The Extra’s Academy Survival Guide - Chapter 111

The eastern Sparde region required three days and nights of horseback riding to reach from the Empire’s Capital. It had been extensively developed as land for cattle farms.

40% of all the livestock in the Kroel Empire was produced in Sparde. And the famous ‘land of farming, Pulan’ referred to a mountain range located in the southern area of Sparde.

If you traveled deep into the valley of Pulan and looked around the vicinity, you would find a small town known as Torren, with a population of less than 300.

Although it was a small village, the number of livestock produced from that village was ridiculously large compared to its size. It was safe to say that, at the very least, it produced enough to feed the entirety of a small city.

Half of the village’s population actively worked with farming livestock, while the other half worked with processing it… A small farming village hidden deep in a valley.

On the outskirts of it, there was a decently sized ranch. The Palerover Ranch had been there for four generations, and the only daughter that came from the ranch was the pride of the Torren Village.

Yennekar Palerover, a girl who had already opened her eyes to spirits by the time she was babbling, was a genius among geniuses. Regardless of how you looked at it, she was a genius that would brighten the town’s future.

A farming village nestled in the mountain valley. It was a time where the residents were starting to age one by one, as the young people that longed for the city left the village and lost contact with each other.

To put it nicely, it was a peaceful and quiet village. To put it harshly, it was a monotonous village without any change.

In such a closed off world, it was obvious just what kind of childhood Yennekar, who was born with extraordinary abilities, must have had. Naturally, she had won over the love of all the villagers there. Living a life filled with a lot of love, naturally she couldn’t help but grow up with a pretty personality without any issues.

Walking around the town square, holding a basket full of eggs with a small fluid spirit next to her, she gave out the day’s fresh produce to her neighbors.

The memories she had of the villagers greeting her warmly as they ran up to their fences with lively expressions were all still vivid to Yennekar.

A few bunches of clouds that drifted lazily through the sky. The always available scenery of a mountain range covered in lush greenery.

The only outsiders that ever came to visit the town were peddlers that occasionally came by to negotiate prices, those that came to do their distribution work, and postmen.

Growing up in such a village for more than a dozen years, she couldn’t help but keep looking at the same faces she always had.

Durin, who lived next door, Lete from across the street, Arun, who lived next to the square, and Alcus the village chief.

For Yennekar, who only spent her childhood years there, all of them were elderly to her.

And as the village was in the valley of a mountain, the fertility rate was disastrous. Yennekar lived most of her entire life as the cute youngling of the village.

That was why she didn’t have a memory of ever being treated with such courtesy and respect.

It had already been three years since she left her hometown and first arrived at Silvenia. It took a while, but she had gotten used to many things. But for Yennekar, who was still not yet an adult, there were still a lot of things left that she was unfamiliar with.

It took her nearly half a year to get used to the way the maids treated her back at Ophelis Hall.

“Look here, Yennekar.”

Suddenly, Yennekar was brought back to her senses by a school faculty member that called out her name. They were at the administrative affairs consulting room in Trix Hall.

“You came today as well. I don’t know how many days it’s already been… If there’s anything you would like to discuss or apply for, please let me know. We can go ahead and check the details, and if things are fine on the administrative processing side, we can take care of it right away.”

“Ah… Uhm… So…”

Yennekar hesitated a bit in front of the faculty member, who was treating her with much respect. She was contemplating whether or not she should submit the papers hidden in her sleeves, but she only shook her head.

The faculty member took a deep breath as they nodded their heads, as if they understood.

“I don’t know what has been bothering you so much, but… If you’re unsure of what to do, try talking with the people around you, Miss Yennekar. There are many people here in this school who will assist you if you tell them what’s troubling you, or if you just need some advice.”

“Ah, haha… It’s a difficult matter to consult with others on, so…”

After saying that, Yennekar ran out of the administrative affairs counseling room as if she were running away.

Opening up and looking at the documents she was planning to submit, she let out a sigh.

“Every time… I already have so many pleasant things in my life… So why do these bad thoughts continue to creep in whenever there’s an opening?”

Yennekar shook her head for a moment as she reorganized her thoughts.

