Fragnt (5)
“……Is this so kind of cody?”
That was a brief thought about the scene where Layla was fleeing up the mountain, and Elise was desperately chasing after her.
“Hmm?”
In the echo of Layla and Elise’s ‘I saw it- co here- I saw it- co here-‘, sothing caught my eye, a blue crystal twinkling on the ground.
“What’s this?”
Did Elise leave it behind?
I picked it up without thinking.
Whooosh-
It shimred blue.
At the sa ti, from this fragnt, so kind of touch… no, sensation.
No, so kind of ‘skill’ seed to seep into .
I frowned and gasped.
“Cooking?”
It was a fragnted mory about cooking. Chopping vegetables, grilling at, boiling noodles…
“Hey!”
Suddenly, a finger appeared from behind and snatched the fragnt. I turned to look.
“It’s dangerous. Don’t look into it any further.”
Long black hair down to the waist, and honestly, every ti I faced them, those crimson pupils are piercing.
“What is it. Why are you here?”
It was Akane.
Akane Kedzen ol.
“Did you co because of Soliette?”
Soliette and Akane must have so kind of relationship by now. I don’t know if it’s a mutual contract relationship like , or a master and disciple.
“We t at the assessnt test. You should have noticed that I have a relationship with the association.”
“What association? The Magic Association, the College Association, or another association?”
At that, a deep wrinkle ford on Akane’s forehead.
“……Is this a threat? You’re audacious.”
“You’re getting defensive. Don’t worry. If I was going to report, I would have done it a long ti ago.”
There are three major associations famous on the continent.
The Magic Association, the College Association, and the Monster Association.
The Magic Association and the College Association have always had trendous authority. The Monster Association is, of course, a collection of trash. Still, if you consider its impact and influence, it can be said to be a remarkable association.
“Why did you take that?”
I’m dissatisfied.
That fragnt, the 「Treasure Hunter」 radar is whirring.
“It’s not yours. It’s Elise’s achievent point.”
Akane carefully stored the fragnt in a box that looked like a jewel box.
“What’s so special about it?”
“It’s a fragnt. I thought at least one person would die because they were blinded by this.”
“……That’s a very irresponsible statent if it’s from the association.”
“Irresponsible? Dozens of people die every ti at the college board. There are rumors that the association deliberately kills them. Being a college student itself ans stepping into the real world.”
Well, that’s true.
From college students onwards, they are classified as a real power, and they can actually be the targets of assassination by other black companies or the underworld.
“Where are you going to take it and use it?”
“It’s not sothing you can handle yet. I’ll give it back in seven years.”
Seven years?
I’m not even sure if I’ll be alive by then.
Akane murmured as she carefully looked at the fragnt.
“……Two hundred and seventy-five thousand eight hundred and sixty-four. Quite a lot has been collected.”
“What’s that?”
“The number of repeated days. But don’t you earn achievent points?”
“I will earn them, but they’ll find instead, right?”
I pointed to the [Ascal Farm] with a smirk. Akane also turned to look in that direction.
“A farm?”
“Co by sotis. Of course, it’s not free.”
“Why?”
“If you’re hungry, co and eat. You’re not a doll, you know.”
“……”
Akane’s expression hardened slightly.
I now know how to distinguish whether she is a doll or not.
It used to be difficult, but now it’s easy.
The pupils.
Even though Akane is a doll that manifests even the complex and subtle iris of a human, there is a slight difference between the doll and the main body.
It’s a distinction that only I can make, having cared for her main body and directly ‘seen her eyes and rembered’.
“Co when you crave sweets too. We have all kinds of tropical fruits.”
“……”
Akane stood still as if she was shocked, and I waved my hand and went into the farm.
Before I knew it, Gerkhen was squatting down.
He looked at the cultivated land and said a word.
“……It’s growing.”
“Yeah. The soil itself is good.”
In addition to perfect geographical conditions, Grawl, who oversaw the production, is a monster of stone and earth. The performance and output of the farm will be far superior to any fertile land on the continent.
“The harvest cycle will co in three days.”
“Three days……”
Gerkhen glanced at .
Is it your Spectrum?
-He seed to want to ask, but he never said it out loud. He knows better than anyone that it’s rude.
“I’ll give you 10% of what cos out of here. You won’t have to worry about food on your own. Unless you eat like an elephant.”
“……10%.”
Gerkhen muttered quietly.
He had a face of self-doubt. A face that seed to suggest he might eat like an elephant.
“If it exceeds 10%, you can buy it with achievent points.”
“Is barter also possible?”
“Exchange? Sure. Bring sothing like at.”
“Here.”
Gerkhen pushed the box he had put on the ground.
