Episode 101

Episode 101

The three gathered again in front of the sandy beach.

They had been shipwrecked and ended up on this island of hell—no, the Skull Principal’s island—so they were meeting to discuss what to do next.

Ihan asked first.

“Is it possible to make a boat again?”

“……”

Angrago shook his head.

Even to make a small rowboat, more was needed than one would think, and it was very labor-intensive.

Originally, it was only possible because other White Tiger Tower students helped; it was too much for Angrago alone.

“Seems like escaping by ourselves will be tough…”

“I-I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine. But there’s one problem right now.”

When Ihan spoke with a serious expression, Angrago and Duke Ma became tense.

It was Wardanas, who had defeated the undead ruling this beach.

What could possibly make him talk like that?

“W-what is it?”

“At this rate, I’ll have to miss tomorrow’s class.”

“……”

“……”

At first, the two thought Wardanas was joking. But Ihan was very serious.

“Y-you weren’t joking?”

“Do I look like I’m joking right now?”

“N-no. Sorry.”

“In… in a situation like this, isn’t it okay to miss class?”

Duke Ma seemed not to understand, and Ihan answered in a harsh voice.

“No matter the situation, you must not miss class. Understand?”

Grades were more important than life.

Whether they understood with their heads or not, the two students understood in their hearts thanks to Ihan’s intensity.

It really must be important!

Though they weren’t sure why…!

“Al—alright.”

“I’ll apologize too. But Wardanas, I don’t think there’s a way to get to class tomorrow…”

The sun was already setting. The evening of the weekend was coming.

Tomorrow morning would bring a new week, and classes would begin.

Could they escape in time?

“Are there people who will notice you’ve disappeared and come to rescue you?”

Ihan asked, glancing at the two.

Waiting for someone to come was more realistic than building a boat and leaving.

But they shook their heads.

“Even if they notice, they won’t be able to rescue us right away.”

“They wouldn’t have a boat either…”

“The White Tiger Tower is full of knights, but why are they so uncooperative?”

Ihan said reproachfully.

The pair felt wronged.

That didn’t seem related to cooperation…!

“At least the first class on Monday is …”

Ihan fell into thought.

The fact the Skull Principal’s class was tomorrow was, in a way, lucky.

If during class, the principal said, ‘Is there anyone who went to the island and retrieved the permission slip? No? That can’t be. I’ll give you an opportunity; for this hour, go to the island and bring back the permission slip,’ then Ihan’s party might be rescued without doing anything.

But…

‘Would the Skull Principal actually do that?’

With his personality, would he say, ‘Since none of you managed the assignment, I’ll help you out a little’?

It was more likely he’d say, ‘Can’t even do that? Try harder next time.’

While Ihan was lost in thought, Angrago slapped his knee.

“That’s right! If we’re not there when class starts, everyone will realize we’re gone, and then the principal will also come to rescue us! If we just hold out until then…”

“No. We’ll just search the island right away. Looks like we’ll have to escape on our own.”

“……”

“……”

The two were dumbfounded by Ihan’s response.

“You’re sure no one will come to rescue us?”

“There’s no way they would.”

“But if a student is missing by class, surely they’ll at least be worried…”

“There’s no way they would.”

Ihan spoke even more firmly.

The two became downcast.

‘It’s unfortunate, but this is reality.’

Having entered the magic school, it was time for Angrago and Duke Ma to accept reality, too.

Since there was no rescue coming from outside, they had to find a solution here.

Ihan planned to search through the other things prepared by the Skull Principal.

‘He prepared the permission slip and the trials to get there, so there must be other things, too.’

At the very least, he had to find the rowboat they took, which must be hidden somewhere.

Growl—

“……”

Ihan looked away. Angrago bowed his head in embarrassment, his face turning red.

“You must be hungry. After moving around so much. We should eat something before continuing. Do you have anything to eat?”

In response to Ihan’s question, the two nodded confidently.

“Then shall we eat before moving?”

With that, Ihan took bread and canned food out of his backpack.

Angrago pulled tree bark out of his backpack.

Ihan thought at first Angrago was taking it out to use as a bowl.

However, Angrago grabbed the white tree bark and spoke to Duke Ma.

“Duke Ma, let’s boil water. We’ll eat it after boiling.”

“Wait, wait.”

“?”

Angrago and Duke Ma looked at Ihan as if asking what was wrong.

Ihan looked at the tree bark and asked,

“…Are you going to eat that?”

Angrago grinned, a little pride in his smile—he seemed very pleased to know something that Ihan didn’t.

“Wardanas, the inner bark of this tree is edible. If you boil it thoroughly, it’s quite soft and even sweet.”

“……”

I’m not asking because I don’t know!

Ihan let out a sigh. Even if there was nothing to eat, stripping tree bark and boiling it…

“I heard you get meat at the White Tiger Tower by hunting. Did I hear wrong?”

“We hunt for meat, but the amount is always lacking.”

“Wardanas, you seem not to know well. Hunting doesn’t mean you catch something every time. And preserving it is quite hard. You normally have to eat it on the spot, so it’s not ideal as emergency food.”

As the two White Tiger Tower students proudly explained their unique knowledge, Ihan almost hit them, but refrained.

After all, Ihan was also human—he felt a little sorry for them.

