Why Are You Here?
“Why are you here?”
“Huh? You mean with Lady Ellis?”
“Yeah. You looked pretty anxious, and besides, if you end up failing a class, it’ll mess up my revenge plan.”
“......I’m touched! Lady Ellis, can I hug you just once?”
“......What did you say? It’s creepy.”
Having someone personally tutor me would be an enormous advantage.
Unlike the usual class meant to raise everyone’s grades, this private tutoring session is focused entirely on helping me understand the material.
“By the way, Lady Ellis, if it doesn’t bother you, could I ask what your grades are like?”
“Scores? Um... I don’t think grades matter much to me, so I don’t remember exactly. I was around tenth place.”
“Tenth place?! You’re amazing even if you’re lying. I had no idea Lady Ellis was so knowledgeable.”
Lady Ellis simply shrugged at my praise.
“As someone who has to rule over many people, I naturally have to... learn everything...”
Her expression gradually hardened as if something was weighing on her mind. Perhaps her family was on her thoughts.
“Haha, don’t worry, Lady Ellis. I’m here. I’ll repay you double for helping me this time.”
“......Really? Thanks for saying that.”
When I offered words of comfort, the shadow on her face finally lifted a little.
“Then, where should we meet tomorrow?”
“How about the café? If we study while discussing books in the library, the original users might find it inconvenient.”
“Café sounds good. Then let’s meet at the café in the building in front of the library. Since we start early, how about noon? Eat lunch before we come.”
“Excellent idea. Have a wonderful time at the café!”
“Yeah. I’ll enjoy it.”
With that, Lady Ellis turned and walked away.
She may come across as a bit cold, but deep down she’s a kind girl...
“Shion.”
“Yes? Were you calling?”
Just as I was heading back to the dorm, Lady Ellis called out to me.
What now? Is there more to say?
“You said you’re a 1-Star, right?”
“Um... yes, that’s correct.”
“......When did you start receiving professional training?”
Um, this body. So when did Shion start training?
I can’t say anything since I don’t have information about Shion before the academy.
I can guess though.
In the story, one of the heroines, Chloe, started training around age ten... so maybe Shion started around the same time?
“I don’t remember the details because I lost my memories, but my half-sister, Lady Chloe, said most noble children start training at ten. So I guess that’s when I did too?”
“Ten years old... that’s seven years ago.”
Lady Ellis rested her chin on her hand and fell silent for a moment, deep in thought.
“No matter how I think about it, it’s strange. Even if someone has no talent, they can reach 2-Star in four years, but staying at 1-Star for seven years...”
Hmm, she’s right.
I’ve never really considered raising my Star rank before because I was too focused on using my attributes and class skills.
Thinking back to all the training I’ve done, I should have reached 2-Star long ago.
But I’m still 1-Star.
......Is there something wrong with Shion?
A sudden dizzying name flashed through my mind.
Mana Storage Deficiency, a disease where a person’s ability to store mana inside the body drops abnormally.
The two characteristics of this disease are...
The first is that no matter how much the patient tries, they can never leave their current rank.
And the second...
“They die before they turn twenty.”
Historically, everyone with Mana Storage Deficiency died young.
But I don’t have Mana Storage Deficiency. I’m certain of that.
I remember that in the character’s status window, it was listed when they had it.
But right now, the status window shows nothing like Mana Storage Deficiency.
In other words, my staying at 1-Star isn’t because of Mana Storage Deficiency.
Is Shion the child of a dark mage...? No, that’s not it either.
Even that doesn’t make sense. In this world, dark mages aren’t the flashy spell users who specialize in dark magic.
They’re criminals who perform inhumane acts without hesitation during the process of developing their own magic, acts that the country doesn’t tolerate.
In short, Shion’s mother is just a criminal, not someone who absorbed dark magic and became a dark mage.
Therefore, the fact that Shion’s mother is a dark mage doesn’t explain why my rank hasn’t progressed past 1-Star.
......What the hell is it then?
Right now, no matter how hard I think, I can’t come up with a reasonable answer.
I firmly promised myself I’d get a proper diagnosis later.
“Well, if I keep trying, won’t I eventually improve?”
“Go get checked out later.”
“Since you said so, Lady Ellis, I’ll do that. Then I’ll see you tomorrow!”
“Yeah, see you tomorrow.”
I waved goodbye to Lady Ellis and turned to head back to the dorm.
Lucky me. Getting tutoring from Lady Ellis.
I pictured her sharp mind helping me solve the tough problems I was facing, and somehow the weight of my books felt lighter as I walked.
“Strange. In my memory, you were never the type to wander around at night with a book in your hands.”
Just as I was returning to the dorm, I heard a familiar voice again.
“Lady Charlotte? Haha, long time no see?”
“We met in our class today, didn’t we?”
Lady Charlotte narrowed her eyes slightly and tilted her head.
