The Invincible Little Lady: Volume 2 E-Book

Chatsufusa

• Herausgeber: J-Novel Club
• Kategorie: Fantasy und Science-Fiction
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2023

Beschreibung

Mary Regalia’s motto is to live a plain, uneventful life, but no matter what she does, she can’t seem to help drawing the attention of everyone at the academy. Desperate to find a quiet place to spend her free time, she tries to stake out a room in the old campus building...but it’s haunted?! Or so the rumors say—but even if the scuttlebutt’s nothing more than a phantom of the students’ imaginations, the faculty is forbidding anyone from going inside until they can get to the bottom of it. Can Mary unveil the truth behind the specter haunting her plans? Or does she only have a ghost of a chance of enjoying the quiet life she seeks?

Leseprobe

Table of Contents

Cover

Chapter 1: Chapter 1: Second Year at the Academy

Chapter 2: Third Year at the Academy, Part 1

Chapter 3: Third Year at the Academy, Part 2

Epilogue

Afterword

Color Illustrations

About J-Novel Club

Copyright

Landmarks

Table of Contents

Color Illustrations

Chapter 1: Second Year at the Academy

1. My Second Year

After a tumultuous first year at the academy, I started my second year of studies by turning over a new leaf. I, Mary Regalia—now eleven years old—was presently in the middle of putting on the personally designed uniform Tutte had handed me.

Starting today, I would be studying not at the Solos class, but at the Aleyios class instead. As such, I’d needed to alter my uniform’s design, and while I was at it, I’d decided to change the uniform from a blazer to a sailor type.

The collar of my white blouse had been changed to a sailor uniform’s typical triangular collar, with plain, navy-blue lines on its fringes. I’d placed a ribbon under the collar and over my chest to accentuate the outfit. Beneath the blouse, the uniform featured a corset-type skirt whose top extended to just below my collar, and I made sure the emblem of my new class had been sewn onto the sleeves.

Having finished changing into my uniform, I twirled in place in front of my full-length mirror, confirming everything sat on me just right.

“Yes, it’s a perfect fit,” I said, satisfied.

“Last year’s uniform is already too small for you,” Tutte noted as she moved onto her next task.

I’ve said this before, but people in this world matured faster than I’d imagined. This was actually quite the bother, since my clothes size seemed to grow by the day. Everyone else probably didn’t feel that uncomfortable with this, but my memories from life in Japan still haunted me. It made me feel weird, like everyone—myself included—were middle schoolers in primary schooler clothes.

As a bit of a digression, my mother had recommended we put blazer uniforms like the one I’d made last year up for sale in the Regalia duchy’s clothing stores. As a result, nobles with children enrolling in their first year in the academy had started gossiping that a lady who’d worn the uniform had gotten top scores, and many of them bought the uniforms for their daughters. The stores offered to include different class emblems, with each store modifying the uniform in unique ways. In any case, it was selling well.

I sat on the chair in front of the mirror, allowing Tutte to comb my hair.

“You’re getting a chance at a fresh start and a new life at the academy, Lady Mary,” Tutte said.

“Yes. I’m going to reflect on last year’s failings, and this time, I’ll do what I was intending to do—I’ll be the most unremarkable, faceless nobody in the academy!”

“F-Faceless nobody?” Tutte asked, confused. “I’m not sure I quite understand, but I’ll do my best to help you.”

After checking my attire and confirming my goals for the coming year, we left the room and got into the carriage that took me to the academy, as always.

Last year, I’d accepted the headmaster’s proposal, allowing me to finish my remaining lessons in the Solos class while taking elementary lessons on magic in the Aleyios class. However, after I’d performed the second-order spell Magic Arrow in front of Professor Fried, he decided to cut down on the number of classes I’d need, allowing me to finish my joint coursework comfortably.

The more I learned about magic, the bigger my expectations became. As it turned out, spells in this world would all work the same regardless of who’d cast them. In other words, me having a large amount of mana didn’t affect how strong my spells became; my Magic Arrows were the same as anyone else’s in terms of effectiveness and power. This meant I didn’t need to show any restraint when it came to controlling magic—and seeing as restraining my strength was something I struggled with greatly, this was wonderful news.

What’s more, the Aleyios class didn’t have any tournaments like the Solos class. Mages didn’t really compete with each other. This was because the spells themselves were all the same regardless of the individual, and because the division into orders made for an absolute difference in power. Mages capable of second-order spells could band together, but they’d never be able to overcome a mage wielding third-order spells.

Each order being stronger than the one before it was an absolute law, so if mages were to compete, the one capable of casting better spells would win by default.

Also, unlike the other two classes, where people studied for the sake of their future career paths in the kingdom, there were relatively few people aspiring to become mages, so the Aleyios class had fewer students. As such, the class didn’t encourage competition, since they didn’t want to needlessly lose what few students they had.

This meant the Aleyios class had no competitions where I could accidentally stand out and expose my powers, and even if I were to cast spells, they wouldn’t be any different from the other students’.

The Aleyios class is basically everything I could have asked for from the academy. But I guess I can only think that way because I’ve reflected on my failures in the Solos class.