“…I brought something too, so let’s eat together.”

“!”

“R-really?”

“The tomato vegetable stew?”

The tomato vegetable stew made by Wardanas had already become legendary. Even the White Tiger Tower students had heard of it.

“No… I didn’t bring canned tomatoes from the lakeshore. I don’t carry vegetables either. I only brought what I needed for myself, so it’s not enough. We’ll have to find more nearby.”

The two looked slightly disappointed at Ihan’s words.

Well, after all, Wardanas probably hadn’t predicted this situation, either.

Who would ever imagine they’d end up stranded on an island just from going to scout the lakeshore?

Ihan then took out from his leather backpack a pot, a glass bottle with olive oil, butter, salt, pepper, eggs, slightly hardened white bread, and pickled bacon.

Seeing this, the two were dumbstruck.

‘You said you just brought what you needed for yourself…!’

‘How well do Blue Dragon Tower kids actually eat?’

They had never been ashamed or envious of being assigned to the White Tiger Tower, but right now, they honestly felt a little jealous.

How did he even secure all that?

“Still looks insufficient.”

“Isn’t that enough…?”

“I saw edible mushrooms earlier, so I’ll have to collect some.”

When Ihan stood up, the two followed.

“Why are you standing?”

“You said earlier we’d be your hands and feet.”

“We can’t let you go alone.”

The two said this solemnly, but Ihan simply asked coldly,

“Do you know how to distinguish mushrooms?”

“…I think I got it right one in three times. That one time.”

“So two of us will die. Forget it. Just dig up the ones I tell you to.”

The main point in picking mushrooms was to only pick what you know.

If something seemed a little odd or a little ominous, you shouldn’t pick it even if it looked like an edible mushroom.

Ihan, knowing this, only told them to pick the safe, clearly identifiable mushrooms.

“Pick that brown one.”

“Don’t pick that one.”

“Throw that away. Weird.”

The two White Tiger Tower students, picking mushrooms diligently in place of injured Ihan, gradually grew confident.

By now, can’t we distinguish mushrooms too?

“These ones are dull-colored and rough. Isn’t that a safe mushroom?”

“Unless you want to eat it, throw it away.”

“……”

Angrago obediently tossed the mushroom aside.

But Duke Ma seemed a little regretful. He kept trying to do his own creative things.

“Maybe this mushroom is…”

“This one looks edible. I think I’ve seen it on the table as a child.”

“It’s similar in shape to the one we picked earlier, so isn’t it edible?”

Watching Duke Ma, who was working hard to become a mushroom-picking expert, Ihan encouraged him.

“Yeah. That mushroom is edible. But you can only eat it once.”

“Oh… wait, why only once?”

“Because you’ll die if you eat it.”

“……”

Duke Ma quietly tossed the mushroom aside.

And then only picked the mushrooms Ihan told him to.

• * *

With preparations finished, the three made a campfire.

When Ihan used flint instead of magic to light the fire, Angrago was puzzled.

“Why with flint?”

“Wardanas is thinking of the taste of the food. I heard from his grandmother that food made with a real fire, not magic, always tastes better.”

‘Is that so?’

The reason Ihan was using flint was simple.

If he messed up with magic fire, he might burn these two students to death.

Instead of explaining, Ihan put butter and oil in a pan and heated it thoroughly.

The secret to cooking mushrooms deliciously was to use enough patience and cook them hot. If you threw them in the pan too soon…

‘…Since entering school, I think my cooking skills have improved a lot.’

It wasn’t a joke; it really felt like his cooking skills surpassed his magic skills.

Trying to figure out how to make varied, delicious menus with limited ingredients every day—of course, he got better.

With the right backing and investment, being a chef might actually be a better career than a wizard…

Sizzle!

The mushrooms in the pan soaked up the oil and butter.

Ihan deftly cooked the mushrooms, moved them aside, then put the cut-up hardened bread into the remaining oil.

When all was done, he even broke eggs into the pan, impressing the two White Tiger Tower students.

‘They look more impressed than when I defeated the summoned undead earlier.’

“Let’s eat.”

Ihan sprinkled salt over the mushrooms, bread, and fried eggs.

The three shoveled the food into their mouths without a word. The cooked mushrooms were crispy, and the once-hard bread was now moist with oil.

Angrago suddenly felt his eyes heat up.

“To think… to think I’d ever have a meal like this again… I never imagined.”

“…Same here, Angrago. I thought I’d never eat like this again in my life…”

‘You guys have only been here a month.’

Without a word, Ihan stuffed his mouth with food, watching the two White Tiger Tower students get overly sentimental.

Even so, their hunger was real; the two ate vigorously despite their tears.

Suddenly, there was rustling behind them.

Ihan tossed his plate aside and grabbed his staff. Angrago reflexively dove forward and caught the thrown plate.

“Who’s there?”

Emerging from the bushes was a water spirit.

The spirit seemed angry at the freshmen warming themselves by the fire instead of undergoing the intended trial. Approaching irregularly, it looked ready to attack at any moment.

Ihan also stood, clutching his staff.

Likewise, a sign he was ready to attack at once.

He was a beat faster than the spirit.

“Drive it away…”

Before Ihan could even finish chanting, the water spirit, startled, began to flee.