SRS 115

“……!”

Startled by the unexpected answer, Yohan recoiled, he slumped to the floor and looked up. The elf professor was looking down at him with an indifferent gaze.

“Uh, when….”

Yohan hadn’t even noticed Professor Will’s presence until he spoke. He trembled in shock at the spy-like stealth. The elf professor adjusted his glasses and alternately looked at the ground and Yohan’s mandrake.

“I followed you because you created a sacred mandrake, Yohan. It seems that spirit brought you to the king to express its gratitude. At least offer your greetings.”

“…Huh?”

“Greet the king.”

“……”

He had simply poured his divine power into solving an assignment, yet it led to this awkward outcome. Yohan nervously looked around. He wondered if he’d unnecessarily drawn the elf professor’s attention. He realized he had the embarrassing yet effective nickname of “Acting Headmaster,” and his worries vanished.

Following the professor’s instructions, Yohan first bowed his head toward the floor.

“…Good day.”

His awkward greeting left the elf professor bewildered.

“Is that how you greet a king in your dimension, Yohan?”

“Ah.”

A valid point. Yohan promptly raised his head stiffly and used divine power to create a halo behind him. Then, infusing his throat with divine power, he spoke in a solemn voice.

“It is a pleasure to meet you, Mandrake King. I am Herse.”

“…….”

The elf professor then wore the same expression the mandrake had made when Yohan kissed it.

Yohan, who had perfectly replicated the behavior expected when meeting a foreign king on the Yuphir Continent, blinked. When he asked with his gaze if there was a problem, the professor sighed. A professor’s sigh was the kind of sound usually reserved for a very disappointing student, and it was the first time Yohan had heard that sound since his sword training lesson.

“I forgot. You were a priest, Yohan. Then… consider it paying respects to the gods and bow.”

“But I don’t serve other gods…”

“Just bow.”

“…Yes.”

Professor Will cut Yohan’s hesitation short. Yohan knelt down when he noticed the elf professor looked slightly weary. As he bowed with his forehead nearly touching the floor, the ground trembled. The next moment, wind blew and a giant leaf swayed.

-It is a pleasure to meet you, child from another dimension.

An unfamiliar voice echoed in Yohan’s mind. Startled, he looked at the elf professor. Professor Will nodded and confirmed that what Yohan had heard was indeed the king’s voice. Yohan examined the floor with a curious gaze.

It was strange that while his ears heard only the sound of the wind, his mind heard a voice both benevolent and majestic.

Sssssshhh.

The giant leaf swayed once more.

-Child. You have granted my child a life nearing eternity. Your soul is pure and clean, so my child shall also live a pure and clean life. In return, I too shall tell you one truth I know.

“One truth you know?”

-Yes.

At Yohan’s counterquestion, this time the elf professor flinched. He seemed unable to hear the voice of King Mandra.

-Child. If there is something you wish to ask me, ask it.

The Mandrake King proposed.

After some hesitation, Yohan suddenly spotted his own mandrake watching him from behind a massive tree. Only then did he recall why he had chased the mandrake here. He glanced warily at the elf professor and lowered his voice.

“…Then, might you offer a hint about the conditions under which the mandrake’s leaves change color?”

“……”

-……

The cautious question made the surroundings fall silent. Both the elf professor and Mandrake King remained silent. Yohan realized his mistake when he sensed the tense atmosphere.

I’ve just asked such a greedy and lazy question in front of the professor…!

The Mandrake King had just said his soul was pure and clean, yet he immediately showed an attitude of trying to cheat his way through the assignment. He must be terribly disappointed.

He thought he had shown himself in a shameful light, and his ears burned red. He bowed his head to the floor once more. It was the very moment he was about to retract his question and ask something safer instead.

A pleasant breeze enveloped Yohan’s entire body and ruffled his water-colored hair.

-Ha ha ha ha ha!

The Mandrake King’s lighthearted laughter echoed in his mind. Yohan awkwardly straightened his upper body as he realized his mistake and felt intimidated.

Why is he laughing?

The voice was too clear and joyful to be mocking, so he waited confused for an answer. After laughing for a while, the king continued.

-Well then. If that is what you wish to know, I shall gladly tell you.

