SRS 74

As they used the passage to escape the danger zone, Yohan couldn’t let his guard down, worried that Professor Will might have set additional traps. Fortunately, the elf professor wasn’t as vicious as Yohan feared.

Yohan sighed in relief as he stepped out of the passage and saw a normal forest before him.

“…Right. Professor Will is just evaluating us, not trying to kill us.”

He muttered to himself as a reminder. Maybe because it was evaluation week, he was more on edge than he realized. Feeling he’d been too harsh in judging the professors, Yohan made up his mind to reflect on his behavior. Once the others exited the passage safely, he moved with them deeper into the forest.

And soon, he began spotting the ingredients he was searching for.

“Ah! Amar!”

“There’s mandrake here too! Let’s grab it while we’re at it!”

“Soul herb!”

The other students also found the ingredients they needed and happily collected them. Hearing their “Good thing we didn’t turn back after all” reactions filled Yohan with pride and embarrassment. He kept his mouth closed and calmly gathered the ingredients he required.

As they went deeper, Suhyeok moved close to him, saying it was dangerous to go alone, and peeked into Yohan’s herb basket.

“Huh? These ingredients… Yohan, are you planning to make Kasa’s Advanced Recovery potion?”

“Ah, yes. …Since I’ve made the intermediate one before, I figured I might be able to make the advanced too. I have all the ingredients, and the quality… might turn out fine if I do my best?”

Since he couldn’t be totally confident, he scratched his cheek as he answered. Suhyeok clicked his tongue.

“…You’re probably the only one attempting a high grade potion on the very first monthly aptitude test.”

“…I’m a priest, so I’m good at preparing purified water. That’s all.”

“Yes. As if I don’t already know your personality better than anyone. No need for excuses. Anyway… I support you. If you make what you’re aiming for, you’ll get a great score.”

Suhyeok patted Yohan on the shoulder, his expression saying, “I’m completely against your obsession with grades and the eccentricities that come with it.” Yohan, slightly embarrassed, but still pleased by the encouragement, smiled and went to find the remaining ingredients. After filling his basket with ingredients in case of failure, there were less than 30 minutes left until the practical test ended.

“Let’s head back soon.”

Returning alone would be dangerous, so every student in the Herbology class regrouped and counted heads before moving as one. There was one moment when Melek disappeared, but it turned out he’d been snatched by a giant bird again, so they retrieved him safely.

Just like earlier, they crossed the monster forest quickly with gravity magic and divine power.

Finally, they returned to the starting point. Professor Will looked at their herb baskets and raised his glasses with mild surprise.

“…Hm. You collected the ingredients faster than expected. I even see some high grade plants. I suppose you went all the way to the inner forest.”

Judging from his words, the mutated plants blocking deeper entry were indeed his doing.

“…Hmm. Maybe the plants were weak? That’s unexpected.”

“…….”

Yohan pretended not to hear the professor’s suspicious comment, pulled out his cauldron, and began preparing the potion. With little time left, even one failure would ruin everything.

“Phew…”

Taking a deep breath, Yohan concentrated as he prepared and ground the ingredients, placing them in the pot. His mind was anxious, but that didn’t mean he was going to let any process pass by without a fight. He stirred three hundred times, his arms nearly falling off, to ensure the ingredients were thoroughly mixed. When he was making the purified water, he knocked his head on the ground and prayed to bless it.

After carefully making the potion for about 20 minutes, he cooled it, bottled it, and the test’s ending signal sounded.

“That’s it. Stop your work and submit your completed potion. Thank you for your efforts in completing the first Herbology aptitude test.”

“No…! Not yet…!”

“Please! I just need to add this pollen!”

“No.”

The moment the bell rang, Professor Will mercilessly halted the work and collected finished potions, attaching name tags as he went. Yohan saw several students turn white with despair because they hadn’t finished in time, and his heart tighten with sympathy. He furrowed his brows.

I can’t really… help them. I’m not the professor.

Feeling sincerely sorry for them, he listened as Professor Will dismissed the class. Everyone bowed to him, officially ending the test.

Whoosh!

Suddenly, Suhyeok grabbed Yohan and ran toward the dorm. Yohan, confused and dragged along at full speed, struggled to steady his breathing. His eyes widened.

