“This! This is absolutely unbelievable!!”

The window had shattered into pieces from the explosion, and black scorch marks marred the walls and ceiling. Amid the chaotic scene, Dean Raymond paced the room, unable to contain his excitement.

“Drawing mana directly from the air… this was thought to be only theoretically possible!”

His focus was entirely on the spell I’d just cast.

“Lunaris, this is an academic revolution! Even the haughty folks at the Magic Tower would flip if they saw this!”

I stared blankly at the dean’s fervor, clutching my blanket tightly. Seriously, what’s the big deal?

“When I used telekinesis to compress the space, it lost any magical significance. It’s basically downgrading high-tier magic to mid-tier.”

“What matters is that this is the first real case of utilizing natural mana!”

Dean Raymond strode toward me, proposing in a high-pitched voice, “How about it? I’ll help you turn this into a research paper. This needs to be documented!”

“…Too much hassle. I’m not really interested.”

I burrowed deeper into my blanket. I’m the Linea Hall snail now.

“Then come with me to the Magic Tower! Those who’ve belittled my teaching will get a real shock… I mean, burying a discovery like this would be a loss to academia!”

Whoa, did his true intentions just slip out?

Not that I care about his motives.

“Academic loss? My sleep loss is the real tragedy.”

“Aaagh!!”

Dean Raymond clutched his head, letting out a dramatic wail. He seemed so charismatic during my entrance interview, but in less than a month, his image has completely tanked. Watching him, I felt a strange pang of pity.

Then, his eyes suddenly gleamed, as if struck by a brilliant idea.

“Oh, right! There’s the Magic Exchange next Monday!”

I poked my head out from the blanket, eyeing him curiously.

“Magic Exchange? What’s that?”

“…You’re supposed to know about it! It was definitely announced during the practical magic class.”

I shook my head calmly at his shocked expression.

“I didn’t attend that class, so I missed the announcement.”

“Another unexcused absence? Lunaris, you need to take attendance seriously…”

“Nope. I’m exempt from that class for the entire semester.”

His face stiffened.

“Who in the world exempted you from an entire semester?!”

I shrugged lightly at his raised voice.

“I blew up the practice wing’s wall during a magic demonstration, and they told me not to come back.”

A slight exaggeration, but not entirely untrue.

“Well… teaching an already accomplished advanced mage like you with the standard curriculum doesn’t make much sense.”

Dean Raymond looked at me incredulously before shaking his head in resignation.

“Wait. You’re not exempt from the morning theory classes too, are you?”

“Nope.”

I yawned widely, waving my hand dismissively.

“I missed this week for external activities.”

“That’s a relief. Anyway.”

Dean Raymond let out a short sigh, then fixed me with a firm gaze and said, “You must attend the Magic Exchange class next Monday. And show everyone the natural mana spell you just used.”

“…Do I have to?”

Honestly, I wasn’t thrilled.

You know how being pushed to do something makes you want to do it even less? That’s me right now.

“They said I’d get full marks for practicals even if I skip class…”

“The Magic Exchange affects both theory and practical grades.”

“Still, practicals probably weigh more, right?”

I’m fine with tossing out minor points.

Frustrated by my lukewarm response, the dean finally dangled a carrot.

“If you participate diligently in the Magic Exchange next week, I’ll excuse you from my class for a week.”

Oh, now that’s tempting.

See, this is the kind of offer that makes me want to sit at the negotiation table.

“One week’s a bit stingy… yawn…”

The desperate one here isn’t me—it’s him.

I grinned and continued, “Make it two weeks—next week and the one after. Then I’ll consider it.”

“Lunaris! Do you know how many people would haul carriages full of gold just to get my one-on-one tutoring?!”

Dean Raymond pounded his chest in frustration.

“Why are you…!”

“Take it or leave it.”

I let out an exaggerated yawn.

“I’m not the one losing out.”

With that, I pulled the blanket over my head. Negotiations over.

After a brief silence, a weary voice came through the blanket.

