Flustered
The warm afternoon sunlight bathed the garden in a gentle glow. At a table tucked in one corner, shaded by the spreading branches of a tree, Ophelia sat enjoying her tea time with a book in hand. As always, Blair was right there beside her. Blair spent the moment in quiet healing, watching Ophelia lose herself completely in the pages—only to lift her cup with those flawless, picture-perfect motions every so often and take a delicate sip.
Today, however, they had a visitor.
“Hey.”
The male student raised his hand in a casual wave, greeting them as naturally as ever. It was Kael.
Ophelia had been so absorbed in her reading that she only noticed him after he spoke. She slipped a bookmark between the pages, closed the book, and returned the greeting.
“Hey.”
The exact same gesture. The exact same words. In this entire academy, Kael was the only person Ophelia greeted this way.
“What brings you here?” Ophelia asked lightly, tilting her head up to look at him.
“Oh, I actually came to see Blair about something.”
…Huh?
Ophelia had naturally assumed he was here for her. That was why she had closed her book and exchanged greetings. But Kael hadn’t come for her sake at all.
A flicker of surprise ran through her, but—just as always—nothing showed on her face.
“For me?” Blair pointed to herself, wearing the same puzzled expression Ophelia had expected.
Kael met her gaze and nodded without the slightest hesitation.
Ophelia was curious. What possible business could Kael have with Blair? The two had only gotten to know each other through her; they shared no direct connection. The fact that he had sought out Blair instead of her felt strangely off.
Then again… do I really need to think of it that way?
Since entering the academy, Ophelia had deliberately kept some distance from Blair. Here, they were both simply ordinary students. No matter the reason Blair had enrolled, Ophelia wanted her to experience normal academy life instead of focusing solely on guarding her. That was why, during the first group assignment, she had pushed Blair away even though she knew it would hurt her feelings.
So if Blair had formed friendships Ophelia didn’t know about, it was something to celebrate. She was curious, yes, but she didn’t share every little detail of her own life with Blair either. If Blair chose not to mention it first, Ophelia had no right to pry.
“Should I give you two some space? Feel free to talk comfortably,” Ophelia said, glancing between them.
“That will not do, my lady!” Blair exclaimed, startled. “If anyone must leave, it should be us. There is no need for you to move.”
“It’s not some secret conversation, so it’s fine,” Kael added. “Though… would talking nearby bother your reading?” His eyes had already drifted to the book resting in front of Ophelia.
“No. It’s all right. Don’t mind me—go ahead and talk.”
Ophelia sat back down, forcing her voice to stay perfectly calm. It was such an ordinary remark, yet she couldn’t understand why she had to make a conscious effort to sound composed. She reopened the book she had closed, determined to let Kael and Blair speak freely without worrying about her.
At the same time, she felt strangely relieved by Kael’s comment that it wasn’t a secret. Why should that reassure her? Even if Blair and Kael did share something private, it was their business and had nothing to do with her.
“So… what exactly is this business you have with me?” Blair narrowed her eyes, studying Kael. It felt odd for him to show up out of nowhere claiming he needed her when they barely knew each other.
“You told me to let you know if I ever needed anything, remember?”
Blair’s stiff expression melted away at once. She remembered receiving the recommendation letter for blacksmith Gavin from him. She had wondered what sudden matter had brought him here, but it seemed he had a legitimate reason after all.
“Ah, that. Yes, so you have a request for me.”
“Will you really grant me anything?”
“If it is appropriate repayment for the debt I owe, then yes.”
“It’s nothing too difficult.” Kael smiled as he continued. “Could you help with some swordsmanship training?”
“Swordsmanship? Aren’t you a mage?”
“Ah, not for me—for a friend. I’d appreciate it if you could help train him.”
Blair crossed her arms, considering the request for a moment.
“That is a rather strange favor. Is there a particular reason you’re asking me to handle your friend’s training?”
“You’re skilled with a sword.”
“…Your judgment is not entirely without merit.”
Blair cleared her throat once before going on. “How much assistance would you require?”
“Just a few days for now? An hour or two each day would be plenty.”
“That amount of time is unlikely to produce significant improvement.”
“You’ll understand once you see him. So, can you do it?”
“It is not a difficult request, however…”
“Then when can you start? The sooner, the better.”
At Kael’s next question, Blair glanced toward Ophelia. She wasn’t worried her lady would refuse permission. Rather, she herself was reluctant to leave her lady’s side even for an hour or two a day.
No. If I refuse because I do not wish to leave my lady, she will only be more disappointed.
Her lady wanted her to live at least a little like an ordinary student while inside the academy. Besides, this was repayment for the item Kael had given her. Refusing out of reluctance to be apart from her lady might earn her a scolding.
Deciding it was a cheap enough way to settle her debt, Blair nodded in acceptance. They quickly arranged to meet at the training ground that evening.
“All right. See you then.”
With his business concluded, Kael offered them both a quick greeting and left.
Blair turned her attention back to Ophelia, who continued reading with her usual graceful poise. As expected of her lady. Once Ophelia immersed herself in a book, she tended to block out everything around her. Even though it must have been rather noisy beside her, she remained utterly absorbed in the story.
But Blair had no idea.
Despite Ophelia’s claim that the conversation wouldn’t disturb her at all, she had not turned a single page.
The training ground at night. Warren had been practically living there lately, training day and night without rest.
Kael is that strong, yet he still trains every single day. I need to work even harder.
He wanted to overcome his fear. He wanted to reclaim the money that had been stolen from him. He wanted to show Kael a changed version of himself.
They might even go after Kael. I have to get stronger.
Of course, someone as outstanding as Kael probably wouldn’t even flinch if they threatened him. But Warren hated the thought of causing trouble for Kael because of his own weakness. He wanted to defeat Lucian and his gang with his own power.
I’m going to become an incredible magic swordsman.
The words Kael had spoken when returning the blacksmith’s sword had given Warren a clear goal. He wanted to become a powerful magic swordsman capable of subduing even someone like Lucian with a single strike.
I can do this. I’ll grow stronger—so I can repay my debt to Kael.
Perhaps all his hard work hadn’t been wasted. He could already feel his skills improving.
The sword the blacksmith uncle had given him moved as though it were an extension of his own body. Thanks to that, channeling mana into the blade had become far more natural than before. What used to be nothing more than a light coating of mana now felt like the sword was drinking in every ounce of his power.
Clang!
He also had the excellent training partner Kael had introduced him to.
The opponent Warren currently faced was a female student with short black hair—Blair. Warren knew her reputation well. Of course, some of her fame came from always being at Ophelia’s side, but even in the middle class, her swordsmanship had been legendary among the freshmen since the start of the semester.
She had only been placed in the middle class due to her lower magic power. In pure sword skill, no first-year could match her.
After sparring with her these past days, Warren had personally experienced just how exceptional she was. She wielded her mana-infused blade with masterful efficiency—far more so than Warren, whose only real advantage was his higher magic grade.
Just like with Kael, a low magic grade clearly didn’t define the limits of one’s ability.
Clang!
“Huff… huff…”
On their first day of sparring, Blair had shown no sign of strain while facing Warren. Today, however, was different. She looked just as exhausted as he did after he created some distance and caught his breath.
“Yaaah!”
Warren stepped in, pouring mana into the sword that fit his hand perfectly.
Clang!
For the first time since they had begun sparring, Blair’s sword flew from her grip and clattered to the ground.