Chapter 204: Autumn Harvest Festival (1)
iAboIt was late November.IGtA
CVAEAt last, the Autumn Harvest Festival began.30OdG
GvUX29It was the biggest festival of the year that went on from Monday till Sunday.1XbQxc
Ggcv3lmThe grand opening of the festival began with the entrance of visitors from the city and those from nearby villages.u0axuVR
Q9srOnly during this time of the year would the tightly sealed gates of the Academy crack open. Both the “Festival”, which was between Academies, and the Harvest Festival were opportunities to meet the young heroes of the generation and citizens were eager to meet them anytime.RjXPz
gIO2qH“Ren, is the delivery here yet?”ytGkfi
WAsMMnc“Not yet, Boss. What about charcoal?”TnuoO
YGRk“It’s all done. Ron! Open up the store!”soyQtY0
g1B“Got it, Bro!”GUkd5
vKjaFrom early morning, Korin and the wolf siblings were busy preparing the store. The Food Sales Contest went on for 6 days out of the 7 days of the Festival, and because of the sheer number of applicants, each store was only given 2 days to sell.xwmZ4Vr
1eTEvery store would then be assessed at the end of the 6-day period, with the top three being named based on their revenue and profit margin.Tmh
GSr“But are you sure we can win? There are so many contestants. Are you sure we have a chance to win?”NiH0tfJ
0NfTp“Don’t worry about that.”NUa8
it6GKorin answered Ren’s doubt while picking up a piece of charcoal with a pair of tongs.fvMRG
bB39R“What does it mean to have a lot of contestants? It means it’s a red ocean, and all the competitors are pretty much the same.”x7lTLf
cPE“That’s what I mean. So there’s no reason why people would come to your specific store…”fJ6s9F9
LQSNO“Huhuhuhu… Just prepare the food. I will show you what magic really is.”kz9ZZqh
QNpXcFor some reason, Korin seemed extremely confident. Although Ren and Ron were helping out as assistants, they still found it difficult to understand his confidence.396s
vUFwKorin’s store was located at the center of the main streets of the Academy. It wasn’t a bad location but there were tens of competitors nearby.sVTb
8x0VHow was he planning to differentiate himself from the competitors and make sales?meUiwC
uKVbv6kThat was when a group of people approached from a distance while pushing a carriage across. Korin gave them a big wave.hEe
WcvBu“We’re here. Brother Bae!”J38w2u
45hpdu“Aigo, Sir Korin! I hope you’ve been well!”TGgL
Wo9Y7xAThe eastern man hurried himself after finding Korin. He was Mr. Brite Bae, who ran a business in Merkarva City.7vK
aBIwOan“What do you mean, ‘Sir’? Just call me brother. We’re brothers, aren’t we?”NYR2
CD52“Haha, if I may. Brother Korin. This is what you’ve ordered.”y9iBi
t7Ry“Ohh~. Let me take a look.”zRm2TN
0nRInside the carriage led by Brite’s workers, was a large fish tank with a bunch of eels.L3E
GUc7“Haha. Look at these folks! Look at them thrash around! You got us some high-quality eels, I can see that!”9zM3
9g4“They were hard to find so we barely filled up the number you requested. There are a little more than 300 in total. Are you sure you can sell all of it?”yhEOM1J
kg7Eg“I’m sure I can.”Mrljmm
vaYRen looked at the price tag. Half an eel with chives salad was going for 2 silver coins each. It certainly wasn’t a cheap price.Tevn
j2miAre these really going to sell well at a festival full of kids?iHJ
PVUEhMSurprisingly, her doubts were answered before long.qnDi29Y
fZ7“Korin-dongsaeng! I’m here.”nktYXRv
OL1Hfu“Ohh! So this is the thing that’s good for men?”xw6fym
zBM“Dongsaeng~ I’m here~. Oh wow. Look at how minimalistic the store is. It looks so cute~.”mgS73d
t6xnQTPeople were gathering one by one.Hstb
4BBNFThe numbers grew in the blink of an eye.PYalt
h10Xg“…Haa?”7WPFvmG
H0PUh0“Who are… these people?”hyrv
M384“Guys. Do you know what’s most important in an Academy festival?”gbeQPv
1xUfrPt“Is it… price?”21n8d
SOlolte“No. Everyone’s willing to spend a little bit more during a festival. In a festival like this, customers are bound to visit the people they know first.”EliTnxm
