The royal residences of Sylvania Academy were situated atop the cliffs on the western part of Acken Island,closest to the coastline.They were a fair distance from the southwestern residential block,bustling with convenience facilities,and a modest commercial complex.
Though everyone received equal treatment in academic matters, it was impossible for royalty to be treated the same in their daily lives and living spaces.
Thus,the royal residences were constructed solely for Princess Phoenia.
The grand mansion sprawled over a large area.
Ordinary students weren't even allowed to set foot in its gardens, making it unnecessary to elaborate on the special treatment received.
"The life hereis indeed far removed from that in the professors' building."
As the sun set, a view of the vast ocean was visible through the window.
The soft murmuring of the waves breached the window frame, filling the princess's modestly-sized personal chamber before fading away.
With the horizon dyed crimson beyond the window bars, Princess Phoenia sat at her desk.The personal study desk, richly adorned with fne wood and lavish patterns, was even larger than the desk in Headmaster Obel's office.
Regardless of circumstances,a life of luxury was expected for royalty.
Life here was entirely distinct from that of an ordinary student.
Princess Phoenia neatly swept her pltinum blonde hair over her left shoulder.About to unfold a book on magic history and elemental studies,she instead set her pen down.
Princess Phoenia became lost in thought.
The golden orb Lucy Mayrill had produced during the classroom assignment announcements was indeed identical to the one Princess Phoenia had found at Merilda's Protector Tree.
By that moment,Princess Phoenia realized something.
Despite looking peculiar, the golden orb was otherwise unremarkable-its contained mana was so negligible, it was barely perceivable.
In the end,Princess Phoenia had been correct in her assessment.
The orb itself was peculiar in appearance but merely contained a paltry amount of mana.
However, the key lay in the detail that the orb "contained faint mana."
- "Well done,Miss Lucy."
Three essential qualities defined by Archmage Glast for a spellcaster in pursuit of truth were:
Mana Sensitivity
Swift and accurate judgment
A will to explore
Students who hastily assumed the test was a first-come-first-serve affair lost points for "swift and accurate judgment," and those who didn't attempt to unearth the exam's intent upon returning lost points for "a will to explore."
The decisive criterion for primacy,"mana sensitivity,"was being judged by the innate amount of mana in the orbs.
Lesser the mana an orb contained,the more challenging it was to detect.
In retrospect,each mana orb littered across the ground had differenced in their mana content, so slight that unless one concentrated deeply,recognizing it was nearly impossible.
Identifying orbs with minimal mana warranted bonus points for"mana sensitivity."
And so the golden orb that a napping Lucy Mayrill seemingly effortlessly found.
-"Merilda's Protector Tree is the eldest in the northern woods. Surrounded by abundant mana due to the blessings of the high wind sprite,Merilda."
Professor Glast spoke, pushing his skeletal visage forward in front of the podium.
- "Amid the already dense mana presence, orbs infused with a minute amount of mana were placed.Their location, the center of the lake's rocky isle, made their detection near impossible unless one was attuned to the mana."
The subtleties of mana sensitivity are endless.
Similar to individual scents lost in a crowd,distinctive mana becomes undiscernible when blended and obscured.
Lucy Mayrill was born with an exceptional sense for such nuances of mana sensitivity.
Moreover,though seemingly oblivious and sleepy..in truth, she had discerned even Professor Glast's intentions.
Returning to the professor's quarters with nothing but that single golden orb was proof of this.
Lucy Mayrill had been playfully at the top of this test all along.
"Yes,that makes sense.."
Princess Phoenia had never heard the name Lucy Mayrill before.However,among her peers, Lucy already held some renown.
"The Slothful Lucy"
Strolling around the schoolyard might reveal her in various benches, tree stumps,or grassy patches,snugly napping.
Her background was unclear, yet rumors branded her as a genius among geniuses,born with a heightened sense of mana.
An enviable talent indeed,but human abilities were inherently unequal; something one could come to understand.
But one detail remained unconvinced for Princess Phoenia.
There was another who knew the whereabouts of that orb.
