Entangled Again and Again
Imperial Foreign Ministry. The discussion on the Medal of Honor is underway.
Bright Light Church. A prayer meeting for the benefactor will be held, as announced by the 1st and 4th districts.
Let us look into the lost relic, the Sword of Saint Louis, in detail.
Lavrenti stared blankly at the medal in her hands, then quietly set it aside.
“Hah…”
A sigh— or perhaps a groan— slipped from her lips.
She couldn’t help but reach for the Medal of Honor resting beside her.
Back when she’d received the Silver Star Medal, she had believed—even if it was only a little—that she could finally stand shoulder to shoulder with Karl.
It wasn’t comparable to the Medal of Honor he’d earned, but it still proved she had performed meritorious service in the military. She had been certain it would qualify her.
Or rather… it had been. That was the correct way to put it now. He had gone so far beyond that point that she could scarcely believe it anymore.
The Medal of Honor is given to only one person whose diplomatic contributions have had a profound impact on the Empire and foreign relations…
In other words, it was the diplomatic equivalent of the Medal of Honor. And this time, Karl was very likely to receive it because of his connection with the Church.
Or perhaps the discussion had already concluded and they were only arguing about when it would be awarded.
This is completely unexpected. Can I even handle this? It feels impossible…
As a sharpshooter, she had always prided herself on never losing her composure under pressure.
But right now… how could she possibly remain calm?
“Lavrenti Sergeant-nim?”
“…?”
“Lavrenti Sergeant-nim.”
“Ah, yes. Did you call?”
Deonic tilted his head curiously before continuing.
“All preparations for enrollment are complete. You needn’t worry about tuition for any semester, and if you require any additional funds, please let me know at any time.”
“I see. Thank you, Master.”
“Not at all. It is I who am grateful to be able to assist someone like you, Sergeant-nim. Nothing could be more honorable. Um… actually…”
Deonic scratched his cheek, stealing a glance at Lavrenti as if he were about to say something but couldn’t quite bring himself to speak.
“Is there something you wish to say?”
Realizing his hesitation, Lavrenti asked the reason. Deonic let out a long sigh and finally opened his mouth.
“We can cover all tuition costs here. That was the purpose of the program. However… the Imperial Academy is not a place where one can simply keep studying by paying money.”
“What do you mean?”
“If you receive four or more warnings for failing to meet academic standards, you will be expelled from the Academy. Please keep this in mind and never neglect your studies. If such a thing happens, no matter how much we would like to help, we will be unable to do so.”
Ah… so that was it. In this world, failing to meet standards four times meant expulsion.
In the army, they never kicked anyone out no matter how bad they were. Here, they expelled them?
The Academy was truly terrifying! The Master had walked into such a place himself!
If Karl had known Lavrenti’s inner thoughts right now, he would have shouted, “Still better than the army!” But unfortunately, he was currently crushed under the weight of the calamity he had summoned himself, so we shall set that aside.
“Um… Master. Do you know how difficult studies at the Imperial Academy are?”
“I do. I’m also an Academy graduate, after all. Um… I don’t know how much it has changed since my time, but if I have to guess…”
Deonic thought for a moment, then shook his head with a groan.
“It is by no means easy. The academic pressure from nobles, commoners, and even professors is immense. The only way to prove yourself at the Academy is through outstanding grades, a passionate attitude, and diligence. That is why the pressure to produce results is so severe.”
“That much…?”
“I did graduate, but I would not call myself an excellent student. It is embarrassing, but I only graduated with average-to-above-average grades.”
After listening to Deonic speak, Lavrenti realized something. He was clearly an intelligent person.
Yet even he considered himself only slightly above average. He seemed genuinely dissatisfied with himself.
Is this really okay…?
Imagine the moment when four accumulated warnings for poor grades finally force you to leave the Academy.
She didn’t care about the stares or the shame. But imagining Karl watching that scene—
“Master! Is there any way to receive help with the academic portion?!”
Lavrenti’s voice was unusually urgent. Deonic noticed the tension and answered hastily.
