The tension among the merchants and students of the White Tiger was palpable.
"Why is everyone acting like this? Surely, you don't mean to say you're out of money?"
In an attempt to break the uneasy atmosphere, one of the merchants joked nervously.
"Yes..."
"Sorry... It's the academy's rule..."
Silence followed.
The students of the White Tiger responded hesitantly, causing shock among the merchants.
"What kind of rule is that??"
Despite hearing rumors about the academy's strictness, this was beyond belief.
"How can that be? If you can't bring money to the academy... How do you manage when you go out?"
Yi-Han nodded, acknowledging the validity of the point.
"This isn't the main issue right now."
"Yeah, right. It's like... um..."
The merchants were visibly flustered, prompting a student from the White Tiger to suggest a solution.
"Could we possibly repay during the holidays? We promise on our family's name..."
-How dare you propose credit in the sacred land of Einroguard? Do you have no honor or pride? And you call yourself a mage?-
The Death Knight nearby mercilessly criticized the suggestion.
A White Tiger student, having inadvertently made an imprudent remark, shriveled under the accusation of shamelessness.
"No... No, Death Knight Sir. We're fine..."
-Not at all! Indulging students does no good. They must be taught strictly. Haven't you heard the old tales? Spoiled children squander their family's wealth, thinking it's their own.-
"The cost of materials doesn't necessarily mean squandering wealth..."
The merchants murmured, but the Death Knights ignored them.
'It must be the work of the skull principal.'
Considering the arrival of the merchants, Yi-Han realized the principal's unlikely approval and anticipated such a scenario.
The Death Knights enforcing a no-credit rule!
"Hmm. May I at least purchase my items first?"
Yi-Han spoke up, sensing the conversation dragging on.
The merchants were startled.
"Do you have money now?"
"Yes."
"How... No... I mean, it's normal to have it... Thank you!"
Relieved to find at least one student with money, the merchants brightened.
"Huh? If Wardanaz has money, can't we just borrow from Wardanaz?"
-How dare you attempt financial transactions among friends in sacred Einroguard? Aren't you afraid of ruining your friendship? And you call yourself a mage?-
"I... I was wrong."
Yi-Han clicked his tongue at the foolishness of the White Tiger student.
If he needed to borrow, he should have done so discreetly, away from the Death Knights' eyes.
"Why are you all just standing there?"
Professor Verduus approached, puzzled by the students' hesitancy.
"Professor... We don't have any money. You might have forgotten."
"Of course. It's forbidden to bring silver coins into the academy."
The students grew more suspicious at Professor Verduus's words.
Why would someone aware of this situation allow it?
Was it simply to watch the students despair and suffer?
Considering the principal, it was a plausible theory...
"Work it off. Your seniors did."
"Excuse me?"
"Work. You know, work."
"..."
"..."
Both merchants and students were taken aback by this unexpected solution.
It wasn't entirely unreasonable. After all, mages were among the empire's most skilled professionals.
it was well known that capable mages were priceless, so mere possession of money didn't guarantee one could hire their services.
Even the first-year students of Einroguard were far superior to the mediocre talents roaming the markets.
"Are you... really okay with this?"
"It's fine. Ask for anything."
"No..."
The students, moved by the kindness of Professor Verduus, who even answered on their behalf, trembled at the end of their sentences.
Professor Verduus, upon noticing Yi-Han, was taken aback.
"Why do you have money?!"
'That's what I'm saying.'
For the first time, the other students felt a connection with Professor Verduus's sentiments.
"Well, about that..."
"Now that I think about it, I'm not that curious. You pay for it. Hurry up and create the artifact. I'm looking forward to seeing that autonomous iron shield."
"An artifact like that, already?!"
While the merchants were surprised, Yi-Han had no energy left to explain.
And then...
"I'll just pay with labor."
"What? Why would you...?"
The merchants were puzzled.
The Death Knights kindly explained.
-It's about friendship.-
-Honorable friendship.-
"Ah...!"
"Wardanaz...!"
Both the merchants and other students were impressed.
Yi-Han, regardless, began to calculate.
'The cost of the materials is roughly...'
If he could settle it with labor, it was definitely a win.
Why waste silver coins unnecessarily?
'Why on earth does this guy want to pay with labor?'
Jijel looked at Yi-Han incredulously.
It couldn't be just for friendship (Jijel was not as naive as the Death Knights), and it seemed unlikely that someone from the Wardanaz family would be stingy with money...
Then what exactly?
"Is it possible to get a refund if I work more than the cost of the materials?"
"What?"
"..."
"What?! Merchants visited the academy?!"
Gainando, who had been lounging on a sofa, sprang up in alarm.
"They're not the kind of merchants you're thinking of, Gainando."
"Right. They were only selling materials needed for magic."
"Still, wouldn't there be at least some snacks?"
"There weren't any. Ah, but they did sell bait for luring beasts."
By the next day, the merchants' visit had become somewhat of a topic of conversation.
Given the academy's insular environment, any outside visitors were bound to draw interest.
Of course, once the students learned the full story, they quickly lost interest.
"There's nothing useful."
"It would be better to prepare in advance."
Yi-Han advised his friends.
"Soon, other classes will also start assigning the pre-final projects. It's better to prepare the materials you think you'll use in advance."
"…!"
It was sound advice.
