#668 Snow Festival, Graduation Project

Now, what I’m really curious about during the Snow Festival is Sensei.

Sensei, the Lifeless King.

Our dependable senior (of a whole different level) on the farm.

I wondered to what extent he’s involved in the Snow Festival, but in reality, not much at all.

He’s got his hands full preparing for the graduation ceremony.

The young people from the three races—humans, demons, and mermaids—whom Sensei has brought up under his personal care have successfully passed their graduation exams, and their official graduation has been decided.

The ceremony will be held in the spring, so Sensei is devoting himself to preparing for that.

You’re wondering why is there such a long gap between the graduation exams, which were held in early winter, and the graduation ceremony?

Well, graduation ceremonies are a spring thing. That’s a basic rule that cannot be broken.

Sensei seems to want to make the graduation ceremony the best it can be, so he’s putting all his effort into it.

As such, he’s not that involved in the Snow Festival.

Then again, Orkubo’s Castle is mainly the orcs’ recreation, and the Snow Festival is a derivative event of that, so it’s not strange if Sensei isn’t involved as much.

But not having him with us is a little sad too.

So, on the day the festival opened its doors to the public, we decided to invite Sensei.

* * *

“Sensei, over here!”

First, I escorted Sensei and led him to the designated location.

It’s the Snow Festival exhibition venue.

“I appreciate you going out of your way just to guide me, Lord Saint. You must be busy with the event as the overall director as is,” says Sensei with his usual gentle demeanor.

“No matter how busy I am, I’ll always make time for you, Sensei. You’ve looked after us, after all.”

And now, there are people who’ve been taken care of by Sensei more than me. 

Today, the purpose is for them to show their gratitude to him.

These people are the students who have received Sensei’s guidance until today and have finally become full-fledged adults.

“Sensei, thank you for coming today!”

“WE’RE GLAD TO SEE YOU HERE, SENSEI!!!”

The students welcome Sensei to the venue.

Although they’re already about to graduate after passing the exams, they decided to participate in the Snow Festival to create a lasting memory and invited Sensei to join them.

“Ohh, thank you all for inviting me,” replies Sensei, pleased to be in front of the students he had spent time with.

I take a step back and observe their interactions.

“You don’t have much time left in your student life. Studying is not everything. Make the most of your days and have fun so that even after this time has passed, they will remain important to you.”

“YES, SENSEI!!!”

 Words carrying the weight of an undead king who has lived for over a thousand years.

Sensei has accumulated countless years being undead, but how much value do these days spent with his students hold?

At least, they must be different from the monotonous days he spent inside his dungeon alone.

One of the students says, “There’s something we want to show you, Sensei!”

“Oh, what is it?” 

“It’s a piece we all worked together to create for the Snow Festival! The theme is to express our gratitude to you, Sensei!”

And so, the snow sculpture hidden beneath an elaborate cloth cover was finally revealed...

It was none other than Sensei himself.

He’s crafted entirely out of snow.

Surrounding the sculpture are many smiling faces etched into the snow, representing the students themselves.

They had carved themselves into the snow as a way of showing their tangible expression of gratitude towards their teacher.

It was a snow monument created by the students as part of their contribution to the Snow Festival.

The title of the sculpture is Our Sensei.

“This is also their graduation project,” I explain. “When winter ends, they will be graduating. Before that, they wanted to create this monument as a culmination of everything they’ve learned on the farm.”

For these young people, the ultimate lesson they learned was gratitude towards Sensei, who had guided them all along.

And so, that feeling took shape in the form of the snow sculpture.

“Oh! Oohhhhh...!!!”

Sensei trembles at the sight of it.

It’s clear that he’s trembling due to overwhelming emotion.

“I am truly fortunate...to have become an immortal, an existence beyond human comprehension, and to still receive such gratitude...to be accepted into the circle of people...!”

Sensei is moved to tears.

An undead shedding tears. It was that emotional of a scene.

“Since becoming immortal, I have never felt this happy! I...! I am the luckiest person in the worldddddd!!!”

Huh?!

Sensei’s body is surrounded by a dazzling light!

What is this blinding flash?!

Is it okay for him to be surrounded by this kind of light, the complete opposite of the undead’s miasma?!

“Uooooooooooh!!!”

Sensei’s body melts into the flash of light. 

As the light subsided and our vision returned, Sensei was still standing there.

“Sensei! Are you okay?!”

I was freaking out, thinking he might have passed on to the other side!

“I apologize, my joy and emotions got the best of me. But thanks to that, it seems a change has occurred within.”

“Huh?”

“It appears that I have gained the holy and light attributes. Even though I am undead, to possess these attributes... one never knows what can happen in this world.”

An undead with holy and light attributes?! 

Is such a thing possible?!

After heartwarming interactions with the students, Sensei evolved into a new stage! 

He’s no longer just a simple Lifeless King but a Holy Lifeless King!

“SENSEI!!!”

The surprised and excited students surround Sensei.

“That was incredible, Sensei!”

“I never thought you could evolve like that, Sensei!”

“We have to learn from you to become stronger, but with this, we won’t be able to catch up, ever!”

The students are bewildered yet exhilarated by the unexpected effect of their graduation project.

Certainly, they wouldn’t have imagined a Lifeless King would evolve into something even more incredible because of their art piece.

“I never thought that after existing for over a thousand years, I would still be able to evolve. It is thanks to you all. Education teaches us that it prompts growth for both the teacher and the student.”

Sensei, too, seems a bit embarrassed by the miracle that had happened to him, thanks to his students.

“Alright, let’s celebrate Sensei’s evolution by tossing him into the air!”

“YEAH!!!”

The students surround Sensei once again, lifting him up with their hands and giving him three cheers.

Meanwhile, other visitors at the Snow Festival happened to witness the moving scene between Sensei and his students.

“...What’s going on over there?”

“Is that an undead being lifted up?”

“No, isn’t that a Lifeless King? What’s the meaning of this?”

Our attendees inadvertently stumbled upon something more valuable and peculiar than the exhibits, leaving them staring in awe.

* * *

Thus, while entertaining the visitors with works made of snow, another battle was about to begin.

To quote someone’s words, “If there is no competition and fighting, it’s not Orkubo’s Castle.”

To uphold that definition, the Snow Festival’s martial side is about to come to life.

Orkubo’s Castle: Snowball War.

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will upload the next chapter tomorrow, the majority of my day went to writhing in agony from potential food poisoning. that wasn't fun