“Suhyeok?”

When he asked what was wrong, Suhyeok didn’t stop running until they reached the dormitory. He shoved Yohan into room 304 and leaned against the wall, panting.

“Haa… haa… Yohan… seriously… you owe me….”

“……?”

Yohan tilted his head, clueless about why he was saying that. Still catching his breath, Suhyeok straightened his posture slowly, held his back with one hand, and tilted his head back.

“Haa… if you’d stayed there any longer, the others would’ve grabbed you again. Some of them didn’t even finish their potions this time… you might’ve gotten hounded like crazy. And they could have been easily consumed with unnecessary jealousy.

“…Ah.”

Yohan hadn’t thought that far. He let out a small sigh and nodded. His classmates were kind, and the first-years were very united, but after a stressful monthly of evaluation, anyone who saw the gap between themselves and someone else would feel shaken, even good-natured people.

In the worst case, as Suhyeok said, jealousy could twist relationships. Accepting that, Yohan gave a slightly bitter smile.

“…Thank you.”

“No need.”

“You think really far ahead.”

“It’s not that I think deeply. It’s just… the dimension I came from is a frighteningly competitive society.”

Suhyeok clicked his tongue and frowned. It had been a while since he spoke so directly about his own dimension, so Yohan scrutinized his friend’s expression, then gently patted his back. Maybe he understood that it was meant as comfort, because Suhyeok chuckled.

“It’s not even a depressing story, so you don’t need to comfort me. Though I’m not complaining if you do. Anyway, let’s go eat.”

“Yes.”

“There aren’t more evaluations today, right?”

“Yes. Tomorrow we take Spirit Studies and Divine studies together, and after that it’s all breaks.”

“Really? Tomorrow will be rough, but having them back to back is better. Finishing quickly and resting is ideal.”

Yohan agreed, stayed with him a bit longer, then the two headed to the dining hall.

Inside, the students were split in half.

Half of them wandered like zombies, half of them radiated relaxed energy. Watching them, Yohan murmured without thinking.

“…Perhaps the end-of-month evaluation week is both a test and a time of relaxation for students. Weekends alone aren’t enough to completely relieve the fatigue accumulated during the week, but evaluation week allows for some recovery… Perhaps it’s a way to provide a monthly recharge.”

The ones suffering looked like they were dying, but the ones not taking evaluations looked so bright it was hard to believe they attended Fantasiademia. Seeing that made him wonder if this whole system came from the headmaster’s educational plan.

The moment he murmured that, a prickling stare pierced him.

Yohan sensed it, turned his head, and saw Suhyeok frozen mid-dip with a piece of bread hanging from his hand, jaw dropped.

“…What’s wrong?”

“…Yohan.”

“Yes.”

“Please, keep that in front of us, if possible. That is, only in front of me, Kyle, and Mikael.”

“…Huh?”

When he cast a glance asking why, Yohan’s hunter friend sighed, bit into his bread, and shook his head.

“At the very least, we won’t spread rumors about you.”

“…Rumors?”

“Yes. You might not know, but people talk about you a lot behind your back. Not in a bad way… I think? Maybe it’s bad? Not sure.”

“…Huh?”

Yohan blinked at Suhyeok’s fluctuating assessment. “What are you talking about?” He was about to ask what it meant.

“Ahh!”

“What now?”

“Catch it! It’s coming into the dining hall!”

Even though it was the end-of-month evaluation week, the fact that this was Fantasiademia remained unchanged. As expected, a commotion erupted behind him, and then, the door swung open. The next moment, a horned and winged horse burst into the cafeteria, causing a commotion.

Heeeeeeeeeing!

It flapped its wings and raised its hooves threateningly, warning the students who had come to catch it.

“…….”

Yohan watched the bizarre scene, then turned his head to look at Suhyeok. Finally, after a moment, Yohan turned around again, his mouth agape.

“…Is this the kind of ‘talk’ you meant?”

“No!”

He had asked shyly, wondering if this was why rumors spread, and Suhyeok instantly shouted and covered his eyes with the back of his hand. Startled, Yohan flinched as he watched his friend rub his face.

“…Sorry.”

Suhyeok let out a long, exhausted sigh.