‘Live well, Magnus. Though you’ll probably become beast food first. Hahaha!’
‘Brothers, please, please save me. Don’t leave me behind…’
Magnus. Magnus, who is he? Who is that crying boy? And who are those three people with golden eyes like mine?
My head no longer hurt. At that moment, forgotten memories resurfaced.
A flood of information surged into my brain like a raging tide.
On the verge of sleep, Magnus clutched his ears and gritted his teeth, stifling a whimper.
The forgotten memories came back vividly, taking root in his mind.
“…Ah.”
Magnus, thrashing about on the soft bed, gradually calmed down.
As he held his intermittently trembling body, he raised his head.
It was a sight that would have taken anyone’s breath away. The eyes of the man who knew nothing were wide open and trembling.
In the beast-like bright yellow eyes, madness and excitement swirled.
Eventually, joy filled Magnus’s eyes. He closed his eyes as if to hold his breath.
*** *** *** *** ***
Three months had passed since I started living in Kotan Village for priest training, feeling like it was some sort of retreat. The final report came from the mercenary.
To summarize, it said that the target, Magnus, had escaped.
They confirmed that he had settled in a doctor’s house after escaping.
It was a brief report stating that the contract with the guild would be terminated by paying the remaining contract fee to Carl, who had been visiting weekly, and by burning down the cabin and erasing all traces.
“…Finally.”
A voice filled with unfamiliar elation escaped between my lips.
Magnus had finally taken a step forward.
Although it was about a year earlier than in the original story, it seemed he had met the female protagonist without any problems.
Just confirming this fact made me feel much more at ease after the anxiety of the past three months.
Now, all I had to do was quietly continue my training here and then return to the capital.
‘…It’s strange that there’s been no word from the Marquis.’
I thought he would at least send a letter, but it’s unexpected. He didn’t seem like someone who would back down so quietly.
If it’s going to end smoothly, that would be fortunate, but…
“It feels unsettling.”
I muttered to myself as I threw the report into the fireplace.
The paper that caught fire instantly disappeared without leaving a single ash.
“What’s unsettling?”
“Huh? Oh, it’s nothing.”
“Really? You got a letter from someone. Family? Or…”
Shulia’s face turned quite mischievous. I looked at Shulia with a wry expression, but she seemed to be already letting her imagination run wild.
Sure enough, she soon poked my waist with her elbow.
“Illyana, you have a lover, don’t you!”
“…What?”
“You were smiling happily and mischievously while reading the letter! Why, did your lover ask you to come quickly? Ah, I’m envious. But can you still date even if you become a priest?”
What kind of smile is happy yet mischievous?
When I tried to imagine a happy and mischievous expression, all I could think of was a strange face.
Wondering if I had made such an odd expression, I glanced at Shulia once and then shook my head deliberately.
“It’s not like that. Someone from the mansion sent it.”
“Oh… is that so? Aw, I thought it was interesting because I’ve never seen you smile like that before.”
“By the way, what brings you here?”
“Didn’t you hear? Simeon said he’d tell you.”
“…Really? I didn’t hear. What’s going on?”
Simeon was a boy our age who looked quite innocent.
With his tanned skin and friendly personality, always quick to smile, he was often at the center of people’s attention.
Moreover, among the students taking the priest classes, he seemed to be receiving particularly high expectations. He appeared to be well-regarded by the priests, and his scores were always good in the interim tests.
In short, he’s a model student.
‘He’s the complete opposite of me.’
But did he have some urgent business? He’s usually quite meticulous, so he wouldn’t forget something…
“Oh, they suddenly called all the trainee priests together today. Maybe they’ve added an extra theology class?”
As Shulia’s words reached me during my thoughts, my expression soured.
I thought I was good at managing my expressions, but just hearing about that theology class made my whole body shudder.
It was so bad that I had even pretended to be sick once to avoid attending the theology class.
‘Human sleeping pill…’
The voice was as low and slow as a principal’s lecture, and the content was mostly about praising God, the things God left for humans, the importance of priests, and doctrines.
