Chapter 3: Who Is the Protagonist?

Light shone through a gap between closed curtains, gradually growing brighter until it lit up the darkened room. Sensing the arrival of morning, I rolled out of my fluffy bed and stretched from head to toe. When I opened the curtains, there was a vast fantasy world outside my window. You could imagine how my breathing picked up, a little excited at the prospect of another day at Kirsch Mage Institute.

“Oink... Oink...” Ah jeez, I really sounded like a pig just then. I need to calm down. Still, I couldn’t help but celebrate in my mind. Thank the spirits for this other world! I thought, cheering inwardly. My good mood wouldn’t last long, though; it soured the moment I stepped out of my bedroom and laid my eyes on those things.

The first thing was the big mirror that I’d moved from the bedroom into the living room. In it, I saw a pig still fat enough to send for slaughter reflected at me. Reality can be so cruel, I thought in despair. The second thing was a drink I’d set out last night before I slept. It sat on the desk in an almost menacing way, as though it were threatening me to drink it as soon as possible.

All of the furniture in my room, like in the other rooms on the fourth floor, was top-notch. The desk wasn’t just any old wooden desk; it probably cost a fortune. Whatever, that’s not important. I need to quit getting distracted by my own pride and get a grip.

I groaned, my mood plummeting all the way to rock bottom immediately. How many people would have the guts to drink something that looked and smelled so disgusting? I wouldn’t drink this even if I were stranded in a desert and had nothing else to drink. I’d sooner throw it away. Honestly, who the hell would drink this?

I was silent for a while, just staring at the offensive drink. This liquid was, in fact, a weight-loss potion. It was a potion made specially for me by my precious retainer—a beautiful, klutzy girl. How could I not drink it? I have to drink it...

Mustering up the courage, I downed the liquid in one big gulp. For all my bravado, I still gagged. My stomach lurched in protest but I forced myself to keep the liquid down, despite the strong urge to hurl.

Terrible. Is this really safe to drink? Th-This isn’t orc piss, right?!

“Ch-Charlotte...couldn’t you have done anything to make this taste a little better?” I muttered.

The moment the words left my mouth, I had a sudden flash of inspiration. I had knowledge of the future, but I also had inherited all of the Piggy Duke’s memories from his life before I reincarnated as him. It dawned on me now that Charlotte was a notorious disaster in the kitchen. I thought back on my previous encounters with her culinary skills, or rather lack thereof.

When Charlotte was training under House Denning, she only ever learned cooking skills that would be useful for survival out in the wild and had no use in a proper kitchen. One time we were both abandoned on a mountaintop and I ended up eating what was listed in the Monster Encyclopedia as a Venom Frog, all because Charlotte insisted it was nutritious. We didn’t starve thanks to those survival culinary skills of hers, but I still shudder whenever I recall that particular nightmare.

“Would the actual weight loss potion have tasted this bad...?” I wondered aloud.

Later that evening.

I was jogging before dinner when I ran into a girl sitting under the big tree I used as a goal marker. When I asked her why she’d come here, she replied that she’d heard rumors of me jogging around this area and that her secret training place was nearby.

“So this was actually a weight loss potion, huh? It smelled so bad I thought it was a prank,” Tina said, staring down at the bottle I’d left there by the tree. “Lord Denning, you should probably make sure to close the lid...”

“Oh, you’re right. I left it open. I started jogging right after I drank it, so I hadn’t noticed...” I trailed off as I suddenly had an epiphany. “Wait. I knew I recognized that voice, but now I finally remember from where. You were the one who cheered for me during the contest, Tina.”

“Yes, that was me.” The charming first-year, who was able to use magic now, laughed to herself as she prodded the bottled potion with a finger.

“Why did you cheer for me?” I asked.

“Of course I’d cheer for you. You’re my secret master in magic!”

“You stopped cheering for me pretty quickly, though,” I reminded her.

“Wow! You sure have a good memory, Lord Denning,” Tina replied in mock surprise. “I called out to you because you were trying so hard. But I had to back off once everyone started looking at me.”

