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Chapter: 26
‘Ah, I remember now!’
Flashy, naturally curly golden hair. Brilliant emerald-like green eyes. And a way of speaking that instantly ruined her outstanding looks—looking down on everyone else.
“Elodie, do you really have to carry something so vulgar around with you?”
A noble girl Elodie became close to as soon as she entered high society—someone who helped her adapt to life in the imperial capital.
“She’s still my friend. Please be kind to her.”
Because Elodie had shielded me like that, she never said anything to my face.
But behind Elodie’s back—
“How does someone like you, who knows where you even crawled out from, get to stand beside Elodie?”
She despised me to the point of cruelty and harassed me whenever Elodie wasn’t around.
“You can’t even endure this much and you think you deserve to be Elodie’s friend? Take the hint and disappear!”
I remembered how she would grind her teeth every time she saw me, sneering that I was always sticking too close.
She looked much gentler back then. Her expression is so different now that I didn’t recognize her.
“Aren’t you something, Father? Just because I said I wanted lessons from the imperial palace mage, he insists on sending me to a place like this.”
Her muttered complaint helped me grasp the situation.
Looks like she’s unhappy about being stuck in the Mage Tower against her will. And seeing us laughing together probably irritated her even more.
She had always hated associating with commoners, so this wasn’t surprising.
If I remember correctly, she wasn’t originally affiliated with the Mage Tower. She probably couldn’t endure it and left.
In that case, there was no need to bother forming any sort of relationship.
“I knew it the moment they started accepting anyone regardless of status, just because it’s the only mage-training institution. No foundation at all.”
At her blatant tongue-clicking, Luna—who had been quietly watching—exploded.
“That’s going too far!”
“Too far? I’m simply stating facts as they are. And yet you’re shouting like this, my lady. How uncouth.”
The sharp contempt in her eyes made Luna’s face flush red.
“And how great do you think you are? Don’t you know that being a mage is about skill, not status?”
“At the very least, I’m better than you.”
“Then you should’ve entered the Mage Tower at a younger age! You’ve only just awakened your mana like the rest of us—yet your words are so harsh!”
“How would you know whether I awakened recently or long ago and only came now? Making assumptions like that is really troublesome.”
Seeing no sign of Luna calming down, I grabbed her arm.
When she met my anger-filled gaze, I shook my head.
“Don’t waste energy on someone not worth it.”
I was about to add that she’d leave the Mage Tower anyway, so there was no need to respond seriously—
“What did you say? Are you done talking?”
The young lady of the Argenta marquisate shot me a murderous glare, clearly offended.
“You’re hiding behind that gloomy hood and you dare look down on me?”
Before I could deny it, she strode toward us, her temper evidently short.
Then she suddenly yanked off the hood of my robe.
“Just how ugly are you that you’re hiding like—let’s see—see?”
Before I could stop her, the hood came off, and the blue hair I had concealed spilled out like a wave.
The dazzling lights that had been blocked now poured down over my head. I frowned and closed my eyes briefly—then opened them to find shocked gazes fixed on me.
Don’t tell me they all know Felion’s face?
I had hoped that at least the newly arrived students wouldn’t—but that hope seemed overly optimistic.
What do I do?
I was thinking my plan to avoid attention had failed from the very start when—
“Ophelia, why were you hiding such a pretty face?!”
“Huh—what?”
Luna’s completely unexpected reaction left me stunned.
“Yeah. You pulled the hood down so far I thought there was some tragic reason. Ah—were you hiding because you’re too pretty?”
Josh’s genuinely puzzled comment only added to it. I parted my lips, then smiled awkwardly.
“Even your smile is pretty.”
Luna’s sincere admiration made me feel embarrassed.
“So what, just because your face is a little nice, you think you can look down on people like that?”
Lady Argenta suddenly bristled.
“Judging by your looks, you must be from a prestigious family. But that doesn’t excuse such disrespect toward someone you’ve just met!”
She hadn’t recognized me either.
Well, Felion barely showed his face at official events after entering the Mage Tower…
And the Duke of Hexwood I remembered had a rather fierce appearance—hardly something that would make one immediately associate him with Felion’s current looks.
“Looking down on me again?!”
I had merely spaced out, but she raised her voice in outrage.
“Didn’t you just say shouting was uncouth?”
“Looks pretty clear who’s actually uncouth.”
At Luna and Josh’s barbs, a few onlookers burst into laughter. Lady Argenta’s face flushed as though it might explode.
“How dare—!”
“Alright, everyone. Attention, please.”
At that perfect moment, someone entered.
A man in a brown robe, a silver badge on his chest signifying an intermediate mage.
“Nice to meet you all. I’m Sabre, and I’ll be in charge of your foundational training. I’m here to introduce you to the Mage Tower and teach mana control and the creation of mana circuits. I look forward to working with you.”
Everyone applauded and responded to the friendly greeting. The man, with eyes as thin as threads, smiled warmly as he addressed us.
I don’t recognize him.
If he’d been an intermediate mage who had stayed in the Tower for a long time, he might have noticed who I was.
Fortunately, the disaster of him pointing me out never happened, and the moment passed.
“Now then, let’s start with today’s objective.”
Once calm returned, he continued.
“First, you need to learn how to perceive and control the mana flowing through your bodies. This is the first step toward forming a mana circuit. Before we begin, does anyone have any questions?”
At that, Lady Argenta shot her hand up.
“Yes. And your name?”
“Rosine Argenta.”
At the name of the Argenta marquisate, whispers spread.
“No wonder she’s unpleasant.”
“Are all nobles like that?”
“Not all of them.”
I quietly listened to Luna and Josh whispering when Rosine spoke again.
“I’ve heard it takes at least six months to a year to create a mana circuit. Is that correct?”
“That’s right.”
“And if someone completes it faster than that, what happens next?”
Sabre answered with an amused smile, as if he enjoyed such questions.
“Once a mana circuit is formed, you’re recognized as an official beginner mage. You’ll be able to explore and choose among the various departments within the Tower. Each department has different training methods, but in the magic-circle division I belong to, we start with copying foundational texts.”
“So everyone starts from the same line, but progress differs depending on the individual?”
“Exactly. Magic is an individual endeavor.”
At that, Rosine curved her red lips into a smile and deliberately looked at me.
Luna scoffed.
“What’s with that smug grin? Like she’s already above you.”
“She really thinks she’ll overtake everyone. That confidence without any basis is impressive.”
Noticing their words, Rosine turned and glared at them.
“Hey. I can hear you.”
“We meant you to.”
Luna snorted, and Josh nodded in agreement.
They’re… quite the personalities.
Still, having people who spoke their minds made me feel refreshed.
Thinking they weren’t bad kids, I listened carefully as the explanation continued.
Classes in the Mage Tower were highly free-form.
After a very brief theory explanation, they moved straight into practice.
“So we’re supposed to find the mysterious power flowing in our bodies and hold onto it, like gripping something?”
“I don’t get it at all.”
Luna and Josh groaned with their eyes closed, then let out deep sighs.
Everyone gathered here had only just awakened their mana.
That meant even sensing it felt unfamiliar—and no one was going to master it immediately after a short explanation.
Sabre walked around, helping the clumsy new mages one by one.
And then, it was my turn.
“Hm, Miss Ophelia is—”
