episode_0119

The rumor of Harold taking on a new position as a professor quickly spread throughout the entire swordsmanship department.

He was already quite famous to begin with. A war hero, no less.

If there was anyone in the empire who knew how to handle a sword, it was the legendary Sword Master whose reputation had spread not only to the swordsmanship department but to other departments as well.

“I had a feeling he wasn’t at the mansion on the last day Edan was there….”

Perhaps they were preparing for an interim professor at the academy during that time.

When Lily first came face to face with Harold, who had even followed her to Luminaire Academy, she almost let out a scream in shock. It was fortunate that she was too surprised to even let out a scream.

She had a rough idea of how he came to be a professor at the academy.

After all, it was not like the empire to leave a war hero like Harold to peacefully manage his territory.

Although he had retired from the position of the King’s Three Swords, he was still a figure of power within the empire.

He must have already received offers from various institutions of the empire. He probably had been rejecting them until this semester, when he took on the temporary professorship at the academy.

…Even though it was called a temporary professorship, he could extend it as long as he wanted, so it was hard to say if it was really temporary.

“I never expected my father to come to the academy. Perhaps he thought it would be more appropriate to be out here alone at the mansion, haha….”

“…Yes, if you thought that Edan would no longer be around every day, you might have thought that way.”

Edan was casually talking like this in the meantime, so I just responded appropriately.

In truth, Lily didn’t feel much regret. With her father taking on the position of professor in the swordsmanship department, achieving good grades would be much easier.

Compared to the other professors in the swordsmanship department, there were hardly any who could match Harold’s status and achievements, so most of them would naturally give favorable evaluations to match his preferences.

Of course, even without resorting to such tactics, Edan would have been able to achieve good grades in most subjects.

…If there was a problem, it was probably on my side.

Now that Harold was present at the academy, the sword training between Edan and Harold could happen at any time.

During the weekly basic magic swordsmanship class, and perhaps even during the regular sparring training that could take place weekly, just like at the mansion.

Even in the last sparring session, Edan would spar almost every two weeks, but now that he had grown a bit since then, if he were to spar as frequently as before….

“Maybe I’ll have to spar with Harold once a week and come back.”

It was troublesome.

Really troublesome.

Because the dorm room Lily and Edan were currently using was not a space for just the two of them.

It was risky to engage in intimate…rewarding acts in the living space where Isabelle lived, separated only by a thin door.

If I were to moan by mistake, I would probably be caught 100%.

But to stop doing what I had always done until now overnight was an act that my pride could not tolerate.

I couldn’t go back on what I had said once since I was born a man…even though my body belonged to Lily.

“Well, I don’t think there’s any need to worry too much right now.”

As long as the sword training between Harold and Edan took place, and Edan had to defeat Harold in swordsmanship, it was a problem worth worrying about.

Since Harold had just taken on the position of interim professor not long ago, he would be busy for a while without a fixed schedule, and he wouldn’t be able to spar with every student during class.

It had only been ten days since they started attending the academy, so conditions were not ideal for the two of them to start sparring immediately.

Perhaps the schedule would be disrupted, and the sparring might never take place.

Thinking like that, worrying now would be futile. Thinking this way made me feel relieved.

“After all, Harold seems to only teach basic magic swordsmanship, and even if Edan were to spar with Harold in another class, it would be hard to prove that I haven’t seen it.”

Just avoid it once a week, just once.

With that thought in mind, I tried to reassure myself in any way I could.

…But the sword training between Edan and Harold returned much sooner than I had anticipated.

⁎ ⁎ ⁎

Exactly two weeks had passed since Lily started attending Luminaire Academy with Edan.

Today was the day of the weekly shared class with Ethan.

Harold’s lecture was as usual. Sadly.

As soon as the morning class ended, I quickly packed up my things and hurried out of the classroom, escaping the Magic Department building.

I hesitated for a moment, knowing that Ethan would come to pick me up at the Magic Department building again.

Coming to the Magic Department building two weeks in a row to pick me up was definitely a mistake as a full-time maid…

“Oh, Lillith. It seems like the class ended a bit early today.”