“Pfft, are you serious?” I said, laughing.

As for how Tina and I could converse so casually... The day after I’d spied her succeeding in magic for the first time, Tina had cornered me and interrogated me. I had no choice but to tell her that I’d seen everything. She didn’t take it too well at first, but it didn’t take her long to come to terms with it. After that, Tina started coming to me for advice on magic, and we became close enough to have the occasional conversation.

But Tina only talked to me whenever there was no one else around. She acted the part of a well-mannered girl around the other nobles to maintain a decent social life within the school, but when she was with me she could drop the act and be herself. Honestly, it was pretty bold of her, considering my family background and my fearsome reputation.

Well, I am pretty much an outcast here. I guess it’s only natural that she’d want to avoid being seen with me. There was one thing that struck me about what she said, though.

“Me? Your master in magic? Really?” I almost couldn’t believe it. “But I’m a noble. You hate nobles, remember?”

Tina took a moment before replying. “You aren’t arrogant, even though you’re from the House Denning, so I really don’t see you as one of those other idiot nobles.”

“I guess so...” I trailed off. “Anyway, enough about me. What about you? You’re a commoner who managed to use magic after barely setting foot in this place. I bet you’re the talk of the school.”

“Yes, I suppose,” Tina replied.

Ambitious and competitive, Tina was eager to improve her magic and learn from me to control her spells. It wasn’t hard to see why the earth spirits were willing to lend their power to her, considering how hard she worked for it.

“Everyone started talking to me, asking how I did it. They all looked so shocked when I told them I couldn’t have done it without your help,” Tina said. “No matter how hard the other commoners tried to do what the teachers taught them, they couldn’t use magic. Nobody believed me when I told them you’d helped me. Some of them flat-out accused me of lying. Just how infamous are you?”

“This is me we’re talking about here, you know,” I said. “It comes with the territory.”

“There’s got to be some way I can thank you for everything, Lord Denning. I can start by calling you my master.”

“Big words for someone who won’t talk to me when there are other people around,” I retorted.

“That’s...” Tina paused, choosing her words carefully. “Please think about my social life here in the institute. I don’t have a powerful family like House Denning to back me up.”

“Jeez...” I sighed, exasperated and fond at the same time. Me, a master in magic, huh? Tina insists on calling me that, but she’s wrong about my advice helping to manifest magic in general. In truth, while I spoke at large to the group of commoner students that day in Practical Magic class, my advice was actually meant for Tina alone.

I could see the spirits that roamed this world. Among that group of commoners, Tina had the most potential for awakening magic. Therefore, I could see the spirits were torn about not answering her call due to her heritage. Tina herself had the potential within her all along; I only gave her a chance to prove it, nothing more.

“I couldn’t do anything but cheer for you at the contest, but I want to help you, Lord Denning,” Tina declared. “I want to return the favor.”

“Return the favor?” I echoed.

I thought back on Charlotte’s words.

She’d said that it was important to change my off-putting appearance, but that it was just as important to work on my reputation at the same time. From what I could tell, the rumors said I never took classes seriously, always played pranks, and even extorted money from other noble students by abusing my family name. So it was more important than anything to shed my negative image! And so we came up with a plan—a plan I called “Operation: Reputation Repair.”

I explained this all to Tina, and she vehemently agreed.

“That’s true. I feel like everyone has the wrong impression of you. I only got to know you because of that one encounter in class, but you are completely different from what the rumors say you are,” Tina commented. “I could ask you for advice on magic out in the open too if you managed to make a dent in that infamous reputation of yours.”

“What exactly do the rumors say about me, anyway?” I asked. I only knew about the vaguest ones.

Tina was reluctant to answer. “Uh... I really don’t think you want to hear them...” Her hesitation told me everything I needed to know.

“Never mind, then... I’m probably better off not knowing...”

“I think that’s for the best. Still, ‘Operation: Reputation Repair.’ Hmm...” Tina trailed off in thought.

Yeah, I figured as much, I thought. Even Tina seemed stumped. It’s not like we’re going to solve everything right this instant.