With that thought in mind, I stared idly out the carriage’s window as the academy came into view. Before long, the brickwork gate I’d passed every day last year entered my field of vision, and I felt my anxiety about my new life in the academy swell up.

We stopped at the same parking spot as usual, whereupon Tutte stepped out of the carriage to clear the way for me. After getting out of the carriage, I took a deep breath and looked up at the building.

“By the way, where’s the Aleyios lounge again?” I asked.

I’d actually been to the Aleyios lounge before, but because Tutte was always there to help guide me, I’d forgotten how to get there. I felt a bit ashamed of my carelessness, but the thought that I could always rely on Tutte only reinforced my tendencies.

At my question, Tutte, who was standing behind me, walked ahead to guide me to my destination. I followed after her. We entered the large academy building, but as we walked through the halls, a small mass came hurtling toward me.

“Lady Maaaaaaary!”

“Oh, Safina. Good day to— Buhwaa!”

As I pinched up my skirt to greet her in a ladylike manner, Safina tackled me. Despite me not taking any damage, she did knock the words out of my mouth. Safina, who was dressed adorably in a uniform that matched mine, rubbed her cheek against my belly like a lonely, anxious puppy.

As I gently patted Safina’s fluffy chestnut hair, Magiluka approached from the same direction Safina had, also clad in a uniform of the same design as ours.

“Oh, Safina, that is most unladylike,” she said with an exasperated expression.

“Whoa, big...” I muttered, staring fixedly at a specific part of Magiluka’s body as she approached.

“Huh?” she asked.

I looked down at my own chest. I’d gotten confident that I’d developed in that area recently, but now I felt something stab into my ego.

I didn’t consider this... For more voluptuous people, the uniform we were wearing ended up accentuating certain features.

“Mmm... Ah, Lady Mary, good day to you.” Having apparently had her fill, Safina pulled away from me (unaware of how stricken with disappointment I was) and properly greeted me with a grin.

Oh, gosh, she’s so cute...

That gesture was so girlish and adorable of her that I had to restrain the urge to hug her. By the way, Safina’s own assets were relatively modest.

“So, you’ll be going to the Aleyios class starting today,” Safina said. “It’ll be lonely without you in Solos.”

As she pouted, I gently patted Safina on the head and recalled how I’d told my friends from the Solos class about my transfer. When I finished breaking the news, everyone seemed oddly convinced of my explanation.

“I think that might be for the best.”

“I guess our class was too limiting for you.”

“I think we’ll all live longer this way.”

But while everyone else seemed to accept and understand, Safina had taken the news the hardest and was saddened the most. But the others took her to a corner, and after a conversation I wasn’t privy to, she begrudgingly accepted my transfer to the Aleyios class. I had no idea what they told her, though...

“It really is a pity,” Sacher said, walking in with his hands behind his head. “It’s like Lady Mary ran off with the win.”

Irked by his rude comment ruining the atmosphere, I kicked him gently in the shin to silence him.

“It’s not like we’re not going to see each other anymore,” I said, ignoring Sacher as he knelt and writhed in pain. “I mean, we’re seeing each other right now, right? Whenever we have time, we can all meet up. It’s not a problem,” I explained jovially, so as to cheer Safina up.

Magiluka regarded Sacher with an exasperated glance and then joined in my attempt to lift Safina’s spirits. “Besides, second-year Solos students start learning magic, so you’ll be sharing lessons with us,” she said.

“That’s right... Ah, I have to get going. I have class,” Safina said and got to her feet. She smiled, bowed, and then turned on her heels and hurried over to the Solos lounge. Magiluka saw her off with an expression of tired relief.

“Wait, shouldn’t you be going too?” Magiluka asked coolly as she turned her eyes to Sacher.

“I’m going!” he said, tearing up a bit. “But is it just me, or have you guys been treating me like trash recently?”

He got up, the pain in his leg apparently dying down.

“That’s not important,” I said, shooing Sacher away with a wave of my hand. “Just make sure no stupid cretins try to mess with Safina, would you?” Since Safina was so prone to loneliness, I figured she needed someone to keep an eye on her, so I was tasking him with her protection.

“Sure!” He grinned, seemingly forgetting his complaint from a moment ago. “Sounds like something a knight would do! All right, I’ll do it!”

He then ran off in the same direction as Safina.

“Aww...” I said, overcome with emotion as I saw two of my friends go elsewhere.

“Now, Lady Mary, let’s make our way to the Aleyios lounge,” Magiluka said, trying to cheer me up.

I nodded and followed her, trying to change my outlook.

2. A Brilliant Idea

My life at the Aleyios class was almost surprisingly peaceful. I didn’t have to spar with the instructor at the arena, nor did I suffer the embarrassment of slipping and breaking any weapons. A perfectly peaceful school life.

Of course, I had drawn some attention to myself simply by virtue of having transferred in from another class, but after I showed my practical skills with magic in class, the rumors surrounding me from the Solos class gradually died down, and everyone started regarding me as an average student.

Wonderful... This is exactly the kind of school life I wanted!

On one unassuming day, I cheered silently to myself as I sipped on the tea Tutte had prepared for me in the Aleyios lounge. Much like the other classes’ lounges, the Aleyios one was a spacious room divided by partitions, and it too was furnished with simple wooden chairs and tables as well as sofas.

