mean he had no mana either. How should she put it...
Like water droplets rolling off a waterproof cloak, the mana was hovering around the outside of his soul.
It was not a case completely unreported in academic circles, but it was a very rare one.
‘This... I’ll have to set aside a day and examine it later.’
For now, the contract came first, so there was no helping it, but as a mage, she could not simply let such an interesting case pass by.
“Greetings. I’m Kang Jinwoo, the chef who made the hardtack. I look forward to working with you.”
“Nice to meet you. I’m Ermia Belfast. Headmaster of Arcadia Academy. Let’s all sit and talk.”
They sat at the table placed in the headmaster’s office and went through the contents of the contract step by step.
Both Kallius and Ermia had seen this hardtack contract to the point of disgust.
As such, this act was nothing more than proof that the procedure had been properly carried out so that no other words would arise later.
The chef who had introduced himself as Kang Jinwoo also watched the contract in silence, seemingly having no major objections.
Then, when they reached the key provisions of the contract—the delivery price, duration, and quantity of the hardtack—
“Lady Ermia. I’m terribly sorry, but may I speak with this friend for a moment?”
“Hm? Sure.”
Kallius, who had been smoothly reviewing the contract, suddenly asked for her understanding.
Then he went out into the hallway together with the chef beside him, Kang Jinwoo.
Apparently, there was some matter in the contract that the two of them had not fully discussed.
‘Come back quickly...’
Whether that was the case or not, Ermia only wanted to finish the contract quickly and be at ease.
Unlike the other merchant families engaged in power struggles over interests, this new hardtack was the exclusive product of the Silvaelin family in the northern empire.
Strictly speaking, it had not been made by the Silvaelin family, but it had come from their territory.
To begin with, Silvaelin was a northern region, isolated on its own, and its duke, Kailan, was known throughout the empire as a madman.
Not a man of the noble faction or the imperial faction, just a human who liked the north and battle.
Since it was a specialty product from territory ruled by such a family, even if it was distributed as a main meal, there would be no political problem.
In many ways, it was a food perfectly suited to the academy, where disputes over rights and interests were intensifying.
Creeeak—
Before long, Kallius and Kang Jinwoo returned to the headmaster’s office.
If there was one thing that had changed... it would be their expressions.
No matter how skilled a merchant was at keeping a poker face, they could not hide even the fleeting microexpressions.
The instant he entered the headmaster’s office.
The corners of Kallius’s mouth lowered, and his lips were firmly shut, faintly tensed.
On the other hand, Kang Jinwoo had no intention of hiding anything in particular, and even his eyebrows were smiling.
‘It seems they discussed things in a way favorable to the chef.’
Thinking that, Ermia waited for Kallius to speak.
“I apologize for our rudeness, Lady Ermia. Might we... revise the contents of the contract a little? I’m truly sorry.”
“It’s fine. Five thousand servings of hardtack isn’t a small amount, and I did rush the contract.”
“Thank you. Then...”
“I’ll explain, Sir Kallius.”
Kallius began to explain the contract again, but Kang Jinwoo’s words cut him off.
The chef who had remained quiet throughout the contract suddenly opened his mouth, so Ermia naturally focused on him.
The head of finance, who had been observing the contract from behind, also flinched and listened closely to Kang Jinwoo’s words.
“First, I’ll cut the price of one packet of hardtack from eight coppers to six. Not just for this month, but for the entire contract period.”
“Mm? That’s good for us... but are you sure that’s all right?”
“In exchange, I’d like to add just one condition.”
Ermia Belfast, an unparalleled genius mage.
Those mediocre people who could not sense magical power never even had the chance to meet her in the first place.
Those who could sense magical power were crushed by her overwhelming strength and watched their words with every sentence.
But the chef before her, Kang Jinwoo.
This black-haired man, rare in the empire, was not intimidated at all despite standing before her.
Rather, with phrases like “I’ll cut the price for you” and “for the entire contract period,” he was subtly revealing that he held the upper hand, securing an advantage in negotiations.
For the first time, interest entered Ermia’s eyes, which had only been waiting for the contract to be concluded.
Before long, Kang Jinwoo continued.
“I would like to open a street stall at the location closest to the academy’s main building.”
“Hmmm... A street stall, is it? I can ask why later. For how long?”
“Until I’m satisfied.”
It was a statement that went beyond provocative and could even feel rather insolent.
Whether you are Grendel’s disciple or the greatest mage in the history of the empire does not matter.
I will seize what I want through this deal.
Ermia had never once been pushed back in any kind of contest in her life.
At this additional condition, one that scratched at the pride of a woman undefeated in a hundred battles, the corners of Ermia’s mouth drew an arc.
“Fine. Do as you wish. I don’t know whether it will go well, though.”
“Haha, thank you for your permission. Then let’s sign the contract right away!”
“So it ended up like this after all...”
Joy, awkwardness, interest.
The three people who concluded the contract each felt their own emotions.
Standing one step back as he watched that chaotic swirl of feelings, the head of finance pressed hard against the corners of his eyes and thought,
‘Something else is going to happen...’
The incident of Headmaster Ermia Belfast cutting off food ingredient distribution.
His thirty years of experience told him that a wave on par with that incident was about to come crashing in once again.