Chapter 12
Chapter 12
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 12
Chapter Title: Arbel Kingdom Academy (1)
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Arbel Kingdom Academy.
A mandatory educational institution for palace nobles. Any noble who has come of age enters at fifteen and graduates at the end of their eighteenth year—a four-year program.
It's nothing particularly special to the kingdom. Other nations all have their own academies as a matter of course.
If there's any difference... it might be that the Arbel Kingdom Academy allows even 'commoners' to enroll.
'Though in truth, it's little more than a hollow clause.'
Entrance exams to the Arbel Kingdom Academy are mostly a combination of magic evaluations and family status assessments.
The children of high nobles face no great hurdles even if they're poor with magic, while those from lower nobility struggle immensely unless they display exceptional magical talent.
Commoners can technically submit applications by the rules, but it almost never happens—and even when it does, they fail due to lacking points in the status evaluation.
For a commoner to enter the Arbel Kingdom Academy, they need talent on the level of a prospective grand mage, or a rare affinity like light magic. Otherwise, it's impossible.
'Elena mentioned that commoner girl wields light magic.'
Since light magic is a rare talent, it wouldn't be so strange for a commoner girl to gain admission to the academy on that basis.
And if what Elena said holds true, Amelie Saintro—the baron's daughter—will be enrolling next year as well.
Perhaps the noble ladies of Elena's generation simply have unusually low achievements. After all, even a commoner and a baron's daughter are making it in.
In any case, now that I had reached the age and enrolled in the academy myself, the strongest emotion I felt was 'boredom.'
I hadn't had the leisure to feel this way for a while. Elena was always somewhere in the palace, and whenever I wanted, I could meet her.
Enrolling in the academy had forcibly created physical distance between Elena and me, and it was truly agonizing. If I didn't occasionally check her face through the communication orb, I doubt I could have endured it.
"Can you see well, Elena?"
"Have you been well, Your Highness Prince Cedric?"
"Speak freely. I've sent the other servants away."
"You're always contacting me out of the blue like this. Don't you have anything better to do at the academy?"
"I finish my work first, then contact you."
Even after plowing through my tasks just to escape the boredom for a moment, the emptiness lingered. That was why I kept calling for Elena.
Experiencing life without her in this way, even partially, made me start to understand why my original self from the 'original world' had fallen for that commoner girl.
If I hadn't felt any interest in Elena, I would have lived this same life from that day eight years ago until now.
In a haze of boredom and lethargy, if someone—even half as intriguing as Elena—had appeared, I surely would have taken notice. Even if she were a commoner girl.
...But now that Elena was here, that was out of the question.
'I hope this one year passes quickly.'
Only then would Elena enroll in the academy, making these dull days at least somewhat bearable.
I wasn't entirely free of worries about that commoner girl who would enter alongside her, but it was still far better than days without Elena.
If need be, I could just make Rinel take an interest in her. After all, he seemed to be one of Elena's so-called 'capture targets' like me.
No matter how much of a handful Elena was, she couldn't break off the engagement without due cause. At least, I had no intention of giving her any pretext.
I did say academy life without Elena was boring, but that didn't mean I spent the year doing nothing.
The first thing I checked was meeting the people Elena called 'capture targets.'
According to her, there were four in total who would fall for that 'commoner girl,' including me. Excluding Rinel and myself, that left two.
Finding the other two wasn't so difficult. One was already someone I knew.
"How's it going with Lady Rozier these days, Cedric?"
Orpheus Arbel, my younger brother from the royal family.
Like our eldest brother Darius, he was the son of a concubine and thus didn't bear the title of First Prince.
Though the younger brother himself didn't seem particularly ambitious for the throne.
"Yes, brother. Elena and I are doing well."
"I heard from Lisia that she's quite the good girl. She has a knack for seeing right through people, I'd say. You're fortunate to have such a wife, Cedric."
More intriguing than Orpheus's interest in Elena was the fact that the taciturn Lady Grabel had brought her up first.
"Did Lady Grabel speak to you about Elena?"
"Whenever Lisia mentions someone else, it's almost always Lady Rozier, isn't it? Our usually quiet darling only opens up first when it's about her."
"......"
I had no idea how he'd won over that stoic Lady Grabel. Perhaps it was another feat solved by Elena's exclusive knowledge of the future.