Magiluka had introduced me to a nice spot in the corner where sunlight filtered into the room, and it became the place I usually sat whenever I had time off. She and I were seated there at a round table with four chairs surrounding it.

“What type of magic are we practicing in tomorrow’s practical class?” I asked as I relished my fragrant tea.

“Fire magic, I believe,” Magiluka replied, enjoying her tea as well.

“Fire magic. I’m looking forward to that,” I said, struggling to maintain a dignified expression against my urge to smirk complacently.

I mean, in my past life I couldn’t use magic whatsoever. It’s a bit different from how I’d been excited at being able to move around in this life—this makes me so excited that I can’t help but smile!

After I’d finished offering excuses for my behavior to no one in particular in my mind, I thought back to the offensive magic training we’d started recently. It was a very fun lesson. I’d held up my hands and shot ice and fire, actually performing all sorts of magic that wouldn’t have been possible in my past life. My heart was dancing with excitement, and with my repertoire of spells growing bigger every day, I couldn’t help but smile.

“I have to say, you really are living up to expectations, Lady Mary,” Magiluka said. “In such a small period of time, you’ve learned half the spells a first-year does. Everyone is impressed with your learning speed, from the teachers and the instructors to even the first-years and our classmates.”

“Wait, for real?” I stared at her, my eyes wide as plates. “That’s not good!”

“It isn’t?” Magiluka asked quizzically.

“Uh, um, forget I said that. I was just talking to myself.” I dodged her question and laughed dryly.

Last year, I’d had so much fun at the academy that I’d almost exposed myself, and this time, I was about to repeat that same mistake. Realizing this, I resolved to restrain myself going forward...although honestly, I was wanting to learn how to use more spells...

“Lady Mary!”

As I repeatedly chanted words of self-restraint in my head, Safina hurried into the lounge, snapping me out of my meditation. The maxims I’d adorned my heart with dissipated like fog as I watched her hurry in, with Sacher following behind her in a disinterested gait. That made all the other Aleyios students in the lounge stare at us.

I can’t blame them for being curious. You don’t see Solos students in this lounge too often, and Safina and Sacher are pretty famous at the academy.

Both of them were students who’d used magic during their first year tournament, which had made them well known among the Aleyios students. Magiluka too had drawn a lot of attention to herself last year, since she needed to be a strong student to live up to her family’s expectations. All of these famous students gathering in one place was sure to draw people’s interest.

This was actually somewhat of a problem for me. Whenever the four of us gathered, we’d be scrutinized by the stares of curious onlookers, making it difficult to relax.

“Isn’t there a good place we can meet in...?” I whispered to myself.

“What do you mean?” Safina asked curiously.

“I mean, we stand out quite a bit, don’t you think? Everyone’s staring. I was wondering if there isn’t a place where we can meet up to talk quietly.”

“Yes, being stared at by people from another class is stressful...” Safina nodded in agreement.

“In that case, why don’t we ask the teachers to borrow an empty room?” Magiluka suggested.

“Huh? We can do that?!” I asked, accidentally raising my voice, earning us more stares from the students around us. I looked away from them, feeling terribly self-conscious and embarrassed.

“Well, as you can see, our academy is very spacious,” Magiluka explained. “I’m sure there’s plenty of unused rooms. But, well, we can’t exactly ask the teachers to lend us a room without good reason, and we need at least five people to put in the request.”

I counted the members of our group, optimistically trying to twist things so we had the right numbers, but Magiluka shot me down at once. I slumped my shoulders, disappointed.

“Why don’t we ask the prince, then? We’ll have five students if he joins.” Sacher, who’d seemed disinterested so far, made that ridiculous suggestion with a smug smile, causing Safina, Magiluka, and me to freeze up at once. “Hmm, but what about our reason for requesting the room? I don’t see them giving us a room just so we can chat over tea,” the insensitive idiot continued, unaware of our thoughts.

“Of course they won’t,” Magiluka replied. “Even if we’re meeting up for conversation, they’ll still demand that we give a good reason.”

“Then how about this?” I suggested, my thoughts finally whirring into life and coming up with a somewhat forced but brilliant idea. “If we’re involving Sir Reifus, why don’t we tell the teachers we want a place where students from the three classes can exchange information?”

“I see,” Magiluka said, clapping her hands together. “Yes, there really is no precedent for a place where Solos, Aleyios, and Lalaios students can gather in one place. That might convince the teachers.”

“All right, then let’s get to it,” I said, proceeding to stand up and head for the lounge’s exit despite having no idea where to go.

“By the way, who’s going to ask His Highness to join us?” Safina whispered behind me, her face pale as she brought up the first and biggest problem.

“Well, obviously it’ll be Magil—”

“Why, it’ll be Lady Mary,” Magiluka said quickly before I could shift the responsibility to her. “She came up with the idea, after all, so she’ll take responsibility and convince His Highness. Isn’t that right, Lady Mary?”

Magiluka hurriedly got ready to leave and got to her feet.

“Now, I’ll go ask the teachers what the formalities are for requesting a room, so I wish you good luck with convincing His Highness.”

