The state-certified educational facility established under Eliya’s leadership.
There are various names attached to it.
Imperial, National, Public, Humanity Integration Foundation, and so on.
No matter how much you chatter about these, the name that actually reaches people’s lips boils down to one.
“Academy.”
It’s a simple and clear name.
That place is purely a facility for education.
Aside from the goal of cultivating the right talent, all other elements are ignored.
Especially class status.
In a society where class forms the backbone of the world, the condition of not considering class was revolutionary.
In other words, even commoners can enroll in Eliya’s Academy.
However, there’s one problem: commoners have no money.
The same goes for ordinary folk; they don’t have assets to invest in personal education.
Therefore, Eliya declared that she wouldn’t charge them tuition fees.
Of course, it wasn’t education without any strings attached.
First, tuition-free students had to prove their worth by achieving a certain level of grades each semester.
Second, after graduation, they must pay an entrance fee to the Academy.
Tuition-free students receive a separate certificate upon enrollment, which serves as the notice for the fee they have to pay.
It’s magically treated to prevent tampering, and if they fail to repay within a certain period, the debt collection team Eliya formed will take action.
They won’t use harsh methods.
Originally, the value of this entrance fee isn’t so high that an individual can’t bear it.
Most of the costs to run the Academy were covered by the Empire’s funds.
The sources of this money are two-fold.
Funds collected by regulating the unnecessary luxuries and pleasures of the nobility.
And money left over after dealing with embezzlers who had been skimming from the national treasury.
In any case, Eliya aggressively pushed forward her plan to establish an academy to break the class system.
Thus, the day of the Academy’s first entrance ceremony was approaching, just a month away.
And I was watching Amor, who was dressed in a school uniform.
“Daddy! How do I look?”
My daughter spun around proudly.
I felt flustered.
“……”
She’s now 14.
Amor is entering the first year of middle school.
She’s pretty.
Even without the bonus points of being my offspring, she can’t help but be.
After all, she’s the spitting image of the most shining Eliya in the Empire.
She can’t not be pretty.
It also gives me a feeling of seeing the young Eliya.
That’s why I feel flustered.
‘What if other boys see her…’
The Academy.
That is to say, a school.
A place where boys and girls of similar ages naturally mingle.
Eliya didn’t separate boys and girls for educational purposes, ensuring students have diverse experiences.
Likewise, we decided on her enrolling in the Academy because we hoped she would meet various people and gain much experience.
The kids liked it.
‘So, other boys are going to see her like this. They’ll definitely think she’s pretty.’
And that thought of “pretty” would be very different from how I, as her father, see her.
“Daddy? Why are you so quiet? Just watching.”
“…Ah. No, you’re just too pretty. Of course, you’re pretty.”
“Hmm. You’re not lying, right?”
“Of course not. Amor is the prettiest. How could I lie?”
Only then did Amor smile brightly.
She looked back at herself in the mirror.
Judging by her humming, she seems to be looking forward to her entrance.
“Daddy! I’m!”
“Me too!”
Donum rushed right in front of me, and Fides stood beside him.
Fides is 9 years old. He’s entering the second grade of elementary school.
Donum is 7 years old and going into the third grade of preschool.
Both wore the same design of the school uniform as Amor.
A clean-looking uniform with beige and white.
Preschool, Elementary, Middle, High School. They all wear the same uniform.
This was a topic of contention since the Academy was established.
Is it right to force all students to wear the same outfit?
Is it acceptable to suppress personal freedom?
But Eliya dismisses it outright.
She said if they were allowed to wear whatever they wanted, it would turn into a noble’s social party showcasing their luxuries instead of a place of education.
The attire of the nobility is much more extravagant and gaudy.
From wearing dresses they can’t even put on by themselves, it clearly shows their desire to show off.
From a young age, Eliya had been thoroughly fed up with the luxury and flaunting of the nobility.
Dresses from a boutique.
Necklaces, earrings, rings.
Special perfumes from who knows where. And so on.
Such things are how nobility distinguishes their ranks.
If someone wears cheap clothing, they are subtly looked down upon and treated poorly.
