A few hours later, in one of the hallways outside a classroom…

Gonnnnngggggg… Donnnnnnnnngggggg… Gonnnnnnnggggggg…

The heavy bell tolls, and a few moments later, the classroom door swings open. Students pour out and quickly disperse, heading either to their dormitories, the cafeteria, or the library.

「Ahhhhh… Just old man Reise left, and we're practically done with the term…」

Tisha groans out, stretching a little when she places her arms behind her head as she walks along with Straf, Damian, and the rest of the girls towards the dormitories.

「Don't count your chickens before they hatch…」

Damian cautions, glancing at her over his shoulder.

「Pft… Chickens… You really are a country hick, aren't you?」

She says as a smug grin forms on her pretty face. He scrunches his mouth to the side in response.

「All I'm saying is that you went really quick from flunking every year, to now being too smug. People like you eat punishment for their hubris all the time.」

He remarks, and turns his head forward.

「Hah. Big talk from someone who can't even picture failing an exam.」

Tisha scoffs with an amused grin and her fists on her hips.

「Of course I can't. I actually study and pay attention during the lectures, so the thought is foreign to me.」

「Well so do I! This time will be different!」

She exclaims with her fists angrily clenched in response to his scoff, then places her arms back behind her head again, albeit refusing to look at Damian now.

「Why doesn't the term just end after the last exam? Shouldn't that be the case?」

Straf asks, chiming in after a few seconds of silence as he walks behind them all with his hands in his pockets.

「It does for the second years on their last term, Straf, but it's customary to stay at the Academy until it ends for the first years too.」

Cycelia turns her emerald eyes to Straf, and Tisha nods along.

「Right. It's so they can bid their farewells and maybe ask each other what they'll do, now that they graduated.」

Tisha adds, peeking at Straf over her shoulder with Cycelia.

「…It's kind of a shame we didn't really talk much to any this term, isn't it?」

Neela asks, looking at the two girls from the side.

「Yeaaah… We had a really busy term, what can you do?」

Tisha shrugs with her hands as she shakes her head in resignation.

「I've talked with Selafina a little, though…」

Cycelia chimes in, glancing at them both.

「Who?」「Who?」

Neela and Tisha ask, tilting their heads at her.

「Selafina Abelstroff, she's a second year. It's her first term too, and we talked a little by the stairs after the wraith incident…」

She replies, tilting her head back. Her emerald eyes drift upward as she as she places her finger on her cheek by her mouth, thinking.

「Abelstroff?… I think I've heard about them, or rather, their cadet branch at least. Their family makes up a large chunk of my kingdom's generals and military leaders.」

Neela furrows her brows, shifting her gaze aside as she ponders the name.

「Mmh… Selafina might have brought something like that up. She talked a lot about keeping the military tradition and whatnot… I just wanted to talk about her sword…」

Cycelia lets out a little exasperated sigh.

「You like that kind of stuff, Lia?」

Tisha asks as her brows raise in mild surprise.

「Yes- Well… I like knights and swordsmen, so naturally I like swords too. I just think that at the highest level, sword fights take an impressive amount of practice and inborn talent.」

She shrugs in response, gently smiling at the two as she explains.

「…Why are you even at the Academy of Magic? Shouldn't you be talking to a sword instructor right now?」

「Ehehehe…」

Tisha asks with an incredulous expression on her face, eliciting a soft chuckle out of Cycelia.

「My father did get me some lessons, mostly to humor me, but I have never considered myself a warrior, or anything like that…」

She replies with a shrug of her shoulders.

「Ahhh… And here I am, trying my hardest to actually become a real mage…」

Neela lets out a long sigh, grumbling quietly.

「So why are you here? Neela wants her puny little kingdom to stop being irrelevant…」

「Hey.」

Tisha asks, attracting an upset glare from Neela while she explains.

「…But why are you here, then? I know Neela fairly well at this point, but you rarely talk about yourself. You barely knew magic when you came here, too.」

She continues, briefly glancing at Neela as her face also becomes increasingly more inquisitive.

「Ah… I made a promise to my court mage that I'll graduate… He…」

Cycelia's emerald eyes drop down to her feet as she briefly hesitates over the next word.

「…He died before I could do that. I have no choice but to keep my word now.」

She adds, and glances at them both. Tisha and Neela look at each other, then shrug and turn their heads forward.

「So we're in the same boat, huh?… You already knew, but I made a promise that I'll finally graduate to my father too… And it looks like I'm one step closer to making good on it!」

Tisha replies, her face gaining a smug grin as she does.

「Yeah, he's gonna cry tears when he finds out…」

Damian comments, shaking his head as he continues looking at the T-junction ahead.

