"Only one as pure and beautiful as you is qualified to be a priestess!" Faraday proclaimed dramatically, a hand on his chest. "There's no mistaking it, you are exactly the kind of chaste maiden that the Church is searching for?"
My jaw dropped.
"Are you serious?" I asked the middle-aged priest. "Didn't you hear what she has been doing all this time? What part of Irene is 'pure' and 'chaste'? And you still want her to be a priestess?"
Faraday stared at me blankly, then turned back to Irene.
"Please, Lady Irene!"
For her part, Irene was blatantly ignoring me, staring at the priest in wonder. It was almost as if she had forgotten about my accusations. Judging from the awestruck expressions of Fredric and Chad, they seemed to have forgotten what I had said too.
This was how it happened in reality. I wasn't supposed to know about Irene's transgressions until much later. That was right, she was recruited by Faraday and brought to the Holy Church in Royales, and this was the day her destiny changed.
It was only after this event, when all the guys got together and complained about the village's number one beauty being taken away that I was supposed to have learned of all these. I had to close my eyes and reconcile the conflicting memories before I could finally understand what was going on, but I was somehow able to follow the conversation. Needless to say, Chad was furious and a fight broke out. Since I wasn't involved, I managed to slip away and returned home to study. Dad gave me a mischievous grin when I returned home.
"So how was it?"
"How was what?" I asked sourly. Dad blinked.
"Your date with Irene?"
"It wasn't a date," I replied grumpily. "Also, Chad showed up and wanted her back. And I'm surprised you haven't heard the news – they're talking about it all over the village. Irene has been taken by a priest from the capital and brought back to the Holy Church to be trained as a priestess."
"What?!"
Mom chose that moment to walk through the door, her face flushed.
"There's huge news!" she exclaimed, flustered. "Do you remember Irene? From a few blocks down? She has been selected to train as a priestess!"
"Oh…I guess that girl is destined for great things," Dad murmured, stroking his chin and looking impressed.
"To be the wife of the Hero," I muttered under my breath, another weird memory flashing through my mind. My parents stared at me, puzzled.
"What did you say, Klein?"
"No, nothing. Sorry." I then approached the stack of grimoires that I had left on the table earlier that day. "I'm going to study magic."
"Work hard, son." Dad grinned. "Then maybe you'll also be able to go to the capital and find Irene again."
"I would rather stay as far away from her as possible," I replied bitterly, knowing that Dad wouldn't believe the rumors despite them spreading through the village in the days to come. He would dismissed them as malevolent gossip. Oh, well. Dad was always a straightforward person. He would only judge a person based on what he personally knew of him or her, and not from rumors.
That was one of his greatest strengths, so I didn't blame him for it. I would have learned from him, but unfortunately I had firsthand experience of witnessing Irene behave like a slut – she just literally tried to seduce me even though she had just dumped Chad recently, all because I was supposed to have a promising future as a mage. I would have to be one hell of a naïve idiot if I didn't suspect anything.
The next morning, I woke up to do the chores as usual, only for a strange visitor to drop past.
"Klein! Someone wants to see you!" Dad called from the front door. I grumbled to myself, set my grimoires down and hurried to the porch. To my surprise, a mage in black robes was standing there, a pretty girl my age with long, black hair.
"Miranda Miller," I said automatically. Miranda's eyes widened.
"How do you know my name?"
That was right. I wasn't supposed to know her name yet, but for some reason I did. Why?
"Uh, because you're famous for being a multi-mage?"
"Ho…" Miranda chuckled and ran a hand through her long, black hair. "I didn't expect my vaunted reputation to stretch as far as this little village in the middle of nowhere. I must be more successful than I thought."
Already I didn't like her. She came across as arrogant.
"So…how can I help you?" I asked warily.
"Chrome Walker. Why do you want to study under me?"
At first, I wasn't sure what I was hearing. Miranda was gazing at me, intrigued. Personally, I found her deluded.
"What did you just call me?"
"You are Chrome Walker, aren't you?"
"WHO THE FUCK IS CHROME WALKER?!" I yelled furiously. "You've got the wrong person! And I have no intention of studying under you!"
"What?! Why?! Don't you want to become strong? A man strong enough to protect her whenever she is in danger?"
"Huh? I mean, I do want to become strong, but who the hell are you talking about? Who is this her? My mom?"
"Don't be silly." Miranda snorted. "I'm talking about your childhood friend, of course. The girl you love. Irene."
I slammed the door shut in her face. That was it. Someone was definitely screwing around with me. This Miranda was a fraud, a mischief-maker who was playing a huge prank on me.
"What's going on?" Dad asked, stunned by my action. I shook my head.
"A con-woman pretending to be a mage. She's spouting all sorts of deluded nonsense. It's best to keep her out."
"Hey! Come on!" Miranda began hammering on my door. "Open up! Our conversation isn't finished yet!"
"Go away!" I yelled. "I'm sick of your bullshit!"
"It's not bullshit! I can peer into your heart! You know it is true!"
"Yeah, I know that it's true that you're lying."
"Hey! Just shut up and open the door!" Miranda's knocks became louder and harder. "Please! Just listen to me! Just for a minute, okay? You'll definitely change your mind!"
I ignored her.
"Come on! You have decent talent for magic! If you train under me, you can become a court mage at least!"
