Magic Practicum (1)

Truth be told, there was no punishment at the Academy harsher than expulsion.

What punishment could be worse than stealing a student's chance to learn? Even under the class system, working a few shifts in the cafeteria was never treated as more serious than being expelled.

As for the pay—what commoner wages amounted to was little more than fleas' livers to a noble. Money they could live without.

But 'punishment' weighed differently depending on the person. For some, paying a fine was a crushing penalty; for others, it was the price of a single meal. For some, imprisonment meant their life was over; for others, it was three meals a day and free ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠lodging—a bargain, even.

Punishments varied wildly by heaven and earth depending on the disposition and circumstances of the one receiving them.

Headmaster Clifford was a man who prized 'time' above all else,

and Investigator Gilbert was a man perpetually strapped for 'money'.

To these two, being told to waste an entire year of their lives, or to work without pay, was a punishment far heavier than expulsion.

Hmm. Maybe I went too far?

The problem was that Catherine hadn't factored into any of these calculations at all. He had focused entirely on making sure those two couldn't find fault with him.

...Since I was letting it slide anyway, maybe I should have gone all out and forgiven her generously.

Water under the bridge. He was mulling over this pointless dilemma when—

"Ah—wait, just a moment."

Someone blocked Luid's path to Delin's Lake.

It was Catherine.

"Something you need?"

"...Thank you."

Catherine bowed her head without warning. Red hair spilled loose around her face. Her expression was as pitiful as someone caught in a downpour.

She looked utterly deflated. Luid was genuinely taken aback.

He'd expected her to fly into a rage over being made to serve a noble like him.

"I will repay this debt someday, I swear. And about... before—I'm sorry."

Catherine rushed off, her head still bowed.

Luid watched her retreating back for a moment and murmured,

"All's well that ends well, I suppose."

It had wrapped up rather pleasantly, all things considered.

With the hindrance cleared away, nothing stood in Luid's way anymore.

"This is my world now."

He could sleep again. He could live his peaceful days again. Luid was already basking in happiness.

He settled softly into his designated spot, pulled a pillow from his subspace, and set it beneath his head. Curling his body up, he found the most comfortable position possible.

"Ahh."

Now that he was lying down, he found himself missing a campfire. But building one was too much effort, so he simply resolved to sleep.

The weather's lovely today.

A gentle breeze brushed across his body—neither cold nor hot, just perfectly cozy. The sunlight was dimmed to exactly the right level for drowsiness, and the natural temperature was so pleasant he didn't bother casting any magic at all.

Perhaps because he'd been running around so much lately, sleepiness came over him almost instantly.

"Zzz..."

Before long, Luid drifted softly into slumber. Unless something extraordinary happened, Hershey and Amelia never woke him. For the foreseeable future, no one seemed likely to disturb his deep sleep.

"Haa—hck, haa—hck."

A girl came bursting through the woods and appeared at Delin's Lake. Her name was Nia Lion, a first-year student of the Magic Department.

"What is this mana density..."

She wiped drool from her mouth with her sleeve, gripped a tree trunk, and gulped down air. It felt as though she were in a stiflingly humid tropical region—her body felt heavy, and every breath was a struggle.

"Huh?"

Nia tilted her head. There was someone at the lake.

Hey, are you an idiot? That's not a fairy, that's a new student.

Nia slapped a hand over her mouth—hop!

A memory surfaced of something a friend had once told her.

That's him! The fairy—no, Luid!

A blond boy lay curled up fast asleep. To Nia, it felt like meeting a being straight out of myth, and her heart fluttered.

Nia was the sociable type, and she desperately wanted to greet him—but sadly, that was out of the question.

Quietly, quietly.

She had no wish to wake a sleeping child. Nia tiptoed past Luid and made for the lake.

From her pocket she drew a small glass vial and filled it with water from Delin's Lake. It was for collecting samples needed for her alchemy class.

Whoa, it's real! Adrane's Flower!

A rare flower that grew only in special places.

Adrane's Flower was so saturated with mana that it looked like blue frost frozen mid-bloom. This was her first time seeing one in person.

Nia beamed and reached out her hand. She'd come all this way, after all—she planned to pick as many as she could carry.

But in that moment, an inexplicable chill ran through her, and she shuddered. Turning toward the piercing gaze she felt ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠on her side—

"......"

"......"

Her eyes met those of a boy whose gaze seemed to hold the clear blue sky itself. Nia blinked and smiled awkwardly.

"Ahaha, sorry. You were up."

Luid stared intently at the Adrane's Flower held in Nia's hand.

"Ah—th-this? It's an ingredient I need for alchemy."

Luid closed his eyes again as if to say it was none of his concern. He'd been woken from his nap and was sleepy.

Did he... give me permission? Like, the fairy spirit did?

Nia thought this to herself and plucked another flower, feeling a little guilty for having woken him.

One flower in her hand became two, then three. Nia planned to take about four—that was the bare minimum she needed for the experiment she had in mind.

She was reaching for the very last blossom when—

Ting—.

"?"

Her hand struck a transparent barrier and couldn't advance any further. As if to say, not one step beyond this.

"That's strange."

Was it some kind of magic? But Luid was asleep, and no one else was around.

Ting ting ting ting ting.

Ooh, this is kind of fun!

It felt like poking an incredibly firm pudding. Amused, Nia repeated the same motion over and over.

"Go away."

"Sorry!"

She'd been having so much fun she'd forgotten someone was sleeping right there. Nia shrank back, pressing her palms together apologetically. Luid closed his eyes once more.

But now what? I still need one more...

As it happened, she spotted an Adrane's Flower a short distance away.