Wasn’t she enjoying an extremely pleasant and joyous school life these days?

All of her classes were manageable, she was friendly as always with her friends, there were many people that greatly admired her, the dormitory was also quite decent, and she was even able to spend the entire day with the boy she had a crush on. In the morning, she had a bit of an argument—but that was just a random thing in passing.

In many different ways, there wasn’t ever really a moment in her day where the corners of her lips would turn down.

How many people were living such a pleasant school life? If she were to continue and express her dissatisfaction, she couldn’t even be upset at being called a greedy and selfish person.

However, the issue with Yennekar’s nice and sincere personality had yet to be solved.

And that chronic issue would sometimes cause strange pains in her chest.

Yennekar took out the paper she had written, reading it over once more, before letting out another sigh. Thinking about what to do with it, she ended up tossing it into a nearby trash can.

The piece of paper she had thrown on top of the nearly full trash call safely fell inside. In doing so, the contents of the paper could slightly be seen.

[Application for Leaving the Dormitory: Dex Hall]

After thinking it over once more and changing her mind, Yennekar quickly ran back to the trash can, taking out the paper. She shook her head back and forth as she deeply contemplated the issue… Yet she couldn’t come to a decision.

Expectations, envy, care, and respect. Just how much those gazes that watched her weighed down on her shoulders… Even Yennekar herself wasn’t sure.

The idea of running away had become difficult due to such burdens. It was only natural. After all, running away was the act of distancing yourself from things you found difficult or hated.

How could she treat the gazes and expectations of her friends, the staff members, and her own roommates at Dex Hall like burdens?

However, Yennekar knew.

It had been nearly a year since she had moved from Ophelis Hall, where she used her own private room rather than a shared room like at Dex.

During that long period of time, it should have become a place where Yennekar could properly relax herself and rest… But in the end, the only place she could do so was at Ed’s camp.

***

[Aren’t you deeply touched…? Around this time last year, you didn’t even notice that I was right next to you, watching over you. Now you can call me in this incomplete form to talk. Isn’t our contractual relationship quite special?]

“……”

[Of course, this can’t just be considered a contractual relationship. You might be acting all nonchalant, like it’s not a big deal, Ed, but don’t you know just what it means to be able to deal with a high-ranking spirit like me…? The strong ones here in this school… Ziggs? Wade? Clevius? If I could just show off my full strength, they’d all be nothing~ The issue is that right now, I can’t do that.]

“Then…”

[Of course, it will take you a really long time before you can reach such a level. You can’t compare yourself to Yennekar, who is an usual case. Still, if you keep on training, your resonance level will improve and you will be able to handle me better… However, maybe that’s too far off in the future? Still, it’s not like we are only going to see each other once or twice?]

When leaving my camp in the North Forest and walking towards the school, there was a small lake.

‘The Guardian Tree of Merilda’ was located on a grass island in the middle of the lake… it was a place where naturally occurring magic power was the thickest. It was also one of the main places Yennekar trained in Elementalism.

There was no better place than that to call upon an imperfect version of Merilda.

A white-haired girl wearing a pure white dress with thin shoulder straps. She might have appeared to be human at first glance, but in reality, she wasn’t.

The reason I had called on Merilda up until the point I overused my magic power was because of my talk with Yennekar the day before.

She had told me that the higher I could raise my understanding with high-ranking spirits, the greater impact it would have on my combat abilities in the future. I also fully agreed with that opinion.

Ultimately, the key to raising the understanding stat was how often you interacted with, used in battle, manifested, and had conversations with spirits… The fact that it took up nearly all of my magic power just to manifest her in that human form proved that it wasn’t an easy task.

Still, it was quite comfortable for me to just manifest her and talk to her on my own like that.

According to Yennekar, she was the most talkative being in the entire world. It was only now that I came to realize just how accurate Yennekar’s words were.

[So, how is it with Yennekar? Are you still talking to each other respectfully?]

“What’s the purpose of asking that when you’re watching it all?”

[It’s not like I have that much time where I can just casually follow you guys to the school~ I was just curious if anything else happened during your classes~]

Merilda sat down near the thick roots of the guardian tree. Swinging her legs around, she asked about it with an interested expression on her face.

