Chapter 111
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 111
Chapter Title: The Archmage of the Basement (1)
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“Ughhh-!”
I stretched out long, wrapped snugly in my blanket.
Arms extended high above my head, toes pointed as I elongated my body.
My spine cracked and popped satisfyingly, each vertebra slotting back into place.
The soft, plush give of the mattress under my wriggling toes felt incredible.
“Ehehehe...”
A pathetic groan slipped from my lips unbidden.
It was the perfect morning indulgence, one I hadn't savored in ages.
Or rather, with the sun hanging high in the sky, maybe it was lunchtime.
A quick glance at the clock showed the hour and minute hands overlapping at 12.
Let me think. Classes ended Wednesday evening, dinner after that, bed at 8 p.m., and now...
...What? Only 16 hours of sleep, and I feel this refreshed? No way.
“Sleep really is the best medicine, huh.”
With all the exhaustion piling up lately, this languid haze felt especially delightful.
Blasting that unwanted Meteor at the palace had left me sluggish all weekend.
And during the week, Princess Celestina herself started waking me up, forcing my wrecked sleep schedule even further into chaos just to drag me to classes.
On top of that, more people than ever had been seeking me out at the academy lately, draining my energy dry.
But today, I was in a good mood.
The new bed was just my style, and the blanket, infused with the scent of autumn leaves, was fluffy and perfect.
Cracking the window let a cool breeze brush my cheek.
If the temperature dropped just a bit more, it'd be ideal for cranking up the heater, burrowing into a comforter, and lounging like a sloth.
This world skimped on air conditioning but nailed heating surprisingly well.
Fireplace logs were a timeless classic, after all.
Still, even double-firing a reverse boiler couldn't compete—I'd have to scrounge leftover materials from mage engineering class and whip something up later.
Knock, knock.
A soft rapping echoed at the door.
“Miss Lunaris, are you awake today?”
Odette, Linea Hall's head maid—once my natural predator, now just a regular servant—had come to my room.
“If you're up, how about some breakfast?”
“Yeah, coming out.”
Perfect timing; I was starving anyway.
Kicking off the blanket and opening the door, Odette looked at me with mild surprise.
“...This is the first time I've seen Miss Lunaris open her own door.”
“Feeling good today. And hungry.”
“Well, you did sleep for 40 hours straight.”
...Huh?
“It's not Thursday—it's Friday?”
“Yes. No other lectures yesterday, so we let you sleep, but I didn't expect a full day and then some.”
“Come on, during break I slept 20 hours at a stretch like it was nothing.”
“...Even so, I didn't think you'd push past 30 into 40.”
Chatting idly with Odette, we headed to the basement dining hall, where the table was already set.
Starting with stew to rouse my parched stomach after the long fast.
All my favorites: meat, meat, and more meat...
“Hmm.”
I paused with fork in hand, narrowing my eyes.
A brown lump in the corner of the plate, masquerading as meat.
Drizzled in demi-glace sauce, it could pass for a hamburger steak, but my sharp nose wasn't fooled.
“This isn't meat.”
“...Sharp as ever.”
Odette averted her gaze with a click of her tongue.
So it was a trap.
The head maid's tearful crusade to force vegetables—inedible sludge for any sentient being—down my throat.
Fat chance. Not on my watch.
“Real meat has that juicy, savory aroma soaked in. This reeks of grass.”
“I thought I'd cooked it thoroughly enough... But how do you tell with well-done?”
“Why cook meat well-done in the first place?”
I sliced into the steak, shaking my head.
The bright red juices oozing from the cut were perfection.
“That's not cooked; that's charred.”
Medium-rare or bust—the salty tang of those juices sucked straight from the meat, that's the real flavor.
“Fine, try a bite of this at least.”
“If I eat all that, my stomach'll burst.”
“Then just one bite.”
“Hmm...”
I pretended to mull it over, then shrugged.
“If I feel like it.”
In the end, I shoved the fake meat to the table's edge and polished off the stew, bread, and real steak clean.
“Haaah-”
A contented sigh escaped me.
Great bed, always-fresh linens, delicious meals on demand whenever hunger struck.
Dorm life wasn't half bad at this rate.
Oh, figured out where to spend some cash.
After graduating Elterion Academy, I'd poach a few Linea Hall maids.
Double their salary, and plenty would follow.
Make them my personal staff—cooking, laundry, the works.
Yeah, flawless plan.
“You seem in high spirits today, Miss Lunaris.”
Odette remarked as she cleared the table.
“Eh, good sleep does wonders. Feeling great.”
So don't wake me from now on—just leave me be, and I'll behave.
“No afternoon plans?”
“Dunnooo... Stomach's full, feeling all drowsy...”
I propped my chin on the table, yawning hugely.
“Oh, you doing laundry today? Weather's nice—maybe hit the park and bake some bread...”
“What are you talking about? It's club activity day.”
“...Ah?”
“No other schedule? Then you need to join the house program.”
No sooner had Odette finished than the dining room door opened, other maids filing in.
They carried frilly, lace-trimmed garments.
“We tailored a maid uniform to fit you perfectly, Miss Lunaris.”
“No, really, you didn't have to...”
“Change quickly. No escaping.”
The maids closed in from all sides.
How to slip out...
Oh, right!
“Club activity—Ghost Story Research Club.”
I slid my chair back and stood casually.
Then shot straight up to the ceiling before they could grab me.
From behind, the head maid's voice vowed to check my activity report.
So much for outdoor napping...
*
Swallowing a yawn, I arrived at the old library building.
Now the Ghost Story Research Club's clubroom.
Familiar faces guarded the door.
Imperial knights with golden epaulets.
All Princess Celestina's escorts.
Light nods to the knights, then inside, where Claire waved happily.
“Ah, Lunaris! You made it this week?”
“Hey, Claire.”
“Missed you last time—thought you were skipping today too.”
“What took you so long?”
Sylvia, our vice president lounging with legs crossed at the head seat, scolded me.
“If Lunaris is late, it's safe to assume she overslept, President.”
“You know me too well, Claire.”
I plopped shamelessly into the empty seat—right beside Princess Celestina.
“Welcome, Luna.”
The princess greeted me with a bright smile.
“So you really decided against the drama club?”
“Eh... Just helping out occasionally.”
She set down her teacup, chuckling.
“Surprising. I didn't peg you as the type to voluntarily help anyone.”
“Hey, I actually like watching plays.”
“Really? Want to go see one together next time?”
“Maybe.”
To be precise, I loved quick dopamine hits like short clips.
Local plays dragged on forever—boring and pretentious.
Time to fix that somehow.
I draped over the desk, scanning the room.
The usual five: ghost-obsessed President Sylvia.
Cowardly Vice President Thomas.
Princess Celestina beside me.
Just Claire.
And me.
“No new members this semester?”
“Can't be helped. We'll recruit from next year's freshmen.”
Sylvia waved it off casually.
“Bigger issue is our track record.”
“Why? Pressure to disband?”
“Nah... We haven't seen a single real ghost! How can every one of the academy's seven mysteries be a total bust?!”
Ghost stories were like that—peel back the layers, and poof, nothing there.
A specter from an old classroom window? Just a stray cat tangled in curtains during a midnight stroll.
Those dawn thumps from Linea Hall... Yeah, my morning battles with the maids.
“One was real, though.”
“You exorcised Veronica's ghost too, Lunaris!”
Right... That happened.
“So! We're scaling up this time.”
Sylvia slammed the table.
“Forget the academy—we're researching every ghost story in the Belhart Empire! Everyone brought their reports, right?!”