“So this is where Miss Serraphila lives,” said Kunon.
Her house was located in an affluent residential neighborhood near the prince’s. Naturally, that meant Serraphila was living in a luxurious mansion. In fact, it was such a nice place that Kunon began to worry. After all, Advanced class students had to earn their own living expenses.
The school paid rent, so that wasn’t an issue. An excessively spacious residence, however, was difficult to maintain. The need to pay servants out of pocket made hiring large numbers of them risky. That was especially true directly after a student enrolled, when they hadn’t yet secured a stable income.
“This place looks like it requires a lot of upkeep. Is she doing okay?”
Kunon and Rudin had just arrived at a table in the mansion’s overly large yard.
This was Kunon’s third teatime that day. He had tea twice with the elderly butler at the café, and he was having another round at Serraphila’s house.
“Changes will be made starting next month. Honestly, Miss Serraphila was recommended to join the Advanced class based on her results on the entrance exam. She originally intended to enter Second Level,” Rudin said, standing by the table in a serving position. His butler’s clothes made him look very natural in that role. “In the end, she chose to enter the Advanced class.”
That explained it. Second Level students could receive an allowance, which would make a house of that scale no problem. Serraphila had ended up in this situation because she’d thought she would be in Second Level.
“We plan to send multiple servants home and search for a more suitable house. We don’t yet know how much money the young miss will be able to earn, so there is still much uncertainty.”
That reminded Kunon. The magic school had two entrance exams: one specifically for the Advanced class and another for general admission. Kunon had taken the former.
Which test a student took depended on whether they had a recommendation from someone connected to the school. Kunon assumed his recommendation had come from his instructor Zeonly, but…the truth was, he didn’t actually know.
Serraphila had taken the latter exam, and she had done so well she was recommended to enter the Advanced class. Gioelion had likely received the same recommendation, but he’d turned it down because of his background.
“Will you stay in Dirashik, Mr. Rudin?” asked Kunon. “Or are you going to leave?”
“That is a good question. I originally intended to serve Serraphila here until she graduated, but circumstances have changed…”
Serraphila had disappeared for two weeks right after enrolling. Now she was acting rudely and shutting herself in her room.
Part of Rudin’s duty was to act as her guard. He owed much to the Quartz family and would risk his life to defend Serraphila. And yet he had just made a mockery of that resolve. He had already committed a fatal error from which he could never recover. Multiple errors, in fact.
So what if his charge had returned home safely in the end? That didn’t change the fact that she had disappeared on his watch. Whether he stayed or left, he would need to return to the Empire at least once to apologize to the Quartz family.
“Don’t worry, Mr. Rudin,” said Kunon.
“Excuse me?”
“I’ll look after Miss Serraphila if you leave. As a gentleman, it’s the least I can do!”
I find that more frightening than reassuring, Rudin thought.
Kunon was the boy he least wanted getting close to Serraphila. He was as shallow as a puddle. He hit on girls as easily as he breathed, and it deeply unsettled the elderly butler.
“And Miss Elva seems quite taken with Miss Serraphila, so I’m sure she’ll look after her, too!”
At this point, that would be even more vexing, Rudin thought.
He had taken care of Serraphila since her birth. While presumptuous, he thought of her like a daughter or a granddaughter. That was how important she was to him. And now she had been stolen away by a girl she’d known for only two weeks.
He couldn’t help but feel jealous. If he were a little younger—say, by four or five years—he wouldn’t have been able to handle it. He probably would have gone to his room, buried his head in his pillow, and screamed. Such was the degree of his frustration.
He hadn’t known it was possible to get so worked up at his age. Dark emotions swirled in his heart. But the elderly butler let none of it show on his face.
“Please lend the young miss a hand whenever she requires it.”
Rudin would probably need to leave Dirashik temporarily.
But I’ll definitely be back, he thought.
Shortly afterward, Elva joined the cheerful boy with the eye mask and the elderly butler at the table, with no inkling of the darkness broiling in the latter’s heart.
“Hey. So I talked to her,” she said, sitting down in the chair Rudin had pulled out for her.
“What did the young miss say?” he asked, pouring Elva’s tea gracefully despite his impatience.
