Investigation
"That’s what happened, sir." After leaving the institution in the evening of the first day of the semester, he met with the eldest young lord and his lord who came to the city of Erel in person. It was the first time he had reported directly to his superiors like this, having only relayed information through others previously. It was no wonder he felt somewhat nervous about it.
The stern eyes of the eldest young lord of the Setter family flickered slightly. Those familiar with his mannerisms would understand he was pleased with the information he was hearing, which his father, also the head of the Setter family, could not help but find his son’s feelings intriguing.
"So, this means that the girl Ellie is a rare user of the botanic element," the family head said after hearing everything.
Whether it was about her mushrooms dissolving large trees in 30 minutes, helping to decompose straw and the clothes of the students, the power she possessed was essential for cleansing. Often, the family’s warriors not only had to fight monsters but also clean up the corpses to prevent the scent from attracting other creatures.
If not properly cleaned, it would definitely cause problems later, potentially spreading diseases or toxins from unremoved carcasses. Having this fungal power would certainly make things easier.
However...utilizing her in such a way wasn’t correct. If she indeed was the revered old mage, asking her to help with such tasks would be an affront to her dignity. Moreover, compared to the precious Tezetrons herbs, using her for mere clean-up tasks wouldn’t justify sacrificing such an opportunity. The Setter family could not afford to lose this chance.
"On behalf of the Setter family...assign the mission for botanic magicians to the institution," a young man’s hoarse voice broke the silence, surprising everyone.
"Such a mission might displease the Esteemed Mage," the family head disagreed. Although they wanted to establish a closer relationship with such a unique individual, they couldn’t risk employing any strategies that might upset her. If she became displeased, it would be Owen who would suffer. No! It would be the entire Setter family who would be in trouble.
Owen shook his head after hearing this. His gloomy eyes glanced at his father, his dry lips moving slightly again.
"Her current status...a student." This brief statement only added to everyone’s confusion. However, the male student who was tasked with monitoring the scholarship student understood the eldest young lord’s intent well. He didn’t need to reconsider his understanding because it was common for every student, including that woman.
"Eldest Young Lord Owen is correct, sir. Botanic elemental students find it harder to find work compared to other elements, which makes them focus only on low-scoring cultivation. If the Setter family were to initiate a mission that helps her, I believe she would be most grateful."
"Scores..." the family head reviewed his own knowledge. He had once been a student at the institution, but the system of using these scores for graduation had only been established a few decades ago, meaning even the family head himself did not fully understand the system.
"Sir, other students often undertake missions that earn them substantial points to pass the academic year. However, students with botanic powers have no specific missions available to them. Most available missions require combat skills or teamwork. Students with supportive powers usually team up with those having combat capabilities to accomplish these missions. But if everyone sees that a scholarship student possesses botanic power, they certainly won’t allow her into their groups."
"Is that so? So, you mean to say that even if she were that revered mage, she would still face difficulties in accumulating enough points to pass the first year? Hence, if we, the Setter family, provide specific missions for botanic magicians, she wouldn’t blame us, and might even feel grateful, right?" When he grasped the whole situation, the family head’s expression changed, showing signs of excitement and pleasure.
"My lord, issuing a mission by the family is no small matter. We must provide detailed reasons for offering additional missions to the institution, especially as the Setter family already has a lot of our people. If the reasons are not suitable, the institution might not consider it," the butler cautioned.
The family head nodded in agreement. The institution would not allow anyone to interfere with its educational process easily. Otherwise, the offspring of influential families could graduate easily just because they have family-backed missions supporting them. Only serious and necessary missions were allowed to make it into the institution.
The man leaning back in his chair glanced at his father, seemingly having some thoughts, but he did not express them directly. The young man didn’t want to reveal too much of his own thinking. He wasn’t the family head and didn’t wish to assume that role. Simply having the thought that the family should provide a mission to her was enough; planning further was up to others.
The tall but gaunt man slowly closed his eyes as if needing rest, but in reality, he was contemplating the serene gaze of the woman he had met just once. Even though her face was ordinary and resembled that of a hardworking servant in the family, her aura of power was extraordinarily special. Her clear eyes brimming with profound thoughts made Owen unable to forget her.
