Born a Phoenix, Not an Ugly Duckling

Kyra Bell Arenas.

Ha—the headmaster? This woman?

I stood there with my mouth hanging open, staring blankly as I looked the woman in front of me up and down.

This made no sense at all.

The headmaster in my memories did not look like this.

The master of Argentina Academy, the last transcendent of the continent—Kyra Bell Arenas.

The woman I remembered as headmaster had had thick, greasy hair the color of black-teal that clearly hadn't been washed in days. A scruffy beard had sprouted messily around her mouth, exactly like some elderly headmaster of a magic school. On top of that she wore round, thick-rimmed glasses and always yanked the hood of her worn-out gray robe down so far it covered her eyes.

Anyone looking at her would have sworn she was either a lunatic or a vagrant.

Yes. That was the headmaster's appearance as I remembered it.

Even the setting collection I had read in my previous life had clearly stated as much, courtesy of the author:

I had taken that single line of setting at face value and assumed she was a pitiful middle-aged mage whose self-esteem had hit rock bottom because of her looks…

So who in the world was the woman standing in front of me right now?

Skin smooth and flawless without a single blemish. A high, elegant nose and an air of mystery. And above all, that hair—four colors swirling together in an otherworldly blend—was more dazzling and beautiful than any heroine I knew.

…Wait. Then what about the letter I sent?

A chill ran down my spine.

I had been absolutely certain the headmaster was an ugly woman crushed by an appearance complex, and in the middle of the night, drunk on dawn sentimentality, I had written this:

I had piled on every flowery phrase I could think of.

…Oh, for fuck's sake.

Had I seriously just told a peerless beauty that she was an ugly duckling and that I would love even her beard?

That wasn't a confession—that was an insult.

While I was still reeling, eyes darting around in confusion—

"……."

The headmaster simply stared at me, then furrowed her brow.

At the same time, a change swept through her hair—the place where four colors had been flowing together.

Whoosh—!

As if it had caught fire, the red surged outward in a violent wave. The black-teal, the soft silver, the violet—every other color was swallowed whole by the red.

In an instant, more than half her hair blazed into a deep crimson, as though it were burning.

And then—

"Hey! Can't ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠you hear me talking?!"

"…Excuse me?"

The calm, intellectual voice from moments ago was gone without a trace.

The headmaster—no, the red-haired woman—snorted and jabbed a finger at me, seething.

"Didn't this body just ask you a question, you stupid student brat?! Go on, flap that smart mouth of yours again!!"

"W-wait, what are you—"

"What? An ugly duckling? Me? This me?"

She yanked a crumpled cream-colored letter from her robes and shook it right in front of my face.

"You think I'm some blind idiot? Just because I walk around with a beard you actually thought I was ugly? Huh?! And what the hell is this 'I shall ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠love even that bushy beard' crap?! When you confess to a woman, is the first thing you talk about her hair?!"

"Th-that's a misunderstanding! I genuinely thought the headmaster was suffering because of her appearance…!"

"Shut up! How dare you call my beauty an ugly duckling?! You want to become a swan?! I was a swan from the moment I was born! No—I was a phoenix!!"

She stomped in furious little circles around me, unable to contain her rage.

"I just got lazy about washing because of my research, and I hated how the guys would pester me the second they saw my face, so I threw on a half-assed disguise! And you looked at that and went, what? She's hiding because she's ugly? You'll comfort her? Ha! I'm so speechless I could die!"

"……."

Even if I had ten mouths I wouldn't have known what to say.

No—I had plenty to say, but if I said any of it, sparks would fly from that red hair and roast my own head to ash.

Then, right at that moment—

"Calm down. Anger, the kid's scared."

"…Hmph! I wanted him scared! Look at those insolent eyes! He still isn't reflecting!"

Suddenly her hair color shifted again ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and she began speaking—and answering—herself, as if performing a one-woman two-role play.

Even while she did so, the color of her hair kept changing without rest. Red would surge, then a cold teal would wash over it, then a golden light would sparkle for a moment.

"Stop it already. That's not what matters right now. Look outside—the transcendents have all gathered."

"I know! That's why I'm pissed! Look at the state of the letter that bastard wrote! It's a complete disaster!"

"Still, we should talk to him first. Calm down."

"Urrrgh… Can't I just punch him once and then start the conversation?"

Watching a full-blown identity-split show unfold in real time right in front of me left me dizzy.

What is with this woman… Is she crazy?

I already knew from the setting collection—no, just from everything that had happened a moment ago—that all the transcendents were half out of their minds. But even for a transcendent, wasn't this a little extreme?

While I was staring at her in a daze, the hair that had been shifting so noisily suddenly settled into a calm silver-gray.

Like a sea after a storm, the headmaster's entire atmosphere transformed once more.

"Haa…"

The woman let out a long sigh and elegantly smoothed the rumpled hems of her robe.

The hot-tempered screamer from seconds ago had vanished completely.

She looked at me with eyes that were utterly calm, intelligent, and tinged with a faint apology.

"I'm sorry, Erevan."

"…Pardon?"

"Anger seems to have gotten angrier than expected. The letter… well, it scratched my pride a little."

"Anger…?"

"Yes. If I startled you, I apologize. Please understand—she's always been a fiery child."

She gave a helpless little smile and tapped her temple with a finger.

"I—well, we—are a bit special, you see."

"Special…?"

"Multiple personalities. Have you heard of it?"

"…What?"

As casually as if she were discussing the weather, she dropped a shocking secret that had never even been written in the setting collection.

