The male student who suddenly appeared at the lunch gathering — Clyde von Helmuth.
After making his announcement, he approached with a smug grin plastered across his face.
He drew closer, and the person he faced was—
"Well, well, Lady Sarah — it's been a while. Oh my, even after two months you're every bit as beautiful as ever. If anything, your charm seems to have only grown."
The blonde girl sitting beside her.
Sarah returned a hesitant bow, which Clyde apparently took as some form of acceptance, because he launched right back into his smooth talk.
"I believe I mentioned it earlier, but I've become the Class A representative. As the Class B representative yourself, Lady Sarah, I really think the two of us should build a close relationship — serve as a bridge between our classes, so to speak."
"Y-Yes…"
"It seems like there's been some discrimination between Class A and Class B at this academy, but I don't see it that way at all. We're all fellow students under the same roof — shouldn't we be joining hands instead of discriminating against one another?!"
"…"
"So, as a first step toward that, I'd very much like to join you all here. How about it?"
Though he phrased it as a question, the expression on his face made it clear he hadn't even considered the possibility of being refused.
Sarah, however, despite looking apologetic, was firm.
"…Um, I'm sorry. Would you mind sitting this one out for today…"
"Hm? Why is that? Some unavoidable reason, perhaps?"
"Lunch break is almost over already, and besides, there aren't any open seats…"
That should have been a perfectly reasonable explanation, but upon hearing it, Clyde tilted his head in utter bewilderment.
"Building relationships doesn't really depend on how much time is available. And, no open seats? Ha ha, spare me the jokes."
After laughing, he pointed toward Ermes.
"——
There's a seat
open,
isn't there?
The one
that man over there
is sitting in."
He declared this with a completely straight face, without the slightest hint of shame.
"...I beg your pardon?"
Ermes, understandably unable to make sense of it, returned a questioning look.
Addressing him in a tone utterly free of doubt, Clyde said:
"What's the matter? I know who you are—you're Lady Katia's attendant, and a commoner at that. You were probably called in to serve and happened to be given a seat when there was one to spare. But now a new guest has arrived, so isn't it an attendant's duty to promptly stand up and return to their proper work?"
"............"
In a way, it was almost astonishing.
This man had uttered those words with absolute conviction—a voice that genuinely believed, from the bottom of his heart, that this was simply the natural order of things, without the slightest hesitation.
The silence wasn't because Ermes couldn't retort, but rather because bewilderment and exasperation left him at a complete loss for words.
Sensing this, Clyde pressed on with a touch of irritation in his tone.
"? What's the matter? Surely you don't resent standing up? Failing to know your place as an attendant reflects poorly on your master's standing—if you understand that much, then be quick about—"
"—That is enough, Clyde."
There, Katia cut in, unable to tolerate it any longer.
"...Lady Katia, won't you say something too? Disciplining an attendant is the master's responsibility—you, of all people, should understand that much—"
"
I invited El
as a participant
...
So him sitting there is perfectly natural. You're the one who doesn't know his place."
"—What?"
This time, it was Clyde's turn.
His expression twisted, as though he couldn't comprehend what he'd just heard.
"What kind of joke is this, Lady Katia? An attendant and a master sharing the same table—anyone with a shred of common sense would know that's impossible. ...Oh, wait—could this be payback for me snatching the class representative's seat? You'd be far better off not stooping to something so petty—"
"Hey, Clyde. Honestly, that's all beside the point."
Just as Clyde was about to say something more, it was Nina's voice that cut him off this time.
She narrowed her golden eyes slightly and spoke in that same cold tone she had used the other day.
"You said it yourself just now, didn't you? That we're all classmates at the same academy. By that logic, El, who attends Class B, is a classmate too. Pushing him away by calling him an attendant or a commoner—wouldn't that be exactly what discrimination is?"
"!"
"More to the point, I really don't want to sit at the same table as you anyway. El is a hundred times better—no, even saying that feels like an insult to El. So I'm opposing this with everything I've got!"
She declared her rejection with the kind of unvarnished honesty that was so uniquely her it stung all the more.
Clyde then turned his attention to Ermes.
"...You there—the attendant. You seem to have gotten rather close with your classmates. But if that's the case, isn't there no point in deepening your bonds further? Don't you think this would be a fine opportunity to show some humility and offer your seat to someone you haven't yet interacted with?"
"...Uh, well. Um, Lady Katia."
"Ell, it's okay. Just be honest—I'm giving you permission."
"Understood. I don't think so at all, and I'd really like to decline."
"That's what she says. Incidentally, I agree."
Their rejection was perfectly in sync.
Clyde was struck speechless, and Katia pressed her attack once more.
"Seriously, you—why don't you stop trying to obscure things with honeyed words? The truth is, you just want to use logic to get close to Sarah, don't you?"
"Th—that—! Making baseless assumptions about someone's motives is not a good thing!"
He immediately realized he had just said something he knew all too well from his own experience, then turned toward Sarah, whom he had apparently judged as his only remaining ally.