Having said her piece, Magiluka briskly left the lounge. I was taken aback by how she hadn’t left me a single opening to take advantage of, and after a few moments of silence, I laid my hands on the table and hung my head.

“What’s wrong?” Sacher, who felt no pressure whatsoever, asked as he approached the entrance to the lounge. “Aren’t we going to go talk to the prince?”

Heaving one deep sigh, I pulled myself back together, spurred myself onward, and raised my head.

You’re doing this to get a peaceful place to talk in, Mary!

Getting the prince involved in this for a selfish reason put a great deal of pressure on me, but I was faintly expecting Reifus to simply consent with a smile. Shaking my head, I took Safina’s hand and pulled her along as I stomped away.

***

“Yes, I don’t mind.”

A few minutes later, as we stood before him with a mixture of resolve and anxiety, the prince readily complied.

“I’ve actually been often puzzled by the fact that there’s no space for us to ask students from other classes for their opinions. I would understand if it was just within the Lalaios class, but when it comes to magic or martial arts, asking people who specialize in those fields would be best. If high achievers like you four start gathering somewhere, I’m sure people will join you before long. It’s a very appealing idea, I think. It’s the kind of idea that suits you, Lady Mary—you’re always thinking outside the box, and you’re decisive to boot. I’m truly impressed.”

As he continued talking on and on, looking thoroughly impressed with me and bringing up all sorts of points I’d never even remotely considered, I felt myself break into a cold sweat.

“N-Not at all...Lord Reifus...” I muttered with a stiff smile.

Everyone around us was reacting with impressed realization at his explanation, and I didn’t have the mental presence to deny him at that moment.

Aaaah, please make it so people stop getting the wrong idea about me again! I prayed to God behind my stiff smile.

“...and to do that, we’d need a place spacious enough for people to gather in,” Reifus concluded.

“N-Now, if I may, I think that since this is the first time such a venture is being attempted... Maybe we should keep it on a small scale...?”

It felt like the idea was veering away from my initial concept, so I tried to correct the course of the prince’s thoughts, shrinking back in fear all the while.

“I see. Let’s get started on the preparations right away, then,” the prince said enthusiastically, unaware of my dread. “Magiluka said she’ll handle the submission, yes?”

Sacher followed Reifus, and as I watched the two boys leave, I let out a deep sigh, patting Safina—who had been hiding behind my back the whole time—on the head. She’d done well keeping her nerve around the prince for so long...

3. There’s One in There

“Huh? There aren’t any free rooms?” I said as our group, Reifus included, met up with Magiluka in a corridor.

“Apparently not,” Magiluka said. “Students used to be allowed to borrow rooms in the old campus building, but it’s since been deemed forbidden for use.”

“There’s an old campus building?” I asked, glancing out the corridor’s window.

I looked for the old campus building, but try as I might, I couldn’t see it from where we were. The new campus building’s central lane led to the clock tower, which stood at the center of the academy, with all the other facilities, such as the arena, training ground, laboratory, and sports ground built around it. Nonetheless, the old campus building was reportedly somewhere on the premises.

“The old campus building is forbidden from use?” Reifus asked. “Is the structure worn out from age or something of the sort?”

“No, nothing like that. It’s just...” Magiluka said evasively. Her tone gave me a bad feeling, which made me start thinking that maybe we’d be better off giving up on the idea.

“There’s one in there,” she explained.

“One of what?” I asked quizzically.

“A ghost,” she replied at once.

The prince audibly swallowed, and a very pale Safina and Tutte clung to me fearfully. Meanwhile, my eyes lit up with expectation.

“What, really?! Let’s go check it out!” I said excitedly.

“Huuuuh?!” shouted everyone else present.

“What?” Magiluka, who’d expected me to get scared, turned to look at me. “Lady Mary, you’re not shaken by this sort of thing?”

“I mean, it’s a ghost! I’ve always wanted to see a ghost! Please, let’s go look for it!” I pleaded excitedly, my eyes glittering. I mean, this is a ghost! A ghost!

In my past life, it was said that only special people could see ghosts, and that ghosts were frightening, inexplicable things whose very existence was uncertain. But in this fantasy world, they were considered a type of undead monster. They were visible to everyone and even defeatable—in other words, they were a type of monster that was par for the course for this world, no different from an animal, so I wasn’t scared of their very being.

“Th-That said, I don’t think having the old campus building barred from use because of a ghost problem is acceptable.” Reifus put the conversation back on track, although he was a bit taken aback by my enthusiasm.

“That much is true,” I agreed. “The professors could simply banish the ghost.”

This world had something called holy magic, and our professors, being veteran magic users, should have been able to do away with any ghost in no time. Reifus was right; it made no sense to shut the old campus building away and just leave it unoccupied.

“So, what do we do?” Sacher said, his expression rife with curiosity. “Do we check it out?”

I nodded in agreement with him, my own expectations rising. Tutte and Safina were, as one might expect, clinging to me with their faces pale with fear, trembling and shaking their heads. The prince, however, regarded my and Sacher’s enthusiasm like he was looking at something heartwarming, only for his expression to then become serious.

