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Chapter – 21
“Have you not been sleeping well lately?”
“Ah… yeah. For some reason, I just can’t fall asleep at night.”
After hearing my answer, Aiden began to look deep in thought.
He stood up, opened one of the closed doors, and went inside. A short while later, he returned, holding something in his hands.
“Taking medicine that directly puts you to sleep isn’t very good for you.”
“…….”
“When you can’t sleep, hold this near your nose and take a deep breath.”
“What is it?”
“You can think of it as a potion that helps calm the mind. Oh, and this one’s a fatigue recovery potion.”
Aiden lightly pinched one of my cheeks and continued speaking in a grumpy tone.
“If you were having that much trouble sleeping, you should’ve come earlier.”
“I know. I kept thinking, ‘I’ll probably sleep tonight,’ or ‘There’s no way I won’t,’ and kept putting it off… and now here I am.”
I replied with an awkward smile.
Having some rare time alone together, Aiden and I talked about many things. That was when I heard some unexpected news from him.
“A hunting competition using illusion-created monsters?”
“Yeah. Apparently, everyone who took the swordsmanship exam has experienced it at least once.”
It was news that the Imperial Palace would soon be hosting a hunting competition.
“Wasn’t the monster Professor Erra created for the exam made with illusions too?”
“…….”
Ah. That time.
The moment I recalled that day, the image of the cockroach-like monster flickered before my eyes.
Not wanting to relive that horrifying memory, I waved my hand in front of my face as if to brush it away.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. Something I really didn’t want to remember just popped into my head.”
A monster made by Professor Erra…
Judging by last time, her tastes were pretty unique. What if she made something even stranger this time?
“So how exactly does the competition work?”
“The hunting competition?”
“Yeah.”
Aiden began explaining the rules in detail—things I’d missed while I’d been too exhausted to pay attention.
“The system is based on competition between departments.”
“…….”
“Each department selects two representatives and sends them out as a team.”
He continued explaining.
The academy I attended had three main faculties: the Faculty of Magic, the Faculty of Knights, and the General Faculty. Each of those was further divided into two departments.
The Faculty of Magic consisted of the Combat Magic Department, which Sierra belonged to, and the Healing Magic Department, which Aiden belonged to.
The Faculty of Knights included the Swordsmanship Department—where Ignis and I were—and the Archery Department, where Adam studied.
Finally, the General Faculty was divided into the Administration Department and the Tactics Department, which Liliana belonged to.
The hunting competition hosted by the Imperial Palace would select two participants from each department to form teams. These representative teams would then compete by hunting monsters, and rankings would be determined by the number of magic stones they collected.
“Oh, but our department and the Administration Department aren’t participating. There’s not really much to gain for us, so no one seems particularly eager.”
“That makes sense. Compared to the others, there’s not much point.”
“Yeah. The other departments are probably fired up with competitiveness, though.”
Stretching lazily, Aiden asked me casually,
“Lenia. Are you going to apply?”
“Me? I think it’d be better if I don’t—”
“…….”
“Wait.”
Just as I was about to decline, an idea flashed through my mind.
“They said each department sends two representatives, right?”
“Yeah.”
“And if two people are selected, they’ll have to train together until the competition?”
“Probably.”
“And since it’s hosted by the Imperial Palace, Ignis is almost guaranteed to participate, right?”
“…Yeah. His skills are good, too.”
Seeing the smile slowly forming on my lips, Aiden gave me a puzzled look.
This is it.
“Then of course I should apply!”
“Uh, yeah. Honestly, even if you didn’t apply, I figured you’d somehow end up going anyway.”
“What did you say?”
I hadn’t caught what he said while packing up to leave the infirmary, so I asked again.
“Nothing. Let’s go together. I have to participate anyway.”
“Okay.”
As we left the infirmary with light steps, I glanced sideways at Aiden walking beside me.
I’d always felt this since childhood—Aiden might seem indifferent on the outside, but he was considerate and always thought of others.
We’d been friends since we were very young and knew a lot about each other.
As a child, I loved running around and playing, while Aiden preferred sitting still and reading books.
Even so, he always came along whenever I begged him to go outside and play.
