episode_0058

Si-an knew immediately what had been heard.

The awkward atmosphere.

Trying to act confident but with eyes that betrayed unease.

Hedi was clearly on guard.

There was only one thing that could cause a person who had been casually having lunch together until just now to change like this in an instant.

… Hearing the conversation between Darius and O in the backyard.

“You heard it….”

“Yeah.”

Si-an could no longer hide or deny.

“…That you were a prince of a country, I couldn’t have imagined.”

“That doesn’t mean you have to treat me differently. I will tell you everything, so just as usual-”

“As usual? That must be difficult?”

Unexpectedly, Hedi’s response shook Si-an.

“I thought we were quite close. But now, I’m not sure.”

Hedi continued.

“If you’re hiding it from everyone, even Iris Professor shares the same background, fine. But… why did you never mention anything to me, while you told that unrelated Darius guy?”

“……”

“I feel like I’ve been made a fool of. Do Lloyd, Bobby, and Louis know who you really are?”

“…Yes. They know.”

“Sigh.”

Hedi let out a sigh of complicated emotions.

It was the moment when the sense of alienation she had suppressed all along suddenly burst out.

In fact, she hadn’t expected to be disappointed to this extent… but it had accumulated.

After opening up her heart to Si-an, she revealed many things to him.

Emotions, expressions, worries she could share as a friend, and other things.

Unlike when she lived defensively with thorns, she gradually showed sincerity only when facing Si-an.

However, the deeper their relationship grew with Si-an, the less she seemed to understand him.

Hedi wanted to show a part of her life to Si-an. But Si-an seemed busy intentionally hiding things about himself.

Was that why?

Even if it had been just a casual relationship, he was a prince of a country. It should have been a problem to overlook.

Hedi had become so sensitive due to accumulating suspicions.

“…I’m sorry. I’ll tell you everything.”

“It’s okay.”

Hedi turned away from Si-an. And said,

“Whether you hide something or not in the future, I don’t care.”

“Just a moment. Where are you going?”

“Why do you want to know? Should a noble lady entangle herself with fallen nobility in the first place?”

“Is that… a sincere statement?”

“……”

Without answering Si-an’s question, Hedi walked away.

Si-an couldn’t stop her.

He could only stand still until she disappeared like a dot.

***

After the incident, Si-an occasionally encountered Hedi in the hallway.

Naturally, he tried to start a conversation, and each time, Hedi treated him as if he were invisible. She just looked ahead and passed by.

As the second test approached, Si-an’s mind was a mess of complexity.

Would he not be able to get along with her as usual in the future?

It weighed heavily on his heart.

To think that such a thing happened because of his mistake.

Before the possession, being an adult, he had been arrogant, thinking it was easy to deal with children younger than him mentally.

If he was going to hide something in the first place, he should have hidden it clearly, and if he was going to reveal something, he should have done so decisively.

He regretted it. It was difficult to control emotions with a brain in the current possessed body that was immature.

It felt like losing a precious friend.

He couldn’t let it continue like this.

If the current situation persisted, he would drift further away from Hedi forever. He had that intuition.

“After the second test… I should have a serious conversation with Hedi.”

Once the imminent exam was over, Hedi would likely have emotional space.

Si-an prepared a letter. A letter intended for direct delivery rather than through Stitch.

He hoped the day of the second test would come soon. In the meantime, he decided to focus on training.

Time passed, and the day of the second exam arrived.

Within the academy, the entire swordsmanship department gathered in a facility designed for special purposes.

A vast space that could easily accommodate all the students of the swordsmanship department.

The height of the ceiling was also far above, seemingly unreachable.

In the center of the facility were four narrow spaces each with erected barriers, enclosed spaces with transparent magical walls rising like holograms.

This facility was used for indirect combat practice during the second exam or special events.

Standing in front of the podium at the center of the facility, a professor called out to all the students of the swordsmanship department who had assembled.

“You’ve all gathered. Welcome! I am Bahamut, the instructor teaching the second-year swordsmanship class!”

Thanks to the amplification magic of the magic department’s female instructor standing beside him, his voice resounded loudly throughout the entire facility.