“Um… do you mean… what I think you mean?”
“Yes. In truth, my depth of knowledge is rather shallow. Master, I can work diligently, I have patience and endurance, but I simply cannot handle the academic side. As you know, I am a commoner.”
“Please do not belittle yourself, Sergeant-nim. You are a war hero—”
“That means nothing. Right now, what I need most is not to look embarrassing in front of Master. Not to be expelled from the Academy for failing academically!”
“…”
Deonic had never seen Lavrenti like this before. He shook his head slowly.
No matter how hard he tried, he had never witnessed her so emotionally overwhelmed. This was the first time he had seen her so expressive. The gravity of it struck him deeply.
“Um…”
Someone who could fill at least some of the gaps in Lavrenti’s knowledge.
Of course, it couldn’t be just anyone. Their pride was on the line, and more importantly, Lavrenti was heading to the Imperial Academy.
Therefore, the person they chose had to be an Academy graduate who had also achieved excellent grades.
And besides, I cannot treat Sergeant-nim as just a commoner.
He wanted to help. A comrade in arms. He wanted to help a comrade in distress.
This was his way of partially repaying the debt he felt in his heart. By repaying it to Karl’s other comrades, even a little.
…Wait.
Suddenly, the face of a woman brushed past Deonic’s mind. More precisely, one of his family members.
“Why her of all people?! I hate oppa so much!!”
“Why are you acting like this? Fine. I’ll tell you. What did oppa do?!”
Just a moment ago, Selena had been hitting him lightly while screaming “Eeeek!”
Deonic stroked his chin and slowly opened his lips.
“Actually, I know of someone who can help Lavrenti Sergeant-nim.”
“Really?!”
“Yes. She graduated from the Academy with excellent grades. No, not just excellent— she achieved the highest possible scores. She is now preparing to enter graduate school. She will be quite busy, but if she uses her break time, she should be able to assist Lavrenti Sergeant-nim to some extent.”
From what he had heard, Deonic knew that the relationship between Karl and Selena had become rather complicated.
He could understand why. A man and a woman could not help but develop rival feelings toward the same person. And if they could, they would want to separate them.
Still, Lavrenti Sergeant-nim is Karl’s comrade. If things get awkward, it might only make Lena suffer. It might be better to intervene now and help smooth things over.
If he told his younger sister about this, she would probably explode in anger, asking what he had done this time.
But this was actually an opportunity. By helping Lavrenti, Selena might end up in a more favorable position.
Believing that someday Selena would understand him, Deonic decided to move forward with his plan.
*
“…”
The woman leaned against the window, gazing out at the distant foreign land.
A faraway country. It was similar to her homeland, yet utterly different.
Once, they had competed fiercely over the sole order of the continent. Now, they had no choice but to acknowledge its superiority.
And perhaps from today onward, this space— a prison of sorts— would be where she would live until the day she died.
“Haa…”
She had never wanted this. She had simply wished to live quietly like a mouse in her homeland.
If she had been told to renounce her noble status, she could have done it. Anything would have been better than this. She had only wanted to spend the rest of her life in quiet peace.
But the blood flowing in her veins made even that impossible. It had become an eternal shackle that bound her limbs until the moment of her death. Or perhaps even after.
“Fifth Princess, Repia Archeble. Prepare immediately and head to the Empire. Enroll at the Imperial Academy and work toward peace between our kingdom and the Empire.”
Even though she was the younger sister of a different princess, Repia had still trusted the second princess. Now came her cold command.
Having already recognized all her siblings as rivals, she had declared she had no greed for the throne. Yet she had still pushed Repia out of the kingdom.
This was the result. The direct royal lineage, not even a collateral branch, was now studying at the Empire’s Academy.
Worse still, the number of attendants accompanying her had not even reached ten. What was supposed to be study abroad was nothing more than exile.
When my study abroad ends… what am I supposed to do?
It was at this moment that Repia Archeble, the Fifth Princess of the Lasquer Kingdom, let out another sigh.