Several days had passed since Rodele Aiwood's rampage as the Third Prince.
Perhaps because the idiot prince who caused the whole mess was gone, peaceful academy life resumed without any particular issues.
Since then, Rodele had been suspended and confined at home—or rather, in the castle.
The male student from Class D who had been burned during the incident received proper treatment from the academy's school nurse, and was left with only minor burn scars. His daily life was not impaired.
As for who had beaten Rodele and his two lackeys into the ground, that remained a mystery.
Unauthorized magic attacks within the academy grounds were a violation of school rules regardless of the reason. However, given the circumstances, the faculty had only put out a notice to all students to "turn yourself in" and were not actively pursuing the matter.
"Rest, do you have a moment?"
One afternoon after classes, in the A classroom.
In a rare move, Celestine Crocus, the duke's young lady, approached Rest.
Celestine made an effort to interact equally with all of her classmates, so it was unusual for her to seek out a specific individual.
"Something you need?"
"Yes, I have something to talk to you about, and I was hoping you could come with me..."
"It's not a problem, but... what's it regarding?"
"A little hard to discuss here..."
Celestine glanced around the classroom with a casual air.
Something she couldn't talk about where others might overhear... Rest rose from his seat.
"Alright, then let's go somewhere else."
"Would you mind if we came along too?"
"Me too..."
Viola and Primula also stood up to join them.
Celestine nodded with a gentle expression.
«Of course.»
The Rest and Rosemary sisters left the classroom and followed Celestine down the hallway.
«I hear you’ve been quite active, Rest-san.»
As they walked, Celestine spoke.
«Whatever do you mean?»
«There’s a rumor going around. That you defeated Danila Bethras, the son of a count and the second-ranked student in the Knight Department’s first year, during a ‘Swordsmanship’ class.»
«Oh… that guy was a son of a count?»
He recalled the male student he’d had a mock battle with in the very first ‘Swordsmanship’ class.
He hadn’t known the full name, but it seemed to be Danila Bethras.
«Count Bethras is one of the key figures in the Knights’ Order. Though Danila is the third son, he is blessed with sword talent and is expected to have a promising future. For a student from the Magic Department to defeat him like that, it’s become quite the topic of discussion in the Knight Department.»
«Ah… is that so?»
He didn’t think the opponent had been that strong.
He had sensed some real skill, but he never imagined it was the second-ranked first-year in the Knight Department.
«Well, of course! That’s Rest for you!»
«Of course, it’s Lord Rest. We’re proud too!»
Viola and Primula puffed out their chests proudly.
They seemed delighted that Rest had achieved something that drew the attention of so many students.
«Also… there’s the matter involving His Highness Rodele the other day as well.»
"Huh...?"
"I'm sorry it's taken me so long to express my gratitude — truly, I cannot thank you enough for resolving the matter with His Highness."
"...What do you mean?"
Nine times out of ten, this was about the assault incident Rodele had caused — but Rest played dumb.
"There's no need to hide it. Some people, including myself, have already figured it out."
"Figured it out...?"
"Rest, you're more highly regarded by the faculty than you yourself realize. Apparently, at the entrance ceremony, you demonstrated advanced techniques that would put court magicians to shame."
"Ah..."
Rest had used a high-level technique known as Quartet during the entrance exam.
Many of the examinees hadn't noticed it, but the academy headmaster — who had been supervising the test — certainly knew, and the information had been shared among the other faculty as well.
"Using smoke-screen magic to subdue His Highness without ever being identified — that's not something just anyone can do. Given the location and circumstances of the incident, the pool of suspects narrows down to faculty or senior students. It's only that they've deliberately chosen not to make it public... but among the staff, it's all but confirmed that you, Rest, were the one who defeated Lord Rodele."
"..."
Rest's expression soured.
He'd thought he'd hidden it well enough — but for those who would see through it, he'd been completely transparent.
"Um, I understand that the faculty knows about it, but... how does Lady Celestine know as well?"
Primula raised her hand politely and joined the conversation.
She understood why the Magic Department's faculty knew about Rest's true abilities, but she couldn't fathom how the information had reached Celestine.
"I'm a special scholarship student in the Magic Department, and Lord Rodele's fiancée. As someone responsible for supervising the students, I'm kept informed of such matters."
"I see…"
"Oh, and there's one more reason… Ah, this is the place."
Since she said she wanted to talk, I'd assumed we'd be heading to some shop, the cafeteria, or maybe one of the salons on campus—but the place Celestine led us to was a different building entirely. It was the one used for faculty offices and club activities.
"Um, where exactly are we going…?"
"I'm sorry about that… The one who wants to talk isn't me, but a certain someone. Please allow me to explain once we arrive."
"…?"
It seemed the person who wanted to talk wasn't Celestine, but someone else.
Given that a duke's young lady like Celestine used the phrase "a certain someone," this had to be a person of considerable standing.
"This way."
We arrived at a room with "Student Council Room" written on the door.
When Celestine knocked, a voice immediately called out, "Come in."
"Excuse the intrusion."
Celestine opened the door and guided Rest and the Rosemary sisters inside.
Three people were in the room.
The first was a male student seated at a desk at the far end. He was an upperclassman with short blond hair—refined features, but his build was clearly muscular and well-trained.
The remaining two were a man and a woman standing along the walls on either side.
The man on the right had brown hair and a rugged face, with a large, powerful-looking frame.
The woman on the left had silver hair and cool features, slender and tall with a model's physique.
(Since this is the student council room… these people must be the student council officers.)
And the one at the desk in the back was probably the student council president.
I've never met him, but I know who this year's student council president is.
"It's good of you to come. A pleasure to meet you."
The man who seems to be the student council president rises from his desk and greets me.
"I'm Andrew Aiwood, this term's student council president. I'm a third-year in the Knight Department, and I also happen to be the Second Prince of this kingdom."
Second Prince Andrew Aiwood.
He is the half-brother of the Rodele idiot prince who caused trouble the other day.