“…….”
I was fine, but…… I witnessed the expression of Lute, who was standing next to me, contort in displeasure.
He hadn’t looked favorably upon nobles at first either.
After all, they had started picking fights with Hilde and me from our very first meeting on the day of the exam.
Clearly, that was true…… but now, he wore an expression of deep discomfort at the remarks belittling Anakin.
“What a pathetic display of inferiority.”
Lute twisted his lips toward them.
“What?”
Benric glared at Lute with a disgusted expression.
He couldn’t accept a 47th-class brat spewing such words at him, a 45th-class senior.
Lute continued, his posture tilted.
“Anakin possesses skills in the top tier even among the 47th class. Can you take full responsibility for the rude words you’ve just spewed?”
At those words, the surroundings fell into a dead silence.
“……Lute.”
Anakin looked at Lute with a flustered expression.
It was definitely a remark that could have been brushed off with one ear.
But after hearing him speak up, my chest felt a strange ache.
I couldn’t believe how reliable Lute looked standing up for me.
Darek, who had been silent for a long time, closed his eyes slowly and spoke.
“I misspoke. I apologize.”
“…….”
It was Benric who was flustered by his apology.
In the cold, frozen atmosphere, Anakin quickly accepted the apology.
“It’s okay. That can happen.”
I wasn’t hurt by words thoughtlessly spat out by strangers.
It’s the people you know that are more of a problem.
At the gentle voice, rare in Pasadian, Darek blinked and said, “As an apology, I will take responsibility for Anakin’s training.”
They had to improve their team members’ skills as much as possible before the sparring day.
Thus, it was permitted for senior students in a team to guide the skills of junior students.
Darek was offering that opportunity to Anakin.
As Darek stared fixedly at him, Anakin opened his eyes wide and replied, “Me?”
“No, Darek. You clearly said you would look after me first…….”
Paul, who had been listening, quickly interjected, appealing in a resentful voice.
Darek replied in a detached tone.
“Well, we’ll go in order, bit by bit.”
He then left abruptly to go watch the other teams, as if he had no interest left.
“…….”
Paul was annoyed by the fact that Darek, the strongest in the team, was mentoring a 47th-class brat instead of him.
“Is this right? He clearly said me first…….”
“I guess Darek eventually bowed down to the noble, too.”
At Benric’s words, Paul clenched his fists.
“……Yeah. In the end, even Darek wants to scrape some crumbs from the powerful.”
Anakin kept quiet, reading the room and keeping an eye on the dissatisfied Benric and Paul.
Then, a chilling remark poured cold water on the overheated atmosphere.
“It’s pathetic to see a grown man whining.”
Lute was looking at them with an expression of contempt.
Paul, having lost his tether of reason, snapped at him.
“What? You little…… do you know how rare an opportunity this is?
Pasadian places such a heavy emphasis on individual growth that you’ll never get a chance to be taught in your life unless it’s a special case like this.
The senior disciples don’t even bother with us once the practical training is over.”
“…….”
“You wouldn’t know since you just got here, but…… damn. Why am I even explaining this?”
Thwack.
Paul kicked a stray pebble, ruffling his own hair in frustration.
“Don’t worry, Paul. I’ll look after you.”
At Benric’s words, Paul turned back to look at him.
“Really?”
Paul, who was acquainted with Benric, knew that he wasn’t the type to help others.
Of course, he was weaker than Darek, but wasn’t he still a 45th-class senior?
“Thank you so much, Benric.”
“Well…… I might not be as much help as Darek.”
Benric said, glancing at Anakin.
For a brief moment, Anakin saw hostility directed at him in his eyes.
‘What did I even do?’
And so, Benric and Paul disappeared, leaving only Lute and Anakin behind.
“Pasadian really hates nobles, doesn’t it?”
As Anakin exhaled, his tension finally breaking, Lute spoke.
“……Some people applied here precisely because there were no nobles.”
“I suppose that’s true.”
I was a bit bothered by Benric and Paul, who had become complete enemies after what happened earlier.
Noticing this, Lute said to Anakin, “Don’t pay them too much mind.”
“I’ll try not to. But Lute, will you be okay on your own?”
Anakin looked at him with concern, and Lute nodded.
“I intended to do it alone from the very beginning.”
‘……That’s Lute for you. He especially likes being alone.’
Anakin, who had been staring at Lute, suddenly remembered how he had taken his side earlier.
“More importantly, Lute, thank you for taking my side earlier.”
At Anakin’s words, Lute averted his eyes and muttered, “……It was nothing.”
Seeing Lute look away as if he hadn’t intended to do any such thing, Anakin smiled and said, “I wouldn’t have expected that from you, even if I expected it from Hilde.”
