When about 10 kids sat down at the table, Lumina's mother served generous portions of boiled meat.
Shirone noticed it. It must have taken quite an effort to prepare so much food. Paying the price wasn't an issue, but it was strange in itself.
As if reading Shirone's mind, Althor spoke up.
"Don't worry. Selling monster hides brings in money. I'll start working tomorrow. Of course, I'll need your permission first."
"Eh? No, of course you should. Oh, and the name of the monster is a lycanthrope. I heard that the claws and fangs can fetch a good price."
Shirone thought that if it were him, of course he would allow it. Moreover, it turned out to be a larger income than expected because other parts also generated money.
But above all, it was the fact that he learned the name of the monster.
In this world, knowledge also turns into money.
If you put it on the market without even knowing its name, it was obvious that it could have been a much greater loss than the effort invested.
"Right. Anyway, thank you. For helping us, without you, our village would have had to move elsewhere."
For generations, people who had lived by cultivating fields and selling mountain goods, losing their home was a terrible thing. In that sense, Shirone was a hero who saved the village.
"It's okay, besides, this place is precious to me too."
Shirone really felt that way. Lycanthrope meat would spoil over time and couldn't be sold, but the kids didn't go up the mountain and stayed.
They're not wealthy. That's why life is hard, so there are more things to be ashamed of than nobles, but I liked those who knew how to live together.
Martin said, chewing the meat.
"Anyway, I'm sorry your well-deserved vacation ended like this. Wouldn't you prefer to go up the mountain together tomorrow? Let's sell everything, including the claws and teeth, and have fun with the money."
When it came to playing, the kids from the logging and burning village were not lacking, but Shirone shook his head regretfully. He wanted to return as soon as possible to analyze his knowledge.
"No. I've rested enough. Thanks to that, my fatigue has eased. I have to study hard now. I have to go back to the academy tomorrow morning."
After dinner, the kids returned to their respective homes. It was a moonlit night, but they still had work to do. The teams had to be checked overnight, and the carts as well.
Shirone climbed the hill and looked down at the logging and burning village. The kids carried torches from house to house, preparing for the work of the next day. A gentle smile appeared on their lips as they joked and chatted happily.
"Shirone, you were here."
"Eh? Althor, how did you find me?"
"I thought you'd be here. What are you thinking about? You didn't even know I was coming."
"Old thoughts. When I came with my father, we played a lot. We played hide and seek in the field over there."
"Yes, we did. But you had much more time to read books by yourself. Of course, that's our fault."
"No, it's not like that. It's because I love books so much..."
Althor chuckled.
"You don't have to apologize. If you don't know, it doesn't matter. Because the kids have missed you since before. So there were many times when I felt envious too. Now that I think about it, I feel sorry for you for more than one or two things."
"No, I was strange. Maybe I was afraid of meeting people. It was a confusing time."
Unlike other kids in the logging and burning village, Shirone was the pride of his parents since he had never had an accident. However, in reality, since he encountered magic at the age of 12, it had been an endless series of agony and worries.
Althor nodded as if he had an idea. Today he had been able to see and realize Shirone's magic.
The boy who thought he only read books without knowing the world was actually struggling more fiercely than anyone else.
"I'm sorry, Shirone."
"It's okay."
"No, not that. I mean, at a drinking party. I said something arrogant. Everyone has feelings. I made a mistake. Don't take it the wrong way."
Shirone remembered Althor's sore point from the previous night. He wasn't hurt. He also chose magic because it was a burden he had to carry on his own.
"I don't think so. In fact, I had never thought about it until now. How lucky I am to be alive."
"No, Shirone. You worked hard. That's why others help you too."
"But the truth is the truth. What you said is my reality, and that's why I have to embrace it for the rest of my life."
Althor smiled bitterly. There was no one in the logging and burning village where he could criticize himself as well as others.
"It's amazing to be a wizard."
The mindset of wizards was incomprehensible. But that's why people in the world admired them.
Shirone and Althor looked down at the logging and burning village. They didn't say anything to each other, but their eyes were looking at the same place.
***
The next morning.
The adults began their daily routine at dawn, and only the children were left.
Shirone had breakfast at Lumina's house and left the house.
The kids watched him go, but they also carried many tools for dismantling the lycanthropes.
In their lives where there were no days off, Shirone realized how important the path he was following was.
"Goodbye, Shirone. Study hard. Make sure to become a great wizard."
Althor asked for a handshake. Other children also approached Shirone to say goodbye.
"Shirone, will you come back to play?"
"The next time I come, tell me more about the magic academy."
"Haha! Okay. I'll come after the semester ends. You're doing well too."
After saying goodbye to the children, Shirone looked back at Lumina. Even in his cheerful mood, her face was as dark as ever.
Shirone also had a vague idea of Lumina's love affair. But what? Things between a man and a woman weren't something you could think about with your head.