I hadn’t even eaten, but I don’t know why I felt so sleepy.
The problem is that I’m the only one nodding off like this. Everyone else seems to be listening with such interest.
It’s not like everyone is dozing off together; I’m the only one sleeping, so even I feel self-conscious.
‘They all said they wanted to become priests…’
Recently, I’ve been doubting if I can beat these kids who even enjoy these classes.
And at the same time, I wonder if I even deserve to take their places, even if I could.
“Let’s go!”
“Ah, okay.”
I forcefully swallowed a sigh and reluctantly lifted my feet from the ground.
Really, now as before, attending classes is what I hate most in the world. I followed her into the classroom next to the prayer room. Seeing the desks and chairs lined up in rows made me feel nauseous reflexively.
Why on earth do I have to study at this age, and why do I have to worry about my life in the prime of my youth?
‘I hate studying…’
I really hate studying. It’s what I hate most in the world.
But I don’t understand why everyone else is so passionate. I was the last one to arrive today too. Many priest candidates were already in the classroom.
They said about a hundred people would be selected from across the empire, so that meant a hundred people would be in this classroom.
It’s suffocating. Inside, there was Simeon, surrounded by other believers.
He really stands out.
“Simeon, why didn’t you tell Illyana about today’s gathering?”
Simeon, who was in conversation, looked at Shulia once and then turned his gaze to me standing beside her. A flash of irritation crossed Simeon’s eyes before quickly disappearing.
‘Ah…’
A subtle unease became reality.
He doesn’t like me, does he? I’m usually quite dull about these things, but I was certain from that look just now. He disapproves of me. I don’t know why though.
“…Ah, sorry. I must have forgotten because I had something to do.”
“No, there’s nothing to be sorry about, but Illyana almost missed it.”
“That’s right. I guess I was too greedy, sorry Illyana.”
As he apologized sincerely with his eyes lowered, those around started to comfort Simeon, saying it could happen and asking why he was apologizing so much.
“It can happen, don’t worry about it.”
Such mild bullying was really nothing.
I answered calmly and then casually scanned the classroom. The front and center seats were packed, but there were many empty seats in the back corners.
I spotted a seat that was reasonably far from the podium but not too isolated, and headed towards it.
“Ah, Illyana! You’re not sitting here but over there?”
“Yeah. I like it here. Shulia, you listen from there.”
Please don’t chatter next to me. Hiding my true feelings, I smiled as nonchalantly as possible.
Suddenly feeling a gaze from another direction, I turned my head to find Simeon looking at me with an expressionless face.
In response to his ice-cold stare, I just gave a light smile.
The last time I experienced this kind of hostility was probably when I was in school. As I retraced my memories, I ended up letting out another breathy laugh.
When I looked up again, Simeon was already talking with other believers.
‘It’s really inconvenient to be on bad terms with someone like him.’
It’s surprisingly bothersome to be at odds with someone who can be friends with everyone in the world.
What kind of bother, you ask…
“Oh my, what is this? Illyana! Are you okay?”
This is exactly the kind of bother.
“I’m fine, I’ll just dry it out and use it.”
I answered Shulia while picking up the book that had fallen on the floor.
I never expected a water bomb to fall from the sky while walking. Of course, it was on the way to the classroom.
At least it wasn’t dirty mop water like you often read about in novels.
The book got soaked and became unusable, though.
“What on earth happened? Suddenly water pouring from the sky…”
“Maybe it suddenly started raining.”
I answered indifferently, waving my hand dismissively. Since I don’t wear makeup, getting wet didn’t immediately affect my mood.
I was a bit surprised because it happened so unexpectedly.
“Tell them I won’t be able to attend the morning class today. I look like this. I’ll join the class in the afternoon.”
“Oh, okay… Can you go by yourself?”
“Yeah, I’m not a child.”
“Illyana, I’ll take notes for you!”
Shulia stomped her feet and nodded before turning towards the classroom.
After roughly tidying my soaked hair, I also headed back to the dormitory. I saw Simeon walking from the other direction.
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