Clarice Levatein's Request
As Seong Hyun-jin stepped out of the waiting room, eager to hurry back to the dormitory and crash, someone stood in his path. Her hair was a striking red, like roaring flames, cut into a neat bob that fell just to her shoulders. Her amethyst-purple eyes were captivating. The girl, who had been leaning against the wall, straightened up the moment she spotted him, as if she'd been waiting all along.
Clarice Levatein. Seong Hyun-jin had no idea how to react to the very person who had forfeited the finals appearing right in front of him.
"We're the same age anyway, so let's talk casually. What the hell are you thinking?"
Clarice tilted her head slowly at his question.
"...What part are you referring to?"
"What do you mean? You forfeited the finals. And now you show up right in front of me—what am I supposed to make of that?"
Only then did Clarice seem to understand his reaction.
"Were you perhaps looking forward to facing me?"
"No reason not to."
"But I had plenty of reasons to forfeit."
She replied matter-of-factly.
"How could I dare thrust my lowly sword at the direct disciple taught by the Sword Star herself?"
"......?"
Seong Hyun-jin looked at her with a puzzled, slightly flustered gaze. Then, incredulously, he asked,
"How did you know that? Don't tell me you recognized my master's sword?"
"Wouldn't it be weirder if I didn't?"
"No, it's weirder that you did. Master's been in seclusion for twenty years—how would you even know her sword?"
First-year students at the academy were all around twenty, pure-blood elves aside. Clarice was unmistakably human, so she couldn't have lived through the same twenty years of Hakodate Karin's seclusion to witness her swordsmanship firsthand.
"Yes, I've never seen it in person."
"What? Then how did you recognize it?"
"I merely inferred Lady Hakodate Karin's sword from the records, imagined it, and fantasized about it. Yet the swordsmanship you displayed yesterday matched the exact image in my head perfectly. The grip and sword momentum were also strikingly similar to those described in the records."
She had visualized—crystallized—Karin's sword just from historical accounts and her imagination. Seong Hyun-jin was genuinely impressed.
"...You've got real talent for swordsmanship, huh?"
"I like to think so. Though, of course, I'm inferior to you, the Sword Star's prized disciple."
To call herself inferior so straightforwardly—that was the kind of thing people with low self-esteem said. Seong Hyun-jin found it odd; Clarice didn't strike him as someone lacking confidence.
Is her tone just naturally blunt?
Curious, he asked,
"Inferior? Is your usual tone always this strong?"
"Isn't it the truth?"
But Clarice reacted as if she had no idea what the issue was. Since she seemed indifferent, Seong Hyun-jin dropped it.
"So, what did you come to see Seong Hyun-jin for?"
Serena Eldark, who had been quietly listening, stepped forward from behind and asked. Her pouty expression—for some reason—made both Seong Hyun-jin and Clarice tilt their heads.
"Serena Eldark, why are you coming out of there?"
"I came to congratulate him on the win. Because we're 'friends'."
"Ah, I see. In that case, I should congratulate you too. Congratulations on your victory, Seong Hyun-jin."
"......?"
She was the one who forfeited, handing him the win. Even Seong Hyun-jin couldn't help but look baffled at this bizarre scene of the forfeiter congratulating the champion.
Serena stared at Clarice with a look of utter disbelief.
"...Do the Levatein ducal family members always say such absurd things?"
"What do you mean?"
"I've met Duke Levatein before. He came to greet my father once."
"Ah, I see."
Then Serena recalled her father, the Dragon Star Ahajaka Eldark, saying:
"My daughter, this is Glorin Levatein, the duke who rules the Magic Kingdom's northern territories. He says some odd things now and then, but he's not a bad man at heart—go say hello."
The duke occasionally said odd things, but who knew his daughter took after him exactly.
"...So why did you come? I asked that already."
"I have a favor to ask of him."
"A favor?"
Seong Hyun-jin echoed in confusion. From their conversation, he'd just learned Clarice was the lady of a ducal house. Someone like her surely had the wealth and influence to enter any dorm—Superior or Terra—she wanted, just like Serena had boasted about earlier. With that immense power and resources, why ask him for a favor?
"What do you want from me?"
"I'd like you to critique my swordsmanship."
"Huh?"
Forfeiting the match but asking for a sword review—Seong Hyun-jin thought it was an odd request.
"Not a spar, I assume."
"Of course not. How dare I pit my pathetic sword against the Sword Star's techniques? If you could just observe my form and point out its flaws, I'd be deeply grateful."
Clarice bowed politely. Her forfeiture didn't paint a great picture, but her earnest desire to improve as a swordswoman made Seong Hyun-jin want to help. Above all, her genuine admiration for the Sword Star's techniques appealed to him, Karin's biggest fanboy.
But right now, even standing there was a trial for him.
"I'd like to, but let's do it another time if possible."
"...Are you too tired today?"
"Yeah, wiped out. Fighting this one drained me."
Seong Hyun-jin pointed at Serena, who shot back with a deadpan look.
"That's because you used those ridiculous techniques."
"Anyway. I'll rest today, and tomorrow or the day after... Wait, no—since we're talking about it, might as well do it tomorrow."
Clarice nodded at his words.
"I'll be at the training grounds early in the morning."
"Huh? No need for that..."
He started to say it wasn't necessary but changed his mind. He might need to demonstrate his master's techniques, so fewer people around was better.
"Earlier than morning—dawn. Right when curfew lifts... around 5 a.m.?"
"Will dawn be alright for you?"
"For me? Sure."