JScSJgKorin Lork.wr2U
KJD55fHe was the most famous person in the Kingdom right now.gpBFHc
ILL1kOn top of that, he was the guardian who dealt with all the annoying missions on the Mission Board to meet the needs of the citizens of the city.yQsO
56VM4zcAdded on top of that were the rumors he spread while teaching the people how to exercise for the past three weeks. All of them combined were enough to increase his revenue in a flash sale like this.KdWwh
Q1CUEgV“…It tastes pretty normal though.”puXkw74
xwx“Huhahaha! No one goes around expecting the best food at a festival! What’s important is that they get to meet me!”dJFqi
zpX“Uhmm… I feel bad for the other people now.”5xDI
fq3bThe people visiting their store weren’t limited to the hikers or the middle-aged men and women who worked out at the mountain.GP7
qtkACD“Uncle Knight~. Hellooo!”WC5
lSccKI“Ms. Anna. It’s been a while! Is Navi still making trouble for you?”3ROxr
xT1J“Yo. I did hear you were doing Sales. Is this it? Can I get one of these chicken breast salads?”pOVV
kUvnKOa“Yo, Mielle. You’re selling cakes too, right? I’ll definitely drop by.”aNO
pNH8xug“Grilled eels? It smells… nice.”hGj
x880“Professor Deina. You can get them for half-price, so stop having salad all day and grab some.”HsPmqEi
0hzq3“I, is that okay?”UKdCRBw
R1n………Ch3l
TR01xX……yKTeeG
YJL…9ULUOOm
FAO5The sales were going very well.Ivld5
nrRXKcWay too well, even.qIvS
pb5“Wahh…”jR9eGD
5eGLC3There was no shortage of customers, and the lunch boxes of pre-prepared eels were already sold out. Therefore, they had to move their hands rapidly to grill the new eels.fcS
vwM0x“We… really sold all of it.”zH17SKk
aW251“How was that – it went pretty well, right?”B1xtAm
esGLCU“Absolutely… I think we will easily take 1st place.”S3o
0IyGiRen was shocked. Only now did she realize that his confidence hadn’t been groundless.9jY
mCytpn“Nothing new anyway,” he murmured.PISiIrP
uY7thLG“Have you done something similar before?”6IU
vsHE74“In the past, yeah.”95VbEee
WDo3qDKorin remembered selling a similar amount in the past. To be exact, he was helping a female senior sell grilled skewers when his friends came by until they were all sold out.StTgL
3kyysGLThey weren’t even that good.rcSrXIf
mS5tJHe only agreed to do it because it would serve to be a good memory but he never expected it to go as well as it did.pm9lzF
qHCMJ“By the way, these eels were selling very well… Is there a reason why?”JeWx
Kaahyt“I spread rumors that eels were good for men.”eEXs
VKYL“Nn? Only for men?” Ren asked back.YQlz2G
5SjTShe wasn’t able to see through the connotation behind his sentence. The environment she grew up in never educated her on such aspects.vDY2ynP
jvbz1“Don’t worry about it.”bqz3
qTNs3Tj“Is it true?”IFlcXm
yvx5Gh“Actually, it’s not.”ePE
6LaG“Ehkk?”Lrd
D3mBShe looked appalled, seemingly asking, “You lied?” with her face.Aodc3Hl
FAO“Actually, chives are good for men but not the eels.”TGY
spxLZT“Uhh… then why don’t you just sell the chives? Instead of the eels?”R6g
O4Dj“Chives are too cheap, and there’s no margin in that. Besides, who would eat chive salad at a festival? Eels work better in both ways.”LtlmJ
UovYfb“Haa…”mKLE2
Y57TlPWRen was both dumbfounded and awed by his sales strategy. She wondered that maybe he might be a good salesperson, if not for his personality.VoUk
TIVSuIn any case, his store ended up a success with an overwhelming revenue.KXXYe
xce9xPz***UvG3A
vkTAlthough the city was enveloped in a festival mood, there were still people who maintained their usual routine.mM8q
geBAlicia was one of such people – at least she was this year. She normally wouldn’t be like that, but… she was recently being pushed by a sense of urgency.LYSVx
V3mI3HGThe Round of 32 she had this morning was easy. She was against someone who barely reached the top 32 by surviving the qualifiers.w1ydn
