Chapter 16
The Royal Academy Yggdrasil utilized a total of fifty-six buildings across its vast grounds.
Among them, the largest building was the new hall located in the center of the grounds, and the second largest was the old hall situated to its left.
Since the new hall had been constructed, classes had no longer been held in the old hall.
However, it seemed the building had not been neglected, as it held historical significance and served as a place for student clubs.
‘In the main episode, there weren’t many cases of going to the old hall.’
It was simply a place to join a club or receive side quests, just for additional content.
‘The old hall… the name really fits.’
That evening, after finishing my livestock shed duties.
As I looked up at the building reflected in the glow of the sunset, that thought came to me.
Compared to the clean, refined, white-painted new hall, the old hall, built of brown brick with each brick bearing marks of age and tranquility, radiated a strong sense of an old structure.
Keirin, the chatterbox beside me, also lifted her face upward, following my gaze.
“Why are you looking up, Nari? Is there something floating in the sky?”
“Let’s go in.”
“Ah, wait! I’m the one introducing you, how can you go in first, Nari!”
As I stepped ahead, Keirin followed me, pouting and looking like she might cry.
‘The old hall certainly feels much older than the new one.’
While discreetly glancing around, I climbed the stairs.
The reason I had come to this building.
Through Keirin’s introduction, it was to meet ‘a certain senior.’
‘Head of the Pharmaceutical Department, second-year Shuniel.’
He was an intelligent and gentle man, often smiling with his eyes.
‘He had considerable talent in potion-making.’
A character who could brew any potion into its best possible state.
On the surface, he seemed just like any other Yggdrasil senior, but his origins were extraordinary.
This character carried a tragic backstory—he was, in fact, a prince of the Albion Kingdom, allied by blood to the Astrid Empire.
Though a deposed prince, who had lost all his power and fled after being robbed of the throne.
‘Later, he became central to an event episode and also a collaborator to the protagonist.’
A tale of rebellion against the uncle who killed his father and mother to ascend as king.
It was content only revealed if one built high favorability with Shuniel.
‘It’s the kind of story that feels all too familiar.’
According to the developers, the idea had been borrowed from the classic novel Hamlet.
But its scale, gimmicks, and entertainment easily matched the main episodes.
‘Of course, for now, Shuniel would be hiding his identity and living quietly, having taken refuge at Yggdrasil.’
Later, if Ren met Shuniel and built enough favorability, the usurpation quest could be undertaken.
‘A character who could influence Ren.’
Conversations would have to be handled carefully.
Though he appeared gentle, Shuniel was, in truth, a timid character.
‘He himself knew very well he could be assassinated at any time.’
There was no need to pressure him with threats, claiming I knew his identity, to force him into potion-making.
‘Most of the time, he willingly did whatever was within his ability.’
He was simply a character who loved potion-making.
And with Keirin’s introduction, I could definitely entrust requests to him.
“Nari, it’s so high up, isn’t it hard? Should we take a break?”
“I’m fine.”
When had she gone ahead of me?
I looked up at Keirin, who had already climbed further upstairs.
She wiped the sweat on her forehead as she claimed she wasn’t tired, but it was clearly a lie.
Typical of Villed’s weak stamina—she already seemed at her limit, panting and sweating profusely.
‘Granted, my stamina’s poor too. No elevators, and the floors are ridiculously high.’
I endured the trembling in my legs with sheer willpower.
‘We’re on the seventh floor now, so the next one is the last.’
The one comfort was that Shuniel wasn’t on the tenth floor.
‘Yes, from the first floor to the tenth, it’s all clubs.’
I had seen it starting from the first floor, and there were plenty of students chatting in the hallways.
They looked happy with their club activities, wearing expressions of ease never seen in class.
“If you’re jealous, why not join a club too, Nari? You’ll meet lots of nice people.”
When I glanced at the students in the hallway, Keirin seemed to mistake it as jealousy.
“Do you think I’d do that?”
“Why not, it’s fun and there’s lots to do!”
“I don’t have time to waste like that.”
“But nobles usually have lots of free time, don’t they? You’re so different from the nobles I know, Nari. That’s what makes you interesting.”
I didn’t bother responding to that.
Being busy with livestock work was one thing.
But in this situation, what mattered was growing stronger and not being left behind.
‘My starting line is already far behind everyone else’s.’
Though I had grown a lot compared to the beginning, I was still weaker than other students.
The risk of failing always loomed over me.
I had neither the leisure nor the mindset to while away time in clubs.
‘Besides, I’m Villed.’
The fact that Keirin kept me company was unusual in itself.
Rumors about Villed had already spread everywhere, so clubs would never accept me anyway.
No one would like me.
‘Shuniel must have heard those rumors too.’
Of course, that was why I was being introduced through Keirin in the first place.
As long as I watched my words, there shouldn’t be a problem.
And so, before long, we reached the eighth floor.
Unlike me, who was panting heavily, Keirin smiled brightly as she stopped before the Pharmaceutical Club room.
“Tada, here we are! Let’s go in!”
Keirin flung the door open and called out cheerfully.
“Shuniel-senpai! I’m here!”
“Keirin, I warned you last time, didn’t I? It’s basic manners to knock before opening a door.”
Holding flasks in both hands, he answered without even sparing us a glance, focused on his work.
‘Shuniel.’
A man with neatly kept golden hair.
He was about a head taller than me.
Judging by his red-tagged nametag on his uniform, he was definitely a second-year.
“Ah, sorry, senpai! I didn’t mean to!”
“I wasn’t scolding you. So, what brings you here today?”
Only then did he put down his flask and raise his head.