“Hmm. If we don’t do something about the old campus building, we won’t be able to secure a room for ourselves. I say going to check the place out is a fine idea.”

With Reifus in agreement, we put the two girls who were against the idea between the rest of us and made our way to the old campus building.

***

We arrived at the old campus building, which was a good distance away from the new campus building and completely devoid of people. The building was a modern-looking two-story brickwork structure atop a small hill. The area around it was quite spacious and open, it had plenty of trees planted around its outer circumference, and it was quite sunny. All in all, it seemed like a quiet, atmospheric destination that was isolated from the boisterous noise of the academy.

This is a good place. I’d love to relax here.

But while I looked at the building with expectant eyes, Safina and Tutte regarded it with terror, and Magiluka and Reifus seemed anxious. Sacher, meanwhile, let out an enthusiastic “Ooooh,” apparently impressed with its size.

At the center of the structure was a set of wooden double doors. We stopped in front of them, looking up at the building again. It didn’t look abandoned, and it, in fact, seemed clean and tended to, which honestly drowned out any scary atmosphere the place might have had.

Then again, we did come here during the daytime, I noted to myself.

“Th-There, we checked it out! Now let’s go back, Lady Mary!” Safina squeaked, looking around skittishly as she grabbed onto my clothes.

“Oh? It’s open,” Sacher said, pushing the door open and ruthlessly dashing Safina’s suggestion.

“That’s odd,” Magiluka said, approaching the door. “Considering it’s off-limits, I’d have thought they’d be keeping the place locked. What is grandfa—ahem, I mean, what is the headmaster thinking?”

She’s right. If students are supposed to be kept out of this building, why isn’t it being managed better?

“If the place is looking like this, maybe the whole ghost thing was fake?” Sacher said, looking like all the wind was taken out of his sails. It seemed that the possibility that his expectations wouldn’t be met made him lose interest. He grabbed the doorknob and made to close the half-open door.

“Eeeek!”

But then, Tutte, who was in the back of the group, let out a screech, prompting us to turn around and look at her.

“What’s wrong, Tutte?” I asked.

“I-I think I just saw someone...” Tutte pointed a shaking finger toward the window of a room in a distant corner of the building.

We couldn’t see what was going on inside from where we were standing, but Tutte, who was behind us, could see it more clearly.

“Let’s get out of here, Lady Mary!” Safina implored me.

“Let’s go in! Ghosts, ghosts! ♪” I said, my line overlapping with hers.

I pulled the unwilling Safina by the arm, and Sacher pushed the door open and led us inside. The interior was dim, and silence hung over the place. It certainly gave off a scary atmosphere, and overwhelmed by this, I was starting to tense up a bit. I found myself placing my hand over the Legendary Sword (Cringe) I’d brought with me for self-defense.

The entrance hall was built as an atrium, with the second floor visible from the first. A flagstone trail shaped like a cross ran through the interior with the doorway as its base. Sunlight shone in on the stone tiles from the skylight in the ceiling, which was as tall as it had looked from the outside. Even without the lights on, the warm light filtering in dispelled the gloomy atmosphere within the entrance hall—although that didn’t extend to the rest of the structure.

“It’s pretty spacious, and there are a lot of rooms,” I mused as I looked around, walking toward the center.

Safina, who was still clinging to my back, followed close after me, and Tutte was right behind me too.

“Which room did you see the figure in?” I asked my maid.

“Huh?” Tutte asked back. “You’re going there, Lady Mary?”

“I mean, we’ve come this far.” I casually turned to face Tutte, trying to encourage her. “We may as well see the ghost. I mean, it’s an undead monster. If something happens, I’m sure we’ll be able to beat it between the five of us.”

Everyone seemed shocked by my statement.

“Lady Mary,” Reifus said uncomfortably, “ghosts aren’t counted as undead monsters. The undead you speak of are skeletons and zombies, and they have material form. There are no monsters that are formless like ghosts...and I’m afraid to say that as we are, we probably couldn’t even touch a ghost, much less defeat it.”

Leaning on my knowledge of RPGs, I’d assumed ghosts were undead monsters, the same as the other monsters I knew—creatures that could be touched and taken down. But his explanation made me realize I was wrong. Ghosts were still inexplicable phenomena in this world. And the fact they were visible and harmful to everyone made them even more tricky than in my past life.

Yeah, I think I can see why everyone’s so terrified of the ghost now! Drat, now I’m scared too!

As late in the game as it may have been, I was starting to become afraid. But it was too late now. Everyone went very pale at once. I followed their gazes, noticing they weren’t fixed on me, but rather on the hallway behind me. I fearfully turned around, noticing something at the end of the hall in a dim corner where the sunlight didn’t reach.

A figure with a white, hazy outline was clearly staring in our direction. It felt like the spot she was standing in was chillingly cold.

Ghosts come out during daytime in this world?! Nooo, if it isn’t a monster, what is that thing?! I’m scared!

The figure started disappearing and appearing, moving closer to us each time it flickered back into view. Overcome with panic, I desperately drew my Legendary Sword (Cringe) and held it up.

“Come at me if you dare, you monsteeeer!” I cried out.