The professors wouldn't provide the necessary materials when assigning projects.
"Is that so...?"
"Maybe it's better to go and buy them in advance."
Convinced by the argument, the students of the Blue Dragon hastily got ready and left their seats to visit the merchants.
One hour later.
"...We've been tricked..."
"We got fooled by Wardanaz..."
"Others would misunderstand if they heard this."
Yi-Han scolded his friends sitting beside him.
Initially, the merchants were like, 'How could we possibly take advantage of such noble mages?' But in reality, they exploited the students quite effectively.
After all, true professionals are always thorough.
-These are potions that failed during production. We'd like you to separate them as much as possible to salvage the ingredients.-
-Could you sort through these odds and ends to find any items that still contain magic?-
-We need someone to complete the groundwork for these scrolls. It's a couple of hundred sheets…-
The students from the White Tiger, who had been sitting there since earlier, worked listlessly, their faces drawn and tired.
The menial tasks assigned to the students were not easy, despite their simplicity. Separating potions required the use of mana, finding magically imbued items among miscellaneous objects demanded concentration, and the preliminary work of drawing lines on scrolls was particularly taxing.
"Was the assignment always this difficult...?"
'The truth is, we haven't even started the actual assignment yet.'
While his friends staggered from fatigue and lack of mana, Yi-Han alone remained energetically active.
"It's all done."
"Already? Are you serious?!"
"Yes. Give me the next task."
"You should probably rest for a bit."
The merchants tried to dissuade Yi-Han. Although he still seemed fine, they were concerned about making him continue working while the other students were visibly struggling.
"No, I can do more."
"But... after all this work, you must have earned enough to take the materials, right?"
"No, I want to work more just in case I fail."
He planned to take any surplus in silver coins!
Professor Verduus, passing by, asked, "Considering your skills, shouldn't this be easy for you?"
"No, it's not enough."
"It seems easy enough..."
"No, it's insufficient."
"I'm saying it's easy!"
"It's not enough!"
"...Please, both of you, don't fight."
The merchants were bewildered to see a teacher and student arguing over such a matter.
Why were they even fighting about this?
"It seems everyone is struggling with their assignments before the finals," Professor Ingurdel commented, looking sympathetically at the students who resembled the walking dead.
"I have some good news for you. There won't be any special assignments for my class before the finals."
"!!"
"Professor Ingurdel, you truly are an educator!"
"I don't feel particularly good receiving compliments for such a thing... But don't get too relaxed. The final exams are just around the corner. You'll be getting assignments soon enough."
Yi-Han nodded in agreement.
Once the current storm of assignments before the finals ended, the final exams would likely be upon them.
They couldn't afford to be complacent with just 2-3 weeks remaining.
"So, I'm going to tell you about the final exam content now."
"!"
"Professor...! You're going too far...!"
'This isn't good.'
Unlike his friends who were moved, Yi-Han felt tense.
Though Professor Ingurdel seemed a bit more reasonable than the other fanatical professors, he was still an Einroguard faculty member, not known for being lenient with students.
"Do you see that mountain range?"
Professor Ingurdel pointed with the tip of his sword toward the mountains behind the main building.
The students nodded. Having suffered there at least once, they were all too familiar with the mountain range within the magic academy's grounds.
"Your final exam will be to hunt in groups of three in those mountains."
"Oh..."
"What are we supposed to catch? Boars? Bulls?"
"Catch whatever you want. The stronger the prey, the higher your grade."
"..."
"..."
The students' expressions hardened.
No...?
'Is there no way to collude?'
Yi-Han thought to himself, looking around, but quickly abandoned the idea.
Judging by the expressions of the White Tiger students, they were not the kind to collude with others.
If he joined hands with them, they would likely betray him at the first opportunity, seeking stronger prey for themselves.
Especially since the swordsmanship lecture was a matter of pride for the White Tiger students.
The idea of 'let's not push ourselves and aim for a good score together' was unlikely to work with them.
"Friends, think about this. We already have a lot of assignments before the finals and the finals themselves. It's pointless to unnecessarily fuel our competitiveness here... Nevermind, what's the use of me saying this? You'll all do as you please anyway."
Yi-Han spoke but then gave up.
The students of the White Tiger were not listening, their attention elsewhere.
The eventful week was drawing to a close, but the classes did not relent on the students.
As assignments for the pre-finals began pouring in from mandatory liberal arts courses like <Basic Imperial Language and Logic> and <Basic Imperial Geometry and Arithmetic>, the students' faces were filled with unease.
"By the way, Wardanaz. You're making an autonomous iron shield?"
Professor Alpen Knighton looked at Yi-Han with a mix of curiosity and interest.
"It just happened..."
"Even though it's a simple artifact, the calculations won't be easy. Once it's completed, do show it to me. I'm curious to see how well you can finish it."
"...Yes."
'The professors at this academy really need to stop talking to each other.'
Starting with Professor Boladi, then Professor Verduus, and now Professor Knighton showing interest in the autonomous iron shield, Yi-Han felt increasingly overwhelmed.
'It's really time to start working on it.'
By now, the possibility of changing his project topic seemed slim. He imagined the professors saying things like 'Why don't you try it again?' or 'It's a pity, give it another try?' or 'You seem close to completing it...' The thought made him dizzy.
...This has to be my top priority, and I must finish it by this weekend, no matter what!
