"Good morning."

The next morning, I briefly stopped by the student council room.

I didn't have any particular business there, but it was my habit to visit once every morning.

"Ah... Rudy Astria..."

Astina greeted me. However, she wasn't the only one in the student council room. A silver-haired girl stood before Astina.

"Hello."

The girl slightly bowed her head in greeting to me.

"Ah, yes."

I returned the gesture with a slight nod of my own, and Astina began to speak.

"This is Yeniel, who transferred to the Swordsmanship Department today."

Yeniel... It seems the midterm camp is about to begin.

The story starts with the arrival of transfer student Yeniel.

The Rebels.

The Rebels were a group of individuals united against the corrupt nobles.

They sought to overthrow the emperor and his nobles to create a new world.

They were already moving outside the academy, though their actions had not yet caught the public's attention.

However, that did not mean they were idle. The first event that would bring their existence to light would occur during the midterm camp.

They planned something within the midterm camp—a declaration of war against the nobles' leader and the emperor.

This involved the assassination of the Astria family's second son, me, and Rie Von Ristonia, the first in line for the imperial throne.

This event would mark the beginning of the main story, where Evan would become involved with Rie and Yeniel, and the world's greater currents would start to shift.

"The class will start soon. You know where the classroom is, right?"

"Yes, I'll be on my way now."

Yeniel bid Astina farewell and left the room. Astina then turned her gaze to me.

"You should go too. There's nothing for you to do here."

She said there was nothing to do, but there was a massive stack of documents piled on her desk.

It was probably work I couldn't do, so she said there was nothing. I looked at Astina with sympathy and opened my mouth.

"Take it easy. Don't overwork yourself."

"Hehe... I'd love to rest, but I have to finish my work first."

Astina laughed, but her words held a hint of bitterness. I glanced at her for a moment, then realized it was time to head to the classroom.

"Rudy Astria."

Astina called out to me as I was about to leave.

"And by the way, are you going to continue?"

"…Pardon me?"

Continue?

"The student council."

"…?"

"What's with that clueless expression?"

"Wasn't our agreement until the end of the midterm camp?"

Isn't that obvious?

Even though I know Astina is currently swamped with paperwork, there's no particular reason for me to continue being on the student council.

Once the midterm camp is over, the proper storyline will progress, and I won't have the time to devote to the student council.

I need to focus on my studies and improving my magic skills.

"We've already formed an alliance, so is there really a need for me to be on the student council?"

"You need to work. On student council matters."

"Aren't there plenty of others who would love to do it?"

There are countless students who would jump at the chance to be on the student council, shedding tears of joy.

So, why do I have to do it?

"Those kids are difficult for me to manage. And among those who want to do this kind of work, are there any normal ones? It's the ones who don't want to do it that do it well."

I glared at Astina as she spoke.

"Then, what about Locke? You can just boss him around."

"He's no fun."

So, am I fun…?

Astina casually crossed her legs as she leaned back in her chair.

"Well, if you're going to be like that, I have no choice but to force you."

"Force me?"

Force me to continue being on the student council?

"I helped you out in the library, remember? You can repay that debt by extending our agreement."

"…So that's how you're going to play it."

Of course, I knew I owed Astina a debt.

I had thought I would be able to repay it later, but I didn't expect her to bring it up like this.

"Trust is important in an alliance, you know?"

Astina said with a sinister smile.

"Can't you accept something else as repayment?"

"Nope."

"I'm really busy."

"So am I. Cut back on sleep."

Astina grinned, acting like a wicked supervisor. What should I do…?

I contemplated for a moment.

The best solution would be for me to help Astina in return.

Then Astina would owe me, and there would be no need for me to repay my debt.

However, the problem was whether such an opportunity would arise.

Many things happen during the midterm camp, but it wouldn't mean anything if I were the one to resolve them.

After all, it's Evan who needs to handle those situations and grow from them.

I glanced at the clock.

The start of class was drawing near.

