Chapter 57

My name was listed on the overall rankings.

It seems many people are enjoying reading it, and that’s the best part.

I feel like, is it really okay to receive such high praise?

I hope you will continue to support me in the future.

Good morning from room 1-0601. It’s a lecture for the Eimei School. I’m Herman. It’s amazing, isn’t it? Room 0601 is a huge room that spans an entire floor. There are pillars, but the front is too far away. Well, with about 2,000 people crammed in, I guess that’s to be expected. If you want to finish 60 classes in one month, you need a classroom this size. Well, it can’t be helped. On average, 500 people need to attend each class. By the way, I didn’t expect 2,000 people to be crammed in. It’s really something. The lecture is being conducted using a magical amplification device. But, the teacher’s way of speaking blew everything away.

"Alright, let’s start, Zamass. Place the materials for the basic potion on your desk, Zamass."

Yes, it’s Mr. Zamass. He blew away the excitement of the magical amplification device. I burst out laughing. Even if you can’t see his face, it’s hard to keep a straight face when someone says "Zamass" right in your ear.

"Hmm, what a joke, Zamass! You only have this much of the Life Herb, Zamass. It’s not enough, Zamass. There should be countless potion bottles on your desk, Zamass."

That’s right. The reason the room is so cramped is because of the countless potion bottles piled on the desks. I want to say, "Are you joking?" Do we really have to use all of these? I’ve gathered enough materials, but I only placed about 100 bottles to avoid standing out. I can just take them out from the "Extended Space" if I want to make more.

"Not enough, Zamass. This won’t do for a class, Zamass. I’ll add more, so keep making potions, Zamass."

Mr. Zamass strides down the center, ignoring the 20 meters to either side, and uses the "Extended Space" to pile up Life Herbs. Despite his odd way of speaking, he’s doing something incredibly advanced. He’s a teacher, after all... Zamass though.

"Not enough, Zamass. Not enough, Zamass." He keeps saying that as he moves forward. He’s moving so fast, it’s like he’s running. And there’s a mountain of Life Herbs in front of me. Well, I guess I have no choice. I toss 10 into the cauldron, pour in magic power with my wand, and bottle it. It takes about 20 seconds. When you get used to it, you can do it in 8 seconds while adding bottles. I think everyone is doing this. Are there a lot of teachers like Mr. Zamass at the Eimei School? I don’t want to be here.

Toss, pour, bottle. Toss, pour, bottle. Toss, pour, bottle. Toss, pour, bottle. The pace goes from one every 20 seconds to one every 15 seconds, then 10 seconds, and finally 6 seconds. As the process optimizes, the rate at which the Life Herbs are used up increases. But, "Not enough, Zamass. Not enough, Zamass." The teacher keeps going back and forth, so the Life Herbs never run out. Are we really going to do this for 3 hours? How many Life Herbs have they stockpiled for this day? If you see the Eimei School’s fields, you’ll understand. Skeletons are harvesting Life Herbs. It’s a perpetual motion machine. Life Herbs grow on their own, and the skeletons keep moving. There’s no way the Life Herbs won’t increase. How many are produced in a day? If they do this every year, they don’t even need to list Life Herbs as required materials. 99% of them are the teacher’s.

After 3 hours, there are over 1,000 basic potions on my desk. I can’t even tell whose are whose anymore. And from the back, the teacher says, "Time, Zamass. I’ll collect the potions, Zamass," and walks over at a running speed. I can’t lift my arms anymore. I’m tired, but... I can just drink a potion. Drinking a potion I made in class is probably okay. The pain in my arms disappeared, but the fatigue and emptiness are overwhelming. I remember Judy saying she had to make a ton of potions. She wasn’t exaggerating. I put the cauldron back in the "Extended Space" and left the classroom. The sun is blinding. I’ve only been in class for 3 hours. I don’t want to go to this lecture again. I don’t want to.

One hour after the mentally exhausting Eimei School lecture, I’m at the Zoumei School lecture. This time, it’s a class on creating magic stones. ...This is also room 0601, and it’s also a large room. However, we need to set up alchemy arrays, so there’s more space. There are about 1,000 people here. Can we have a Zamass here too? ...Let’s not call the potion-making hell "Zamass." I might run into him again. There are no required materials this time. There are two aisles, so it’s half the skill level of the previous technique. They’ve thought this through. Oh, it’s time. ...This time, it’s a human wave. A lot of people are coming in.

"Everyone, we will start the class on creating magic stones from materials. Set up your alchemy arrays and wait. The instructors will distribute the materials to each array."

The teacher is actually running. He’s dressed for running. ...It’s kind of reassuring. And a mountain of grass is dumped on my alchemy array. It’s from the grass cutters. I knew that. They probably buy it cheap from the Alchemy Guild for class use.

"Everyone, use your alchemy arrays to create magic stones. Imagine spreading the magic power throughout and solidifying it. If you don’t understand, ask the assistants nearby."

I’ve done this with magic mushrooms before, but this time it’s with a lot of materials. I spread the magic power throughout the materials. ...When I was learning magic control with Melanie, I felt like I was losing a lot of magic power, but this time it’s different. It’s almost like I’m using less magic power than a single magic mushroom. I swirl it around and compress it, and finally, I press it, and three magic stones are created. It’s strange to create three when it feels like I’m only making one. ...Creating magic stones is one of the few things you can do in multiples. If I use two magic mushrooms, I can create two magic stones. It requires a lot of magic power, though.

"...That was fast. Alright, next material."

The magic stones are collected, and more materials are dumped. I turn them into magic stones, and more materials are dumped. This time, the magic stones aren’t even collected. He’s planning to collect them all at once later. ...Lazy. I cursed him in my heart and spent the next 3 hours making magic stones. ...I feel so empty. It’s like pounding mochi without getting to eat any. I think I’ll stop working part-time at the Alchemy Guild. It’s just an extension of this work. ...The only difference is that the material dumpers are guild employees.

Is it already evening... No, it’s only 10:00 PM. ...It’s already 10:00 PM. It was a long day, but it also felt like it flew by. It was a day filled with overwhelming emptiness, to the point where the sunlight felt nostalgic. ...I think I’ll skip embroidery tonight. I’ll eat dinner and try my best again tomorrow. I drank a basic potion and went back to my room.

Whether you found it interesting or not, I’d appreciate any feedback.

If you could provide some comments, it would help me improve my writing.

...Probably.