CHAPTER 498: CHAPTER 248: BURIED BENEATH_2

"Damn Franky!"

Rowena heard a young man in a black mage robe, clenching his fists, grumble.

This was one of the few names she had heard since arriving at the academy. The founder of the Disciplinary Committee, considered the new "Black Demon King" in the students’ minds. Unlike Lindong’s mixed reputation, students mostly felt fear and disgust towards Franky. After enforcing a series of high-pressure new school rules, Franky gradually attracted a lot of followers around him.

Rowena heard this news from the academy guide while being introduced to the pumpkin garden.

There were many students there, their faces covered with dust and dirt, looking utterly miserable.

These were students caught red-handed by Franky’s followers for violating the school rules. They were sent to the pumpkin garden for labor reform. The guide explained that the pumpkin garden was one of the main planting fields for the academy’s magical materials, from which most of the magic potions needed for alchemy and potion-making were cultivated.

Franky’s new school rules and punishment mechanism had somewhat alleviated the long-term manpower shortage in the pumpkin garden.

Rowena also noticed that the boy’s nails were filled with dirt, in stark contrast to his clean and neat mage robe. It was easy to see that he seemed to have just undergone "labor reform" not long ago.

She had absolutely no fondness for Franky. He reminded her of those mentors in the Astrology Guild who abused their power, along with their minions.

The young man asked, "How’s the situation at the pumpkin garden?"

"Franky’s lackeys have noticed a decrease in casting materials. Now, all students must compile a work list after completing their labor," someone replied.

Hearing this, the young man’s face turned somewhat grim.

The pumpkin garden was a crucial source of casting materials for the Mole Club, an "illegal organization" not recognized by the academy. Naturally, nobody would reimburse their activity funds and casting materials.

Funds weren’t a big deal; the key issue was the casting materials.

Purchasing directly from a magic shop could easily attract scrutiny from the Disciplinary Committee. Just last month, under Franky’s leadership, there was a thorough investigation, and many members of their club were punished by the Disciplinary Committee for failing to explain the purpose of their materials.

The situation was quite grim.

This was the conclusion Rowena reached after a round of eavesdropping.

After all, these kids were just students, and not every student was as talented as Lindong. The Mole Club was gradually losing ground in their struggle against "Black Demon King" Franky. However, she did manage to gather some important intelligence.

The change in the academy’s atmosphere commenced after Franky’s arrival. He was sent by the Ministry of Magic. His parents and grandparents had been students of the academy and held prominent positions in various departments of the Ministry of Magic after graduation. Franky, being the purest bloodline of Elemental Shaper, was naturally unafraid of "offending" those pure-blood Elemental Shapers from prominent families after establishing the Disciplinary Committee.

Rowena also learned some intriguing information.

Franky didn’t need to return to the academy for employment after graduation, as his family had paved a road for him in the Ministry of Magic. Yet, he gave up a top-notch job there to return to the academy.

Intuition told her that Franky was conducting some kind of research at the academy, and these club members seemed unaware of the reason behind their suppression.

The ubiquitous members of the Mole Club could very likely become obstacles to his research.

"We’ve found some books about magicians from the library, not sure if they’ll be helpful."

The girl who had previously welcomed Rowena set down a thick stack of books on the table.

"But we can’t learn magic," the boy with dirt on his hands mumbled.

He knew very well that this was a desperate measure, meaning they inwardly admitted they couldn’t outdo the Disciplinary Committee in the field of elemental shaping magic and could only hope for other methods.

"Well, I know of a rather famous magic scroll shop in Fireplace Bay. They provide custom services, and I still have some pocket money left for this month..."

"Old Sen Magic Scroll Shop?"

The Mole Club members’ eyes lit up instantly.

They, or rather the entire academy, were not unfamiliar with Old Sen Magic Scroll Shop. The reason was due to the magical duel tournament held several months ago, a glorious tradition that had been around since the First Epoch.

According to the school rules, participating students could carry three low-level elemental magic scrolls not exceeding the third tier. This was to add uncertainty to the tournament; in many closely matched duels, an inconspicuous instant spell could often determine the outcome.

This was originally a contest of wisdom and strategy until a student produced a Fireball Skill scroll ordered at a high price from Old Sen Magic Scroll Shop.

Thus, the academy’s glorious tradition was broken.

Everyone who witnessed the competition understood that the essence of a magical duel was about numbers—with the largest fireball, you win.

At the time, both the headmaster and mentors were alerted, and the students were fortunate enough to witness the headmaster personally casting magic. Later, even people from the Ministry of Magic came.

The duel tournament was forced to halt, and the student who pulled out the magic scroll underwent a thorough investigation. Some suspected him to be a Black Mage sent to destroy the academy.

Black Mage was the academy’s collective term for those who used elemental magic for evil purposes.

However, the investigation yielded bizarre results. Experts from the Ministry of Magic confirmed that the participating student had no connections with any Black Mage organizations. Moreover, upon expert evaluation, the magic scroll he used in the competition was merely the most basic Fireball Skill—this was the result as determined from a technical perspective.