A box that can be carried on the shoulder with a strap like a cross bag.
“What’s that?”
“It’s a cooler I bought from a soul.”
Thunk-
I opened the box. Inside, the ats were kept cold.
In this way, in [Planarium], the interaction between souls and humans are active. It ans that not only simple conversations but also barter is possible.
“Good, but don’t trade too often with the souls.”
“Why?”
“……Well, it doesn’t matter to you.”
In fact, the reason why [Planarium] is sealed again in the future is because too many ‘scamrs’ who are looking for a quick buck flock in.
Foolish guys who want to sell artifacts made by souls on the continent.
They don’t even know that their ntal strength is weakening every ti they use the soul’s stuff.
In that respect, Gerkhen doesn’t need to worry. Because he has excellent ntal strength.
“Leave that cooler here. I’ll use it instead of a refrigerator. I’ll count the price as fruits.”
Gerkhen seed to be reluctant to part with the box, but he nodded soon.
“Alright.”
Thud- He put the cooler on the ground. In the corner, the na [Gerkhen] was written in small letters with a pen.
“What are you, a primary school student?”
I chuckled.
* * *
[Planarium Academy].
Three days have passed since the College Board resud.
Many seniors are running breathlessly.
Not only Endex’s nad ones like Elise, Gerkhen, and Kain, but also other celebrities of the Magic High, such as l and Valerian, are frantically converting everything they catch – be it monsters or magical phenona – into achievent points.
The achievent point transactions are not going smoothly either. It seems like everyone is still in the early stages, overflowing with ambition for their grades…
I’m taking it easy.
“Over there. See?”
This is the marsh of [Planarium].
You can see the monsters with achievent points on them in the distance.
“Yes. I see them. A group of Ashed n.”
Soliette responded.
Ashed n. Four humanoid monsters that look as if they’ve been burned by fire.
They would be level 1 or 2 on the ground, but in [Planarium], they are level 3 or 4 .
According to the ‘Monster Level Scaling’ established by the Magic Association, the seniors of Magic High are on average level 3-4.
This ans we have to face four seniors.
Soliette imdiately drew her sword.
“I’ll take the lead.”
“Confird.”
I also picked up my Ascal sword. The mont I did, Soliette charged. As soon as they detected the front, they raised their nails.
What we call nails are almost 2m long spears.
Soliette took on all four at the front, and I circled around to target the rear.
Clang- Clang- Clang-!
The resonance of the sword eting the nails. In the midst of that, I easily slipped into the rear and charged at the one who seed to be the leader.
Cha───!
The surprised creature hastily swung its arm towards .
Index finger. Thumb. Ring finger. Three lines of nails ca at , but I imdiately deployed my sword technique.
This was my first ti using Eight Swords in real combat.
Chaeng───!
The Third Sword. After lightly blocking the incoming nails from the right by twisting my sword, I switched to the First Sword.
It’s a strong strike that I swing down in a straight line, embedding ‘Rotation’ into the sword.
The creature tried to defend by crossing its nails above its head.
────!
My sword shattered the creature’s nails and head in one go.
By the ti I killed one, Soliette had dealt with the remaining three.
Situation over.
I wiped the ash off my sword blade. I put their ‘cores’ into a cloth.
Soliette glanced at and said,
“You’ve beco quite familiar with the Eight Swords.”
“You saw?”
“Yes. It seems you’ve been practicing hard.”
“Well. It’s a versatile sword, isn’t it?”
[Eight Swords] is the basic technique of Arkne, but its mastery difficulty is harder than most family’s arcane swordsmanship.
“You certainly know. It’s said that the [Eight Swords] at its peak is more powerful than the arcane sword of the main house.”
“Ah, that’s an exaggeration.”
“No, it’s not. The strongest ancestor in Arkne’s history beca the continent’s greatest with just the [Eight Swords].”
Soliette said matter-of-factly.
“Well, whatever. As you said, I guess I have a talent for it.”
I shrugged my shoulders.
Then Soliette took a small breath. Her chest slightly heaved.
“No. [Eight Swords] is not an easy sword to master with talent alone. Not only does it require talent for the sword, but the morization itself is so extensive… effort is essential.”
She said, wearing a gentle smile.
“You’ve been working very hard, haven’t you, Shion?”
“…Huh?”
It seems like she’s misunderstanding sothing.
In fact, the nickna for [Eight Swords] is [Laborious Sword], which is quite a famous joke.
Eight paths, with eight forms in each path.
There are a total of 64 initial forms, but the combinations of these can almost reach infinity.
“If the elders of the family see you, they will try to recruit you imdiately. So don’t get noticed by them. Never!”
Soliette suddenly hardened her gaze.