After a long silence, Tina hit her palm with her fist, her eyes lighting up in realization. “Oh, I might have a favor I’d like to ask of you, actually.”

“Oh? You do?”

“Yes. I have a friend who works here as a maid, but there’s something that’s troubling her...” Here, Tina hesitated. “Oh, but it might be a bit shameless of me to ask this of you just because you’re a noble, never mind a Denning...”

“This isn’t like you at all,” I snorted. “You haven’t been shy around me up to this point.”

“Yeah, you’re right,” Tina agreed, smiling impishly. “Then I have no problem asking you this. Lord Denning, you run around here every morning, right?”

The next morning at daybreak.

In a quiet corner of campus, a sweaty pig jogged near a deserted research building. That oinking pig was me. As I diligently ran my morning rounds, I had only one thought on my mind: Getting the fat off sure is some hardcore work! But I continued to push myself despite my body protesting. I was definitely getting into shape, even though you couldn’t tell just by looking at me.

I could even do something now that I couldn’t before—I could sprint, even if it was only for a short distance! Up until now, I could only manage jogging because my knees couldn’t handle it! But I’m different now!

“Oi-Oi-Oink!” I panted.

Another sprint! I challenged myself. My muscles are gonna hate me! My fat doesn’t want to disappear? Hah! Too bad. It’s outta here! I’m gonna become a lean, mean running machine! All right, time to hammer another nail in the fat coffin with one last sprint!

When it came to jogging, persistence was key. Before, I couldn’t even do half a lap around the research building. Now, I could easily run one lap. Even if it was tedious, I couldn’t slack off even the smallest bit. I still couldn’t stop the oinking when I panted, though. To ease my breathing, I slowed down to a brisk walk. Sprinting put a lot of stress on my body, especially on my knees. I could seriously hurt myself if I pushed myself too far with it.

“Good work out there, Master Slowe,” Charlotte called out in that clear, soothing voice of hers. “Oh. Um... Who might this be?”

“Hm? Oh, that’s Tina,” I replied.

Charlotte stood beside the tree that served as my goalpost, her beautiful silver hair tousled by the wind. Beside her stood Tina, the commoner first-year student. She had an innocent, childlike face, but sported a well-proportioned body with very pronounced curves. It was still pretty early, and she wore an outfit so casual I almost mistook it for pajamas. The collar was wide open, and I couldn’t be blamed for being restless on and off about the large curves on her chest.

“I’ve never heard that name before, but that’s not the point, Master Slowe...” Charlotte stammered. “Sh-She’s a... She’s a girl!”

“Of course she’s a girl! Look at her!” I exclaimed.

“Sh-She’s got curves! Not even Lady Alicia has curves!” Charlotte exclaimed. She cast a sideways glance at Tina’s well-endowed chest and froze. It was like she couldn’t compute what she was seeing, and I allowed myself to follow her gaze to Tina’s attire. No daughter of nobility would ever wear something like this, not with the way they fussed about how they dressed. Maybe she had come here straight out of bed. It was pretty early in the morning.

“...I’m not even going to ask what you mean by that,” I said. “I think your tongue did the talking without consulting your brain.”

“I-I m-mean— A girl befriended Master Slowe?!” Charlotte exclaimed. “I can’t believe my eyes... This might be the biggest shock I’ve had since I came to this school. I’m even more surprised than that one time you threw a fit and went on a rampage during the school’s entrance ceremony, Master Slowe.”

“If I put my mind to it, anything is possible,” I said, puffing out my chest.

“You did say that you were going to change, but...it feels like it’s way too early for you to see any results...” It seemed Charlotte still doubted me, and I could see why. Barely ten days had passed since I declared I would change. Within such a short span of time, I was able to accomplish two lifetime achievements: I befriended a guy and even a girl for the first time.

Part of that was because Tina was a first-year and a commoner, and so she was less biased against me to start with. At least, that’s what she had told me after the speed-eating contest.

“Mmm... Lord Denning, would this be your retainer?” Sleepily rubbing at her eyes, Tina peered over Charlotte from head to toe.