The Academy is a place where everyone learns and lives without regard to status.
If the nobility starts focusing on dressing up, it’s clear they’ll group together and disregard commoners or the poor, ruining the academic atmosphere.
Eliya would never allow such things to happen at the Academy.
When she forcefully argued it, the dissenters fell silent in agreement.
In the end, all students at the Academy wore the same uniform.
It’s not entirely bad.
The quality of the uniforms is uniform, and the Academy covers the costs.
And the little ones from elementary and preschool who came running to me also wore that uniform.
Green identification necklaces to mark elementary school.
And yellow necklaces for preschoolers.
They are incredibly cute.
“They both look great. Fides even looks a bit bigger than usual.”
“Hmm!”
Our second son seems to dream of having big muscles and a larger frame.
He enjoys being complimented like this since he stands out taller than his peers; I wonder if he’ll grow up robustly.
“Donum… looks really cute and pretty.”
“I want to look big too!”
“No, you don’t have to.”
“Hmm… but Amor unni said I’m the prettiest! I don’t want to be second!”
Sometimes Donum sees Amor as a competitor.
Though she is a kind and friendly sister, she still follows pretty closely.
On the other hand, Amor thinks Donum is simply adorable.
“Amor is the prettiest in middle school, and Donum is the prettiest in preschool.”
“…I see!”
Simple-minded and easily satisfied.
In any case, it’s cute.
Finally, Spei approached.
No one told them to do this, but everyone seems to be standing in front of me in their uniforms.
Am I supposed to give them an inspection?
‘Eliya must have checked everything while putting them on already…’
Except for Amor, the other three had her help getting dressed.
Spei and my wife approached and sat on my lap.
Even in front of the kids, this kind of skinship is no big deal.
‘Spei looks like a rich young master.’
Neat school uniform with a necktie.
Compared to Fides, who is bursting with energy, my son is quiet, making him even cuter to watch.
‘…It’s not just looking alike, that’s a fact, isn’t it?’
Now that I think about it, he’s the third son of the Imperial Family.
So yes, he’s rich and a young master.
A somewhat timid Spei was shyly waiting for my words.
“You’re cute.”
At the compliment, Spei tilted his head slightly.
Since he’s a boy, he doesn’t really like being called cute nowadays.
I deliberately said this knowing full well.
“Alright, alright. You look great. Like a little gentleman.”
As I patted his head and changed my wording, he smiled broadly as if he liked it.
The kids, both excited and nervous about going to a new place, stood before me in their uniforms, and I felt a bit emotional.
Why do kids grow up so fast?
Just yesterday, they were only up to my arms, but when did they all grow so tall…
As I quietly watched, Eliya whispered softly in my ear.
“You said Amor is the prettiest, right?”
“…Uh, yeah?”
“Then what about me? What number am I?”
“T-that’s, of course, within the Academy… Eliya is the best, the most beautiful, definitely.”
“Hmm…”
As I gently patted Eliya’s backside and stroked her hair, she seemed to be a bit bothered by it, so I had to pamper her until that night, away from the kids.
*
On the day of the entrance ceremony.
A crowd gathered at the massive gated entrance of the Academy surrounded by high walls.
Those who were seeing the Academy for the first time couldn’t help but gawk.
It was far too grand to be called an educational facility.
Not everyone can use ultra-long-distance teleportation like Eliya.
So except for a few, all members of the Academy had to stay within its premises.
To facilitate this, the Academy functioned like a small country.
It was equipped with residential areas for students, including dormitories, along with various amenities needed for daily life.
To manage that kind of scale, the Academy is immensely vast.
Even the most prestigious nobles stood briefly in awe of Eliya’s power and governance.
And just in front of those gates, people suddenly appeared.
“…!”
It wasn’t hard to recognize who they were.
The only person capable of large-scale long-distance teleportation on the continent.
With gently flowing black hair.
Cold red eyes.
The current Emperor of the Empire, Eliya de Bevel.
Along with her favorites, Judah and their children.
“Wow….”
The kids gazed in admiration at the Academy’s towering walls.
Judah and Eliya had seen it in person, but it was their children’s first time.