“Why does the conclusion end up like that?”
“Because they are not good people.”
“…Alright. Let’s start heading back now. Souls co out in the evening.”
In [Planarium], there are both good and evil souls.
The distinction is surprisingly easy.
Souls that look like humans are 99% neutral~good souls. Evil souls are dark or beast-like in shape, and it would be quite a problem if we encounter them.
Souls try to steal human bodies.
“Yes. Shion, you seem familiar with [Planarium]?”
“I’ve studied it.”
I stayed here for quite a long ti, a very long ti ago. It was right after Soliette committed suicide. I was in a very unhinged state.
Trudge, trudge-
We were walking down the mountain path together when we reached a fork in the road.
To the right is [Ascal Farm], and to the left is [Planarium Academy].
“Let’s eat at the farm before we go.”
“No, it’s okay. I have to do Bethune.”
She shook her head, and I didn’t say anything more.
“Alright then.”
Public and private.
After that day, we each had a line that we respected.
“Take care.”
“Yes. See you tomorrow.”
I entered [Ascal Farm].
The inside of the greenhouse is growing amazingly day by day, and it seems like we could harvest right now without any problem.
“Grawl. Can we harvest this?”
─Hmm~ I think we can~
Grawl popped out from my shoulder.
“Then just do the ripe ones.”
─Yes~
Grawl straightened his neck.
Then the grains of rice and wheat were peeled off in an instant, and they ca rushing in like a wind.
“When did you learn telekinesis?”
─It’s easy to move things related to soil with Magic Spells~
Anyway, about a pot each of rice and wheat.
Not only that. Cabbage, lettuce, onions, garlic, and even the sweet fruits that Gerkhen likes….
I harvested everything and sorted them by type.
“It’s abundant.”
─Knock knock knock.
Just then, there was a knocking sound from outside.
─Please open the door! Please open the door! Please open the door!
The following is Layla’s voice. I would understand even if she said it once.
I opened the door.
Beyond it were Layla, Kain, Asher, and… Soliette?
I smirked at her.
“What’s up? You said you were leaving.”
“…I was caught on my way down.”
Soliette let out a forced laugh.
Before she knew it, Layla had her in a tight grip, almost to the point of wrinkling her sleeve.
“What are you doing?”
“…What do you an! We’re custors.”
Layla grinned mischievously.
“Shion, are you~ selling food here? Like last ti~”
She must be referring to the roast pig from before.
I do have all the ingredients on hand.
“…Well, yes.”
I looked at Kain and Asher. They were standing awkwardly.
Asher mumbled with a pout.
“Hey. I didn’t know Shion was doing this.”
“Hey, the na itself is Ascal Farm.”
“……”
No response.
They probably don’t even know that my surna is Ascal.
“Then you guys should leave! You can’t even grill at!”
Layla turned to look at again, feigning sadness.
“Shion… We can’t do anything… We can’t even prepare the boar we caught… The at still had fur on it, I almost threw up eating it…….”
“…Is that so.”
Looking at them, it seed like Layla, Kain, and Asher had all lost a fair amount of weight.
Especially Kain, his cheeks were hollow.
“But it’s expensive here, you know? It’s 300 achievent points per person.”
“What!!!”
Layla let out a loud exclamation, and Kain and Asher’s eyes widened.
“300 points is a bit over the top.”
“But in return, I’ll give you enough to eat for a whole day. Think of it as a chef’s choice al.”
For reference, the four Ashed n I caught today are worth 80 points. If we assu that the seniors catch about 200 achievent points on average per day, it ans they have to invest almost 1.5 days’ worth to afford a single serving.
“You can leave if it’s too expensive.”
Selling it cheaply doesn’t make sense. I don’t want too many people coming either.
“But, you won’t regret it?”
I clenched and unclenched my fist.
I haven’t cooked much, but strangely, my hands are full of sensation now. Even a certain desire keeps rising.
The desire to cook.
Sohow, I have a strong feeling that I’ll do great.
It’s probably because of that [Fragnt] I touched last ti.
“Well, how about a 10% discount-”
“There are absolutely no discounts. I’ve heard rumors that you guys are rich.”
Elise received 30,000 achievent points from Akane, and supposedly distributed 2,000 each to her team.
“…Fine! Alright! We’ll splurge!”
“Ah. Everyone. I’m fine-”
Layla grabbed Soliette who was trying to leave belatedly.
“Soliette, I’ll pay for you! I got achievent points from Elly~~”
“What? Layla, did you get more? We all only got 2,000 each.”
Asher blinked his eyes.
“No~ Well~ There were a few things~~ Now! Shion! Show your student ID!”