“Yeah, this is Charlotte. She’s been my retainer since we were kids,” I explained. “She’s technically employed by House Denning, but since she’s my personal retainer, she accompanied me here to the institute.”

Charlotte smiled gently at Tina, graceful as ever. Just like that, Tina flushed, her cheeks dusted a faint pink. Charlotte was a beautiful girl with snow-white skin that seemed ethereal in the light. Of course Tina couldn’t take her eyes off her.

“Wow,” Tina said, breathless. “I’d heard that your retainer was really pretty, but wow, the rumors weren’t kidding. Oh, uh, my name is Tina. Lord Denning helped me out in class one time,” Tina said, belatedly introducing herself.

“Ah, it is a pleasure to meet you. I hope you’ll get along with Master Slowe from now on too. Um...” Charlotte hesitated, seemingly unsure if she should press on. “Are you a friend of Master Slowe, Miss Tina?”

“Huh? Lord Denning and me, friends? I could never!” Tina gasped, emphatically denying the question. “That would be far too presumptuous of me!”

“Presumptuous”? I thought incredulously. Hah, as if. She’d never actually think that.

It didn’t take long for me to realize Tina was putting on her usual Goody Two-shoes act. When it was just the two of us, Tina had a sharp tongue and was precisely the type of girl who would tease me for finally managing to befriend a girl.

“I would be humbled if Lord Denning thought fondly of me as his junior!” Tina insisted. “He belongs to House Denning, after all, a family that stands out even among the nobles... I can only talk with him because we’re in the same school. I am but a mere innkeeper’s daughter. We live in completely different worlds. Claiming to be his friend would be reaching far beyond my station!”

Tina had quite the way with words, it seemed.

Her words weren’t total lies. The average commoner definitely had that kind of mindset when it came to dealing with nobles. However, Tina had spent her childhood helping out at her family’s inn, so she had to have developed a sense of reading people. She excelled at figuring out people’s boundaries, knowing when to toe the line, and knowing when she could safely cross it. I should know—she used this particular skill on me plenty enough. I enjoyed sharing witty banter with her.

“So what brings you here, Miss Tina?” Charlotte asked. “The dining halls aren’t open yet, and...your clothes...” Her words died in her throat, as though she’d decided whatever she’d had to say was best left unsaid.

Tina, who’d been fidgeting and babbling on about her lowly commoner status, suddenly seemed to remember why she’d come in the first place.

“Oh, that’s right! Um, as I mentioned to Lord Denning, I recently became friends with one of the maids.” She fished out something from her pocket. With the way the thin spaghetti strap on her blouse moved, I was nervous that it could slide down at any moment.

“Apparently, there’s a special parlor where Headmaster Morozov welcomes guests when they come to visit, and there are a lot of valuables and rare items on display,” Tina continued, unaware of the precarious state of her top. “My friend is in charge of cleaning that room, but... Please take a look at this.” She held her hands out so we could see.

“Oh... It’s pretty. This is a magic sculpture, isn’t it? Those were popular in the past,” Charlotte said. “They don’t make things like this much anymore.”

A small but splendid magic sculpture shaped like a bird sat in Tina’s outstretched hands. It was delicate and translucent, and even at a passing glance I could tell just how much of an antique it actually was.

“But the wing is broken,” Charlotte noted. Sure enough, the right wing on the back of the sculpture was broken off at its base. The wing itself sat to the side of Tina’s palm.

Tina nodded solemnly. “Apparently the room is used so infrequently that they only need to clean it once a week. My friend said this sculpture was still in one piece when she last cleaned the room. When she went to clean it this week, though, she found it broken. Without thinking, she took it with her. Nobody else was supposed to enter that room, so she was afraid that if she reported the damage, she would be accused of being the culprit...”

I could hazard a guess as to what had actually happened. “I see. Someone probably broke it by accident after sneaking into the room as a prank, or out of curiosity,” I said. “People are drawn to touch things they aren’t supposed to, especially things that look as old and fragile as this.”

