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Chapter 88
Chapter 88
Student Council President Election (1)
It is arrogance that kills the most warriors in the world.
Be wary of those who are confident in their abilities and make it a virtue to charge boldly and courageously.
Do not have any respect for those who risk their lives time and time again to express their existence to the world.
Be afraid Clevius.
Fear is your weapon.
If the moment comes when you have to run away run away with all your might.
Don’t risk your life on pride. Don’t be obsessed with things like fame.
There is no need to force yourself to face and respond to every crisis and ordeal that comes your way. There is no need to injure yourself by attempting the impossible.
If you live like that there comes a time when you can’t move your feet.
Even though you can run away like you always do there always comes a time when your feet are stuck on the ground and you don’t want to move.
I feel like I have to hold my legs up and stand upright in front of an ordeal that everyone in the world is shouting is impossible.
My whole body is shaking like crazy but strangely enough my hand holding the sword is strong. Even though defeat is certain her body is caught in the inertia of moving forward.
What makes you that way is a completely different kind of belief than pride or honor.
If not run away. Beg for your life in an ugly and servile manner and survive cowardly.
Even if you roll in the mud survive in a mean way and wait for your time. Never sacrifice your comfort in pursuit of high honor and glory.
Don’t live the life of a hero. Don’t bother walking down the thorny path that no one has forced you to walk.
The flowers blooming on the cliffs look noble but it is the tough weeds that eventually fill the garden. I hope you never forget that fact.
– ‘Dalian Application Form’
“… ”
After the snow storm ended. Ofilis Hall also became bustling with students who were busy preparing for the next semester.
A sparring application submitted by senior freshman Wade Calamore against Clevius. It was a challenge that arrived in front of Clevius during a snow storm.
Clevious got up from the bed in the private room and sat down at the table where the maids had prepared refreshments.
In a corner of the room which was particularly dark because the curtains were always drawn Clevius picked up a handful of snacks put them in his mouth and chewed them.
Then trembling he bowed his back looked at the floor and swore a few times.
why… Why Is it me… ”
A ray of sweat passed under the gloomy dark circles.
Clevius did not even respond to the challenge from Wade the genius swordsman of the Calamore family.
However he was unable to overcome public opinion demanding an answer and eventually expressed his intention to abstain. I didn’t want to fight and get hurt and I didn’t want to embarrass myself in front of people.
As expected Clevious wasn’t even dissatisfied with the people’s evaluation that he was like Clevious. He might be better off like this.
It is better to be called a coward and then disappear from attention than to be beaten and defeated in front of everyone.
Clevious peeked at the window curtain with a timid gesture.
A warm light sneaks into the dark corner of the room.
The view outside the window is the scene of spring when winter is completely over and new life is blooming in all things.
It was the scene that the gloomy Clevius hated the most.
“If he had that kind of personality he would go around presenting a lot of challenges… ”
Clevius had also heard rumors about Wade.
It is rumored that he is overconfident in his abilities and wants to be recognized. It is also a bonus to say that the first year students are also in high spirits as they shout excitedly that they will beat all the seniors.
It was both bad luck and good luck that the first batter was Clevius. Now that the next batter is decided the first batter will be quietly buried.
“A life like a dog… ”
Spring comes bright flowers bloom in the world and Sylvania’s bachelor is once again engulfed in unique romance.
Secluded in the darkness in the corner of the room Clevius sat with his back turned to the shining romance.
Most likely you yourself are a person belonging to darkness.
As if that didn’t matter the spring flower petals fluttering outside the window were telling.
It was now a new semester.
*
Spring comes when we forget. That’s why it’s a more special law.
As I watch the world covered in white snow disappear and the flower petals bloom with the warm sunlight I realize that it has been a full year since I have been living this life.
It seems like just yesterday that we were kicked out of Ofilis Hall and living in the forest around this time last year but now there are quite decent camps and cabins filled with useful furniture.
My body which used to sweat like a river every time I went to school has become quite disciplined and I can now easily do jogging on my way to and from school.
“Oh my what a happy face.”
I was on my way back after purchasing lab supplies at the living room during my lunch break. I had planned to bring it to him after school.
A familiar girl was sitting on the terrace of Laplace Bakery Sylvania’s most famous snack shop near the bridge that goes from the living building to the teaching building.
Now that he is famous enough to be famous there is no one who doesn’t know that the smile that appears to be good-natured is filled with hundreds of snakes.
“The school opening ceremony has just ended but are you already working in the lab Senior Ed?”
Seeing him casually sending me hello I waved my greeting.