In [Planarium], the student ID serves as a card, ID, and wallet.
I tagged cards with Layla, Kain, Asher, and Soliette in turn.
[ 300 AP]
[ 300 AP]
[ 300 AP]
[ 300 AP]
1,200 AP.
What other seniors would have to work their bones off for six days to earn, I got in just one day.
“Okay. Co in and wait. Sit down.”
I swung open the farm gate.
The chair and the long table had just been set up, just like a real Chef’s Choice restaurant.
Grawl, who had been eavesdropping on our conversation, had quickly prepared it.
“Sit and wait.”
“Wow, everything is already set up~”
They took their seats.
I marinated the pig that Gerkhen had caught with black pepper and salt, cooked so rice, and served a mushroom soup as an appetizer.
“This is the appetizer. Eat.”
Layla, who had taken a spoonful, widened her eyes.
“Wow, this is delicious!”
“…I used 300AP, it better be delicious.”
“Asher, shut up!!”
“…….”
Anyway, the frying pan is ready.
A special [Stone Plate] made by Grawl himself.
I put the marinated pork on the sizzling hot plate, mixed in asparagus, green and white onions, and grilled the steak.
“This is the main course. Eat.”
Pork steak and rice. The at is incredibly large, and there is a lot of rice.
They are all big eaters, after all.
“”””…….” ”””
The four of them stared blankly and then took a bite. They put the steak in their mouths.
Suddenly, their faces lted like cotton candy.
Each of them bowed their heads, making different expressions.
“It’s delicious.”
Everyone turned to look at the one who had exclaid.
It wasn’t Kain, Layla, or Asher, but Soliette.
I asked blankly.
“…You think it’s delicious?”
“Yes.”
A faint smile blood on her face.
It was the first ti for .
To see her truly enjoying sothing.
“Maybe it’s because it’s high-end~ Soliette has always eaten expensive food!”
Layla said, clutching her fork.
“…Ah, that could be possible.”
“Eat a lot. There’s dessert too.”
I laughed to myself.
A sense of inexplicable pride, a sense of accomplishnt.
I thought I would never hear those words in my life, but I heard them so suddenly.
Layla laughed heartily.
“Shion~ This is really delicious! But there’s no periwinkle soup~?”
“You can catch it yourself and cook it.”
Layla was chattering away, but Asher and Kain were silent. They were just repeatedly cutting their at, as if they were in a trance.
While they were eating the main course, I made sherbet with lon.
And so, as the al was coming to an end.
“Now, dessert. Eat.”
The sherbet I served as the final dessert.
The four of them, already quite full, took a bite.
“”””…….” ”””
They all closed their mouths tightly again.
Silence.
All of them just quietly scraped and ate the sherbet.
“It’s worth… the money.”
Kain muttered. His voice was a little choked.
No, he was actually crying.
“…Sniff.”
The sight of him wiping his tears with his arm was a bit disgusting, but well.
Even though Kain looks like a bandit, he’s actually a very precious young master who’s been raised delicately. He probably has never cooked, let alone butchered.
He’s a rich young master who’s far from self-sufficiency.
“Why are you crying and making a fuss- sniff.”
Asher, who was next to him, tried to comfort Kain but ended up bowing his head.
Layla looked at the two of them with disbelief and snorted.
“…These guys are crazy!”
Quietly, I watched Soliette savoring the sherbet.
“Hmm. Hmm……”
Her enjoynt of the food was genuinely different from Layla’s. Perhaps it’s because she’s a real aristocrat.
“Considering it’s a high-end restaurant, co by occasionally. Don’t co too often, though, as it’s botherso for .”
I said this as I wiped my hands.
Knock, knock-
Then, the knock on the door sounded again.
“Excuse -”
The person who cautiously opened the door and spoke was Elise.
“……Perhaps-”
Elise glanced around the room.
She first looked at Soliette and , then found Layla.
“Ho ho~ Elly’s here too~ I wonder what brings her here~”
“It’s nothing?!”
She snapped back, quickly turning around.
“Shion. Are you going to log into [Bethune Dungeon] today?”
Soliette asked just then.
“……!”
Elise, who was about to run out, froze in her tracks.
Her ears perked up.
I replied briefly.
“Yeah. I should. Elise, why are you here?”
“……It’s nothing.”
With her lips pouting, Elise left the ranch.
“Hehe…… I wonder what’s going on…… Elly ca to see Shion…… I wonder what it could be……”
Layla alternately looked at the firmly closed door and , murmuring with a smirk.
“Sniff- Sniff-”
“Sniff- Sniff-”
“……Why on earth are you two crying?”
I shook my head at Asher and Kain, who were crying dramatically.
Reviews
All reviews (0)