A Slap and a Smile
The long break had finally ended, and the academy buzzed once more with the return of the student body, all gathered for the new semester.
Some had rested deeply. Others had shared warm moments with family. Still others had pushed through brutal training and emerged stronger.
At this age of constant growth, the faces they now saw were both familiar and strangely different.
“Hey, Tank! Long time no see. How’ve you been?”
Even after so long, that scruffy face of yours is unchanged.
*Sing-song*
“Look at him grinning. What the hell did he eat? You’re the one making me laugh, idiot!”
“Calling me Tank means I’ve earned something now, right? Can you even use magic anymore?”
*Sing-song*
The moment the new semester began, a smile lit up Mia’s face despite the harassment surrounding her.
When the break had first started, Mia had worried about facing the same faces that tormented her again. But now, as the break ended, she felt only relief.
“You trained hard during break, huh? Wanna spar? Don’t hold back, you bastard.”
“Fuck, look at the way you’re strutting around like you own the place. You want to get beaten up?”
*Sing-song*
After so long, Mia had finally faced the academy students who had once tormented her, yet she remained unfazed.
To her, Aslan’s terrifying face felt almost comforting now. The stares and killing intent of students like Abigail seemed almost adorable compared to what she had endured.
If forced to name the academy student who had grown the most during the break, Mia’s name would top the list.
During the break, Mia had spent every moment drilling the sloppy spells her seniors had provided, gradually mastering mana control. She had even begun to skim wasteful parts of the incantations, refining her technique.
The students who liked to bully her realized the instructor and staff were nowhere in sight and swung their hands.
**THWACK!**
The loud slap echoed through the lecture hall. Every student turned to find its source.
When they saw Mia’s head snap to the side from the blow, they frowned but didn’t stop. Mia had been the victim of her own immature mana control more times than she could count—her lectures had been interrupted, and mana explosions had injured plenty of classmates.
Because of that, few pitied her. The Bernies Empire valued the knightly ideal of chivalry, after all, and some students looked down on her.
When Dawood, the top freshman prospect, started to stand up with a scowl, Mia lifted her head.
**Sing-song**
Despite the painful slap that had rung through the hall, Mia was smiling.
The students who had meant to stop the bullying froze at her grin.
“Tank… has she gone crazy? Do you really want to get beaten up?”
They spoke harshly, but the insane smile on Mia’s face made their posture stiff.
The punches her seniors had thrown during break had barely hurt. But this was different. Mia wasn’t laughing like an idiot.
Now her mana control had improved. She could even cast simple spells. With her enormous mana reserves, she could pour the energy into a single strike.
And she now wielded the Crescent, the mechanical cogwheel weapon Rye had designed for her. She had helped name it after considering options with the seniors, though Philia had preferred Iron Gear. In the end, Zeroa’s suggestion of Crescent won out.
Even though the effort had been raw and imperfect, she had trained enough to wield the Crescent as a weapon. She had also earned recognition for her martial arts and was currently in the middle of spear training.
Every day, the girl who had once seemed fragile now radiated confidence. The Mia who had entered the academy had vanished completely.
If only she were allowed, Mia would have flattened every student in front of her right now.
Before meeting Zeroa, every single day had been agony—mockery, insults, contempt.
Mia had received all of it for years, and she had gained the strength she craved. But Rai had refused to let her fight.
Her combat style was still too immature, too full of gaps.
And Rai had worried about the mental state of a girl who had suddenly gained such power after a difficult period.
Mia didn’t understand why, but she trusted Rai’s words more than anyone. More than Zeroa, Rai was the person she trusted the most.
So even when bullied, Mia never fought back. She simply refused to cower like she once had. She would endure their taunts proudly and pay them back at the Martial Arts Tournament.
Rai’s restrictions lasted only until then.
“Wouldn’t it be the most fun to pay them back in public? You have to make them kneel in front of a crowd of people.”
At Rai’s wicked smile, Mia nodded without hesitation.
She didn’t care about the nonsense floating around her. All her focus was on preparing the sweets for Seria’s Day.
Living under the blessing and curse of immense mana, Mia had come to the academy seeking answers. But even here she found only more pain—until a single ray of light, Zeroa, appeared.
He drove away the tormentors and introduced her to Rai, the one who held the solution.
During training, he always looked after her and spoke to her with that gentle smile.
Recalling the sight of her senior swinging the sword with unyielding eyes and pure dedication, Mia found herself smiling unconsciously.
“That idiot… he’s smiling?”
Seeing Mia laugh happily despite the slap, the bullies and everyone else around them froze in shock.
A strange rumor had spread among the first-years, but thanks to it, the harassment had dropped dramatically.
***
“Hey, Zeroa. Long time no see.”
“Cursebert. It’s been a while.”
Zeroa smiled and greeted Cuthbert, who had dressed to the nines for Seria’s Day.
Cuthbert had been approaching with a bright smile but soon tilted his head, scanning Zeroa from head to toe.
“You look… different somehow?”
“Different? I don’t think so.”
Zeroa smiled softly, but Cuthbert sensed the subtle shift and kept staring.
“Body’s bigger?”
“Apparently. I trained with Instructor Rai during the break.”
With his relaxed smile, Zeroa answered, and Cuthbert finally understood the difference.