If you want to check the girl’s condition just look at her hair. Her auburn hair is neatly tied to one side and her shoulders are relaxed.
This is a contrast to the way she lets her hair down and wears many accessories when doing important work or going out to formal events.
In any case she is a girl who cannot be taken lightly as she occupies a place at the top of the list.
Lortel smiled and motioned with his hand then spoke to me as if inviting me to come and have a cup of tea.
“You drink tea alone here Lortel. “That’s surprising.”
“Actually I stopped by for work and was taking a break. “The important conversation was over and I was about to leave once the employees had finished taking inventory.”
Stocktaking?
“Can I have another cup of tea here?”
Lortel sat with his chin resting on his face and grinning then spoke quietly to an employee nearby. Then the employee rushed out.
The one who ran out was an employee but the one who came back with the tea was the owner of Laplace Bakery.
The gentleman who once worked in the imperial kitchen and owned several famous restaurants in the capital downed another cup of tea while sweating profusely.
Then I bowed my head politely and asked him to call me right away if I needed anything else then went back into the kitchen.
As Lortel said it seemed like some kind of finishing work was being done in the kitchen.
“It’s the first time I’ve seen that person make an expression like that.”
“What… Let’s see if there’s anything going on. “No one shakes it off and doesn’t get dust.”
“But what authority do you have to look into the bakery’s warehouse? “Is it okay to just be one business partner?”
“We are just a business partner but since we are a bakery that orders all of our important food ingredients from Elte Trading Company we should pay close attention right? In fact there is no other place in Sylvania that can receive orders for this size of bakery other than Elte Trading Company.”
In addition to the quantity Laplace Bakery uses a lot of high-quality food ingredients. These are also materials where maintaining freshness is key. It is difficult to trust and entrust it to a company that is not completely seasoned and has a lot of experience in distribution.
In a city of any size it would be possible to compete with each other to receive orders but the story is different in Aken Island which is limited in size.
If orders for supplies are not received from Elte Trading Company Laplace Bakery will have a very difficult time doing business even from tomorrow.
Lortel smiled the most kind smile in the world.
“It’s really fun when monopoly power is like this isn’t it? “It creates rights that don’t exist.”
“Looking at their expressions it seems like you’re the only one having fun.”
“Oh what you’re saying is mean. “That’s true though.”
Lortel chuckled smiled and looked at the teacup.
“From our perspective there is some justification. “It seems like a false order has been discovered.”
“False ordering?”
yes. This is an act of ordering a lot of unnecessary supplies in advance and then canceling them all as the delivery date approaches. “Everyone is bound to get caught in the end but there are always business partners who do this.”
I put down my luggage sat down across from him and gently lifted the teacup the host gave me. It feels like they put a lot of effort into preparing the scent which is deeper and stronger than usual.
“Of course there were some difficulties in supplying supplies to Aken Island during the snow storm. “Because the roads were frozen and carriages couldn’t travel.”
“There’s nothing we can do because it’s a natural disaster.”
yes that’s right. So most of the business partners in the residential area were waiting for supplies to be supplied. From our perspective the demand was large and we were quickly supplying supplies starting from the most urgent points… ”
After that it was an obvious story.
Laplace Bakery which wanted to receive supplies quickly placed a false order by inflating the amount of food ingredients it did not need and then as the delivery date approached it canceled most of the orders leaving only the necessary items.
It was a somewhat complacent judgment perhaps because they thought it would go beyond this level since the volume of goods handled by the merchant was so large.
Right now demand for food ingredients is high. Since the canceled supplies can be sold elsewhere the trading company will not suffer any financial loss. However it is shameful for the company to use trickery to obtain supplies only when most of its clients are waiting for their turn.
“Merchant people are the type of people who sell their souls for a penny of gold when the balance is right… However this does not mean that there are no business ethics that must be observed. “From our perspective we are all the same business partners.”
Lortel who became one of the real leaders of the Elte Chamber of Commerce rose to a position that was almost like the king of the underworld at least within the living quarters.
Of course Lortel does not rule or govern anyone directly. He has neither the status nor the authority to do so.
However where people gather confusion also comes. Therefore we also need someone to control it.
Lortel’s means of control is money itself. If you look beneath the surface of the seemingly peaceful living quarters you will see that all money flows eventually into Lortel’s wallet.
– Bang!
Soon the kitchen door kicked in and a man came out. It was the chef who had just brought us tea. It seemed like the inventory survey had progressed quite a bit.
Comparing actual usage and order quantity is not particularly difficult.
