Ch.3I Need a Pillow (2)

# Today, as always, Ruide was sleeping.

Unlike usual, he was resting his head on a goose feather pillow that Amelia had brought him instead of a book.

It was a famous brand product used by wealthy nobles in the empire.

“Hmm.”

Ruide tossed and turned.

Every position felt uncomfortable.

“Ah…”

He sighed in frustration.

Feeling it was hopeless, he sat up and glared at the pillow.

When he used books as pillows, he knew they were uncomfortable to begin with, so he just accepted it.

But now that he recalled modern pillows, this subtle discomfort was infuriatingly irritating.

“This is so frustrating I could go crazy.”

-Rustle.

Just then, he heard someone pushing through the forest.

‘…Is it sister Ame?’

But it wasn’t.

The person who emerged from the forest was a white-haired professor with distinctive white beard and hair.

The professor’s eyes widened in surprise when he saw Ruide.

“Ho ho, so the fairy living at Dellin’s Lake was you all along.”

Though Ruide had never seen this person before, he already had a good idea who it was.

“Professor Penel?”

“Oh, you know my name even though you don’t attend my classes? But you’re half right and half wrong. My name is Richard.”

Richard Penel.

An alchemy professor who, according to Ruide’s information, was known as “an eccentric oddball.”

“Have you come to take me away?”

“While I’ve always been curious about the fairy living at Dellin’s Lake, that’s not why I’m here today.”

Richard walked over and stood beside Ruide. He pointed somewhere.

“Have you heard of the Flower of Adrane?”

“No.”

“It’s a rare flower that blooms in areas with high mana concentration in the atmosphere. A very precious alchemical ingredient.”

A blue frozen flower was precariously blooming near the lake.

‘So that ice flower is called Adrane.’

It was a flower Ruide often saw. There were many of these strange-shaped flowers growing near the bottom of the lake, but he hadn’t realized they were rare.

“They don’t seem that rare—there are quite a lot of them.”

“That’s because Dellin’s Lake has the highest mana concentration in the world. Even the noble Adrane has no choice but to thrive here.”

Richard put his hands behind his back and went down to the flowers. Though Ruide worried he might fall, the professor safely picked a few flowers.

He opened his palm to show Ruide the Flowers of Adrane.

“But one shouldn’t take too many at once. The limit is three per day. These flowers only grow well when a certain number remain.”

“Ah, I see.”

Richard spoke with a gentle curve to his lips.

“Would you watch over them? You don’t seem to have anything else to do anyway.”

“…Sure.”

Ruide, afraid of antagonizing him and potentially being forced to attend classes, readily agreed.

“Then I’ll see you later. Preferably in the lecture hall.”

Though Ruide had absolutely no intention of doing so, as someone born in a country of eastern courtesy, he bowed his head politely.

As he bowed, he saw the pillow in his line of sight.

‘He’s a professor after all. He might know something.’

Thinking it would be better than pondering alone, he called out to Richard who was about to pass by.

“Professor Penel.”

“What is it, Christopher?”

Richard deliberately used Ruide’s middle name. It was a response to being called Penel. But Ruide didn’t particularly mind.

“What’s the best material for a pillow? Besides goose feathers.”

Richard blinked at the unexpected question, but it was a student’s inquiry. Stroking his chin, he answered sincerely.

“Hmm… Duck feathers are also commonly used for pillows, but I don’t think that’s the answer you’re looking for. If it were that simple, you wouldn’t need to ask an alchemy professor.”

He was exactly right.

Ruide nodded quickly.

“I want a special material for a pillow that adapts to the shape of my head.”

Richard thought for a moment, then raised a finger.

“If you want feathers that change according to physical pressure, there are two options: ‘Lifne’s feathers’ or ‘Phoenix feathers.’ But since Lifne’s habitat is 100 miles away, Phoenix feathers would be more practical.”

“Phoenix feathers?”

“Using the feathers of such a magnificent spiritual beast for a pillow seems preposterous… but since they can change form freely, making a pillow with them would feel like resting on a cloud.”

Ruide’s eyes sparkled.

“Where is it?”

“Not far from here. At the highest point of this academy.”

Richard pointed his finger toward the sky. Though obscured by clouds, the faint outline of the Skyscraper was visible.

“The Phoenix’s nest is at the very top.”

“Thank you.”

“…Are you going right now?”

“Yes.”

Ruide was desperate for a pillow. There was no reason to hesitate.

Richard was dumbfounded by Ruide’s casual attitude about retrieving the feather of the Phoenix, one of the world’s legendary spiritual beasts, as if he were just going to the local market.

“You do know the Phoenix is one of the Four Great Spiritual Beasts, right?”

“Does that matter?”

“My word, what a thing to say. If someone approaches the nest without permission, their entire body will burst into flames. Do you want to risk your young life?”

“Then what should I do?”

