Dusì went early in the morning to Keira's meat shop to order the magical beast meat needed for tomorrow. Keira enthusiastically recommended a small magical beast's tenderloin to her.
Dusì didn't know many magical beasts, especially since this one had already been skinned and deboned, but she knew that the meat was not suitable: "It's too small, Aunt Keira."
Keira then remembered her husband mentioning that Dusì had become an employee at the Dragon Flame Restaurant, so she pointed to another piece of meat: "Adding this one should be enough."
Dusì shook her head: "If we're making the same dish, how can we use two different kinds of meat?" In the end, she chose a large piece of antelope leg meat.
As she left, Dusì encountered a group of young people on the street. To be more accurate, they were children; some of them looked no older than fifteen.
They were students from the magic academy, and Dusì didn't care much about them until she heard a haughty boy loudly say: "You seriously be considering dining at such a low-class restaurant!"
"I saw many mercenaries in there..." another boy answered.
"Those mercenaries can stomach anything: live snails, frogs, magical beast blood. Their menus are even more diverse than the species in the Midnight Swamp."
"Stop disgusting us, Edith." Gwendolin coldly interrupted the young master Edith's speculation. However, she didn't bring up the matter of dining at the restaurant again.
Benson, seeking help, started a conversation with Vila, who seemed lost in thought: "Senior Vila, what's wrong?"
Vila hadn't heard the previous discussion. She came back to her senses: "I thought I saw someone I know, but that's not possible."
Vila led everyone to the cleanest and most tidy house in the Misty Town and settled in. Edith saw that the furnishings in the house were simple, but at least they were clean and tidy, and surprisingly, he didn't complain about anything.
Gwendolin took the initiative to ask, "When do we set off to enter the Midnight Swamp?"
Vila replied while organizing her luggage, "No later than the day after tomorrow. First, we have to hire a team of mercenaries to guide us."
"What? Don't we have to complete the assessment independently?" Gwendolin's feelings were indescribable, as if her pride in her abilities was being questioned.
"Of course not. You're only in the second year!" Vila said matter-of-factly. In the Star Academy, first-year students only learn general magic knowledge and elemental absorption, and second-year students have just started learning basic spells. It would be negligence on the part of the mentors and the academy to let a group of mage apprentices blindly enter the dangerous Midnight Swamp.
Seeing the expressions on Benson and Edith' faces, Gwendolyn frowned secretly. She could only console herself that it was safer to hire a team of mercenaries because someone as beautiful and foolish as Edith in their group.
In private, Benson approached Vila to inquire about the cost of hiring mercenaries.
"The price is quite high, but it's covered by the school's funding, so you don't need to worry," Vila reassured Benson, understanding his concerns.
Benson gave a shy smile, revealing a pair of small fangs. He was grateful that the senior leading the team belonged to the commoners like him, so he didn't have to repeatedly open his own wounds.
As the most worry-free member of the team, Vila had a good impression of Benson. "Have you thought about which mentor you want to choose in the third year?"
Benson showed a stunned expression; he hadn't thought about that yet. At the end of the third-year course in the Star Academy, there would be an opportunity to choose a mentor before entering the fourth year, but that was almost a privilege reserved for the nobles. Even some minor nobles couldn't catch the eye of a mentor, as the cost of cultivating a mage in the later stages was simply too high.
If no mentor was willing to accept a student, they could still continue their studies, but they would have to attend large classes with dozens or even hundreds of students, learning very little in the process. For commoners like Benson, reaching the third year was basically the end of their academic journey, and there was no need to continue any further. By this time, they could essentially become a junior mage and be employed by some minor nobles, earning a salary that could support their entire family. This was already a future worth dreaming of for Benson.
Vila was not aware of Benson's academic performance, and he didn't stand out as much as Gwendolin, but Vila was certain that since the academy had placed Edith in her group, balancing the strength of the group would require more than just a genius girl like Gwendolin. This meant that Benson's performance among his peers must be at least above average.
"If you want to continue studying, I think you can consider Professor Derrick. He accepts the most commoner students in the entire academy," Vila suggested. She had not yet formally become a student of Professor Derrick, but after just a few weeks of recent contact, she was already attracted to his charisma and promoted him to others.
Benson's eyes lit up at once. Vila realized she had forgotten to ask about her junior's desired major and quickly added, "Are you interested in potionology?"
Benson hesitated a bit, worrying that his senior would think him ungrateful, "I'm more inclined towards offensive magic..." The Star Academy's potionology program was excellent, and the income after leaving the academy was quite substantial. However, the cost of learning was also considerable, with various magical plants, magical beast materials, and equipment, which made Benson reluctant to pursue it.
"You're in luck then, as Professor Derrick also teaches in the Necromancy department."
Benson nodded vigorously.
As Vila watched Benson's departing figure, she was lost in thought. He was usually quiet and unremarkable, sandwiched between Edith and Gwendolin, rarely showing such obvious emotions. It seemed that he truly loved learning magic. If there were more teachers like Professor Derrick, would commoners like them to have more hope?