The finals came and left quicker than I thought.
The exams went alright and although I thought I'd screw up, I didn't. I felt stupid for worrying so damn much.
But of course, my worries didn't die out. I had some new concerns. One of them was, how many of the buds were actually going to last. Of the 13, only 3 bloomed and the rest bit the dust before that. These flowers bloom from anywhere between 7 to 9 days. And even then, you couldn't tell if they were pollinated for at least two more weeks. And since this was the first ever flowering, I kind of doubted whether the fruits would really set or not.
No no, that wasn't my only worry. Another worry was the fact that I was running out of things to do at the meetings. I'd bought some time by asking the priest to educate us a bit but that was probably going to backfire if I didn't do something soon.
Kind of why I invited Nisa for a walk. A walk outside the academy, on the noble streets. I mean she was technically a princess, so I couldn't just take her to the slums.
We only had one guard. That guy who was supposed to be my guard. Shia taught him well and he actually looked like a proper bodyguard nowadays. Big dark circles beneath his eyes, always vigilant.
He did look kind of sad though.
"I heard there are some good places opening up here in this town," Nisa said.
There were some famous chains of bakeries and restaurants in the Western Continent: Burgel's house and Timber Sweets. They had stores across the continent and only appointed, renowned chefs and pâtissiers. I'd heard they were going to open up shop here for months now but nothing happened so far.
"I'll believe that once they actually open shop," I said.
She smirked. "So, what did you call me out here for? I'm guessing it's not that important, otherwise you'd have taken me to a restaurant."
I'd have loved to, but my pockets were a little empty. The duke did keep his promise and was helping with tuition, but he wasn't fully covering it and he didn't give me an allowance, and now that the Baracks knew I was getting financial help from him, they didn't give me money either.
So… yeah, I was kind of fucked.
"Somewhat," I said. "What do you think about the things, as they are."
"The cult?"
"…"
"Hmm…"
We were mostly walking side by side. This part of town was for the higher nobility, so many people actually recognized the two of us, but I didn't care about that. I mean, I was engaged to this lady and it was perfectly fine for us to walk around together. Heck, I could probably even hold hands! That was going to make me hella conscious though, so I had no such intention.
Yet.
"I do think it's prudent we start acting," Nisa said. "We have a good audience and as long as we can keep them entertained, they'll do our bidding."
"Every play needs an end goal though," I said. "A villain to defeat, a princess to save, or maybe even the world."
"Didn't you say, we could just make the goal?" She leaned closer, or rather bent down a bit. "Besides, I thought you were going to change the world for me?" She whispered.
"I will, I will."
"Then start taking things a bit more seriously, please."
She was right.
I understood as much. Yet… what the fuck was I even supposed to do? it wasn't like I ever attended any cults- wait… half of the internet was basically a cult….
"Ah, my lord, fancy seeing you here," a girl said.
Rin.
"Good evening, Miss Arin," Nisa said.
"Good evening, Miss Nisa."
They spoke with smiles yet… tension, eh? "So, you moved here?" I said, taking a look at the white building in front.
Just months ago, there was a hardworking redhead living here.
"Yes. A little expensive but it was a birthday gift, so…" She cackled.
"Oh, nice, congrats," I said. "We're just taking a walk."
That said, I tried steering away, but… "I was planning on walking around myself," Rin said.
"Then please enjoy your walk," Nisa said. She locked hands with me….
"I guess, I will," Rin said, standing on the other side of me.
I knew the girl had feelings for me, or rather was after me because of her family but… but I had a freaking fiancée! And she was right here no less.
Rin didn't lock hands with me like Nisa though, so that was good. Lock hands?
Holy shit, it wasn't locking arms, it was… she was holding my hand! Calm down son, you're not in elementary school anymore.
Gulping, I kept my breathing stable, my heart rolling and just walked while counting prime numbers because I had nothing better to distract myself with.
It was still exciting though.
***
My life had calmed down to a point where I was genuinely concerned whether this was the calm before the storm.
Yet… nothing happened. I trained, I ate good food, I even explored more regions of the city. Of course, not as much as I'd have liked to.
And eventually, the day of the results came.
Unlike the last time, I actually showed up in the classroom. I came early, as did many others. We were going to be given results in person by the homeroom teacher (Miss Chamille). Every minute felt like hours. No, that wasn't just an overstatement, it really felt like forever.
But as with everything in life, the time eventually passed and Miss Chamille entered the room with stacked white papers. She handed them one by one to the students and I got one too.
Name: Soler A. Barack
Class: Year-01; Rank: Beginner-E
History: 92_ 92_59
The first one was mine, then the highest, then the class average. So basically, I was first.
Literature: 88_89_70
I did better than before and almost….
Etiquette: 87_92_79
Spirit Taming: 99_99_61
Class Rank: 01
Overall Grade Rank: 02
Huh… how the fuck did I do worse in etiquette?
But overall, second in my grade, huh? Not bad, not bad at all.
"Congratulations, all of you. It's been a wonderful year. Getting to know you all, getting to help you do better, study better… be a better person, was truly a wonderful experience. Thank you," said Chamille.
We clapped. I clapped extra hard but yeah….
Sometime these 9 months felt like forever. But other times, they went by so damn fast….
But yeah… I guess I was a 2nd year student starting tomorrow. Just nine more years to go.
"Oh and Sol."
"Yes?"
"The headmaster wants you to deliver the newcomer's speech tomorrow at the auditorium for our freshmen. Be sure to practice."
We have an auditorium?
"Wait, what speech~!?"
[A/N]
How long do you think this peace would last? Smirks*
I have a week off. A vacation of sorts. Ordinarily, I'd take time off of writing and just take this time to relax and all that good stuff. However, this time I won't. I'll write. Expect regular updates starting Sunday, lasting all the way till Friday.
Thank you for reading; I wish you all a good day.