By the time the freshman welcoming ceremony came to an end, it was already close to noon. However, no one was in a hurry to eat. The academy's central plaza and the sides of the four main avenues were packed to the brim with all kinds of stalls. Club recruitment had officially begun.
As the empire's largest magic academy, Morningstar Academy had always regarded club activities as an indispensable part of its student development system. The dozens of clubs in the academy, large and small, generally belonged to one of two factions: the Sparkfire Association, which was primarily composed of commoners, and the Silver Circle Society, which was primarily composed of nobles. These two largest clubs combined to form the Morningstar Academy United Student Council, which co-coordinated the hosting of academy events, the approval of new clubs, and the distribution of certain resources.
Although they were united in name, the relationship between the two sides was actually terrible. Generally, they each minded their own business, occasionally having a shouting match during student council meetings before going right back to doing their own things.
Choosing which club to join was essentially deciding what kind of resources and connections one would have access to over the next few years. The Silver Circle Society held channels to numerous noble families, and the funding and off-campus resources of its affiliated clubs were far beyond what the Sparkfire Association could compare to, but they rarely recruited commoners. Although the Sparkfire Association was poorer, it had deep roots among the commoner students, and its internal atmosphere was much more casual.
Consequently, Irene quickly became a hot commodity.
The magical talent she had displayed during the entrance examination had already spread throughout the freshman circles. Several magic research clubs affiliated with the Silver Circle Society directly sent representatives to extend an olive branch, and a few clubs from the Sparkfire Association's side also crowded around. However, as soon as the latter got close, they were shoved aside by the Silver Circle Society's people.
In contrast, the scene at the other end of the plaza was much more pathetic.
Erich, Balin, Yser, and Ragg stood under a tree, as if surrounded by an invisible barrier. Whenever the upperclassmen from the clubs passed by, their paces noticeably quickened. A few brave souls had initially taken a couple of steps toward Ragg—after all, a beastkin mage was an extremely rare sight in the academy—but as soon as they drew near and noticed the trio of Erich, Balin, and Yser standing beside him, they abruptly veered off, pretending to browse the neighboring stalls.
“Are they treating us like the plague?” Balin offered his perspective.
Yser's gaze drifted toward the booth of an elven club in the distance, where several elven upperclasswomen were warmly welcoming the freshmen. However, the moment their eyes swept over Yser, the smiles on their faces instantly vanished. Yser withdrew his gaze, pulled a piece of roasted jerky wrapped in greaseproof paper from his shirt, and took a bite.
“When did you hide that?” Erich asked.
“Wisdom needs to be stockpiled at all times.”
“I was asking about the jerky.”
“Jerky is wisdom.”
Irene finally broke free from the crowd of upperclasswomen and jogged over to Erich. Before she could even speak, Erich beat her to it: “Go check out each of them, and choose one you like. I have some things to take care of, so I won't tag along.”
Irene looked at Erich, then at his three roommates who were similarly being ignored, and said, “Don't be sad. I'll ask around for you. Once everyone gets to know you, they'll definitely realize you're a good person.”
Erich almost laughed. He reached out and patted Irene on the shoulder. “Go on, stop worrying about me.”
“But...”
“If you don't go now, I'm going to carry you over there myself.”
Irene rolled her eyes, and under Erich's semi-coercion, she walked back toward the center of the plaza packed with club booths.
Erich watched her back disappear into the crowd before withdrawing his gaze. He didn't want to see Irene's future held back because of him. As for himself, he hadn't expected to make any friends in the academy anyway; having these three oddballs from his dorm for company was already an unexpected pleasant surprise.
Balin watched Irene walk away, nodded, and delivered a concluding assessment: “The four of us are truly a lost cause.”
Yser stuffed the last piece of jerky into his mouth, chewed for a moment, and then said slowly, “Once doubt takes root, the flower of unease will bloom in the soil of the heart.”
To this, Erich offered his own opinion: “I feel like this has nothing to do with Ragg. It's just the three of us who are a lost cause.”
Balin nodded solemnly, Yser nodded solemnly as well, while Ragg said nothing, keeping his head down to continue reading his book.
Then, someone stepped in front of Erich, blocking his path.
Erich first recognized the maid, Margaret, who was following behind her. Standing behind her young mistress, Margaret's eyes met Erich's for a brief moment, a flicker of complexity passing through them before she slightly bowed her head.
Only then did Erich turn his attention to the person blocking him. She had long purple hair tied with a jade-green ribbon at the ends, and her school uniform was adorned with various green accessories, making her look like an overripe grape.
Erich remembered who she was.
Alicia Wayne, the one his body's original owner had broken off the engagement with.
In the past, Erich probably would have calmly apologized to her. After all, breaking off the engagement was indeed a rather dishonorable thing done by the original owner. However, Erich's mood lately had been far from great, and looking at the grape in front of him, he only felt annoyed.
“You're blocking the light, Grape,” he said.
Alicia's expression instantly froze, as if she couldn't believe her ears. “What did you just call me?”
Having successfully achieved a record-breaking speed of one second in the challenge of provoking Alicia, Erich continued, “Is there something you need, Miss Grape?”
Alicia's chest heaved violently as the rage suppressed beneath layers of noble etiquette threatened to burst free. Her eyes bulged as she glared directly at Erich.
Margaret quickly took a step forward, gently supporting her young mistress's arm while casting a reproachful glare at Erich.
Erich pretended not to see it.
Alicia took a deep breath, then another, and another. She calmed herself down, forcing herself to maintain the dignity of a noble lady.
“All you have is that sharp tongue of yours. Just you wait, Erich. The humiliation you brought upon me, I will return a hundredfold.”
Having said her piece, Miss Grape turned around and stormed off with fierce, heavy steps, as if trying to stamp her footprints into the ground. Margaret quickly followed, disappearing into the crowd along with her young mistress.
“How did you offend her?” Balin was the first to ask.
Erich let out a long sigh and said, “If I told you I didn't do anything and that it was someone else's fault, would you believe me?”
The others looked at each other, noncommittal.
Since they were all in the same boat, why overcomplicate things?
Rate on N.U.
