After making a strong first impression on the day of zlena’s arrival at the academy, about a week has passed since the start of the new sester, and I could say that zlena and I have beco sowhat friendly.
…At least, in her mind, I was now soone “worth rembering by na.”
“So, you know, Antonio was nagging again today….”
“Is that so?”
“I told him I had no intention of participating in the royal power struggle, but he kept bringing it up… Of course, I can’t bla him for being aware of the charisma my beautiful appearance naturally brings… And then Seraphine, my sister, also….”
“You always have it so tough, Princess zlena.”
It was a conversation where I was half-heartedly agreeing with her, just going along with what she was saying. There wasn’t much point in taking her ridiculous complaints seriously.
Besides, what she really needed wasn’t soone to earnestly listen to her, but just a person to echo back that she was right. That way, zlena could restore her self-esteem.
Of course, such a relationship wouldn’t last long in the future, but I didn’t care much. My role, after all, was just to help zlena et soone she could genuinely fall for, and once I fulfilled that role, I planned to quietly step back.
Even if I remained in her mory as just the “maid who said what she wanted to hear,” it wouldn’t be a problem.
‘It’s best not to get too entangled with royalty anyway.’
After graduation, I intended to draw clear lines not only with Ethan but also with Seraphine. The sa went for Lize or anyone else with enough power to restrict my freedom.
Isabelle and Katarina belonged to the Blackwood family, so naturally, they would distance themselves once I created so space between myself and Ethan. The only people I might stay in touch with after graduation would be Agnes and that reckless guy.
Of course, both of them would be busy with the Hero’s Party after graduation, so it’s unlikely I’d see them often. In essence, I was destined to be alone after graduation.
“…So I decided to forgive Antonio this ti, just this once… Because unlike him, I’m a forgiving person….”
“You’re truly remarkable, Princess zlena. Commoners like would have long since lost our temper in such a situation. But to show such graciousness… it’s inspiring.”
“Hmm, I like that… Praise more.”
‘…So easy.’
Building shallow rapport was progressing smoothly, so it was ti to start considering zlena’s ‘match.’
From what I rembered, zlena’s fiancé wasn’t revealed in Luminor Academy. Not just during the main storyline, but even after the endings.
Given her personality, it was likely that she either didn’t have a fiancé, or the engagent had been annulled, perhaps due to the fiancé’s death.
As I ntioned before, if that were the case, one of the most likely candidates was Ethan. He t two important conditions: being from a family high enough to marry into royalty and dying in the original story.
Up until about half a year ago, Karahem was also a candidate, but after he casually accepted Lyria’s confession, I naturally excluded him from consideration.
If he were engaged to zlena, accepting Lyria’s confession would have been impossible.
“Princess zlena, if I may, could I ask you sothing?”
“It is indeed presumptuous for you, a re baronet’s daughter, to ask a question of , but… With my magnanimous nature, I shall overlook your impertinence just this once….”
“Then, if you’ll excuse my impudence, I have a simple question out of curiosity. Do you, by any chance, have a fiancé that is not widely known?”
“Hmm, no? No…?”
“…I see. Thank you for answering.”
Her response ca as a smooth, natural shake of her head.
Such a natural reaction could only co from soone who truly didn’t have a fiancé. Especially given zlena’s inability to lie well, it was even more convincing.
Although I was slightly disappointed that zlena wasn’t engaged to Ethan, I also felt a sense of relief… At least, it ant I wouldn’t have to go through the ordeal of making zlena fall for Ethan.
‘Looks like I bought myself so ti.’
If zlena had been Ethan’s secret fiancé, I would have had to start toning down my relationship with Ethan. But since that wasn’t the case, I could maintain the status quo for a while longer.
…Well, it wasn’t like we could sleep in separate rooms now, anyway, since we were using the marriage-engagent dorm this sester. But at least I didn’t have to restrain our displays of affection on the off chance that zlena was watching.
‘I still don’t know what Princess Rainie’s relationship with Ethan is, but… that can wait for later.’
There were still many things I hadn’t been able to do with Ethan yet, and now, I didn’t have to stop those things prematurely.
There was even a beach trip (Marine Studies) planned for the end of this sester.
I worked to calm my slightly flushed face, trying to maintain a poker face. Smiling too much might cause zlena to misunderstand and start to view with suspicion.
“Oh, ti’s already….”
“It’s about ti for the next class. I enjoyed our ti today, Princess zlena.”
“I did as well… Oh, and tomorrow I have my fifth period class, so how about we et an hour later than today…?”
