A Goal That Never Existed
The air froze with a chilling bite. For a moment, one might have thought Yuri's ice magic had reached an extreme realm where it could even freeze time itself. But that wasn't the case. Hearing Yuri's words, Aria let out a drawn-out Huuung~ and cautiously drew closer.
Aria shifted behind Kyle, positioning herself so she faced Yuri from over his shoulder.
The remark could easily have been taken as an insult. True to her position as the Grand Duke's daughter, Yuri refused to tolerate it. A sharp smack that began at her waist lashed across Aria's cheek.
Slap!
The crisp sound carried enough force to suggest it had been laced with mana. Aria stroked her reddened cheek, staring at Yuri.
With that, Aria smiled slyly and pulled Kyle into a tight embrace.
Aria posed the question as if seeking permission, though she had no intention of actually waiting for it. The moment the words left her lips, her ability activated in tandem. With a light roll of her tongue, she wove a simple command and seized control of Yuri. Of course, she couldn't issue any order that might actually harm her—Kyle would likely crush her throat instantly if she tried—but she could manage something he would be curious enough to allow.
"Speak your true feelings."
⟨ FORCE COMMAND ⟩
Kyle, who had been about to intervene, froze at the command. Aria focused intently on what would come next, eager to hear what thoughts lay hidden inside the ice princess who always seemed devoid of emotion.
Aria frowned at the answer, certain there had to be more to it, and kept pressing.
Aria clicked her tongue. "Has she lost her mind? What kind of nonsense is this?"
She glanced sideways at Kyle's face and scowled. His lips were twitching with barely suppressed delight. So hearing that his fiancée had liked him from the moment they first met made him that happy? It was mildly irritating. Still, there was nothing more she could do.
These were harsh words the usual Yuri would never speak. Aria realized they were her true feelings, the ones hidden beneath the mask crafted for the Grand Duke's daughter of the North—a noble of the coldest, most barren lands. Raised among the rugged men of the north, the heart concealed behind that mask was equally untamed.
Kyle found himself nodding before he could stop. It seemed he'd finally discovered the source of those rumors claiming the Duke was completely whipped by his wife.
Aria, catching Kyle's careful gaze, promptly withdrew her power. She deliberately left the memories intact. Having not only confessed her true feelings for Kyle but also threatened Aria in a manner utterly unbecoming of a noble, Yuri stared at the pair with a face flushed crimson.
Yuri stared at Aria in disbelief, stomping her feet before quickly fleeing the scene. Kyle watched her retreating back in silence and felt certain he shouldn't follow. This was a moment she needed to be left alone.
Having successfully driven off her romantic rival, Aria beamed and clung to Kyle's arm.
If she stayed somewhere visible, the mentally recovered Yuri would come find them on her own. With that thought, Kyle headed toward the dessert shop with Aria.
Tap tap tap—! Rough footsteps echoed wildly. After sprinting for what felt like forever, Yuri finally stopped, gasping for air. Her heart refused to stop its frantic pounding. Leaning against a wall and wheezing, it took her a long time to catch her breath. It was unavoidable given how little she exercised and her nature as a mage.
My heart feels like it's going to burst...
Of course, the frantic beating wasn't caused by lack of exercise alone. Having spoken feelings that should never have been voiced, the pulse of pure shame blended with it. Unwilling to become the first mage in history to die of embarrassment, Yuri cast calming spells on herself in a desperate attempt to regain composure. Yet despite her efforts, her mind kept replaying what had just happened. Each repetition sent fresh waves of humiliation crashing through her body.
"Uuuuugh...!"
She bit down hard on her lip and rubbed at the goosebumps prickling along her arms. Still not satisfied, she stomped her feet, sat down and stood up again, throwing a complete tantrum completely unbecoming of a noble. The lingering effects of Aria's ability were to blame. Anyone who knew her would have suspected they were looking at a doppelganger.
"I want to die...!"
She continued stomping with a flushed face until the cool reason of a mage finally reasserted itself. She had, after all, already spat out everything she possibly could. Once calm returned, details she had been trying to ignore began surfacing one by one.
......She knew Kyle was a Master.
Aria was a commoner. Aria had no connection to Kyle. Aria was an ordinary person without any powers. Those three assumptions had formed her preconceptions. If all three were true, there was no possible way Aria could have known about Kyle's abilities.
Of course, during the academy terror incident Kyle had saved her using aura, but even Yuri—who had been a 2-star mage at the time—hadn't realized he was a Master from that display. There was simply no way for Aria to have discovered the truth. Not unless Kyle had deliberately revealed his identity to win her favor.
That can't be.
She couldn't imagine Kyle doing something like that. Hadn't Aria been clinging to him even before he revealed he was a Master? Therefore, the idea that he had told her was nonsense. The pieces simply didn't fit.
Yet Aria knew. He had never revealed it, but she knew?
There's something here.
The mystery was intense enough to overshadow her shame. Yuri's cool, analytical mind began dissecting it. Her extraordinary intellect soon produced a theory that came dangerously close to the truth.
......So, thinking about it theoretically—.
Aria had used her ability to cause some kind of "incident." It must have been significant enough to force Master Kyle to reveal his true power. Since her ability didn't work on Masters, Kyle remembered the event. That was what she had meant by "qualifications."
And despite an incident occurring at the academy, Aria had received no punishment whatsoever.
The realization sent a chill racing down Yuri's spine.
They're covering it up? Every time something happens at the academy?
An ability that could apparently control anyone below Master level would be perfect for concealing incidents. And that implied dozens of events might have occurred at the academy without Yuri ever knowing.
Because she wasn't a Master. Because she lacked the qualifications Aria had mentioned.
......Kyle must know about all of them.
Every time something happened, Kyle would have stepped in as a Master to resolve it. Because he was a Master, he possessed both the duty and the power. Because he had the qualifications.
In places where I wasn't present.
Kyle had been handling everything alone. That was unacceptable. She was the Grand Duke's daughter of the North. The successor of House Grace. A genius who had reached 4-star mage in her teens. The one and only practitioner of Double Casting.
I can't allow things to continue like this.
She needed to become a Master. Only then could she fight at his side.
A goal that had never existed until now had been born.