The Academy’s Ankle Reaper

Knock knock.

“Who is it…?”

When I knocked on the door of the laboratory, Professor Praha peeked his head out.

He had a big pair of glasses on and looked as haggard as yesterday, clearly having not slept well.

With his pale skin like a fine china dish and dark circles under his eyes, he gave off a strange vibe that added to the elvish charm we usually associate with healthy elves.

Elves need less sleep than humans, but how little sleep does he get to look like that?

Does he even sleep at all?

“I came to check in.”

“Wah?! Sponsor??”

The moment Professor Praha realized it was his money source, he nearly toppled backward in surprise.

I had come to see if there had been any progress since I last checked.

“Have you made any progress?”

“Since I have to deal with the legendary dragon, I’m searching through every other legend as well.”

The laboratory of Professor Praha was a chaotic mess filled not with chemicals but with piles of data everywhere.

From research papers to thick books, it was a relief to confirm that he was going through everything without discrimination.

Thank goodness he’s not someone who just slouches off if he’s getting paid.

While scanning through the materials, I picked up a paper that caught my eye.

Looking at the page, it seemed like something he had just read.

“Essence of Werewolf…?”

“Yes, yes! I thought it had potential since it’s a story that comes up in various places, so I set it aside.”

Werewolves are monsters that exist in this world.

They typically live in human form but transform into gigantic bipedal wolves only on nights when the full moon shines. Werewolves often clash with beastmen, who wander around in everyday life with wolf ears and tails.

Unlike beastmen, who are recognized by all intelligent species as having autonomy, werewolves are considered monsters for a reason…

They multiply through infection rather than reproduction, and on full moon nights, they all lose their sanity and become monstrous.

As a real monster, werewolves alone cannot remain as mere legends.

The legends of werewolves that Professor Praha speaks of are an entirely different kind of story.

“Just like how you absorbed the essence of a dragon, there’s a specific legend about the essence of a werewolf.

Stories have circulated for ages that this legend was based on real events.”

At this point, it can’t just be dismissed as a plain legend.

There are countless essences coursing through my body, and the essence of dragons is something that only existed in tales.

It’s not obvious since I’m a Master, but if an Expert in growth drank that, they would have experienced explosive growth.

What I really wanted wasn’t the essence of the dragon but rather the Elixir of Growth.

As a monster, werewolves are indeed troublesome high-tier monsters, but compared to the existence of something legendary like dragons, they seem pretty pathetic.

However, the legend surrounding the essence of a werewolf is based not on the monster but on mythological beings.

-Long ago, the Wolf God bestowed a precious treasure to his temple.

In the temple, a young priest cherished it, but foolish men blinded by the rumor that the treasure granted immortality and power burned down the temple and killed the priest to seize the treasure.

At that moment, the ground began to tremble, and the bodies of the foolish invaders transformed into wolves, losing their sanity and scattering. They became the original werewolves that exist today.

“It’s a legend that serves as a lesson for the foolish men who coveted the deity’s treasure… But it ends there.”

“In fact, there was a discovery involving ruins presumed to be the temple of the Wolf God that caught the attention of academia, revealing some tales handed down in the area.”

“There are follow-up stories?”

“Yes… The foolish men were cursed by the god and became beasts, but the priest who dedicated himself to protecting the treasure was said to have the divine treasure embedded in him and lived happily ever after.”

“Immortality? How ridiculous.”

“Right?”

“If he lived forever, he should still be around, but is he hiding in some wilderness? …Nevertheless, there have been numerous attempts to gain the power of werewolves because of that legend.”

“You knew about that, huh?”

“It’s famous, right?”

This legend is a common folktale, so the attempts by humans to gain the mysterious power of werewolves have happened several times.

People have tried consuming werewolf meat, drinking their blood, or even attaching parts of their bodies.

“There were those who tried to mix blood… Most of those attempts failed, though.”

Some even sought to have children with werewolves.

Thinking about having a child that looks human and gains werewolf traits when it transforms is just plain terrifying.

This was also familiar knowledge to me.

“But using the essence of werewolves might lead to explosive growth!”

Yes, that’s it. I once stumbled upon this while desperately searching for methods of growth before.

However, most attempts were aimed at passing on werewolf traits to their descendants rather than acquiring werewolf powers themselves, and even those were hardly successful.

