Ishtal. Freya’s office.After failing the negotiation with me—or rather, storming out midway—Freya returned to her office with a dark expression.“President, how did the meeting go?”“……”Even at her aide’s question, Freya kept her mouth tightly shut.Head lowered, she spoke in a small voice that barely crept out.“I’m sorry.”At that, the aides frantically waved their hands.“No, not at all. We never expected much from Loen in the first place, did we? And there’s no need for you to apologize to us, President…”“No. This time it’s clearly my fault.”Thunk—Freya, unable to hold her head up any longer, slammed her forehead against the desk.The aides quickly tried to stop her, but she didn’t lift her head from the desk.'…What on earth have I done.'Freya sank into deep self-reproach.She had confidently refused Loen’s proposal and stormed out of the Student Council Office, but in truth she had no viable countermeasure to speak of.Of course, even without Loen’s help, the Sports Festival itself could still proceed.The Ishtal Drill Field was a massive stage in itself.It could easily accommodate tens of thousands of people, and while the school’s tents and chairs were insufficient, some portion could be supplemented with existing facilities.It might be impossible to provide shaded seats for every student, but at least the student council, the leadership, and the faculty could be covered.Ordinary students would likely be satisfied enough if they were simply given mats to sit on.However… the image Freya had envisioned—where all students could comfortably enjoy the events—was now gone.To provide shade and chairs for the high-born while telling everyone else to sit on the rough dirt field under the blazing sun—That was not the kind of disparity Freya wanted. At least not while she was the Student Council President.But—'Even so, I couldn’t just accept Loen’s proposal as it was.'Freya did have her reasons for rejecting him.Even if Loen had changed lately, she couldn’t tell what kind of agenda required voting rights, or how that agenda might affect the students.She couldn’t risk putting them in danger just to hold a smooth Sports Festival.And it was hard to believe that Loen could really procure those supplies that neither she nor Jeremy’s connections had been able to obtain.Unless he had predicted this very situation and prepared the materials in advance.To demand her voting rights in exchange for such uncertain compensation was unreasonable—it had been a natural decision to refuse.“Whew.”Freya let out a deep sigh and finished her thoughts.Seeing her unusually deflated, her aides approached to comfort her.“Lady Freya, we did our best despite the poor conditions. Please, hold your head high.”“Don’t be too disheartened. This was an unavoidable situation.”“Exactly. Who could’ve predicted that all the suppliers would suddenly go bankrupt one after another?”At those words, Freya reacted.“No. Someone did.”Loen had warned me in advance that those companies were in danger.And I ignored it. I have no excuse.“Huh?”“It’s nothing. Forget it.”“And besides, wasn’t it Senior Jeremy who found and signed contracts with those suppliers…”“That’s enough. At this point, asking who’s responsible won’t change anything.”She knew they meant to comfort her, but that arrow must not turn toward Senior Jeremy.Strictly speaking, Jeremy was the greatest victim of the current situation.The companies he contracted had not only engaged in stock manipulation but also gone bankrupt and fled. The financial loss must be huge.Freya sighed deeply, then slowly lifted the forehead she had pressed against the desk.“…Feeling sorry won’t change anything.”Resolving herself, Freya rubbed her reddened forehead and gave an order.“Diona, Theon. Go to Senior Jeremy and find out once more if it’s possible to secure additional supplies.”“Yes, ma’am.”“Dorothy, you’ll come with me to the harbor. We’ll try contacting the merchant guilds again.”“Yes, President!”Even if her own mistake and unavoidable circumstances had brought her into this predicament, she couldn’t just give up.Heaven helps those who help themselves.With one aide in tow, she set out for Stella Harbor once more.***“I’ll be taking my leave now.”“Yes, I’m sorry we couldn’t be of more help, Miss Diona, Mister Theon. We’ll keep searching for suppliers, so if we find a delivery route, we’ll contact you immediately.”“Yes, thank you for your effort.”Click.After Freya’s aides left, silence fell over Jeremy’s office.“……”Wiping the smile from his face, Jeremy slowly clenched his fist.Crack—The fountain pen in his hand shattered easily, ink bursting out and spreading black across the desk.But even that wasn’t enough to express all of his fury.Shrrip—Jeremy tore the letter in his hand to pieces and threw it into the trash.It was an invoice listing the losses from this week’s stock manipulation disaster.Half of the merchant guilds that had been his financial lifelines had gone bankrupt overnight.Accounting for the cleanup costs, opportunity losses, and future value, this single incident had burned away money on the trillion-krone scale.Even for Jeremy, legitimate heir of the Knight Kingdom and its next successor, the loss was bone-deep.And the thought that this bloodletting had become nourishment for Loen and his ilk made his insides boil like fire.'Loen… that bastard.'Biting his lip, Jeremy recalled Loen’s irritating face—and their long, bitter history.Their first encounter—Jeremy was not even eight years old then.A winter at the Gunhild family’s