Doggone Academy

Silveryn had stepped away from her place for a moment to contact the association regarding this alchemist affair.

Was he taking advantage of her absence to approach me? There didn’t seem to be any malice, but I had to stay alert for any unexpected questions.

Despite his age, preventing him from directly engaging in the frontlines, his build was formidable. As he commands the knight order, his experience and discernment are unmatched.

Any clumsy lies could become poison.

I undid my belt and handed over the sheathed sword to him.

Popper received it and, with practiced motion, drew the blade.

Ching!

The elegant silver blade revealed its form.

He swung it side to side, creating an eight-figure motion, and then held the blade up against the waning light of the sunset.

Popper’s eyes narrowed. Following his expression, my heart dropped.

“A fine sword, indeed.”

Without much else to say, Popper sheathed the blade and handed it back to me.

Is that all he’ll press for?

I accepted it and said,

“…Thank you.”

“How long have you been studying the sword?”

“…”

It’s a simple yet difficult question to answer. Fabricating my experience felt wrong, but being too honest could give the impression that I’ve been deceiving the knights.

Popper, noticing my hesitation, chuckled amicably.

“Heh, is it so difficult to say you’ve never had proper lessons!”

“…?”

Popper clapped my shoulder energetically. I looked at him, bewildered.

How did he know? Or was he testing me by asking that question?

Not just me, but the knights overhearing our conversation also showed expressions of confusion. It’s probably because of what he said about not having learned swordsmanship.

How much does this elder know? I had to stay on my toes.

“Your master is an old comrade of mine, with whom I’ve shared many battlefields. I’ve already heard much about you.”

Silveryn had already talked about it. It’s reassuring and yet chilling to know she’s so closely acquainted with him.

If he’s a veteran capable of sharing battlefields with Silveryn, he could dissect every aspect of how I handle a sword just by watching.

“It is an honor to meet a comrade of my master.”

“Heh, the honor is mine. You’ve done a great deed. We owe you, no, the entire village owes you a debt.”

“It’s all thanks to my esteemed master.”

Popper, wearing a gentle smile, said,

“Your master hinted that you achieved everything on your own. Whose words should I take as truth?”

“…”

It’s strange, it almost feels like Silveryn has orchestrated everything. From handing me the Stitch when I was leaving to arranging this private meeting with Popper by subtly stepping away.

“While it’s commendable to credit your master, we are clear on whom the honor belongs to. You’ve earned this credit, and rightfully, you should choose the reward.”

“I’ve merely done my duty. I warrant no reward.”

Popper spoke in a persuasive tone.

“Do you intend to leave a debt with our knight order?”

A cold sweat ran down my spine.

“I was hasty.”

“Speak, then. What do you require? I can provide you with a useful artifact or gold coins.”

It’s truly generous of him to offer a reward so readily, yet I have absolutely no sense of how valuable this deed of mine is considered.

It’s my first time experiencing such a thing.

Given this scarce opportunity, I wanted to obtain the most useful compensation.

Artifact or money. While either would be nice, neither is particularly useful to me.

Yet demanding too much could diminish the merit of what I’ve done, making the situation incredibly awkward.

Silveryn, the only person I could consult with, was away.

It’s not that nothing was needed; it was a matter of deciding if it was appropriate.

Hmm, there is assistance I require from the knight order, but how to go about it?

Strictly speaking, the knight order and I merely cleaned up after a deranged alchemist. The alchemist is the one who should be compensating me.

However, to extract compensation from that alchemist, I desperately needed the help of the knight order.

What I urgently needed was…

“I require griffin blood.”

Popper’s pupils dilated. He must be surprised, bypassing good items for griffin blood, of all things.

Instead of responding immediately, he quietly brushed his beard.

Griffin blood was one of the many ingredients listed in Zverev’s potion recipes.

While reading through the research records, one potion in particular caught my greedy interest.

There were quite a few herbs in the ingredients list that had unfamiliar names, and I couldn’t tell which ones would be difficult to procure. However, considering Weisel draws alchemists in search of various herbs, I dismissed those from the list.

Out of all the ingredients required for those many potions, ‘griffin blood’ was the only one that wasn’t a herb.

Griffins were rare creatures in Weisel, so it was impossible to procure the blood here. I would need to go through merchants.

Yet I didn’t even know where griffins resided, let alone which merchant would supply a 16-year-old with such ingredients from afar. Convincing would be one task, and even if I succeeded, they’d likely charge me a hefty premium.

If the knight order handled it for me, it would be resolved immediately. With their extensive reach, they could procure a generous amount.

I gauged Popper’s reaction.

The way he’s looking at me… his eyes are gleaming. It seems like a good sign, but it’s uncomfortably burdensome.

“Planning another interesting project, I presume.”

Whatever it is, he seems to have some expectations of me.