t04o8However, the Round of 16 after that wasn’t so easy. She achieved a narrow victory against Dorron Warsky of the Flying Swords.bldm
fcFYPi“Ayayah…”5xaaNB
tps4gIn one of the private training rooms, Alicia unwrapped the bandages around her shoulder when her wounds started to ache after swinging the sword a few times.Zuq2RY
XEcNext up would be…7EUU597
fQ2YWThe quarter-finals and the semi-finals… And if she were to reach the grand final, it was highly likely that she would face off against the Saintess.yv3DsGq
urr08Saintess Estelle.xORj
4cl7Based on the overwhelming might she displayed at the qualifiers, it was evident that she would be a tough opponent to defeat.IXq
KNOuIt’ll be hard I suppose.UpQ
KqnCaUnbeatable – that was the objective conclusion she reached, and Alicia could tell simply based on her eyes that Estelle was on the level of her sister. She was a superhuman that should have the title “Unique” attached to their name. They were humans who had exceeded the realms of common sense.58J3Xgw
NmDrkwkShe would probably lose; perhaps it might even be a humiliating defeat. Alicia might be flung off the arena by her punch that half-destroyed the ground last time…FXhxC
Spa4AIvBut Mr. Korin asked me for a favor. I was the one he relied on.FOyBXif
h5nDThat was why she had to be the one to win. She wanted to do it herself and didn’t want that opportunity to be taken away by anyone else.opx
YokcTBesides, it was obvious that the only reason Estelle entered the Tournament was to snatch that away from her.9b2KP
2bF“No… Never. I can’t have that happen.”HGBGr
C7QAlicia wasn’t a greedy person by nature, but it wasn’t to the point where she would back down before a love rival.nPNaE
Gm8gks***z7kFad
4YeA 3rd year student of Merkarva Academy, Isabelle Kirmin, was not very fond of the event called the Auction Contest.1tMFqd
FjPThe Auction Contest was basically like a chance to go on a meal date with an idol.N1uKCkX
GIrlrHIf the student that put themselves on auction got bought, they would become a knight for that person for that day and spend the whole day with them.nLg
Be8WIt was a contest that aimed to fulfill the chivalrous admiration people had of knights, and it was indeed quite popular.nYwXcl
WLcqJqBHowever, most of the people who attended the event were in one way innocent but also immoral… and most of them had implicit intentions.PGn
BOLBjV“Senior Buck is on auction today!”8q5iPim
yPBML“Kyaaah~! I’m going to bid on him!”X42H
HWzXq“You remember Jane from 1st year? She’s in the auction.”E2CxH
uA3HH“Wow, for real? Can we have a date with her if we have the highest bid?”egU
uXLW7h“Alrighty… where’s my wallet…”2LoD
WLwThe voices echoing around her were from people who were ambitiously aiming for someone.l1SJnnF
f9CW8G0If the person they wanted to date was on auction, they would spend a lot of money to bid on them.ZYH6
FsaPeople tend to become irrational with anything related to love and relationships. Isabelle’s friend was a prime example of that.c6dRl4z
zIpuuTM『Isabelle! Please!』DySMy3
yB8x9She still couldn’t understand her best friend, Marie, even though she was here to fulfill her wish.zqw7
Ho9aJY『You want me to bid on Korin in the Auction Contest? Why don’t you go yourself?』eA8v
jUV『Korin told me not to come! But I can’t have other girls snatching him away from me! Isabelle! You have to bid on him for me!』9kiGR
UC2bN『Seriously? Do you really have to?』4N9SiB
Mcbt『We’re… friends, right?』DNoP2L
OHx“Haa…”Aw40
sFL1eWCDue to being warned heavily by Korin, who was cautious about Marie wasting her money, Isabelle had to do it for her as a friend.YE1SF
5WFw“Can’t be helped.”jojU
OlYQQShe had already gotten a lot of money from Marie and, therefore, didn’t see the potential chance of any problems popping up.CIna
1JWDMost of them are students who barely earn four to five gold coins. They probably can’t spend more than ten gold coins.k3wx
0ANOf course, there were some diligent people like Korin Lork, who earned a consistent income by consistently completing missions from the Mission Board or those from a wealthy household.2MK2nLj
