chapter 37
* * *
It was early morning on Saturday.
Travel Department students gathered in the plaza and were waiting for Philip and Lua.
“… … Are you suddenly ready to camp? Isn’t that too out of the blue?”
Johnnys Murella frowned as he felt the weight of the backpack on his back. She, Cheryl, and Stefan set up camp according to Philip’s notice.
If they were in their third year of swordsmanship, they would have been quite used to camping, but unfortunately, the magic department only learned to spend the night outdoors about once a year.
“Still, I think it would be fun. There aren’t any strict professors, and it seems that Instructor Phillip will let us do anything.”
“But there are a lot of bugs, and Stefan too.”
When Johnny’s refuted, Stefan, who was standing quietly nearby, made an unfair expression.
He already knew that he was uncomfortable as a man, but he felt a little sad about being tied up like an insect.
“Do you hate me?”
“Look at that. Aren’t you the one I hate? No matter how many times I tell you to be comfortable with your words, honorific words won’t come out of your mouth.”
“I’ve been calling you a lady all my life, but there’s no way it can change overnight.”
Stefan made an excuse, but Janice only snorted in displeasure.
“Don’t make excuses. Stefan.”
“No, not that… .”
It was Philip and Lua who appeared from a little distance away who saved Stefan from a difficult situation. Cheryl was the first to spot them and tilted her head.
There was one more.
‘Isn’t that Professor Oswald from the Swordsmanship Department?’
A student in the Faculty of Magic would seldom run into a professor in the Faculty of Swords. However, Professor Felicia Oswald was different.
A swordsman genius who became the youngest professor in the history of the Pribia Academy.
During her academy days, she was called the strongest in the swordsmanship faculty from the moment she entered her third year.
A woman who trampled on numerous students from renowned swordsmanship schools and was evaluated as a disciple by the Aura Master, Professor Emil Panoy.
Cheryl secretly admired Felicia. It was because Felicia had a similar texture to the main characters in the novels she enjoyed reading.
“hi. Guys.”
Felicia smiled awkwardly and waved to the magic faculty students.
The reason she is here is simple.
It was because at the faculty meeting held not long ago, it was said that it would not make sense to have only one new instructor accompany activities outside the academy.
Felicia, who had received a lot from Philip, could not bear to refuse his request.
“It looks like everyone has been preparing hard.”
Philip, who saw the backpacks the students had packed, nodded in satisfaction.
Since he was in the 3rd year, he had camping experience, so it seemed like he had packed his food, order book, and magic tools.
Compared to them, Lua only had a sleeping bag and a few sets of clothes, but nothing much.
“Let’s talk in the carriage, let’s start.”
“yes. Instructor.”
The students answered and headed towards the main gate of the academy. A quadruped carriage was waiting there.
* * *
Felicia was actually a little burdened.
She was confident that she would make a pretty good conversationalist for the students she was in charge of, but she didn’t know what to say to the magic faculty students she didn’t have much contact with.
The best thing to do was to sit next to her close friend Lua and answer the questions of the students who were watching the professor with awkward expressions like her.
It was the moment when I felt resentful of Philip, who disappeared next to the driver’s seat because the seat was cramped.
Johnnys Murella had a similar situation. The Oswald family was a prestigious family that was not far behind the Murella family, and Felicia was much older than her.
I wasn’t in a position where I could start a conversation at will, as usual.
“I, Professor. I heard that when you graduated from the academy, you received an offer from Aurum Knight… .”
It was Cheryl who was speechless. She didn’t want to miss the opportunity to talk to the female professor she admired.
“ah… That, of course, was an honor. But then I had reasons not to accept the offer.”
Meanwhile, Johnnys Murella’s eyes were fixed on Lua’s hair.
The pretty girl’s hair had been touched by someone very delicate and artistic.
Seeing her beautifully braided hair tied with a ribbon made me smile.
‘I want to ask whose skill it is.’
Lua was sitting next to Felicia, dozing off. It was because I was so excited for the first trip in my life that I couldn’t sleep all night.
As the carriage rattled loudly, Lua looked around with sleepy eyes, then opened her mouth and yawned. Then, when I met Johnny’s gaze, I smiled without thinking.
At that moment, Johnny’s heart felt like it was pounding, and he stared blankly at Lua.
‘… cute.’
I knew she was fourteen, but Lua looked several years younger than him. It seemed like it was because she was small and her breasts didn’t fall out.
‘It would be nice if that kid was in the Faculty of Magic.’
Johnny’s staring at Lua’s sleeping face again, he suddenly felt his eyes slowly close.
And when I opened my eyes again, the carriage had arrived at its destination.
“… uh?”
As if possessed, she got off the carriage and looked around.
A mysterious lake surrounded by trees and fog was in front of me.
