Episode 79
The day of the midterm exam results finally arrived.
The moment Elonia appeared in the main building, the usually crowded area around the bulletin board, where the class rankings were posted, fell silent.
Elonia walked confidently through the parted crowd, checked her ranking, then turned around, her expression unsurprised.
Stares, filled with a mix of emotions, followed her until she was out of sight, but Elonia, as always, ignored them.
Back in her dormitory, she took out her report card.
“Heehee.”
A giggle escaped her lips.
It would be embarrassing for someone her mental age to be so happy about getting the highest score among thirteen-year-olds.
But Elonia didn’t care.
If they treated her like a nine-year-old, she would act like one.
She immediately contacted Sarah.
“Sarah, look!”
[Oh my god…! Your Highness, congratulations! Lady Ethan, Sir Ricardo, look at this!]
As expected, Sarah’s eyes filled with tears as she called for the two knights.
Their reactions were equally dramatic.
[This is incredible… Congratulations, Your Highness!]
[Wow… You’re ruthless. I mean, congratulations! That’s amazing!]
She could forgive Ricardo’s usual flippancy today.
But Sarah, after shooting Ricardo a disapproving look, turned back to Elonia, her face beaming.
[Have you shown it to His Majesty yet?]
“No! I wanted to show you first, Sarah, so I called you first!”
[Oh, Your Highness…]
Sarah looked like she wanted to hug and kiss Elonia.
Elonia would have gone straight to the palace after the exams if she could.
She really would have.
[Congratulations on getting first place, Elonia.]
“…Dad, I know you think I’m always exaggerating, but this is real.”
[Who said anything? I don’t care what others think.]
…As everyone had predicted, Elonia didn’t go home this weekend either.
The reason was the same as always – a sudden influx of assignments from Caroline.
Artius said he was fine, but Elonia knew better.
He had a habit of sulking when he was upset.
He was smiling, but his lips were stiff and unnatural.
Elonia, exasperated, retorted,
“If you’re so upset, then fire Caroline! As if you could.”
[W-well.]
“Who knew she would assign more homework right after the exams? Did you know?!”
[…I’m sorry.]
“Ugh, this is so frustrating. I have a valid reason for not visiting, and you’re sulking.”
[…I said I was sorry.]
Lucid Academy might be the imperial academy, but even the Emperor couldn’t fire a professor, especially a department head, without a valid reason.
They had taken the Sibelius Oath, vowing not to be swayed by any external influence.
Sibelius was the name of the academy’s first headmaster and also one of the first members of the royal family.
Besides, even though Caroline was eccentric, she was still a reliable teacher, so Artius couldn’t fire her.
“Anyway, I’ll definitely visit during the break.”
[…Alright.]
“I’m serious! It’s a break, there’s no reason for me not to visit!”
[Honestly, Elonia, judging from Professor Caroline’s behavior, I wouldn’t be surprised if she assigned homework during the break too—]
“Don’t jinx it! Why would you even say that?!”
Artius, scolded by his daughter, slumped in his seat.
After their usual argument, which Elonia always won, she promised to visit during the break, even betting Ravanta on it, and ended the call.
Now, all that was left were the final exams.
‘Summer break after the finals…!’
Elonia thought about the break, her feet tapping excitedly.
Summer break meant freedom from the academy.
No more wake-up calls, no more lectures, no more Caroline assignments.
“I’m definitely not taking any of Caroline’s classes next semester.”
She couldn’t avoid the mandatory classes, but she would definitely avoid her electives.
And she wasn’t going to cram eleven classes into one semester again.
Elonia, dreaming of a sweet and relaxing future, prepared for the following week.
Meanwhile, Simon, summoned by Lucius, went to the Theology Department prayer room alone.
He knew why Lucius had called him.
It wasn’t about his exam scores. It was about the mission.
He hadn’t made any progress, so he sighed, feeling a wave of despair wash over him. Just then, someone approached him from behind.
“Prince Simon.”
“Ah, Young Master Allen…”
Simon flinched, even though he knew it was Lucius.
Lucius, seemingly accustomed to his reaction, calmly lit the candles in the prayer room.
The dimly lit room, which had only been illuminated by a single candle, was now bathed in the warm glow of ten candles.
Lucius blew out the match and asked Simon,
“How’s the mission progressing?”
“W-well…”
His hesitant response was an answer in itself.
Lucius changed his question.
“Have you met with the princess?”
“…Yes, but—”
“No progress, I presume.”
“…”
Simon nodded.
He hadn’t expected to succeed anyway.
Lucius sighed.
“Do your best. That’s why we were sent to Ravanta.”
“…I know.”
Lucius frowned at his unconvincing reply, then turned away coldly.
Simon was alone in the prayer room again.
He slumped to the ground, his body relaxing as the tension left him.
He was both intimidated by and envious of Lucius.
Lucius had an important mission, he was busy, he was useful.
