CHAPTER 21

"If someone only sees crazy people around them, maybe they should question whether they're the crazy one."

There was a saying like that.

Magic school was no different.

If all the professors seem insane, then even the ones who appear normal but hang out with them should be questioned!

'Hmm. Right. Professor Garcia is close with that crazy headmaster. I really shouldn't trust a single professor here.'

If Professor Garcia had heard that, she would've clutched her chest in frustration.

Of course, it could feel mentally taxing to maintain a spell all the way through a class.

It was like trying to balance a spinning top on your fingernail without letting it fall.

Still, Professor Garcia had her reasons for giving such an assignment to Ihan.

First off, the fact that Ihan succeeded in water creation in just three tries—even considering his affinity with water—meant he was exceptionally talented.

On top of that, his magical capacity was overwhelming, far exceeding even that talent.

A raw gem like him needed to be polished to truly shine.

That's why Professor Garcia gave Ihan that exercise—because she believed he could handle it.

Of course, none of that sincere intention got through to Ihan.

'I should just assume every professor here has a screw loose from now on.'

Thinking that, Ihan focused all his concentration on keeping the water orb stable.

The rest of the Introduction to Basic Magic class went smoothly.

A few more students from the Blue Dragon Tower succeeded in , and the imperial princess even succeeded in .

Yoner found he had a strong affinity with the wind element and was thrilled, while Gainando nearly set a staff on fire.

And Ihan? He had to stay completely silent and focused the entire time just to keep maintaining his water orb.

"This is seriously too much, isn't it?"

"???"

Professor Thunderstep tilted his head at Ihan's words.

He didn't quite understand what part of what Ihan just explained was "too much."

"Well... maybe Professor Garcia Kim just likes you? That's probably why she gave you that assignment."

"You make it sound like she's grooming a private garden or something."

'Man, this kid really knows how to complain.'

Thunderstep grumbled internally at Ihan's barbed remark.

It was Friday afternoon—the time of week everyone looked forward to.

Ihan was tending the professor's vegetable garden at Thunderstep's cabin.

If other students saw him, they'd be whispering things like, "That professor's insane—how could he make a Wardanaz noble do chores?"

But Thunderstep had his own defense.

...Because Ihan had volunteered for the job.

-Professor, I came to help out around the cabin.

-Oh, thanks.

-In return for working, can I eat some of the stuff in the cabin?

-...Sure, go ahead.

-And while I'm at it, can I take some of it with me?

-No, you little rascal.

"I shouldn't have even asked. My bad."

Thunderstep shook his head and raised his hands in surrender.

He hadn't expected such a dramatic answer to a casual "How was your first week?"

But grumbling aside, Ihan was clearly the most promising new student.

That's probably why even Professor Garcia Kim was giving him special treatment.

And Thunderstep could see Ihan's talent too.

Not magical talent, though.

'The way he diligently handles these chores... the more I see, the more I think he was born for this.'

...Specifically, the talent for doing chores.

If Ihan had heard that, he would've immediately scowled, but Thunderstep was completely serious.

In Thunderstep's view, the most crucial trait for an alchemist was the ability to handle tedious tasks without burning out.

A natural sense for detecting magical properties?

Affinity for spirits?

Precision in delicate mana control?

None of that mattered.

What a top-tier alchemist really needed was the steely endurance to silently scrub mountains of flasks without running away.

And Ihan had shown that trait from the start.

Any other noble kid, no matter how many snacks you offered, would never do chores like tending a garden or maintaining a cabin.

But Ihan kept coming back, doing the chores, and collecting his food rewards.

Because he had the makings of a true alchemist.

"Why do I have goosebumps?"

Ihan paused mid-potato harvest, puzzled.

The weather was cool and pleasant, but for some reason, goosebumps prickled his skin.

"Not too hard?"

"I'm fine."

Thunderstep's question was met with a casual reply.

Honestly, it really wasn't that tough.

Sure, some physical effort was involved, but Ihan was already used to doing this kind of grunt work under a professor.

Pulling up fresh veggies and checking fish traps by the river?

That was easy, to be honest.

"Heh."

"??"

Thunderstep chuckled contentedly, and Ihan was more confused than ever.

What now?

'Is he just happy watching someone else do all the work? Figures. Professors...'

"You've got talent, Wardanaz."

"Ah. Yeah."

"You totally tuned me out just now, didn't you?"

"No, sir."

Thunderstep clicked his tongue.

Even if he told him now, with that grumbling personality, he probably wouldn't listen anyway.

How on earth did someone like him come from the Wardanaz family, known for being as stoic as granite statues?

Professor Uregurum sank deeply into his armchair, stuffed tobacco into a long dwarven pipe, and lit it up. Puffing out smoke with satisfaction, he opened his mouth again.

"Nothing else happened?"

'How bored is this guy?'

Ihan silently scoffed as he brushed the dirt off a carrot.

Then again, Uregurum was a professor, so maybe this behavior made sense. A true professor should know how to get students to do work and then act bored off to the side.