“Lady Lortel! Please listen to me! It seems like the person in charge is asking too much! I have nothing to say about the order quantity… No matter what if you limit future orders to this extent… !”
The guy probably knows too. There is no way the employee in charge could have arbitrarily restricted the order quantity without Lortel’s approval. Everything was done with Lortel’s permission.
Nevertheless he came out to appeal to Lortel feeling like he was grasping at straws.
In a half-empty manner I explained the situation to Lortel in detail.
After several minutes of explaining my personal circumstances making excuses for the number of orders and explaining the current status of the store Lortel just sat quietly with his eyes closed and a tea cup to his mouth.
please… Please consider the situation at the store just once… ! If this happens we… ”
right.
When Lortel who had been drinking tea and listening opened his mouth the man quickly swallowed his breath.
And the next words were directed at me not at the man.
“I also have classes in the afternoon. Would you like to go to the teaching building together?”
From the beginning Lortel wasn’t even listening to the man.
As Lortel stood up he glanced at the man but his gaze became extremely cold.
*
“The student council president election is coming soon.”
“I guess you don’t want to run for office?”
“I covet the power of the student council but if I don’t have a hand in the business of the business council as the student council president my customers and customers will lose.”
When you cross the student plaza in the Gyosu building the crowds are so huge that you think it’s really a new semester.
During the vacation period it was so empty that if you shouted it would echo but now you can’t even see the overall appearance of the square at a glance.
“The best thing would be for someone who is friendly to me to become the student council president. Senior Ed don’t you want to do it? “I can push you.”
“I don’t mean that. “There is no guarantee that it will work.”
“It’s unfortunate. “I thought you would.”
Lortel walked wearing a semi-robe over her school uniform blouse and holding a couple of books.
Lortel seems to be busy with work and studies. Anyway since I am a student and have decided to train my magic I am putting my best effort into this as well.
You may not know it but he probably also divides his day into minutes.
“I heard that your younger brother was running for office. Was it Miss Tanya? “I think I should give her a push.”
“Tanya?”
Lortel glanced around a few times then lowered his voice and spoke gently to me.
“Even if I beat her to death I don’t want to support Princess Fenia. Well it seems like most of the bachelors support the princess… “Once she runs she will be the strongest candidate.”
“I won’t have to explain it in detail but… ”
“I know senior.”
Lortel spoke quietly.
“I’m not sure if Miss Tanya knows but if Princess Fenia says she’s running for office it’s safe to say that there’s almost no hope for Miss Tanya. Even if an absolutely ridiculous miracle happens and the majority of seniors in the grade support Miss Tanya… It’s probably still not enough. “Even though she is the second daughter of the Ross Taylor family the difference in status is too big.”
I nodded at those words.
Even in political affairs Tanya loses by a truly ridiculous margin of votes.
They try to use all their resources and make ugly and miserable efforts to get just one more vote but the overwhelming difference in votes does not decrease at all.
Tanya Rosstaylor daughter of the lesser evil.
In the face of a hopelessly overwhelming difference in votes he ultimately suppresses his resentment and leaves in shame… He is just a stepping stone villain from Ross Taylor.
if… Senior Ed do you support Princess Fenia?”
me..? Well that’s fine. “In the first place there is no question of who to support or not but if I had to say it I would support Tanya more who is my own blood.”
“I’m glad about that. I was a little anxious because I thought that even my senior could support Princess Fenia. Most of the bachelors look up to Princess Fenia… “Well as long as she’s not a senior it’s okay.”
It’s been a while since I became involved with Princess Fenia. Although there were various incidents I cannot say that I left such a good impression even with empty words.
“That person would hate me so much in the first place.”
is that so?
“I’m not sure either… If you think about yourself in the princess’s position it seems difficult to have any good feelings towards me… Yes I think he probably holds a very grudge against me or at least has some ill feelings towards me… ?”
“I’m relieved if you say that… ”
“… relief?
“… ”
Lortel quickly wrapped his arms around the book and lowered his head.
“You know that I see Senior Ed as the opposite sex right?”
“… ”
“Jealousy is a more universal emotion than you think? Even so I am also a woman.”
Then he wrapped one of his arms around me and hugged me then lifted his downward gaze.
She seductively closes and opens her fox-like narrow eyes a few times and looks up at me with a sinister smile.
“Was it a valid hit?”
“… ”
“Would you like to check your heart sound?”
In the middle of the square I stopped Lortel who was trying to bury his ear in my chest by pressing down with one hand. Lortel who was pushed away with a whooshing sound grinned and shook her head.