“I brought it here because it’s a magic sculpture. I thought you might be able to fix it, Lord Denning. Do you think you can?” Tina asked.

I gently took the broken pieces of the sculpture from Tina and peered closely at them. The clear bird stared back at me, looking so forlorn with its lost wing.

Even so, it seemed to be a simple fix. “Yeah, I can fix it. Right now, if you want. I just need to reattach the wing. I can’t see any other obvious issues with it,” I said. “You were right about it being rare, Charlotte. This thing has to be pretty valuable, too; the mage who made this probably made it ages ago.”

“You liked this kind of thing back in the day, didn’t you, Master Slowe?” Charlotte asked, curious. “You made sculptures just like this a lot for Lady Alicia when you were young.”

I was taken aback. “I’m surprised you remember that.” I had made things like this for Alicia as a kid. None of them were ever as pretty as this, though.

“No way! You were good at magic even as a child, Lord Denning?” Tina’s eyes shone with excitement. She seemed to like pieces like this, listening with rapt attention to Charlotte talk about sculptures I made for fun as a kid.

“Yeah, I guess,” I replied with a shrug. “I had nothing but magic going for me.”

Speaking of which, Tina uses earth magic, I thought, the idea only just occurring to me. She mentioned that she wanted to make earth dolls in the future. She’s probably interested in the arts. Such endeavors would have to wait. For now, we had a sculpture to fix.

“Tina, hold out your hands,” I said. She did as she was told, and I placed the broken pieces carefully back into her hands.

I took out my wand from its holster at my waist and smiled. Before our eyes, the broken wing slowly began to float in the air. Tina stared, transfixed.

“I’m not talented enough to make something like this from scratch,” I admitted, “but I should at least be able to fix it.”

When I’d met Tina in a corridor that time she cornered me, she’d said that she wanted to improve as a mage. There were around a hundred or so commoners who enrolled each year, but only one or two ever managed to even cast so much as a semblance of a spell by graduation. Her strong ambition to rise beyond her status as a commoner stirred in me a desire to work hard that I hadn’t felt in a long, long time.

Using fire magic, I heated the jagged edge of the wing and gently placed it on the broken seam. Then, I immediately cooled it with water magic to seal it back into place. Had there been any missing pieces, I could have added in some earth magic too, but it seemed there was no need for that.

“What an intricate spell... You’re so adept with fire and water magic... But wind magic is what you excel at, isn’t it?” Tina was slack-jawed in awe. “Since you’re from House Denning, I thought you would be a powerful wind mage.”

“That’s not really the case,” I replied. “I’m a jack-of-all-trades, but a master of none.”

“I can’t even come up with a sarcastic response to that...” Tina gave me such a serious look that it took my breath away.

“Phew, it’s fixed now,” I said, hoping to ease the sudden tension. The wing was now reattached and the bird had been restored to its former glory. You couldn’t even tell it’d once been broken.

“Wow! That’s incredible! You’re amazing, Lord Denning!” Tina exclaimed, overjoyed that the sculpture was fixed. She handled it as delicately as if it were her own family heirloom as she put it away, bowing her head repeatedly in gratitude. It made me feel humbled and more than a little self-conscious, seeing her act that way.

“My friend is going to be really grateful too! I’ve been worried about her because she’s been really down the past few days, but this should cheer her right up! Thank you so much, Lord Denning!”

Commoners had a strong bond with each other, considering that they were the outsiders in this institute founded for the nobles. It wasn’t uncommon for the few commoner students and any maids close in age to help each other survive in this kind of environment.

“Don’t worry about it,” I assured.

“I have to thank you! Please let me treat you some time!” Tina insisted. I bet she hadn’t expected me to be able to actually fix it, and that’s why she was showering me with praise. She seemed so moved that she might hug me at any moment.

“If you’re this good at magic, Lord Denning, does that mean Charlotte is great at magic too?! I’ve heard that all the retainers from House Denning are excellent at magic!”

Charlotte went stock still. “U-Um, I...”