Usually, they ended up just becoming average werewolves or something totally unrelated.

“All discovered werewolves share a common trait: they are all tall and hefty males… There’s even a record of a skinny, short guy who turned into a werewolf and grew remarkably.”

Of course, the idea of actually becoming some monster like a werewolf is a complete reversal, but if there’s a way to absorb the advantages…

As long as I can obtain the essence!

Professor Praha’s glasses sparkled.

“So… since all werewolves are tall, if I could just obtain their essence, I could grow taller… that’s the idea?”

“Yes! According to legend, that ‘essence’ isn’t merely the essence of a monster; it’s a divine treasure. So, it should definitely surpass the essence of a dragon!”

“Ha… Really….”

Searching for an essence of a werewolf that may or may not exist just to become a werewolf, or to possibly only absorb the advantages of werewolves…

None of the werewolves that had become one have ever been short, so should I give it a try?

This is truly a reckless and dangerous gamble.

“Did I… go too far…?”

“What a brilliant idea! Let’s try it right away.”

What I avoided before because it contained content trying desperately to obtain the powers of werewolves rather than the essence of werewolves now sounded different if it meant obtaining the divine essence.

If I could accept only the advantages of being a werewolf while remaining human, it was definitely worth pursuing.

“So how can we obtain the essence of a werewolf?”

“We’ll have to start looking into that now.”

“Damn it.”

So we really have to start from scratch.

——————————————————

As soon as I left the laboratory, I headed to the Swordsmanship Research Club for a tour, as suggested by my cousin Hera.

The Swordsmanship Research Club, being a significant organization in the academy, was quite large.

Just like how the Newspaper Club uses an entire small building for their printing works, the Swordsmanship Research Club also occupied a whole building near the academy.

“Those bastards! Anyone who gives Clover Kingdom even a single point will pay dearly!!”

““““Yes, Club President!!!!””””

Hera shouted at the club members who were diligently swinging their swords.

It seems they were focused on honing their skills even more, in order not to let even a single point slip by.

With so many of them gathered, it was only natural that their skill levels would vary dramatically.

Some were complete beginners, but many were improving as they progressed.

It seemed they had positions based on skill level.

The sound of capes fluttering, tailored to a length that wouldn’t hinder their swordplay, could be heard from all directions.

“I’ve always been curious about this, but why are they wearing those capes?”

“It’s the cape worn by the first club president. It makes it easy to distinguish from other clubs, so we adopted it as a uniform.”

Hera looked down from the second-floor balcony, watching the members practice.

Her chestnut brown hair was tied back neatly, and she wore the same cape but sported a much more comfortable outfit than the last time, probably because it was a training session.

It looked somewhat like a martial arts uniform.

“The Swordsmanship Research Club prioritizes skill above all else. I’ve heard about how my younger sibling has had some run-ins with the other members…

In the end, they picked a fight and my sibling won, right? That’s what matters.

It’s just a duel with swords where a winner and loser emerged; no one should complain about that. If they do, they’re asking for trouble with me.”

“Haha, while I could maybe help out in an emergency, actually joining is a bit much.”

“Come train with us sometimes, little sibling.”

Hera didn’t seem to want to give up on her goal of recruiting me and kept subtly advising me to join the club.

I chuckled and politely declined.

Still, I’d always be willing to help out in an emergency.

Hera, who had been explaining the club from the second floor, moved indoors to continue our conversation.

Upon reaching the counseling room, Hera suddenly opened with a shocking revelation.

“And… I contacted Father yesterday.”

“What…?”

My mind went blank.

I thought such matters would be discussed face to face inside the academy, so I assumed I’d be safe at least until vacation.

“I thought I’d need to prepare myself before telling Mother, so I contacted Father first.”

“What… what did he say?”

“He denied it very ambiguously. He’s making excuses… I’m so disappointed in him. But don’t worry about Atlas… No matter how much he tries to backtrack, this sister will always be on your side!”

After that, Hera lamented about Count Nemea, breathing out a sigh.

‘What a mess.’

Regardless, it’s the academy, so I thought there would be time until vacation, but I never expected him to reach out directly…

He’s an uncle I’ve never contacted in my life, but to keep the peace at home, I’ll need to write a letter quickly.