Of course, since he was still a kid back then, he couldn’t completely hide how bothered he felt—but his body always moved diligently anyway.
Thinking of young Aiden, who looked annoyed yet still played with me wholeheartedly, I let out a soft laugh.
“What’s up?”
“Nothing. I was just thinking about when we were kids.”
“How random.”
“You didn’t actually like playing outside with me back then, but you still always played with me.”
Hearing that, Aiden laughed just like I did.
“It was a bit annoying. But…”
“…….”
We had already arrived in front of my dormitory and stopped walking.
I focused on Aiden as he spoke in a calm voice.
“I didn’t mind, because I liked being with you.”
“What? What? You liked being with me that much? You should’ve said something earlier. Were you too embarrassed?”
Watching me joke as usual, Aiden let out a dry laugh, then grabbed my shoulders and turned me around.
“Enough. Go inside and rest.”
“Okay, okay. I’ll go in.”
I waved at him, still grinning.
Aiden waved back just as clumsily.
Seriously—sometimes he’s unexpectedly cute like that.
“Professor, you called for me…?”
“Welcome, Lenia. Please, have a seat.”
…Why did she call me here? Did I do something wrong?
Even though I knew I hadn’t done anything, a vague sense of unease crept in.
I’d planned to visit her soon anyway to apply for the hunting competition.
I was currently in the research office of Professor Kyla, the head professor of the Swordsmanship Department.
“How has academy life been lately?”
“It’s been great! More than fine, actually!”
“That’s good to hear.”
“Yes.”
She hesitated for a moment while looking at me, then seemed to make up her mind.
“Lenia.”
“Yes, Professor.”
“You haven’t applied for the hunting competition yet…”
“Huh? Ah—yes. I was just about to.”
Professor Kyla’s face brightened immediately.
“Oh, thank goodness! I was worried you might not apply!”
“Ah, I see.”
“You know this competition is hosted by the Imperial Palace, right?”
“Yes, I do.”
“That’s why the reputation of the Swordsmanship Department is at stake this time.”
“…I suppose so.”
She clasped both my hands tightly in hers as she continued.
“But if Sir Ignis and you are chosen as representatives, I truly believe victory is already assured.”
“What? No—Ignis, maybe, but I’m not quite—”
She shook her head firmly.
“No. Don’t underestimate your own abilities.”
“…Yes. Y-Yes, ma’am.”
Faced with her unwavering confidence, I ended up nodding.
“Anyway, I’m relieved. You looked tired during class, so I was quite worried.”
“I’m sorry.”
“You don’t need to apologize to me. Just make sure to take good care of yourself until the competition, Lenia.”
Looking at Professor Kyla’s determined expression, I answered carefully,
“Yes, I will!”
Ah… so that’s why she sent me to the infirmary.
“Lenia. I heard you and Ignis got selected for the competition.”
“Yeah, we did.”
After the list of participants was announced by each faculty, I was talking with Sierra.
“So that means among us, only you two, Adam, and Liliana were chosen?”
“Right. Aiden’s department isn’t participating, and you’re injured.”
Sierra had injured her leg during practical training just the day before.
Since she had been almost guaranteed a spot, not being able to participate this time seemed especially disappointing for her.
Looking at me with envy, Sierra said,
“I’m jealous. You and Ignis must work really well together.”
“Well, we’ve trained together a lot, so our coordination’s pretty solid.”
…Though that’s not what I’m worried about.
“Your department picked Iris and Sir Killian, right?”
“Yeah. It’s such a shame I can’t participate.”
“I know. Of all times, you had to get injured.”
“Exactly. Did they say training starts soon?”
“Yeah. Since it’s hosted by the Imperial Palace, it sounds like they’ll push everyone pretty hard.”
“Hearing that almost makes my injured leg feel like a blessing.”
I burst out laughing.
“Still, I hope your leg heals quickly.”
“It’s not that serious.”
“That’s a relief, at least. Ah—time’s up. I should get going.”
“Yeah. Do your best.”
After saying goodbye to Sierra, I headed toward a different training ground than usual.
When I arrived at the new training area and stepped inside, Ignis was already there.