At Anakin’s laughter-filled voice, Lute’s ears burned red in an instant.
It was because he was reminded of his own behavior during their first encounter.
〈If you want to play house, go back to your family and do it there. You damn noble brats.〉
〈I guess you haven’t seen the noble brats who come to Pasadian out of curiosity and end up dead. Do you think you’ll be any different?〉
Anakin, briefly recalling those times, said, “Lute, I was really scared back then.”
It was a time when he was big and had sharp eyes, instilling fear in the younger kids.
“……Back then, I thought of you just like they did.”
“And what did you think of me?”
Curious, Anakin looked up at him with round eyes. Lute answered with a cold face.
“A bright, naive, and foolish noble who applied to Pasadian, deceived by the words that your family pampered you with.”
“…….”
‘Is…… that right?’
For some reason, the truth stung.
“That was back then. Now it’s different. I thought you’d just be an annoying brat, but you approached the classes with a more serious attitude than anyone else, you were desperate…… and you were strong. That’s when I realized: it was me who had been making rash assumptions.”
“…….”
Anakin just blinked silently at those words. His head felt blank, unsure of what to answer.
“But you’re too kind and innocent. Like how you didn’t attack us when we were drained of all strength in the canyon, and how you just listened to those guys earlier. Especially Hilde—if it were that guy, he would’ve stolen all the artifacts and run away already.”
“Pfft. That sounds exactly like Hilde.”
Anakin laughed, and Lute continued, “If that guy Lucien had his body in one piece, he probably would have done the same, right?”
Anakin just laughed at Lute’s words.
‘I must never tell him the truth.’
“Hmm. I’m not sure……”
While they were talking, Darek, who had finished checking the training grounds, approached them.
“Shall we begin?”
To Darek’s question, Anakin nodded.
“……Yes!”
Anakin followed him. He didn’t forget to wave his hand at Lute as he left.
“See you later! Lute.”
“Yeah.”
Lute watched the departing Anakin for a moment before looking up at the sky.
“It’s disgustingly clear.”
Just like Anakin.
After muttering those words, Lute exhaled a long breath, turned around, and began to walk away.
“How old are you?”
Anakin answered brightly to Darek, who was walking in the lead.
“I am fourteen!”
“You’re young.”
At those words, Anakin tilted his head.
“How old are you, Darek?”
“At the very least, I’ve already completed my coming-of-age ceremony.”
Anakin realized that Darek, whom he had assumed was around his age, was older than he thought.
“Are you close with Sarin?”
He remembered Darek always hanging around Sarin.
At his question, Darek stopped dead in his tracks, turned around, and said, “Well…… we’re just normal. More importantly, what did you talk about with Sarin the other day? His expression has been dark ever since he spoke with you.”
Unlike his tone, Darek seemed to be worrying about Sarin.
‘They really are friends.’
“Just…… we talked about myself.”
The reason Sarin’s expression was dark was probably because of me.
Perhaps he was worried about me, a beauty who was also an Omega.
I had been swept up in the atmosphere and ended up telling him everything, but for some reason, I felt Sarin was someone I could trust.
From the moment I first saw him and exchanged words, I could feel that he was a kind person.
“……That guy is more meddlesome than he looks. But he’s endlessly generous to those he’s close with, and merciless to those he isn’t. That’s why you’re even more unexpected to me, Anakin.”
“Is that so?”
“He always has a smiling face, but he’s actually quite picky about people. He’s the type of person who takes longer than anyone to get close to.”
Anakin chuckled and thought to himself: ‘Isn’t he a bit too knowledgeable for a “normal” relationship?’
Noticing Anakin’s reaction, Darek coughed awkwardly.
“Ahem. Let’s do it here.”
“Yes.”
It was a secluded corner of the training ground.
Following Darek’s instructions, Anakin released his red mana.
Darek, who had been staring at it intently, asked, “What circle are you?”
“I just became a 4th Circle.”
“……Just now?”
Darek frowned.
Anakin looked at him with anxious eyes.
“Is something wrong?”
“So, were you 3rd Circle until just a little while ago?”
“……Yes.”
‘Why is that?’
As Anakin withdrew his mana, Darek stLocked his chin and pondered deeply before opening his mouth.
“Your mana is too dense for someone who has just entered the 4th Circle.”
“……They said my mana affinity is a bit high.”
Darek was surprised. “Your affinity is high?”
Anakin remembered what Mikhail had told him in the past:
〈You have excellent mana affinity and sensitivity. It’s a bit of a shame that you lack control…… but excluding your poor physical condition, this is a body optimized for learning magic.〉
〈If you have both luck and talent, you might one day become a great mage who will spread across the continent.〉