“Lady Mary, that isn’t a monster!” Tutte said, pulling on my sleeve from behind. “We need to run!”

But then, suddenly, another figure stepped out and stood between us and the ghost.

“Everyone, close your eyes!” the figure said, holding up a staff. “Light!”

I could tell it was a woman’s voice. Her voice echoed with power, and as she spoke, a magical light flashed from the tip of her staff. Repelled by the light, the ghost turned and fled.

As we stared in blank amazement, the woman turned around to face us. She lifted the hood hanging over her eyes and regarded us with a smile.

“Are you all right?” she asked.

“C-Class Master!” Magiluka said.

Ah, so this is the Aleyios class master...

4. Another Incident

Less than an hour after our encounter with the ghost, we walked over to the open café between the new and old campus buildings. I sat around the table with Safina, Tutte, Magiluka, Sacher, and Reifus. Our gazes were fixed on one person.

“Hello,” she said. “My apologies for not introducing myself. I’m the Aleyios class master, Alice Ordile.”

Instructor Alice took off her hood, revealing her pretty, straight blonde hair, and bowed her head in greeting. She had a roundish face with gentle features, and she wore silver-rimmed glasses over her kind blue eyes. She gave off a quiet impression at first sight, but we’d just seen her single-handedly repel a ghost. Between that and her serving as class master, it was clear she was quite the active individual.

Incidentally, despite both of us being girls, I found my eyes drawn to the two mounds of flesh bulging from her chest that her robe was struggling to contain.

Do all Aleyios girls grow up to be so busty? If so, when’s it my turn? I glanced down at my own chest, dissatisfied, as I replied, “Oh, um, nice to meet you. I’m—”

“Oh, no need for introductions.” She waved her hand dismissively with a sly smile. “I know who you all are. Hee hee, you’re all very famous in the academy, after all. Isn’t that right, White Princess?”

“At any rate, I was surprised that the ghost was real, but I was even more surprised that you could just ward it off like that,” Reifus said, impressed.

“I apologize for being so forward and aggressive in your presence, Your Highness.” Instructor Alice bowed her head modestly.

“No, you saved us.” Reifus shook his head with a smile. “Was that holy magic?”

“No, Your Highness, it wasn’t,” Instructor Alice replied. “All I did was use magic to produce light. Ghosts dislike light produced by magic, making it ideal for warding them away.”

I could only nod vaguely at Instructor Alice’s explanation.

“So, you didn’t completely defeat the ghost?” Magiluka asked.

“I’m afraid not,” she replied with a shake of her head.

“Can’t the professors do something about one ghost?” I chimed in.

“Sadly, none of the professors currently in the academy can use holy magic.”

“Huh? Really? Are people who can use holy magic hard to come by?” I asked.

“No, there are many people who can, but it’s just that most of them are affiliated with the church, and the academy has history with them. Apparently, one time long ago, the church dispatched someone to teach at the academy, but they got caught up in some sort of incident on campus. Ever since then, the church hasn’t cooperated with the academy. I’m not sure how true the story is since it happened twenty years ago, but what’s certain is the church has continued to not send any professors to the academy to this day, so there haven’t been any chances to teach holy magic here. Thankfully, the lack of holy magic users hasn’t been an issue since the ghost doesn’t seem inclined to leave the old campus building, so I simply patrol the place periodically to ensure no one wanders inside out of curiosity. Nothing serious has happened yet.”

I wasn’t able to look Instructor Alice in the eye. I averted my gaze from her bothered expression. I’m sorry, Instructor. I just did the exact thing you’ve been trying to prevent people from doing... I apologized to her inwardly.

“Are you an expert on ghosts, Instructor Alice?” I asked. “I mean, you seem to know how to beat them, so I was wondering whether you might be from the church or something.”

“No, I’m not related to the church. I’m just an expert on ghosts...” Instructor Alice said, looking a bit bashful. “Well, to be precise, I’m an expert on undead monsters, so I happen to be better equipped to handle this than the rest.”

This gentle-looking lady is an expert on the undead? What a surprise!

I initially thought she’d be a gentle softie with a penchant for cute things, but having heard her explanation, I felt ashamed of myself for making assumptions based on her appearance.

“So, what are we going to do about the ghost...ma’am?” Sacher, who’d remained silent so far, spoke with unfamiliar politeness.

She looked at us, seeming a bit conflicted, and then replied, “The grand master’s instructions are to maintain the status quo. I think the academy is trying to avoid friction with the church by looking for people who are former members of the church but are still capable of using holy magic to handle the issue. But it’s looking like they’re struggling to find someone like that, and until they do, the old campus building is going to remain out of bounds.”

Holy magic... I wonder if I could use it if someone taught me how. Maybe I could find a teacher? Well, if there were someone like that around, they could just take care of the ghost on their own... I tried to come up with a fast solution to this problem, but naturally the answer didn’t come to me that easily. I sighed.

No, actually, wait. I could cast a fourth-order spell without anyone teaching me how to. Right... The Argent Knight would be able to...

As I held onto that thought, I continued to listen to Instructor Alice’s information until we parted ways with her. She warned us to stay away from the old campus building, but...