I really am lucky!

Nia crept over and picked it. That made four.

She broke into a blissful smile. Now she could run her experiment. Just as she was about to breeze away with a light step—

"Gwagh!"

Something yanked her sharply backward and her balance gave out. Nia squeezed her eyes shut, bracing for the impact. But no pain came.

She opened her eyes slowly. Green blades of grass met her gaze—and between them stretched a transparent membrane.

Looking around, she found herself enveloped in a shroud of water droplets. Nia scrambled up into an awkward crouch, glancing around in wonder. And then, her eyes met Luid's.

When on earth had he woken up? He was rubbing his eyes as he walked toward her. Nia flustered slightly.

He said, out of nowhere:

"Three per day. Max."

"Huh...?"

Luid held out his hand.

"Those flowers... you can only take three a day."

Nia asked, her face brimming with curiosity.

"Why?"

"Beats me. That's what the professor said. Told me to guard this flower. So hand them over."

Pop!

The water droplets burst. Nia was startled but didn't fall; she steadied herself and straightened her back.

...Her name was Nia Lion, right.

Luid looked her over. She was like a rabbit—platinum blonde hair falling to her waist, vivid red eyes.

Overall, a cute sort of kid. Luid knew exactly who she was. A heroine who appeared around the midpoint of the story. She might not look it, but she was the same age as Justin.

"Whoa! You're the first boy I've met who's shorter than me. Are you even human? You're not a fairy spirit, right??"

It was pure, innocent curiosity, without a shred of malice. Luid's eyebrows twitched.

Nia circled round and round near Luid, observing him. Her curiosity was boundless.

Finally he couldn't take it and repeated himself.

"Anyway. One flower stays."

"But—"

Nia flashed her most sparkling puppy-dog eyes at Luid and spread out four fingers. With this expression, most people gave in to whatever she wanted.

"I need four."

"No. Hand it over."

But it didn't work on Luid—because they were the same kind of creature. Nia reeled as if struck a devastating blow.

My ultimate technique doesn't work on him...?

In an instant she grasped that Luid was her natural predator, and took two steps back.

"Give it here. I'm sleepy."

Nia hid the flower behind her back. Turning her head away, she muttered,

"No."

"...You can just come back for the rest tomorrow."

Luid said it the way one might reason with a small child.

Nia put on an expression of deep injustice.

"Do you have any idea how hard it was to get here?"

"It must've been hard, sure. You've got borderline specs."

"Excuse me? You don't know anything!"

Nia jabbed a finger at Luid—then, deciding that was a bit rude, lowered it. Instead she planted her hands on her hips.

"Do you know how much I suffered! Even standing here right now is exhau—... sting? Huh?"

Nia stared down at her small hands. Her body didn't feel heavy. Breathing wasn't uncomfortable at all.

It was Luid's consideration. Even now, he was regulating the mana density around her.

And that was only because they were near the lake, where the mana concentration was highest—he had cast a simple spell on her, so from tomorrow on, the journey here wouldn't wear her down at all.

"Tomorrow it won't be hard."

"Hmm......"

Nia weighed it briefly. She'd wanted to run her experiment today, which was why she'd dragged herself here on the verge of death.

If she backed down now, the experiment would be pushed back a full twenty hours. Nia was the type who would do anything to satisfy her thirst for magical inquiry.

But then again, using this as an excuse to come back tomorrow didn't seem half bad either. Nia wanted to get closer to Luid.

"Okay! In exchange—let's be friends."

"...Friends?"

"Yep!"

Nia held out an Adrane's Flower.

"This is a present to celebrate us becoming friends!"

"......"

Luid was speechless.

"No way...!"

A formal notice had suddenly been posted on the public bulletin board. It was something no one had seen coming.

"So the idea is that only a Windsor can stop a Windsor?"

"We get to watch the Sword Princess fight...!"

"We'll finally see the skills of that 'Lazy Luid' we've only ever heard rumors about."

"Who's going to win?"

"Lady Amelia, obviously!"

"No way, Prince Luid's taking it. If I were Lady Amelia, I'd go easy on him because he's too cute!"

The Magic Department students were a boiling cauldron of excitement. And in truth, not a single one of them failed to grasp the real meaning of this test.

It was less an assessment than a demonstration. The Sword Princess, whose name was already spreading across the Empire—and Luid, who had just gained a new epithet on top of everything: the Genius of the Century.

Students had already begun placing bets on who would come out on top. Getting caught by a professor meant demerits, of course, but refusing to stake gold on something this entertaining was practically a sin.

Meanwhile, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Hershey, on her way back from class, also stopped to read the notice.

"...What is this?"

Hershey rubbed her eyes, doubting what she saw. But the two names written boldly on the board hadn't changed.

"L-Luid never said anything about this...?"

Deciding she had to go ask him right away, Hershey quickened her pace.

...But seriously, who would win?

It was an honest question. Luid was a genius—but so was Amelia. The Sword Princess hadn't earned her reputation for nothing.

Hershey soon arrived at Delin's Lake, nearly out of breath from practically jogging the whole way. She took a moment to fix her clothes and catch her breath before stepping out of the woods. The emerald lake came into view.

The first thing she looked ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠for was the spot where Luid was always sprawled out. But today, he wasn't there.

At the center of the lake.

Luid stood facing an unfamiliar girl.

The two of them were exactly the same height, which somehow made them doubly adorable.

The girl held out a flower, and Luid accepted it.

Hershey stared blankly at the scene.

A cute girl... standing next to a cute boy.

If heaven existed, surely this was it.

Hershey was certain of it.