"Any friction with students from other dorms?"

"Huh? How did you know that?"

"You're not the first and won't be the last freshman to come here. It's only natural to guess."

Uregurum spoke in a pleasantly mellow voice, likely in high spirits from smoking.

"Let me guess. The students from the White Tiger Tower?"

"Yes, that's correct."

From Uregurum's words, Ihan realized that traditionally, the Blue Dragon Tower didn't get along with the White Tiger Tower.

"They're bound to clash. One's made up of imperial high nobility, the other of knightly families. Young and prideful? Of course fights happen."

"Isn't that such a ridiculous reason? Fighting over something like that when we're all busy trying to learn magic."

Ihan's comment made Uregurum nod.

He was right. It was utterly foolish.

But isn't youth all about being foolish?

"Still, you've got a decent head on your shoulders, Wardanaz. Yeah, there's no need to bicker over such pointless things. Better to use that time to practice magic, right?"

"Exactly."

"Maybe this year there'll be fewer fights thanks to someone like you. If those White Tiger brats pick a fight, just ignore them."

"Uh… I already fought them, though."

"..."

Uregurum took the pipe from his mouth and looked at Ihan, dumbfounded.

Didn't this guy just say he didn't want to fight over dumb reasons?

"Well, they picked the fight first! What was I supposed to do?"

Ihan protested, sounding wronged.

Uregurum nodded. Fair. Sometimes you can't avoid it if someone comes at you first.

"Sounds like the White Tiger kids this year are a rough bunch. Usually they don't start fights during the first week. What happened?"

"They picked a fight because I was taking swordsmanship classes."

"..."

Thud.

Uregurum dropped his pipe again. That's how absurd it was.

"What a bunch of jerks, huh?"

"No, you're the weird one…!"

Uregurum was speechless.

Of all the classes available, he had to choose swordsmanship?

Now he understood why the White Tiger guys were picking fights.

"I'm surprised you got away. Those White Tiger kids may be slow with magic, but they're good at brawling."

"Yeah, it was hard taking down all three of them."

"..."

Uregurum gently pushed his pipe to the side.

Maybe today wasn't the day to smoke anymore.

"You beat them?"

"It was tough. I got lucky."

"…You can stop working for today. I'll fix you something to eat."

"Really? That's okay?"

"Of course."

Uregurum decided to treat Ihan a little better from now on.

You never know—he might become the Empire's top swordsman and come back as an assassin one day.

The vegetables growing around Uregurum's cabin were thick and vibrant, as if blessed by the spirit of nature.

The professor washed potatoes, onions, and carrots in water, peeled them, and chopped them into big chunks.

Then he threw butter into a pot and began sautéing onions and garlic.

"Bring me the meat hanging over there."

"That meat's for me and Yoner, though."

"…Am I the only one eating?"

"…Alright."

Ihan decided he'd apologize to Yoner later and brought over the hanging smoked pork.

After tossing the meat in and giving it a good stir, Uregurum poured in a generous amount of wine. The rich aroma of red wine filled the air.

Next, he added the potatoes, carrots, and onions in turn. As he seasoned it with salt, he spoke.

"This stew's been passed down in my family. You don't need any side dishes if you've got this. Just a warm loaf of freshly baked white bread will do."

There was a reason Uregurum sounded so confident.

The stew was really good.

After going days without any warm soup, the Dwarven stew heated Ihan's insides right up.

All that could be heard was the scraping of wooden spoons on bowls and the sound of them eating.

'Ah, this is so nice.'

"Tastes good, huh?"

"It's excellent."

Like a seasoned grad student, Ihan replied immediately.

Uregurum didn't say much, but his satisfied expression said it all. He was clearly pleased.

"Come to think of it, before I came, you were managing all this by yourself?"

"Yeah."

"What about the others?"

"Ahem. They all ran off, too lazy and clumsy, I guess."

"..."

For a moment, Ihan regretted everything and thought, Did I just get played? But it was too late now.

"Sounds like… it was a hassle."

"Hassle? This is basic training if you want to be an alchemist!"

Cleaning the dust from the cabin, maintaining the stove, checking ingredients, managing the garden, handling the fish traps by the river, inspecting the small traps on the path… okay, maybe it wasn't basic.

'Listing it out like that… yeah, that does sound a bit much. Why didn't I think it was hard?'

Ihan lamented how numb he'd become to labor.

He'd worked under professors for so long that he'd lost his sense of what was normal.

"There's still plenty of space in the garden. Can I try growing something?"

"Oh…"

Uregurum was impressed.

Ihan didn't know it, but Uregurum was internally praising him as a "true-born alchemist."

Despite all the chores, he still wanted to take on more.

That wasn't just talent. That was passion.

"Of course. What are you thinking of planting?"

"Probably cabbage and green onions?"

"Those sound fine."

Uregurum nodded, then paused.

"…You're not planning to sell them, are you?"

"Oh! How'd you know? Did other students try it before me?"

"..."

You're the first one, you rascal!