...By Any Chance, Where Is Sir Plan?
...By Any Chance, Where Is Sir Plan?
"Your Highness... You haven't come with ill tidings, have you?"
Early morning. The maids of the Yudit mansion stood lined up in perfect formation.
The reason for the maids' gathering was the arrival of none other than a member of the imperial family — someone whose station far exceeded even the Head of the Household to whom they ordinarily pledged their loyalty.
"Surely not. Stay still. Keep your mouths shut and stay still."
"She only just emerged from a decade-long false death, and the very first place she seeks out upon waking is the Yudit mansion. That makes me uneasy, you know."
"I said stay still."
Members of the Yudit family had visited the Imperial Palace before, but the reverse had never once occurred. Perhaps because of that, the nervousness was plain on the maids' faces.
"Ah, could it be... that she still hasn't forgotten the young master? What happened back then, I mean."
At the young maid's naive remark, Catarina shook her head.
"Does that even make sense? It happened more than ten years ago."
"Is that so? Hmm, but still... During the demon beast invasion, it was as good as the young master saving her life. She might not have forgotten."
"The young master has put down his sword now, hasn't he? Enough of that talk. I dread Miss Scarlett overhearing."
Despite Catarina's repeated admonishments, the topic was simply too compelling, and the murmuring did not easily die down.
Then, at a certain moment.
The front door swung open wide, and an imperious set of footsteps resounded through the mansion's interior.
Hair that contained the fullness of pitch-black darkness, and crimson eyes like dying embers — today, those eyes were unusually deep.
The Knight of Embers, Scarlett Yudit.
But her entrance alone was not what caused the stir. It was the woman following behind her that made the maids hold their breath and stand stock-still.
Light.
The princess Yushia was like light itself.
Her pure-white hair was so lustrous it made ordinary white seem dark by comparison, and her golden eyes testified to her noble birth.
An appearance that seemed to deny human lineage altogether. The sight was as if a transcendent angel had descended, and the maids stood entranced.
"Ah, you honor us with your presence!"
Suddenly, something seized Catarina's hand with a soft grasp.
The moment she realized that the small, delicate thing gripping her hand was Yushia's, Catarina nearly fainted dead away.
"You are the head maid! I remember you!"
"Ah, ah, ah, ah... Yes, yes, yes, yes...?"
"I remember all the other maids, too. It has been a long time!"
Even if Yushia had chosen to look down upon ordinary humans, everyone would have accepted it as her due. Yet her disposition was every bit as gentle as her bearing.
The maids, accustomed to being addressed as inferiors, found such warmth far more difficult to endure.
While the maids were melting under Yushia's kindness, Scarlett, unable to hide a troubled expression, intervened.
"Your Highness, you must not act this way."
"Ah~ I apologize. I was simply so happy, I couldn't help myself."
"No, Your Highness. There is no need for you to apologize to the likes of us...."
Only after Scarlett was utterly drained of energy did she finally manage to escort Yushia into her private office.
This office was far too shabby a place to hold a conversation with an imperial princess — indeed, the mere fact of it might be construed as disloyalty.
But the visit to this mansion today had been Yushia's own will and no one else's, so there was simply no help for it.
Head maid Catarina presented tea — selected and re-selected from the finest — then swiftly withdrew from the office.
"Oh, please, sit comfortably!"
The seated Yushia looked up at Scarlett, who still stood awkwardly, and spoke. Scarlett had absolutely no intention of doing so and deflected the remark.
"Your Highness, may I dare to ask the reason for your visit in person?"
"Well, the thing is...."
Instead of answering, Yushia glanced around. Scarlett desperately hoped that the reason would not be what she suspected.
She hoped, and hoped again.
"...By any chance, where might Sir Plan be? I would like to see him."
At those words, Scarlett's hopes were mercilessly shattered.
She wanted to press a hand to her throbbing temple, but she could not. She had to maintain her composure.
The Plan Yudit whom Yushia sought was the Plan Yudit of ten years ago.
The knight who had diligently swung his sword in Scarlett's footsteps, and who had contributed to saving Yushia's life during the demon beast invasion.
That was, unmistakably, a great and powerful deed — even if luck had played its part.
In the mind of Yushia, who had only just awakened from her false death, that image of Plan no doubt still lived. But Scarlett, who knew his current state, could only feel a headache coming on.
Where to begin explaining, what to say — she could not get a handle on it at all.
"He has left the mansion for a time, due to certain circumstances."
At that, an undisguisable regret spread across Yushia's face.