This discussion won't end anytime soon, so I decided it was best to head to class.

"…Let's discuss this matter later. We'll renegotiate after the midterm camp."

"Fine, think about it carefully. See if there's any way you can avoid doing it."

I left the room with Astina waving her hand and smiling behind me.

After school.

"Phew..."

Rie was sitting at her desk, reading a book, while I practiced dark magic.

Now, even when I suffered from the backlash, Rie continued doing her own thing, only checking on me when I seemed to be particularly struggling.

At least today was better than yesterday.

Yesterday, I faced backlash every time I attempted to cast a spell.

But today, I had managed to cast a few spells successfully.

The problem was that they weren't complete spells - I had only used them with less mana, resulting in an incomplete casting.

"Once more..."

As I tried to cast the spell again, Rie spoke up.

"Hey."

She looked at me with a pitiful expression.

"Do you really want to learn dark magic that badly?"

Rie closed her book and stared at me directly.

"Honestly, if you've reached the level of intermediate magic at this point, you could learn any intermediate spell faster than others. But why are you so fixated on dark magic?"

"..."

Rie had a point.

I could have learned other types of magic by now and achieved great results.

However, whether I would be able to survive in the academy by learning other magic was a different question.

Could I fend off every threat that came my way?

Could I adapt to every situation, even if the story had changed?

I didn't think so.

In that case, I had to endure this pain and draw out my potential.

Though I already possessed outstanding abilities, I had to bear this to acquire even greater ones.

"I need to learn it to survive."

"To survive?"

Rie's expression turned sour.

I truly meant to survive, but it seemed Rie interpreted it as surviving in politics or within the Astria family.

"Sigh... Fine, do as you please. By the way, do you even know anything about Professor Robert?"

"Professor Robert?"

I wondered why she suddenly brought up Professor Robert.

"Isn't he the only dark magic professor at the academy? And from a commoner background..."

"He is the only dark magic professor, but he's not from a commoner background."

I furrowed my brow at Rie's words.

"What do you mean, he's not from a commoner background? Then why doesn't he have a title?"

It was a bit odd.

Even if he was a professor specializing in dark magic, he was still an exceptional wizard.

Usually, someone like him would at least be granted a noble title, even if they didn't possess any lands.

But that wasn't the case for Professor Robert.

"Professor Robert was originally a wizard from a noble family with land."

Rie continued her explanation at a measured pace.

"However, he offered his own son as a sacrifice to save himself. Because of that, the empire stripped him of his territory and noble title."

"…His son?"

He offered his own son as a sacrifice?

"Isn't that just a rumor?"

Professor Robert didn't seem like that kind of person.

Judging by how well he got along with Professor Cromwell, he didn't appear to be a bad person.

"Are you suggesting my information is on the same level as mere gossip?"

Rie spoke as if she were offended.

Her words held true.

Although she was currently attending the academy like an ordinary student, she was, after all, the Empire's First Princess.

Her information was far beyond mere rumors.

If such a rumor existed, I should have discovered it while investigating Professor Robert.

However, I hadn't found any such rumors.

In other words, Rie's information was high-level intelligence, not just ordinary gossip.

"Think carefully. About learning dark magic and becoming Professor Robert's apprentice."

A few days later, during lunchtime.

"By now, he must have learned it," mused Robert, reclined on a garden bench, gazing up at the cloudless sky.

The warm sunlight bathed his face, casting a gentle glow.

He contemplated Rudy Astria as he lay there.

The young man's talent was undoubtedly extraordinary, so much so that Robert, a professor, desired him as his disciple.

However, that was all.

Dark magic was not ordinary magic.

It was a magic learned by chiseling away at one's bones and burning one's flesh.

It was not a magic befitting a young master like Rudy.

There was even a saying that dark magic was a magic learned by those without talent.

Those who could not bridge the gap in talent with others resorted to sacrificing their own bodies to make up for it.

Rudy Astria had no need for such measures.

Exceptional talent.

