Lunch

Suye glanced at his other classmates. Rolon had already walked out carrying his battle spear, while Albert, who rarely spoke, slowly edged along the wall toward the exit.

Only the blue-eyed girl, Pallas, was still studying intently.

Suye initially planned to leave directly, but remembering this poor girl might not speak, he pressed his index and middle fingers together, tapped lightly on the edge of her desk, and said, "It's time to eat. Proper rest, proper relaxation, good energy management—that's how you study more efficiently. If you're not familiar with the academy, you can send a Magic Letter to ask a teacher or a female classmate."

Having always practiced energy management back on Blue Star, Suye had no hesitation in giving up on reading just now.

Without waiting for Pallas to look up, Suye picked up his Magic Book, turned around, and left the classroom with Hote.

Pallas fell into thought.

"What does 'energy management' mean?"

After pondering, Pallas realized she had unconsciously stood up.

The classroom was already empty, with only a female mage standing at the door.

The mage smiled and said, "Princess Pallas, let me accompany you to familiarize yourself with the academy first."

Pallas gave a slight nod, still not uttering a single word, and walked toward the female mage with her Magic Book tucked under her arm.

The cafeteria of Plato Academy was abuzz with noise.

The entire dining hall was a marble building, as large as half a stadium, with no lavish decorations inside. Countless long tables and chairs were neatly arranged, and students from all years, even teachers, ate here.

The moment Hote and Suye entered, countless eyes turned to them.

"Hey, Hote!"

"Good afternoon, Big Guy!"

"Don't forget the Private Tournament in a few days!"

Hote grinned and nodded to everyone.

Suye finally grasped Hote's popularity—the effect of being held back five years was truly something.

The two found two empty seats and each flipped open their Magic Books.

Suye suddenly felt a strange sense of familiarity, then lifted his head to scan the entire hall.

Everyone was staring at their own Magic Books.

"This scene looks like something I've seen before... a bunch of Magic-Addicted Youths?"

Suye chuckled, and with a thought, the page displayed today's cafeteria menu.

Suye hadn't expected the food at Plato Academy to be this good.

Even in a moderately wealthy home in Athens City, they could only afford non-aquatic meat once or twice a month. Here, aside from no beef, pork, lamb, chicken—everything was unlimited.

Out of the corner of his eye, Suye saw Hote's finger swipe from top to bottom across the menu.

Suye leaned over and saw that Hote had ordered every single dish, enough to feed at least ten ordinary people.

Suye shook his head helplessly. Drawing from his experience on Blue Star, he sensibly chose a lunch that suited him.

Afternoon tends to make you drowsy, so it's best to eat fewer carb-heavy staples and more meat, fish, and vegetables to avoid a rapid blood sugar spike.

Just as Suye finished ordering, he heard a commotion outside.

"Damn humans! Not only do they enslave us, but they make us watch as our comrades' corpses are served on the table!"

"Pig Goblins will never surrender!"

"Overthrow Plato Academy!"

"Down with the evil mages!"

Suye turned his head and saw goblins carrying trays on their heads, snorting and puffing as they filed in through the door, over thirty of them in a row.

These goblins were only half a meter tall, with outlines similar to humans, covered in black bristly hair.

But their heads were completely different from ordinary humanoid goblins—they had pig snouts and pig heads, like a cross between a Magic Pig and a goblin.

Hearing the goblins' shouts, the First Year freshmen panicked.

"Hahaha..." the older students burst out laughing.

"Don't worry, Pig Head Goblins just love to boast. If it came to a real fight, they'd be more scared than anyone."

"After they deliver the food, you can try scaring one of them for fun. Just don't try it now, or they'll drop their trays and run."

Suye noticed that a few Pig Goblins weren't shouting slogans but were secretly sizing up the students, ready to bolt at any moment.

The Pig Goblins carried their trays forward, and whenever they got close to someone who had ordered, the magic trays let out a beeping sound.

Then, the Pig Goblins let go, and the magic trays suddenly extended four long legs from underneath, like mutated cranes, climbing onto the table and landing in front of the person who ordered, before retracting the legs back under the tray.

The First Year freshmen's eyes sparkled with curiosity.

The Pig Goblins who had finished delivering food hurriedly ran out, complaining as they went.

"Humans eat way too much!"

"We've got to take them down!"

"Yeah, take them down."

Suye watched the little tail wagging back and forth behind the Pig Goblin's rear and shook his head with a smile.

Before long, that batch of Pig Goblins came trotting back over with new trays.

"Damn, I'm exhausted!"

"These cursed humans, we haven't even had lunch yet."

"I really want to sneak a bite..."

A teacher's face darkened as he snapped, "No swearing in front of the New Students!"

The thirty-plus Pig Goblins immediately bent over, shut their mouths, and continued on in silence, all their earlier spirit gone.

Even their pig tails drooped limply.

The cafeteria finally quieted down a lot, with students chatting as they ate.

"I wonder when the Second Year's Demon Hunting Trial will start."

"At the next City-state Tournament, our academy should have some participants. I wonder which nobles will fight for first place."

"Next year won't be easy. I heard Persia has already sent out troops."

"I heard Lord Heracles has defeated another powerful Demigod Magic Beast. He's truly great—slaying Heroic Magic Beasts as a Legend, and now as a mere Hero, he can slay Demigod Magic Beasts. If nothing unexpected happens, he'll be crowned Hero King before advancing to Demigod."

"What do you think, will Hote advance to Apprentice this year?"

"I doubt it."

"I think it's possible!"

Suye was stunned to find that when Hote was mentioned, the entire cafeteria's conversation instantly unified.

Almost everyone was guessing whether Hote could advance to Warrior Apprentice this year.

Hote looked carefree, grinning as he listened.

"Big Guy, yours is here!" a Pig Goblin shouted loudly, making no effort to hide its full belly of resentment.

Then Suye witnessed a spectacular sight: a full ten trays stretched out their legs and jumped onto the table in front of Hote.

Covering it completely.

Only then did Suye understand why no one sat beside or across from Hote.

Next, Suye's tray hopped up, tucked in its legs, and arranged itself neatly before him.

Slurp, gulp...

Hote had already started wolfing down his food.

Suye looked at the dishes before him: a portion of grilled eel, a stewed chicken leg, a palm-sized roasted Pork Chop, a Mulberry sausage, a bowl of vegetable soup, a serving of fried mushrooms, a boiled egg, and a slice of wheat bread.

Originally, Suye couldn't eat this much, but after noticing his body had grown stronger, he deliberately ordered a bit more to test his current appetite.

Suye followed local customs and ate directly with his hands, but inwardly he vowed to invent utensils as soon as possible.

The new book urgently needs recommendation tickets. Everyone, please help out. Lao Huo bows in thanks.