The Psychology of Rebellion
If it had been any other witches, they would have fled at Sena's direct summons. She rarely pronounced someone's name so deliberately unless it was a truly rare case. That meant Sena was angry right now. Her expression was chilling, as if she were about to freeze someone solid. As a side note—and this was a bit of a secret—but honestly, she always looked like that. An emotionless void of a face.
"So you only grace me with your attention like this?" Eri sneered, twisting her lips into a smirk as she gripped her staff properly instead of just stowing it away. It was like a swordsman clutching their hilt. Or a cop resting their hand on their gun, ready to draw. She struck a pose as if about to unleash an attack spell, mocking relentlessly.
"You treated me like trash all this time, but the second I touch your dog, you come running?"
"What you're touching is my servant. And Luna's Punishment Instructor."
"Your wishful thinking's Punishment Instructor, you mean."
According to Leden, there wasn't a single witch who could stand up to Sena. So what was Eri? She wasn't just standing up—she was unleashing long-buried grudges like she'd been waiting for this exact moment.
"Or should I ask everyone else?" Eri swept her gaze around the area.
We were in the academy's central lobby, a bustling spot where tons of students passed through. With the main gate right there in the lobby, it was packed with more cadets than usual. The sudden tension had them murmuring. Fights weren't uncommon, but when the players were Sena and Eri, that changed everything. And now Eri's followers were starting to gather. If this escalated further, it'd turn into one against many.
"If any of you recognize that pathetic servant as an instructor, step up right now!"
As if anyone would after that provocation. Sure enough, the cadets just murmured quietly. Some probably didn't recognize me, but even those who did couldn't step forward in this atmosphere—they were all just watching nervously. Satisfied with the crowd's silence, Eri flashed a triumphant smile, puffing out her small shoulders and flat chest, chin raised in arrogance.
"The academy director approved it? But we don't. Is it really director material to impose rules no one accepts?"
She was even sniping at Helena now. Arrogant, sure, but she had a knack for stirring the pot.
"You're out of excuses now, right? The last thread the Michele family had to monopolize Luna."
And then Eri revealed why she'd been pulling aggro and ranting to grab everyone's attention.
"So the time has come at last. The era of a new academy director!"
That was apparently a step too far. The murmuring cadets fell into stunned silence at her bombshell. Trashing me was one thing everyone could nod along to, but no one expected it to veer into outright rebellion against the director.
"That's why I declare it here! The prestigious Quinnel magical family announces that the moment for a new director has arrived!"
"Enough."
Sena finally spoke after listening silently, crumpling Eri's face in frustration.
"Just because you say—"
"Grand. Don't advance any further."
That's when I noticed. Up on the lobby ceiling, atop the massive chandelier, Grand had been lurking silently like a beast, utterly still. Ready to pounce on Eri like a wolf at any moment.
"If you kill another witch this time, I won't be able to protect you anymore."
This time? Had Grand killed a witch before? A servant killing a witch? From the context, it didn't seem like it'd been on Sena's orders. The "won't be able to protect you this time" made that clear.
Thud—! Rather than leaping in, Grand dropped down and took position beside Sena like a bodyguard. A fierce blue flame flickered menacingly inside his helmet.
"If that woman had cast her magic, I would have torn her throat out, Sena. I won't rush in first like before."
Grand had always guarded Sena from unseen spots—chandelier tops like this, shadows, window frames outside, whatever. He must have been a terrifying presence to Eri. She glared at him with wide-eyed shock and venom.
"Magic murderer... Grand! You still keep that dangerous demon around?"
"Even if you're a witch, I won't forgive you treating my servant like dirt. Eri. I'll let it slide this time, so go home."
But she didn't stop there. Sena deliberately looked at me as she added,
"And Lee Hyun is my servant, so stop slandering him."
Sena acknowledging me like that was unexpected. I'd been dismissed as magical byproduct trash until now, but she seemed set on backing me properly this time. Eri gripped and released her staff repeatedly, looking like she wanted to attack but lacking the guts—maybe five times—until even Sena's patience wore thin. As time dragged on and she started to turn away, ignoring it,
"And what if I don't?"
It wasn't Eri. The voice came from behind Sena. Pushing through the murmuring cadets was a tall witch: Ios Savin. Her elegant curves were offset by a fierce, hot-tempered face that demanded attention.
"What'll you do if I don't recognize that lowly servant?"
Unlike Eri's roundabout ambition-building insults, Ios charged in like she wanted a fight.
"You never cared about faction wars, so we ignored whatever you did, Sena. But if your servant's an instructor now? That's different."
A shadow crept over Sena's face, chilling the air.
"I hate agreeing with that brat witch, but it's true—we're seeing the director's limits. If cadets feel the director's limits, it means the end is near."
"So?"
"The landscape's changed since the old days. A faction war for the director's seat is about to erupt. And I'm throwing my hat in."
Then Ios fixed me with a chilling glare.
"In that war, the dog you keep will become very special. Who'll be first to take that servant's head and challenge the queen? That'll be the war's opening goal."
The "queen" Ios mentioned wasn't a nickname for Sena. It was Helena, Luna's director. Until now, "queen" had been exclusive to cadets' talk, especially Sena's moniker. Slapping it on Helena now was a ploy to drag her into the cadets' squabbles. A declaration of war on the director.
And my head? The flag signaling that war's start.
Eri looked displeased at Ios barging in, but she approved of the declaration. Now not just their factions, but others had cause to join. With external wars raging, Luna's peaceful interior teetered on civil strife when,
"Huh? Is that really okay?"
An unrelated figure popped up. I remembered her striking first impression: tall, dark-skinned, short-cropped hair. Boyish, like she'd come straight from a girls' school basketball team. Nagisa.
"I heard from way back there that anyone recognizing the instructor should step up, so here I am. Topic change already?"
"Nagisa. This isn't your place."
Ignoring Ios's warning, Nagisa just scratched her head and showed no sign of backing off. She strode right up and planted herself close to my side.
"Nah, come on. You're all debating whether to recognize this guy or not, but no matter what you seniors yap about, he's still the instructor, right?"
Ios and Eri looked dumbfounded as Nagisa dropped a sharp truth bomb.
"If you're that unhappy, shouldn't you just chop his head off right now? When have us witches ever hesitated to kill powerless normals because we cared what they thought?"
"...What are you getting at, Nagisa? Why butt in now when you've never cared about faction fights?"
"What else? I'm saying I recognize this guy as instructor."
She followed up with a wink at me.
"You seniors talk big about wars, director's limits, new eras, but to me, it looks just like kids playing king of the hill."
"What?"
"Just admit it honestly. 'I wanna rule as queen in this tiny academy society.'"
They took that as an attack. True to form, action-first Ios drew her staff like a sword, and something snapped inside me.
"Ios Savin! Put that staff down!"
I bellowed in the rough, thick voice men use, loud enough to stun even a tough brawler like Ios—she froze like a tiger hit with a roar.
I got the cadets' mindset and the situation pretty well by now. Their rivalries, attitudes toward the director. But no matter how they spun it, what they all wanted boiled down to one thing: dominating the academy. All their fancy talk masked the simple truth—they craved rebellion to claim the queen's throne.
"I hear you loud and clear. Time for me to respond properly."