qSM0sHowever, the former wouldn’t involve themselves in a contest like this, and Marie was the epitome of the latter group so Isabelle didn’t see any chance of failure.FTjOkeI
3TR1gep‘Even when considering Korin’s fame and popularity, 50 gold coins should be the highest.’XNXpd9
XHY“This way please, sir. We have the VIP seat ready.”uyy
Kgx“Kuhum…!”BlWeF
aPi“When was that freaking guy coming out?”0NKuZlD
LCvX5H“Pretty sure he’s last.”s0bJBRA
rIldnClShe thought it was just a small auction for those with a pink brain, but there were more people present than she expected.i6C
rZvPIWThe Auction Contest, happening at the small auditorium, was soon filled with people as the auction kicked off.jCHo
ieKNCLt– Hello, our dear guests.ylB4v
1qqnOA 4th year student welcomed the guests as the host of the auction.Q2kU3rh
1bQVu– We would like to thank everyone for visiting our Merkarva Academy today—2qpDw
jQ0CvZJPeople applauded when he was done with his greeting. It might be because he wasn’t a professional host, but there wasn’t much flattery in his words and the show moved on fast.QBb
wDjOne by one, people were auctioned off until one of them reached the highest price to date.KxHdgY
5bgMCi– With that, 3rd-year Ms. Junior Luna from the Knight Department has been auctioned at 13 gold coins!sEWj5
xl5DTgSIsabelle, who had been watching the auction unfold, frowned at the price. Why would anyone spend so much money for a single day?ZIMox
OMMWvcIf not for the fact that the money spent in the auction would be used to save the poor, there would have been many talks about the Auction Contest already.Qrxg
h2wi“Ms. Senior L, Luna! C, could you please spend the day with me today?”J1R4
4lp“What, Junior Jun? That was a bit unexpected.”OSh0
KW9QhhThe person who bid on the 3rd year senior was a young freshman junior.kvI
vTwkYZjHoh, so was this how some people started their relationships? Isabelle felt like she could somewhat understand why Marie was so cautious about it.KmIKVjm
FL17A– Next up on the auction is the rising celebrity! The one who stopped an entire army by himself! A hero who saved thousands of people! The pride of our Academy, who would definitely become a Unique-Grade knight in the future! Korin Lork-hoobae-nim!!!nwP
k3IhThe 4th grade host sounded extremely energetic and proud to announce him. Following the announcement was Korin Lork walking onto the stage.tHgoU
0VHf– The pride of our Knight Department! A genius who was already fighting on equal grounds with the famous Sword Master, Lunia Arden! Champion of the Sun, Korin Lork! What were his other titles again?BeXY7s
g22uFPu– Booooooooo…!UKSb7
eG1t– A player playing with the hearts of women!QGmG
ZnUru4u– Die! Go dieeeee…!1Wxf6
HaIv7OEThe envious boys reacted with boos and cries of disapproval but the girls had a contrasting opinion.Ljpe
OuLJU– Korin’s here too? Should I bid on him?PwMfvQ
iQLw– The competition’s going to be rough though.e0w6E2
C4T– A player, huh…? Not wrong.3HxQ9s
nTc– But he’s not doing that with evil intentions. Korin’s nice. I can vouch for that.YNl4
LLK– That’s true too.sRw
il5Unlike the guys who were flooding out with negativity, the girls were showing a fairly positive reception towards him.ByLSc
sNgHC1cThey were true though – Korin was indeed a nice person.D0CEDKh
zyh6YHe didn’t turn away from people who were in trouble; he was considerate and most importantly, he didn’t have any ulterior motives.P9Zp1IG
mEybrHe approached everyone with pure goodwill and a great amount of friendliness, and anyone was bound to be positively receptive towards him. Although the boys were booing like that, none of them really hated him from the bottom of their hearts either.9ayW
Vety– Do you want to bid on him together? There’s no rule saying we can’t share the date, right?mr85
tDG1Sfd– That won’t be bad. Korin’s fun to just speak to.exvE