winter castle.From the very start, he had disliked him.'An instinctive aversion.'With Jeremy’s [Insight] trait, he had immediately seen it—Loen was dangerous.Feeble, insignificant, and yet the aura radiating from him was anything but that of an ordinary boy.At times he acted innocently, like a child; other times, he would gaze down at the world with eyes that seemed to know everything.Jeremy could still remember those eerie eyes staring at him.Others might not have noticed, but Jeremy had known instinctively.'Those eyes… were the eyes of one who reigns above all.'And that wasn’t all. Watching Freya interact so naturally with him had stirred an inexplicable disgust.When he learned that Loen was Freya’s fiancé, it had been sheer despair.But fortunately, when Jeremy turned ten, something changed.Loen’s behavior suddenly shifted.For some reason, he began engaging in strange and wicked acts, his reputation plummeting until he earned the title of “the continent’s worst scoundrel.”Their engagement soon became nominal, and Freya grew disillusioned—eventually disgusted with him.Of course, Jeremy himself had played a role in that process.Loen’s misdeeds were real, but Jeremy’s shadows had helped spread those rumors far and wide.He had always believed himself to have lived righteously—but he admitted that where Loen was concerned, his judgment had been clouded.No, if anything, his conviction that Loen must be eliminated only grew stronger with time.Something beyond personal emotion.Jeremy understood instinctively.He and that man could never coexist. Loen’s death would benefit not only himself—but this entire world.And for Freya’s sake as well.Finishing that thought, Jeremy seized the papers on his desk and crushed them into balls.“…So you’re saying this was all part of his plan?”Information relayed through his shadows.Bellatea’s merchant ship was about to dock at Stella Harbor—Loaded to the brim with supplies for the Sports Festival.Which meant Loen had used Jeremy’s own plan against him—destroying his guilds, seizing their assets, and even predicting the supply shortage to prepare extra stock in advance.Jeremy felt both dread and revulsion.The same instinctive fear he had once felt as a child.“……”Hands trembling, whether from fear or anger, Jeremy took a slow breath and calmed himself.According to Freya’s aide, the negotiation between her and Loen had broken down.Fortunately, Freya had refused his help.But Loen wouldn’t give up easily. He’d surely find some other way to interfere with the festival for profit.To see the Sports Festival succeed under Loen’s hand—he’d rather…Creak—Jeremy rose from his chair and opened the safe at the corner of his office.Inside, in a glass jar, was a certain object he had obtained.As he gazed at the black aura swirling inside the jar, his eyes gleamed coldly.***The Union had grown noticeably busier.Perhaps because of the upcoming Sports Festival, the entire Union seemed a little more excited.Banners announcing the festival hung everywhere, and Ishtal, the hosting academy, was decorated with flags and flowers.Students across the academies were preparing new uniforms and selecting teams for each event.Midterms were approaching, but it felt as though everyone wanted to enjoy one last bit of freedom before then.Amid that atmosphere, I visited the Alchemy Club to prepare for the festival.Thanks to my investment, the club had relocated from its collapsing old warehouse to the fifth floor of Eredor’s Diligence Hall.As usual, there were no other members present, so I could speak comfortably with Trishi.After a few formal greetings, I got to the point.“So, how about this? Why not use the opportunity to make a prototype?”At my suggestion—using the Sports Festival as a springboard—Trishi frowned.“Weren’t we supposed to make that so-called ‘Love Potion’ drink for the academy festival?”“Yes, but it’s hard to get the ingredients right now. I’m saying we should at least establish the production facilities in advance for when the time comes.”“…Production facilities? Just how much are you planning to sell?”“Don’t you want money too?”When I hit the mark, Trishi flinched before shouting.“O-of course I do! But it’s a means to an end, not the goal itself!”“So you’re saying you don’t need money?”“That’s not what I said.”“Then good. Get ready to make some.”I moved my pen across the paper, outlining the plan ahead.“For now, we’ll skip the coca leaf, caffeine, and magic reagent components of the Love Potion formula, and make a simple version with only sweet syrup and carbonation.”“So basically just a normal soft drink.”“Exactly.”“But even the syrup aside, carbonated water alone would cost a fortune, wouldn’t it? We don’t have the magical skill to produce it efficiently, and it’s hard to «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» store or transport.”I nodded slowly at her concern.In the Mir-Elerin era, carbonated water was a high-class luxury beverage served only in fine restaurants.Mages manually infused carbon dioxide into the liquid one bubble at a time, and each glass bottle underwent a special sealing process.Breakage during transport or loss of fizz made costs skyrocket.Sterilized, solder-sealed cans didn’t yet exist in Mir-Elerin.“Excellent point. And that’s exactly what this project is about.”“Do you have some kind of method?”I smiled at Trishi, whose eyes sparkled in curiosity.“Of course. Because I have the blueprints for a carbonated water generator.”

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