“Griffin blood is not difficult to provide. I won’t inquire about how you’ll use it. I’m looking forward to what you’ll be up to. Hahaha.”

“Thank you. I will do my best to meet your expectations.”

It’s burdensome.

Knights began pouring out from the interior of the mansion.

One of the knights approached Popper and made a report.

“Subjugation of the remaining ghouls is complete.”

“Good.”

Just in time, attendants arrive with the clothing I’m to change into.

“Let’s wrap this up. You’ve all worked hard.”

As Popper turned to leave, he seemed to have one last thing to say to me.

“Ah, I’m planning to hold a social gathering soon, and I’d like you to attend.”

“I would be honored. I wouldn’t dream of refusing.”

Darn, a social gathering. I’d rather be pushing logs and drenched in ghoul blood.

Popper departed with his aides. It seemed things were finally coming to a close.

Before me, several knights who had not followed the commander remained.

Among them were Knight Joyce, with whom I was acquainted, and a bulky fellow who appeared to be about my age was watching me intently.

When our eyes met, Joyce gave me a slight bow and then left. The bulky one beside him looked down at me unpleasantly and followed Joyce.

Having gone through so much in just one day, I didn’t have the patience to worry about every little thing.

I quickly changed clothes and stepped out of the gate.

The knights were moving in a line toward the wide crossroads at the village center.

And there, on one side of the road, was Silveryn, holding the reins of a horse, waiting for me.

My suspicions had almost turned to certainty.

Was she already here but decided to stay out of sight on purpose?

As I approached her, Silveryn spoke quietly.

“You’ve done well, my apprentice.”

“You’re a bit late.”

A slight smile formed on Silveryn’s lips at my rebuke.

She spoke with playful ease.

“Go ahead and mount first.”

After I mounted the horse, Silveryn followed suit.

We, too, followed the procession of knights towards the crossroads.

While riding, I couldn’t contain my curiosity and spoke up.

“You knew all along, didn’t you, teacher?”

“Knew what?”

“About the ghouls that were hiding in that mansion.”

“Yes. I had my suspicions. There was residual magic in the barrier, after all.”

“…”

“I left you there just in case, to see how you would handle it, but I didn’t expect you’d take care of everything on your own.”

I was momentarily speechless.

“The knight order wouldn’t have just let it go. So, you swooped in, took all the credit for yourself, and what did you get as a reward?”

You don’t know yet?

“I asked for money.”

Silveryn suddenly released the reins. The horse stopped, and she fell silent for a moment.

Then Silveryn pinched my cheeks forcefully.

“Ouch!”

“Already trying to deceive your master?”

She knew everything and acted otherwise? Now it was starting to get a bit scary.

“I won’t do that again.”

I promise I won’t do it again, please.

This is bad. If she finds out about the research notes I’ve taken as well, I’m done for. I’ll have to keep this a secret for a while.

Silveryn eventually ceased her ‘massage’ of my cheeks.

My cheeks were still stinging.

“I should learn to ride horses properly soon.”

“You have a long way to go before escaping my grasp, my apprentice.”

Human beings are said to be creatures of adaptation. Although I never showed it, riding with Silveryn was becoming increasingly comfortable.

I had to get away before I got completely used to it. I can’t keep this up all the way to the academy.

At the wide crossroads in the center of the village, the knights stood in formation.

Villagers surrounded them from a distance, watching the scene unfold.

We kept a certain distance and stopped on one side of the formation.

Popper declared the completion of the ghoul subjugation to the villagers.

They’d now leave just the necessary manpower and return to their original places.

But the villagers were murmuring about us.

The snippets I overheard were about me: the disciple of a great archmage, a genius swordsman, and so on.

The rumors had spread already.

“You’ve become somewhat famous, haven’t you?”

“They’re making too much of a fuss over me.”

It was embarrassing hearing all of it.

“This place is too peaceful. So whenever there’s something about magical beasts, they make a big fuss over it. Just accept it, what can you do.”

Silveryn didn’t seem to mind the commotion that much.

Thus, finishing our tasks earlier than anticipated, we set out for Silveryn’s residence.

The sun had already set, and we were making our way guided by the moonlight.

Silveryn shared unfinished stories while enjoying the starlight.

“I inquired with the alchemy association, and there was no record of an alchemist named Zverev.”

“Then what is it?”

“If not listed in the association, his research cannot be protected, which implies he’s probably up to no good. The name Zverev is also likely a pseudonym.”

“What will you do, teacher? Will you continue the investigation?”

Silveryn sighed deeply.

“Regardless of what I do, you no longer need to be involved. You won’t have the time to worry about such matters anymore.”

“…Why? Is there something else?”

“As I was communicating with the magical academy, the reply to the recommendation I sent for you to the academy arrived.”

“…What?”

“The examiners from the academy are coming to Weisel to see you.”

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