Philip unloaded the carriage with Stefan. Aside from the things the students brought, as if they had taken more food, smoked meat or bread were also mixed in among the luggage.
“Make camp in a sunny spot, and after that it’s free time.”
At Philip’s declaration, the students and Felicia looked at him with questioning eyes.
It was a look that meant that if you were not going to do anything, why did you come here?
“… It’s a joke. Rumor has it that strange things happen late at night on this lake. Some people said they saw a fairy, others said they saw a spirit. Maybe you guys can shed some light on the rumors?”
Philip stimulated the students’ adventurous spirit. He already knew the secret of the lake, but had no intention of revealing it openly.
“If you want to have a leisurely lunch, you will have to move around from now on. I’ll help, so let’s get ready.”
Building a campsite was more labor-intensive than I thought.
First of all, we needed a space to light a fire, and if we didn’t want to be exposed to the morning dew, we had to build a tent or something. Fortunately, there were many trees around, but it was impossible to use raw trees as supports.
“… Can I help you?”
Felicia whispered to Philip. She alone could make a campsite for a few people, but Philip shook his head.
“You have to do it yourself, so it becomes an experience and a memory.”
Felicia tilted her head as she heard something that could only come from an older professor. After all, the instructor in charge of this club was Philip, so I thought I’d let him do whatever he wanted.
“What am I doing?”
Lua asked towards the busy seniors.
No 3rd grader had the idea of instructing a two-year-old girl.
“Can you gather some dry twigs? I need to light a fire.”
When Stefan decided what she was going to do, Lua said yes and then disappeared through the dense trees.
“Don’t go too far! It’s a big deal if you get lost!”
Cheryl exclaimed urgently. Philip saw it and smiled. He had already spent a day in Luau and the forest.
‘If I took that kid to Korea and filmed a camping video, becoming a millionaire wouldn’t be a dream either.’
In nature like mountains and forests, Lua moved like an elf. He didn’t even know that he could move faster and more skillfully than an elf of the same age.
Due to the skill of the newcomer Lua, dry branches piled up in an instant.
However, compared to the busy movement, the work of making the camp went slowly.
“… Shall I cut down a tree with magic?”
Johnny was seriously worried.
“But if I use the wind blade magic or something wrong here… … .”
When Cheryl reminded her of the danger with an uneasy expression, Janice sighed as if she couldn’t help it.
As she said, wind blade magic was not very convenient. I didn’t know what would happen if I touched another tree by mistake.
There was nothing to use as a support for the tent.
“I don’t think there is any need to build a support stand. Couldn’t we just drive nails between the trees to secure the fabric?”
Stefan suddenly suggested. After hearing it, it turned out to be a pretty plausible method, so the girls nodded.
* * *
Philip was moving quickly around the lake alone and across from the group.
He was on business with the owner of the lake.
Phillip, who was moving through bushes and branches, was able to reach his destination soon.
A statue stands lonely on the other side of the lake, somewhere secret among the trees surrounded by mist.
The identity of the statue depicting a naked woman was a sculpture of a fairy living in the lake.
“hello?”
When Philip greeted him in an empty place, a mist of water spread from the lake and took on the shape of a man. She was a woman with her hair down to her hips, barely covering her body.
“hello? Who are you?”
The woman with azure hair was looking at Philip with an innocent expression.
“A visitor who wants to spend the night at this lake. Since this is your territory, I thought it would be polite to visit first.”
When Philip answered, the woman clapped her hands in delight.
“You are a polite person. I like polite guests.”
And soon, he put on a sullen expression as if he was sorry.
“… In this case, the only pleasure is to give up. If I made fun of you, everyone would know that I did it. Please have a good time and come back.”
The fairy of ‘Mirage Lake’ had a hobby. It is to show illusions using fog to visitors and enjoy the reactions.
Of course, being a good fairy, she wasn’t just teasing.
After enjoying it enough, she would give her a gift that only she could give in return for playing with her, but among those rewards, there was a pretty important item.
“no. We’ll keep it a secret from the kids, so you can enjoy it as much as you like. Rather, I would like to ask. Those children will later face all sorts of evil visions and terrible visions, so it wouldn’t hurt to go through them beforehand.”
The fairy was startled by Philip’s words and covered her mouth with her hand.
“Is that really okay?”
“of course. Instead, since they are still young students, I would like them to refrain from playing too harshly. Like drowning in water.”
“Hi-Hi. great. These days, only the woodcutter came and it wasn’t fun, but I didn’t expect young girls to come. Originally, making fun of children is the most fun.”
That’s how the deal between the lake fairy and the instructor was concluded.
“Then I have to think about which prank would be the funniest. You must keep the secret!”
The fairy said so and disappeared into the lake.
Philip felt a little worried.
‘I think you’re so excited. Are you okay?’
“… What, are you okay?”
Philip thought so and walked back to the place where the party was.