Chapter 169 (1/2)
Territory Pioneering 1
[Sophia-chan’s point of view]
“That was a wonderful presentation, don’t you agree?”
This was the first thing Fahren-sama said after returning to the box seats.
The excitement was clear on his face as he entered. I kind of want to tell him to calm down, but I know just how obsessed he can get when it comes to magic. It’s probably best if I just stay quiet.
The person that responded was actually the Elf-san. She got up without me even noticing, and her chair is furthest from that door, so how did she get over there already?
“I agree. That last presentation was impressive.”
She appears to be an acquaintance of Fahren-sama as well as Tanaka-san.
She closed her eyes, maybe thinking back on the presentation, while nodding.
“The increase in magical fighting power that she mentioned at the start doesn’t seem far fetched at all. There were a lot of presenters that didn’t fully understand their own research, but there were at least a few that impressed me.”
She sounded satisfied with the conference as a whole and I recall seeing her nodding several times during some presentations. She may able to control it better than Fahren-sama, but I can tell she’s just as excited as him.
She’s the type of person to that can completely lose herself in whatever she’s interested in. Well, Fahren-sama is the perfect person for her then.
“Right? So you see how the level of this academy has….”
“I’m sorry to have to say this after being given such great seats, but it is far inferior to that of Academy City. Or at least compared to what I heard about that city in the past. My speciality is alchemy, but even I was able to notice plenty of mistakes.”
“That’s an accurate assumption. The quality of our teachers is declining every year and subsequently, the students will graduate knowing less than those that graduated the year prior. More and more of the students joining the academy have been doing so to use it more as a place to increase their connections rather than receive a proper education.”
Fahren-sama seemed to be apologizing.
I’d think most students wish to use school as a place to meet people, but all the noble mage ever cares about is magic and learning about magic.
But seeing a commoner speak as an equal to a noble is a rare sight.
“Is the Penny Empire’s decline the reason for this?”
“Well, considering the history of this country, it may be a fate that cannot be escaped. The public are told that are academy produces the finest graduates and highest-quality of research in the world but that couldn’t be further from the truth. It’s strange as well. The budget given to the academy increases every year but the quality continues to fall.”
“Did I hear correctly the other day that you’re the current director?”
“Yes, and I hope that I can turn things around during my time in charge.”
“…sure.”
The atmosphere between them wasn’t great.
I took a small step backwards to put some distance between us.
But the Elf-san didn’t press the issue any further and changed the subject.
“Anyway, overall the presenters were wonderful despite being in such a tough environment. If everything shown in that last presentation is true, then it should be ready to be put into practical use.”
“Yes, that’s true. Honestly, that one presentation saved the entire conference. If she can resolve the taste issue, I plan on mass-producing her potion as soon as possible.”
“It’s true that the pure pessari grass pigment can have a horrid taste, but I thought turning it into a powder would resolve that issue. Considering you were the one that tasted, I’d have to assume that it didn’t.”
“It still needs to be resolved, but even as is the potion can be used in an emergency.”
“I see….”
In the blink of an eye, they were talking about magic once more.
They really are well-suited for each other.
Thanks to this, Fahren-sama hasn’t even noticed me.
Thank you, Elf-san.
“I got to see an interesting show. I need to thank you properly.”
“You should thank that man whenever you next see him.”
“You’re right. I should thank him….”
She seemed to be looking to some far off place as Fahren-sama continued.
“By the way, has he still not returned?”
Both of them were thinking about Tanaka-san.
Besides indirectly causing me unnecessary stress, I wonder what my master is doing right now. A normal homebody suddenly disappeared without notice.
“I haven’t seen him since the first day.”
“So he still hasn’t come back.”
Fahren-sama turned to me after hearing the elf’s answer.
I knew this was coming.
Fahren-sama, I’m scared.
“Has he been back to the dorm at all? What about Richard’s daughter? They went to the castle together the other day. If we ask her, I’m sure she can tell us where he went.”
“I-I’m sorry, but Ester-sama hasn’t been back to her dorm either….”
“She hasn’t been back either?”
“N-No, she hasn’t.”
I’m sure that neither of them has been there. Every day and night I’ve been lounging around in the living room eating good food and sleeping. I would’ve noticed if they came back.
“….”
Ester-sama may have finally achieved her love revolution with Tanaka-san. There’s a good chance of that. Ester-sama has been throwing herself at Tanaka-san lately. I don’t think any man could resist her for long.
“That’s fine then. Please, contact me as soon as he returns.”
“Y-Yes!”
I gave him a big nod as I answered.
It’s only natural that a commoner like me would stumble over her words when speaking to the nobility, but the Elf-san spoke to Fahren-sama as if they were equals.
“I’m surprised that there’d be someone else interested in studying the pigment of the pessari grass. It’s even more surprising that a noble from the academy would be interested in it. I assumed someone else would eventually discover the potential of the grass, but I thought it would be a commoner.”
“Oh? You were also studying pessari grass?”
“There’s one thing you should tell that presenter. When she’s distilling the pessari grass, she said the heat from the fireball causes the desired reaction, but the heat isn’t what’s causing the reaction. The effect of the potion is actually allowed to increase if it’s able to cool under the light of the fireball without being heated.”
“…I see.”
“Still, I do have to compliment her for the rest of her methods. I never thought pressurizing the powder then rehydrating it would increase its effects exponentially. So simple yet extremely effective.”
“So the light is causing the reaction, not the heat?”
“Yes, that’s right. Heat would actually reduce its effects. I actually take quite a lot of pride in my ability to provide light with no heat, so I’m sure of this fact.”
“…plant pigment that reacts to light. Very interesting.”
“Are you really interested?”