The disciplinary committee hearing for Janica Faelover was, by all accounts, a spectacle of academic politics.
In the first session, the atmosphere was heavy.
Janica stood before the professors, her head bowed, and confessed to all her sins without making a single excuse.
She declared that she would accept any punishment.
Moved by her sincerity, the professors who had mentored her and the students who looked up to her pleaded her case passionately.
The real turning point came in the second session.
Princess Penia took the stand, her royal authority silencing the room.
She officially declared that she would not accuse Janica of attempting to assassinate the royal family.
Penia testified that the catastrophic event wasn’t intentional, but rather a forced resonance caused by the high-ranking dark spirit, Belopher, who had taken control of her mind.
Then, Lortelle Kehelland stepped forward.
Representing the Elte Company, she offered to provide complete financial backing for the restoration of the northern facilities.
It was a benevolent gesture, of course, signed with a subtle contract clause that reduced the academy’s customs duties on supplies imported by her company by half.
The final verdict was harsh but survivable:
Revocation of her status as the top second-year student.
Forfeiture and return of all honorary awards.
Ban from entering Ophelius Hall starting next semester.
10 days of probation and 20 days of suspension.
Expulsion annulled.
A week and a half later, Janica sat at a café on campus with her two closest friends, Anise and Clara.
“The fondness…
and the love,” Janica murmured out of nowhere, staring blankly at her tea.
“Why do they have such different weights?”
Her friends stared at her, utterly stupefied.
“Ah!” Janica stammered, her face flushing a deep, embarrassed red.
“T-That is…
it’s a story from a friend!
Yes, a friend.
That friend…
one day she had a dream…”
Her mind drifted back to the vivid imagery.
She was sitting in a beautiful field filled with endless, swaying flowers, delicately weaving a flower crown.
‘Hello,’ a voice said.
Janica turned around.
It was Ed.
He was mounted on a magnificent white horse.
He didn’t look like the cold, stoic student everyone else saw; he was looking down at her, smiling gently as he dismounted.
Janica stood up, her heart fluttering, and extended the flower crown toward him.
‘I made this for you, Ed.’
The dream then shifted to the two of them running together through the endless field of flowers, laughing under the bright sun.
Janica snapped back to reality, slamming her hands on the table.
I mean…
my friend!
Why is my friend having them?!”
Anise and Clara exchanged a look of sheer disbelief.
Janica, you’ve been on probation for ten days and you haven’t been able to see your friends at all!
We know it’s you!
“Uhm…” Anise asked nervously.
“What else did this…
friend…
say?”
“Well,” Janica replied, her voice softening, “when she sits in her room, staring blankly at a spot on the wall, she suddenly thinks of that person’s face…”
Anise couldn’t take it anymore.
She stood up abruptly.
“I-I just remembered I left a potion brewing!
Gotta go!” She sprinted away as fast as her legs could carry her, leaving Clara completely dumbfounded.
Now what do I do?!
Clara panicked internally.
After thinking for a moment, she sighed and looked at the blushing Janica.
“Maybe you’re thinking too much,” Clara advised gently.
“Whether you like someone or not is more mysterious than you think.”
“Really?” Janica asked, leaning in.
“Wouldn’t it be better if…
you—I mean, your friend—was just honest with her feelings?”
Janica’s eyes practically lit up with stars.
“Uhm, that’s true!
That is correct!
As expected of Clara!”
“And be careful,” Clara warned, glancing around.
“Talking about sensitive worries like that out in the open won’t be good for your reputation, Janica.”
“Gah!
You’re right about that, Clara!” Janica gasped, covering her mouth.
“I almost got into trouble.”
I’ve already stopped so many rumors about you two…
Clara thought wearily.
“Thank you for your sincere advice!” Janica said, standing up cheerfully.
“I have to return to Ophelius Hall to report the end of my suspension period.”
“Yeah, I’ll stay here a bit longer.
I have some things to think about,” Clara replied. Get faster updates on g.com.
As soon as Janica was out of sight, Clara planted her face flat against the table.
“Anise…
you’ll pay for this.”
Meanwhile, at the Northern Forest, the atmosphere was much more pragmatic.
Ed was currently securing a heavy wooden beam.
The shelter was no longer a flimsy shack.
Thanks to the high-quality materials and tools Lortelle had brought him, it was becoming a reinforced, durable structure.
Lortelle herself was standing nearby, watching him work.
“What exactly are you plotting, Kehelland?” Ed asked, giving her a weird look as he took a handful of premium nails from the box she had provided.
“A long-term investment,” Lortelle replied, her merchant smile perfectly in place.
“I am very interested in you, Senior Ed.”
Ed ignored her and went back to hammering.
However, a moment later, he abruptly stopped what he was doing and looked up.
A shimmering, ethereal presence manifested in the clearing.
It was Merilda, the High-Ranking Wind Spirit.
“You have fulfilled your promise, human,” Merilda’s melodic voice echoed through the trees.
“I am very grateful.”
[System Notification: Affinity with Spirits has increased.]
[Obtained: Spirit Magic (Wind).]
[High-Ranking Wind Spirit ‘Merilda’ is highly interested in you.] [Multiple Lesser Spirits are showing interest in your mana signature.]
[Hidden Mission Completed: Earn the Respect of the Forest Guardian.]
[Calculating Extra Rewards…]
Before Ed could mentally check the reward, Merilda spoke again.
“As promised, the wind will not be against you,” the guardian spirit said, her form beginning to fade into a gentle breeze.
“I expect very great things from you, Ed Rothtaylor.”
Ed stood silently, acknowledging her departure.
“Senior Ed?” Lortelle asked, tilting her head in confusion.
“Why did you suddenly freeze and stare at the empty air?”
Ed picked his hammer back up, his expression completely unfazed.
“I wasn’t staring at empty air.
The Guardian Spirit of the forest just came by to say a few words.”
Lortelle stood frozen.
Her jaw went slack, her razor-sharp mind momentarily short-circuiting.
The Guardian Spirit?
Normal mages couldn’t even sense High-Ranking natural spirits unless the entity actively forced a physical manifestation, let alone casually receive visits from them while doing carpentry.
Staring at the ash-blonde boy who was calmly going back to hammering nails, Lortelle’s merchant heart pounded against her ribs.
Ed Rothtaylor…
Lortelle thought, her eyes widening with an intense, burning ambition.
I must get him, no matter the cost!