"Guess It's Time for Me to Head Back to the Holy Empire"
"I guess it's about time I headed back to the Holy Empire."
Estelle, who'd been talking like she'd stick around the house forever, was the first to bring up returning to the Holy Empire as the days passed.
"Same here. I've got to prepare for the academy, after all."
Iris let it be known she was in the same boat. Yesterday, after the exam ended, we'd ridden back home in the teleport taxi that Estelle summoned. Honestly, it was weird that these two had been sticking around our house this whole time, farming and training together. They were both big shots in their own right, and they had academy prep to do.
"Then how about you head back first, Iris? I've got some prep done already, so I've got time until Theo's acceptance announcement. If you're busy, you should go."
"Hm? What are you talking about? If anything, Estelle—who has to travel from so far away—should go first, right? She can't use teleport magic this time and has to go through official entry procedures."
Considering how long it takes to travel from the Holy Empire to the Ermunt Empire, Iris had a point. You couldn't just teleport across borders during official entry, after all.
"I've already factored that into my schedule."
"Same here. My calculations show I can stick around until Theo's acceptance announcement, exactly."
I had no idea how their schedules lined up so perfectly, but whatever.
"You two, come here for a sec."
Anyway, that was that. I had something important to tell them.
"Yeah? What's up, Theo?"
"Theo, what is it?"
Estelle and Iris scampered over, looking at me.
"Well, since you're both heading back soon anyway, I'm saying this ahead of time: at the academy, you can't use casual speech with each other, got it? It's fine with me. But you two have to use formal speech between yourselves."
There'd be a lot of eyes on us, and even as peers, the academy's basic rule was mutual formal speech. With commoners, nobles, imperial family, and foreigners all mixed together, they standardized it that way.
"Oh, right. There was that rule."
Estelle nodded lightly and continued.
"Of course, Theo-nim. I'm always prepared for that. Formal speech is no big deal for me."
Hearing her suddenly switch to formal speech like that reminded me of the day we first met, making me feel kinda weird.
"Same here. If the Saintess can do it, there's no reason I can't, Theo-nim."
But why were they both calling me Theo-nim? I told them to use formal speech with each other, not tack honorifics onto me.
"Ahem! I meant for you two to use formal speech with each other. And don't call me 'nim'."
Even if the academy had a 'everyone's equal' rule, I was still a commoner, and these two were imperial-class. If they went around calling me 'nim', it'd draw attention, so I had to nip that in the bud. I just wanted to quietly support them like air.
"Anyway, let's practice using formal speech with each other for now, to get used to it."
We'd agreed to keep things casual since there was plenty of time before the academy, but now enrollment was right around the corner.
...Well, if I pass, that is.
I can pass, right? Right?
Sigh, why was I feeling uneasy all of a sudden?
Estelle felt every passing day was precious. Tomorrow was Theo's acceptance announcement, and the moment it came out, she'd have to head straight back to the Holy Empire.
Theo-nim's acceptance is a given—no need to worry.
She had no doubt he'd pass with top honors. Estelle knew his skills better than anyone. Just thinking about that time her arm froze solid still made her shiver.
What she regretted was the time spent with Theo... and the bickering with Iris.
These peaceful days were coming to an end.
"Estelle, what are you doing out there? It's cold—close the door right now!"
They weren't exactly sweet to each other, but calling each other by name and trading jokes now and then showed how far they'd come. It was still astonishing that she'd gotten this close to the crown princess of a former enemy nation.
Technically, their countries were still at odds. The peace treaty only took effect once they both enrolled at the academy.
Even without that flimsy treaty, though, they'd grown close, openly showing their feelings and becoming true friends.
"Iris is so delicate. Think you can handle living with Theo-nim later, with how much you hate the cold? He'll come back here after graduation. Me? I don't mind the cold at all, so I'd have zero problems living here with him, Theo-nim~?"
And yet, she closed the door for Iris's sake.
"Alright, enough weird talk. Both of you, go to bed. I'm too nervous to sleep anyway."
Waiting for the acceptance announcement was nerve-wracking, no doubt. Of course, Estelle and Iris had no idea why Theo was so tense.
"If it weren't for Theo-nim, no one would pass?"
"Estelle, I appreciate the vote of confidence, but that's not true."
Iris tended to stay quiet about exams. She already knew the full results, but leaking them would violate security laws, so she kept mum on the topic.
"Anyway, both of you go to sleep. I'm heading to bed too."
The accepted students list went live on the Ermunt Academy homepage at 10 a.m. Whether you checked at 10 or 11, the list didn't change—but it usually crashed at 10 anyway.
"Ha, I'm so nervous."
Theo figured he wouldn't sleep a wink...
"Theo-nim! Theo-nim! Wake up! It's already past noon!"
...but when Estelle came to wake him the next day, it was well past noon.
"Huh...? How's it past noon...?"
Theo sat up in confusion, peering at Estelle's face.
"Come on, let's check together! I've been waiting without looking!"
Estelle knew she wasn't great at hiding her expressions. To avoid spoiling it before Theo could see for himself, she'd held off checking.
"You could've looked first."
"Everyone's waiting to check together!"
Not just Estelle—Iris and even my parents were in the living room, waiting for me.
"Aigoo, what are Mom and Dad doing up too?"
"You lazy brat. How late did you stay up that you're sleeping in like this?!"
Mom's scolding flew my way, but the spread of my favorite dishes showed how excited they were. Or rather, no matter the result, it was all love for their son.
Theo gazed at the table full of his favorites, touched for a moment, then grabbed his phone to check the announcement.
The holographic screen unfurled with a whoosh. He searched for Ermunt Academy and navigated in smoothly—no lag, since the early birds had already cleared out.
"Let's see, search for Theo..."
Plugging in his name and birthdate finally revealed the verdict.
[ Theo / 20 years old / From Der Viscounty ]
[Accepted]
The stark announcement page left Theo feeling oddly deflated.
"Kyaa! Theo-nim, congratulations! I knew you'd pass, but still—congrats! Now we're really academy classmates!"
Estelle was the first to cheer, showering him with congratulations.
"Congratulations, Theo-nim. Truth be told, I already knew the results, so hiding it was tough."
Iris finally smiled freely, offering her long-awaited congrats.
"Aigoo, our son! You did it! Academy acceptance— this is a huge blessing for the village!"
"Heh, our boy got into the academy...! He really was somethin' special all along!"
My parents lit up, dialing everyone to brag about their son.
A Dragon Rises from the Muddy Waters
Heh... 'A Dragon Rises from the Muddy Waters,' huh...
Theo let out a wry chuckle at the sudden title.
It was the start of a festive day, with everyone in high spirits.