Today was, unfortunately, the day for the midterm exam results to be announced.
They were going to combine all the scores from the quizzes to reveal the midterm grades.
The plaza was getting noisy, and before I knew it, a crowd of students had gathered tightly.
They were waiting for the score notice to be posted on the big bulletin board.
Given the setting of our world, the way they announced the grades was quite outdated.
“Are you not going to look?”
“I can see it well enough from here.”
I stood on the balcony of the mansion across the plaza, observing the scene.
With just a bit of concentration, it wasn’t hard to read the letters from that distance.
“······?”
Suddenly, the plaza erupted with excitement.
What was it? Then I saw Sergey and Ludwig approaching, each holding a large scroll.
“I guess they’re announcing it now.”
“Looks like it.”
“Nervous?”
“······.”
There really wasn’t any need to be nervous.
Thanks to the transparently posted results of the surprise exam for Combat Magic Studies, I already knew I had secured first place, but the situation was a little murkier for Elemental Magic Studies.
Getting first place would be the best, but…
Even if I didn’t, it wouldn’t be a problem.
I could just flip the tables in the final exam.
So, as of now, it didn’t matter if I wasn’t first.
There was no reason to feel tense.
“Uh. I’m nervous. Super nervous.”
But I had to admit it.
I was definitely trembling.
Maybe noticing that, a warm hand slipped into my left hand.
Was she doing this to help me relax?
I tightened my grip on Emilia’s hand.
“It’s being posted. I can’t see the letters… Can you?”
“Yeah. I can see them.”
My heart was *thump thump* pounding away.
The score sheet was unfolding and being pinned to the bulletin board.
—First Year Elemental Magic Midterm Exam and Other Tests Combined.
The bold letters were clearly visible.
Names crammed in below.
Starting from the very top.
Who would be first?
—1st: Schlus Hainkel
“Ha.”
“What? Why? What is it?”
I couldn’t suppress a sigh.
Honestly, I wasn’t expecting much from Elemental Magic Studies, despite having scored full marks on the midterm; I absolutely bombed the quizzes.
There were way too many questions about fundamental principles of magic that were never explained in the original work, so I had to study everything to solve them without any shortcuts.
Even while writing down my answers, I felt frustrated as I wondered if I was even right.
Not that I could casually ask Iris or Erica if my answers were correct.
Well, I could, but…
My pride wouldn’t allow it.
Yet, the fact that I ranked first was incredibly satisfying.
It meant that my hard work, nearly trapped in the training room every day, had finally paid off.
“Next one is being posted.”
As sighs and cheers mixed in the plaza, Sergey began to unfurl the scroll on the bulletin board next to him.
Unlike with Elemental Magic, where I had no clue how I scored, the position in Combat Magic Studies was relatively straightforward.
So I felt somewhat confident.
—1st: Schlus Hainkel
Of course.
It was the expected result.
I was thinking of turning around and casually heading back.
“Ah…”
“Brother?!”
Suddenly, my legs gave way.
I plopped down, landing hard on my behind.
Fortunately, Emilia was behind me, so I didn’t end up hitting my head on the ground.
“What? Did you mess up that badly?”
“No. We both placed first.”
“What? What?! First? Top?”
“Not top yet. The final exam is still coming.”
“Even so! Scoring first in the midterms for both subjects while dual majoring is incredible!”
She started shaking my shoulders, bubbling with excitement.
It was definitely an unprecedented event.
Those brave enough to choose dual majors typically drop out after barely two weeks.
Maintaining top scores in both was a challenge akin to becoming a magic knight.
You had to skillfully manage mana from both your body and the environment.
“I’m kind of expecting it.”
“······?”
“Expecting you to rest. You’ve worked hard, brother.”
“······.”
Emilia gently tugged my hair back.
*Thud* my head met something hard.
It turned out to be Emilia’s collarbone.
I didn’t even need to look back to know.