With that, the Mandrake King slowly explained the conditions under which a mandrake’s leaves changed color. Upon hearing that imparting magic while making physical contact caused the leaves to turn red, signifying the mandrake’s embarrassment, Yohan gasped in surprise.

So, the mandrake becoming shy after Mikael kissed it must have been because both magic and a kiss were given together.

On the other hand, since he had only kissed it, it was no wonder the mandrake found his kiss absurd.

Yohan then heard that using magic and violence together made the mandrake feel fear, turning its leaves a dark blue. He also learned that contact with divine power made the mandrake feel joy, causing it to sing and turn yellow. Hearing these and 32 more conditions that made the mandrake react, he beamed.

“Thank you!”

He had been told he would receive only one piece of information, yet now he had so much he could barely remember it all. Yohan carefully pondered the new knowledge and bowed with all his heart, he regretted not bringing his notebook. The Mandrake King was delighted even after giving away the information, he responded with another bright smile.

-Since I’ve kept my promise, I must sleep again. Take good care of my child, my sacred and precious child.

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Yohan bowed his head as he expressed his gratitude to the Mandrake King for protecting his academic standing. The king chuckled softly and fell back asleep with the wind. Yohan maintained his posture for a while longer, then rose once he was certain the king was completely asleep.

“Ah.”

He suddenly worried Professor Will might penalize him for using a shortcut. He glanced aside and found the elf professor staring at him with a peculiar expression.

“…Why are you looking at me like that?”

Fearing the professor might dock his points, Yohan asked nervously. As if he had read his thoughts, the professor chuckled softly and shook his head.

“I have no intention of reprimanding you for meeting the Mandrake King and obtaining information useful for your assignment. Meeting the king is no easy feat, and the process of securing that meeting was accomplished by you. That information is not a shortcut, but a reward earned through your own efforts.”

“…Is that so?”

Relieved that his greatest worry was resolved, Yohan smiled. Now it was time to find out why the elf professor had looked at him with such an ambiguous expression.

“I never imagined you would ask such a thing, Yohan.”

But before Yohan could speak, the elf professor changed the subject.

“Ah. …Are you disappointed?”

“No. I was surprised.”

“Yes?”

“I never imagined anyone would ask the Mandrake King such a question.”

Faced with the professor’s admiration, Yohan scratched his cheek with a surprised expression.

He had no idea what the Mandrake King meant to cause such a reaction. Wasn’t he just the king of spirit plants?

“Ah. ‘Mandrake King’ is a name used only in the Nameless Realm. In each dimension, he is known as the World Tree.”

…The World Tree!

Yohan was stunned.

The World Tree existed in his world too, so he wasn’t unaware of that great tree’s achievements and sacredness. Wasn’t the World Tree the keeper of all the world’s secrets and guardian of the purest elementals?

“…Is that so?”

Yohan was quite flustered by this identity beyond his imagination, but he answered stiffly to hide it.

Now he understood the elf professor’s feelings. He had asked the tree that knew all the world’s secrets about something as trivial as the conditions for changing the color of a mandrake leaf. It couldn’t have been more naive.

Only then did Yohan realize why the elf professor and the Mandrake King had fallen silent after his question, and his lips trembled.

No wonder he explained everything in such detail and told him all sorts of things, even though he said only one truth.

“I’m truly surprised. You said you were a High Priest? It seems your achievements weren’t just empty talk.”

The elf professor expressed genuine reverence.

Yohan forced a clumsy smile to avoid ruining the professor’s seemingly good impression of him.

That day, Yohan received the highest score, including bonus points, but he couldn’t feel the slightest bit happy. And as if to tease him, Yohan’s mandrake… well, the sanctified mandrake, followed him from the lecture hall to the hallway, trailing along behind him.

Yohan ignored it, then, feeling baffled as the mandrake tried to follow him up the stairs, stopped in his tracks and turned to look at the thing. Suhyeok, who was walking him back to the dorm, took an interest in the mandrake.

“That thing seems to be following you?”

“…I have to give it to the professor.”

“But the professor saw it and left it alone?”

“You must have seen wrong.”

Yohan dismissed his friend’s words and approached the mandrake. He wanted to grab it and take it to Professor Will.

But something happened.

-Hehehe.

The mandrake plucked one of its own leaves, handed it to Yohan, and then began shyly twisting its body. Feeling annoyed, Yohan instantly frowned and glared at it.