There wasn’t any reason for me to lie about it… So I decided to tell her about the fight I had with Yennekar that morning.

As usual, I greeted Yennekar in the education district when I met up with her that morning. But she started hugging her oak wand as if startled, and she took a step back.

It was obvious that the aftermath of what happened the night before still lingered. Anyway, it felt like we’d only created a strangely uncomfortable atmosphere between us for no reason.

[Hmm~ So…?]

Yennekar started to blush, unsure of what to say as she avoided looking at me. She then quickly uttered her greetings before she quickly disappeared.

All the while, she continued to speak to me politely.

“At first, I didn’t think this would be all that serious… But after something like that, it seemed like there was something built up inside of her… Or perhaps ‘this was just a strange way for her to express her built up stress?’ was what I had started to think.”

[Oh, then are you worried about Yennekar?]

“Of course I’m worried.”

[Ohhh~]

What was so exciting for Merilda to start shaking her legs and bobbing her head like that? With a smile on her face, she then asked me another question.

[You felt a little anxious about leaving her alone like this, right? Then you need to do something.]

“That’s why I wanted to ask you, is it fine if I can pluck a couple useful branches from this tree…?”

[This tree? All of a sudden?]

The guardian tree, where Merilda and I were leaning against next to each other, was over a thousand years old. The older a tree was, the more magic power it absorbed and radiated.

The Guardian Tree of Merilda was a great material as is, so it would be a shame for it to unnecessarily go through extra processing. If I could just imbue it with lighting magic, it would be the perfect material to use for the ‘thousand-year-old wooden wand struck by lightning.’

Compared to the old oak wand that Yennekar was carrying around, the performance and convenience of it would be several times better.

I summarized all those facts as I explained my reasoning to Merilda.

[Hmm~ I see… But strictly speaking, you don’t really need my permission.]

“Isn’t this your tree…? Even the name is ‘The Guardian Tree of Merilda’…?”

[Well, it’s an ambiguous matter. A friend I met a long time ago had just attached my name to this tree. Even though I am considered the owner of this forest, it’s not like I care if a branch of an old tree is cut off. Go ahead and do as you like.]

“An old friend… I guess since you’ve been alive for so long, it makes sense that you’ve had many relationships.”

Merilda fluttered her dress as she ran around the tree, before coming back around sitting next to me.

Then, as she brushed off her shoulders, she sat in a rather sensuous manner.

[Anyway, you know that I’m in the form of a human like this. Didn’t I tell you that it’s not an easy matter to do? So why do you think it’s possible?]

“Why it’s possible… Isn’t it because you learned a magic related to it?”

[Hmm… It’s slightly different from that. For high-ranking spirits, we can change into various different forms. Still, the most important thing is how familiar and comfortable it is or how well we can imitate it. It’s extremely difficult for us to transform into an entity that is completely non-existent in this world. That is also the reason most spirits tend to take the shape of an animal. It’s the easiest thing to see in nature.]

Then, with a wide smile, she lifted the hem of her dress up to her shins and she gently bowed, giving her greetings. It was the proper etiquette of the empire. Looking at her like that, she really didn’t look any different from a regular person.

[That’s why I need someone or something that can imitate a human’s form to use as a reference point. Basically, after signing a contract with you, I took in your inner psychology and turned myself into a girl closest to your ideal type.]

“…What?”

[What do you think? You can’t deceive your own inner psychology. Doesn’t seeing me like this make your heart beat needlessly? Your ideal girl is standing right before your eyes.]

I stared at Merilda with my mouth shut tight, watching Merilda running around making a fuss.

“…Did you say my taste…? Certainly… I’m quite surprised…”

[Of course, you’re surprised. It’s all a lie.]

“……”

Was she joking?

Having such thoughts, I stared daggers at Merilda. She then grabbed the hem of her robe as she turned around laughing in a lively manner. ‘Kyahaha!’ She looked like a girl that was excited to have bought new clothes.