Tina wasn’t exactly wrong, per se. Most of the retainers employed by House Denning were expert mages in their own right, if not all noble retainers in general. Those retainers who accompanied their young masters to this school were hired from the ranks of lesser nobility, as a retainer served as a reflection of their employer.

Charlotte panicked as Tina looked at her with great expectation. Her black doe eyes were wide and curious, clearly those of a young girl wanting more juicy information about prestigious nobles. She was also probably genuinely curious about this retainer of House Denning. Even as a retainer, Charlotte came from a whole other world than that of a commoner.

“I’ve also heard that the retainer training in House Denning is beyond difficult,” Tina continued, ignorant to Charlotte’s growing panic. “I hear that some fight and protect their masters in battle, killing vicious monsters with a single spell! Some can even use swords!”

“Y-Yeah, the training I received when I served under House Denning was very harsh...” Charlotte stammered. “It’s painful for me to think about, it was so extreme...”

“Please tell me more!” Tina looked hungry for anything that Charlotte would tell her, but she suddenly stopped, confused. “Huh? You don’t have a wand though, Miss Charlotte.”

“Th-That’s... Well, we’re at a school now, so it’s quite safe around here... I-I have no need for a wand... I-I can use magic, though! I’m very good at it... Isn’t that right, Master Slowe?” Charlotte turned to me.

“Uh—”

“I am good at magic. Wouldn’t you agree, Master Slowe?” Charlotte’s tone suggested she wouldn’t take no for an answer.

I had to stop myself before I took a step back without thinking. Charlotte could be downright intimidating when she wanted to be... “Um, about that...” I stammered.

Tina, oblivious to the entire exchange, barreled on in excitement. “It’s just like the rumors said; all retainers employed by House Denning are incredible. What element do you favor, Miss Charlotte?! Is it wind, like most of House Denning? Oh, and also, you’ll have to forgive me, I’m a little curious so I have to ask... Are you a noble like Lord Denning too? Or are you a commoner like me?”

“A c-commoner?” Charlotte spluttered. “Um, Miss Tina, whatever gave you that idea?”

“Well, at first, I honestly thought that you were definitely a noble because of your position as a retainer to House Denning, but...” Tina trailed off. “You help wash the dishes in the dining hall, right? A noble wouldn’t do that.”

Charlotte’s face flushed red and my breath hitched in my throat.

Charlotte had never told a soul about her true identity after House Denning took her under its wing. I knew that she was, in fact, a princess because I’d heard it from a spirit, but Charlotte probably didn’t even know that I knew. I was the only other person besides Charlotte herself who knew this closely kept secret. I’d just been waiting for the day when she would tell me this herself.

“How do you know I help out in the dining hall, Miss Tina?” Charlotte asked.

“I saw that apron over there.” Tina pointed to where a bright red apron, embroidered with a gaudy-looking fire-breathing dragon lay draped across a wooden bench. “That’s the kitchen uniform, right? The one that has the really lame dragon on it because the head chef likes it, or so rumors say.”

“W-Well... I mean...yeah, I suppose it does belong to me...” Charlotte stuttered.

Tina didn’t have an ounce of malice in her innocent eyes as she peered over at Charlotte. She didn’t mean any harm by her questions; she was probably just curious about the fancy lives nobles and their retainers led in a place like this. Even so, it had to be hard for Charlotte to realize she’d been essentially demoted to a commoner. Knowing her history, I had to give her a way out so she could keep what little remained of her dignity.

“Charlotte, don’t you have to go help out soon?”

“Huh, is it that time already? I-I have to go!” Charlotte hurriedly replied. “Master Slowe, please be nice to Miss Tina!”

Charlotte usually watched me jog in the morning before heading off to the dining hall kitchen to help out, but we’d spent a lot of time talking today, and now it was well past the time she usually took her leave. Charlotte snatched the apron she had left on the bench and hightailed it out of there, leaving the two of us behind. Only the sound of not-so-early birds chirping in the background broke the awkward silence.