***

After saying goodbye to Instructor Alice, we walked back to the new campus building with trudging steps.

“We won’t be able to use the old campus building until this incident is resolved,” Magiluka said, unwilling to give up. “I’ll go to the headmaster and ask him for more details.”

With this, Magiluka parted ways with us and headed toward the clock tower.

“I’ll go with you too,” Reifus said. “I want to know the details of the situation, and that incident with the church Miss Alice mentioned is weighing on my mind.” With that said, he followed Magiluka, leaving Tutte with Sacher, Safina, and me (the former so-called Three Pranksters).

“What do we do, Lady Mary?” Safina peered into my face anxiously as I watched the other two leave.

“Well... This is kind of a strange question, but could the Argent Knight use holy magic?”

Safina stared at me blankly for a moment, puzzled as to why I asked that question.

“Well...” Tutte, the only one to understand my intention here, answered from behind me. “The Argent Knight could use all spells up to the fourth order, so I’d assume he could employ some holy magic too?”

“I see. I’d like to read the story where he uses holy magic, then. Maybe it’ll give me some kind of hint.” I shot a glance at Tutte, pushing things along while remaining vague, which only left the other two more puzzled.

“Th-Then, how about we go to the library?” Safina suggested, seemingly giving up on trying to figure out what I was thinking. “Some of the knight’s stories should be stored there.”

Sacher nodded, apparently concluding that there was no point thinking about what I’d meant.

“All right, let’s go to the library, then,” I said. And let’s tidy up this incident as quickly as possible so we can secure that nice place as a hangout spot we can relax in.

I began walking ahead excitedly.

“Um, Lady Mary, the library is the other way,” Tutte said apologetically.

I felt my face burning as I went red up to my ears and turned around. Tutte took my hand and led me in the right direction, and I followed her with fast steps.

The next day, we all sat gathered at the corner table of the Aleyios lounge as the other students whispered and stared at us.

Whoa... We stand out... Everyone’s staring...

Although I was engaged in my conversation with the others, I was still anxious on the inside the whole time. It only made sense that everyone else was staring: we not only had two Solos students in our group, but one of us was a Lalaios student who happened to be the crown prince.

Goodness, what I wouldn’t give for a space where we can talk without being stared at...

And so, I sat there present in body but not in spirit as everyone reported their findings—or really, as just Magiluka reported her findings. The headmaster had told her pretty much the same story Instructor Alice had told us, and he confirmed that they were seeking someone capable of holy magic.

The prince became curious and asked the headmaster about the matter of the church being uncooperative with the academy, but apparently, the headmaster and the faculty didn’t know the details around that, except that there had been an incident between the teacher dispatched by the church and a student.

“And as it turns out, the student who had that incident with the teacher from the church was a first-year at the time,” Reifus said, looking at me awkwardly. “One Ferdid Regalia... In other words, your father, Lady Mary.”

I blinked, stupefied, as all sorts of emotions crossed my mind. Papa dearest...what in the world did you do...?

5. A Flurry of Speculations

That night, I was enjoying dinner with my parents in our mansion’s dining hall, but my mind was still occupied by what I’d learned in the lounge that day. According to what Reifus had told me, the student who’d gotten in trouble with the teacher from the church years ago was actually my father.

Instructor Alice and the headmaster had said that the church was refusing to cooperate with the academy because of that incident, but as the prince pointed out to me, all that happened many years ago, which gave the impression that the headmaster was hiding something by leaving part of the story out. Magiluka had posited that it wasn’t so much that the church was being uncooperative, but rather that the academy was being reserved about working with them—and for all the church was concerned, if the academy didn’t ask for help, it was no skin off their backs.

With all that said, the only ones who really knew what had happened were those involved in the incident at the time and the headmaster. And so, as my family and I were enjoying some after-meal tea, I resolved to ask my father, Ferdid, about the matter.

“Father, there’s something I’d like to ask you,” I said, my expression anxious.

“Mm? What is it, Mary?” He regarded me with a smile and brought the cup to his lips.

“I heard something in the academy, a story from when you were a first-year...” I said, feeling a bit too hesitant to touch on the heart of the matter. “Um, they said there was an...incident of some sort between you and a teacher dispatched by the church?”

I felt like I was poking at something best left untouched. I was afraid father might get mad and start blaming the academy.

“An incident in my first year? With a teacher? Was there something like that?” father asked.

Apparently, it was such an old incident that father didn’t quite remember. He placed a hand on his chin and gazed up at the ceiling, sifting through his memories. He hummed for a few moments as he tried to place the event, then he finally clapped his hands together, apparently having unearthed the details.

“Oh, that! There was that one time I beat a teacher to submission!” he said gleefully, seemingly happy to have remembered.

What?! You did what, father?! I could only regard him with shock. “Wh-Why did you do that?”

“Hmm, why was it again? Right, I think it’s because in the detached building— Uhh, I think you call it the old campus building nowadays. Well, back then, I found a good napping spot there. While I was sleeping, someone was making a lot of noise in the building, so I walked up to him and beat him up! Turned out he was a teacher... I think that’s how it went.”