ZbLns– It’s for a good cause anyway, so let’s grab a few more people and bid together.JxS8E
mafYThis will be rough.cwhafq
qO9ju7qKorin was a celebrity. Luna, the well-renowned beauty among 3rd year students, was 13 gold coins, so it was obvious that the price tag would skyrocket for Korin.NmptEE
uCWgcQSomeone from the audience decided to group up after seeing through exactly that.L4C
wLV1Even though Isabelle had received a blank cheque from Marie, that didn’t mean she wanted to see her friend waste an astronomical amount of money to bid for a guy.Mhp6
STEkeT– Well then! Let’s start off by introducing Mr. Junior Korin Lork!JDKd7m
AE1G2Vk– Mr. Junior Korin entered the Academy as a Grade 5 but proved his overwhelming talent by reaching Grade 1 in the mere span of a single semester. His fight against Sword Master Lunia back then demonstrated to everyone what it meant by heaven above heavens.qYO
bqi1riy– Last year, during the legendary breakout of the Unique Grade demonic beast, King of Iron Mountain, he played a crucial role in defeating it.hCzawNu
lvacPwS– And led our Academy to victory during the group phase of the Festival against the Purple Hawk Academy! The legends of Immortan Lork still go around today.i2PP
5iNTyFH– This year, he caught countless heinous criminals and became a Grade 1 Justice of the Peace! And we can’t miss out on the famous Dana Shee incident either.Mp4k5K8
1mens– To unravel the knots of misunderstanding tied due to a small group of extremist werewolves, he stood in front of an army of 30,000 soldiers all by himself. He truly was the Champion of the Sun!nzZWX
sBP8eof– The recordings of his victory against the strongest knights and mages of contemporary times and the final legendary duel that changed the map are still being sold at a high premium. The highest official price was 5 white gold coins if I recall correctly!I21zGx
OAUbJThe unending records of his legends made the audience drop their chins in dismay. Few of them were unaware of all of that, but even they were reminded of how otherworldly this person was as they listened to the host list all of them down.ao3f
UYLA knight in their 2nd year at the Academy was writing down epic tales that were not only legendary but also worthy of leading an entire generation.YpjJ
4XuEveryone present instinctively realized the same truth.oogbOQp
2LfLike how it was the Spear Saint’s generation 80 years ago,7SDwg
4LMAnd just like how the Sword Emperor led his generation 40 years ago,s1r3YKe
sJ6odNThis was the start of Korin Lork’s generation.pVAL
CT5Ph– Well then, Mr. Junior Korin. What is your hobby?1Crgr8
ey7EBHy– Don’t bother with the ‘Mr. Junior’ title. Just call me brother. Brother Rondon.DyiPkd
Nmqc9– Huhahahah! Shall I then? Can you talk about your hobbies?L1AiD7
wS5F3– Hobbies, huh? I have a few of them but… I’m not allowed to say ‘training’, am I?ifQrOm
Nljp01– Hahaha. Please don’t hold yourself back.jrH
UpKTp– Recently, I’ve gotten into cooking. As you all know already, there is no shortage of potatoes in our Academy, right? I’m learning how to cook potato dishes so that we can consume some of those potatoes.VUXNSO
V3R34qz– Hahaha! That’s right. The potato warehouses we have in our Academy are definitely quite famous. If only Ms. Junior Marie was here to join us today!5s5x50A
qnHJ0The host went on with a free-style and unplanned conversation, but Korin answered all of them with ease and even included his own speeches.xVj
Ao5ND5f– You know Senior Elza from the 3rd year, right? She’s making clothes and she said she’ll display them on the second floor of Liberty Hall B. You should definitely try that out.yQ5
TPLZX– One of my peers, Mielle, is selling desserts starting tomorrow, and I recommend them a lot. They’re amazing.rrCMOH
5V8HbTY– My friend Lark will be hosting a showcase of lifestyle grimoires. Anyone that plans on going to the Magic Exhibition should keep that in mind.he4UAS