“Anyway just hit the iron wall. “Have I done something wrong?”
“You haven’t done anything wrong to me but… “I’m in a bit of a difficult position until the day I graduate.”
“… Until the day you graduate?”
She is a girl who has been able to pick up on the opponent’s weaknesses by catching even the slightest tone of voice at hundreds or thousands of negotiation tables. Even her slight tone of voice and word choice are all clues and information to her.
“What if I graduate?”
“… ”
“Oh my it feels like I caught a piece of big information.”
The way he wraps his arms around her and smiles brightly is like a serpent. Lortel rested his chin on his shoulder and looked up at me with a sinister expression.
“It’s some kind of time constraint. Is it okay to hand over such tremendous information? “I don’t know what meaning you give to graduation but I’m sure you will see some kind of emotional progress after completing your studies.”
“… ”
“Actually I’m not sure if you’ll be able to build an iron wall by then.”
Lortel released his arms and leaned back. And he would often stride forward then turn around put his hand to his mouth and grin like a fox.
“I’ll leave it at this…” Graduation may seem far away but it will happen in the next year. “It arrived surprisingly quickly.”
“I don’t know what I can say about that… ”
“I guess so. Anyway I am reassured that your health seems to be fine and that you are making steady progress in your studies. “What happened to the magic engineering supplies I gave you last time?”
“I wrote everything. “I did some magic engineering training during vacation.”
“Oh did you get good results?”
I thought for a while about what to answer… I nodded. Looking at the results alone it was a huge success.
I had a really ridiculous schedule and only practiced magic engineering all day and the day before school started I finally completed a prototype of a legendary magic engineering product. Since I have not used it in real life it is treated as a prototype.
“That’s a good thing. It’s a good thing for me to hear that it was helpful. Unfortunately I had so many problems that I couldn’t deal with them all during vacation.”
“Are there that many problems? Things like Laplace Bakery earlier?”
“Well that’s just part of the problem. The important problem right now is the lack of cash. “I’m a little tight on money in my wallet.”
Lortel is short on money. I wonder if this is a feasible proposition but in fact if I think about it carefully it is clear what the problem is.
Assets and cash are completely different concepts.
“There was a lot of cash already piled up but to make matters worse a carriage carrying a chest of gold coins coming from the head office of the company was involved in an accident. It looks like you were caught in an avalanche. There will be a time lag between determining the accident status recovering the damage and receiving cash. So the available funds are limited.”
There was a problem with the distribution channel of the trading company that regularly receives cash. Disasters like this seem to be a regular occurrence when running a business of this size.
“Thanks to that even though we have so many assets we are in a situation where we actually have to tighten our belts. The branch also avoids unnecessary spending. “I personally plan to reduce unnecessary expenses as much as possible.”
“Are you that short of cash?”
“It’s just a temporary bottleneck. Still it’s not like we’re running out of money dramatically. There is plenty of room left over for basic maintenance expenses. “It’s just that we don’t have the capacity to spend additional money.”
In fact even if it is the basic maintenance fee if Lortel is the standard the unit of the amount is different.
Most of these variables are the aftermath of a snow storm near Aken Island. Although it was spring the effects of winter still lingered.
“It’s not a very pleasant situation. “Yesterday an unstable client requested repayment of a transaction amount that was far from maturity so I refused.”
“I guess things weren’t so good there either.”
“It’s a difficult time for everyone. “It is a particularly difficult time to manage money.”
Lortel shook off her hair which was blowing in the spring breeze.
“Well money management is my specialty. “Once I have made up my mind I have no intention of increasing unnecessary spending.”
“Still spending may not be what you want… “It’s going to be a bit of a struggle.”
“What are you saying senior Ed? Who am I? How can a person who can’t even manage expenses run the business properly? Aren’t you evaluating me too shallowly? “Don’t worry you won’t have to increase your spending unnecessarily.”
Lortel said that and laughed like a fox again.
I remembered the cold gaze looking down at the man at the bakery. Whatever it is Lortel has the temperament to be like cold metal when it comes to business.
Do not worry. “Senior Ed you’re on your way to class why aren’t you carrying a book?”
As we entered the teaching building there was only a short distance left to reach the classroom where classes were being held.
me? “I have to stop by the library and borrow it.”
“Why don’t you borrow a book and take a class? “If it’s a student library you have to go almost to the outskirts of the faculty building.”
“You should think of it as just running around for exercise. “If you don’t take care of your physical strength even a little your body will quickly become weak.”
