200. Who Names a Ship Like That?
200. Who Names a Ship Like That?
It was the last day of the semester.
It wasn't that there were no lectures; I just ignored them all.
With the semester ending, there were plenty of things to finalize.
The first place I stopped by was Professor Praha's lab.
"Cindy's going back to the Forest. Aren't you going, Professor?"
"That young lady still belongs to the Forest, so she has to go. But this is my home and my workplace."
This time, she wasn't experimenting but wrestling with formulas full of unknown symbols.
The potion made from the formula I'd been using before had worked for me, but it hadn't produced the results the theory predicted.
Throughout the semester, we'd tested various things by only changing the ingredients in the original formula, but this time the idea was to approach it from a completely different angle.
"What's the principle behind this formula?"
"Before, we only considered the general case. The idea was that nutrients and stimulants would go to each growth point and promote growth.
It worked before, but since Client-nim isn't a general case, we have to change our thinking."
In a general case, with sufficient nutrients, genes with sufficient potential, and the right trigger—I had everything, but I didn't grow taller.
There was probably just one difference.
There had been stress to the point of madness.
But some degree of stress actually promotes growth.
Since I didn't die, it meant it wasn't even that extreme.
"This time, instead of directly stimulating the growth points, it'll secrete a hormone."
"A hormone?"
"Yes. They're usually called growth hormones. We did stimulate them a bit before, but we didn't do it much because it was more efficient to directly stimulate the growth points... but I completely changed my thinking.
Sponsor-nim has an incredibly 'robust physique,' so it's only natural that you don't get much reaction from externally injected stimuli.
But if the hormones that directly command the body to grow are secreted more than usual, that powerful physique will move to grow on its own."
In the end, it all came down to stimulating the part responsible for producing growth hormones and seeing if it would react.
"This is a prototype. Would you like to try it?"
Professor Praha pulled a potion with a golden hue out of the refrigerator.
"Is it definitely safe?"
"Animal testing was stable. Lately, there haven't been any graduate students around, so I couldn't do human trials...."
Her words trailed off when I asked if it was safe.
"Ah, whatever."
Looking at her authority, she must have some reason to be confident. Surely, she wasn't thinking of sending me off with poison just because she was having a hard time producing decent results.
"Ugh, the taste is absolutely horrible."
The moment I downed it, my face crumpled.
It felt like drinking mud mixed with bitter grass.
"Are you feeling anything unusual with your body?"
"Nothing I can feel right now."
No matter how much I concentrated, there was no special sensation in my body.
"Hoo... that's a relief."
"???"
A relief?
My trust level suddenly plummeted.
"Ah, no, it's not. The effect doesn't manifest immediately after drinking it anyway, so I was just checking.
Over the next two weeks, it will help Sponsor-nim's growth hormone secretion... but I'm curious how effective it will be... for a human... especially for Sponsor-nim."
I also hoped this drug would be more helpful.
.
.
.
.
.
I dropped by the Swordsmanship Research Club, and Hera Nunim greeted me.
"So, little brother, you're coming during the third week?"
"Yes...."
It was to confirm the schedule for the invitation to the Nemea territory I'd mentioned before.
Since she was actually a relative and I'd been meaning to visit someday, it seemed like a good opportunity.
The Nemea territory was also located near the Blade Mountains, so it wouldn't take long to get there.
She said she wouldn't be there before then because she had something to take care of in the meantime.
She didn't tell me what it was.
Since she told me to come during the third week, I'd have to sneak in about two days beforehand, have a serious conversation with my uncle... and then tell the truth afterward.
I started to wonder how she'd react if the person she thought was her younger brother said he was actually two years older.
.
.
.
.
On the day break started, an unprecedented, enormous crowd gathered at the academy's harbor.
All the students trying to go home had flocked to the harbor.
Students who lived really far away or those with difficult circumstances gave up and stayed at the academy, but you could say most of the recommendation admit students left.
Some students tried to leave via the bridge, but the number of people that narrow bridge could accommodate was limited, so most students gathered at the harbor.
It was so crowded it reminded me of the entrance ceremony day.
The most dreadful thing was the fact that carriages for all those students would be waiting at the harbor on the other side.
If it's this bad with only the students gathered here, then the harbor across the way, which would be packed with carriages... ugh, I don't even want to imagine it.
Seeing this situation, I thought the option of boarding Perda's airship wasn't so bad after all.
Whatever Perda's ulterior motives were, it was break, and I needed a little time to relax.
Since the distance from the academy to the capital was quite far and I was told it would take at least three days, time was plentiful.
"How is it, our family's airship?"
