The month before entering the Military Academy was chaotic.

While the Academy prioritized enrollment for nobles of the Count rank and above through recommendations, there were no entrance exams, but the process of moving to the imperial capital was quite taxing.

I was to live in the student dormitory in the Imperial Capital, but everything from packing for the move, completing the necessary paperwork, to preparing the textbooks and uniform for classes, there was simply too much to do.

Finally, after completing those tedious tasks, I successfully departed the Serenife territory and returned to the Imperial Capital.

!next

The Military Academy was located in the new city area of the imperial capital Ashbair, of the Ashmedia Empire—a district lined with the mansions of nobles.

The road from the student dormitory to the officer school was lined with cherry blossom trees, making it quite a spectacular sight on a spring day like today.

I walked leisurely under the cherry blossom trees, holding my school bag in one hand.

The day I would finally reunite with Elisha had arrived.

++Five years had passed since then, I wonder how she’s doing.++

Although I was surprised by her mentally unstable behavior when we first met, in the original work, she never showed such a side and instead embodied the “perfect princess” as demanded by the public.

++Perhaps that’s why she ended up becoming so unstable… I am worried whether her life has taken a turn for the worse after meeting me.++

Lost in such thoughts, I noticed a commotion between students up ahead.

A female student with long, pale pink hair that reached her waist was being harassed by a male student with red hair.

The male student was forcefully grabbing the female student’s arm, trying to pull her towards him, while the female student seemed to be gently trying to escape his grasp.

The surrounding students watched from a distance, but none of them dared to approach the two, as if to say “I don’t want to get involved.”

As I was watching with a puzzled expression, I finally understood the reason.

“…That redhead, isn’t that my idiot older brother, Rolf?”

Come to think of it, he was enrolled in the Military Academy too.

While I was busy preparing for enrollment on my own, that good-for-nothing Rolf had left everything to the maids and laughed at me as I worked my ass off.

The reason why Rolf was bothering the female student… Knowing his womanizing nature and overinflated pride, he probably tried to hit on her on the way to school and was now stuck because she wasn’t interested.

Both the female student and the surrounding students were likely unable to stand up to him because he was the heir of the Serenite family, the highest-ranking noble family in the Empire.

++…It can’t be helped. I guess I’ll have to deal with my idiot brother as a member of the Seraph family.++

Besides, I also wanted to get a little revenge on him for slacking off on his enrollment preparations.

I quickened my pace and grabbed Rolf’s arm.

“Cut it out.”

“You—who do you think you’re talking to—”

At my interjection, Rolf turned around with a flushed face—and upon seeing me, he immediately put on a condescending smirk.

“Oh, it’s you. The disgrace of the Serenife family. Don’t go butting in where you’re not wanted.”

“Shouldn’t you be more worried about disgracing yourself out here in public? If Father hears about this, I’m sure he’ll give you an earful.”

When I brought up our father, Rolf’s face suddenly turned pale.

“N-nonsense! Who would tell Father about such a trivial matter?!”

“Nobles love to gossip, you know. The longer you show your disgrace, the more embellished the rumors will get. For example… about my condition.”

—The sixth son of the Serenife family is a useless person who can’t use magic.

I had witnessed countless instances of nobles whispering such slander in the Imperial Capital and the vicinity of the Serenite territory.

While it was likely Rolf and his circle of nobles who spread those rumors, gossip like that traveled at the speed of light, and even the power of the Serenife family couldn’t stop it.

Rolf bitterly glanced between the female student and me several times, then gave me a scornful laugh as if trying to save face.

“…Hah! I see you’re trying to act cool in front of a girl. Fine, I’ll let you, my incompetent little brother, have this moment. This is probably the only time a useless guy like you can feel good about yourself.”

With that parting shot, Rolf released the girl’s arm, shook off my hand, and walked briskly towards the school building.

++I guess this way, I managed to resolve the situation without the girl being blamed…++

As I absentmindedly watched Rolf’s back, a voice suddenly called out to me from the side.

“Um, excuse me.”

It was the pink-haired female student whom Rolf had been harassing earlier.

++…I see. It is understandable why Rolf would try to hit on her. She is quite the beauty.++

Her large, red eyes, which seemed a little timid now, probably held a lively personality.

Although she was wearing the red blazer of the Military Academy, her ample chest and curves made her look strangely alluring.

She looked directly into my eyes before bowing her head slightly.

“Thank you for helping me. I didn’t know how to handle the situation and was feeling troubled…”

“No, I should be the one apologizing for my idiot brother causing you trouble.”

“Um… since you’re his brother, does that mean you’re also from the Serenife family?”

“Yes. I’m Kyle Serenife. The incompetent youngest son born from a concubine.”

After my self-deprecating introduction, the female student made a troubled expression before placing a hand on her ample chest and returning the introduction.

“My name is Clarice. It’s reassuring to know that there are people like you among the nobles of the Ashmedia Empire, Kyle-sama.”

Her name sounded familiar, and I quickly searched my memory.

++Clarice… I’m pretty sure I heard that name in the original work…++

“Ah!”

Realizing what the name signified, I let out an involuntary gasp.

++Clarice… isn’t she the main heroine of ‘Elroad of the Fallen Nation’?!++

While initially pretending to be a commoner, she was actually the descendant of the Mordard royal family, which had been destroyed by the Empire ten years prior. She was also a powerful light magic user, known as the Saint, a title passed down through the Mordard royal family.

She was the first heroine to befriend the protagonist, Ars, and together they would overthrow the Ashmedia Empire—and by extension, Elisha—a character of utmost importance.

++In other words, she’s Elisha’s enemy!++

As I stood there stunned, Clarice tilted her head in confusion.

“Um, is something wrong?”

“N-no… it’s nothing.”

“Huh!? Could it be that you’re also after my body, Kyle-sama!? Like, ‘If you want to repay this debt, you know what to do, guhehe’ kind of thing!?”

Suddenly, Clarisse turned red and crossed her arms as if to shield her body.

This further emphasized her ample chest… but despite the alluring situation, I recalled the original story with a strangely detached feeling.

++…Come to think of it, this is just how she is.++

Clarice Mordard, despite being a Saint of noble blood, was raised as a commoner and had a peculiar fondness for dirty jokes and vulgar topics.

In the original story, she often used such jokes and topics to fluster and embarrass the protagonist and his companions.

As I looked at her in exasperation, Clarice stuck out her tongue cutely.

“Sorry. I thought you were the type who could take a joke like that, Kyle-sama.”

“…You know, that’s why idiots like Rolf target you.”

“Don’t be silly. I only say things like that to people I’m close to.”

I wanted to ask since when we became close—but it was pointless, so I let it go.

Seeing my reaction, Clarice laughed happily.

“Fufu. Honestly, I wasn’t looking forward to attending the Military Academy, but… now I’m a little bit excited about school life.”

With that, she walked towards the school building with light steps.

!next

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