「That's right! He'll throw himself at me for a hug and-!」

「…He won't be able to send you away again soon, so he'll be forced to listen to you talk all d-」

Thwack!

Tisha abruptly slaps Damian across the back of his head mid-sentence.

「Ow! What is wrong with you!?」

He shouts, clutching at his head. Damian is met with a glare of her ice-blue eyes and a scowling face as soon as he peeks over his shoulder.

「Are all women from the north this violent, or are you some sort of a deviant!?」

Still shouting, Damian asks. Tisha lets out a scornful huff from her nose, crosses her arms, and turns her golden head aside.

「I'm being soft on your frail southerner body, you'd have a bone or two broken by now otherwise.」

She declares, and huffs angrily again.

「If I don't die in my sleep from this, I'll see you tomorrow…」

Damian grumbles as he turns for the male dormitories, rubbing the back of his head.

「Wait up!…」

Tisha says with her voice raised. With his brows furrowed and eyes warily narrowed, he partially turns around to face her, still rubbing his aching head.

「…How about we all go get something to eat at the Academy town tomorrow evening? I'm tired of the cafeteria.」

She asks with her arms crossed, directing the question mostly at Damian although also peeking at the rest.

「That's fine, isn't it, Straf? We could ask the headmaster for permission, right?」

Cycelia flutters her long eyelashes at Straf's bored face. He lets out a long sigh.

「I have my hot dogs… But I suppose, if you really want to…」

Straf replies, shrugging his shoulders with his hands in his pockets.

「I don't want to get expelled over food… And I can't afford to throw away money on dinner dates with princesses. Pass.」

With his mouth heavily scrunched, also keeping his hands in his pockets, Damian turns back towards the dormitory as he speaks.

「Hold it!… It'll be my treat for you.」

Tisha calls out, causing him to stop in his tracks. Without turning around, he rubs the back of his neck.

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「Tsk… I'm not shameless enough to jump at the chance to eat on a woman's purse… I'll think about it.」

He replies, and walks away. Straf and the girls turn towards the female dormitories.

「So, how about it? Are you coming, Lia?」

Tisha asks, tilting her head as her blue eyes turn towards Cycelia.

「If the headmaster doesn't mind, sure.」

She nods her chestnut head back. Tisha clicks her tongue and shakes her head as she moves her arms behind it again.

「Tsk… Ah, who cares? Do you think he'll actually expel you over a cover story?」

Tisha scoffs, smirking in amused disbelief, rolling her eyes.

「He might, Tisha… He's nice, but I wouldn't risk it.」

Neela gently furrows her brows as she chimes in.

「You two wouldn't survive in the north… Fine, ask him for permission then. Let me know what he says.」

Throwing her hands up, Tisha yields with a sigh of exasperation as they enter the narrow stairwell upwards one by one…

…

A few moments later…

「Wha-?」

Cycelia lets out a shocked, surprised gasp when she enters the room and looks inside.

「Tsk… Fuckers.」

Straf clicks his tongue and grumbles, slinking towards his bed past Cycelia as she stands in the room's narrow neck.

「You didn't lock the room, Lia?…」

He asks, taking a seat on his bed.

「No… I didn't think I'd need to at this point.」

She replies, turning her disappointed eyes to Straf as she walks in further into the room.

Cycelia's baggage has been flipped upside down and thrown aside, the decorations she brought with her from her room are scattered and toppled over the table, as well as the floor. Some of her tomes are on her bed, and some are discarded to the side like garbage. The only thing that appears to remain untouched is Straf's tie on his chair.

「Ahhhh… Check what's missing. As much of a pain in the ass this is, it's not that big of a deal. Had this happened earlier in the term, there would be four graves…」

Straf says as he leisurely lies down on his bed with his hands behind his back.

「…That being said, there will be blood when I find out who did this.」

He adds while staring at the dark ceiling, and shrugs his shoulders with a tight-lipped grimace on his face.

…

Fifteen minutes later…

The oil lamp burns again as Cycelia places her tomes back in her baggage, counting each. She turns the intricate, varied knight and dragon figurines upright again, then carefully looks through everything in her room with a pensive expression on her face, furrowing her brows heavily. Straf looks at her while she's sitting on her bed with her hands in her lap, swiveling her head left and right as her concerned emerald eyes dart around.

「…And?」

「Nothing.」

He asks and Cycelia replies, turning them to him.

「Huh?」

Straf utters out in a light confusion, narrowing one eye at her.

「Nothing was taken. It's strange… Maybe whoever did this was looking for money? I carry what you gave me on myself, so there's nothing in the room.」

She remarks, furrowing her brows again as she fidgets with her sapphire-gemmed medallion.