Emilia was kneeling behind me, supporting me.
I relaxed my body completely, surrendering myself to her.
“Ugh….”
“Aren’t you too relaxed? This is still a balcony, you know.”
“What do you care? No one can see us from down there.”
“They would if they looked through the building windows.”
“Let them see. What’s the problem with this scene being seen?”
“It doesn’t seem like it would be… Yeah. No problem.”
The evening breeze at sunset felt nice and refreshing.
How many times had I enjoyed a moment of calm without a hint of anxiety since coming to this world?
I had subconsciously learned to trust Emilia to that extent.
I was exposing the back of my neck to an assassin hiding a dagger in my thigh, the closest enemy to me.
“I guess we’ll be leaving soon.”
“Yeah. We should get going. Erica must be making her decision soon.”
“Brother.”
“Yeah?”
With Emilia’s delicate hand holding mine, I had to lift my head.
I met her sharp black eyes staring back at me.
Emilia slowly leaned in, cradling my cheek with one hand.
‘Oh.’
In the moment Emilia closed her eyes, I realized the situation I was in.
I had to push her away.
Staying still was tantamount to consent.
Yet, I couldn’t muster any strength.
It felt like my whole body was anesthetized.
The pleasant chill and the soft touch on my back were paralyzing me.
I gave up.
Slowly closing my eyes, I surrendered to the moment.
My reason wasn’t strong enough to overcome my immediate desires.
*Swish—*
“Hmm?”
Hearing a rustling from my pants, I opened my eyes.
What I saw was Emilia, waving a handkerchief in front of my eyes with a giggle.
“I was just trying to get my handkerchief. I wanted to recharge my mana before leaving. What were you expecting?”
“······.”
“You had your eyes tightly shut. What were you really expecting? Huh? Huh?”
“Tch…”
I had indeed been played.
I placed my hand on Emilia’s head and roughly ruffled her hair as I got up.
“Is it fully recharged? Now hand over the handkerchief.”
“Not yet…”
“······.”
With her head bowed, Emilia gripped the handkerchief with both hands tightly.
It should have only taken about three seconds.
But even then, Emilia held the handkerchief without moving.
Time seemed to freeze.
I felt like I had discovered a way to make time pass.
Gently, I swept Emilia’s hair aside and rested my hand on her head.
Then, slowly and softly, I stroked her hair.
That’s when time began to flow again.
“Here…”
Emilia lifted the handkerchief with both hands.
It was neatly folded with a pretty ribbon on top.
Yet Emilia’s head remained bowed.
“Lift your head, Emilia. You can’t greet me like this.”
“······.”
“Emilia.”
“Ugh…”
“Are you crying?”
“No…”
Emilia slowly raised her head.
Her eyes were sparkling with unshed tears, although no actual tears fell.
Emilia was smiling brightly.
Offering me the handkerchief with a big smile.
“I’ll be back. It’ll be quick, a week.”
“Okay… Be safe. Come back and smash everything. Make sure they surrender so we don’t ever have to go back.”
“Haha. That might be tough.”
“Just go. If you leave now, it’ll be a close call for 7 o’clock.”
“Right. I’m off.”
“Okay…”
I tucked the handkerchief into my pocket.
Finally, I let go, tousling Emilia’s hair playfully.
She glared at me, possibly upset by my mischief.
I turned away from her.
That was a relief.
If she had clung to me while crying, it would have been truly problematic.
Maybe the intelligence agency judged that attacks that appealed to such emotions wouldn’t work on me.
Anyway, it was a great relief.
*
The post station.
I stood at the bustling platform where all the carriages gathered.
I thought I had just barely arrived.
Surprisingly, not a single person was there waiting for me.
Lazy bunch, seriously.
“Teacher!”
The first to arrive was Trie.
Clad in full armor, with a helmet tucked under her arm.
This was the first time I’d seen her completely armored.
