I loaded the Wizard panel.

Chapter 5 My Aunt's Son

The dining hall at St. George Grammar School is said to be a charitable building funded by a once-prominent local nobleman in Hereford.

This resulted in various portraits and black-and-white photographs of the bearded gentleman hanging in the dining hall.

The figures in these portraits and photographs are all looking straight ahead, with no side profiles, giving a dark sense of humor that "the person is dead, but their spirit is still witnessing the descendants receiving their favors."

"Edwin, what did the teacher say to you?"

Holding a penny-priced cup of cheap black tea from the cafeteria, Edwin spotted Billy Longbottom, a classmate who weighed a hefty 185 pounds last month, about to stuff a piece of bread into his mouth.

"They asked me if I wanted to participate in a competition."

As he spoke, he sat down opposite Billy.

"A competition? What competition?" Billy stopped enjoying his lavish lunch, asked this question, and then pushed another plate in front of Edwin across from him.

Creamy mushroom soup and three slightly charred slices of bread.

It's called a thick soup, but it's just a big pot with a spoonful or two of cream added, and it only has a slight milky flavor.

The bread slices are not sweetened, and occasionally they are overbaked, which gives them a slightly bitter taste.

That's all, three pence.

However, today there were two rolls of bacon sizzling with oil and a few slices of asparagus on the bread, the aroma of meat whetting Edwin's appetite.

He couldn't help but take a few deeper breaths, as if that would allow him to see several more +1 recovery progress indicators pop up in the lower right corner.

"These are..." Edwin hesitated as he reached into his pocket and counted the remaining copper coins.

"Isn't this what you used to buy all the time?" Billy scratched his head after realizing what Edwin meant, and explained, "Didn't I lose a bet in Natural Philosophy class? This is the punishment for losing the bet."

These bacon and asparagus will cost an extra four pence.

Billy Longbottom does this kind of thing occasionally.

During the time that he was talking to Mr. Already, Billy Longbottom stood in line to buy him lunch.

Ironically, the basic set meal—cream of mushroom soup and bread slices—is available in limited quantities each day and requires queuing to buy, while all other dishes are unlimited.

...If you don't have money, that's your own problem; the person in charge of catering is only responsible for making money.

In reality, most students could afford meat; Clara and Edwin were in the minority.

"Three pence?"

"Um."

Edwin breathed a sigh of relief and took three copper coins out of his pocket, handing them to Billy's chubby palm.

"It's the Natural Philosophy Competition in Herefordshire. Teacher Already told me to give it a try."

Billy Longbottom was taken aback at first, but after the words passed through his mind, an expression of disbelief appeared on his face.

"Isn't that cup competition only for upperclassmen?"

Billy Longbottom's family runs a sizable textile factory, which is quite well-known in Herefordshire. At the start of the term, his family hired a tutor to give him early access to advanced natural philosophy textbooks.

It's about preparing for the regional competition within our county.

The Longbottom family had a clear understanding of their eldest son: he wasn't particularly bright, and he was lazy and gluttonous... He wouldn't get any rankings in this kind of competition, but just being able to show his face would be a great publicity for their business.

Many prominent figures and nobles from Hereford make an appearance at this competition every year.

It's essentially a business investment.

However, even if you start learning ahead of time, it will take about a year.

However, now his friend has received a recommendation from Professor Alrid Frey.

Not in a high school, and even among the worst students in the grade...

"So I need to catch up on my progress."

The confusion in Billy's eyes gradually faded, replaced by envy.

"I wish I had a chance to compete. My mom said I could get a hundred pounds of pocket money if I went up there."

Billy Longbottom's idea was simple: he just wanted more desserts and more pocket money.

As for jealousy...aren't they friends?

Edwin gave a complex smile.

You can win £100 just by participating...

It's easy to guess why Billy's family wanted him to participate.

"I'm going to find my sister. You eat first." With that, Edwin took his plate and left.

The cafeteria wasn't big, and all grades in the school ate at the same time. Edwin only glanced at it briefly before finding Clara.

She is two years younger than me and has only just started attending St. George's School this semester.

Clara sat with her classmates, eating the same "poor man's meal" as Edwin.

"Hey Clara, your brother's here," her female classmate reminded her.

Edwin placed the plate next to Clara and scooped half of the bacon and asparagus onto her plate.

"Brother, you...gambled again?" Clara asked in a strange tone, while her friend looked at Edwin and covered his mouth to chuckle.

Clara's brother has won lunch in gambling before, and this isn't the first or second time.

There could have been many more times, but Edwin Gray couldn't bear his friend treating him like that.

At that time, he didn't have much to return the favor to Billy.

"I can't eat, help me get something." Edwin smiled.

Clara didn't refuse. Instead, she waited until Edwin turned back to Billy with his plates and then divided the meat equally between herself and her two other friends.

It's not hard to see that the gap between the rich and the poor is quite large.

At St. George Grammar School, student groups are also tied to economic conditions, and the two girls with Clara also ate only average meals.

Objectively speaking, children from wealthy families have more topics to talk about, while children from ordinary families are more likely to stick together for support.

Edwin thought his sister's approach was reasonable.

He and Billy were in a special case, as Billy Longbottom's relationship with his classmates was just average.

There are many "factions" at St. George's School. In addition to these, there are also "ambitious students" from slightly better-off families who want to join the group of students who can easily spend several pounds on pocket money.

For example, there was a figure that Edwin looked somewhat familiar not far away.

"These are butter cookies my mom just made today. They taste great, just as good as those baked goods. She asked me to bring them to school to share with you all." Edwin's voice was loud enough that he could easily hear what he was saying.

He was stocky but not as exaggerated as Billy, and half a head shorter than Edwin. At first glance, his features were somewhat similar to Edwin and Clara's.

—Arthur Gray, Edwin's cousin who was a little over a month younger... his aunt's son.

"Arthur, didn't we talk about this before..." The students, whose school uniforms looked expensive and were neatly ironed, looked somewhat embarrassed, but Arthur acted as if he didn't see it and took out small packets wrapped in blotting paper from his bag and handed them to his friends.

It's hard to imagine that this is the kind of baking my loud, rude aunt could make.

As relatives, they should have greeted each other or at least exchanged glances, but Edwin walked past their table without much expression.

They are relatives, but they are treated differently.

You can tell the difference in diet from a person's physique.

There were also brand-new school uniforms and above-average dishes on the plates... things that he and Clara didn't have.

Favoritism is understandable, but when the gap is too large, Edwin doesn't think that word alone makes everything seem justifiable.

Whether it was due to the inheritance left by Edwin's parents, or because his own family had to tighten their belts to support him... Edwin had already made up his mind.