“…Fine. I’ll excuse you for next week and the week after.”

Now do you see who’s in charge?

I poked my head out, smirking. Turning to him, I saw the dean staring at me, utterly drained.

Avoiding his gaze with a cheeky giggle, I suddenly realized something important.

I still don’t know what this “Magic Exchange” is.

“So, what exactly is the Magic Exchange?”

With a long sigh, Dean Raymond began to explain.

“The Magic Exchange is…”

*

“Too much has happened… I’m exhausted, seriously…”

After dismissing the maids and escorts, Princess Celestina collapsed onto her bed without even changing. It wasn’t exactly princess-like, but who cares? No one’s watching. More importantly, she didn’t have the energy to bother with appearances.

The third week of Elterion Academy’s schedule was nearing its end. Each day dragged on, yet looking back, time seemed to have flown by in a blur.

One thing she’d realized was that the academy was essentially a miniature version of the imperial palace.

Given her status, she inevitably spent a lot of time with students from the political science department—children of high-ranking noble families. Every conversation with them felt suffocating.

They were, as expected of those raised with elite education, polished yet sharp. On the surface, they showed her the utmost courtesy as a princess, but every word carried a subtle edge.

Everyone knew.

She was the weakest of the imperial family.

Her coming to Elterion Academy was, in essence, an escape.

Especially when facing Miriel Adrian, the top second-year student in the political science department, she could barely breathe. The Adrian dukedom had already publicly declared support for the second prince. To Celestina, Miriel was practically an enemy.

She desperately wanted to avoid her, but openly dodging wasn’t an option.

This was, in a way, a battle of wills.

The first to flinch or back down would lose.

Miriel, well aware of this, invited Celestina to tea parties or salons under every pretext imaginable.

For the political science curriculum.

To maintain her grades.

To repay a great debt to the princess.

All honeyed words, but the intent was clear.

Celestina wasn’t naive—she knew it was all to subtly restrict her sphere of influence.

“I’m so glad I didn’t go to the political science department…”

Joining the magic department was a stroke of genius, she thought with a faint smile.

She wasn’t particularly gifted in magic—slightly above average at best. Without her imperial background, she might not have even made it into the magic department.

Still, she had no regrets.

During magic classes, she could briefly forget her status and immerse herself in the joy of learning as just another academy student.

“Since I’m at the academy, I should focus on learning like a proper student.”

Making a small resolve, she checked her schedule for the next week and frowned.

Monday had the Magic Exchange.

“Of all days, Monday…”

The Magic Exchange.

A significant practical exercise where magic department students face off against magical engineering students.

The format pitted second-year magic students against first-year magical engineering students, and second-year magical engineering students against first-year magic students.

For first-year magic students, it was a chance to gain real combat experience against a unique opponent.

For second-year magic students, it taught the concept of “guidance.”

As for the magical engineering department? Often treated as the second-tier group, they were essentially props for the magic department’s learning and performance.

The key point was that this event was, in a sense, a team competition between the magic and magical engineering departments. Naturally, seating was divided by department.

Meaning she couldn’t sit next to Lunaris, who was in magical engineering.

“Is it really this hard to arrange a natural meeting?”

Thinking about it, Lunaris was one reason her academy life kept getting tangled.

She crossed paths with students she didn’t want to see, yet kept missing the one person she did want to meet.

“Is she… avoiding me on purpose?”

Muttering to herself, she quickly shook her head.

No point in feeding her own anxieties.

“Let’s be more proactive this time.”

Lunaris was sure to shine brighter than anyone at the Magic Exchange.

After the practical, she’d approach naturally, praise her with, “That was amazing magic,” and strike up a conversation.

A flawless plan.

Just one thing nagged at her.

“She… wouldn’t skip the Magic Exchange too, would she?”

She’d gone as far as dipping into her personal funds to arm the Linea Hall maids to prevent such a scenario.

Still, she couldn’t shake the lingering unease.

*

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