「Are you sure? Absolutely nothing? Not even a little figure?」

He asks, furrowing his brows too.

「Yes, I'm certain. I would have noticed.」

Cycelia nods a few times with a serious expression on her face.

「Hmm…」

Straf humms, turning his eyes up at the dark, lamp-lit ceiling.

「…Your clothes?」

He asks, turning his gaze back to her.

「…They're there. Why would anyone take them, Straf?」

「Ahhhh, Lia… There are many reasons…」

He sighs, rolling his eyes with a lightly amused smirk.

「…From bald assassins to fat bald perverts, there's plenty of reasons someone could have to steal clothes, Lia. But I suppose it's good nothing was stolen…」

Straf replies, still smirking, though it quickly fades.

「…But you're right, it's strange. Real strange…」

He adds, glaring at the ceiling…

…

The next morning, in the headmaster's office…

Knock knock…

「Enter!」

Corvus says with his head resting on his fist, and shuts the archival records on his desk, sliding them aside with his free hand.

「Ah, your highness… What brings you here again?」

He asks as Cycelia peeks her chestnut head into the office and walks in, Straf following closely behind her with his hands in his pockets.

「I'm sorry we're here this early…」

「It's no problem at all, I'm available even when sleeping if it's urgent…」

Corvus shakes his head, spreading his hands with a warm smile before interlocking his fingers.

「…I just wanted to ask… Is it okay if we left for the town for the evening with Damian, Neela, and Tisha? We'd be back before sunset.」

She asks, tapping her fingers together with an anxious, tight-lipped grimace on her face. Straf looks at the old man with his usual bored face and gaze.

「There will be an announcement regarding that later today, after the final exams conclude… But I suppose I can let the professors at the gate know to let you through a little ahead of the time.」

The headmaster says, pinching his glasses by their frame and adjusting them higher upon his nose.

「What's it about?」

Straf asks, chiming in with a gently slanted mouth.

「…We're back to normal, essentially. The term is over, the students are once again free to leave. We have just received a shipment of gold and silver, so that is solved too.」

「And the vampire? No sign of him, huh?」

「Correct. As I have expected, anyhow…」

Corvus nods lightly, smiling at them both.

「…Did they really have to check our room for him?」

Straf inquisitively raises one brow at him.

「Hm?…」

The headmaster hums, and his eyes suddenly dart between the two.

「…Has something happened?」

He asks, furrowing his bushy brows as he straightens out in his comfy chair.

「Nope. Not yet, but if they keep this shit up, it will. Let them know.」

Straf nonchalantly replies with a bored face, and turns around towards the door.

「Let's go, Lia… We've got our permission.」

「Straf, wait…」

The old man says, holding his hand up towards him.

「…I don't have the time for this. You droned into my ear for long enough-」

「I just wanted to say that you were right, Straf.」

Straf glances over his shoulder with his mouth heavily scrunched, but Corvus cuts in, resting his mouth on his fist with a pensive look on his face.

「I'm always right.」

With an amused huff from his nose, Straf scoffs, smirking at the mage.

「It doesn't sound like empty words when coming from you, Straf… I read through the records again, very carefully this time…」

The headmaster adjusts his glasses, and looks at them both while they're standing halfway to the door.

「…It appears that very incident, the brawl between the two of them, had caused a major debate in the Academy body. A pathway to formal duels was established shortly after.」

He adds, spreading his hands.

「So… Someone had to die so that this wouldn't happen to anybody else?」

「You can see it that way… The dueling grounds were an afterthought. The Federation thought it'd be better for students to fight like mages, rather than brutes and savages.」

Straf asks, and Corvus nods his head in agreement, interlocking his fingers again.

「Anything else, before this quick remark turns an hour long and Lia flunks the year due to a missed exam?」

「…Despite the horrible circumstances of it all, I don't think either of them were bad people. Is that strange, Straf?」

The old mage replies, smiling softly.

「How so? One was a prick so bad that it killed him, and the other was a literal murderer. The girl had a talent for making bad choices and poor decisions.」

Straf shrugs, furrowing his brows. The headmaster's shoulders jump up and down as he chuckles softly.

「Perhaps… But when you put it in the perspective of trying to impress a girl you love, it becomes almost relatable. At the same time, the other young man loved her enough to murder…」

Corvus says, and spreads his hands again, shrugging as well.

「…Perhaps I am a strange one after all, but despite how long ago it was, I remember well what's it like to want a woman to have her eyes on you, and only on you. That's all, Straf.」

He adds, and gently bows his head at them, smiling. Straf turns back to the door and opens it without another word. Cycelia bows before exiting.

「Straf, who did you mean by they?…」

Thud.

She asks before pulling the door shut…