“…As much as I’d love to et your expectations, unfortunately, starting tomorrow, I’ll be away from the academy for a week due to my ‘Natural Studies Exploration’ course.”
The exploration courses for third-year students lasted a week, making it harder for underclassn and upperclassn to interact.
“Oh, I see… Now that you ntion it, you’re in your third year, Lilith…”
“That’s right, Princess zlena.”
“Hmm, well, there’s nothing to be done… I’m not particularly disappointed or anything, so don’t worry… I have plenty of other friends besides you, after all….”
“I’m sincerely grateful that you’ve taken ti out of your busy schedule to talk with a lowly baronet’s daughter like instead of spending it with other distinguished figures.”
“Well, yes… Lilith, you always know just what to say….”
Her claim of having many other friends didn’t fool in the slightest, considering what I knew about the original zlena, but I pretended to be convinced.
Regardless of whether zlena was Ethan’s fiancée or not, I still needed to maintain a good relationship with her.
⁎ ⁎ ⁎
From the third year onward, Luminor Academy shifted from the internal events of the academy seen in the second part to more external activities.
Unlike the second part, which focused on daily life and events within the academy, the third part mainly dealt with external episodes and activities.
From the third year’s titable, except for the first day of each week, all other classes involved outdoor activities. Or, occasionally, the classes were simply canceled.
For example, the ‘Natural Studies Exploration’ course that Ethan and I had enrolled in took place during the second week of the sester, starting on the second day and lasting until the weekend—a total of six days.
During that ti, we would move to the ‘Hobgoblin Forest,’ the course’s location, where we would hunt monsters, learn how to camp in the wild, and survive through self-sufficiency.
You might think this course was too harsh for students, but this was a dieval fantasy world. After graduation, students had to be capable of surviving such challenges to proudly display the ‘Academy Graduate’ title in society.
Unless they were from the engineering or pharmaceutical departnts, all combat departnt students were expected to be proficient in surviving monster battles.
“The resources provided to students will be a single al’s worth of rations and a bottle of water each. The rest must be sourced from the forest over the next five days, or, alternatively, you may complete the course early by gathering the necessary resources before running out of food and water.”
“Wait, what?”
“Five days in the forest? You expect us to survive for four nights and five days?!”
“No. You need to survive for 120 hours. That’s five nights and six days.”
“What… how is that…?”
The students who hadn’t realized the true nature of the course started grumbling. Those who remained quiet must have been aware of what kind of course it was through senior students or other sources.
While so exploration courses changed their assignnts annually, the ‘Natural Studies Exploration’ followed the sa format every year. Since its primary goal was to develop each student’s survival skills, there was no need to change the curriculum.
Ethan and I were already aware of this, so we didn’t react. We were simply assessing how we would spend the next five days and deciding where in the forest to settle.
“What do you an by a single al’s worth of rations? How are we supposed to get the other 14 als?!”
“You will gather them yourselves. The forest contains fruit, mushrooms, fish, and wildlife. You’ll need to ‘figure it out’ by foraging or hunting for your als. Didn’t I tell you to bring your personal weapons?”
“But what if we eat poisonous mushrooms or sothing?!”
“That’s unfortunate. If you can’t distinguish them, don’t touch them in the first place.”
“...What?”
“And where do we get water?”
“There’s a river sowhere deeper in the forest. You can either gather water from there, find a lake, filter the water, dig for groundwater, or collect moisture from plants. There are many options.”
“But what if we get dehydrated…?”
“That would also be unfortunate. If you’re worried about that, I suggest locating a water source before your rationed water runs out.”
“What about where we sleep…?”
“You should have figured that out by now, shouldn’t you? Sort it out yourselves.”
“….”
The professor with the green hair dismissed the students’ questions one by one, and the atmosphere grew even more somber.
About a third of the students had planned ahead and were already forming teams, discussing how they would survive. Another third, though displeased, scrambled to gather people and co up with plans. The remaining third sat helplessly, sighing in despair.
However, there was one variable even the well-prepared students hadn’t anticipated: all of the students would be forcibly separated upon entering the forest.
“Before you enter the forest, look over here. I need everyone to make eye contact with ….”
“I’ll set up camp near the river. Hopefully, we’ll et in the forest.”
“I’ll find you sohow. See you later, Ethan.”
“…Alright. Take care, Lilith.”
Snap!
“Wha—what the?!”
“Aaaah! Te-teleportation magic…!!”
The mont the professor snapped his fingers, a ‘random teleportation’ spell was cast on the 100 or so students.
After a flash of white light passed before my eyes, I found myself deep within the forest.
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