"Ah... How unfortunate. I must soon depart for the academy, so I had very much hoped to see his face before then."
"......The academy, did you say?"
"Yes!"
Yushia smiled brightly and drew a document from within her robes.
It was a document lavishly stamped with the gold ornamentation characteristic of the Imperial Household, and its content was, in the end, that she was to transfer into Märchen Academy.
"I am entering the Magic Department. If I am to make up for the years I spent bedridden, I must learn and move diligently!"
"The Magic... Department... did you, say...?"
Scarlett stammered for nearly the first time since she was born. Yushia nodded, her face bright.
"Yes! I must study hard! Ah, but it is already time...."
Knock, knock. Someone rapped on the door and opened it just a crack. It was the attendants from the imperial side.
Yushia rose from her seat at once.
"I must take my leave now! If Sir Plan returns, you absolutely must send word to me!"
With those parting words, the princess departed. She dashed off full of energy, with the imperial attendants chasing after her, their faces pale.
"......"
Scarlett stood dazed for a moment, then slumped down into a chair.
The shock was so great that not even a sigh escaped her. Yet even so, her mind turned rapidly.
For in a crisis, a knight must remain composed.
The conclusion she reached after deep deliberation was short and clear. Princess Yushia must under no circumstances be allowed to encounter Plan.
If Yushia were to see the shabby Plan of today, the magnitude of her disappointment was beyond measure.
And the princess's disappointment would inevitably lead to disappointment directed at the house of Yudit. That, above all else, must not happen.
"That goddamn..."
She found herself freshly resenting the fact that such trash was a member of the Yudit family.
It was then. Catarina cautiously revealed herself.
"Miss Scarlett. A letter from the academy."
"Bring it here."
She had previously requested a progress report concerning Plan from the academy. It had only now arrived.
As she received the quite substantial bundle of papers, a thought flashed through Scarlett's mind.
"......Early expulsion."
There was still a means available to resolve this situation.
Plan's grades were utterly abysmal. He was a prime candidate for early expulsion. If the reply was dispatched swiftly, it would be entirely possible to have him expelled by the end of the day.
Catarina tilted her head.
"Pardon?"
"Nothing. You may leave."
After the head maid exited the room, the corners of Scarlett's mouth lifted as she broke the letter's seal.
Since it came from journalists within the academy, it would contain only the precise facts. The corners of her mouth rose further.
The eyes of a seasoned knight quickly scanned the printed letters.
She could no longer endure her younger brother's childish behavior.
There was no reason to wait until the midterm evaluation. The time had come to put an early end to that arrogant, insolent wager....
"What?"
That line of thought was severed the very next moment. Scarlett furrowed her brow without realizing it.
"......What is this."
A.
That was Plan's current grade.
◈
The weather was remarkably fine today.
The academy, bathed in sunlight, gleamed in a brilliant spectacle, and the breeze was pleasantly cool. A sharp mood would naturally ease itself in such conditions.
In the afternoon, there was a practical class in preparation for the exploration assignment. As I savored the tranquil scenery and made my way to the training grounds, Trivia kept buzzing ceaselessly.
[ ▶ This one seems to be some kind of diagram too. ]
[ ▶ So I tried approaching it like this! ]
Today was exactly one week since I'd posted a new problem on the Agora Board.
Probably because today was the last day it remained open, the client from the teaching auction had been sending messages nonstop since dawn.
"Sloppy."
The approach was decent, but he'd made no progress at all since dawn.
[ ▷ I will send you three formulas. ]
[ ▷ If you solve them, you will feel something. ]
[ ▶ Okay! ]
[ ▶ I'll work on them all day today hehe ]
Still, the client never said anything like "just tell me the answer outright."
He simply and silently carried out the tasks I set him. In terms of learning attitude, there was something rather gratifying about the fellow.
It was then.
"Student Plan."
Someone called out, stopping me. A now-familiar face. It was Professor Violet.
Her fatigued expression was no different from usual, but her characteristic sharpness was dull today.
"How is it? Are you preparing steadily for the exploration assignment? Only two days remain."
I nodded instead of answering. It was only a difference of finishing the preparations quickly or slowly — absolutely nothing was being done halfheartedly.
"Take this."
At Violet's sudden action, my eyebrow twitched involuntarily. She was holding something out to me.
I couldn't divine her intention, but I accepted it for now. It was a crystal-orb-shaped artifact.
"It's called the Spring of Essence... It isn't a particularly good artifact, but it should help you with training."