D9yInstead of appealing about himself, he introduced his friends and gave recommendations in an interesting manner. He was already famous for being nice, but it must be that consideration he showed every time that he was so popular among his peers.kQV
wd6Nj– Let’s start the auction then. What is the price that you are wishing for, Brother Korin?tlzKDKT
pwDm5n– Can I be honest?V4FXA7
DmA2bR– Go ahead!4C5
MF0n– I’m the last in line, and the highest bid so far was Ms. Senior Luna in the 3rd-year. Nothing more, nothing less. 14 gold coins. That much would be enough.ZDj
dHtX1q– Hoh~. I can see your confidence seeping through!AKCUgg3
76Tu6That was when Isabelle noticed Korin glancing off into a specific part of the audience when saying the estimated price. Turning there, she found a young girl with her golden hair shining brightly in the dark auditorium.kDqQM
ACw6AddHoh~. Trying to bid for himself, huh?rayO
dnr5It seemed that he had a plan for it already. He was attending more than just a few contests, and it seemed that he really was keen on acquiring five golden ribbons.Hvd2
wRW4– Then let us begin with the Auction! Since we are talking about Brother Korin, the lowest bid will begin from 3 gold coins!XmWw
RLqm0u“3.1 gold!”xx1dO
qUbBb“3.4!”ZE2C
Z7cdH2qIt started off slow with silver coins but before long, the number rapidly started to increase in gold coins.FZM
WxP“Five coins!”6jIjRe
9bjH5ja“Six coins!”NvWat
KdPMw65“Nine coins!”HHva0
rrKThe price reached 14 gold coins in the blink of an eye. As expected, the union of girls was what was driving the price up at a rapid rate.wqjOz
bzn7“Nn?”OxHL4UH
iL7iThat was when Isabelle realized that there was a group of boys that was trying to bid on Korin.kosM
vtY9The group consisted of Jaeger… and other boys in Korin’s grade. Isabelle was dumbfounded when she spotted the gazes of jealousy in their eyes.qYem
jDE– We ain’t gonna sit around watching Korin, that bastard, have a meal with more girls!fMwl
u5gQVJ– Huhehehe…! You’ll be stuck with us, Korin!O3u
0Dx– We won’t let you steal more girls!Fs6A
YH5FAhh… what kind of filthy jealousy is this?Lqh
xYu6jW8Isabelle couldn’t believe the level of jealousy they must have had to come up with such a strategy.jobUI
jdsIt’s not like girls would take interest in you even if you do that…sVN
QSSpNShe wanted to lose to them, but Isabelle was also cheering for the successful romance of her friend, so she raised her hand.lY1F7U
nVfk“Twenty coins.”g2Ot2G
uEYxDo– Ohh! Twenty gold coins. We have reached twenty!3t8
HU2XIsabelle’s sudden bid invited the eyes of a few curious people, and one of them was Ren, the golden-haired wolf girl.IjF
84yZujB– Hmm?dCcr
Oy9When Korin found Isabelle, he sighed after looking into her eyes.0GwbEzF
1qqJI know what you mean, she thought to herself. But she had no other choice either.TW7
w5Y7“Twenty-one gold coins!”K8l
I6Br“Twenty-two!”nAaS1
QeuThe union of boys and girls shot their hands up to not lose. Some of the audience thought it was being too heated up but theoretically speaking, the 2nd place was 13 gold coins and double that wasn’t even that much considering Korin’s value.46hTars
3Mv“Fifty gold coins,” Isabelle said to fling all the flies away to the shock of those listening.4Ka
dL3UwiWasting fifty gold coins for a single date?9hmMg
alTrVWJThat price tag was enough to astonish even Korin Lork himself.N6JUQbW
Qc1– Wait, Senior Isabelle. I know what’s happening but… isn’t this too much?MFm
Jm4aGevJust accept your fate and go on a date with Marie.WIEcMa
KIsQThere weren’t any more contestants now that the price reached fifty gold coins. It was an unimaginable price for the Auction Contest but was far from reaching Marie’s monthly allowance. In fact, it was less than her day’s worth of allowance.2NtZHG
OdGVtEAIt felt like the winner was about to be decided but—eZSMxAa
cDwIt was then.O2v
7KXb“One white gold coin.”yRpu
jn8ev0Another crazy person joined the fray.lBx1BgJ
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