The Royal Magic Academy. The Academy Festival.
It was the academy's grandest event, and one of the few occasions where outsiders were allowed on campus.
Of course, "outsiders" was a relative term — they were limited to the parents of the academy's young nobles, or those distinguished enough to be invited as guests... but even so, many looked forward to the event, eager to see their children's learning put on display through performances.
Even within the Academy Festival, there was one event that stood above the rest every year.
And this year, what drew the most attention and anticipation from the nobles was, as always, the first-year group magical battle — Class A versus Class B.
Held in a private section of the academy's vast grounds, the scale and spectacle were in a league of their own. Perhaps because of the anticipation of seeing the academy's magical education put to the test in such a direct way, as the start time drew near, nearly every noble attending the festival had gathered to watch.
"...Should be about time."
Ten minutes before the start.
Ermes, who had been gathered with several classmates going over their final strategy, checked the time and stood up.
His classmates rose with tense expressions and were about to head to the assembly point when a familiar voice called out from behind them.
"Well, well, Ermes."
"—Ah, Your Grace."
Ermes turned at the sound of his name, and sure enough, there stood the purple-haired, bespectacled man — Yurgen. Well, it was the Academy Festival, so it made sense he'd be here. He offered a polite bow in return.
Yurgen walked over and addressed him in his usual easygoing manner, voice tinged with amusement.
"I'd say you've been making quite a ruckus — right on schedule, I might add. Was this contest your idea?"
"No, it was the other class's leader... though honestly, I don't think things would've turned out this way without me."
He said this with a slight averting of his eyes, and Yurgen let out a soft, knowing chuckle. It suited him remarkably well.
With a somewhat complicated expression, Ermes finally asked the question that had been on his mind.
"Thank you for coming to watch. ...Incidentally, Your Grace — that enormous tool you're carrying behind you, what exactly is it?"
"Oh, this? To put it simply, it's a magical tool that records video. Any parent would want to keep a tangible memento of their beloved daughter, wouldn't they?"
Something about it. The words were perfectly reasonable on the surface, but it somehow felt like there was another intention behind them.
Ermes, who actually had a rough idea of what was going on, decided to just ask directly.
"Incidentally, what's the real reason?"
"...Well, you can probably guess. Let me see — I can't say the name here, but, well, from your mother. I received word that she said, 'El is going to be in a magic battle at the school festival!? I want to see it! In fact, even if you try to stop me, I'm absolutely going to watch!!'"
"...Ah."
As someone who knew that Yurugen and Rose had been regularly exchanging letters ever since Rose's visit to the Troughia household, this was more or less what Ermes had expected.
And of course, it was completely impossible. If the Sky Witch herself were to appear at such a public venue, it would be far more than the school festival could handle. In fact, she'd be turned away at the entrance, which would spark a massive commotion — there was no way that wouldn't end in disaster.
"So I managed to convince her to settle for just a video recording, and that's how we got to where we are now. ...It was really tough, you know? These kinds of magical tools are fundamentally rare and expensive, so both the effort and cost of borrowing one were considerable. Thanks to all that, my colleagues now treat me like an overindulgent parent."
"...I, um, sympathize. I'm sorry about our master."
"...Well, if my guess is correct, this recording will probably be needed eventually anyway, so I suppose it's fine."
It seemed that even as the head of a ducal house, Yurugen was fated to be pushed around by Rose.
But Yurugen seemed to have accepted his lot, letting out a light breath as if to collect himself before smiling lightly.
"Besides. ...Knowing you, you'll put on a show worth recording, right? The general consensus is that Class A will dominate, but of course I don't think so."
"For what it's worth, the Duke's daughter is also in Class A."
"Ah, that is admittedly a tricky one. I ran into Katya earlier, and she was oddly on edge. If possible, I'd like you to look out for her after the festival as well."
He wore an expression that suggested he had all manner of worries on his mind, yet even so, he directed an unmistakable look of expectation toward Ermes at the end.
"By all means, show me something that will surprise everyone. I'm counting on you?"
"...I'll do everything in my power to live up to your expectations."
Ermes answered with a voice that carried just the right amount of measured confidence. At this, Yurugen smiled with satisfaction, then went off to set up the magical tool.
"...Right."
Ermes had been watching Yurugen leave, but then realized the start time was fast approaching.
"I'm sorry, I ended up rambling. I need to get going right away — oh, um, everyone?"
However, when he turned around, he noticed it. His classmates were all staring at him with looks that mingled sheer astonishment with unmistakable dread.
"What's wrong?"
"...That was His Grace the Duke of Trakia, wasn't it? The one they say is a cold-blooded person with no blood or tears to shed."
Speaking on behalf of his classmates, Albert voiced the question.
...He had known, of course, that Yurugen earned that sort of reputation from the outside world.
Some questions lingered in Ermes's mind, but he answered honestly.
"She's quite kind to those she considers family, you know. I am, after all, Lady Katia's attendant. And while it's true she can be rather... indiscriminate in her methods, she acts out of unwavering conviction."
"No, I mean — attendant or not, what kind of person does that duke consider *family*? ...Forget it. It's not like your mysterious nature is anything new."
At Albert's words, the other classmates nodded as well. Ermes got the strange sense that they had all accepted something he hadn't actually explained.