“No it’s not a street worth running around. The bachelor’s side just buys it for a few pennies… ”
Lortel tried to speak but stopped. Certainly the price of books is not a small amount of money for a student to afford. This is because Sylvania’s textbooks are all high-quality books.
However sprinting between the library and the classroom building is not a sane thing to do. From my perspective it is a natural thing like everyday life.
Suddenly Lortel began to break into a cold sweat. He then took out his wallet and checked its contents with trembling hands.
What is so painful… His eyes trembled in agony until the end and then he hesitated and asked.
“Oh how much is it… Putting it all together… ?”
“… ”
I just politely declined.
*
“Have you checked what the library has been organized? Senior Ed.”
It’s been a while since I saw Ziggs’ face since the new semester started.
After finishing the elemental science class I made my way through the crowd and came out to the plaza of the teaching building. Ziggs who was leaning against a nearby tree spoke to me like that.
“Oh yeah. It was handled well. “I am grateful.”
“It’s no big deal. It didn’t take long because I used magic to get the job done. By the way Senior Ed. Have you heard about Wade?”
“Wade? 1st year valedictorian?”
Ziggs nodded.
After listening to Ziggs’ words this slowly came to mind.
Act 3 Scene 3 The episode that kicks off the student council president election.
Breaking Wade Calamore’s seal. As far as I know this seal breaking continues until Act 3 Scene 5.
As the son of a corps commander guarding the northern border Wade was born with a natural talent for swordsmanship and achieved the position of top first-year student with overwhelming force.
Wade who was not satisfied with being the top freshman challenged the top students of each department to a duel and defeated them all and eventually even challenged the senior students to a duel.
Wade who was going on a rampage trying to win as much as his limitations allowed challenged the famous and senior members of the Bachelor to a duel defeating them one by one… Even Ziggs manages to win after a close battle that leaves him completely devastated.
Of course Ziggs was so exhausted that he couldn’t use his full strength and if he had been intact there’s no telling what the outcome would have been but he lost anyway.
It was Wade who went on a rampage as if he was going to take down all the strong players of The Bachelor. However in the end he is defeated by Taily in joint combat practice.
This is truly an impressive achievement for a first-year student. All of the opponents he defeated before being defeated by Tail Lee cannot be considered water. He was a student who could be called the ace of the first year.
“Recently students who seem to be promising are all new students who are being sent to the battlefield. “When I heard it it seemed like he was interested in you too.”
“Okay thank you for letting me know in advance. You too take care of yourself.”
“They say they’re holding a welcome event for new students this evening. Would you like to come and check out our faces?”
I was familiar with Wade’s face anyway.
“No it’s okay. “I have a separate appointment for this evening.”
“You mean a prior agreement?”
“Yenika decided to help me with elemental magic.”
Now that the mana suppression caused by the ring has subsided to some extent I can slowly utilize my magical power to its full potential.
After completing the mid-level spirit contract there will be only one person left at least among the third years who can be said to be more skilled in spirit magic than me Yenika.
In addition if you learn intermediate magic complete the remaining basic magic proficiency and make a little more progress in magic sensitivity training… I really think I could be in the top ten among third graders.
Thanks to the progress I can see I feel like I am accelerating my training these days. If there are visible results the training itself becomes interesting. I wonder if this is what people who stick to the gym all day really feel like.
I shook my hands and said hello to Ziggs and left the square.
Suddenly I turned my head and looked at the view of the square and it was a lively scene of a bachelor’s degree.
I thought I was the type of person who didn’t really care about these things but after seeing the lively bachelor I felt a surge of energy.
The fresh air unique to the new semester makes your steps lighter.
I walked over the hill and across the faculty building.
*
hmm… “I should have told you.”
It is of course very difficult to walk the line between human relationships.
Ziggs muttered softly as he let Ed leave leaning against a tree.
In addition to talking about the library it also tells you to be careful about Wade… I wonder if I should have also told you about Princess Fenia.
Since Zix and Fenia are in the same grade their class paths often overlap. Normally it is difficult to get close to Princess Fenia because she is surrounded by guards but it is a different story when she is taking lessons.
This is Princess Fenia who looks particularly lethargic since vacation.
However when Ziggs or people around him are talking about Ed he strangely seems to tilt his head in that direction or pretend to listen even if he does.
At first I thought it was an illusion but the more I watched the more I felt like I was reacting to the name Ed Ross-Taylor to the point where I thought it was excessive.
“It’s a bit hard to be sure yet… ”
Ziggs leaned against a tree in the corner of the square and stared blankly at the sky. It was a clear and high sky for the first time in a while.