“She can give you a more detailed explanation, so I’ll keep it short.”
Earlier, right after Elva had effortlessly drawn Serraphila from her room, she’d sent Kunon and Rudin away. It had only taken one look at the girl for Elva to guess what was going on. Her indigo hair was disheveled and there were bags under her eyes. Her clothes were worn out and wrinkled.
Elva recognized the symptoms right away—Serraphila was doing something she herself had once done when she was younger. And in the end, her hunch had turned out to be right.
“She was training,” Elva declared.
“…What?”
“She was training at magic. She locked herself in her room to devote herself to the task day and night.”
“……”
Rudin’s mind went blank at the unexpected answer.
“Wh-why…?” asked Kunon. “Why did she lock herself in her room? Why wouldn’t she let anyone near her?”
Serraphila wasn’t doing anything wrong. Was there really any reason for her to shut herself away? Both men were at a loss.
“Think about it. What girl would want a guy to see her working so hard that she starts neglecting even her appearance?”
There were times when girls had to abandon their feminine side, such as when they were so engrossed in a project that personal grooming fell by the wayside. Serraphila was only twelve years old. That was a sensitive age. It was only natural that she would be self-conscious. Even Elva had needed a little time to accept how slovenly she became when she immersed herself in a project.
“I will explain the rest, Sister.” Serraphila walked up to the table. She had cleaned up her appearance. The bedraggled girl who had emerged from her room earlier was no more. “My apologies for worrying you. Thank you for coming, Mr. Kunon.”
“This is the least I could do for you, fair lady.”
“It sounds like my butler caused you trouble. My apologies.” Serraphila bowed, causing the elderly butler to grow flustered.
“Y-Young Miss…”
“Gramps.” Serraphila stared at Rudin. She had spent the last few days yelling at him from behind her door, but now she was back to her usual self. That didn’t mean she wasn’t angry, however. “I told you to leave me alone multiple times. Why didn’t you listen?”
“I, well… I could not simply leave you in your room like that. I was worried.”
“You would have just fussed over me if I told you what I was doing. I didn’t want that. I really just wanted you to leave me alone. That was all I asked of you. Instead, you got so worried about me you bothered Mr. Kunon. You even made Sister Elva come all the way here.”
“…Young Miss…”
If possible, Serraphila had wanted to avoid telling anyone what she was doing. At this point, however, she had no choice.
“I witnessed something special on the expedition: true magic. I saw it over and over again, and each time it made my own abilities look like child’s play. I came to believe that, as I am now, I have no chance of keeping up with the Advanced class.”
That was why she’d decided she needed to train. She had no time to lose. If, over the next month, she saw no potential for her magic to grow, she would consider transferring to Second Level.
Serraphila was a daughter of the Quartz family. She had to avoid shaming her house. She couldn’t allow others to think she was clinging to her position in the Advanced class despite insufficient magical ability.
“If you had told me that, I would have left you alone!” exclaimed Rudin.
“Oh, Gramps. No, you wouldn’t have.”
“Please trust me!”
“I’m saying this because I trust you. I’m training so hard I’m staying up until I collapse and forgetting to eat until my body can’t take it anymore. But I have to keep going. I have no choice but to push myself to my limit. I can’t rely on anyone else, either.
“I know you can’t simply sit back and watch me treat myself like that. The other servants can’t, either. I appreciate your concern, but I really don’t need it right now. I want to become a sorcerer. This is the first time in my life I’ve felt this way. So please, don’t stop me.”
Serraphila’s eyes shone brightly as she spoke. Some fatigue was still visible on her face, but the strength of her determination was obvious.
“…Young Miss…”
Rudin could clearly see how much Serraphila had grown. He knew she was steadily leaving his side. She was saying she didn’t want to be a child any longer. She wanted to be independent. She was trying to walk on her own two feet.
Trying to stop her would be a mistake. He had no choice but to watch over her. In other words, he had to do as she said and leave her alone.
“Besides, I want to spend more time with Sister Elva. I must remain in the Advanced class.”
“…Huh?”
…Rudin would be lying if he said those words didn’t make him anxious. But for the time being, he would let Serraphila do as she wished.