A day had passed since Zyle had told me I needed to buy a Christmas present, and now, Ted and I were heading to the quest bulletin board in the school’s lower level to find a way to make some money.
Arthlia Academy of Magecraft had a system where students could take job requests from people outside of the school. There’d been a similar system two hundred years ago where quests could be posted at Adventurer Guilds, but a little over ten years ago, the adventurer profession had been abolished. It was a strange feeling seeing the nostalgic system from the Adventurer Guilds living on in this school.
“Whoa! It’s just as crowded as usual!” Ted exclaimed.
Most likely, as Zyle had explained, with Christmas around the corner the students wanted a way to earn money. This theory was proven by how many students were crowded around the bulletin board.
There was a job that was looking for students to help shovel snow for a day that paid twelve thousand cols. Then there was another job looking for students to help deliver packages for ten thousand cols, but this amount would be increased if it was snowing.
The only problem with all these quests was that they were very different from the quests that I remembered from two hundred years ago.
Hm. None of these pay much. Though they’re much more seasonal jobs than the last time I looked at these quests, I don’t think they’re any better.
Back in my day, most of the quests would be centered around defeating magical beasts, but it seemed that quests had essentially become equivalent to part-time jobs.
Good grief. This is sad. It almost feels like they’re playing dress-up adventurer. At this rate, no matter how many of these quests I took, I wouldn’t be left with that much money.
“Hm... Where’s that job I heard about...”
Suddenly, I saw a certain girl in front of the bulletin board: Eliza. She was the descendant of the Hero of Fire, Maria, and also someone I seemingly kept running into ever since the entrance exam.
“Oh, there it is! Yay!” Eliza’s eyes sparkled as she found what she’d been looking for.
Hm? I wonder what kind of quest she’s looking for. It might not have been my business, but I couldn’t help but be curious. I peered over and saw that it was a job looking for part-timers to help sell cakes. They advertised themselves as a cozy, youthful workplace, and the compensation was seven thousand cols.
Yeah, that’s just a straight-up part-time job. I got the feeling that despite being a quest posted at a school for mages, it had nothing to do with magecraft. Though one could at least say that the quests involving shoveling snow or helping with deliveries might have helped to train the body, I failed to see how selling cakes would train a person in any regard.
“Are you sure you’re good with that quest?” I asked.
“Wah! A-Abel?!” Eliza jumped, hearing my voice. “D-Do you need something from me?”
It seemed that me suddenly calling out to her had made her unable to hear my initial question.
“Are you sure about that quest?” I repeated. “The pay is pretty low. I have a hard time believing there aren’t quests out there better suited for you.”
Eliza was an outstanding student compared to the others at this school. Even if she accepted a higher paying quest that required magecraft, she’d be able to complete it without any difficulty.
“Well...it’s true that the reward’s low, but apparently, you get to eat all the unsold cakes!” Eliza’s eyes suddenly sparkled as she said this.
I see now. So the reward isn’t her priority here. It’s more of a secondary goal for her.
“I’ve always wanted to try working at a place that sells cakes! The reward isn’t my main objective here! Working to earn money isn’t even a thought in my head!”
Hm. Eliza’s thoughts towards working—not for money, but for something else—is new. It might be interesting to work not because of the reward, but because the details of the quest sound interesting.
“All-you-can-eat cake? That sounds pretty good!” Ted muttered, impressed after hearing our conversation.
“Do you already know what you’re gonna do, Ted?” I asked.
“Yeah! I’m gonna try the snow-shoveling quest! It’s right up my alley! My granny praised me a lot when I helped back home!”
Hm. It’s true that it snowed all year around in the Rhangbalt Region. I guess another option here is to go for something that I’m suited for.
“So what’re you gonna pick, Master?!” Ted asked.
“Hm, I think I’ll...”
Now that I think about it, Lilith will be happy even if I don’t give her an expensive gift. With that in mind, I’ll put the reward as a secondary goal and instead choose a quest that interests me.
✦ ✦ ✦
Before I knew it, days had passed. Classes had ended for the week, and the weekend was upon me. Coincidentally, today was also the day that I was scheduled to go on my quest.
Hm. Being a student is such a chore. Students couldn’t leave the Arthlia Academy campus without submitting an excursion form and having it signed by a teacher.
Usually, these forms were easily approved, but were occasionally denied if given to one of the more fickle teachers that just so happened to be on duty. At the very least, since I had a very good reason for leaving the school grounds—my quest—I was fairly confident that I would be able to get my request approved without any difficulties.
“Are you going out, Master Abel?”
Oh, it looks like Lilith is on duty today. Well, seems like there’s no need to worry about a teacher rejecting my excursion request. I couldn’t imagine Lilith giving me any trouble.
“Hm? That scarf...” she whispered happily, noticing what was around my neck. “That’s the one I gave to you a while back, isn’t it? I’m so glad you’ve taken such a liking to it.”
Hm. It’s true. This was the same scarf that Lilith had given me when I first reincarnated into this world. I didn’t wear it because she’d given it to me, but one way or another, I found myself taking good care of it. This year was especially cold, so I’d brought it out from the back of my dresser.
“It’s definitely seen better days though, huh?” she remarked.
I don’t think it’s that worn out. It’s nothing I need to be concerned about. Then again, Lilith was always very sharp on the small details.
“Oh, I know. How about I give you a new scarf this year as your Christmas gift?” she suggested.
Hm. She’s also thinking about Christmas. I’m not sure what’s so special about this holiday, but it seems that the people of this age greatly value it.
“I’d prefer it if you got me something else,” I said.
“You...don’t like the idea?”
“No, it’s because I like this one. If possible, I’d like to keep using it for years to come. It’s the first gift you got me, after all.”
Lilith fell silent. I didn’t know the reason why, but after hearing how I honestly felt, all Lilith did was stare at me for a bit.
“Oh, Master Abel!”
Of all the things I thought she’d do, I hadn’t expected her to embrace me, smothering me with her chest.
✦ ✦ ✦
“Hey, what are you doing?”
“My apologies! You were just too adorable!”
Good grief. She really has no restraint. Of course, our relationship was a secret at the school. To everyone else, we were nothing more than siblings. Even if there weren’t any other students around, if we weren’t always careful, we’d end up in a situation that couldn’t be simply glossed over.
“I have plans, so I’m gonna head out,” I said.
“Of course. What kind, if you don’t mind me asking?”
“Just some errands. I’ll be back before dark.”
“Understood... I’ll be sure to tell the school something they’ll accept.”
Hm. Though I’d run into a potentially sticky situation, it looks like I’ll still be able to leave. I wasn’t about to tell her my true objective, which was earning money to buy her a present. After all, spilling the beans would ruin the surprise.