[There’s no way I could actually imitate something like your inner psychology by reading it. To tell you the truth, I have just imitated the appearance of the most special and unique person that I have ever met. Wearing something like this, that’s not all that fancy… Along with her easy-going attitude, she left quite an impression on me. It was also her who put my name on this tree.”

I then took another look at Merilda’s human form. The difference from when she was fully manifested as a massive wolf that ran around wildly destroying everything was so great that, frankly, it didn’t suit her well.

“Who was she?”

After asking such a question, Merilda didn’t answer immediately. She just had a meaningful smile across her face.

[I’ve lived for quite a long time. Even the highest and lowest points that have taken place here in Silvenia Academy just seem cute to me. These days, Acken Island and Silvenia Academy feel inseparable, but in fact, a long, long time ago this place was just an uninhabited island. There was no such thing as an academy.]

Merilda undid her bound hair. She had much more hair than I had thought, and as it fell down she started to give a different feeling to her.

After seeing her new appearance, I swallowed my gasp. It was a strangely familiar face. In the history of magic, it was an appearance that one would have seen to the point they were sick of it.

[What do you think?]

One who infused magic power into the guardian tree and turned it into a source, building this academy, and a person that was old enough to ask Merilda to protect the forest.

Was that really how everything was connected?

It was something I didn’t know, since it was a relationship that wasn’t highlighted in ’s storyline.

The girl in front of me was just an imperfect manifestation of Merilda. The person that she resembled, now I could say it with certainty.

A magician and scholar that was more powerful and experienced than anyone else in the long, distant past.

It was the appearance of The Great Sage Silvenia.

***

“The Holy Father… Is coming to visit…?”

She was in the student council room located in Obel Hall, adjacent to the Student Center.

It has been about five days since Tanya Rothstaylor took the seat as student council president and started to properly do her work.

There was still just an adjustment period, but the more important a job was the less time you were given to adjust to it.

It was the largest and most important highlighted section of a report she received from the student council secretary.

A man that sat at the very top of the Telos Religious Group. Holy Father Eldane, who ruled over the Holy City Karpea, as well as Archbishop Verdio, who was his assistant.

If even an ordinary bishop-level clergyman were to arrive, there would still be a lot of formalities to prepare. But suddenly hearing news that two high-profile members were coming to visit at the same time, she was left with a major headache.

“The purpose of their visit…”

Tanya skimmed through the paperwork. She was quite confident in her reading speed.

There wasn’t any special reason for their visit. They were just coming to spread the grace of Telos, welcome newly baptized members, and give a sermon from the podium.

Looking at it, those were all just superficial reasons.

The reason the amazing Telos Religious Group’s noble Holy Father would personally come all the way to Aken Island on the outskirts of the Empire… It was obvious that it was because of Saint Clarice, who was so dearly beloved by the religious group.

Saint Clarice was a girl that could be considered the heart of the Telos Religious Group.

Even servants that were loved so greatly by God couldn’t avoid their desires to learn. So, at the beginning of the semester, she had finally come to the land of learning, Silvenia.

The Holy Father… Perhaps he wanted to witness things himself, with his own two eyes.

If Saint Clarice was being treated properly, whether the facilities were good, and whether there was any danger.

If there were any big issues, he might even consider taking Clarice away again.

It was quite unfortunate, but there had been so many incidents taking place in Silvenia recently that it wouldn’t be strange if he found several reasons to take her away.

“Hmm… After finishing my work today, I should go and make an appointment to meet with the saint back at Ophelis Hall. Miss Irene, would that be acceptable?”

“Yes. I will put in an inquiry with her guards.”

The student council secretary then took out other documents. There was still a lot left.

“Ah, that’s right. They have also inquired about a student that they particularly want to meet with. Should I transfer this to the school, or would you like to check on it yourself?”

“Personally meet…? Who is it? Is there really anyone else the Holy Father would want to meet besides the saint?”

“Yes. They are currently in their second year. Adele Cerise, of the magic department…”

“Adele… Adele… That’s an upperclassman whose name I’ve heard of before.”

“Yes… I’ve heard that she is quite an unusual person, practically a ghost. You never know when or where she will suddenly appear.”

Tanya thought for a moment, scratching her chin.