- "That tree is Merilda's Protector Tree.A
promising find awaits if you examine the hollow on the side."
Ed Rothtaylor.
Princess Phoenia fell into deep contemplation.
To begin with, this meant that Ed Rothtaylor was aware of the golden orb's location.It couldn't have been a mere coincidence.
The powerful emanations from Merilda's Protector Tree, hiding an orb filled with an insignificant amount of mana.
Its location was central to the lake's rocky island,certainly not a spot stumbled upon by chance.
The singular conclusion was evident:a person imbued with a sensitivity akin to that of Lucy Mayrill.
-"Let go! Don't you know who I am?! I am Ed Rothtaylor of House Rothtaylor! Keep your filthy hands off me,you swine! How dare you lay a hand on me!"
-"Why would I stoop to such deceit to shame some worthless student like Taely or whatever?Let go! You dirty and ignorant peasants, how dare you prattle on about things you know nothing about!"
-"Huh? Her Highness the Princess?The
benevolent Princess Phoenia? Oh,I am so sorry for not recognizing you!"
-"My deepest apologies,Your Highness! I will bow down before you! Please, show mercy just this once!"
- "Your Highness! This contemptible Taely fellow is unworthy of your advocacy. It will only taint your noble name. Please, let him face justice!"
"... Impossible."
Princess Phoenia shook her head.
From a young age,she had been skilled at weighing the hearts of humans.
The vile acts displayed by Ed Rothtaylor during the entrance examination were the desperate flailings of someone cornered -clear to any onlooker.
Rumours had it that Ed Rothtaylor wasn't particularly magical and had subpar grades.It remains a mystery how one from such a stature could be so arrogant, likely due to the House Rothtaylor's indoctrination of aristocratic ideology.
More importantly,Professor Glast would not have left such talent unnoticed.
Even the most covertly hidden talent was something he would sense and aid to flourish. An obsession with talent was hisidentity.
It was unimaginable that he would overlook someone with such potential.
Yet,the nagging discomfort remained within Princess Phoenia.
"Could he really be the same person..?"
There is no relief or satisfaction with this thought.Above all, the difference between Ed Rothtaylor seen in theforest and the earlier encounters enchanted the mind.
The spineless attitude in the presence of power, an abject fear of authority, or any semblance of honor was nowhere to be flt.Initially presuming arrogance, it was readily discredited by his actions.
Ed Rothtaylor seemed more fearful of letting the carefully nurtured campfire extinguish than earning the ill-will of Princess Phoenia.
He never once looked in the princess's direction while sitting before the campfire, maneuvering logs with a poker, engrossed in dialogue.
The dissonance.
The sense that this might not be the very same person.
But the appearance and mannerisms were undoubtedly of the same arrogant noble,Ed Rothtaylor,from the entrance exams.
"Could it have been some life-changing event?"
The biggest incident likely would have been his expulsion.
However,seen through typical reasoning,it was extremely peculiar.
Princess Phoenia played a lead role in ensuring Ed Rothtaylor's expulsion.
He should have harbored resentment, pleaded for forgiveness,shown any such reactions. Had that been the case,Princess Phoenia wouldn't have felt any odd dissonance.
However, Ed Rothtaylor's eyes when facing the new reality were devoid of such corrupt emotions.
His eyes upon seeing Princess Phoenia:
Indifference. Detachment. Unconcern.
His expression even hinted at a certain ease.
For the eyes of an expelled noble to reflect such sentiments...in hindsight, it's ridiculously unreal.
"Perhaps...was the expulsion not as shocking as he thought...?"
Voicing this thought, Princess Phoenia
immediately shook her head again. This man had been nurtured within the Rothtaylor House from birth.
Even the most unflappable and composed of individuals would find an expulsion from their lifelong cradle to be shocking.
"Hmm.."
Flipping over the cover of the elemental studies book,Princess Phoenia pondered decper.
What kind of house was the Rothtaylor family?
She recalled meeting the head of House
Rothtaylor, Crebin Rothtaylor, at a royal banquet.
A nobleman with a poised and stylish demeanor,paired with a compassionate smile.
