How the hell should I know?
Her wailing had left the room in stunned silence, which was broken by Bear’s husky voice.
“Darnir Duval, if you have a problem with the group distribution, bring it to me. I made the selections.”
“Pah! Given your connection to this girl, I see no reason to trust—”
“Try saying that again.”
“Eek!”
It wasn’t often Bear spoke with such oppressive force. This was the sort of pressure he exerted on monsters in the Mystic Forest, but Bear knew how to use it well. What was normally directed at groups was now aimed at a single person—namely, Ribbons. I was right next to her, and I didn’t feel any of the effects. As simple as it looked, what Bear was doing was actually quite advanced. As much as it pained me to admit it, I couldn’t match him in this regard.
“That goes for the rest of you, not just Darnir Duval. If anyone’s taking issue with the teams, I’ll be happy to hear them. I can give you a thorough explanation.”
Though they could endure the rough language, that savage grin was going to scare some people. In fact, half the students were scared stiff. Ribbons’s legs were shaking. Maybe it was stubbornness or guts that kept her standing, but whichever it was, I didn’t mind seeing it. Both traits got you plenty of respect in Peylon.
Everywhere I looked, preparations for the academy festival were moving along. In the cafeteria, morning and evening, as well as the common room, it was all anybody was talking about.
“Are things going smoothly for general magic?”
“So far.”
After our meal, Lanmia, Luchirs, and I were enjoying tea and conversation in the common room. Gatherings like this were based on the traditions of banquet parties, so these were a sort of learning experience for me. I was sure all the adults telling me to make friends I could talk with on even ground would be grateful to know I was doing this.
There were a number of groups eagerly chatting away in the common room. Surprisingly, that included Ribbons and her flunkies. They didn’t notice us, since we were in the shadow of a partition at the edge of the room, but they were blabbing loud enough that I could tell exactly what they were on about.
“Honestly, unbelievable! How can they allow such a brute of a man to teach here?!”
“You’re quite right, Darnir. This is exactly the sort of thing you should alert your father to, is it not?”
“She’s right. Your father is an earl. He should be able to do something about a commoner or two.”
That sounds like trouble waiting to happen. Too bad the royal family runs this place, and they won’t be having any of that talk.
“Umm, Lowell, is that...” Lanmia asked hesitantly.
I don’t care that we have the same father, I don’t want to be in charge of her.
“Let’s not worry about it,” I said.
Noticing the way I was smiling, Lanmia didn’t pursue the matter. I saw no reason we shouldn’t just enjoy our own conversation, held at a reasonable volume.
“Th-That’s right,” she said, changing the subject, “I hear the art club is helping with general magic’s festival display.”
“That’s right. We’ll be doing something different this year. We’re going to have illustrations paired with all the songs we’ll be playing.”
Lanmia looked enthralled. “A shame it won’t be the same as last year. That was so beautiful, I’ve been hoping I might get the chance to see it again sometime.” It wasn’t just the teachers; the students also adored last year’s illusory magic. “Though I’m sure this year will be quite a wonderful sight as well. I look forward to it.”
That led to us talking about the spell we planned to use.
“This year, it’ll be coordinated magic, instead of synchronized. That’s done with four or fewer people, as opposed to synchronized, which is five or more.”
At times, it felt silly to have separate names when that was the only difference, but increasing the casters noticeably upped the difficulty, not to mention the trouble that came from the inclusion of conducting spells. It’s just that explaining all that would only bore those two, so I skipped over it. Sure enough, the two of them didn’t look particularly fascinated. What they wanted to know was who would be working with whom.
“Who have you been grouped with, Lowell?”
Lanmia didn’t beat around the bush, so neither did I.
“The third prince, the second son of Earl Mazoent, and the third son of Earl Pasto.”
“You don’t call them by their names?”
I forgot their names.
I couldn’t say that though, so I brushed it off with a smile. Frankly, while Lord Mazoent’s second son was all right, Lord Pasto’s third son wasn’t great at magic. Apparently they had joined general magic so they could be by the third prince’s side. While they seemed aware of their lack of talents, I still thought they should have instead joined a class involving swords or spears. Our prince should have noticed their intentions.
When doing group work like coordinated and synchronized spells in general magic, most groups had a mix of boys and girls. Despite that, you didn’t see much mingling or social interaction in this class, even though I was pretty sure getting accustomed to the opposite sex was supposed to be one of the reasons we were at the academy.
Not that I was one to talk. The third prince and his aides more or less treated me like one of them. They didn’t quite interact with me like I was another boy, but neither did they treat me like a girl. I was quite fine with this.
I had heard that how you interacted with the opposite sex at the academy could have a big effect on your social debut. Recalling my earlier conversation with Lanmia and Luchirs, a vague look entered my eyes.
“Well, with my house on the decline,” I said, “I don’t really have the luxury of worrying about high society and what not. What if I tell them my house is declining? Present progressive form.”
“Oh, I’m sorry, Lera,” Colny consoled me. It was the weekend, so we were having coffee together in the attic room.
Ah, it feels so nice when she pats my head like this. Has she always done this for me?
Enjoying the coffee and baked treats, Colny let out a small sigh. “But you’re quite right. Word of Duval’s poor reputation is spreading. Recovering from that will be no simple task.”
“Ugh...”
I wondered how much of that was Ribbons’s fault. Her commotion in the common room had caused a few furrowed brows, even among the older students. Talking about the grim road ahead of me left me slumped over the table.
“However,” Colny said, lightly patting me on the back, “your status as the daughter kicked out by the current house head is the exact reason it’s necessary that you take over House Duval.”
So she was saying they were going to prop me up as someone to be pitied, and use that to wipe away the mess made by my father and brother. By putting someone new in charge, there would be a brand new House Duval. That’s noble politics for you. I sighed. Colny then patted me on the back some more, this time with much more force.
“Get a hold of yourself. Seeing as we can’t just cut Duval off, neither my family nor Peylon are going to let you go through this unassisted. Keep your head up and let the adults take care of all the undesirable parts.”
Oh. That’s true.
Although I was going to inherit my house once I became an adult, I would still be regarded as nothing more than a young girl who had only just come of age. Nobody was going to expect a young girl to be able to handle everything from day one.
“I feel a bit better thanks to you,” I told Colny.
“I’m glad to hear it. Now, let’s focus on the upcoming academy festival.”
“That?”
My rising spirits stalled and took a nosedive. Though that was a certain group’s fault, not Colny’s.
“Did something happen again?” she asked.
“In general magic, we’re sorting into teams for the festival show.”
“Mmm.”
“Ribbons caused a fuss because she wasn’t happy with the groups.”
“Again? That reminds me, she was making quite a scene in the common room the other night.”
She looked like she couldn’t believe it, which I couldn’t really blame her for. She knew all about the trouble Ribbons caused shortly after we entered the academy, and then at the hunting festival.
“Bear told her off, yet she kept on complaining in the common room. She even said she’d have our father get Bear removed from the academy.”
“Words fail me. She still has a poor grasp on the academy, doesn’t she?”