Chapter 98

EP.98 It seems I dialed the wrong number (3)

An old man who has lived for a long time and a young girl who has just turned twenty look at each other.

“......”

The old man's gaze carries the weight of time. His eyes, trying to read the other's intentions, are heavy.

In contrast, what about the girl's eyes?

They are light. They are light because they carry nothing. Her expression seems to suggest that there is no meaning behind her casual words. Even if one tries to read her intentions through her eyes, the shimmering platinum light hinders it.

“Huh......”

In the end, it is the old man who first averts his gaze. Jileon sighed and tapped the floor with his cane. The chair automatically slid in front of Jileon.

“Well.”

Jileon sat down and crossed his arms.

“Let's hear your story in detail.”

He revised his evaluation of Resty. The timid and shrinking girl is no longer there. The girl sitting in front of him is the next tower master.

‘The master of the Ashen Tower, the owner of ash.’

Whether the girl is qualified or not is unknown.

However, if she is willing to bear the weight of that position......

‘It is right to confirm.’

Jileon faintly saw the cards the girl possessed. They were indeed effective cards. If used well, they could shake the Ashen Tower to its roots.

And, Jileon himself is not free from the chaos these cards will bring. Therefore, he had to confirm even more.

‘How will she use them?’

Will she bring mere chaos?

Or will she bring a wind of reform?

“I will listen carefully.”

He will understand when he hears it.

“......As the next tower master.”

Resty Eleonora.

What thoughts does the girl in front of him have?

2.

-That's good to hear, if it was helpful.

-If you need anything, feel free to contact me.

I checked the letter from Princess Lyluel. The recommendation letter was already given to Lac, and this was just casual talk.

-And, Professor.

-Ayla's letters have been scarce lately. It would be nice if you could hint to her to send letters regularly, not necessarily often, but periodically.

I smiled involuntarily when I read the reply. After all, even when she was in the castle, Princess Lyluel often asked about Ayla.

How is that child doing?

Is there any male student getting close to Ayla?

That was what she asked whenever she was bored. I smiled inwardly.

‘You really are something.’

No matter what, she seemed to care for Ayla a lot.

‘Even though she vehemently denies it.’

Why, are you worried?

I sent a letter jokingly, and soon a long reply came back.

-......You have a mocking tone, Professor.

-It is natural for me to worry about Ayla. It is necessary. It can even be seen as an extension of my duties. You should know......

I smiled bitterly as I read the letter that filled a page. In the end, it was a letter that could be summarized with the two words 'strong denial' and 'circumlocution'.

“Is that so.”

I touched the letter and turned my head to the side. There was someone sitting next to me. She had the same platinum hair and golden eyes as the princess who sent the letter.

“Ugh......”

The Fourth Princess, Ayla.

She was covering her face with both palms. Upon closer inspection, her ears were tinged red.

“She says to send letters more often.”

“......I'm sorry.”

“What are you sorry for? You have a good sister.”

Her ears turned a little redder.

Then, as if her patience had finally run out, Ayla turned her head to look at me.

“P-Professor. My sister really, that......”

As if she couldn't bring herself to say it out loud, she pointed to the letter in front of me. More accurately, to the unnecessarily detailed lines written on the letter.

-I need to hear about that child's academic life in detail. Do you think it's overprotective? Not at all. This is a purely necessary and professional request......

While Princess Lyluel might have written it with a sense of grandeur, from a third party's perspective, or from the perspective of the subject of the letter, it was just embarrassing.

“......Like that.”

Ayla asked with difficulty.

“She did that much?”

“Yes.”

“......Really?”

I nodded lightly.

“It's even more than that. She didn't do less.”

“That's strange, she was such a great sister......”

Ayla sighed, clearly unable to understand. It seemed that in her mind, Princess Lyluel was a bit different.

“Well, she must have her reasons.”

I muttered this and folded the letter.

I never intended to show Ayla the letter. It was just that Ayla happened to come to me to ask about what happened on the royal road......

‘It must have been because Princess Lyluel sent the letter at that time.’

When the letter in my pocket glowed, Ayla asked, “What is that, Professor?” I just showed her the letter in response to her question.

‘What’s the problem with showing it because she asked?’

Ayla, who was sitting in the guest seat and eating a snack, sighed deeply.

“......Still, it's a relief that nothing happened.”

“It wasn't a big problem.”

I nodded in agreement.

In fact, I didn't tell Ayla everything that happened at the palace. I mixed in some lies.

‘There's no need to tell her everything.’

Princess Lyluel wouldn't want that either.

She wanted Ayla to graduate from Aphria 'normally' and return to the castle.

I didn't intend to undermine her efforts to protect Ayla's daily life by stirring things up in the castle.

‘Still......’

My eyes turned to Ayla.

Her face was bright. It was a different face from when we met in the castle.

A bright, worry-free face.

The face Princess Lyluel had always wished for.

Seeing that face, a smile naturally appeared on my lips. I thought her efforts weren't in vain.

‘So, I can do this much for her.’

I waved the letter and said to Ayla.

“It would be good to send letters to the First Princess more often.”

“......I will.”

I'm sure I sent one yesterday.

As Ayla muttered this, I took out a document envelope from the bookshelf.

“What is that, Professor?”

“It's a reason for the field study.”

“Are we going on a field study?”

I shook my head.

“I recently sent a student for on-site study. Dean Aaron asked me to write a reason for it.”

It was a type of document that asked why I allowed the field study or what the reason was for designing such a study.

‘At first, she was furious.’

Still, the permission was granted because Lac was a student of the Combat Magic Department, and the training ground was more like a 'squire training camp' rather than a battlefield.

‘Even so, it was a tough process, but whatever.’

As I was about to pick up the quill to write the document, Ayla, who had been glaring at me, spoke.

“By the way, is the student who went on the field study Lac?”

The quill stopped in mid-air.

The document was still blank. I slowly turned my head to look at Ayla.

“If it's Lord Lac.”

Her golden eyes were shining.

The stars embedded in the gold were twinkling.

“When he returns, the top student of the Combat Magic Department might change.”

“......What do you mean by that?”

“I don't know. It just feels that way.”

She tilted her head and smiled.

Her appearance was more like a prophet reciting a star's prophecy than a mere student.

3.

Squire Training Camp.

Lac spent one night there and was facing the second morning. He slept in a hard barracks, but his back didn't hurt.

“Grun.”

Stretching, he stepped out of the barracks.

It was still early morning, and the camp was