“It’s so big!”
“Are we living here now?!”
“We’re not living here; we’re coming and going, Fides.”
While Judah corrected Fides’ misconception, Eliya scanned her surroundings.
Noble carriages displaying family crests were numerous.
‘They have crests, but they’re not flashy. Well, it would have been quite difficult to prepare new carriages for today.’
She had warned in advance.
Don’t flaunt your wealth.
Nobles Eliya had encountered really showcased their wealth and power in every possible way.
Carriages were one of those displays, but today they were relatively modest.
In fact, upon sober reflection, following Eliya’s instructions is beneficial for the nobles as well.
If Eliya decides to start flaunting her wealth, who knows what kind of chaos that might lead to.
So it’s wiser for the nobles to be thrifty themselves rather than wait for the Emperor to go wild.
‘Their attire is neither excessive nor understated…. I can’t help but notice them giving submissive reactions, flinching as they glance this way.’
The Academy is solely a place for learning.
It should not be swayed by wealth or power.
Thus, no matter how much of an Emperor she is, here, she and her family shouldn’t be treated like powerful figures.
However, the people gathered nearby quickly recognized the Imperial Family and lowered their postures, discreetly making way.
This typical reaction of bowing before a person of power is to be expected.
‘It’s the first day, so it can’t be helped… I should expect improvement over time. Not kneeling is something, at least. It’s not too bad.’
The school where my children will attend.
Eliya had an obligation to check and evaluate whether the environment of that school was appropriate.
The first impression was a pass.
Filled with strangers.
The youngest, Donum, was very pleased with this new environment and experience.
The delighted youngest daughter suddenly shouted out.
“I’m Donum! I’m 7 years old! And I want to be big like Daddy…!”
“Donum. This isn’t the time for introductions. Please be quiet?”
Judah said politely yet earnestly.
She had been practicing her introduction at home, but now she was randomly shouting.
Why is her voice so loud?
“I’m Spei….”
“Spei. Not now.”
“……”
Evidently not hearing Judah’s correction, Spei was about to introduce himself late.
Fortunately, thanks to Amor, he quickly closed his mouth.
Spei acted like nothing happened and sat quietly.
As his shyness as a child faded, he began to reveal a calm personality with an expression that was often sulky.
He inherited Eliya’s cool and indifferent nature strongly.
Amor, finding this amusing, smiled and patted Spei.
He looked like a dazed cat, an adorable younger brother.
At that, Spei smiled subtly, as if he felt pleased.
While uninterested in outside matters, he becomes endlessly generous towards those he has opened his heart to and expresses his feelings honestly.
In this respect, he’s just like Eliya.
“There will be time to greet each other later, got it?”
Judah said while holding Donum and she nodded resolutely.
“Yeah!”
“Good girl.”
Fides chuckled at Donum’s reaction.
“Why are you laughing, big brother?!”
“Yelling in front of so many people, you silly.”
Judah gently comforted the sulking Donum.
Meanwhile, Eliya petted Fides softly as she said.
“You mustn’t call your younger sibling silly.”
Since they are only two years apart.
Though Fides and Donum often clash due to their similar personalities.
No matter how much love and discipline you give, it seems inevitable for brothers of a close age to bicker.
Still, they don’t take it too far.
When you look closely, it’s more like playful teasing among friends, which is why Judah and Eliya don’t scold them harshly.
“Fides is just not very good at expressing himself.”
When Amor said that, Fides turned red, as if feeling embarrassed to be treated like a child.
That expression resembled Judah’s younger days, bringing joy to Eliya.
After passing through the enormous gates and confirming the entrance of the students.
Even though the Emperor and the nobility are regarded as having significance, there are no exceptions in this procedure.
Eliya was satisfied with that thoroughness.
Then, as the family crossed the massive gates together, an expansive city unfolded before them.
A bustling street filled with lively people.
Particularly near the entrance, there were many shops selling fountain pens and notebooks that could help with studying.
Academy staff were also around, guiding students everywhere.
The vast educational facility erected by the Empire: the Academy.
This was the very first day they stepped into a place that rivaled a small country.
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