Zeroa had always been the type to act deferential. Even now, he was still deferential, but it carried a new weight and ease—the aura of someone who had stepped up a level as a man.
“Did you? You actually did it?”
Cuthbert’s eyes widened and he grabbed Zeroa’s shoulder. Zeroa startled.
“W-what? Did what?”
“You climbed the adult staircase! Damn it, I’m still stuck at the bottom and you went first?!”
The hallway fell silent as Cuthbert’s loud voice drew every eye.
Anyone could tell Zeroa understood exactly what he meant.
“N-no! I—I didn’t do anything!”
Embarrassed and shouting, Zeroa looked at Cuthbert. He nodded, releasing the shoulder.
The flustered Zeroa was exactly the same boy Cuthbert remembered.
Cuthbert wore a satisfied smile, content that his friend remained deferential. The other students noticed Zeroa’s blush and lowered gaze and looked away.
No matter how much training, the boy’s true nature hadn’t changed.
After chatting with Zeroa and entering the Class A lecture hall, Cuthbert scanned the female students with sharp eyes.
“Oh ho, you’ve all grown up… completely unrecognizable.”
“Yes, they’re all talented people.”
The two men talked about different things, yet their conversation flowed naturally.
While Cuthbert scanned the girls with predatory eyes, Abigail caught his gaze.
“Zeroa, you know what?”
“What?”
“Abigail’s gotten softer.”
Zeroa’s eyes saw no change in Abigail every day, but to Cuthbert, who hadn’t seen her in a while, the difference was clear.
“Really? I don’t know…”
“She’s still that irresistible mix of bratty and scolding glances. But lately she’s been balancing it out with genuine softness. It’s beautiful harmony. During the break she grew even more, and she’ll probably take the top rank soon.”
Cuthbert’s serious tone left Zeroa silent.
If he had agreed, the other female students might have glared at him too.
“And… her chest has grown.”
At Cuthbert’s meaningful words, Zeroa’s eyes moved without permission.
Pure but unable to resist male instinct, he glanced at the gently rising chest.
At the same moment, Abigail slowly turned her head and glared at Zeroa and Cuthbert with the eyes of a wild beast.
The two men’s heads turned toward her as if pulled by strings.
“I-is it true? It’s softened?”
“I don’t know. But I’m certain it isn’t right now.”
Sweating profusely, the two boys were about to bolt when Cesset strolled past and entered the lecture hall.
“Iya— this is the dance hall? Academy, huh?”
Cesset laughed seeing the boys who had gone all out to look cool for Seria’s Day.
“Hello, everyone! Let’s make Seria’s Day amazing!”
The students nodded inwardly, steeling their resolve despite not responding aloud.
Whether they were girls preparing sweets or boys secretly hoping for acceptance, their hearts aligned.
Cesset, paying them no mind, approached Philia and clung to her.
“PhiliPhili, long time! Your chest got bigger.”
“Don’t try that weird flirting.”
At Philia’s cold reply, Cesset giggled and rubbed cheeks with her.
“We’re making sweets together today, right? Let’s come to my house.”
“Yeah. I cleared training today. I’m looking forward to cooking after so long.”
“Huh? You don’t cook at Rai’s house?”
Philia couldn’t do housework at all, but she was surprisingly good at cooking.
She had started as a cultural class, but with Cesset always praising her delicious food, it had become a real hobby.
“The instructor… said not to come in because the kitchen’s a mess…”
“Kyahaha! That’s hilarious!”
When Philia muttered while avoiding eye contact, Cesset burst out laughing.
When she was at the noble family, servants had always helped in the kitchen, so it never got messy. And the only recipes Philia knew were complicated, ingredient-heavy gourmet dishes that required assistance. Since she still hadn’t learned much housework, the kitchen would quickly fall into disarray.
Philia had been scolded by Sena and Rai and was still learning basic chores despite being raised in a noble household.
“And today, we’re staying at my house. Same bed, sharing one pillow—”
With a sexy whisper right into her ear, Cesset made Philia jump.
Cesset’s amused giggle and Philia’s flustered shout made Cuthbert nod with a warm smile.
“Hmm… I suppose that’s what we have to do today.”
Zeroa next to him didn’t even want to ask what they were planning.
Philia followed Cesset home to make the sweets.
Worrying that her hands had stiffened from the long break, she still created delicious muffins with perfect skill.
While Cesset happily munched muffins with both hands until Rin scolded her, Philia spent an old-friend’s day with her closest companion and wore a happy smile.
After everything was wrapped and packed, the night grew late. The two girls bathed and climbed into bed.
Having slept together since childhood, they felt no awkwardness.
Wearing sky-blue pajamas, Cesset hugged the pillow as if reluctant to sleep and looked at Philia.
“No fun stories?”
“Hmm… during the break I only trained, so there wasn’t much to talk about.”
Cesset, sharp as ever, noticed Philia hesitate for a split second and stared.
Philia, caught by that gaze, puffed out her lips, then finally spoke.
“It’s… a story about my friend. So, a friend has a guy she’s worried about…”
Philia looked visibly cautious telling the story of a friend, and Cesset’s smile widened. She cheered inwardly.
This was the best place to hear a love story—especially one told straight from the person involved.
* * *