Gulp, gulp, gulp!
In the early morning at the school's main gate, Eiji finished his morning workout and was chugging down a sports drink.
Sweat dripped from his Adam's apple, and a faint smoky fragrance evaporated into the air, making even his same-sex friend, Ikki Kurogane, feel a bit too embarrassed to keep watching.
"You're almost there, keep it up, Stella!"
With a slightly nervous heart, he turned his gaze toward the slope, cheering on the princess who was nearing her limit.
"Huff... huff... cough!"
The princess let out gasps that sounded as if she were on the verge of passing out. In a dazed state, she finally made it up the slope and reached Ikki, almost collapsing to the ground.
Princess Stella had tied her fiery red hair into a long ponytail and was wearing a deep red tracksuit that complemented her stunning beauty, making her look more mature. The "fate" on her chest swayed back and forth as she ran, making it hard to know where to look.
"Here, Stella, have some sports drink."
Ikki handed his thermos to the princess, his smile as friendly as it had been three days ago when he offered it to Eiji.
"Thank you, Ikki."
Stella panted as she took the thermos, her face suddenly flushing slightly red.
"Ikki's thermos... he just drank from it... indirect kiss..."
"Ah, sorry, Stella, you probably don't want to use my cup, right?"
Ikki was momentarily stunned, activating the dense protagonist skill typical of light novel protagonists, his face showing a humble smile.
"That's not it at all!"
Stella waved her hands vigorously, her face turning even redder.
"If anything, it's the opposite..."
Her voice was as soft as a mosquito's, making it impossible for the two sharp-eared men present to hear her clearly.
Ikki looked confused, completely unaware of Stella's feelings.
But this wasn't surprising. They had only known each other for three or four days, and no matter how narcissistic he might be, he wouldn't think that a princess from another country would fall for him in such a short time.
Eiji, however, thought differently.
He had seen that lovestruck look on many girls before, and he could confidently say that this princess had been won over by Ikki on the very first day they met.
According to Ikki himself, the whole thing started with the school reforms introduced by Kurono Shinguuji this year. Not only did she change the selection system from being purely rank-based to a practical exam system, but she also implemented an unprecedented co-ed dormitory system.
Kurono's reasoning was that two Blazers of similar strength spending a lot of time together would foster a sense of rivalry, encouraging students to study more actively.
But this led to a problem.
Stella was an A-Rank knight, possessing the strongest magical power in the world, something never seen before in the 60-year history of Hagun Academy. No freshman could even come close to her in strength.
On the other hand, Ikki was the weakest F-Rank knight, with the lowest magical power in the entire academy. No one in the school was as weak as he was.
Neither of them could find a Blazer of similar strength to room with.
Originally, Eiji, who also had the weakest magical power, could have roomed with Ikki, as they were equally weak. But Touka had moved Eiji to her own dorm, leaving Ikki without a roommate.
So, Kurono had a bright idea: she paired the strongest knight, who had no equal, with the weakest knight, who had no peers—Stella Vermillion and Ikki Kurogane.
If you asked Eiji, she really had some guts.
Stella was, after all, a princess of a kingdom. Although Vermillion was just a small Nordic country, with the strongest Blazer aside from Stella being only C-rank, and having very little influence in the League, her status was still significant. Letting her room with a man was downright audacious and could easily escalate into a diplomatic issue.
And as luck would have it, three days ago, when Ikki returned to the dorm, he accidentally walked in on the princess, who had just moved in, while she was changing clothes.
Unsurprisingly, the two ended up in a dispute that went all the way to the Director, eventually leading to a duel.
After a big commotion in the third training field, Princess Stella was ultimately defeated by Ikki Kurogane and quickly became infatuated with him, falling head over heels at an astonishing speed.
The way Stella blushed and her heart raced clearly showed that she was more than willing to have an indirect kiss with Ikki.
But Eiji, being the kind-hearted person he was, couldn't stand to see them flaunt their... ahem, he couldn't stand to see the princess in such a dilemma.
"If you don't want an indirect kiss, you can unscrew the filter," he kindly suggested to Stella.
"Uh...!"
"Oh, right, that's an option."
Ikki caught on, scratching the back of his head with an embarrassed expression.
But Stella, standing opposite him, froze, giving Eiji a stiff look.
When they first met, she thought Eiji was like a handsome boy straight out of a painting. But as she got to know him better, she realized he was just a troublemaker!
Not only did he act like a third wheel all the time, but he also loved to stir the pot... and to make matters worse, he was on good terms with Ikki!
With a blank expression, she unscrewed the filter and took a big gulp of the drink.
"Today's finally the start of school..."
While Stella was silently fuming, Ikki's gaze had already shifted to the notice board hanging at the main gate.
Written in bold letters was "0 days until the start of school," clearly indicating that today was the official first day of Hagun Academy.
Three days had already passed since the three of them started morning training together.
"You seem pretty excited, huh?"
Eiji glanced at him, noticing the visible excitement on his face.
"Of course! This year is different from last year. This time, even someone like me has a chance to participate in real combat. I can't let the Director's opportunity go to waste!"
For a moment, Ikki's face darkened, as if he had thought of something, but he quickly regained his optimism, his expression filled with clear anticipation.
"Also, my little sister is coming today."
"Little sister?"
Before Eiji could comment, Stella leaned over with a suspicious look.
"By the way, Ikki, your sister doesn't happen to have some weird setting like not being related by blood, does she?"
"Huh? We're full siblings, same mother."
Ikki looked puzzled.
"That's good."
Stella let out a sigh of relief.
She had seen many Japanese anime where there were "little sisters" who weren't related by blood, and every single one of them ended up in some kind of romantic entanglement with the protagonist brother.
Just hearing the word "sister" had put her on guard, but since they were full siblings, it shouldn't be a problem.
"By the way, which classes are you two in?"
Eiji turned back and asked the two of them.
"Class 1-1."
"I got held back, so I'm also in Class 1-1 this year."
Stella's expression brightened upon hearing this.
"What a coincidence, I'm also in Class 1-1."
Stella's face instantly darkened.
***
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