The Rumor Spreads
The rumor spread like wildfire.
"What? Strawberry jam?"
"No way. There's no chance he could get something like that."
"But that would explain why the professors are doting on him so much."
Most of the students refused to believe the rumor right away. If something like that were truly possible, strawberry jam would have appeared long ago. Besides, no one even considered the possibility that it might be an ability. Every supernatural power obtained at Tartaros Academy so far had been useful for combat or personal strength. The idea of a non-combat ability that summoned strawberry jam was simply unimaginable.
Heh heh, of course they won't believe it.
Kael had no intention of revealing his power in this place just yet. For now, simply watching the rumor spread was more than enough. The professors were all absent from the dining hall. They had probably taken the coarse black bread back to their rooms to enjoy with strawberry jam, butter, and cheese.
Well, I suppose I'll wait until they've finished eating.
Kael calmly accepted the way everyone's eyes kept drifting toward him. He could also feel Irina's gaze. She was staring at him with furrowed brows. Her green eyes swirled with a mixture of confusion and displeasure.
"Strawberry jam... that's ridiculous," she muttered, forcing herself to tear off pieces of the coarse black bread and chew. The sight of her adorable face twisting in misery was truly satisfying.
Marina and Juliana whispered beside her.
"Your Highness, could that rumor possibly be true?"
"It can't be real, right?"
Irina shook her head at their questions.
"Of course not. But... seeing how much the professors favor him, there must be something to it."
"Exactly, right?"
The three of them had reached that conclusion, yet the growing confusion in their eyes refused to fade.
Anyway, I still have no plans to reveal my ability yet.
The fact that the rumor had spread was exactly according to plan, something to be welcomed. However, he would not disclose the power to summon food just yet. There were things he needed to do first.
Kael rose from his seat and approached the adjacent table where the Ling and Ming sisters sat. The two girls were also forcing down the coarse black bread.
"Ling. Ming."
When Kael called them in a gentle voice, they looked up. Their clear brown eyes turned toward him.
"Could you come to my room in one hour? I'd like to have a talk."
"Yes, Lord Kael. I'll be there without fail."
"Me too. I'll definitely come with my sister."
Kael smiled at the two sisters whose eyes sparkled with anticipation and gave them a light wave.
"Good. See you later, then."
After leaving the dining hall, his steps led him straight to Professor Lucia's laboratory.
"Professor Lucia, I need your help."
As he entered the lab, he saw Professor Lucia. She was happily eating coarse black bread topped with strawberry jam, butter, and cheese, along with dandelion roots that smelled as if they'd been roasted with butter. Her face looked utterly blissful.
When Kael entered, she jumped up from her seat and beamed at him.
"Kael! Oh my! I didn't expect you so soon! So, what help do you need?"
"I'll tell you after you finish your meal first."
"Okay! I'll be done in a second!"
About three minutes later, Professor Lucia had finished eating. She smiled softly and asked,
"So, what kind of help do you need?"
Kael put on a serious expression.
"Professor Lucia, something terrible has happened."
"Terrible?"
Professor Lucia looked puzzled at his words. Meeting her sky-blue eyes, Kael nodded and continued.
"A rumor about my ability has spread among the students. Word is going around that I gave the professors strawberry jam. I've also heard that a vassal family member from the upperclassmen—who heard it directly from one of the professors—told it to Semira of the Teneb House."
At Kael's words, Professor Lucia's face turned deathly pale.
"Is that... really true? The rumor has spread?"
The professors had all left the dining hall, so they had been completely unaware of this.
"Yes, Professor. It seems someone broke their promise and leaked my ability to the students. Probably one of the professors told their favorite student, and that student told Semira, causing the rumor to spiral out of control."
With trembling eyes, Professor Lucia quickly raised her hand. Drawing on her mana, she cast a message spell and spoke.
"Emergency! All professors, gather in my laboratory immediately! It's urgent!"
"Emergency situation!"
"All professors must assemble in my laboratory at once!"