“Well, there’s no reason to say no if they personally asked for it.”

At this time, the Holy Father himself was coming to Acken Island.

That… wasn’t a very pleasant feeling.

***

Crackle. Crackle. Fwoosh.

In the end, it wasn’t until late at night that I finally met up with Yennekar again.

That being said, we were both overwhelmed after exchanging just a few words with each other politely. And nearly an entire day was wasted just trying to take care of our emotions.

At the camp that night, I was sitting by the campfire memorizing beginner magic formulas while excessively cutting apples at the same time.

I could eat a variety of food while considering the nutrients in my diet.

It had gotten to the point where I made sure to not forget to eat fruit after having a meal. I really felt like my life had become much more stable.

While I moved my legs back and forth in moderation and cut into my apple… Yennekar suddenly appeared through the grass.

I stopped slicing the apples for a moment as I looked up at her. I was thinking of saying hello first… but for a moment, I only stood still.

“H… He-”

“……”

“…Hello? No, Hey? Hi…? Greetings…?”

She was still broken. Just how embarrassed was she?

Even though it was just the two of us, it was hard for me to say anything else…. So, I just slowly nodded my head. Suddenly, I found myself surprised over how I was acting as well.

We stared at each other quietly for a few seconds before Yennekar shyly walked up, sitting down on a rock by the campfire.

I partially looked back down at my half-peeled apple as I asked.

“You want…? No sorry. Would you like some apples?”

“Y-Yes please…”

“……”

The knife continued to make its way through the apple. For a brief moment, only the sound of me peeling the apple was heard.

“That plate over there…”

“H-Here you go… I…”

Whether we were going to continue talking politely or just end it… Couldn’t we hurry up and pick one of them…? I hoped the stifling atmosphere would fix itself if we did.

Yennekar was still taking in deep breaths as she fidgeted, turning her head this way and that. It seemed that she didn’t know what to do.

Accepting the plate, Yennekar took an apple as she began to nibble on it like a rabbit.

I also picked up a large piece and put it in my mouth. And then I began to slice another apple.

We sat completely in silence for a while.

“……”

“……”

All of a sudden, Yennekar put her elbows on her knees, burying her face. Either way, every single move she made was unexpected.

“Wh-What’s wrong… Yennekar…? Are you hurt…?”

“N-No. I-It’s just because looking at your face is a bit… But either way, Ed… No, Mr. Ed? I want to ask you a question that might sound rather strange… Still, I want you to hear me out and try to answer… If you can, please…”

“……”

Yennekar then buried her face into her lap as she quickly spoke, like a rapid-fire cannon… I then looked at her for a moment before nodding.

I then took another deep breath as I began to focus on slicing the apples, acting as if it really wasn’t anything special.

From the looks of it, it seemed that ever since the atmosphere around Yennekar became strange, she’s been running around by herself with a lot on her mind. Now, seeing as she wanted to ask me something… It seemed that she had reached a conclusion after thinking things over for quite a while.

Seeing as she had been thinking about things so seriously, it was only polite for me to stay calm and listen to her well.

No matter what she said, I couldn’t show a ridiculous expression or act surprised. Even if I really were taken aback, I still couldn’t show it. That much was possible. Despite the way I looked, on the inside I was still an adult.

With that in mind, I listened to Yennekar’s next words. No matter what she was going to say, I remembered my determination to hear her out as normally as I possibly could.

“Hypothetically… If I were to leave Dex Hall… I was wondering what you would think about me living at camp with you, Ed…?”

Sssssshink!!!

The fruit knife had gone completely off track, cleanly cutting my thumb.

“……”

Blood was running down my finger, but neither Yennekar nor I could pay any attention to the wound.

In camp in the dark North Forest, the dazzling starry sky was the same as always.

However, a bizarre event had come to pass without any forewarning.

I couldn’t help but stare blankly at Yennekar while holding onto an apple and the knife…

Yennekar was burying her face deeper and deeper into her lap, her bright red ears poking out. It seemed as if she was trying her best to avoid my gaze.

For a long, long time, the sound of the crackling campfire was the only thing breaking the silence.