Chapter 276: Academy Excursion (2)

The Evil God Nephid would resurrect during the end-of-semester evaluation of Semester 2 Year 3.

Having already dealt with Mephisto’s army and the Abyss, which were supposed to be in Semester 1 Year 3, it could be said that this journey was entering its final stages.

“Ughhhhhh....”

During Semester 2 Year 2, the events to pay attention to were the excursion program and the Academy Clash. An important figure would come during the excursion program, and the「Fairy War」would break out during the Academy Clash.

“Ugh, aaack...”

Once I obtained the second 8-star familiar contract circle, I had to make a contract with Stone Turtle Gormos.

When I initially organized my plans, it seemed like I still had a long way to go, but I could feel the end approaching.

“Haaaa...”

White’s mana, which was intertwining with mine, suddenly subsided. Exhausted, White was about to collapse like a corpse.

I quickly withdrew my mana and supported White’s back.

“Are you okay?”

“I-I feel like I’m going to dieee...” White whimpered in a hoarse voice, clearly overwhelmed.

For emergency treatment, I took out a pudding bar and tore open the wrapper with my teeth. First, I extended the bouncy pudding bar sideways.

Swoosh!

Merlin swiftly passed by at an incredible speed. The wind roared. In an instant, a third of the pudding bar was gone.

“Open your mouth.”

“Ah...”

When White opened her mouth, I shoved the pudding bar in. Her expression melted as she savored the pudding.

We go through this process at the end of every mentoring session. It was like training mana circulation using a magic tool.

However, since my mana constantly re-established routes, White had to face a new circulation route every time she completed one cycle.

As expected, White always struggled and whimpered, but by the end of the mentoring session, she felt her skills had improved and was satisfied.

After White finished eating the pudding bar, we headed back to the dorms. Dusk had already fallen, and the streetlights were illuminating the path.

“You did great, Princess White. I can support you if you want.”

“It’s fine, Merlin... I can’t ask for help with something like this...!”

White walked with her staff, weakly grumbling.

Seeing the seventeen-year-old struggling reminded me of myself last year.

Even while crying, she tried to handle everything on her own, which was admirable.

But, it was time to reduce seeing such a sight.

“White.”

“Yeees...?”

“Starting tomorrow, we won’t have much time for training.”

“What?”

“I will only help you with mana circulation like earlier.”

White stopped, and Merlin and I followed suit.

“W-why all of a sudden...?”

It was time for White to be independent.

I just needed to make sure she was training well and got the opportunity to interact with her mana.

“You’ve got the hang of it now, right? Continually teaching you every step as we’ve been doing is harmful to you.”

The mentoring quota had already been exceeded, and White knew it as well.

She looked like a baby bird, feeling afraid to leave its mother for the first time to fly on its own.

I stood in front of White.

Is it because of what happened two days ago?

She seemed like a typical adolescent girl.

Next to her stood a gentle-looking girl with long, sleek black hair, exuding a mysterious aura.

Miya

Lv: 167

Race: Human

Elements: Fire

Danger: X

The true Priestess. Her talent in magic was not just exceptional, but overwhelming.

With each step she took, her black pearl-like hair swayed, revealing her golden earrings. Her appearance and movements exuded an intense intellectual impression.

Miya glanced at me and gave a bright smile. It felt like a fresh floral breeze was flowing around her.

The Class A students were visibly surprised to see Miya among the two exchange students.

“This one is Taryn Bartin and the other is Miya. I’m sure you all remember the incident during the Grand Festival last semester. This girl has nothing to do with that incident. They look identical because they are twin sisters.”

“They look exactly the same...”

Surprisingly, Ciel wasn’t sleeping and muttered to herself.

Is her rehabilitation not done yet?

When Miya entered the classroom, I noticed the slight awkwardness in her otherwise graceful steps. It seemed she hadn’t fully recovered enough to move smoothly yet.

“Then, you two can sit wherever you feel comfortable.”

With only five people in the classroom, there were plenty of empty seats.

After bowing to Professor Philip, Miya and Taryn climbed the steps to find their seats.

Taryn glanced at me and sat nearby, too shy to sit right next to me.

But Miya was different.

“Hello, it’s nice to meet you.”

“Hmm?”

“May I sit here?”

Without hesitation, Miya approached me and greeted me in a gentle voice.

“Sure, I don’t mind.”

“Hehe.”

She then sat down next to me with a graceful gesture.

Silence filled the classroom. Kaya looked surprised, Ciel had a curious expression, Lisetta frowned, and Taryn stared at Miya in bewilderment.

Of all the empty seats, she chose to sit next to me.

I had noticed from the beginning that the seat next to me had become an unspoken no-go zone due to the invisible power struggle between the top seat Luce and the second seat Kaya. Miya intentionally ignored this and sat next to me.

Luce’s gaze slowly turned towards us. Her lifeless blue eyes ominously fixed on Miya.

The classroom was filled with a tense atmosphere, enough to make even me feel uneasy. It was a silent pressure for Miya to move to another seat.

However, Miya just smiled brightly. The radiance from her seemed to dispel Luce’s oppressive aura.

The source of this radiance was her innocence, stemming from her lack of common sense.

Although she had been betrayed by her trusted sister Mei, Miya had spent years wandering in dreams, unable to experience the world fully. The purity of her childhood had not yet faded.

The current Priestess was immune to Luce’s hostility, completely unaware of the tension.

“Uhm... let’s start the class.”

As the atmosphere in the classroom suddenly changed, Professor Philip broke out in a cold sweat.