⟨ Message Magic ⟩
The message spell was delivered to all nineteen professors. Moments later, the laboratory door opened and Principal Albert appeared. He must have teleported directly here.
"What on earth is going on, Lucia!"
Following Principal Albert, Professors Galen, Anna, Michaela, Broad, and the rest of the nineteen professors filed into the laboratory one after another.
Professor Anna saw Kael and asked urgently. In her haste, she even spoke to Professor Lucia without honorifics.
"Lucia. What's going on? You said it was urgent? Did something happen to Kael?"
Professor Lucia nodded with a grave expression. She, too, dropped the formalities. It seemed the two of them spoke casually to each other in private.
"Yes. A rumor about Kael's ability has spread among the students. Word is going around that we received strawberry jam. It's even spreading that the source was one of the professors leaking the secret to a student."
The laboratory fell into instant silence. Shock and panic flashed across the professors' faces. Principal Albert's eyebrows shot up. He clenched his fist and roared in fury.
"Who was it? Who exactly broke their promise! I'll find out right now! Kael's ability is like our lifeline—how could this happen!"
At that moment, Gebrik—the professor in charge of third-year swordsmanship—stepped forward and threw himself flat on the floor. Bowing his head deeply toward Kael, he spoke.
"Student Kael, I'm truly sorry! So very sorry! I... I mentioned it lightly to that boy, Tailon. I never imagined he would spread it so widely! Tailon promised he wouldn't tell anyone either! Please forgive me!"
Gebrik's voice was shaking violently. The other professors glared at him with furious eyes. Yet everyone was watching Kael's reaction. The Grand Sword Master and the Archmages alike were all gauging Kael's mood, trembling at the fear that he might cut off their food supply.
Principal Albert sighed and bowed his head to Kael.
"Student Kael, this old man was careless. I failed to properly manage the professors. I am truly sorry."
Kael remained silent for a moment. Then, setting the mood, he slowly exhaled.
"The rumor spread in just one day. How can I trust you after this? I could have enjoyed this ability by myself. But I chose to reveal it and provide food because I wanted to build a good relationship with all of you. To have that trust shattered in a single day... it's truly regrettable."
His voice was calm, yet it carried a sharp edge of criticism. The professors—except for Gebrik—had done nothing wrong themselves, yet they felt like criminals burdened by collective responsibility.
Gebrik lowered his head even further, pressing his forehead to the floor.
"Student Kael, I'm so sorry! I'll make sure this never happens again!"
"Never again? The rumor has already spread everywhere—what meaning does that have now? Isn't that the same as killing someone and then standing in front of their corpse saying, 'I won't kill you again'?"
Professor Gebrik trembled uncontrollably. The mere thought of returning to a life of nothing but coarse black bread seemed to terrify him.
"Hoo..."
Principal Albert let out a heavy sigh and asked in a grave voice.
"Student Kael, what should we do? What must we do to regain your trust?"
Kael closed his eyes as if pondering for a moment. Inside, he was smiling. At this moment when the professors were watching his every mood, the first button had been fastened perfectly. They were now afraid of displeasing him. Having already tasted strawberry jam, butter, and cheese, they dreaded returning to a life of nothing but coarse black bread, boiled dandelion roots, and nettles.
"I'll let this incident pass for now. However, I will continue to observe whether I can truly trust the professors moving forward. And... thanks to Professor Gebrik here, I can no longer hide my ability from the students."
At Kael's words, Professor Gebrik trembled again. The Grand Sword Master was now watching a student's mood out of fear that he might lose access to the food supply.
"I believe I will need your help in cleaning up this mess."
Principal Albert nodded immediately.
"Of course, Student Kael! We will take full responsibility and handle it. What kind of help do you want?"
Kael smiled gently and said,
"Before that, first of all... I would like you to officially grant me a proper position. Also, I will have many personal requests to make of you."
"Understood! Just give us any order you wish!"
And so, the relationship between Kael and the professors was clearly established as one of absolute dominance and submission.
Now, I should cause a little chaos tomorrow.
It seemed he would need to practice his acting skills in advance for tomorrow's confusion.