He often woke even earlier training on the mountain. Clarice nodded in agreement, and Serena beside her asked,
"...Can I come too?"
"Huh? Sure, why not... Since when were you into swordsmanship?"
"I'm not."
Seong Hyun-jin gave her a look like then why come? Serena glanced at him slyly and muttered to herself,
"...I'm interested in something else."
"What'd you say?"
"...Nothing. You said you'd check out the Superior Dorm after resting, right? We'll train at dawn tomorrow, tour it before the awards ceremony, then head there?"
"Yeah, sounds good."
"Then no point waiting—I'll just stick around and go with you."
"What? You're coming too?"
His oblivious question made Serena glare daggers. Flustered, Seong Hyun-jin nodded slightly.
"...Fine by me. Thought you weren't interested since you sounded skeptical earlier."
"...Dawn at 5, training grounds?"
"Yeah."
"Get some rest. I'll head out first."
Serena strode past Seong Hyun-jin and Clarice, leaving the stadium. Seong Hyun-jin watched her platinum hair sway as she walked away. Then he muttered quietly to himself,
"Starting from the hips, her lower body overall reminds me of Master..."
"?"
Clarice tilted her head, puzzled. Seong Hyun-jin quickly changed the subject.
"You too—training grounds at 5 a.m. tomorrow."
"Understood. See you then."
"Yeah."
Only after Clarice left did Seong Hyun-jin drop his facade. Exhaustion crept across his face. It felt like his vitality was being siphoned away—not outright pain, but a bone-deep weariness, like total depletion. He sighed heavily at the sensation of his energy being steadily drained.
"Ease up a bit, you bastard..."
Back at the dormitory, Seong Hyun-jin crashed immediately and slept like the dead. But he woke before dawn.
...What time is it?
Judging by the sky's hue and the moon's position, it was around 4 a.m. He got up and prepared briskly. As soon as curfew lifted at 5, he left for the training grounds.
Unlike the lecture halls used for class drills, Terastial Academy's training grounds were for personal practice. The terms overlapped, but they were distinguished: drill halls for classes, training grounds for solo sessions.
Yawning hugely, Seong Hyun-jin arrived and spotted someone waiting.
"Whoa, you're early."
"You told me to be here by 5."
It was Serena Eldark. She'd beaten even the diligent Hyun-jin to the grounds.
Seong Hyun-jin noticed something as he looked at her.
"Hair up?"
"...You noticed?"
"Hard not to."
Serena had tied her long hair into a single ponytail, revealing her pristine white nape.
...Not my imagination.
Whenever he'd closely observed Serena before, a certain impression lingered. Her body's subtle beauties kept reminding him of his master. Just yesterday, admiring her lower half had first evoked Karin's graceful hips and legs. Even now, Serena's pale nape and stray wisps evoked his master with her hair up.
It stirred the feelings he had for the woman he found most beautiful. As Karin's devotee, Seong Hyun-jin subconsciously saw Serena as equally stunning—but he interpreted it differently.
...I miss Master so much. It's only been a short time since orientation, yet her beautiful figure already haunts my eyes.
If Karin could read his thoughts right now, she wouldn't let him off easy... but fortunately, she wasn't here.
"Didn't expect you'd spot it right away, but glad you did."
The woman was simply pleased he'd noticed.
"Why tie it up all of a sudden?"
"W-we're training, right? I figured I'd practice on my own too."
"Ah, got it."
Long hair was a hassle during training. Seong Hyun-jin nodded understandingly.
"Hasn't our other guest shown yet?"
"Yeah, she should be here any minute..."
As Seong Hyun-jin and Serena wondered about the absent Clarice, someone dashed into the training grounds.
"Who's that...?"
"Maid uniform from the Superior Dorm. What's she doing here?"
Superior Dorm—the luxury dorm Seong Hyun-jin planned to visit after training. They tilted their heads at the maid rushing toward the grounds. Maybe serving someone here? But no—she stopped right in front of them.
"Pleased to meet you, Seong Hyun-jin and Serena Eldark. I'm Angela, maid to Lady Clarice Levatein."
"Uh... yeah?"
"Looking for us?"
Serena asked, and Angela nodded.
"I heard Lady Clarice had an early morning appointment—with you two, I presume. Is that correct?"
"Yes, but... where is she? We were just waiting."
"I've come to ask for your understanding."
"Pardon?"
Angela explained,
"Lady Clarice is a heavy sleeper and couldn't wake up. It will delay things considerably, so I came ahead to tell you not to wait."
Seong Hyun-jin and Serena were left dumbfounded.
"She overslept?"
"Yes."
"Then why agree to a dawn meeting yesterday...?"
"I can't fathom her ladyship's intentions either..."
Angela's apologetic tone made them drop the interrogation.
"What an eccentric one..."
Seong Hyun-jin might not be one to talk, but Serena nodded in agreement.
"Since it's like this, let's reschedule for afternoon. Tour the dorm first—that'd be easier."
"Nah, can't do that."
"Huh?"
"Can't show my sword any other time. Don't want to expose Master's techniques to riffraff. Her swordsmanship is noble and precious."
Serena gave him an incredulous look. If that was the case, why flaunt those insane techniques at the Martial Exhibition? And training ground users weren't riffraff—they were fellow students.
"...They're academy students like us, not riffraff."
"Anyway."
Brushing off her point, Seong Hyun-jin asked Angela,
"She's still sleeping?"
"Yes, but..."
"Gotta wake her up."
"Pardon?"
"Let's go get her."
Seong Hyun-jin declared boldly.
"If someone's late for an appointment, you drag 'em out yourself."