The moment my gaze met Shuniel’s bright smile, even more radiant than the sunset.
“Hm…?”
Had he noticed something strange?
He looked back and forth between me and Keirin.
His eyes widened, as if in surprise.
“You are…”
“Nice to meet you, Shuniel-senpai.”
I gave a light bow with a faint smile.
“From the Dedenkman family……”
It sounded like he was about to say “Villed.”
But Shuniel’s throat caught, as if he were suddenly short of breath, unable to answer.
Seeing him take a step back, it seemed like he was somehow frightened of me.
“Have we met before?”
“Not personally…… but I’ve heard rumors.”
Gone was his usual bright demeanor, replaced by a stiff and tense Shuniel.
‘Not that I can’t understand.’
I was Yggdrasil’s most notorious delinquent.
And at the same time, the son of a high-ranking noble of the Astrid Empire.
‘Since Shuniel is the fallen prince of Albion, it’s no wonder he’d be nervous meeting someone from an allied nation’s upper ranks.’
If his identity were to be discovered, and once exposed, the guillotine would fall on his neck.
For a character who embodied calmness, he had reason to tremble.
‘Let’s make him lower his guard toward me.’
It could be that my height or sharp gaze was making him even more afraid.
Taking all that into account, I spoke with care.
“I came to you because I have a request, Shuniel-senpai.”
“A request…… you say?”
“What reason would I have to seek you out otherwise? I’d like to ask for your help in potion-making.”
Shuniel blinked.
Before he could respond, I answered myself.
“Of course, I’ll pay you for it.”
Shuniel let out a hum as though conflicted, then finally replied.
“Villed, I’m really sorry…… but making illicit potions goes against my beliefs.”
That was an unexpected response.
Did he really think I’d commission something like drugs?
Even though I had tried to sound as polite as possible, did I still give off the impression of a thug?
‘I guess I’ll live my life being misunderstood.’
Letting out a self-deprecating sigh at my own future, I shrugged my shoulders.
“It’s not an illicit potion. Just by looking at the recipe, you’ll know exactly what it is, senpai.”
I handed Shuniel a paper with the ingredients written down.
He carefully received it and then stroked his chin as he read through it.
“Hm, using Flamewood to control the temperature…… binding Dendra roots into a figure-eight…… boiling Inya grass, neutralizing the toxins with Thornflower petals……”
I couldn’t make out exactly what he was mumbling, but from his expression, it was clear he was intrigued.
“A potion that briefly boosts physical ability and mana without side effects…… is it?”
Once his mental simulation was over, Shuniel nodded, exhaling a deep note of admiration.
“This is an excellent recipe. One of the most perfect I’ve seen in recent times. How…… did you, Villed, come up with this yourself?”
Unlike his earlier wariness, this time his eyes sparkled with delight.
I scratched my forehead as I answered.
“My family’s pharmacist created it. If it’s good enough for you to recognize, then it must really be something.”
I mixed in a plausible excuse as I spoke.
“You’re overestimating me. Any skilled apothecary would recognize this.”
“It’s not an exaggeration. In all of Yggdrasil, who could match you in pharmaceuticals, Shuniel-senpai?”
“Thank you.”
Had some of his wariness finally eased?
Before long, Shuniel began to return to the bright smile he had shown Keirin.
“Alright. With a recipe of this quality, it’s I who should be thankful. I’ll accept your request.”
Thankfully, I was able to commission Shuniel for the brewing.
But another problem soon arose.
“There aren’t enough ingredients……”
After rummaging through his ingredient box several times, Shuniel answered with a strained smile.
“The other ingredients are plenty. But Thornflower petals are rare, and it’s really unfortunate. If you happen to obtain them later……”
“What if I bring them today?”
“Eh?”
Shuniel blinked.
“You’d have trouble finding them even if you went into the city right now……”
“I have them at my place. I’ll fetch them immediately.”
“As expected of a noble. There really isn’t anything you don’t have.”
Shuniel spoke with genuine admiration.
Thornflower was one of the rarest herbs, notoriously difficult to cultivate.
‘Though I said I had it……’
The truth was, I didn’t.
But I knew where it grew.
‘There was exactly one patch behind Yggdrasil’s mountain.’
It wasn’t very high up either.
And it bloomed in a place that was sparsely traveled and hardly visible.
‘If I just dig it up now and bring it back, it’ll be fine.’
I quietly turned my gaze toward Keirin.
She had suddenly gone quiet, and while I was talking with Shuniel, she had found some interesting potion and was playing with it in the corner.
‘Good. It’s easier alone. Stay here and behave yourself.’
I gave Shuniel a silent nod and stepped outside.
Then I immediately ran toward the mountain behind Yggdrasil.
It wasn’t tall, nor was it far, so I quickly arrived.
‘Found it.’
A single gray flower swayed in the wind beneath a tree.
Though it resembled a dandelion, every part of it was a thorn.
‘Don’t touch the petals. Dig carefully, just like I did when I harvested Ilawne’s Heart.’
I carefully loosened the soil and pulled out the Thornflower intact, roots and all.
The task was over in an instant.
‘For a rare herb, this one was easy to get.’
Unlike when obtaining Ilawne’s Heart, this wasn’t a hidden location.
Nor was it a difficult place to enter, making it relatively easy to acquire.
Now I just had to bring it back to Shuniel.
I placed the Thornflower into a leather pouch and stood up.
At that moment.
A new Animal Friend is within a 1 km radius!
Find it quickly before it gets away!
The message appeared, and I froze.
I had seen this before.
When I first met Hwayo.
‘A new animal……?’
The hologram appeared once again.