Chương 149: Cordyceps Fourteen

This guy, taller and bigger than the rest of the house Troll kids, took a step towards us, and I saw Milo prepare to step back before he shored himself up and stood his ground.

"What do you want? My friend here was just being polite," he said with a gesture towards me. The boy scoffed. Then he closed his hand into a meaty fist. It looked like the other boys in his house were tacitly supporting him.

"I don't like your sort is all. I've been here for barely more than a day and I already know that what they say about you is right. Bunch of stuck up noble-sorts who think that they're better than the rest of us. Bet you wouldn't last a minute in a proper fight. Not without a precious servant or something to throw in front of you, huh?" I scowled. What an incredibly trite and almost clichéd way of looking at things.

"You're the one starting a fight here, big guy," I said.

"I was just saying hi. I'm not sure how noble-sounding that is, but I'm pretty sure even common folk say hello." One of the House Troll boys snorted. And my big new friend spun towards them and glared them down. This was kind of interesting, actually. I'd seen some posturing in house Dragon already, but it seemed like it was more centred around position and wealth and old reputations than anything.

If this was a glimpse into how the other house did things, then it seemed as if they were more open to outright physical shows of power. Or maybe this guy was the outlier? I didn't know enough to tell.

"What's your name?" I asked. The boy seemed a little taken aback. Milo and the other boys with us, Andrew and George, all seemed a bit cowed by this fellow, but... well, it was hard for someone with an adult mind to be afraid of a twelve year old, even if they were a bit big. Seriously, what did he think would happen? If he struck me, I'd report it to the proper authorities, with several witnesses and probably a shiner to show as evidence, and then he'd be in a heap of trouble.

And if he wanted to push things even further? Then I had ways to make his life a waking nightmare. Perhaps literally. For all his bigness he wasn't an adult, and my poisons were dosed for bigger bodies. A few mushrooms with some of the more interesting psychological effects would pair him down.

"I'm Harbin," he said.

"And who're you? Some duke's kid?" I didn't have time to reply to that when the greenhouse's door opened. All of us jumped, having failed to hear or see anyone coming... even though the door was entirely made of glass and the man standing in it seemed impossible to miss. He was a tall man in proper outdoorsman gear. He had pants that ballooned out of his tall boots and a sweater under a thick coat with several pockets on it. His hair was long and somewhat messy, though it was covered by a slightly crumpled hat.

"Good, you're all here," he said as his gaze swept over us.

"Follow me." And with that he walked right in between our two little groups and straight towards one of the smaller greenhouses.

"This isn't over," Harbin said.

"I don't think we even started," I muttered, but it was only loud enough for Milo and the others to hear.

"I'm professor Jasper Moss. I have twin doctorates in herbology and pharmaceuticals, though my passion lies in turning plants into cures for mankind's ills, both mundane and magical," the professor said as he walked. We reached the smaller greenhouse and he unlocked the door with a ring of keys that he pulled from a belt. We entered after him. This greenhouse had rows of planters set at what was for most of us mid-waist height. For an adult it would probably be closer to hip-height.

I noticed lots of herbs, but surprisingly they all seemed mundane. Parsley, cilantro, thyme, some mint next to basil, even some dill and chives. All the most basic herbs used as spices were here in their own little boxes, separated by wooden dividers. The professor went to the far end, then picked a small clay pot out and turned to show it to us.

"This class will be a little more hands-on than some of your other electives. Yes, we will go over theory. You will learn quite a bit about agriculture here, but we will also cover herbal medicines and some alchemy. Plants make up sixty-percent of all alchemical ingredients. Fungi another twenty. We'll be covering those as well." Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

He frowned, then lowered the plant while he looked at us all, then with a rather expressive roll of his eyes, he reached down and tugged Milo and another Troll-house boy closer together.

"I don't have time for your rivalries. I have a lot to teach you in too short a time. Part of this class being so hands-on means that it's also locked into certain seasons. Plants can be encouraged to grow out of season, but there are consequences to that. Especially with the more magical sort of plant. Today we will be scouring the woods near the academy for just one such plant." He turned the little pot he was holding over to reveal the plant within.

It was a few long, thin green leaves, almost rolled into themselves. I fired off my [Druid Sight] at it. Enchanter's Onion [Uncommon] A species of onion found in areas with higher-than-average ambient mana. Used as both a mana supplement in certain dishes and as a base ingredient in several alchemical concoctions. Casually, the professor tugged one of the stalks out and showed us... a very small wild onion. It was startlingly green, as if a highlighter had leaked all over it.

"Can any of you tell me what this is?" he asked. I hesitated. This was the only elective I actually cared about. I wanted to get the most out of it. But standing out wasn't a great idea. Still... I raised a hand and he pointed to me.

"Enchanter's Onion," I said simply. He nodded.

"Did you know that, or did a skill tell you?" he asked.

"The latter," I said.

"That's acceptable. Don't trust skills implicitly. The more common skills will leave out much, and even the uncommon ones might only give you surface information. You might have to dissect a plant part by part, examining each one to get a full picture of its capabilities, and sometimes of its dangers. But I imagine if the skill is enough to give you a name, you'll find this next part easy. We're going to go harvest some of these. They're in season early."

He reached over to a cupboard to one side of the room and fetched a bunch of gloves that were sized more or less for kids our age, then we were given woven buckets with folding handles.

"All equipped?" he asked.

"Good, follow me, then!" As he led us outside, the professor continued to talk over his shoulder.

"Plants all need several things to live, though magical plants can introduce exceptions to these. Mostly it boils down to water, sunlight, time, and space. Given those four elements, a plant can survive. But if you want it to thrive, then you need to give it what it needs and wants. That means better, healthier soil, manure--yes, we will be working with that later." A few of the boys weren't fans of that idea.

"And some plants require other plants and insects nearby in order to survive. Several kinds of flowers need to be pollinated. Others will only grow in soil that contains a certain level of acidity. We will be going through a lot more book-learning later, but for now, some fresh air. Any questions?" One of the Troll boys raised his hand.

"Is it true that there are monsters in the woods?" he asked. We were heading towards a decently forested patch of land on the south-eastern part of the academy. It was maybe five acres of fairly dense forest with rocky ground and lots of bushes.

"No, but also yes. If you consider goats to be monstrous." A few boys laughed.

"We bring them in to eat certain weeds and undesirable plants. Their droppings serve as natural fertiliser, and with a high levelled [Shepherd] at the head of a herd, they won't eat any of the plants we don't want them to. I've seen some wild dogs wander into the woods, and a few students have snuck in various pets, but you likely have nothing to worry about." So, we wouldn't have to worry about monsters. Except, of course, for the most dangerous monster of all.

Teenaged boys with little supervision and chips on their shoulders.

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