At that very moment, Amy and Ariana were fiercely sparring inside the dormitory training ground.
“Here I come!”
Ariana’s wooden sword lunged toward Amy’s torso. Instead of blocking with a shield, she chose to dodge and conjured a small flame aimed at Ariana’s head.
“Shit…!”
Ariana narrowly ducked the flame without retreating, closing in on Amy instead. Giving a swordsman distance from a mage is certain defeat. Having secured her range, Ariana swung her sword, confident in victory.
But this was all part of Amy’s plan.
“You fell for it.”
The instant Ariana’s wooden sword struck Amy’s shield, red flames erupted beneath her feet. It was a pre-set trap magic array.
“Ahh…!”
With a thud, Ariana knelt on the ground. Unfazed, Amy retrieved a potion she had prepared earlier and sprayed it on Ariana, as the minor burns would be easily healed by the potion. Of course, it helped that Ariana came from a noble family that could afford quality potions.
“So, looks like I’m better than you.”
“Shit… When did you get so good at setting up magic arrays?”
Amy’s hastily set trap was called a provisional magic array. While much weaker than proper magic, its advantage was that it could be pre-set. However, due to its high difficulty, only those who specialized in magic could use it effectively.
“Do you think I just sat around doing nothing?”
“Yeah, you’re amazing. I was so worried when you stopped eating, but now I see you’ve become some kind of creepy strategist.”
Despite Ariana’s sharp glare, Amy merely shrugged.
“You getting caught means it should work in real combat.”
“Not next time. If we were using real swords, I could have finished you off in one strike.”
Indeed, Ariana wasn’t using her family’s sword technique, which was too lethal for her to control properly yet. Such a fierce style wouldn’t be suitable for practice duels anyway.
“We’ll see about that. I haven’t used my Flame Eye yet. Once I do, you won’t even get a chance to swing your sword.”
“Huh? Try it now. Think I can’t handle it?”
“Then try me.”
Their eyes met, sparks flying.
Same age except for their birthdays, both considered the best in their respective fields, and coincidentally both young ladies of ducal families – they were truly born rivals. Perhaps their friendship was possible only because their specialties in sword and magic kept them from constant conflict; otherwise, their inflated egos would have clashed endlessly.
“That’s enough, right?”
A cool voice echoed across the training ground. Lux had come out after sensing unusual mana fluctuations while studying in her room.
“You planning to destroy the entire training ground? Finish it at the Grand Competition.”
“When did Her Imperial Highness start caring so much?”
Ariana, still heated from battle, spoke aggressively. Lux’s eyebrows twitched at the sharp tone.
…
An oppressive silence filled the air. Then suddenly –
“Guys! Breaking news! Breaking news!!!”
Senna appeared shouting excitedly. Her loud announcement drew everyone’s attention. Another awkward silence followed.
“What’s wrong? This is breaking news, aren’t you curious?”
Tilting her head in confusion, Senna looked at Amy, who smirked. The mood had shifted, making it impossible to continue fighting now. Whispering to Ariana, Amy said,
“It’s your fault.”
“… Haa~”
Would asserting her pride here make her the bad guy? With a heavy sigh, Ariana roughly brushed her hair back and said,
“I went too far. Guess I was too on edge. Sorry.”
“Don’t worry about it. It happens.”
Lux readily accepted the apology, surprising Ariana. Was she always this gentle?
Thinking back, today’s class had been unusually active compared to usual…
“Are you two going to keep talking? Aren’t you interested in the scoop?”
Senna pouted, excluded from the conversation. Lux calmly replied,
“Let’s talk in my room. I’ll invite you.”
“Eh? Really?”
Though Senna had “conquered” many friends’ rooms, she’d never been in Lux’s. To be invited so willingly now…
Her eyes sparkling, Lux hesitated briefly before nodding.
“Sure. Follow me.”
“Yay~! All clear!”
“… What exactly?”
Ariana blinked watching Senna happily follow Lux, wondering if this was really the same Lux.
“Is that really Lux…? Was she always this friendly?”
“Something’s definitely off.”
“Right? It can’t be a Doppleganger, can it?”
Lux seemed remarkably different from before, almost like the monster that could perfectly mimic others’ appearances.
Quietly observing Lux, Amy finally spoke.
“This won’t be easy.”
“Eh? What won’t be?”
“Come on~! Lux says she’ll lock the door if we’re late!”
With Senna’s cheerful voice urging them, Amy nodded and moved. Not hearing the answer, Ariana walked beside her and asked again,
“What do you mean it won’t be easy?”
“This year’s Grand Competition… It won’t be easy.”
Amy could clearly see it. Lux’s mana was much more active than before, far surpassing any magician she’d seen so far. Was her own ability insufficient to notice this before, or was Lux suppressing it for some reason? Whatever the case, it was evident that Lux was stronger than when she consistently held first place.
“Really?”
Ariana’s eyes widened. Amy alone was already challenging enough, and now Lux had grown stronger too. This was a terrifying situation indeed.
‘I’ll have to ask Professor Allen for help.’
Even as Ariana decided this, Amy’s competitive spirit burned brightly at Lux’s return in greater strength.
