Chapter 134
Chapter 134.1. The Third Year at the Academy - The Final Exam (1)
I decided to go meet Merchant and Valerie.
Whether that decision was a good one or not, the murderous aura around me gradually subsided.
According to information that came in during that time, the Siggs Mercenary Group was annihilated near the eastern road.
Rumors were flying everywhere—some said it was Klaus, others said it was Wolber's pursuit unit, and some even claimed they had clashed with high-ranking adventurers.
A very small portion of the rumors mentioned a mysterious adventurer who had been tracking the mercenary group, but the truth of that was entirely unclear.
Meanwhile, the council issued a notice to the swelling number of refugees, offering minimal support while urging them to return to Wolber.
Seren, in order to maintain its autonomy, deliberately imported food from places like Filsatch.
Continuing to support them would be impossible.
Furthermore, the council promised to hire a large number of adventurers to escort the refugees along the way. I could have taken on the request, but the refugees' pace would have taken too much time. With graduation just around the corner, I couldn't spare that much time.
At the very least, I brewed some healing potions and had them delivered to the affected areas and the adventurers who took on the requests through the Adventurers' Guild and the Merchants' Guild.
However, the departure was sooner than expected, and I couldn't prepare much, so it was mostly just self-satisfaction.
Still, it seemed to bring me some comfort. By the time I finished delivering the potions, the appraisers Elphimia and Ted gave me their approval, saying I was "back to normal."
That was a relief.
Incidentally, Ted and the others from Serade, after much deliberation, decided not to take on the refugee escort request.
Many of the refugees from villages like Ilsana refused to return, and the security in the refugee district had significantly deteriorated. They probably didn't want to leave Lily, Quince, and Kyle behind for an extended period.
Amidst all this, the third-year final exams arrived.
Though it was the exam before graduation, there was nothing particularly special about it. Aside from the noble etiquette portion, I handled it without any issues.
And finally, there was the alchemy exam.
My [Potion Mixing] skill, which was Rank 6 at enrollment, was now Rank 8.
No matter what the exam entailed, I was confident.
As I held up the potion I had brewed, my teacher and classmates were impressed.
This would be the last time I'd see that—or so I'd like to say, but I still had magical tool crafting to deal with.
They'd have to be impressed a little longer.
When the time limit was up, I averted my gaze from one of the two eccentric dancers and began cleaning the alchemy tools.
After a while, Elphimia and Lola approached me, having finished their cleanup.
"All that's left is the graduation ceremony."
"Three years went by in a flash. It was really busy."
"You overextended yourself too much. Well, I can't really talk, though. When I first came here, I planned to return to the imperial capital right away—but I ended up learning a lot more than I expected."
As she said this, Elphimia gazed out through the glass window.
"Will you become a court mage when you return to the imperial capital?"
"Eventually. And you, a knight?"
"Eventually. I'll discuss the timing with my father."
As we exchanged these words, I noticed Lola had a somber expression.
When our eyes met, she forced a smile.
"I'll be lonely. Once everyone is gone…"
"It's not like we'll never see each other again. I plan to come back to Seren at some point, though I'm not sure when. I'm also curious about how Ted and the others are doing. It might even be within the year."
"Really? Then let me know too. I'll adjust my schedule. There's the Magic Guild headquarters here, so I can always find a reason to come."
At my and Elphimia's words, Lola's smile became genuine.
"Please, come visit! I'll be waiting!"
I returned her smile and then brought up an idea to the two of them.
"By the way, I was thinking of having something like a party before graduation. What do you two think?"
"Sounds good, but what are we doing?"
"Just the usual—eating and drinking at my place, but I've been roped into organizing it. It's a farewell party hosted by Ted."
The two of them chuckled but agreed to participate.
As we finished cleaning up and left the alchemy room, Lambert and Felix were waiting for me.
Since the New Year's declaration, I hadn't spoken much with them.
The victory celebration was postponed, and after the martial arts tournament, the break continued, so we hadn't properly seen each other until yesterday's general knowledge exam.
I walked over to them and repeated what I had just discussed.
"Once we graduate, it'll be hard for all of us to get together. Will you two join us?"
"Yeah, we'll join."
"Good. They'll be excited too."
Lambert smiled but quickly changed his expression.
He seemed to want to say something, but the words wouldn't come out.
He must have something on his mind.
Probably about the martial arts tournament—.
Felix glanced at his hesitant lord and spoke up instead.
"Actually, there's something we'd like to discuss privately."
When I turned my gaze to Lambert, he silently agreed.
Seeing this, Elphimia and Lola exchanged glances.
They had noticed the tension between us since the martial arts tournament.
"Well, we'll leave you to it—"
"Alter."
Just as they were about to leave, Rackendale peeked out from the alchemy room.
"Oh, am I interrupting?"
"No, it's not urgent. We'll talk at the farewell party."
After responding to Rackendale, Lambert nodded at me and left.
Many of the noble children gathered in Seren are sent here with high expectations.
But there are also those like Lambert, who came here pleading, staking their futures on this place.
Among them, Lambert's determination for the martial arts tournament was stronger than anyone else's.
Certainly, winning the tournament would be a great achievement, but his true worth lies elsewhere.
I hope his father can see that.
Still—private matters, huh?
He's not going to challenge me to a rematch, is he?
"Alter, do you have a moment? I'd like you to come to my room."
Rackendale's words snapped me out of my thoughts.
"Your room? Is there a problem with the materials?"
"You'll understand when you get there."
For Rackendale, this was an unusually cryptic way of speaking.
It didn't seem like there was an issue with the materials he was preparing.
I bid farewell to Elphimia and Lola, and with Cody joining us, we headed to Rackendale's room.
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