Ch.109109 – Senior’s Secret Breeding Ground

# 109 – Senior’s Secret Breeding Ground

After the lecture where I was the only one who enjoyed the food, the principal’s reputation took another step closer to rock bottom today.

“The next class will be a practical session. You’ll be cooking using the recipe we learned today, so everyone practice hard!”

“Principal!! Aren’t Red Fang Mushrooms too dangerous for us to catch?!”

“Who told you to cook Giant King Crab already? There’s nothing more pointless than teaching what you already know, so I’ve accelerated the curriculum to match your level!”

While that’s technically correct, thanks to him, the advanced class students had to catch and cook Red Fang Mushrooms, which might not be as strong as Giant King Crabs but are far more dangerous to handle.

But that was the hardship other students faced. I had my own troubles.

*Hissss-*

“Ugh, don’t look at me like that!”

The silent accusatory glare from the Mother-class Red Fang Mushroom and the pangs of conscience stabbing at my heart!

“I did try, you know? I wanted to become a goodwill ambassador and find a way to coexist without harming Red Fang Mushrooms, but what can I do when the principal is like that?”

The Mother-class Red Fang Mushroom gave me a look that said it would never forgive humans who used its kind as ingredients, especially me.

[You ate a Mother-class Red Fang Mushroom’s mana spore sac but failed to keep your promise to become a goodwill ambassador and establish peace between both species.]

[Speech Experience +5]

[Deception Experience +3]

[Bad Kid Experience +1]

But am I really the bad one here?

They eat people outside the academy too, so couldn’t we call it even?

While I was having these somewhat naughty thoughts, Zhang approached and poked my waist repeatedly.

“How does it taste?”

“Like an unbelievably neat meat dish with perfectly cut pieces and well-mixed sauce.”

“Ooh?”

“…is what you need to imagine while eating to make it bearable.”

“Pfft. What’s that supposed to be?”

“It’s decent enough to eat!”

“Fine. I should go catch one myself.”

“By yourself? Will you be okay?”

“You seem to forget that I’m a proper assassin.”

Zhang gave a chilling smile.

The eerie aura reflected in her eyes, which had seemed so young and innocent before, was unmistakably that of a killer.

“It hurts my pride when you underestimate me too much.”

“Um… sorry!”

“As long as you understand.”

Zhang walked away primly, disappearing into the shadows.

“Oknodie. No more lectures today, right?”

“Already making dinner? I’m still full.”

“I am full from cooking too, but I need help.”

“What kind of help?”

“Hunting Red Fang Mushrooms without hurting them.”

If it had been someone else’s request, I might have ignored it out of laziness, but I couldn’t ignore Isabelle’s request after she’d helped me with so many meals.

I nodded willingly.

“How can I help you?”

“I can manage the cooking somehow. Giselle has cooking tools that prevent spore dispersal.”

“Ah, if you’re worried about usage permission, don’t be. I have plenty of points saved up from the Flag Incident.”

How many points must she have to get permission for something like that?

Well, considering there are junior class students who spend points on lighting equipment, it’s not that surprising.

“Is finding them the problem, or catching them?”

“Aren’t those the same thing?”

“Red Fang Mushrooms are problematic both to find and to catch.”

“Can’t you help with both?”

“If I do everything myself, you three won’t grow.”

Son Ocheon stated proudly.

“How hard can finding them be? They’re supposedly the second most common monster on campus. Just teach us how to catch them, little mouse.”

This won’t be easy…

One hour after his boasting.

I knew this would happen.

Son Ocheon had been searching diligently but found nothing.

Finally, completely soaked by rain and utterly exhausted, he said:

“Did those crazy crabs eat all the mushrooms? How is it possible not to find even one?”

“Heheh. You don’t have talent for hunting!”

“Shut up. Where I come from, we never had such heavy downpours.”

Isabelle and Giselle gave up too.

“I just can’t find any.”

“Finding them is quite a task. Would you help us?”

“Of course. Follow me.”

As I strode ahead leading the way, the three of them gave me looks of disbelief.

“What? You knew where they were all along?”

“Of course.”

“Then why didn’t you tell us?”

“So you could gain tracking experience?”

After saying that, my heart went *thump*.

Me, considering the growth of newbies.

How sweet of me!

“This little mouse, was he always this annoying?”

Son Ocheon trembled with anger.

“Actually, finding them isn’t difficult once you know the trick. The principal mentioned it too, right? That second-year seniors were illegally breeding them for their mana spore sacs.”

“I see. The little lady has pointed out something crucial. The second-years needed to find a space for their secret breeding operation.”

Giselle belatedly realized and sighed.

“So we’re going to investigate?”

“No. I have a pretty good idea where it might be.”

“Did your family tell you that too?”

Isabelle looked at me with concern while trying to act nonchalant.

Both Isabelle and the others have such strange habits.

Why do they keep pitying others?

To me, these people who’ve become so weak trying to survive in the academy are the ones who deserve pity.

“Just… happened to know.”

Saying that, we arrived at the deserted art gallery in the Arts Building, set up for art-related lectures.

Walking among the pillars in the gallery full of covered paintings, vague memories of my past visits to this place resurfaced.

Yes, bloodstains.

They used to hide near pillars with bloodstains.

*Creak*

*Creeeak*

With natural movements, I rotated the ornament on the pillar 270 degrees clockwise, 180 degrees counterclockwise, and then 270 degrees clockwise again.