“This time, I’ll win completely.”
Amy maintained top position not because she surpassed Lux, but because Lux’s performance had dropped lately. Thinking she could finally resolve this lingering feeling, Amy felt pleased. With various thoughts in mind, the two headed toward Lux’s room.
***
Lux’s room wasn’t particularly special.
A spacious single room exclusive to the Royal Class. Other students might envy it, but since everyone here was Royal Class, it wasn’t remarkable. Signs of recent study were scattered across the desk, but diligent studying was expected, so it wasn’t surprising.
More importantly, what was Senna’s big scoop?
“Girl?!”
“… Really?”
“!”
Watching her friends’ shocked reactions, Senna smiled smugly. Yes, this was the joy of chasing scoops!
“It’s true! I saw her enter the dorms together!”
“Aren’t the faculty dormitories separated by gender?”
“Then it’s a rule violation, right? We should report it!”
At Ariana’s playful shout, Amy responded,
“What if she leaves? Can you win the competition without Professor Allen?”
“Of course. We won last year too, didn’t we?”
Isn’t Minerva Academy’s standing independent of Allen? Especially the Royal Class, whose members could likely rank first in other academies even if they placed last here. Winning without Allen wouldn’t be difficult. Even Amy couldn’t argue against this.
“B-but she’s getting stronger, isn’t she? You won’t find Allen’s lessons anywhere else.”
“That’s true… Guess there’s no choice. We’ll have to overlook it specially.”
Actually, Allen became a professor for a mission and couldn’t leave easily, but they wouldn’t know that. After pondering, Ariana asked Senna,
“Is she pretty?”
“Huh? What does that matter?”
If someone was prettier than them, it would be rare. Wouldn’t identifying her be possible then?
“… Do people usually say that kind of thing?”
Amy gave her a cold look.
“So what? Especially Lux, practically the empire’s number one beauty. Looking at such lovely faces every day, normal women probably seem like squids to her, right?”
“Love isn’t determined by appearance alone.”
“That’s what they call the deception of the privileged. Men can’t feel romantic attraction unless women are pretty or have good figures.”
“Haa…”
Watching Ariana explain like she was teaching a child, Amy shook her head.
“So, is she pretty? Pretty enough to distract Professor Allen?”
At Ariana’s question, Senna blinked and answered,
“Um… Well, she was tall.”
“What? You couldn’t even see her face properly?”
“But she was wearing a robe.”
“Is she even a girl?”
“Yes! That’s certain!”
“Proof?”
“Women’s intuition!”
Senna’s declaration made Ariana frown. Though tempted to refute, she remembered Senna’s instincts had never been wrong. Listening quietly, Lux finally spoke,
“Why don’t we just ask during tomorrow’s class? That’s the fastest way, right?”
“That’s true. Besides, whoever Professor Allen sees is none of our business, right?”
“Th-that’s right…”
“Ah~ But I don’t like it. He might start neglecting us.”
Unlike the hesitant Amy, Senna pouted. Ariana looked exasperated. Would the professor really neglect students just because he’s dating? What kind of logic was that?
“Are you his girlfriend? Worried about being neglected?”
“But we’ve never had such a young professor before. Don’t you feel like he’s like an older brother?”
“An actual older brother would never say that…”
Coming from the only child Senna, perhaps. Ariana shook her head, preparing to explain how terrible siblings could be. Despite her passionate speech, Senna’s determination didn’t waver.
“Anyway! I won’t approve anyone I don’t personally recognize!”
“… Fine, do as you wish.”
Ariana sighed, respecting her friend’s fantasy.
“I’ll definitely ask tomorrow!”
Both Amy and Lux silently supported Senna’s actions, secretly curious themselves.
***
Meanwhile, at that moment, Allen was having a verbal spar with Black Wolf in his room. The topic? Showering.
“Take a shower?”
“No.”
“Don’t you feel gross?”
“Nope.”
“You smell, take a bath.”
“I don’t.”
“Stop arguing and shower. Or leave.”
“No to both.”
“It’s an order.”
“I refuse.”
Faced with Black Wolf’s stubborn stance, Allen sighed.
“Why won’t you shower?”
“Why should I do something I dislike?”
Seriously, do I have to painfully explain this to a kid? Allen covered his face, feeling slightly depressed.
“Hey, you took baths fine at the hot springs.”
“The warm water just felt nice.”
Now that he thought about it, Black Wolf only got clean with water back then too. Was it because he was a water-based creature and disliked cleaning, or just generally opposed to it? Allen, who believed in cleansing oneself before sleeping, couldn’t let this slide.
“Just sleep. I’ll leave.”
At Allen’s ultimatum, Black Wolf reluctantly offered a condition.
“I’ll shower if you join, like last time.”
“… What?”
What was this nonsense?
Allen blinked.
“You can wash me. Otherwise, forget it.”
“…”
Instead of backing down, Black Wolf presented counter-options. Staring at this strange binary choice, Allen hesitated briefly before…
Nodded.
Thus, the two headed to the bathroom together.
“…”
Walking ahead, Allen failed to notice Black Wolf’s swaying tail.