“That means Lady Charlotte is happy to see me. Are you on your way somewhere?”
“The library. I need to borrow a book.”
“Um, walking exercise like this does help reduce future diet-related stress.”
“....I didn’t gain weight.”
Lady Charlotte looked at me with cool eyes and muttered.
“Huh? I don’t recall you saying I gained weight, Lady Charlotte. Are you overthinking?”
“...Long story. Ah, never mind. Let’s stop talking about this. So, what were you doing?”
Lady Charlotte quickly changed the subject.
I could’ve teased her more, but if I kept going, I might end up with the sky tour again like before, so I let it go.
“I was on my way to the library to borrow books, then heading back to the dorm.”
“Borrow books? You?”
“I have an extra exam to take. I’ve been studying hard, but nothing seems to stick in my head. You probably know too, Lady Charlotte—knowledge from Earth isn’t very useful for these exams.”
I scratched the back of my head and answered.
“Um... yeah. It’s been less than half a year since I came here, so it makes sense I can’t understand the classes yet. Got it. If I fail the extra exam too, what happens?”
“I think I’ll have to retake the class.”
“If I fail the extra exam as well... it’ll be tough. Retaking the class means I lose even more growth time.”
“That’s right. That’s why I’m trying hard not to fail, but to be honest, I don’t know if I can manage it.”
“Want me to help?”
“You, Lady Charlotte?”
Lady Charlotte nodded.
“Yeah. Losing growth time is a real headache for me.”
“Oh, I didn’t know you thought so highly of me, Lady Charlotte.”
“As I’ve said before, listen to the end of what people say. You’re a little kid.”
Lady Charlotte sighed heavily and ruffled her hair.
“You know, the original protagonist Jeremy isn’t showing up at the academy right now. So someone like us reincarnators has to fill that gap. Otherwise, this world is going to face a terrible ending.”
“Hmm, you’re right. If someone doesn’t fill Jeremy’s place, the villains will be free to run wild.”
“Exactly. So I was going to help you study...”
“But it’s fine. My friend told me she’d help me study.”
Suddenly Lady Charlotte’s expression hardened.
“......Friend? You mean Shion?”
“No. I’ve made a new friend, Lady Ellis. After I explained my situation, she was happy to help. I made a promise with her to study at the café in front of the library tomorrow at noon.”
“....You have a friend besides Shion?”
“That hurts. Even I can make friends, you know?”
Lady Charlotte’s face didn’t show any sign of relaxing.
“Something’s off. When did you meet her?”
“On the first day of the new semester.”
“Then it was before you got the blessing, so you probably approached her based on her name...” Ah, wait a minute.”
Lady Charlotte’s eyes widened.
“Is she a demon?”
“Y-yes?”
Wait, how did she know?
“Shion was originally supposed to become a demon by contracting with Lady Letios. But you twisted that fate.”
“T-that’s right?”
“They’re so obsessed with Letios that even the loss of the contract wouldn’t stop them from turning you into a demon. That’s why they sent Lady Ellis, who was already lurking, to pretend to approach you and turn you.”
If I didn’t know anything, her guess would be reasonable, but I already know the full truth.
And I can’t tell that truth to Lady Charlotte.
Lady Charlotte thinks I’m a reincarnator like her.
And the fact that Lady Ellis is a princess of the Trahan Kingdom isn’t mentioned anywhere in the novel.
It’s only information you can get from the game. If she finds out I know that, the trust I’ve finally rebuilt could shatter again.
“It’s possible, but not very likely.”
“Yeah. But it’s not impossible. Can you trust this Ellis?”
“Haha, I don’t want to doubt my newly made friend.”
“In short, you’re going to stay friends.”
Lady Charlotte twirled a strand of her hair with her finger.
“Anyway, she’s giving you tutoring?”
“Yes. She said she’d make time even on a golden weekend.”
“.....She says your grades are good?”
“She said she was around tenth place in the class.”
“She might be lying.”
“Given her personality, I don’t think she’d lie. She tells me when she doesn’t like something and when she does.”
Lady Charlotte’s expression grew darker, but then she gave a trembling smile.
“.....Really? Good. Well, the two of you study hard. I’m going.”
“Yeah. Have a good weekend.”
Lady Charlotte walked away quickly, passing me.
I was still heading toward the dorm when I remembered the look on her face and turned back, but there was no sign of Lady Charlotte.
***
The next day dawned.
I woke up on time for our appointment, took a quick shower, and had a light lunch before heading to the café where we’d agreed to meet.
Lady Ellis was already there, waiting for me.
I ordered a drink and some snacks, received them, and sat at the table before opening my mouth.
“Alright. I was thinking we should start studying now.”
Then I looked at the person sitting next to me and tilted my head.
“....Lady Charlotte. Why are you here?”
Why are you here?