"From the moment I was born, my soul was split into four pieces. Most people would call it a curse… but we elevated it into a talent."

She raised her fingers one by one as she explained.

"Anger specializes in destruction, swordsmanship, and physical enhancement."

Another finger rose.

"Calm stands at the pinnacle of magic, calculation, and barrier construction."

A third finger.

"Pleasure excels at spirit affinity and nature-type abilities… and the one speaking with you right now, Erevan, is in charge of alchemy and of coordinating every personality."

"……."

I listened to her explanation in a blank daze.

So the headmaster standing in front of me was essentially running a four-person party by herself?

Swordsmanship, magic, spirit arts, alchemy—four personalities, each at the absolute peak of a completely different field, all housed in a single body. That was munchkin-level even by fantasy-novel standards.

And before that—multiple personalities? I had never even heard of this setting. I hadn't known the trait of multiple personalities even existed in this world.

Haa, you damn author… Why the hell didn't you reveal such an important setting in the original?

If I had known, I never would have cracked the ugly-duck joke. I never would have spouted garbage like "Even if you're ugly, no one else will accept you, so I have to look at you properly"…

"It's fine. Everyone reacts like that at first."

Kyra smiled gently at my completely vacant expression and slowly stepped closer.

Her silver-gray hair swayed. At the same time a faint herbal scent drifted over.

The murderous atmosphere from earlier had vanished as if it had never existed, replaced by perfect calm.

But the next words that left her mouth were anything but peaceful.

She bent at the waist until her eyes were level with mine and asked in a soft, silken voice,

"I think that's enough explanation of my circumstances…"

Deep in her pupils, four-colored light flashed coldly.

"Shall we get to the main point, KJH?"

"……."

"Just what kind of confidence made you do it?"

Her lips were smiling, but her eyes were not smiling at all.

"Four transcendents capable of destroying the continent… no, five if you include us—summoned to the academy all on the same day, at the same hour. Have you truly lost your mind?"

"…Uh, well… about that."

Okay, Erevan. No—Kim Jaehyuk. Stay calm.

If I just speak calmly, I can still talk my way out of this situation.

I took one deep breath and opened my mouth.

"I did it because I felt wronged."

"…Excuse me?"

"…Eh? No, wait, that isn't—actually I worked myself half to death for three years dealing with the Outer Gods and saving the kids, but everyone only ever liked Leon, so out of pure jealousy I just wanted to have at least one amazing girlfriend of my own…"

Oh, fuck.

This can't be happening.

My true feelings were pouring out without a single filter.

I had fully intended to mix in a few convenient lies and steer the conversation toward something completely unrelated to my original purpose.

Why was this happening?

"…."

"…."

Kyra's eyes went round as saucers; her mouth opened and closed soundlessly, as if she had just heard something utterly impossible to believe.

Silence flooded the headmaster's office.

I stared at her face for a moment, then clutched my head with both hands and hung it low.

Shit. I'd react the same way if I were her.

From her perspective she must have assumed I had sent love letters that were actually declarations of war because I genuinely wanted the continent destroyed, or that I was a follower of the Outer Gods trying to start a fight between transcendents to make my job easier.

But wait—once you peel it open, this entire disaster happened because one male student went temporarily insane from jealousy? Of course she would look like that. It would be weirder if she didn't.

Yeah, that's all true, but… what the hell am I supposed to do now?

Why… can't I lie?

Just as I was thinking things were about to go truly, catastrophically wrong—

"Ahahahaha!"

A sudden burst of laughter shattered the silence. Kyra doubled over, clutching her stomach as she exploded into full-body laughter.

She laughed so hard her silver-gray hair whipped in every direction and tears gathered at the corners of her eyes.

"Ahahaha! Really… you really did all of this just because you wanted a girlfriend… kuh, gwahahaha!"

"……."

My face burned so hot I thought I might actually die of shame.

Embarrassment crashed over me like a tsunami.

I almost wished Anger would burst out, grab me by the collar, and scream, "How dare you toy with the safety of the continent?!" That would have been better.

Having her laugh this openly—no, roar with laughter—made me want to crawl into a hole and never come out…

"N-no, this really isn't something to laugh about…"

I moved my lips, desperately trying to find some kind of excuse.

"I-I mean, what I meant was… I actually had my own grand purpose for…"

But my lips moved completely against my will.

"…Honestly, I worked my ass off for three years and nobody noticed, so I got lonely and sad. I just wanted to be loved too…"

"……."

"……."

Haaaa, fuck, I'm going to lose my mind.

Why is this happening?

I hastily clamped both hands over my mouth.

What the hell is wrong with me? Did someone put a curse on my mouth?

Or did the shock from the teleport scramble the circuits between my brain and my tongue?

Not only could I not lie—only the most pathetic, deep-down truths were leaking out one after another.

Watching me, Kyra finally managed to stop laughing and wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes with a finger.

"Huu… Ah, I'm sorry. It ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠was just so absurd I couldn't help myself."

A faint smile still lingered on her lips as she regarded my bright-red face with open interest.

"You look curious. Why the lies won't come out."

She slowly reached out and tapped the back of the hand still covering my mouth.

"It's simple. It's because of the unique authority I obtained when I ascended to the rank of transcendent—Truth Binding."

"…Truth Binding?"

"Yes. Each of our personalities possesses one authority. Mine, Truth Binding, makes it so that any being who enters its range becomes completely incapable of speaking a single falsehood."

"…."

Ha. I'm actually going to go insane.

You piece-of-shit author… Why the hell didn't you write this setting down either… you absolute bastard.

Dragon

Headmaster