Ultimately, Shulim had not come to Manacos to make friends. While such social isolation might be unbearable for others, to Shulim, it was actually quite convenient.
It saved her from a great deal of pointless socializing, allowing her to dedicate even more focus to researching and studying magic.
Moreover, she did not need to worry too much about her peers taking things too far. Manacos would not interfere heavily in personal matters between students, but if someone mobilized power beyond that scope to threaten a student's personal safety, the academy would certainly not stand idly by.
Although Manacos Magic Academy was located in Langard, it had never been under imperial control, nor did the empire possess the capability to control it. The two sides had always maintained a relationship of equal dialogue.
Under normal circumstances, Manacos did not interfere in imperial internal affairs. For instance, during the turmoil three hundred years ago—since it originated from within the empire—Manacos remained a bystander throughout the entire conflict without intervening. Nor were the rebels crazy enough to dare seek trouble here.
For the same reason that Manacos did not interfere with the empire, the empire did not meddle with Manacos. If a noble was truly foolish enough to strike at the academy, Manacos would make them realize what being an equal to the empire truly meant...
In this storm, Shulim could only be considered caught in the crossfire, and the impact on her was minor. In fact, many in the Special Class had not even noticed her being isolated. The person who experienced the greatest change was someone else entirely.
The Ninth Princess of the empire—Alicia Serionce.
After all, this entire scheme had been directed at her from the start.
When they first enrolled, many students did not know the insider details of the power struggles within the empire's upper echelon, so they had treated the Ninth Princess with great respect.
Now, after the rival faction made its move, more and more people learned—or were forced to learn—the stakes involved. Ultimately, they chose to keep a respectful distance from the Ninth Princess.
After all, given her noble status, it was better not to approach her carelessly lest it seem rude. In short, the young aristocratic boys and girls who had surrounded the Ninth Princess with flattery on the very first day now brushed it off with awkward expressions.
As a result—
Alicia Serionce was isolated.
...
...
“Shulim, are you going out?”
In the dormitory, Mico asked.
“Mm, I have something to take care of outside the academy.”
Shulim wore a backpack, carried her sword on her back, and held her wand in her hand. It was clear she was preparing to step out.
Though Shulim was being isolated, Mico was not part of that scheme. Even for imperial nobles, using covert means to influence a beastkin from a nation on equal footing with the empire proved to be quite difficult.
After letting Mico know that she might return late tonight, Shulim left the dormitory with her backpack and headed outside the academy.
...
Downtown.
“...Yesterday, I picked up the money Father deposited. After calculating it, it should be enough to pay back the elf shopkeeper and repair my mithril sword.”
When dealing with that underground organization, in order to make up for the loss of the Dragon's Dream Incense, Shulim had tried searching the stronghold to see if there was any place where money was stored.
Unfortunately, these underground organizations had a strict and entirely different method of managing money. They would never keep funds in a stronghold where large numbers of members frequented. After all, none of the members of an underground organization had clean hands...
And perhaps because this habit extended to everyone individually, the members carried only the necessary amount of money on their persons, keeping any extra stored in places known only to themselves.
As a result, although Shulim had searched the scene while clearing it out, the amount of money she found was thoroughly disappointing.
Of course, the weapons used by those people and some of the items on them were also worth quite a bit, but Shulim had no intention of touching those things.
Things used in the underworld could be recognized by others. If she took them to exchange for money, she would instantly expose herself...
Although the spoils from that battle were disappointing, combined with her original funds, it was at least enough to pay back the elf shopkeeper. However, during the fight, her mithril sword had been severely damaged, and repairing it would undoubtedly cost a considerable sum.
...
After some time, Shulim arrived once more before that inconspicuous potion shop.
“Ding-ling~!”
She pushed the door open and stepped inside.
“You’ve come. Have you gathered enough money?”
Just like last time, the elusive voice echoed in her ear.
Having prepared herself mentally this time, Shulim calmly looked to her right.
“That’s right. Yesterday, I collected the money my father had deposited in Langard.”
“Ah, is that so—?”
The elf said before walking deeper into the shop.
“Come inside and sit for a moment. There’s no rush to repay the money. More than that, I’m rather curious to hear... what exactly did you do at the docks that day?”
“...”
As expected, she had guessed it. After all, anyone who knew about a potion like Dragon's Dream Incense would naturally be well aware of its poisoning symptoms. Back then, the authorities had made no secret of the fact that the rescued illegal slaves had slept for a day and a night.
When they found that no one could wake them up, they thought everyone was finished, which even drew quite a few famous potion masters in the city.
As a potion master herself, it was not surprising that the elf shopkeeper knew about this incident. Based on those symptoms, it was only natural for her to immediately guess it was connected to Shulim.
So... what should she do now?
If she told her the truth—
Wouldn't that expose the fact that she possessed all-elemental affinity?!
But if she tried to brush it off... would she even be able to pull it off...?
The elf held all the leverage right now. If she caught Shulim trying to brush her off, what if she threatened her directly?
“You seem to be thinking about something quite rude, don't you?”
“No matter what you're thinking, I can tell you in advance that I won't do whatever it is you're imagining. So rest assured.”
“...”
“How do I know what you're thinking? Although your expression didn't change, your eyes completely gave you away. You still have a lot to learn, little girl~!”
“...I see. I stand corrected.”
“No need to be polite~!”
The elf said with a smile, then produced a pot of tea out of nowhere.
“Flower tea, my own exclusive recipe. Would you like some?”
“Thank you. May I add sugar?”
Shulim sat down on the chair in front of the counter.
The elf shopkeeper clearly had not expected Shulim to respond like that. After a brief stupor, her smile deepened even further.
“You really don't stand on ceremony, do you? But don't worry, it contains flower nectar, so it's already sweet on its own.”
Saying that, she placed a teacup in front of Shulim and poured her a cup of tea.
Shulim picked up the teacup, took a sip, and her eyes instantly widened.
Across from her, the elf shopkeeper was beaming at her, seemingly anticipating her reaction.
“How is it~? Is it good?”
“...”
Shulim set down her cup.
“It’s not a matter of whether it tastes good or not... It’s just that I don’t know how to describe it. In short, it feels very marvelous... What kind of tea is this, exactly?”
For some unknown reason, after drinking this flower tea, Shulim felt her mind clear significantly. Even the mana inside her body became active, and her total mana capacity even experienced a slight increase.
It was utterly incredible. She had never heard of any tea having such an effect!
“—Right? It’s marvelous, isn’t it~!”
The elf shopkeeper was extremely satisfied with Shulim’s reaction.
“The secret to this flower tea is actually because nectar from the World Tree was added to it~!”
“...............................................”
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