It was unclear whether it was because he instantly realized she had saved his life, or because he hadn’t met outsiders in a long time, thus his thoughts could not free themselves from her.
While the Setter family was planning to please the powerful mage, tensions were already brewing among the faculty at the number one magical institution.
"So, Professor Gwen, are you saying you didn’t find anyone responsible? The students’ clothes just disintegrated into dust out of nowhere, and no one did it!? How can you expect the students to believe that?"
"As Professor Maxim said, this issue is of great danger. It’s not just one or two students who witnessed it, but more than 50. And now, it has probably become major news among them."
"I think it might have been a fire magician taking advantage of the situation to act. Professor Gwen, are you sure you didn’t detect any magic power around there?"
"Professor Regan, I must remind you that I’ve spoken about detecting magic powers numerous times. If you still ask this question, it’s certainly an insult to my capabilities."
"Professor Gwen, I’m actually trying to help you here. If you’ve conducted thorough checks and found no one using magic powers, perhaps it could have been a device, or the person might possess powers greater than yours, which seems unlikely."
"Professor Regan makes a valid point; it could indeed be a magical device."
"But who could it be!? Are there really magical devices that can disintegrate objects? Not just the students’ clothes but also the Tree of Wishes! The students still don’t know what happened to it, but if everyone finds out...wouldn’t it cause a huge panic?"
"Professor Raz, why do you still speak like this? Didn’t Professor Medik promise to take care of the Tree of Wishes? Right, Professor Medik?" A young professor said, smiling sweetly, obviously trying to please the young man.
The owner of the beautiful face everyone was now staring at did not respond as expected. The beautiful man seemed distant, as if he wasn’t even in the room. Professor Medik’s uncharming demeanor surprised even the acting director of the institution.
"Medik, is there a problem?" The deep voice of the acting director quickly brought Medik back to reality, startling him slightly as he realized everyone was looking at him.
The young professor couldn’t help but blush, lowering his head shyly. His beautiful face turned a faint red, a charming act that rarely slipped out for them to see, causing the hearts of many young male professors to flutter uncontrollably.
"Uh, my apologies, everyone. I was just thinking what advice I should offer to that one botanic elemental student," Medik said, revealing only half the truth while the other half hid behind his beautiful face.
The truth was, Medik seemed to already know who was behind this. Previously unsure, but after hearing that Ellie was also among those unfortunate students and was being bullied; and linking it to Ellie’s dormitory next to the Tree of Wishes, all these thoughts took Medik back to the scene he witnessed earlier.
Although at that time, he only saw many mushrooms growing around the girl, what he initially overlooked was how the rice stalks and all the debris of straw and grass in the planting plot had vanished.
If it weren’t for today’s incident, he might not have recalled the property of disintegrating them into thin air!
Certainly, under normal circumstances, Medik would have already boasted about the scholarship student Ellie’s exceptional powers to everyone. However, if he spoke out now, the girl would likely be expelled immediately. She’s just a poor foreigner, after all. To maintain the institution’s standards, they must punish the wrongdoer, especially when that person was someone like Ellie, who had no one backing her...
But how could Professor Medik allow that to happen? It’s been extremely difficult for him to find a companion in the institution. No matter how much he dedicated himself to teaching anyone, no student could ever overcome the condition of being just a user of botanic power. But Ellie was different...
This girl could become a confidant, cough, cough! His practice instructor! So, he would protect this truth himself!
"Professor Medik must be very excited to have a scholarship student who can use botanic elemental powers, right?"
"Even though she’s a scholarship student, her chances of graduating haven’t changed, right? It’s still just botanic elemental powers after all. Besides...didn’t Professor Medik say it earlier? That girl’s power is just to summon mushrooms. What can you really do with that power? Use mushrooms as food? That’s hardly useful at all."
"Professor, don’t waste your time on things like this. I think you should just focus on your own research," many professors encouraged Medik.
However, Medik was not as hopeless as before. After all...he alone knew the true capabilities of his dear Ellie.