"Lady, I can become a court mage even without your help. You don't even look that much older than me, and you want to teach me magic?"
"I'll have you know, I'm the legendary multi-mage! I'm at the forefront of magical research and development! I'm the youngest genius ever! Everyone else will kill at the chance to be my disciple! Why are you refusing such a rare opportunity?"
"Because I'm not everyone else. Go ask them to be your disciple then."
"Please!" Miranda was begging. "You have great potential! Don't waste it! I can teach you! Just give me a chance!"
"Perhaps you should," Dad began, but I shook my head firmly and raised a finger to my lips. Turning back to the door, I sneered.
"If you're so good at magic, why haven't you cast a spell to break down the door already?"
"Ugh…!"
Miranda was caught flatfooted. There was a long silence as she attempted to cast a spell, only for a small flame to spark at the tip of her finger. I could see her through the window, which was why I knew that.
I shot an I-told-you-so look to Dad, who shrugged. Yeah, good thing I didn't run off and declare her as my master or it would have been a total disaster.
"Please…" Miranda was on the verge of tears now. "You have pure eyes! Purer than anyone else's! If it's you, you might be the perfect specimen…ahem, I mean, you'll definitely be able to help me fulfil my agenda!"
Lady, I definitely heard you say specimen.
"Not to worry. I'll train you first! My training is tough, Chrome."
"I TOLD YOU THAT I AM NOT CHROME, YOU BITCH! STOP CALLING ME THAT!"
By now Dad was also getting suspicious. Clearly this was a case of mistaken identity, and how reliable could someone who mixed me up with a person called Chrome be? If she couldn't get my name right, then how was she supposed to teach me magic?
Not to mention, she was still unable to cast any spell powerful enough to break down our front door. Dad's skepticism grew with each passing second.
"Should I call the guards? I'll get Roan and the knights to escort her away." Dad was reaching for a magical communication device.
"A…all right! I'm sorry!" Miranda was weeping. "I just want you to accompany me to the capital!"
"The capital? Royales? Why?" I frowned. Shaking my head, I finally opened the door because it felt like I should have done that. In another world, in another time that felt so distant…
"The Magic Academy." Miranda was sobbing. "I need someone to escort me to the academy. I lost my way here, but I picked up your mana so I thought you were a fellow mage. It was only when I arrived that I realized you're just an amateur."
"My mana, huh?" Oh, right. I was practicing the spells that I had learned from the grimoires earlier this morning. Thanks to my diligent efforts, I was able to cast the elementary spells of ice. Apparently I had great affinity with the element of ice. My parents were amazed by my efforts.
"I…I can't go to the capital alone." Miranda sniffed. "I couldn't find my way around, and as you've seen, my magic abilities aren't quite up to a decent level yet. I am only able to cast multiple elements, but they are basic level spells. They aren't strong enough for me to use in an actual battle. If I go alone, I will die."
"Poor thing," Mom said. "We'll see what we can do. There should be a convoy going to Royales soon. I'll speak to Benjamin. He will be more than happy to give a cute young lady like you a ride."
"Thank you!" Miranda brightened up. For some reason, I had the urge to slam the door in her face. The same hatred I felt for Irene boiled up inside me. A burning rage that made me want to kick her and crush her arrogant face under my foot.
Speaking of which…something occurred to me.
"How did you get to this village?" I asked.
"Eh? That's…that's…"
"Now, now, Klein." Mom gave me a stern look. "I'm sure the young lady has been traumatized by her arduous journey to our village. Be more delicate than that, wouldn't you? Don't interrogate her."
"Don't you find her suspicious? She literally lied to us about her skills and all that bullshit about wanting to teach me magic."
"I'm sure she has her reasons."
Reasons, my foot! She was a deluded fraud!
"Oh, speaking of teaching magic, the lady mentioned a magic academy, didn't she?" Dad was thinking hard. "Why don't you enroll in it too?"
"Uh, well…"
"It's impossible," Miranda said haughtily. My family turned to look at her. She folded her arms. "Only nobles are allowed to attend the magic academy. They will never accept commoners."
"I…I see." Mom had a troubled expression. She cleared her throat and proceeded to leave. "Anyway, I'll go look for Benjamin to make the necessary arrangements."
"Okay," Dad and I chorused.
"You should give up," Miranda told me. "Your talent is just average. I'm afraid to say that you won't be able to get far."
"What?" Dad was confused. "Didn't you just say that Klein has decent talent and might be able to make it to the rank of court mage, at least?"
"Eh? I did?" Miranda cleared her throat. "I guess he does have decent talent…for a mere villager."
"Mere villager?" Dad frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing." Despite her reply, Miranda's tone was condescending. She folded her arms and looked away. I could have sworn that she was muttering something under her breath about how commoners were only useful for magic experiments.
Thankfully, we didn't have to put up with her nonsense for much longer. Mom returned a few minutes later, cheerfully delivering the news that Benjamin would be more than happy to give Miranda a lift.
"Thank you for your help."
Miranda did a curtsy and bowed her head slightly, but her tone and expression remained cold and arrogant. She then stalked off without so much as looking at us.
"That girl has attitude problems," Dad observed.
"I'm beginning to regret having helped her," Mom agreed with a sigh.
"Well…I, for one, am not sad to see her go." I shook my head in exasperation. "I hope that's the last we ever see of her."
How very wrong I was. How very wrong…