Chapter 45
Chapter 45
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 45
Chapter Title: Going to Meet Someone
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"You were pretty good at acting."
As I stretched out my sore body after practice and breathed in some fresh outdoor air, a girl with jet-black short hair approached quietly—Hayun.
I'd introduced her to the costume team today so she could make or sell the items they needed, and from the looks of things, it had gone well.
"Professor Bertio really is a genius."
Not only did she write the script, but her direction on the overall atmosphere and staging was spot-on, and she even gave excellent acting coaching to the performers.
Thanks to her, our skills had improved quickly, but I knew it was limited to the role of 'Gary.'
"I heard from the production team that a lot of theater people came to watch. They're scouting promising actors among Professor Bertio's students."
"Really?"
"Yeah, she's famous for her sharp eye for talent."
She had indeed cast roles that fit each person perfectly in subtle ways. That must be why everyone could act so naturally.
"But you seemed a bit awkward acting with Senior Seria?"
"......"
She'd poked right where it hurt.
Seria Deloa.
A fourth-year in Class C, she was the heroine competing with Rin for Ares's heart in this play.
Word was that if you picked the prettiest student in the fourth year, it'd be Seria. But to me, more than that...
'The role's name just had to be Eris.'
Eris wasn't that rare a name, so I understood, but it still felt strange.
Every time I delivered the line about possessing Eris, I felt my personal feelings creeping in, stabbing me with guilt.
This time was fine, but theater really didn't suit me.
"Anyway, I just hope it ends soon."
Lately, we'd been practicing late every night, so I felt cooped up. I hoped the festival would wrap up quickly.
At least we only had one performance on the fourth and final day, so festival day itself wouldn't be too hectic. That was some consolation.
"Do your best. I hear royalty's coming to watch this time."
It was meant as encouragement, but it didn't help much.
"Hup! Hup!"
A blond boy swinging his sword fiercely even in the dead of night when everyone else was asleep.
Ares Helias.
Students weren't allowed out of the dorms after curfew, and security had tightened even more since the Hare incident. So he was sweating it out on the dorm rooftop.
He was swinging his sword, but he wasn't really focused.
It was less training to improve and more a desperate attempt to shake off stray thoughts.
"Why..."
But the fiercer it got, the more those fierce eyes of his old friend bound the boy's body.
"Why!"
His grip overpowered the swing, and the sword slipped free.
Ares ground his teeth as he watched it mercifully hit the railing instead of flying off the edge.
Why had he lost?
Back in the village, it hadn't been like this.
He'd sparred with Daniel countless times, and Ares had always won.
But here, it was different.
Once in the practical exam, and now again during play rehearsals.
And he'd even heard Daniel had beaten Zavallanco alone—the boss of those thugs he'd despaired over beating, a lieutenant of the pirate lord.
How?
How could he get that strong all of a sudden?
Rin used to say that whenever she watched Daniel and Ares spar.
'Daniel could be way stronger if he had more confidence. He's so timid, his movements are always slow and hesitant.'
Daniel knew it too, but that didn't change his timid nature.
Because it wasn't innate—it was learned.
His two friends on either side.
Ares Helias, handsome with a sun-like smile, popular with girls, and skilled in swordsmanship.
Rin, pure and stunningly beautiful, the first love of every boy in the village, kind and considerate, with exceptional magical talent.
Sticking with those two, ordinary Daniel couldn't help but feel inferior.
Ares knew it, but he'd thought his friend would overcome it eventually.
He never imagined just conquering that one thing would change him this much.
"Damn it, damn it!"
The helpless sense of defeat soaked his body, and he couldn't bear it.
The friend who'd always trailed behind him now stood above.
This shook Ares more than he'd expected.
He was kind and considerate to everyone.
Popular, the kind of guy most girls had fantasized about dating.
But fundamentally? No.
It made academy life easier and gave him a strange satisfaction.