"Thank you, Lumina, for letting me eat so much delicious food. Will you do it again?"
Lumina smiled then. She had a transcendent smile. She knew that what she wanted most here was to be greedy.
"Of course! So come often. If you pretend not to know you're a wizard, I'll hit you."
"It's okay. I'll definitely come back."
As he walked down the hill in the logging and burning village, Shirone suddenly looked back. And he shouted to the kids who were still in their place.
"Take care and stay healthy!"
When Shirone turned and left, Lumina lowered her head helplessly. What made her sadder than Shirone leaving was the reality that she couldn't even like him anymore.
"Hey, are you okay?"
Althor put his hand on Lumina's shoulder
and asked. Lumina couldn't hold back and shed tears. Althor worried for nothing. He had guessed her love for Shirone from a young age, but he didn't know it was so serious.
"Wow, if you feel so sad, at least try to talk. What should I do to hit him and bring him back?"
"No, it's okay. Shirone hasn't left."
Lumina suddenly wiped her tears alternately with both hands and raised her head. Suddenly, a bright smile appeared on her lips.
"Shirone, he's heading toward his dream."
Lumina prayed to the god of mountains and forests.
May there be a warm light on his path.
As he returned to the academy, Shirone thought about the question raised by the logging and burning village.
How far can I really go?
Being a guest of the Ogent family accomplished nothing by studying with the Magic Academy students.
Learning from failures as a lesson and working hard without hesitation didn't apply to him as a commoner.
You have to exploit your talent relentlessly. We must develop without doubting for a moment.
He goes to the academy with the support of the Ogent family and studies advanced magic science at the expense of his parents.
Is this really the right path?
If he misses even one opportunity, will he be able to accept it and live in the world as before?
After arriving at the academy, Shirone headed to the research club. His mind was disturbed, and it was difficult to enter the inn.
"Are the kids having fun? I shouldn't have missed much..."
By now, Eruki and Neid would be happily gambling at a casino in another world. Please, I hope they haven't left the house full of documents unattended.
Passing through Eastas's labyrinth and entering the storage room where the study group was located, Shirone stopped in front of the iron door. A human voice filtered through the crack in the door.
"What?"
When he opened the door, Eruki and Neid were sitting on the sofa and arguing. Eruki was more excited than ever because of how heated the discussion was.
"Fool! A perpetual energy motor is absolutely impossible!"
"Why are you so tense front and back? I'm not talking about infinite energy, it's the second type of perpetual motor!"
"That violates the law of entropy!"
"Then, what's this?! What is this that I made?!"
Neid pointed to the spring-loaded car on the table. Indeed, it was an ambiguous object to call a car.
"Eh? Hello..."
Neid turned to Shirone. He cut him off, picked up the spring-loaded car, and waved it in front of his eyes.
"Shirone! Look and tell me why I did this! Once you've wound the main spring like this, put it on the ground...!"
The car moved in a circular motion. Still, the main spring that had been wound up had not unwound.
Eruki raised his furious eye and pointed.
"Hey, Shirone! Don't be fooled. That's a total scam!"
"What scam? You're tired of waiting for it to stop, so you're doing it with me right now."
"Fool! Anyone can make anything that can be proven in 1-2 hours! The object you created is simply highly inefficient! Even when I wound the spring, it was disgustingly tight!"
"What is it? It's a miniature, so it has limits. If you make it bigger, you can increase the performance 100 times."
"How big are you going to make it? Up to the sky? It would be much more efficient to feed the horse and lead it!"
"All you have to do is show the possibilities! Technology must progress towards lightness over time."
"Technology that is not backed by theory will eventually collapse!"
"What do you know about theory? If you make it and use it, it's done!"
Both mathematicians and engineers made sense.
Shirone blinked and listened to them, then looked at the car.
Seeing them get excited about the useless spring-loaded car, he felt as if all the worries from a while ago had suddenly vanished.
'Ah... I understand!'
One day, that spring-loaded car will also be born with a decent name through the research of numerous scholars. And someone will create new knowledge through it again.
How arrogant to think that only I can do something. I haven't come this far because I'm great.
If my father hadn't bought me the book, if I hadn't entered the Ogent family, if I hadn't had the teleportation test, if I hadn't met Eruki and Neid...
The current Shirone wouldn't exist.
A series of coincidences that happened with a very low probability. All those events led Shirone to this place.
'Thank you. Thank you for allowing me to stay here.'
Shirone, who had been absorbed in his own emotions for a while, quickly regained his smile and asked his friends.
"By the way, what happened to the casino?"
Neid, who was arguing with Eruki, turned his head with a annoyed expression.
"How is it? Everything was stolen and returned in a day. If only we had made the final bet, we could have hit the jackpot."
"That's why I said it would be spades. A 57 percent chance."
"Fun! I heard you and lost a lot! 57% is crap! How is that different from a game of chance?"