You’re joking, right? You did what? His absurd explanation made me go from shock to exasperation. But if what he’s saying is true, that shouldn’t be a reason for the headmaster to be so wary of the church like Reifus said. I’d understand if the church was cautious of a student beating up one of their people, but not the academy...

Enthused by that old story, father started regaling us with more of his combat chronicles. But since I’d already heard those before, I was only half listening.

Well, even if we can’t resolve this issue, I’ll just look through the Argent Knight stories I found in the library and use the holy magic written in them. That should solve the problem. I think the spell in those stories was a second-order one, so I should be able to use it.

I thought back to how the four of us had gone to the library the other day. It’d been a wide room with a modern aesthetic, and it’d been full of cramped bookcases stuffed with books. There’d been even more books piled up in front of the shelves for lack of anywhere else to be placed.

Given how negligently its collection had been stored, it’d been clear the library wasn’t being rigorously managed. Most people had no idea where you could find any given book. Although the state of things had left me quite shocked, the four of us had nonetheless split up to look for books about the Argent Knight. A few hours later, we’d found a few volumes, so I’d thanked the others and started skimming through the books.

Fortunately, one of the volumes had included a story of the knight purifying a ghost, and its description had matched something I’d seen in a video game, so I’d figured I could probably use it. Satisfied, I’d left the library with the other three.

What next, though? Do I tell the others about father’s incident? No, I probably shouldn’t. I don’t want to shame him like that... I wouldn’t want to tarnish my own family name.

Having decided so, I managed to cut father’s stories off and retired to my room. He’d looked quite lonely when I asked to leave.

The following day, we were once again in the Aleyios lounge, exposed to the curious stares of onlookers. I told the others about my father’s story while omitting and changing some details to make it more presentable.

“Hmm... I can’t imagine Duke Regalia resorting to violence for no reason,” Reifus said gravely. “I think something must have happened to get him to act that way.”

“Agreed. Maybe it’s related to the ghost we’re dealing with now.” Magiluka nodded.

Why is it that all my friends are so prone to misunderstandings? I guess it’s father’s fault this time, for being so naughty...

I thought back to my dear father’s combat chronicles, recalling that most of them had happened for trifling reasons. That was quite embarrassing to me as his daughter, so I decided not to tell the others these details.

“Well, I looked into the rumors about the incident in the palace,” Reifus said. “Apparently, back when it happened, there was a ghost problem like now.”

“Huh? Really?” I asked with a raised voice—but when I sensed every pair of eyes in the room turn to me, I slapped my hands over my mouth.

“Do you think it’s really related to our ghost incident?” Magiluka asked.

“It’s too soon to assume they’re necessarily related, but something definitely happened back then,” Reifus replied, his countenance quite serious.

Things are starting to go in an annoying direction. It might be best if I just tell them I can use holy magic to solve this.

It felt bad that I was about to rain on everyone’s parade when they seemed so engaged in the mystery, but I decided to go ahead and tell them I had a simple solution to the problem at hand—not before I heard a voice behind me, however.

“Are all of you here to talk about the old campus building again?”

I turned around and saw a robed figure bow toward us respectfully. It was Instructor Alice.

“If you’re talking about the matter of the ghost, do you mind if I join in? I’m looking for information about solving it too,” she said with a soft smile.

I didn’t object, and the prince nodded in approval. I had Tutte get us another chair, which Instructor Alice sat in as she joined our conversation.

“Actually, I’ve recently noticed there’s a wide-area barrier set up around the old campus building,” she said after we told her what we’d found out earlier. “I believe that it wasn’t set up recently, but rather a long time ago.”

“You think the barrier was set up to keep the ghost contained?” Magiluka asked curiously.

“No, I don’t think it’s that kind of barrier. I think it’s one meant for trapping undead, so it’s possible the ghost was drawn to it.”

“So, if we break the barrier, the ghost won’t have a reason to be drawn to the old campus building?”

“I considered that possibility, but even when I looked throughout the building, I couldn’t find the source of the barrier,” Instructor Alice said. “Such a wide barrier should’ve required some sort of ritual to work, so I assumed I’d find the source right away, but...”

Instructor Alice and Magiluka’s exchange trailed off, giving way for a few seconds of silence.

“Hm... Actually, there is something I’ve been curious about...” Safina, who had kept quiet until now, managed to utter. Her eyes were fixed on Reifus, seemingly asking if she was allowed to voice her opinion. The prince nodded with a smile. Safina wasn’t passing out around him anymore, but she was still too afraid to speak up in his presence.

I’m glad she’s getting used to him. I’m sure she’ll get comfortable around him given time, so I’ll just watch over her.

“Why is that kind of barrier set up around the old campus building to begin with?”

“Well, it’s a barrier for trapping undead, so it’s probably to keep undead—” I gave the obvious reply, but upon realizing its implications, I felt my face go pale.

“So, there might be real undead monsters hiding in that building?” Sacher suggested, outright stating the conclusion I’d come to without any forethought.

The onlookers listening in on us murmured in fear. I made to slap a hand over his mouth to shut him up, but before I could, he fell over the desk, shivering. I looked closer, spotting Magiluka sitting beside him and glaring at him coldly.

Wow, Magiluka. You work fast.