That's why, even though he liked Rin, he never chased away the girls trailing him.
Having amazing women follow him like puppies gave Ares a unique sense of superiority.
"Hoo!"
But things changed when Daniel arrived at the academy.
Starting with Tana Christa, from the prestigious Meias branch family.
Then May Flob, the dean's niece.
Even Hayun, the Eastern swordswoman whose looks had caught his eye, was starting to lose interest in him lately.
"No, I can't let this stand."
He'd always been above Daniel.
And he'd advance beyond friendship with his first love, Rin.
As Ares clenched his fist with that thought...
A yellow pattern etched onto the back of his hand, glowing brightly.
"Huh?"
It felt like warm sunlight pouring down.
Ares knew what the pattern on his hand meant.
The Sun God, Helios.
He had chosen him.
"Hoo, hoo."
While Ares received the Sun God's blessing on the rooftop, in the fourth-floor girls' dorm, one of the fish in his pond—Adriana—was busy with preparations.
"Like this here too."
Her windows were fully boarded up, layered with countless spells on top.
"Good, good."
In Ares's pond, she played the caring big sister, yielding to everyone. But now, her vibe was totally different.
Eyes swept up in mania.
Hands moving frantically, as if every second counted.
Legs trembling uncontrollably.
She muttered nonstop like a broken tape recorder, and the phrase she repeated most was...
"I'll live. Yeah, I won't die. I can survive."
She wouldn't die.
She'd survive.
Whispering that to herself like a mantra.
This wasn't the first time Adriana had acted like this.
First year, second year.
Every academy festival, she repeated this ritual—and survived.
Why? It tied to her secret.
The Witch of the Black Forest.
A forbidden clan living underground in the Demon Realm Forest, unknown to the world.
Slaughtered by the gods for their hatred, they'd fled into the forest, scraping by like insects below ground.
The gods despised them because they alone among humans could see fate.
That trait was why Adriana had entered the academy.
'There's only one man at Aios Academy who can save me.'
The vision came during festival season.
Swarms of insects everywhere, a monster with freakish power at the center gunning for her.
And a blond man raising his sword before her against it.
Her first and second years, she'd wandered searching for that blond man.
His clothes were unclear—was he a professor, student, or festival visitor?
Then in her third year, Ares Helias transferred in, and Adriana was certain.
This was the man.
The only one in the world who could block her fated death.
So Adriana threw herself at Ares, ready to give everything.
"I'll survive."
Black Forest witches all obsessed over their lives, and Adriana was no different.
She'd do anything to live.
Want her wealth? She'd give it.
Items? She'd fetch them.
Her body? She'd strip.
Her heart? She'd whisper love.
"I'll survive! Me! To the end! I'll live!"
Four years facing her fate.
The girl was already shattered by fear of the death that could strike anytime, anywhere.
The tree called the ceiling of the continent—Yggdrasil.
Beneath the radiant, mighty tree's protection, countless elves had built their homes.
This was the elves' sole city and sanctuary.
Non-elves were almost never allowed in; illegal intruders were killed on sight without issue—a holy ground.
With so few elves, lacking human ambition for titles or greed, it felt more like a village than a city.
At a hidden entrance, the Elf Queen addressed the woman bearing the title of 'Sentinel'—given only to the greatest warrior guarding Yggdrasil and the elves.
"You don't need to push yourself too hard."
"Yes, I know."
A classic elf.
The elf woman with golden hair, pointed ears, and blue eyes nodded vigorously.
Her lovely smile calmed all who saw it.
"Eris, where are you going?"
The neighbor kid she'd been playing with pouted and clung to her. Eris smiled awkwardly and patted his head.
"To the city of Elgrid. I'll be back soon, okay?"
The kid tilted his head.
He'd never left Yggdrasil, so he probably didn't even know the name Elgrid.
"Why?"
Desperate to keep her?
The kid asked again, and Eris smiled brightly once more.
"Going to meet someone."