...Well, time was of the essence. He supposed it was fine as long as they were satisfied, though he couldn't help feeling bemused by the inexplicable verdict they'd passed on him as he headed to the starting location.
◆
"All right, let's make today a great match!"
And so, moments before the start.
Both classes had gathered at the designated location. True to form, the first to speak was Clyde, the A-class representative.
His gaze swept the crowd before settling firmly on Ermes at the end. Behind his thin smile lurked an expression of undisguised mockery and hostility.
"I've been hearing things, you know. Apparently you lot have been putting in some truly tearful effort for this inter-class competition."
...Well, word did tend to get around.
After all, the training had all taken place within the academy—there was no way to keep it secret, nor had anyone particularly tried to.
And then.
"Wonderful. Striving toward a goal is a fine thing. …But really, you've been pushing yourselves so desperately hard that it's rather lacking in dignity, if you ask me."
How Clyde felt about their efforts was plain from his words and expression.
"We are nobles. We have a duty to protect the people and to put them at ease. What would the people think, seeing nobles wallowing in mud, struggling and flailing? They'd grow anxious—wondering whether people of such poor character could truly protect them properly."
Whether Clyde had ever actually heard those words from the people, one had to wonder.
Still, what he said was probably considered common sense among the nobles of this country. The Class A students wore confident expressions, nodding in agreement and sneering, while the Class B students' faces darkened a shade, reminded of how they had been treated until now.
"You should have followed Class A's example and carried yourselves with more composure. Continuing to do something so muddy and crude, when it produces—
no
real
results
at all. It's a complete waste of time—"
However—though it had likely been his aim to crush their morale—
At the very last moment, Clyde made a colossal mistake.
That's right.
"Yes, everyone—did you hear that just now? Those of you who experienced that training firsthand, I think you understand. When someone looks at that training and declares flatly that it 'produces no real results,' just how much credibility do you think their words carry?"
He would seize upon that mistake with everything he had. Ermes latched onto the tail end of Clyde's words and addressed Class B.
In an instant, the resolve that had begun to waver among the Class B students surged back.
Seeing that, Clyde twisted his face into an expression of extreme displeasure.
"My, my—you lot have clearly been thoroughly poisoned by someone who's all talk and no substance, haven't you? Then it falls to us, I suppose, to rid you of that delusion."
"Yes, yes, say whatever you like. Whether this is all delusion or not, we'll find out once we fight."
Besides, I figured it would only lead to trouble if I kept letting this man run his mouth.
……Also, there were matters that needed to be addressed. In response, Ermes raised his voice as well.
"……Just as you said, Class B has spent these past two weeks putting in the work. Grueling, unglamorous, step by step — exactly as you described. ──You, on the other hand, did no such thing."
She had heard fragments of this from Katia.
Even when Katia had warned her — "Class B is going all out preparing for this matchup" — she hadn't paid the slightest attention, nor lent an ear. By all accounts, she had spent the entire time leisurely carrying on with the same elegant, carefree school life as always.
In that case.
"So, yes.
The reasons
you will lose
are plentiful, wouldn't you say?"
With that one blunt declaration, the hostility of Class A surged toward Ermes in an instant.
"'We lost because we didn't try hard enough.' 'We lost because we made no preparations.' 'We lost because we were lazy.' Wonderful — each one perfectly sufficient as an excuse for defeat. Such genius-level talent for crafting excuses. Allow me to commend you."
That was, or rather —
No, it was certainly what Class B had been forced to endure until now.
──Now it would be you who swallowed that humiliation, he declared, his voice charged with quiet fury.
"So please, by all means. The moment you lose, I'd appreciate it if you'd shout those excuses far and wide across the academy, before all those nobles. Yes, I'm sure everyone will understand. ──No one will hold it against you, after all."
Despite the gentle tone of his voice,
Ermes's emerald eyes, brimming with rare intensity and crushing pressure, pierced through every member of Class A.
Even Class A, who had harbored a fierce hatred toward Ermes, shrank back visibly under that intimidation.
"Wh-what's with you, that's quite the──"
But perhaps it wasn't possible for him to back down.
Clyde, still somewhat hesitant, attempted to retort──
"...That's enough, Clyde."
In a voice that was calm, one might even say cold — Catia cut him off with an exasperated tone.
"At this point, anything you say will only make you look worse. ...Also, don't make El any angrier. Our chances of winning will only keep shrinking."
"Wha──"
Her tone brooked no argument.
Perhaps because her words — the only composed voice in all of Class A — drained the heat from theirs, the rest said nothing further.
Turning toward them, she continued to address them.
"El has had enough of this preliminary skirmish. ──The rest should be settled fairly, in actual combat."
"...I suppose so."
Ideally, he would have wanted to push her completely off-balance here.
But his Boss probably wouldn't allow him to go that far. He obediently withdrew.
...Besides, a fair fight was something he wanted too.
After all, they had trained specifically to win even when dragged into unfavorable situations on the fly.
And so, with Catia leading Class A and Ermes leading Class B,
preparations for the clash were fully set in motion.
The stage has finally been completely set...!
Sorry to keep you waiting — the next confrontation battle begins now! Stay tuned!