I Don't Know About That
"So… you didn't know where the Triam Academy entrance exam registration office was?"
"Our village is so far from the city that it was hard to get any proper information."
A bench near the academy's main gate. Dodging the swarms of light orbs drifting around, the girl and I relocated and exchanged a few brief words.
The conversation stuck mostly to basics—our names, our home villages, that sort of thing.
Her name was Sionel. She hailed from a village in the complete opposite direction from Arnil Village, where I'd been staying, and she'd come to Eisenach with her sights set on getting into the academy, just like me. From what she said, simply getting accepted into the academy was seen as a massive honor for commoners or obscure nobles—enough that anyone with even a sliver of ambition would line up at this gateway to success.
"Even so, something about that just feels off."
After hearing her story, I shared mine, and she gave me a puzzled look. Her eyes brimmed with suspicion, like she'd stumbled into something impossible.
"What's off about it?"
"I came to Eisenach without any detailed info on the entrance exam, just like you, but registration was a breeze. There were signs everywhere—the kind that screamed 'register here' even to someone who couldn't read."
I peeled my back off the bench, prompting more details, and she laid out her experience step by step, underscoring how bizarre my situation had been.
Of course, my response to her explanation was…
"…I didn't see a single sign."
What's a sign? Lerven doesn't know about that stuff.
"Eh… you really didn't see any?"
"Yeah. Not one. I'm dead serious."
"For real?"
No way I'd pretend not to have seen something I actually did. I nodded firmly.
Sionel seemed even more flustered than I was. She shot up from the bench with a thud, then paced back and forth, deep in thought. She kept at it for a good while before finally clapping her hands together like a lightbulb had gone off.
"Ah! Now that I think about it, wasn't today the day from Dracapolis?… Anyway, I heard they cleared out all those 'obstacles' because some big shot from there was visiting Eisenach."
Aha. So that was the backstory to my blunder.
The primitive approach—over-cleaning for a VIP visit—reminded me of some backwater army bitching about it. I gave silent mental applause. Guess people are the same everywhere. I wasn't thrilled to catch a whiff of that peninsula vibe, not after civil servant quitting time and now VIP protocol.
"So I ended up collateral damage from this big shot's procession, huh."
"Ahaha… pretty much."
Even Sionel, who seemed bright and upbeat, couldn't scrape any positivity from that pointless farce. She mumbled through an awkward laugh.
"But it's fine! I know where the registration office is, so I'll show you instead of those signs."
But she bounced back quick, thumping her chest and volunteering as my guide—to me, another academy hopeful.
That meant hand-delivering her an extra rival, but she didn't hesitate for a second. Like it was her solemn duty.
"If you're offering, I'd be grateful."
She had to have the purest heart imaginable. Hell, even I—the one getting the favor—felt like I was taking advantage of her.
"You sure you're okay with that?"
"Huh? With what?"
Sure, I could've just accepted the kindness, no strings. Easier that way, no need to overthink the future.
But I wasn't cruel enough to stand by while a girl like her took all the hit unilaterally.
"Guiding me there means one less spot the academy prepped for everyone. You really cool with that?"
I couldn't be certain, but right now, thugs were probably pulling dirty tricks somewhere in the city to thin out the competition. Way easier to sabotage others than climb on your own merits.
Yet here she was, in the thick of it.
Willing to toss her own shot in the dirt.
"Of course! The world runs on helping each other, right?"
This girl, acting purely out of goodwill.
"And what good's a friend if you can't even do that much?"
"A friend…?"
"Yup, friend! We swapped names, both country commoners from bumfuck nowhere, yeah? That makes us friends. Right?"
"…Geez."
Extending a hand and calling a rival she'd known for under an hour a friend.
How could I exploit that just to give myself an edge?
"First goody-two-shoes friend I've ever had."
"It's cool! You're my first boring friend too!"
…Might hate her a tiny bit.
* In the end, it took Sionel's help for me to finally track down the registration office. And it was right there, not far from the city wall gate at all.
So I'd trekked all the way to the academy… because I couldn't spot this nearby building?
"Name: Lerven, from Arnil Village… Age: 17. All right, your entrance exam application is complete. The test is in three days—please don't be late."
"Yes, thank you."
Whatever, hollow victory or not, I'd made it in eventually. Better to think positive for my sanity.
Clunk.
"Ah, Lerven! Registration go okay?"
"Thanks to you."
I shoved open the rickety wooden door of the makeshift building set up for the flood of academy applicants, and there was Sionel, leaning against the wall with a bright grin to greet me.
"Seriously, thanks. I almost wasted tomorrow circling the academy like an idiot too."
Imagining the fool I'd have looked without her guidance, gratitude welled up big time.
"Pfft, friends don't need thanks for that!"
Wham! The very object of my thanks brushed it off like it was nothing, slapping my back with surprising force to drive the point home.
It stung way more than it looked—tears nearly leaked—but I swallowed the pain and offered a handshake.
"Now we're on the same starting line."
"Yup! Next time we meet, it'll be inside the academy!"
She took my hand eagerly, pumping it up and down like crazy as she promised.
Her words carried this weirdly rock-solid faith that we'd both make it, pulling a dry chuckle from me.
"Heh, sounds like you're damn sure you'll pass."
"Huh?"
She clearly hadn't expected that reaction—her pale gray eyes went wide.
But she didn't take it as mockery or a joke. Instead, she flashed another brilliant smile.
"Of course! I'm lucky!"
And her comeback? Pure, unfiltered her. Gotta admire that self-confidence.
** Our whirlwind encounter with Sionel wrapped up like a storm blowing through. After asking around, I snagged a room at the cheapest inn in the area.
Even with the city swamped by exam hopefuls and showing up late, I got a room easy—made me wonder for a sec, but stepping into my assigned quarters explained it all.
"…Cheap for a reason, huh."
Yellowed blankets from god-knows-how-many years of use. A bed frame creaking like it might snap any second. Drafts through the holey window, plus the patter of tiny roommates' feet from somewhere.
It screamed "budget dump," but I didn't gripe.
"Still beats a barn or church pew…"
I just recalled my village days to console myself, hit the sack quick, and let a single tear slip for the sorrow of my impoverished life.