And then? Ta-da!

As the stairs leading to the basement under the pillar opened with a sliding sound, I felt piercing gazes on my back.

“A professional explorer right here.”

At Isabelle’s dry laugh, Giselle and Son Ocheon clearly showed their agreement.

“After I graduate from the academy, I’m never even making eye contact with assassins again.”

Even Giselle, a ticket broker, expressed her subtle fear.

This is really nothing special.

Everyone’s overreacting!

* *

When we went down to the basement, we could hear the faint pleading sounds of Red Fang Mushrooms packed tightly into a breeding room barely one pyeong in size.

“Kieee…”

“Kiing kiing…”

Isabelle frowned at the unexpected horrific sight.

“This is the first time in my life I’ve felt sorry for monsters.”

“I agree. They’ve created a highly efficient yet inhumane breeding ground where the mushrooms just eat what they’re given and produce mana spore sacs for exploitation.”

“They’re just monsters, aren’t they? Don’t sympathize too much. If released, they’d do the same to people.”

Son Ocheon, who had lived in the wild, didn’t show much sympathy for the monsters’ plight.

“What is all this?”

“It’s an illegal Red Fang Mushroom breeding ground that second-year seniors created without student council permission!”

How do you even know that?

Isabelle felt a bit creeped out, but knowing she’d only get unsatisfying answers if she asked, she just opened and closed her mouth before deciding to stay quiet.

“Think about it. The seniors want to get mana spore sacs from Red Fang Mushrooms. So they need to provide lots of nutrients until the sacs develop, right?”

The three reluctantly agreed.

“They can’t let angry mushrooms attack the breeders, they need countermeasures in case of attacks, and they need to prevent other second-years from raiding the breeding ground!”

“I guess so…?”

“This place meets all those conditions! When you pull the lever above the partition, a blade comes down and stabs the mushroom in the head!”

“Ugh.”

“The spores are completely purified inside the partition when you press the button next to it, and you can extract the body packaged in plastic! Though the facility is crude, the senior must be skilled at body disposal!”

Isabelle was becoming increasingly frightened not just by Oknodie’s explanation but by the space itself.

“Are you sure this belongs to second-year seniors? It doesn’t look like a potential serial killer’s murder workshop?”

“Um… even to me, this place seems a bit… rare even in the underworld.”

“Little mouse. Do we really need to mess with mushrooms from a facility like this? I feel like if we make a wrong move, we’ll wake up inside one of those partitions tomorrow morning.”

Oknodie tilted his head.

“If you look closely, it’s all made with techniques taught at the academy. The partitions were made after taking the ‘Basics and Understanding of Carpentry’ elective, and the body disposal tools were created after taking the ‘Hunter’s Traps’ mandatory course in the Adventure Department’s first-year second semester!”

“So any second-year can do this?”

“Not exactly. Judging by the discovery of a secret location and the creation of a unique locking mechanism, they must have earned contribution points in the ‘Dark Cult’ club to create an empty space with the ‘Secret Altar’ spell and made the lock with the ‘Dial Keeping’ spell.”

“Dark Cult??”

“Well, officially the cult has only five members registered with the student council, which is the minimum required, but they exploit the rule that ‘apprentices’ don’t need to be registered, so there are probably several hidden cult members!”

“Hidden identities???”

The situation was feeling increasingly dangerous.

Isabelle thought this was definitely not right.

“Let’s leave. It would be better to catch them somewhere else.”

“I really don’t think this place is appropriate either.”

“Little mouse. Did you really have to bring us here?”

The three expressed their discontent, but Oknodie puffed his cheeks in frustration.

“Come on. How can you dislike such a convenient place? We just need to lower the pulley, press the button, and carry out the vacuum-sealed bodies.”

“The aftermath is scary.”

“Other places would have ‘guardian monsters’ or ‘traps’ protecting the mana spore sacs, like the monster storage I discovered before. Are you sure you want that?”

Why on earth are second-year seniors preparing such things at the academy!!

Isabelle was starting to fear not just the senior who created this place but the entire second-year class.

The second-year seniors she’d met in the Eye Training lecture—Bigstone, Rizna, and Moss—might have been annoying for only caring about their own scores, but they were actually really nice people.

“When you put it that way, it might be better to just do it here. Let’s get this over with quickly and leave.”

Isabelle boldly lowered the pulley and pressed the button.

A poor Red Fang Mushroom died with a choking sound and was ejected through the outlet, sealed in plastic.

Giselle and Son Ocheon, with faces that suggested they weren’t sure if this was right, each shouldered their share of Red Fang Mushrooms.

“Son Ocheon. What are you doing up front? Let’s get out of here.”

“What are you talking about, Isabelle? I’m behind you.”

“…?”

Isabelle raised her head while carrying the corpse.

A figure with a build large enough to be mistaken for Son Ocheon, but wearing a blatantly suspicious black robe that Son Ocheon would never wear.

Beyond the wide robe were hands with skin cracked like drought-stricken rice fields, a face as cold and pale as a snake’s, and eerie eyes devoid of emotion.

“Oh dear.”

Giselle, who saw him from behind Isabelle, sighed.

“The emblem on his neck. That’s a third-year’s insignia.”

Of all things, they had tampered with a third-year’s secret breeding ground and were caught red-handed just as they were about to escape.