Chapter 59. The Black Falcon Dormitory's Fixer
"Are you done using Heal?"
Radel asked the big-bodied friend, who looked perfectly fine.
He nodded silently.
"Oh, you really are."
He had certainly said he was good at magic, and it seemed his skills were good.
Not as good as Gusto, but he seemed good enough to boast.
Radel was impressed and placed a hand on the friend's shoulder. As the year representative, he had stopped the friends from fighting, so now it was time to persuade them.
Hadn't he just prevented what could have turned into a big fight?
He thought that if the friend had his head on straight, he would be moved by his gratitude towards Radel.
"There's a class that's perfect for someone with such outstanding skills."
"Wh-what is it?"
As it happened, the friend seemed interested.
Radel began to persuade him with a happy heart.
"It's called Mana Training…… it's really good, but there's no way to explain it."
Mana Training? Was there a class with that name?
The big-bodied friend hesitated slightly at the name he was hearing for the first time.
"Since it's come to this, it would be great if you could take it with me."
Radel's gentle voice and the empty bottle in his hand were encouraging his decision.
* * *
"It's a good thing there's a course correction period. We can change our schedules. Don't you think?"
Radel said so and stared at Armandy.
Armandy, sensing his ulterior motive, quickly backed out.
"I'm not available at that time."
He had just heard Radel's story about persuading a friend to prevent a class from being canceled.
Armandy also had a separate schedule at that time, so he couldn't take Mana Training.
It was because he had to take the same class as the 9th Prince.
'Let's just focus on the mission.'
To Armandy, a follower of the 9th Prince, that class was also a precious time.
A time to watch the 9th Prince's enchanting magic skills!
He could never give it up, even for the sake of the mission.
Radel nodded as if he understood.
"You must have your own plans. Never mind that, what do you think?"
Armandy and Radel were standing together by the window where the flowerpot had fallen.
He had brought Armandy along, wondering if he, who had been trained as a secret agent, might see something different.
"Well. To be honest, it's safe to say there are no traces at all."
"Is there nothing we can surmise?"
"That's right. He must be quite a skilled person."
At Armandy's words, Radel approached the windowsill.
The Black Falcon Dormitory could be seen in the distance, and the path from the dormitory to the main building was visible at a glance.
The assassin must have stood here, waiting silently for Radel to approach.
Avoiding the eyes of the occasionally passing flying golems, he would have planned to finish him off in one go when there were no people around.
If his Superhuman Intuition hadn't been activated, he might have been done for.
'Someone with an assassin background would know better about this.'
Armandy felt a sense of regret inwardly.
An assassin might have been able to find parts that he, a magician, had not noticed.
For a moment, the face of his arrogant colleague came to mind, but he shook his head to shake it off.
"I guess I'll have to be careful for the time being."
"Still, it's dangerous. How about telling the academy?"
When Armandy cautiously suggested, Radel shook his head.
"Even if I tell the academy and they strengthen security, the guys targeting me won't stop. Besides, there's no definite evidence yet."
At Radel's words, Armandy felt something was strange.
He seemed like someone who didn't want them to hide.
"Your Highness, don't tell me……."
"Yeah. It would be a problem if they hide like this."
Radel said as if it were a matter of course, turning to look at Armandy.
"I plan to catch that entire organization."
It was an arrogant statement for a prince who still lacked skills and had not established his power.
What power did a mere first-year academy student have to fight against a secret organization?
However, looking at Radel, his determination did not feel like an impossible task.
'Has my head gone strange from being brainwashed by that lunatic?'
He had to get his head on straight quickly.
Armandy shook his head vigorously.
* * *
Alchemy class.
The first-years were pulling weeds in the herb garden.
After the freshman adaptation period ended and the first semester officially began, Professor Cailin of Alchemy did not suddenly become kind or change.
He wrote a recipe on the chalkboard and, as usual, brought out hoes and trowels.
"The potion we'll be making this time is a Beginner Magic Power Recovery Potion. I'm sure you all know what to do if you run out of ingredients."
Naturally, no one succeeded in brewing the potion on the first try.
When a pop sound came from Radel's flask, Professor Cailin smiled with satisfaction.
"Even the first-year representative can't escape labor."
Because more first-years than expected had signed up for the alchemy class, the herb garden was full of people.
Even if they didn't choose it as their major, alchemy was a field with many advantages if learned, so it was a surprisingly popular class despite the students' complaints.
Inette, Gusto, and Radel were crouching down and digging up weeds.
Inette had even gotten a straw hat from somewhere and was wearing it.
"Where did you get the straw hat?"
When Radel asked, Inette grumbled.
"My followers brought it. It makes me feel bad, as if they're telling me to pull weeds more diligently."
"But it's comfortable to wear, isn't it?"
"……That's true."
Seeing Inette readily admit it, Radel came up with a good idea.
Should he also bring straw hats to sell next time he opens a stall, in addition to the alchemy ingredients?