"Miss Sarah! For some reason, I seem to be utterly despised by your acquaintances. Won't you please persuade them for me? I only want to deepen my bonds with everyone!"
"Um, well..."
"As a saintly figure of such benevolence, surely you understand! To my great misfortune, I've always been easy to misunderstand. Won't you use your words to clear the clouds from my acquaintances' eyes—"
"S-stop!"
As Clyde kept piling on words, Sarah raised her voice a bit louder than usual.
Perhaps hearing that, or perhaps because her speaking up like that mid-conversation was something the old her would never have done, Clyde paused.
She looked at him with a gentle expression, though her brows were slightly furrowed.
"...I understand the desire to grow closer with fellow students at the same academy."
"Oh! Yes, exactly, so—"
"But! ...I don't think it's good to force closeness on people. And also—saying bad things about my friends... please don't do that."
Clyde was momentarily left wordless by her firm tone of rejection. But almost immediately, realizing his gaffe, he hurriedly spoke:
"Th-that's not it at all! That was just a figure of speech—I would never say anything bad about your friends!"
"—!"
In his desperation to deny it, he closed the distance between them even further than before, pressing in on her and rattling off his words.
In response, Sara flinched, her body trembling in fear as she shrank back.
She grabbed the hem of Ermes, who happened to be sitting right beside her, and buried her face against his back as though seeking refuge.
——It was as if she were clinging to him. As if begging him to protect her.
"—!!"
The instant Clyde laid eyes on that scene, his expression was overtaken by a violent mix of rage and jealousy.
In the very next moment, his face twisted into a cold, emotionless mask. And then, the following instant—
*Crack.*
Between Clyde and Ermes, a faint spark of magic power burst into existence.
"—"
Perhaps it was a moment so fleeting that an ordinary student at this school wouldn't have even noticed.
But unfortunately for him, the people present here were all among the school's top tier when it came to fundamental magical ability.
And so, they noticed.
That just now—Clyde had launched a General-purpose Magic bolt of lightning at Ermes with no incantation and no motion.
And that Ermes had deployed a General-purpose Magic barrier with equally no incantation or motion to block it.
Clyde's eyes widened. His face was the very picture of someone who had never even considered the possibility that it could be stopped.
His expression, and the events that had just unfolded before their eyes, made his intentions unmistakably clear.
"—Clyde."
It was for that reason that Katia spoke his name—her words and her gaze even colder than before.
"—
Just this once,
I'll let it slide.
So hurry up and get lost."
At those words, he once again let the earlier anger flash across his face and gritted his teeth.
But almost immediately — though it clearly took considerable effort — he regained his usual expression and spoke.
"...I see. It seems you're unable to grasp my intentions just yet."
He apparently had no intention of reconsidering.
"What a shame. But I'll withdraw — I do know when to cut my losses. ...Ah, but that's right."
He took a light step backward, then turned his gaze toward Ermes.
"If I recall correctly, the class after lunch is 'Combined Magic Practice.' —
I'm looking forward
to it.
?"
After fixing Ermes with eyes that harbored some tremendous, indescribable emotion, he finally turned his back and departed.
A brief silence settled over the four who remained.
It was the silver-haired, golden-eyed girl who broke it.
"...Looks like you've caught his attention."
Nina looked at her with a mixture of exasperation and something like amusement.
"My condolences, Eru-kun. Next class is probably going to be... interesting."
"...You look like you're having fun."
"I am having fun! After all, I get to legitimately skip magic practice! I'll just kick back and enjoy the show~"
She said this with a soft giggle, her tone teasing.
"...Nina, your sense of amusement is terrible. But she's right, El. You should be on your guard, at least."
"Y-yes. By the way, this so-called 'Joint Magic Practice'—"
"You can more or less tell from the name, can't you? The magic practice you did yesterday—A Class and B Class will be doing it together this time."
"...That sounds like..."
Just hearing the description, it sounded like a class that would breed all kinds of trouble.
There was also the matter from earlier. He would do well to heed Katia's advice and stay on his guard.
"Well, I think you'll be fine, though. ...Also, Sarah, Clyde already left. ...You can let go of his hem now."
"Ah, I-I'm sorry...!"
Thanks to Katia's final reminder, Sarah at last released her grip on Ermes' hem.
"I'm sorry, Ermes..."
"No, don't worry about it. ...Still, having someone grab onto your hem is more embarrassing than I expected."
"Y-yes..."
At his words, Sarah flushed scarlet and shrank into herself, while he too laughed it off lightly, as if trying to deflect his own embarrassment.
"...She really isn't a bad person, is she?"
"Can't argue with that... I know what's going on, so I can't say too much, but..."
Despite these subtle observations from Katia and Nina,
Ermes steeled his guard and turned his mind to the next class.
So it would seem that Clyde is quite fixated on Lady Sara.
Starting next time: the Joint Magic Exercise arc! All sorts of developments are on the way, so look forward to it!