An illustrious family.

Aside from his social skills, there was nothing lacking.

Thus, there was no reason for him to endure the pain of learning dark magic.

That was why Robert had made the proposal.

In truth, Robert could have taught him Abyssal Flame in just one day.

He possessed the necessary techniques and tricks.

However, he deliberately refrained from doing so.

Rudy Astria must have felt it - the immense pain that accompanied learning dark magic.

Robert made this proposal to let him feel that.

For someone of Rudy Astria's caliber, learning basic dark magic was only a matter of time.

He would master it in the blink of an eye.

However, he would also realize there was no need to endure such pain to learn this magic.

Moreover, Robert had heard that lately, Rudy Astria had been getting close to Princess Rie.

"In that case, he's even less likely to come," he thought.

Most people at the academy were unaware of Robert's past.

Cromwell knew, having grown up with him, but apart from the headmaster and Cromwell, nobody knew.

Yet, Princess Rie might.

It was an incident that most people didn't care to dig into, but if she wanted to find out, she could easily do so.

-Ah... Dad?

Memories of the past suddenly surfaced, and Robert furrowed his brow.

"Ah~ the weather is bloody lovely," he muttered.

"Why would you say it's bloody when the weather is nice?" a voice asked.

"Damn! You startled me!" Robert looked in the direction of the voice.

"Hey, make some noise when you approach. You're not an assassin or anything..." he grumbled.

It was Rudy Astria, standing there with a book in hand.

"I simply walked up normally. I couldn't exactly sprint toward you while shouting your name, now could I, Professor Robert?" Rudy said calmly.

Robert glanced at Rudy for a moment, sighed, and got to the point. "Alright, enough of that. What do you want?"

"I've learned Abyssal Flame," Rudy announced confidently.

"Alright, and so what?" Robert retorted.

"What do you mean?"

Professor Robert was baffled by Rudy's statement.

He had assumed that Rudy would, of course, refuse to learn dark magic.

"Didn't you say you would teach me dark magic?"

"…What?"

Robert looked at Rudy with a dumbfounded expression.

"Ah, do I need to show you?"

With that, Rudy Astria looked at his own hand.

"Abyssal Flame."

As Rudy's mana flowed, a black flame sprouted from his hand.

It was the basics of dark magic, the Abyssal Flame.

It had been cast precisely, with no backlash, and the size of the magic was just right.

"Is this sufficient?"

Robert stared at the magic.

It didn't feel like Rudy had succeeded only once or twice.

Amateur magic had a certain quality, but this spell seemed to have been honed and practiced numerous times.

"Did someone teach you about dark magic?"

"…? Is there someone who could teach me dark magic?"

Rudy responded to Professor Robert's question with another question.

He had a point.

There were a few individuals at the Academy who knew how to use dark magic, but they were not ones Rudy Astria would know.

If Rudy had learned it alone and was using it so proficiently, then…

"When did you first use it?"

"Perhaps… two or three days ago. I could use it, but it seemed a bit clumsy, so I practiced a bit before coming."

"Ha…!"

Professor Robert was astonished.

While he had expected Rudy to learn quickly, he hadn't imagined that he would practice on his own.

What kind of resolve drove this young man?

"Good grief."

Robert rose from his seat and walked forward.

As Rudy watched him with a puzzled expression, Professor Robert briefly turned his head.

"What are you doing? Let's go eat."

"What about the dark magic?"

"What do you mean, 'what about'? You asked to learn, so I'll teach you."

At Robert's words, a faint smile formed on Rudy's lips. He followed and spoke up.

"Shall we go to that restaurant we visited last time?"

Hearing that, Professor Robert looked at Rudy Astria and laughed incredulously.

He liked the food that other professors and students wouldn't even bring near their mouths.

And he wanted to learn dark magic from Robert.

"…You're truly an enigma."

"I've been hearing that a lot lately. They say I'm an unpredictable guy."

***

Thats 3/4!

Enjoy the chappy!