I had seen her wearing light armor in Whist Forest, but this shiny getup looked both strange and fascinating.
As expected, all the eyes on the platform were focused on Trie.
“Did you wear that all the way here?”
“It’d be a hassle to carry it. Hehe.”
“······.”
Indeed.
A clear and rational reason.
If you could endure a little embarrassment, it was an excellent choice.
“Do you have no armor, Teacher?”
“I’m not fit enough to run around with heavy stuff like that attached to me. I’d just restrict my own movements.”
“Still, it could be dangerous in close combat…”
“Then you can protect me, can’t you?”
I planned to leave most of the close combat to Trie.
My skills were merely bubbles blown up through theory and one-on-one dueling.
In a real multi-enemy battle, I would probably be useless.
It was better to focus on my role as a magician to be effective.
“Wow….”
“Wow… Who’s that?”
“Isn’t it the Saintess?”
Silence fell over the once noisy platform.
I sighed as I turned to see a woman in a black nun’s outfit walking slowly toward me, her veil fluttering.
Having only seen her at school, I momentarily forgot, but indeed, she was a proper saintess.
“That’s quite noisy. How about changing into something else?”
“You want me to change here? What a peculiar hobby….”
“No, I meant in the restroom…”
“Hmm. I can’t do that. I shouldn’t hide my identity as a saintess outside.”
“······.”
I see.
Thanks to Iris, we were destined to cause a scene wherever we went.
“Schlus! You were waiting here! Huek… Hek…”
From afar, I spotted someone stumbling toward me with a large sack.
As I got closer, I realized it was Aintz.
“What do you have there?”
“Magic Stones! Huh… I thought I was going to die.”
“Once we get there, they’ll just be rotting magic stones anyway. There’s a massive surplus because of the war.”
“Ah.”
Aintz looked lost as he processed Iris’s blunt remark.
I had asked him to come alone, so it looked like he struggled to bring them from his home.
But I didn’t want to make light of his effort.
“There will be plenty of magic stones there, but they’ll be at least twice the price. It won’t hurt to bring some along. Hand them over; let’s share the load.”
“Uagh! You’re the only one who understands my heart, Schlus!”
“Don’t dive at me…”
If I hadn’t caught him in time, Aintz would have pitched himself right onto the carriage path.
We were now all present and accounted for, with the missing person still unconfirmed.
We stared blankly at the clock, waiting… waiting…
“7 o’clock. Time’s up.”
“······.”
Before I knew it, the sun had set completely, with the moon floating in the sky.
It was time to depart.
*Peep!*
In the distance, a coachman of a grand carriage was blowing a whistle.
That must be the carriage I had reserved.
I couldn’t afford to wait indefinitely for someone who wasn’t coming.
“I guess there’s no choice. Her parents probably held her back.”
“Yeah, Schlus. Don’t worry too much. Erica’s mom has quite the grip.”
“I don’t know much, but I think Erica wanted to go as well.”
Iris held a prominent position within her house, so the elders wouldn’t have raised too much opposition wherever she went.
Aintz was so often involved in eccentric antics that his parents had already given up trying to control him.
They just told him to do what he liked.
As for Trie, while her mom probably had worries, with Trie picking up her sword again and getting a chance to gain some battle experience, she likely couldn’t bear to say no.
But Erica’s situation was different.
With the formidable Madam Lichtenburg at the head of her family, Erica couldn’t just defy her mother’s opposition and waltz out.
I never really had high hopes anyway.
“Get on the carriage. I’ll be the last to board.”
One by one, we entered the carriage.
We secured the bag of magic stones in the compartment, working together to keep it from sliding around.
Peering inside, everyone was watching me, waiting.
It was time to go.
Time to leave any lingering thoughts behind.
Just as I stepped inside the carriage…
“Schlus Hainkel! Stop!!!”
A familiar voice called out.
It was a loud, chaotic, but welcome sound.