“As you can see, this facility is equipped with four spaces. They are the Indirect Combat Training System Rooms. Once you enter there, any fatal wounds you receive will be healed the moment you step outside! In other words, it’s a virtual reality space created by magic!”

“Today is the day of the second exam. All the students from the four classes of the first-year swordsmanship department have gathered here to take the same exam! The exam format is….”

When Bahamut nodded his head to signal, a female instructor below the podium extended her hand.

All the swordsmanship students who were looking at the podium fixed their gaze on the female instructor.

– Hwaaa!

Soon, a large magic circle unfolded in front of the female instructor. From the magic circle, small flames began to flicker.

– Fwoosh!

The flames grew larger and converged towards the center, forming a shape resembling an unfinished humanoid figure without legs.

“Kroooaaar!”

Ignis, the fire elemental.

A mid-level fire elemental capable of easily defeating about three lesser demons.

As soon as Ignis was summoned, Bahamut shouted consecutively to the students.

“The mid-level fire elemental summoned by the Elemental Studies instructor. We will now place these elementals in each of the four system rooms. So, what will you, the swordsmanship students, do? You will enter the system rooms one by one and engage in combat with those elementals to vanquish them! Don’t worry! Even if the elementals are defeated, the Elemental Studies instructors are gathered here in abundance so that other students can take the exam!”

Upon hearing Bahamut’s words, the entire swordsmanship students started to murmur.

“Defeat a mid-level elemental?! Us, who have just crossed over to the second year?!”

“This is insane! Mid-level elementals are like bosses in lower dungeons!”

“We’ve just entered the first level of mastery. Is it even possible for us to defeat that thing…?”

“….”

Among the murmuring students, Cyan, unlike the others, was not focusing on the fire elemental Ignis.

Far away, amidst the students, was Hedie Marigold.

He was looking at her.

Hedie noticed his gaze and met his eyes.

“….”

“….”

After a brief eye contact, Hedie turned her head back towards the podium with an expressionless face.

“Sigh….”

Cyan also averted his gaze.

As usual, Hedie’s reaction was cold.

Cyan decided to stop thinking about Hedie for now.

It was the day of the second exam, so he decided to focus on the test.

If he continued to pay attention to Hedie, it would only add pressure and resentment.

“Yes… Once the second exam is over….”

That was when it happened.

“-That’s it! We will now begin the second exam for the first-year swordsmanship students!”

Bahamut announced the start of the chaotic second exam.

*

“Cain! Fighting!”

“Cain, you can do it! Make sure to defeat the elemental!”

Lucy from the Alchemy Department and Ellis, a long-time friend of Cain from the Magic Department, shouted towards Zeke while sitting in the seats resembling a colosseum on the third floor, watching the exam.

The first-year swordsmanship department exam is observed by various students, including those from other departments. Observing was optional as long as it didn’t interfere with other classes.

Cain, wearing a charming smile, waved to the girls in the audience seats.

In the midst of this, he spoke to Aria Silvesta beside him.

“I heard the exam will be conducted in an open format, feeling quite pressured.”

“It’s only burdensome if you let it get to you.”

“Easy for you to say… Huh? Who are you looking for, Aria?”

“…It’s nothing.”

Aria glanced around before turning her head back to the system room.

She briefly searched for a certain man.

The man who had helped her when she almost died at the hands of a griffon.

She never expected to meet him again, but during the early days of the second semester, she was surprised to encounter him in the swordsmanship training grounds, a place restricted to Ariel Academy’s swordsmanship department.

She assumed he must currently be a student in the department. Since today was a day when all first-year swordsmanship students gathered, she thought she might find him.

“…Why does he keep helping and then running away? I just don’t understand.”

Aria had a sense of indebtedness that she couldn’t shake off.

For some reason, even if he wished not to cross paths with her, she felt obligated to reciprocate what she owed.

It would have been enough to settle the debt incurred by risking her life.

“Well, if he doesn’t want it, I guess it doesn’t matter anymore.”

At that moment, someone placed a hand on Aria’s shoulder.

As Aria turned around and saw the person, she was taken aback and knelt down, showing respect.

“What brings you here…”

“Please, rise.”

With crimson silk-like hair and clear, bright blue eyes, it was Princess Rosaria.