Chapter 201: Young Zex is Competent 

The Astoria Empire.
Capital City — Wiel.

Imperial Academy, Pharmacology Professor’s Research Room.

Estelle, Ryu, and Zex sat facing one another across the room.

“““………………”””

A strangely heavy silence lingered in the air.

Or rather—

The problem was written plainly across Ryu’s face.

At last, Zex slowly opened his mouth.

“Ugh… it stinks…”

(What in the world is this smell…?! Is this some kind of poisonous gas weapon?!)

In truth, he had merely been desperately enduring the odor the entire time.

The instant that single comment escaped his lips, the tense atmosphere completely collapsed.

Ryu spoke through a stuffed nose.

“Zex. This is the world of pharmacology. Endure it.”

“Y-Yes, sir…! Uweeegh…”

“You’re holding your breath and breathing through your mouth, aren’t you?” Estelle narrowed her eyes. “And yet you dare lecture students so proudly.”

“Zex,” Ryu continued solemnly, “do you know what this smell is?”

“N-No…”

“This,” Ryu declared, “is the proper scent of fermented medicinal herbs. We’re used to it, so it doesn’t bother us, but novice pharmacists work in environments like this every single day creating medicine for ordinary people like you. You should be grateful.”

“Thank you very much, novice pharmacists.”

“Good. Excellent.”

“That was my line from earlier,” Estelle muttered flatly. “You stole it and repeated it as if it were your own wisdom. Do you possess no pride whatsoever?”

“Nope.”

“…How are you even functioning as a viscount?”

Eventually, even they admitted defeat and decided to open the windows.

“Today’s windy,” Ryu said casually. “Shouldn’t be a problem.”

The moment they split up and opened the windows—

SCREAMS erupted from outside.

Normally, when there was no wind, the foul gas drifted harmlessly upward into the sky.

But on windy days, it instead spread directly across the school grounds.

“…I feel like I can hear students screaming outside,” Estelle muttered.

“Your imagination,” Ryu replied immediately. “The school café probably announced a new menu item. That’s definitely cheers of excitement.”

Zex silently scribbled into his notebook.

(As expected of Ryu-sama…! Such terrifyingly advanced airheadedness. I must learn this technique myself.)

“Do not imitate this garbage-tier skill,” Estelle snapped. “Idiocy is contagious.”

Once the smell had somewhat dissipated, the three finally sat down properly again.

“First off,” Ryu began, “your father has helped me quite a bit. Make sure you thank him for me later.”

“Yes!! I shall absolutely include your words in my monthly correspondence!!”

And with that, they moved directly to the main topic.

“This time, I want as many different types of ore as possible. But the only mountain region around here capable of providing that variety is the Mondo duchy. While I was wondering how to deal with that problem… I happened to run into you, the third son of House Mondo.”

“I see. So that was the reason.”

“Exactly. So I’d like mining authorization, plus a detailed map showing which mountains contain which ores.”

“That’s perfectly fine,” Zex replied immediately. “But… are you in a hurry?”

“No. Not particularly.”

“In that case,” Zex said enthusiastically, “wouldn’t it be faster if I simply arranged for samples of every available ore from the mountain region to be delivered directly? They should arrive at the Arden second estate within a month.”

He began listing them from memory.

“Gold, silver, copper, iron… mithril, orichalcum, adamantite, hihiirokane… Ah, and apparently a subterranean vein containing meteoric iron was discovered recently for the first time in three hundred years. I’ll throw a proper tantrum until they let me acquire some of that too.”

Meteoric iron—

An alloy formed from ancient fallen meteors, composed of iron, nickel, and extraterrestrial metals.

By the time Zex mentioned orichalcum, both Ryu and Estelle had already fallen silent.

But when he casually added meteoric iron to the list—

Even they could only stare in speechless admiration.

“Zex.”

“Yes?”

“Do people often tell you you’re absurdly competent?”

“N-Not at all!! My older brothers are far more impressive than someone like me!!”