Come to think of it, until about three years ago, rumors about Orpheus's engagement to Lady Grabel weren't exactly positive. But lately, those had completely died down.
There had even been talk that House Grabel was selling their daughter to a concubine prince to curry favor with the crown. Now, looking at Orpheus and Lady Grabel's relationship, it was dismissed as mere gossip.
Lady Grabel, who spoke little and exuded a cold aura that kept people at bay. Orpheus, who kept his distance while watching her mood.
...Now that I thought about it, their relationship had started improving around the time Elena began spending time with Lady Grabel.
"I was shocked when I first found out. I thought Lisia disliked me because she was so aloof, but it turns out she was the one who first asked her father about our engagement."
"...Pardon?"
"Her usual silence and cold demeanor were just because she's not great with words. Thanks to Lady Rozier clearing up the misunderstanding, even her shy glances away feel utterly endearing now."
"...I see."
"I wish I'd realized sooner, but I'm glad I found out this way. And these days, whenever I return to the dormitory, Lisia's waiting for me..."
-Smack.
"...Orph...?"
"......"
-Bow.
Excitedly boasting about his fiancée, Orpheus was suddenly approached from the side by Lady Grabel, who sealed his lips with her own.
Her expression remained nearly unchanged, her eyes vacant as always, but by now I could discern her subtle shifts.
At the very least, that faint blush on her cheeks meant embarrassment.
"...Sorry, I'll take him with me."
"Yes, Lady Grabel."
"Orph, don't talk about that stuff... out of nowhere..."
"...Quiet. It's embarrassing."
Orpheus was caught by Lady Grabel, but if anything, it felt more like he was letting her have her way.
I couldn't help envying the affectionate pair as they walked off.
'...Me and my thoughts.'
It might have been better if Elena were simply clumsy at expressing affection, like Lady Grabel.
Eight years had passed living with a fiancée who felt no love for me, and now I was growing more impatient than even Orpheus.
Which meant I had to prepare even more thoroughly. Leave no room for Elena to annul our engagement.
That covered Orpheus. Now, the last one was Theodor Esbaren, the son of a count I'd heard of once before.
The name had seemed so unfamiliar at first that I wondered if Elena had made it up. But learning that Viscount Esbaren's second son was indeed named Theodor only reinforced how extraordinary she was.
He had even caught Orpheus's eye and secured a spot on the student council.
"Greetings, Young Lord Esbaren."
"Yes, Your Highness Prince Cedric. His Highness Orpheus has spoken highly of you."
His impression upon meeting him was utterly ordinary. The archetype of a noble youth—someone more devoted to learning than romance or social connections.
In a way, he resembled Elena, but unlike her disciplined study of swordsmanship, etiquette, and politics, his focus was purely academic.
He might stick around the student council next year, but I doubted our bond would deepen much.
...By this point, certain common traits among Elena's 'capture targets' were coming into view.
'Perhaps belonging to the "student council" is what they all have in common.'
Three including myself already. And though Rinel hadn't enrolled yet, rumors of his talents had reached the palace.
Word even had it that he'd nearly seized control of House Rozier's influence. Considering he'd only been adopted five years ago, that was impressively swift.
By pedigree or ability, Rinel would join the student council in a couple of years. Especially with his sister already in it—he'd surely push to follow.
The male student council members being capture targets implied that 'commoner girl' had likely been on it too in the original world.
To confirm, I asked Elena through the communication orb, and her response matched.
"Whoa, I never told you that far. You're quick on the uptake."
"It came together naturally. There aren't many paths for a commoner girl to naturally cross with the kingdom's key nobles anyway."
"True enough. Anyway, starting next year, you'll see her face plenty in the student council without chasing her down. Just wait patiently. If you can't find her, I'll track her down and drag her there myself."
"...No need to go that far..."
"I'm busy, gotta go. Take care~."
...Still impossible to believe she's my fiancée, with that carefree attitude.
But thanks to her words, I had my hint. Now I could prevent entanglements with that commoner girl.
'First priority: ensure the 'commoner girl' doesn't make it onto the student council, just in case.'
I had no certainty it would play out that way, but better to have solid insurance.
I had no choice but to exclude every element that could threaten Elena's position.