Looking at the recipe for the Beginner Magic Power Recovery Potion, there were quite a few ingredients that were difficult to obtain. If he were to go around looking for ingredients, he would be spending a lot of time outside.
As Radel was unknowingly thinking about business, Inette looked at Edward, who was surrounded by friends in the distance, and said.
"It seems Edward is spreading rumors again. Did you hear?"
At Inette's words, Gusto chimed in.
"I did. You mean the Black Falcon Dormitory's fixer."
"There's a rumor like that? Interesting."
As Radel said a word, Inette's lips twitched and she finally laughed.
"Pfft. Hey, that's about you."
"What? Me?"
As Radel pointed to himself with his finger, Inette and Gusto nodded at the same time.
According to Inette, a rumor about Radel had spread in the Black Falcon Dormitory again recently.
It was said that whenever friends were in trouble or seemed to be fighting even a little, Radel would appear out of nowhere and resolve the situation.
Edward, famous for being a social butterfly, was said to be making a great contribution to spreading this rumor.
"So the nickname that came out was the Black Falcon Dormitory's fixer."
Radel listened to the story about himself for the first time with interest. Although there were some exaggerated parts, it was true that he had been doing similar things.
On top of that, Inette added a word and asked.
"And while doing that, he recommends taking some class together? What's that?"
"Ah, I asked them to take Mana Training with me."
It was no exaggeration to say that Radel's purpose was practically that.
But Inette looked like she didn't understand.
"Why didn't you just ask me or the apprentice holy knight? If I had known you were recommending it like that, I would have taken it even if it was boring."
But Radel's thoughts were different.
Gusto might be okay, but Inette was highly likely to quit as soon as she took the class.
A class where you sit still and handle magic power did not suit Inette's personality.
Radel answered in a roundabout way.
"How could I, when I know you're taking other classes at that time? I've almost gathered all the friends now."
"Already?"
No sooner had the words been spoken than some large-bodied first-years approached from the distance.
They were the friends Radel had been persuading to take Mana Training for the past few days.
Perhaps because they were all at a vigorous age, there was a friend he had to persuade several times.
He had gotten into so many fights that he had memorized his face.
That friend was even more polite.
"Good day, Your Highness."
"Oh, hello. You've all thought about it, right?"
"That is…… there are still friends who haven't made a decision."
Radel looked around at the friends and clicked his tongue.
Why couldn't they do something like this when they were so good at magic?
All they had to do was take one class, but it seemed they were all thinking too much.
"Why is it taking everyone so long? I told you guys you're really good at magic."
"Ah, no. What are we……."
"Are you saying you can't believe what the Black Falcon Dormitory's fixer is saying? This is a class that skilled people like you must take. Let's have some confidence."
The ones who were trying to say something to Radel eventually decided to think about it a little more at Radel's firm attitude and left dejectedly.
Gusto, who had been watching silently from the side, opened his mouth.
"As expected of Your Highness. You lead your friends to the right path and even recommend good classes."
"It's all thanks to the seniors' advice."
Radel thought of the grateful seniors who had taught him how to help his friends as a year representative.
He had been quite busy recently because there were many places that needed his help.
Especially, there were so many friends who fought hiding in the blind spots of the dormitory.
It was just as the seniors had said.
Of course, there might be times in life when a fight is necessary.
But every time he encountered such a scene, he remembered the rule of the Black Falcon Dormitory that Professor Marianne had told him.
'There is no fighting inside the dormitory.'
If this was the rule, who would step up if not Radel, the year representative?
While helping his friends, Radel had become serious about his duties as a year representative before he knew it.
"The day will come when they understand Your Highness's heart."
"Do you think so? From what I see, they have enough skill, so it's a shame. Mana Training is a class that's perfect for friends like them. It's a class that calms the mind."
He could save a good class and also improve his friends' skills.
Radel couldn't understand his friends who were dithering like that over a good suggestion for both sides.
Thinking of his pitiful friends, Radel, who had become frustrated, pulled the weeds even harder.
It was a hand movement as if he were uprooting his friends' weakness.
The friends who were watching Radel from a distance flinched at the sight.
'Still, there's hope seeing as those guys are thinking about it.'
It might be difficult to persuade everyone. But he was confident that he could change the minds of about three of them somehow within a week.
'And the last one.'
Radel thought of the nameless female student he had been taking Mana Training with.
If that female student didn't give up during the correction period, it seemed that the Mana Training class could be saved somehow.
He wanted to ask her at least once if she planned to continue taking Mana Training, but it was strangely difficult to run into her.
'Wasn't she a first-year?'
Even though he had been wandering around the Black Falcon Dormitory from time to time to persuade his friends, he had never seen her.
He wondered if she was using some kind of stealth technique.
Given the skills she had shown during Mana Training, she might be deliberately hiding her presence.
'Right. It's still the beginning of the semester, so she might be very shy.'
There was still about a week left in the correction period, so Radel decided not to think too hastily.
And so, the next Mana Training class approached.