“…Master Ethan.”

“Oh, just in case you were wondering, I wasn’t specifically waiting for you. I was just wandering around the academy because I didn’t want to waste time sitting still in the Swordsmanship Department building.”

“…What a coincidence. Passing by the Magic Department building at the exact time my class ended.”

“Well, isn’t that a strange coincidence?”

…Ethan is getting more shameless by the day.

It was so obvious that he came all the way to the Magic Department building to pick me up, yet he acts like he’s just passing by.

When I warn him that it’s not a good behavior for an employer to do so, and he continues to act like this, it makes me suspicious that he’s trying to make things difficult for me.

“The student cafeteria is much closer to the Swordsmanship Department building than the Magic Department building, isn’t it? Why do you always take such an inefficient route like this…”

“Let’s go quickly, Lillith. You can’t be late for my father’s class tonight, right?”

“Of course, that’s true, but…”

“If you’re really concerned, how about taking off the lace cuffs and head dress? Then you wouldn’t have to fulfill the duties of a full-time maid…”

“No, that’s not possible.”

“…Well, if Lillith doesn’t like it, there’s nothing I can do.”

I have to definitively prove my affiliation with the Blackwood family, so I have to continue like this.

Moreover, if I suddenly stop being a full-time maid after attending the academy like this for two weeks, rumors might spread that Ethan fired me.

It would be troublesome in many ways. To avoid that, I have to do my best in my role as Ethan’s full-time maid until I graduate from the academy.

That was the way for Lillith to survive in the academy.

***

The second week of basic magic swordsmanship lessons from Harold.

As soon as the afternoon class time arrived, Harold appeared in the indoor training ground and announced today’s lesson plan to the gathered students.

“To assess each individual’s approximate skill level, starting today, you will pair up and practice dueling.”

The orientation-like first day of class had passed, and from the second week, it seemed like we were moving into more serious lessons.

“Before pairing up for dueling, the four of you I call out will come forward.”

As Harold called out the names, the students in the Swordsmanship Department began to look around, wondering if they were the ones being called.

From the first name, it was easy to see the criteria Harold used to select the participants.

“Ketmyojosegyikwot Volt.”

“Ethan Richard Blackwood.”

“Natalie Sharp.”

“Caraham Jemuel August.”

…Yeah, that’s how it usually goes.

From the first name of Ketmyojosegyikwot, it was clear that the top students, or ‘foreign’ grade students, were gathered here.

No one from the Swordsmanship Department’s first-year students could beat those four.

If they were paired up with other students for dueling, the other students would just end up getting beaten badly.

“You four are not allowed to duel with other students besides yourselves.”

“Yes, understood!”

The confident responses from the students, especially Natalie, who confidently answered among the three boys, were quite cute.

“Enrolling in Luminoir Academy seems to be a good decision in this aspect.”

Just seeing my favorite character from my past life, Natalie, in person was already half of my goal achieved in enrolling in the academy.

Anyone who knows her charm would surely fall for her. Not only is she pretty, but her confident personality is what makes her truly charming.

The noble and warriors who can use magic, standing confidently among them despite being a commoner with no power at all.

Seeing her standing tall among men as the only woman, it felt like watching Natalie from the game in a past life, bringing a satisfied smile to my face.

If it were my past life, I would have pressed the print screen key almost every time her expression changed, excluding the CGs I collected separately.

It was regrettable in many ways that I couldn’t capture her orange ponytail fluttering in the mountain breeze.

‘But still, it doesn’t make my heart race like before.’

Perhaps spending too long as a release in the world of “Luminor Academy” has something to do with that.

Well, with this body, there was never a chance to connect with Natalie, and besides, she already has her childhood friend, Thomas.

I never had the right to interfere in the love between the two who tried not to disturb the protagonist, Gethm Jocet.

Just watching my favorite character from my past life come to life from afar was enough to satisfy me.

“….”

On one hand, it was comforting not to feel any romantic emotions towards the character I once loved.

…Still, it was an inevitable and melancholic feeling to no longer be able to feel the emotions I once had.