When we reached the boarding platform for the airship, Perda, who had arrived beforehand, was standing with his arms crossed, greeting everyone smugly.
Perda's airship, anchored at the cliff, had a sleek, streamlined hull beautifully painted in ivory and deep navy, with the Perda family crest engraved on it.
The wood of the deck looked sturdy, and golden decorations peeked from the railings.
It was infuriating, but it was an airship of a scale worth boasting about.
"Wow... so this is an airship."
"Just looking at its shape, it seems like an ordinary ship."
"...!"
Everyone's jaws dropped, unable to close them, as they looked at the airship.
The airship was anchored on the exact opposite side from the harbor swarming with students.
On the exact opposite side of the harbor was a cliff that seemed carved out, and Perda's airship was anchored beside the cliff while floating in the air.
Having no anchor, it looked similar to a magical ship that used an Orion engine, but the fact that it floated in the air made it seem even more special.
It seemed the Five Pillars had all basically decided to board.
It looked like they were planning to drop people off one by one on the way, since Perda's territory was the farthest.
Our group consisted of four people: Riber, Amy, Casey, and me.
In total, 9 people, plus Perda's girls, would make about 15 boarding the airship.
But there was also an unexpected face.
"Cindy?"
"Perda has deep ties with the elves, you see... but surely you aren't going to Perda too?"
"I'll be getting off midway, so don't worry."
"I was going to invite you to the Forest if you went to Perda, but it's a shame."
It seemed the elf exchange student, Cindy, was also boarding.
Given that the Perda family itself had used its ties with elves as a weapon, they were taking the elf exchange student along too.
"What, you're boarding too?"
"Ugh...."
When I looked to get on board, I saw Lemnos and Albion walking over from behind.
Apparently, they hadn't heard that I was boarding.
"Didn't you hear from Perda? I was invited yesterday."
"I was busy packing yesterday, so I didn't see it."
Suddenly, Lemnos stepped closer.
What, did he want to fight?
"What's this all of a sudden?"
"...There's something I want to ask. Is it true?"
His posture was unusually cautious.
"That rumor about you defeating Carlos-nim. Is it true?"
It seemed it had leaked out as a rumor from somewhere.
The smashed annex, Carlos secretly hospitalized and then back, and me, relatively unscathed. He seemed to think it was suspicious.
But there was only one thing I wanted to say.
"What do you want to think?"
Edgar was surprised when he heard that.
"Ha... so that's how you're going to play it? Fine. What does it matter? I'll think whatever I want."
Edgar snorted and boarded the airship with Albion.
My party had all boarded too, so I was about to go, but one more person was coming from afar.
It was Shara, with a frame smaller than mine.
She was walking over carrying a large trunk, but the gusting wind blowing from the cliff was whipping her long hair around wildly, making it hard for her to walk.
I went closer and carried the trunk for her.
Yet the wind was still so fierce, whipping her hair around, that she couldn't see who I was.
"I don't know who you are, but thank you."
That Phrygia, giving thanks...
I was a little surprised.
If it were the attitude she had when she first enrolled, she would have gotten annoyed and asked why I was only helping now.
I felt good, as if my education had been effective.
When I shifted my direction slightly to shield her from the wind, she finally saw who was in front of her and was startled.
"Ah... Atlas-nim?!"
"Why did you pack so much?"
Shara was flustered and hurriedly straightened her clothes, which had become a mess from the wind.
"I-I'll carry it!"
"Forget it. Didn't you know I was coming?"
"...No."
I stroked her head once and then started moving toward the airship.
"Still, let's be careful around each other inside."
"Understood."
Shara bowed her head deeply to hide her deeply flushed face.
As we were almost there, the people who had already boarded the airship came out and called for me from inside.
"Atlas, what are you doing? Not getting on?"
"This place is amazing..!! Come quickly and see it with us!!"
Once they confirmed everyone was on board, the anchor was raised, and the footboards connecting the cliff and the airship were folded. A buoyant sensation of the hull rising, Buung, could be felt.
It was a completely different sensation from a ship floating on the water's surface, and it was fascinating.
Most of the people who had roughly unpacked their luggage inside were up on the deck, watching the airship float. Perda, who had come out dressed dashingly like a captain, made his presence known to the people standing on the deck.
"Ahem! Then, before we depart, let me first introduce myself."
It was so absurd, as if he was staging some kind of ceremony.
Seeing Perda's girls squealing next to him, saying he was cool, I figured that was the kind of act this was.
"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome aboard the super-luxury airship 'Titanic,' prepared by our Perda family!"
Seriously, what the hell was up with that ship name.