I examined the Spring of Essence from various angles.
Mana could be poured into it, and also drawn back out.
An artifact that serves as a mana reservoir, then. There had been quite a few artifacts like this in my previous world, too.
The amount it could hold probably varied drastically depending on its grade. This one appeared to be an ordinary level, just as Violet had said.
"Why are you giving this to me?"
"My business is done, so I'll be going now. Busy with transfer student processing."
Violet turned away without answering. But then she suddenly turned back.
"One more thing. Don't live so pitifully. Sleep in the dormitory, and make sure you eat the cafeteria meals. There is no high or low in magic, so keep your spirits up. At least, that's what I think."
What was this woman suddenly talking about? Before I could fully comprehend, Violet was already retreating far into the distance.
I hadn't suffered any loss, so no matter. I tucked the Spring of Essence into my coat and carried on toward the training grounds.
'A practical session just before the exploration assignment, huh.'
I was interested to see what kind of exercise they intended to run.
If they wanted to give us a taste of exploration in advance, they would have assembled us in front of a dungeon. The fact that they summoned us to the training grounds instead must mean there was a reason for it.
With such thoughts drifting through my mind, I soon found myself in front of the training grounds. I entered without hesitation.
A vast white space in the shape of a perfect cube. Students clustered in their own groups and strode about within it.
Among them were students wearing gold nameplates rather than white ones, which caught my attention slightly. Gold should be the nameplate for second-years.
Becky, who had been sniffing at her own sleeves, spotted me and raised her hand high. She approached and stuck beside me as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
"Hey, Plan. You're here?"
"Not even half have come."
The number of first-year students gathered was exceedingly small.
Excluding Becky and myself, there were about three other first-years. One was Martin, who was in my group, and the remaining two were faces I didn't recognize at all.
Shaking her head side to side, Becky answered.
"This is everyone. Today's practical is done in rotations of two groups at a time. This time it's our Group 5 and your Group 11."
"Trixie isn't here."
"Ah, she said she's absent today. Has something going on? Anyway, I guess she must have told the professor separately."
As she spoke, Becky swept her gaze over the second-years.
Tension was palpable in that gaze. It seems that to a new student, upperclassmen register as beings of infinite superiority.
"Hey, Plan. But why are the second-year seniors here today...? We're not doing the practical together with them, are we?"
While Becky fidgeted restlessly, Professor Leonard stepped up before the students.
"Everyone, attention."
All eyes fixed upon his lips. The professor's grim expression did much to quiet the murmuring.
"With the exception of Trixie, there are no absences. With only two days remaining until the exploration assignment, we will be conducting a practical exercise today."
Martin raised his hand.
"Will this be reflected in our grades?"
"Of course. Practice as in real battle, real battle as in practice."
At the news that it would count toward their evaluation, the handful of students began to murmur among themselves.
Leonard, looking rather pleased by that very reaction, continued with a smile.
"It's not difficult, so abandon any idea of bellyaching."
Leonard snapped his fingers, and the training grounds transformed.
The white cube-shaped space elongated endlessly into a rectangle.
Walls like a labyrinth rose up in profusion, and far in the distance, at the far end of the void, a single red flag was hung.
At the same time, the platform where Professor Leonard and the second-years stood began to rise. Before long, they were in a position looking down upon the first-year students.
Gazing at that sight, Becky whispered to me.
"Hey, Plan. So what are we supposed to do? Are they just going to watch us from up there? Then why change the space, why plant the flag, and why are the second-year seniors here?"
"Why are you asking me?"
"You always know everything."
I couldn't quite tell whether that remark was meant as praise or not. She was treating me more like an astrologer than a mage, but still.
Just then, Leonard's gaze turned toward us.
"Why are you two chattering over there? Feeling confident, are we?"
His eyes shifted alternately between Becky and me, and before long, they fixed upon me.
He looked at me with an expression of interest.
"Ah, you're that one from the mock battle."
Again, I couldn't tell whether that was meant as praise or not. He let out a chuckle and continued.
"Still full of confidence, I see. What were you talking about that had you so worked up? Ignoring even the professor's words."
I have never lacked confidence in anything related to magic. It was just that, even I did not yet know what form this practical exercise would take.
I pondered for a moment, then opened my mouth.
"Becky says she's eager to start."
Leonard nodded his head.
"Is that so? Becky, step forward. You can demonstrate what kind of test this is for the others by doing it yourself."
"Huh? Uh, no. Yes. Yes? Wha? M-me, me, me?"
Becky's face went deathly pale.