How to Live Comfortably as an Abandoned Prince

Chapter 165. The Domain of the Alchemy Majors

“Take this. You’ll stand out less to the golems.”

Anesha handed Radel a robe.

Radel immediately pulled on the robe she gave him.

Even then, the flying golem had not yet regained its senses.

“Let’s get out of here quickly. It won’t hold for more than a few seconds.”

Anesha led Radel out of the herb garden.

When Radel glanced back while walking quickly, the flying golem was once again flying around as if nothing had happened.

“Was that firework something you made before, Senior?”

“That’s right. A firework that blocks a flying golem’s vision. You bought one on the black market before, didn’t you?”

“Yes. I’ve been saving it. I haven’t used it yet.”

In a cheerful voice, Anesha explained how to use the firework.

“Just use it like earlier. Make sure you aim it at the golem’s eyes. Obviously, it doesn’t work on people.”

“What happens if you use it normally?”

“It’s just a party firework. Might lift the mood if you use it at a birthday party?”

Anesha laughed brightly.

A firework that worked only on flying golems and not on people.

Radel could not help but wonder how such a thing was made.

“How did you confirm that it works on golems?”

“When I was making it, I got my hands on a flying golem by sheer luck. I took it apart to test things.”

She got a flying golem by luck and dissected it?

Radel felt like there were things he probably should not ask further about.

Somehow, he was starting to think that Senior Anesha was not an ordinary person….

“By the way, have you tried the five-second invisibility potion you bought last time?”

“I’m still saving it.”

“That one’s useful for alchemy classes. I made it so I could sneak herbs from the herb garden.”

As expected, the seniors had been thinking the same thing.

Professor Kaylin certainly would not go easy on them just because they were seniors.

Interested, Radel asked,

“Even as a second-year, do you still have to pull weeds in the herb garden to get materials?”

“Of course. In fact, once you’re a second-year, you have to manage the herbs too, so it’s even more exhausting. Ah—wait, I shouldn’t say this. Don’t tell Professor Kaylin I said that, okay?”

“I didn’t hear anything.”

Satisfied with Radel’s answer, Anesha grinned.

The two exchanged playful looks.

“By the way, it wasn’t a trap after all.”

“A trap?”

Anesha asked as she led Radel out of the herb garden.

Radel replied with a serious expression.

“You sent a note asking for a Grade Representative meeting in the evening even though the term hasn’t started yet. Honestly, I thought it was suspicious.”

“What? Hahaha!”

Anesha burst out laughing as she realized what was going on.

So that was why she had been sent here.

“No wonder. So that’s why Professor sent me. Sorry about that, Junior, but I think you really were tricked. Where we’re going is Professor Kaylin’s alchemy workshop.”

“…What?”

Seeing Anesha appear, Radel had naturally assumed it was a Grade Representative meeting.

Anesha gestured to the bewildered Radel.

“Junior, we’re here.”

Ding.

[An unknown magic interferes with the user’s perception.]

[Status ailment nullification is activated.]

[A hidden space is revealed.]

[The Academy Alchemy Workshop reveals itself!]

A building Radel had never seen before greeted him.

It was not the workshop where first-years usually took classes with Professor Kaylin.

This was Professor Kaylin’s ‘real’ workshop.

Pointing at a building stacked like a tower of square workshops, Anesha smiled brightly.

“Welcome to the domain of the Academy’s alchemy majors!”

***

Though it was clearly evening, the alchemy workshop was as bright as daytime.

Countless magic lamps installed throughout the workshop were shining at full brightness.

“It’s dazzling.”

When Radel shared his impression of the workshop, Anesha looked proud.

“Right? The furnaces of alchemy majors are never extinguished, even at night.”

Did that mean the seniors studied alchemy here all night long?

So this was the life of ordinary alchemy majors.

Radel was slightly surprised by their academic fervor.

Even from afar, he could see many people moving about inside the workshop. They all appeared to be alchemy-major seniors.

Some held books, others added ingredients to cauldrons, and some sprinkled magical powder into blazing furnaces while chanting spells.

It seemed they studied voluntarily even during vacation.

‘If I choose alchemy as a major, I’ll need to be prepared for this much.’

Radel imagined himself gathering materials day and night, stirring a cauldron.

He imagined flipping an hourglass and measuring time with absolute precision, allowing not even a single second of error.

Then he realized it.

…Wasn’t that basically what he was already doing?

“You made it safely, Anesha.”

Professor Kaylin, who had been standing in front of the workshop, spotted Radel and Anesha and approached.

He looked genuinely pleased, as if he had been waiting.

“You brought him without anyone noticing, right?”

“Of course, Professor.”

“Well done. Just like a White Fox Dormitory representative.”

“Of course. Whose student do you think I am?”

Anesha and Professor Kaylin smiled as they spoke like villains.

They seemed very close.

“Was it you who sent the fake note to my dorm room, Professor?”