“Lord Denning, did I say something to offend her? Is she embarrassed by the apron, perhaps? I kind of get that, though. I would rather beg for forgiveness and fork up the money to my employer than wear that hideous thing...” Tina paused. “Ah, there’s something I wanted to ask you.”

“The dragon apron’s quite unpopular, huh... I like it though.” I shook my head and turned to face Tina proper. “Okay, then. Ask away.”

“Um, well...there’s another person who needs your help,” Tina said at length. “Well, actually...it’s multiple people, really...”

When I had the chance between classes, I snuck away from the lecture building and headed towards the dining hall. It was in the middle of preparations for dinner; surely it would be deserted this early in the afternoon. I peeked in through the nearest windows and found only maids diligently wiping the tables. At the dining hall entrance stood Tina, waiting for me just like she had promised. Once she saw me, she waved at me and beckoned me over.

I wonder if my homemade potion is gonna live up to their expectations... I felt my heartbeat quicken in my chest.

“Wow, amazing! This makes the skin so smooth...” Tina marveled. “Lord Denning, I want one of these, even if it’s a prototype! Please give me one too! Can I at least keep this sample?”

The maids had abandoned their duties to gather at the entrance around me and Tina. To be perfectly honest, they were making a racket, each one of them holding a small glass vial.

According to Tina, the kitchen had started using a new detergent recently, but it seemed to be causing skin problems for the maids in charge of washing dishes. Apparently, this new detergent was really rough on their hands, and so Tina had asked me to brew them up a simple water elixir.

“Just to be clear, people are not allowed to make water elixirs without permission, even if it’s a simple one. It’s a restricted item,” I said. “Everyone knows that the students here make elixirs to earn some cash on the side, but please keep it a secret anyway. And yes, Tina, you can have that one.”

“Yes, Lord Denning, we understand! You heard him, everyone! It’s a secret that we received these water elixirs!” one of the maids whisper-shouted.

“That’s probably for the best!” another maid agreed fervently. “With this, we’ll be able to make it until they let us go back to using the old detergent! Seriously, we were all so against the idea of switching it in the first place, but the head chef likes trying out new things way too much!”

A water elixir was a potion infused with water magic, the most common type of magic used in healing. Because of how costly these potions were, commoners normally wouldn’t even dream of being able to afford one, so I’d decided to make some water elixirs for the maids myself. During Magic Studies, I took the textbook for Potion Studies into class and read it meticulously. Professor Arle’s lesson was boring as ev— I mean, as focused on the fundamentals as ever. I had the top row of the lecture theater all to myself anyway, so it wasn’t like anyone was actually checking whether I was using the right textbook. I had just used my lunch break after class was over to brew the potion itself.

As easy as I made it sound, brewing a water elixir was actually a challenge. Even Alicia, a tried-and-true water mage from a tried-and-true water kingdom, would struggle to complete such a potion in a day, let alone in the space of a single lunch hour.

“Thank you, Lord Denning! I only knew of you from rumors, but after you started coming to the dining hall, I realized the rumors just couldn’t be true!”

“You really surprised me! It’s really hard to make a water elixir, even if it’s a simple one, right? You must be really talented!”

Difficult or not, it still surprised me how moved the maids were. I’d never interacted much with them before this. Now, they were all practically falling over each other to shower me with their thanks... This really changed my impression of them; I’d never imagined they’d ever be so friendly with me.

“Sorry guys, my break is almost over! I gotta go!” I exclaimed. “If I’m late to Potion Studies, the professor will never let it go!”

The biggest shocker of the day came when Tina took my arm in both of hers and hugged it. “Thank you so much!”

“I get it, Tina, I get it! Please let go of me!” Her breasts were pronounced even through her clothes and they were touching my arm...

Jeez, just—uh, I don’t know what to— My brain was short-circuiting. I need to get out of here pronto!

“Class!” I exclaimed. “I have class now! I need to go!”

My desire to stay right where I was warred with my logic telling me to get the heck out of there. Neither side was winning when someone tapped me on the shoulder from behind.

“Um, please excuse me. I’m heading to class now,” I said.

“You ain’t goin’ nowhere, Denning. You’re comin’ with me.”