But young Princess Phoenia's eyes saw more.
Her unique "insight," an almost god-given intuition for gauging a person's character, had been screaming.
Behind the continent's most distinguished noble,inside the benevolent Crebin's insides,lurked a vile,terrifying serpent.
His appearance manifested a sample of a
compassionate ruler, but something unseen and dark lingered behind Crebin Rothtaylor.She had clearly captured glimpses of his grim visage when leaving the royal council chamber.
This man pretends to be a just ruler while he is wicked at heart. Long ago, she had been certain of this feeling.
Discretely sent household guards had reported something unnoticed and dark within the Rothtaylor House.
Reports of occasional omitted items during royal annual meetings,filled in belatedly.
Whispers of servants who entered the estate mysteriously vanishing.
Rumours of Crebin Rothtaylor engrossed in reading ancient demonic texts.
A suspicious feeling of some unknown presence was always there.
Nonetheless, the problem lay in the absence of tangible evidence.
The stroking fingers of Princess Phoenia on the book spine halted.
Trust in her judgment when it came to discerning humanity was unerring throughout her ife.
No matter how unexpected the existence,her gut feelings were usually accurate when followed.
Thus this was 'if a speculative narrative.
The undisclosed darkness of House Rothtaylor,though screamed by her intuiion,hadn't fully exposed itself.
What if Ed Rothtaylor had desired to escape the dark shadows of his household?
That could explain the unfazed demeanor,despite the consequences ofexpulsion.
Perhaps he wished to wash his hands naturally from the Rothtaylor House's darkness.
Yet,one cannot casually throw off lineage and blood relations. To appear naturally driven away,one must leave behind a 'blemish.
"."
Princess Phoenia's expression grew graver.
Most importantly, should this be true...
-"Let go! Don't you know who I am?! I am Ed Rothtaylor of the Rothtaylor House! Keep those filthy hands off me,you swine! How dare you touch my person!"
-"Do you honestly believe I'd engage in deceit just to flaunt my power over some unworthy student like Taely or whoever? Let go! You dirty,ignorant commoners,spouting nonsense!"
This display of human ugliness, meant to lay bare his vilest, would imply it was all an act.
That could imply that he harbored another hidden agenda, unseen even by divine insights.
It would suggest that he is a strategist who used even a country's princess as a variable for his own schemes.
"This...an act..?"
The princess shook her head once more. It simply couldn't be.
But the cognitive dissonance between the Ed Rothtaylor she encountered in the woods and what she had known tormented Princess Phoenia.
If everything was an act.
If there was knowledge of House Rothtaylor's darkness.
If the use of her was a stratagem to prematurely clean his hands of that darkness.
If all this was within his calculated plans.
Then....
-Tap.
"Really,maybe I am simply weary.I too."
With the rolling noise, the princess rose from her chair.
She approached the window,welcomin the cool sea breeze. Her platinum hair fluttered pleasantly in the wind.
It was a refreshing sensation.
"Engulfed with admission schedules and academic pursuits, I hardly have time to be concerned with state affairs."
"Enjoy the joy oflearning to your heart's content."
King's encouraging words to Princess Phoenia as she embarked on her journey.
Having come this far from the royal protocols and regulations to the land of academia, perhaps it's time to put aside such burdens.
After all, she had lived alife filled with discussions of politics,noble power struggles, the well-being of common folk,and international dynamics.Perhaps it was time to tire of it.
Maybe, she was already exhausted.
Possibly overestimating Ed Rothtaylor's relevance.
Not all people live behind several masks, their true intentions hidden.
Could a life walking a tightrope amidst nobles and ministers have ingrained a habit of gauging innermost thoughts?
Physically still a naive girl not yet of age,yet her heart seems prematurely aged.
She wasn't of an age to burden herself so.A lighter,freer chapter where the focus shifts from assessing others to cultivating one's self should be embraced.
The princess sighed deeply as she embraced the wind.
"Have I become an old soul before my time?"
She then glanced at a mirror adjacent to the window.Princess Phoenia,possessing the beautifully maintained platinum hair of a well-cared-for royalty...