The Fairy of the Student Council Hall
A breeze blowing in from the Imperial Academy's forest swirled coolly through the Student Council Hall. Yerina, the seventh-year White Badge intern at the Imperial Magic Bureau, had once earned the nickname "Fairy of the Student Council Hall" for how often she wandered these halls. But those days were long gone now.
"Senior~"
"Whoa! Sis, you're finally done for the day?"
"Yeah, Ail, Maro. Hey, you two~ That's right, all done now."
The fifth-year Red and Yellow Badge student council executives greeted Yerina warmly. Though both hailed from prestigious Le Jerna and Le Cromi families, the academy's ethos of equality meant they treated her without any airs.
"Come visit the student council room sometime!"
"Yeah, it feels so empty when you don't drop by out of the blue."
"Nah, time for me to grab dinner now. Eat up, everyone!"
Yerina waved goodbye to the pair emerging from the student council room and strolled through the hall, savoring the night air after so long. This Student Council Hall had been a repository of memories throughout her seven years at the Imperial Academy. She'd pulled all-nighters here, practically lived in it during exam season, and it held her innocent first crush on her junior, Gail...
"Society's a different beast, though."
No matter that she'd climbed the elite path from student council executive to president, then straight into the Imperial Magic Bureau, Yerina had no archmage in her lineage. The empire, sustained for a millennium, had churned out countless talents through the academy, but the truth remained unchanged: families with archmages were noble houses, and only those with an archmage earned a family crest—true nobility. Even the imperial clan was infamous for it at the academy.
She was just an intern for now, but starting her career had driven home the brutal necessity of bloodlines, making heavy sighs inevitable.
That was when she spotted her.
The kid who'd caught her eye a few days back was staring at a poster on the wall. The famous White Badge. The once-in-a-generation genius. The seven-year-old brat who'd utterly demolished the mutually crushing Gail. And... the child of Archmage Ascentrius, the most revered among the empire's five overlords.
Curiosity piqued, Yerina approached the girl with her adorable face and said,
"Wanna be friends?"
Kesera eyed Yerina with blatant suspicion.
"Friends outta nowhere~☆?"
In Kesera's gaze burned wariness, disgust, and the look one gives a total scammer. It was a feeling Yerina, born with sky-high affinity since time immemorial, had never experienced before. Even she thought it was weird, blurting out "friends" like that.
"Of course! The more friends, the better, right?"
"Too much hassle."
For some reason, Kesera trusted her instincts and kept her guard up. But she was only seven, after all. It was downright cute.
"I just wanna chat with you. And... you've got a ranking match against Gail tomorrow, right?"
"Huh↗?"
Kesera let out a weird noise. Why bring up Gail there? her face seemed to say.
"Wanna talk over dinner? My treat."
"Uh, s-sure, whatever. Dinner together, then."
Kesera stammered badly, her face flushing as she averted her eyes. Trying so hard to play it cool, yet totally thrown—it was adorable. There seemed to be some complicated history beyond the entrance exam between those two, which only piqued Yerina's interest more.
**
"This place... isn't the academy?"
"Nope, it's off-campus."
"Huh? Sis, you're not even following White Class Dormitory curfew?"
"It's fine! Big sis has her ways."
This woman who'd thrown me for such a loop was downright baffling. No lame-os like her had ever gotten me chattering this much before. Somehow, "sis" slipped out naturally, and I even remembered her name, Yerina. If she weren't so annoying, it'd be great—she'd picked up all sorts of academy life hacks over her long years here, making it hard to shake her off.
Under the current system, I'd have to attend for two years anyway. Fine, whatever. Just tonight, then.
And so we ended up in the bustling academy district, slipping into the popular Lahok eatery.
"Oho~ Yerina, it's been ages!"
"Uncle, reserve us a private room."
"Got it. Who's the little one?"
"Hmph, no name for a lame-o like you☆"
"Kesera, huh. Alright, Yerina, Kesera—head to room 23."
W-What? How does he know my name? Am I that famous? My face has been all over the papers...
Only then did I glance down and realize my cape had the White Badge nameplate attached.
"21, 22, 23. Here we go."
Yerina grabbed my hand firmly and led the way. The place catered mostly to academy students and locals, sized for adults, which made it a bit overwhelming for me. With professors like Sylph around, why no consideration for short people?
The room was cozy, with just one table partitioned off. And... fancier than expected?
"Ever tried Lahok? It's delicious. You'll be hooked."
"Dunno. We'll see☆"
The table came preset with beer, honey mead, and mana ale. Yerina poured me some mana ale and honey mead for herself. Mana ale... refreshing and fizzy with a cool mana kick, but I wasn't a huge fan.
"Cheers~"
"...Cheers☆"
We clinked glasses naturally, even without food yet. Sure, I'd holed up in the mansion, but I'd seen guards toasting and attended family parties plenty—no way I didn't know to take a sip after cheers. S-So...
I sipped the mana ale. The fizzy carbonation tickled my mouth... teasing it...♡
"Kyaa!"
"Ugh..."
Mana ale and I just don't mix. My kid taste buds couldn't handle the pure mana intensity.
"There, there. Where were we? Oh, right—Gail."
"...Eep."
Why... that name again. This woman was a pro at flustering me. And I had no clue why my body twitched every time I heard it.
Her ever-smiling face suddenly hardened coldly.
"He's my man. Hands off."
"?"
"Yup~?"
"Huh?"
"Got it?"
"Whaaat——!! You think I like that total lame-o shit?!"
This was insane. Misunderstandings had limits—even delusions needed some basis. Why on earth would she think I liked that lame-o Gail?
Her over-the-line words set my heart ablaze with fury. What cooled it was the knock—tap tap—from the server.
"Lahok for two, coming in?"
"Yes~ Please do."
Yerina's icy expression vanished—who knows where—and I gulped cold mana ale to steady my ragged breaths.
The Lahok meat resembled whole hog barbecue. The server set it up, lit the fire, everything. Magical flames made it sizzle golden-brown, filling the air with savory aroma.
"Just eat it like this~ And if you need us or more orders, hit this button~"
"Oh, one more mana ale and honey mead, please."
"Right away~"
Yerina ordered like a regular and sent the server off. Silence fell between us.
......
Well, whatever. She broke it first, as expected.
"Ahem. Yeah, maybe I got the wrong idea."
"Even misunderstandings have standards. I can't let someone who called me 'baby' slide."
"Ah, so that's what it was."
Hoo...hoo... Someone's heavy breaths echoed in the small room.
Thinking of that lame-o already soured my mood—now this misunderstanding on top? The server returned, placing fresh mana ale and honey mead before leaving.
"Fine, sis isn't that close to the lame-o anyway. Gail, I mean."
"It's business. But we love each other."
Felt like an excuse. Wait, why was I prying? No, I didn't care. Let them do whatever—roll around in evening gowns at parties for all I cared.
"Okaay~☆ Got it. Love hard, you two. I'll just win the ranking match and never see him again☆"
"Yeah, Kesera. Sorry I snapped too hard."
"......"
"......"
Suddenly, the air turned awkward. This was exactly why I avoided people. Only the savory scent of grilling Lahok wafted gently through the room.