Dread shot down my spine. Turning around, I saw Professor Loco Moco standing there with his arms crossed over his usual black shirt.

“The headmaster wants to see me?” I asked. My ears weren’t playing tricks on me, right? Professor Loco Moco had definitely said that.

“On Stillwindsday next week, yeah. Don’ worry, I checked an’ made sure you had no afternoon classes that day. The old coot’s room is on the top floor of the staff buildin’. Don’t get yourself lost.”

Here stood Professor Loco Moco, a noble from an earl household who had formerly fought as a member of the Order of Royal Knights, a man respected and revered by all, a man who was once a powerful ally to the protagonist in the anime...and he was telling me that I’d been summoned by the headmaster. I stood there rooted to the spot, confused and struggling to make sense of what the professor was saying.

“That’s all I got for you. You’re free to go an’ all that.” The professor sauntered off with little more than a lazy wave of his hand.

I was completely blindsided by this. Why would the headmaster summon me, of all people? Think, Slowe, think! There’s gotta be a reason...

“Wait. Could it be...?” My knowledge of the future flickered through my mind. Goosebumps crawled up my skin as the realization dawned on me.

Shuya had gotten summoned to the headmaster’s office many times in the anime. In order to break out of his shell and come into his role as the savior of the world, he’d needed to overcome big obstacles in his way. Each time he accomplished the seemingly impossible feats the headmaster had tasked him with, he matured drastically.

Bearing that in mind, the summons I received just now could only mean one thing—the headmaster would be giving me a hero’s task!

The following Stillwindsday, I sat through morning classes as normal and spent my lunch hour in peace. I let myself relax, reclining on a bench beside the pathway and watching people pass me by—noble students with their capes and their wands, commoners with wooden training swords in hand, maids armed with brooms, and busy retainers with letters they rushed to deliver.

In the midst of my people-watching, I heard two familiar voices shouting as they approached.

“We’re going to be late for class! Run, Shuya! Wait, why are you stopping in the middle of the road? You’re going the wrong way! We have History class now!”

“Sorry, Alicia! I actually have somewhere else I need to go right now!”

A cool breeze washed over me as I basked in the solemness of the venerable stone buildings, the old architecture infused with the essence of the forest around it. It was a far cry from the glitz and the glamor in the capital, Daryth City. Everywhere I looked, I was reminded that this was another world—that I lived in this fantasy world now.

Once again, those familiar voices interrupted my quiet contemplation.

“Huh? Where do you think you’re going? I’ve told you time and again that slacking off is bad! You’re supposed to set a good example for the commoners! If you fail a class, it would be a disgrace!”

“Who said anything about slacking off? I already let the professor know I wouldn’t be in class, so don’t worry! I’ve got good grades in magic, anyway. There’s not a chance I would fail!”

Members of House Denning were forged on the field of battle. Unlike the rest of my family, I was sent away to Kirsch Mage Institute and left here to be forgotten. But I decided I would live my own life in freedom.

“I’ll see you in the evening! Tell me what I missed in class later!”

“Hey! Get back here! Tell me where you’re going!”

This was all to make good on a promise I’d made once upon a time. Nearly a decade ago, I swore to a spirit so full of rage it could have razed the world to the ground that I would protect Charlotte for as long as I lived. I kept that promise with all my heart, and yet that spirit lost all its ferocity, choosing instead to spend its days as Charlotte’s pet in the present.

Hmph. Good for them. At that moment, Alicia noticed my presence, her attention torn from being left behind.

“Oh... It’s you...”

“Is that a problem?” I asked, my eyes flickering to Shuya’s retreating figure. “Friendly with him as ever, aren’t you, Alicia?”

“Th-That’s none of your business, Piggy Slowe!” Alicia stammered.

“That’s true,” I agreed. “None of my business at all.” I stood and gathered my belongings. “See you around. I’ve got somewhere to be too.”

It was nearly time for my meeting with the headmaster.

I felt Alicia’s gaze on my back as I walked away; anything she might have wanted to say was left unsaid in the silence behind me.