“And humble too.” Ryu nodded approvingly. “Good. I like you.”

“…You like me?”

“Yeah.”

“!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

That day—

Zex ascended to heaven.

His body went limp as he slid bonelessly from the chair onto the floor.

“Oii~ are you still alive~?” Estelle poked his cheek repeatedly, but there was no response.

“He’s just as weird as ever,” Ryu muttered.

“You are the last person qualified to say that.”

Several minutes later, Zex’s soul finally returned to the mortal realm, allowing the conversation to continue.

“To tell the truth,” Zex admitted quietly, “Father instructed me to strengthen ties with House Arden as much as possible. So this request is actually a blessing for us. Honestly… this alone still isn’t enough repayment.”

“Not enough?” Ryu frowned slightly. “I still owe House Mondo for sending their grand fleet as reinforcements.”

“That was for the Empire’s benefit,” Zex answered calmly. “Besides, thanks to the diplomatic relations established with Hinomaru, Mondo trade is now experiencing its greatest prosperity in history. If anything, House Mondo is the one indebted to you.”

“The Empire’s benefit, huh…” Ryu chuckled softly. “That’s exactly right. As expected of House Mondo. You truly understand these things.”

He leaned back slightly.

“Though if we’re discussing debts and benefits, House Mondo has spent centuries fighting on the Eastern Front for the Empire, hasn’t it?”

At that, Zex answered simply:

“Because of the Mondo Oath.”

Both Ryu and Estelle tilted their heads.

““The oath…?””

“This is something Father taught me when I was young,” Zex explained.

“Several centuries ago, House Mondo was struck by unprecedented abnormal weather. Everything was buried beneath snow, and a catastrophic famine followed. But noble families from across the Empire came together to support us, allowing the duchy to survive.”

His voice grew quieter.

“At that time, the Duke of Mondo and the people of the territory swore a single oath.”

Zex straightened unconsciously as he spoke the words.

“‘No matter what enemy comes, we shall protect the Empire with our lives.’”

His eyes held absolute conviction.

“That is why House Mondo fights. My father. Myself. The next generation after us as well… Until peace finally comes to the Empire, we will continue fighting with our lives on the line.”

““………………”””

Even Ryu fell silent for a moment.

Then, quietly—

“House Mondo…” he murmured. “That’s good. Really good. I genuinely like that family.”

“Hahaha.” Zex smiled modestly. “I’m honored to hear you say that.”

A glance at the clock revealed that lecture time was rapidly approaching.

“Then I should return to class soon,” Zex said as he stood. “As for the ores, leave everything to me. I’ll begin making arrangements immediately after classes today!!”

He turned toward the hallway—

But Ryu stopped him with a single word.

“Wait, Zex.”

“Yes?”

Ryu’s gaze sharpened slightly.

“If anything ever happens to House Mondo in the future, contact me immediately. Before anyone else.”

“For me, there could be no greater words than those. Thank you very much.”

But despite his gratitude—

Zex still didn’t fully understand.

Even now, he continued believing Ryu’s strength was merely that of an exceptional magic lecturer.

Surely, he thought, Ryu intended to help through strategy and intellect.

If danger ever came, Zex would likely hesitate out of concern for Ryu’s safety.

It was obvious from the look in his eyes.

“Don’t worry,” Ryu said quietly. “When situations like that arise—”

The atmosphere shifted.

“──I’m strong.”

“…!!”

Zex involuntarily held his breath.

The sheer pressure in those words alone was overwhelming.

And yet—

Ryu had not released even a fragment of killing intent.

This was still the academy grounds.

No aura. No mana. No intimidation technique.

Only the instinctive fear of a dragon stirring deep within Zex’s soul.

(Hou… To think House Mondo could make Ryu say something like that.)

Anyone who truly knew Ryu would desperately crave those words more than anything else in the world.

And now—

After centuries of endless battle—

House Mondo had finally earned them.