And what about Simon?
“…Haah.”
He didn’t understand why Felix had given him this mission.
‘Is it because of Brother Dolce?’
Dolce had been executed five years ago for causing trouble.
He knew it was related to the princess, but he didn’t know the details.
That was why he was afraid of his mission – to gain the princess’s favor, to lower her guard, and if possible, to win her heart.
How could he even approach her, the ruthless princess who had ordered the execution of his terrifying older brother at the tender age of four? What if he angered her and suffered the same fate?
But the princess he had met at the academy was different from what he had imagined.
‘She doesn’t seem like a bad person.’
She had spared Olivia and was even having meals with her.
And she didn’t seem to dislike him either.
In fact, she seemed somewhat familiar.
He was uncomfortable with the order to seduce the princess of the enemy nation, a woman he couldn’t possibly love.
But,
‘…If I marry the princess, can I stop all this?’
Could he stop Felix’s reckless ambition?
Could he succeed where even Chelon had failed?
Could he prove his worth?
‘Maybe I can.’
Simon had always been timid and cautious.
His siblings were all outspoken and assertive, and he had often wondered why he was so different, if he was even worthy of being a Heilan royal.
But he had noticed, through their brief interactions, that Princess Elonia, despite her status and power, disliked conflict. She had been kind to him, a hostage.
‘I’ll try.’
Even he, the weak and timid Simon, could become a hero.
And then, everyone would finally acknowledge him.
They would finally recognize him as a true Heilan royal.
The first class after the midterm exams,
The Magic Department freshmen, instead of gathering in their usual classroom, were assembled in a large open space.
“Now, let’s begin our first practical exercise.”
Caroline, leaning on her staff, smiled warmly.
The students, however, looked glum.
The reason was obvious – it was a Caroline class.
“My, my, such gloomy faces.”
The midterm exam had been easier than the entrance exam, but Caroline was still Caroline.
Garnethia whispered to Elonia,
“Elonia, did you know? The average score for the midterm exam was below 50 again.”
“That woman is relentless.”
Elonia chuckled dryly, unsurprised.
She understood why the students were so dejected.
They were all gifted children, praised for their intelligence.
And yet, they had failed both the entrance exam and the midterm exam.
And not only that, Elonia, the youngest among them, had scored a perfect score again, and even Garnethia, whom they had ostracized, had gotten the second-highest score, far above the average.
They must be doubting their own abilities, their world crumbling around them.
‘There’s no need to be so discouraged.’
She couldn’t say it out loud, but as someone living her second life, with years of experience, this kind of score disparity was to be expected.
‘Besides, theory and practice are different.’
It was too early to give up on their magical potential.
Caroline, ignoring their gloomy faces, continued her lecture.
She demonstrated a basic light spell, the first spell they had learned, and said,
“Simple, right? Just imbue your staff with mana, draw the magic circle with the formula, and that’s it. Let’s try it one by one.”
It was a truly simple spell.
It didn’t consume much mana either.
The students, clutching their staffs, hesitantly stepped forward, one by one, and cast the spell successfully, their faces lighting up with excitement.
“Wow…! I did it!”
“Me too!”
Even Caroline, usually stingy with praise, offered words of encouragement.
“Yes, you’re doing well.”
“Just be a bit more careful with the shape of the magic circle, and it’ll be perfect.”
“Oh, you have an abundance of mana. Excellent.”
It was Garnethia’s turn.
Everyone was curious to see if she was as talented in practice as she was in theory, but her light wasn’t as bright as the others, perhaps due to her lack of mana.
“It’s alright. There are many ways to train your mana. You excel in theory, Garnethia, so this is nothing to be ashamed of.”
“T-thank you, Professor.”
The students, relieved that even the second-highest scorer had weaknesses, seemed to regain their confidence.
“And finally, Elonia.”
It was Elonia’s turn.
All eyes were on her.
They were curious to see if she excelled in practical magic as well.
Elonia, instead of a staff, raised her rapier.
Of course, she kept it sheathed, to avoid injuring anyone.
She confidently drew a magic circle in the air with her sword.
‘This is a piece of cake.’
She hadn’t used magic in a while, but she was still experienced. There was no way she would fail.
She infused the magic circle with mana.
Rumble! Boom!
“…?”
“What was that?”
Everyone was startled.
Had there been a lightning strike?
It seemed like something had flashed.
Elonia was also confused.
Her vision had flashed, but there was no light where there should have been.
‘What? The mana flowed properly, but why didn’t the light appear…?’
Just then,
The students started murmuring.
“Hey, hey…! Look over there!”
“Gasp, what is that?!”
“It’s collapsing!”
“Elonia…?”
Garnethia looked at Elonia with wide eyes.
Elonia stared at the small storage shed at the edge of the open space, now reduced to rubble.
‘…I messed up.’
Her light spell had worked.
But it had been too powerful, and the small shed had collapsed under its force.