"To all incoming students. First of all, congratulations on your admission."
The academy headmaster stood at the podium and spoke with a gentle expression.
"You have enrolled in the Royal Academy, the greatest educational institution in the Kingdom of Aiwood. From here, you will gain experience, acquire knowledge and power, and take flight into the world. I hope you will live your academy life with no regrets… though that is surprisingly difficult to do. Rather, I hope you will spend a youth that, once you've grown up, you can look back on and laugh about with friends."
(A life at the academy with no regrets, huh… that really is tough.)
It may have sounded simple, but Rest knew just how difficult it truly was.
In his past life, Rest had been an underprivileged student with no fortune in parents.
He studied desperately to earn scholarships, took part-time jobs to pay tuition… and despite going through all of that, he never got to fully enjoy the high school he attended. In the end, he got into a fight with his father over tuition money and was stabbed to death.
He had no girlfriend, of course, and he'd never joined any clubs either.
How many people could he even call friends?
(Well, I've been given a second chance at life… This time around, I want to make plenty of friends at school and have the kind of time where we can all laugh together.)
"Well then, that concludes my remarks. Everyone, I wish you a fine life at the academy."
"Thank you, Headmaster. Next, we will have a speech from the top-scoring admission candidate."
The headmaster's address had concluded.
Next up appeared to be a speech from the students who had achieved the finest results on the entrance exam.
Prompted by a middle-aged male teacher, five young men and women appeared on the podium — the top-scoring admittees from the Magic Department, the Knight Department, the Civil Service Department, the Clergy Department, and the Arts Department, respectively.
"Now then, first — the top-scoring admittee of the Magic Department. Celestine Crocus."
"Yes."
The first to step forward was a beautiful young lady with platinum hair and violet eyes.
(That's the head noble… the young lady of House Crocus…)
I knew her name.
She was famous as a young lady of both talent and beauty.
A perfect beauty who possessed looks that rivaled the Rosemary sisters, yet who also boasted outstanding magical aptitude and intellect.
She was a woman so gifted she was even called a work of art granted everything by the heavens.
"Everyone, I am Celestine Crocus of the Magic Department."
After pinching the hem of her skirt and dipping into a curtsy, Celestine began to speak in a smooth, unbroken tone.
"I am deeply honored to be admitted to the prestigious Royal Academy and to receive the tremendous distinction of being the top admittee. Presumptuous as it may be, I shall devote myself to my studies so that I may serve as a guide to you all at the academy."
(Huh... impressive...)
Rest admired the sight of Celestine speaking with such composure while bathed in the gaze of every incoming student.
A girl in her mid-teens speaking this confidently in front of a crowd — at the very least, his past-life self would never have been able to pull that off.
With her refined appearance and manner of speaking, everyone present — men and women alike — stared at Celestine as though utterly captivated.
(Is it just the difference in innate elegance and charisma? Moving her lips to talk is enough to draw every eye in the room — that's got to be cheating.)
"...?"
While everyone was captivated by Celestine on the stage, he suddenly felt an uneasy presence.
Thanks to his training under Diebl, Rest always kept his presence detection spell active.
Something within that sensory net had snagged — the presence of someone about to cast a spell.
(A spell, right in the middle of the ceremony!? The target is...!?)
Before he could even organize his thoughts, someone activated a spell.
Rest, too, drew on his senses and cast a spell to intercept.
([[Wind Wall]!)
A wall of wind materialized in midair, and with a sharp crack, mud bullets burst against it. A large amount of mud scattered across the floor.
What someone had used was a non-lethal attack spell called Mud Bullet .
It was, quite literally, a spell that hurled mud bullets at a target.
"Huh?"
"What's going on!?"
Viola and Primula raised their voices on either side of him.
The other new students were also startled by the sudden event, with some even rising from their chairs.
(They didn't notice I used magic... Still, the headmaster sure is something.)
Rest turned his gaze toward the headmaster, who stood at the edge of the platform.
Rest had caught the spell fired by someone with a wall of wind, but at the same time, the headmaster had also cast a defensive spell.
In front of "her" — the spell's target — there was a transparent mana shield. Even if Rest hadn't done anything, there likely would have been no harm.
"...!"
The woman targeted by the spell — Celestine Crocus — had her eyes wide open in shock on the platform.
Celestine had likely also realized that she had been targeted by a spell.
Despite being in the middle of her address, she had frozen, her words cut short.
(Mud bullets... Who would pull a prank like this on a duke's young lady...?)
"Everyone, be quiet! This is in the middle of the ceremony. Quiet!"
The faculty member acting as MC raised their voice toward the incoming students who were starting to murmur.
"......Tch."
Ignoring them, one of the seated incoming students, several rows behind Rest, softly clicked their tongue.