A Great? First Step (1)

As lunch time ended, Reinhardt and Ariel naturally had to part ways. The next classes were their respective majors.

“Don’t forget what I told you.”

“…Yes.”

After eating, what Ariel received was Reinhardt’s rapid-fire lecture. To summarize, remember that you’re my fiancée outside and act accordingly, be more aware of others’ gazes, if there’s something you don’t know, ask me, and so on…

‘Something feels off…’

As she listened, she realized that this sounded more like advice given to a younger sibling than to a fiancée. Had Claudia always grown up hearing such things? It’s pitiable. She should quietly console her when they meet next.

Thinking of content that would make Claudia burst into laughter if she heard it, Ariel parted ways with Reinhardt. She was alone again, but unlike before, Ariel didn’t mind at all.

‘Finally, the first class…!’

The common subjects she had earlier were content Ariel already knew, which she could solve with her eyes closed, but the magic class starting now was completely different.

Unlike swordsmanship, each person’s talent for magic varies greatly. For example, Mari uses light attribute magic, while Ariel handles ice and lightning attributes. Even just these two people would be mismatched if they took the same class.

Therefore, the magic department has fewer students but takes a nearly one-on-one tutoring approach. Of course, there are common magics used by everyone and theoretical parts that aren’t practical, so everyone will attend those together, but in the end, it feels more like private tutoring than a class taken together.

In other words, even Ariel herself had no idea what kind of classes she would be taking or how. In the original story, it was narrated from Mari’s perspective, so she had a rough idea of how her classes would proceed, but there was no way to know about Ariel’s classes, which weren’t even described. She didn’t even know who would be assigned to her, let alone anything else.

‘Still, I remember that someone decent was assigned to me.’

She tried to recall for a moment, straining her memory, but nothing came to mind.

‘Well, it doesn’t matter. Whatever it is, it’ll be helpful.’

If someone incompetent was assigned, she would study on her own or do something else, but surely it wouldn’t come to that. Ariel hurried her steps with a small expectation. There was still time until the next class, but for some reason, she wanted to arrive early and wait.

The department classes at Milano Academy weren’t in different classrooms of the same building, but each subject had its own separate building. This was because the subjects taught were so different, and some required large spaces, which would be troublesome if they overlapped with other departments.

For example, if someone from the magic department used an area-of-effect spell that reached the training grounds of the swordsmanship department. It’s a simple scenario but one that could actually happen.

Therefore, when designing the academy, each department was given its own building, and among them, the magic department was coincidentally the farthest from the main building. The reason, of course, was that it had the highest probability of accidents. It was unavoidable. If I were to use magic intentionally, it would be nothing to overturn this entire area.

‘Thanks to that, well, I’m walking a decent amount…’

Even if it’s said to be far from the main building, how far could it be? It’s less than a 10-minute walk away. Having memories of walking to high school and currently doing various exercises for training, this much doesn’t even count as a walking exercise.

But some delicately raised individuals find even this bothersome and try to use magic or attempt to order someone to do it for them. Needless to say, the academy’s staff never help with such things, and using magic in unauthorized places is strictly prohibited.

“You there, student.”

“W-What?!”

“Using magic here is forbidden. Please come with me quietly.”

“W-When did I use magic! Do you have evidence?! Do you?!”

“With you displaying magical power so openly, no evidence is needed. I won’t say much more. Come along quietly. Or would you prefer to be taken by force?”

“D-Damn it!”

Turning slightly at the noisy sound from behind, I could see a thoughtless student being dragged away by the security team.

Milano Academy doesn’t have something like a disciplinary committee. Instead, there’s a security team whose main job is to protect the academy and guard against potential intruders from outside, but since there’s usually no such occurrence, their main duties are patrolling and controlling the academy’s interior. Their role is to catch rule-breakers like just now without mercy and administer appropriate punishment.

It was clearly written in the enrollment guide, so I don’t understand why everyone tries not to follow it. This level of control is nothing special.

Seeing someone being dragged away as an example, others started walking obediently to their department buildings. In situations like this, once someone becomes a sacrificial lamb, the situation ends.

By the way, I had been walking for a while, so I was at the front of the group. Huh? How did it end up like this?

The magic department’s building was like a large tower. Lecture halls for basic theory classes, a resource room with magical texts and theses, self-study rooms for individual study, and so on. It seems they’ve scraped together every element needed for studying. I thought it would be just classroom-level facilities, but to think it would be this extensive… Ah, come to think of it, there were descriptions in the original story. I forgot.

“New students, please follow the guide.”

Upon arriving at the building, people who looked somehow exhausted guided us to the classrooms. Wondering who they were, I asked discreetly and was told they were teaching assistants… I almost found myself offering a prayer of condolence without realizing it. These people are not human. They’re mere slaves who must do whatever the professors tell them to do.

As an aside, this building didn’t have a separate name, but among students, it’s called the Tower of the Magic Department of Milano Academy, or Milano Magic Tower for short. I should start calling it that from today too. It’s easy to say, and even the faculty call it that, so it’s practically the official name.

“Please wait here.”

“Thank you.”

After thanking the TA who guided me, I entered the classroom to be greeted by quiet stillness. The interior of the classroom resembled a university lecture hall.

A moderately sized podium, a huge blackboard in contrast, and the student seats were arranged in a large circle, though I wonder if even half of them will be filled. The magic department doesn’t seem to have many people.

‘There’s still some time left.’

Checking the time discreetly, there was still quite some time until class started. Did I come too early? I thought I had arrived just in time, but apparently not. Next time, I should take note and come after playing around a bit more.

I sat down in a corner and straightened my posture. I’d love to just lie down, but I was told to maintain dignity as a duke’s daughter, so I couldn’t. How sweet it is to lie down in the classroom! These nobles who don’t know the joys of school life are pitiful!

Come to think of it, I know but can’t practice it, right? Isn’t this more miserable? Huh? Hmm…?

I suddenly felt depressed.

As I was lost in various thoughts, people gradually started entering the classroom. I could hardly see any faces I recognized from the entrance exam. Especially that Gilbert or Nilbert guy’s face wasn’t visible. Well, he messed up so badly in the exam, it would be stranger if he had passed. Unless he bribed someone, it wouldn’t happen.

Ah, there’s Number 2 who took the exam with me. So he did pass. Well, he did fairly well. It’s an understandable selection.

As time passed, the lecture hall quickly filled up, and as it neared class time, no more people entered.

‘How many are there? One, two, three…’

Roughly estimating, there weren’t even 20 people. Is this really the number for one year? Come to think of it, I heard the general department and swordsmanship department had quite a few people, but the magic department is talent-based and the entrance exam is said to be particularly difficult, so I heard there were fewer people accordingly.

But seeing it like this really drives it home. As I was absentmindedly counting people, suddenly the door burst open.

“Ah, I’m not late…!”

The one who burst through the door at the last minute was none other than Mari. She looked around, seeming relieved as she caught her breath. There are many empty seats, so she’s free to sit anywhere, but considering her personality, she probably won’t sit near the exit…

“I-I look forward to working with you…”

Seeing Mari sit down next to me with a somewhat shy smile, my thoughts tangled and I froze in place.