The White Cat's Message
In the dormitory room where sunlight gently filtered through, Lena Youngstern slowly opened her bleary eyes atop the fluffy bed. The unprecedented mana rampage that had nearly sunk the entire academy. For someone who had caused such a massive incident, the situation Lena found herself in was almost eerily peaceful. Five days of self-reflection in the dormitory, followed by one month of probation. That was the full extent of the punishment handed down to her. It was thanks to the academy covering everything up with a slap on the wrist, but Lena knew better than anyone how embarrassingly light the penalty truly was.
Still, separate from how mild the punishment was, these five days of being confined to her dorm room felt like absolute torture. "Ugh... This is so stifling."
Lena rolled around on the bed before letting out a long sigh at the ceiling. The problem wasn't simply being locked up. The real issue was that every time she stayed still—or even when she closed and opened her eyes—all she could think about was Ian Ash.
Did he get hurt badly? What is he doing right now? Who is he with?
Lately her dreams had taken a sharp turn for the worse. What started as delusional nightmares where she watched Ian with other women and burned with jealousy had evolved into full-blown romance fantasies. Every night, Ian appeared dressed like a prince on a white horse, smiling gently as he reached out his hand.
You're really losing it, Lena Youngstern.
Lena buried her face in her pillow and kicked the blankets wildly. But the truly shocking part was that she no longer felt all that embarrassed about having those dreams. If anything, when she woke up she would catch herself thinking, I hope Ian shows up in my dream again tonight.
Having taken one step back from the dark, heavy weight of jealousy, Lena could finally see her own heart clearly.
So I've been looking at Ian Ashy as a man.
At some point, she had started seeing that unreliable childhood friend in an entirely different light. But... could this feeling really be called something as grand as "like" or "love"? She still wasn't sure if it was the fiery, can't-live-without-you passion like in romance novels. The only thing she knew for certain was that she missed him so much it felt like she couldn't breathe.
"Haah, why do five days feel so endless?"
With her heart feeling tight, Lena walked over to her desk and opened the half-read romance novel. She figured reading something like that might help calm her complicated emotions. But the more she tried to follow the words, the worse it got. The cold northern duke with black hair, the sly mercenary captain, even the gentle crown prince—every male lead somehow overlapped with Ian's face.
"Aack! I can't focus on anything!"
In the end, Lena slammed the book shut in frustration. She felt like she was going crazy. At this rate she might actually come down with a serious case of lovesickness.
As she aimlessly tidied her desk and glanced around, Lena's eyes landed on a thin book carefully hidden deep inside a drawer.
"......"
It was the erotic manga Ian had given her, saying thanks for helping him create it. At the time she'd been so embarrassed and angry that she'd only flipped through the first few pages, smacked him on the back, and thrown it away. In truth, she had never properly looked at anything past the beginning.
"......Should I take just one look?"
There was no one around anyway. And since Ian had drawn it himself, maybe this was the perfect chance to see what was going on inside that guy's head.
Swallowing nervously, Lena pulled the book out with trembling hands. Her heart pounded like it would explode. Holding her breath, she carefully flipped the book open to a middle page.
"Kyaaaak!"
The moment she opened it, the explicit, sticky descriptions and dizzying illustrations made her slam the book shut in panic.
"Pervert! Ian, you perverted bastard! You're seriously beyond saving!"
Lena huffed angrily as she tried to shove the book back into the drawer. But... she was strangely curious about what came next.
"Ahem. Cough."
It was going to keep bothering her if she didn't.
"J-just the text... Reading only the writing should be fine, right?"
Lena glanced around the empty room for no reason. Even though she knew perfectly well that no one was there, she felt like she was doing something naughty. She covered both eyes tightly with her hands and reopened the book. Then, spreading her fingers just a sliver to peek at the illustrations through the gap—
Knock knock!
"Kyaaaaaaaaak!"
The sudden clear knocking from behind made Lena scream as if her heart would leap out of her chest. She hurled the book into the air.
I've been caught! Who came in?!
Lena whipped her head around with a deathly pale face. But the sound hadn't come from the door. It was from the firmly closed window of the dormitory.
"...Huh?"
Lena stared at the window in a daze. There, on the narrow railing outside, a pure white cat was tapping on the glass with its front paw. It was a mystical creature with snow-white fur and mysterious blue points only on the tips of its tail and ears.
"Mrrraaow—"
W-what kind of cat...? For some reason, it gave her a strange sense of familiarity.
When Lena approached as if in a trance and opened the window, the cat leaped gracefully into the room and rubbed its head against her hand.
"A note?"
Lena carefully removed the memo tied around the cat's neck and unfolded it. The handwriting was unmistakably Ian Ash's neat script.