When Radel asked, Professor Kaylin replied shamelessly.

“Yes. It would’ve been troublesome if others found out. I had a hard time breaking through all the magic Professor Marianne set up in the Black Falcon Dormitory.”

He ran a hand through his hair as if just imagining it was exhausting.

He remembered the immense effort it had taken to get past the layered defensive magic to deliver the note.

But as a result, he had managed to bring Radel here.

To lower Radel’s guard, he had used the small lie of a Grade Representative meeting.

“So, what do you think of the Academy Alchemy Workshop you’re seeing for the first time? Only alchemy majors are allowed in here. I invited you specially.”

“I see. Thank you.”

When Radel responded calmly, Professor Kaylin asked in surprise,

“That’s it? No other thoughts?”

“Well, seeing the building brightly lit even at this hour, it seems the seniors are working very hard.”

At Radel’s reaction, Professor Kaylin sensed that this would not be easy.

After all, obtaining an outstanding disciple was never achieved with ordinary effort.

At least times had changed and things were gentler now.

In the old days, if they saw potential, they would practically kidnap promising students to teach them.

‘Compared to old mages, I’m a gentleman. A real gentleman.’

Professor Kaylin did not realize that he himself had used a similar method to bring Radel here.

“Ahem. As you can see, our alchemy majors conduct their research here. There’s curfew at the dormitories, but not here. What do you think? Isn’t it appealing?”

Hearing that, Anesha shook her head.

“Professor, that won’t work. Do you really think a first-year would find that appealing?”

“You never know.”

The two whispered together for a moment.

Then Professor Kaylin turned and spoke plainly.

“I’ll be honest. You know you choose your major in the second semester, right? I’d like you to choose alchemy then.”

Only then did Radel realize Professor Kaylin’s intent.

Since he had been thinking about majors anyway, he asked what he was curious about.

“Is there a reason I should choose alchemy?”

Professor Kaylin answered by forming a circle with his thumb and index finger.

“You like this.”

Anesha nodded beside him.

“Junior, there’s a rumor you like money.”

“Me?”

“Yeah. Otherwise, how would you think of doing business with your classmates inside the Academy?”

That was true.

Radel had no counterargument.

***

Guided by the two, Radel toured the Academy Alchemy Workshop.

Professor Kaylin and Anesha enthusiastically explained the advantages of the alchemy major.

“We provide every alchemy major with a proper personal practice room, even if it’s small.”

Professor Kaylin said proudly, shrugging his shoulders.

Just as he said, countless box-like spaces were stacked inside the workshop.

Seniors were conducting their own research inside them.

“And if you major in alchemy, you can naturally transition into magic tool crafting later. You’re interested in magic tools too, aren’t you?”

Radel was inwardly surprised.

He knew information spread quickly in the Academy, but he had not expected even Professor Kaylin to know his interests.

Of course, whenever he went to Marcellent, he had been making Necklaces of Joy and supplying them to the Divine Church temple.

But that was only because he had received the blueprints from the principal; it was not something he had researched himself.

Still, Professor Kaylin knowing that and trying to persuade him was unexpected.

Radel asked bluntly,

“Why do you want to bring me into the alchemy major?”

This time, it was Professor Kaylin’s turn to be surprised.

“What? You’re not asking because you truly don’t know, are you?”

Anesha, standing beside him, also looked at Radel in shock.

“Junior, you were the top student of the first semester. Why would anyone want to miss out on talent like that? Every professor is eyeing you.”

“That can’t be true. It’s true that I was top of the first semester, but that was just luck. I don’t have much mana, and I can’t use many spells. The professors should know that better than anyone.”

Anesha and Professor Kaylin had the same thought at the same time.

‘This is our only chance to grab him!’

They had to secure him quickly while he still believed that misconception.

Mages were those who defied the laws of nature.

They were obsessed with the unexpected.

Someone who knew virtually no magic passed the Academy entrance exam and even took first place?

No mage could ignore such an intriguing existence.

Radel was unexpectedness itself to the professors.

He was someone so fascinating that no one could predict what he would become if nurtured.

“Alchemy is a discipline that converts into money better than anything else. You know that well. The more you invest, the more you earn.”

“That’s right, Junior. At first, the cost of materials can be daunting, but once you start making money, it’s unbelievable.”

Professor Kaylin and Anesha explained in detail the works of alchemy-major seniors, recent research results, what patents they had acquired, and how much money they were bringing in, all in an effort to pique Radel’s interest.

For Radel as well, it was an opportunity to better understand alchemy.

“Thank you both. I was already deliberating about my major, and this explanation helped me more than I expected.”

Radel expressed his gratitude.

For now, he felt he should quietly return to the dormitory and think things over.

However, as Radel finished touring the workshop and stepped outside with the two, several people blocked his path.

They were professors from other departments.

“Professor Kaylin, just what do you think you’re doing right now?”