“Knock on the door politely. Aren’t we civilized beings?”

Ruide scratched his head as if annoyed.

“You mean walk all the way up there?”

“Of course. Do you think obtaining a Phoenix feather is easy?”

Richard looked toward the Skyscraper with a smirk.

“Every year, countless people climb the Skyscraper to obtain Phoenix feathers. Most of them fail. The Phoenix won’t even open the door without proper qualifications. That’s why there’s a crystal made from wizards’ tears in front of that door.”

“Just one strand would be enough to achieve what you want. The Phoenix, with its eternal vitality, can infinitely replicate even a single feather.”

“But the original feather must be nearby. That’s why Phoenix feathers can’t be found on the market. No foolish wizard in this world would give away something so precious that its value is beyond measure…”

As Richard was enthusiastically lecturing, he suddenly realized that Ruide was nowhere to be seen.

There was a faint scent of mana. Following the trace, he saw Ruide flying toward the Skyscraper in the distance.

“Ho ho.”

Richard laughed good-naturedly and narrowed his eyes.

“Christopher.”

Ruide was already just a black dot, moving at incredible speed.

“You’ve earned a demerit.”

The reason: mocking a professor.

**

“That old man. He talks way too much.”

Ruide muttered after glancing back while flying.

He had struggled to stay awake.

The professor talked so much it felt like a downpour in his ears.

He was definitely a professor worth visiting if one had trouble falling asleep.

Anyway, Ruide arrived at the Skyscraper using flight magic and landed on his feet.

The height was dizzying. The clouds were visible right beside him, which said it all.

“The nest is…”

There was no need to search. Right in front of him, he made eye contact with the Phoenix.

The most striking feature was its long, beautiful feathers, radiating red and golden light. Its beak and talons were golden, and its eyes sparkled like jewels.

‘So this is the Phoenix.’

The feeling of encountering a legendary spiritual beast in person was…

‘My pillow.’

Those feathers looked so, so soft.

**

The Phoenix stared at the uninvited visitor who had arrived in broad daylight.

“Caw, caw, caaaaw!”

-Who are you to enter without knocking?

The Phoenix flapped its wings. It spread them wide threateningly. The feathers, which looked like burning flames, intimidated Ruide.

Ruide walked toward the Phoenix with drowsy eyes.

“Caaaawk!”

-Human. How foolish. Do you not value your safety?

“Can I just take one feather?”

The Phoenix flapped its wings in anger.

“Caw, caw! Cawk caw!”

-I have no feathers to give to an insolent human! Get out of my lair immediately!

Of course, Ruide couldn’t understand and tried to pluck a feather.

The Phoenix backed away and flapped its wings forcefully.

Ruide shielded his eyes with his right arm against the tremendous wind.

“Caw!”

-I warn you. If you approach recklessly any further, you’ll suffer from cold hands and feet for three years.

The Phoenix was the familiar* of the headmaster.

*A supernatural being that protects and assists wizards. Often recognized as a wizard’s life companion.

Naturally, it was aware that Ruide was an academy student, so it wouldn’t attack in a way that would endanger his life.

“Ah, you’re being really stingy.”

Ruide waved his hand in the air as if annoyed.

Formidable mana moved and gathered around Ruide’s body.

“Ca-caw!”

The startled Phoenix hurriedly flapped its wings to block the spell.

A wind filled with intense cold rushed toward Ruide.

It was cold enough to freeze an ordinary human solid where they stood.

The Phoenix immediately regretted its action. Surprised by the massive amount of mana, it had attacked too strongly.

But contrary to the Phoenix’s concern.

“Oh.”

Ruide was fine.

More than fine—

“This is incredibly refreshing.”

He was actually enjoying the Phoenix’s icy wind!

“Natural resources really are different. I should visit in summer.”

To use as air conditioning.

Thinking this, Ruide waved his hand.

The cold wind disappeared in an instant.

“Now it’s my turn, right?”

Though the attack hadn’t affected him at all, he wasn’t so oblivious as to not realize that the refreshing breeze had been an attack.

Ruide extended his arm, intending to subdue the Phoenix.

He planned to cast a powerful sleep spell to put it to sleep temporarily.

“Caw… cawk!”

-This amount of mana… Human. You’re serious.

The Phoenix glared at Ruide with hardened eyes.

As one of the Four Great Spiritual Beasts, the Phoenix had its pride after living for tens of thousands of years.

Inevitably, the Phoenix made a decision.

“…Kek.”

-Take this and please calm down. I’m sorry.

“?”

The Phoenix plucked one of its own feathers and offered it to Ruide.

Its head was bowed respectfully. Its fluffy fire-feathered hand looked somewhat pitiful.

Indeed.

The Phoenix, having lived for tens of thousands of years.

It was a wise spiritual beast that knew some situations in this world couldn’t be resolved with pride alone.