Really good opportunity came up, Lena. Let's work on something together, you and me.
"......!!!"
Lena's eyes widened as she read the note. This Ian guy! So you've been thinking about me too!
Her cheeks flushed as she scanned the words. Just moments ago she'd been sighing, hoping he'd appear in her dreams, but the moment she saw his shameless business proposal, an unstoppable snort of laughter escaped her.
"Seriously, he never considers other people's feelings at all..."
Despite her grumbling lips, the corners of Lena's mouth drew an irrepressible smile as she clutched the note tightly.
Team project. And not just any team project—it was an ultra-luxury scholarship match with a prize of ten million Krone per person. The bait that madman of a Magic Tower Master had thrown me was big and sweet.
"Good. I've secured Lena at least."
I stroked my chin as I walked down the hallway. That left only one spot. To aim for the scholarship, we obviously needed someone with overwhelming firepower.
"The princess should be enough, right?"
After all, in the original story she becomes the Magic Tower Master's disciple, so her talent is the highest.
Perfect timing, there she is.
I spotted the princess walking from the far end of the corridor with her usual confident stride. I naturally put on my business smile and approached.
"Your Highness the Princess. Just in time—"
"Hehehehe!"
Before I could even finish, the princess cut in front of me. Why was her tension so high? I sensed something strange, but only for a moment.
"Prepare yourself, Ian Ash!"
"...Pardon?"
"This time I will defeat you completely! I was one step behind in the last mana ball control, but in this team battle, I will make you kneel before my overwhelming talent!"
The princess pointed her finger dramatically as she issued her declaration of war. Aah. This is insane. This girl has completely caught the shonen manga rival syndrome.
"Princess, rather than that, since we've trained together to some degree, forming the same team would be..."
The princess didn't even pretend to listen. She spun on her heel and disappeared down the corridor.
"......"
A thought suddenly occurred to me. If I had to pick the least romance-fantasy-like person in the Golden Chain, wouldn't it be the princess? No, that's not the point.
If the princess won't work, then the person I know is...
Only one left. That sword-master-level power-hiding possessor.
But...
That woman will definitely hide her strength.
Kano, who suffers from the possessor's unique obsession with preventing destruction of the original work. No matter how unimportant the practice was, there was no way she'd go all out. Teaming up with her would basically make us a two-person team with extra baggage.
"This is a problem."
An academy outsider facing a major crisis.
Art Department building, just before Professor Hammington's Creative Theory class began. Arina Saint sat hunched in the very back corner seat, fidgeting with her fingers and biting her lip.
What should I do...?
Arina had fallen into deep thought lately. During the massive disaster that had swept through the academy last time, she had assisted Prince Leonhardt by his side. The outcome had been good. But...
...There was something ominous.
The prince's inner self had felt like a dangerous, flickering time bomb.
I want to talk to someone about it. But...
Who could she possibly confide these anxieties in? Only one person came to mind.
The lone figure who stood against the corrupt empire and the Magic Tower's oppression, quietly pursuing truth and art by himself.
Ian Ash.
But she hesitated, wondering if someone as inadequate as herself had any right to take up his time. It was right then—
"Hehehe..."
A sinister chuckle from the front door made Arina's head snap up. It was the Art Department's enforcer, the massive demon senior. Incongruous with his huge frame, the demon senior was fiddling with something on the upper door frame.
That's...!
Arina's eyes widened. In the senior's hand was something that looked exactly like the mana ball the Magic Tower Master had used during Magic Theory class.
"I got one similar to what they used in class. No way that Ian guy can dodge this."
The demon senior whispered boastfully to the classmate beside him.
"That arrogant Ian Ashy bastard. Today I'll teach him exactly what the agony of creation feels like!"
The moment she heard those words, Arina's heart sank.
O-oh no. It's a trap!
I have to warn him before Student Ian arrives! But since she didn't have any way to contact him, Arina steeled herself and stood up abruptly. She would go out into the corridor ahead of time and tell him.
But just as she started toward the front door—
Slide—.
The classroom door opened and a familiar black-haired male student walked in with a languid expression. It was Ian Ash.
"Ah, no...!"
The instant Arina swallowed her short scream, the mana ball installed on the door frame detected Ian's presence. With a loud pop, it revealed itself in midair and shot toward Ian's face at terrifying speed like a deadly weapon.
"Kuhahat! Got y—!"
Tap.
"...Eh?"
The demon senior's mouth fell open stupidly. The ball had stopped calmly right in front of Ian Ash.
"What is this? Did one of the balls escape during magic practice?"
Muttering to himself, Ian casually slipped it into his pocket. The motion was completely natural, like picking up a coin that had fallen on the street.
...Why is he so natural about it?