Eperna has no friends.
The closest person she could consider a friend of similar age was Cyan Lemea.
However, she was older than Epherna and had long since graduated from the Academy.
In other words, aside from Ern, there was no one at the Academy whom Epherna could call a friend.
‘Is Mister probably teaching right now?’
Epherna thought while resting her chin on her hand.
Although it was class time, she had already reviewed the material and figured she didn’t really need to attend.
‘Mister must be in class too.’
Ern was known for being a good teacher.
He was likely conducting the class without any issues.
Even if questions came up, he would answer them skillfully, and after the class, he would be surrounded by students asking him more questions.
Hah—
‘It’s annoying.’
He was once someone who only focused on her and taught her alone.
The thought of him teaching others and being surrounded by other women made her blood boil.
She wanted to go find him immediately and claim him as her own in front of everyone, but due to his request to keep a distance, she couldn’t.
Her patience was wearing thin.
*****
After school, in the Lurun Academy Student Council Room.
The members of the Student Council attend meetings instead of club activities. Today was one of their regular meeting days.
“Leon, thank you for yesterday. Thanks to you, we were able to leave a good impression on the First Princess.”
“Thank you.”
“Did the princess express any intention to visit again?”
“She mentioned that she would come back later.”
Emeldia, the Student Council President, was the eldest daughter of Marquis Blossom.
She was the youngest daughter of the highest family except for the dukes, and there was no student of higher status than her in the current academy.
Except for one person, Epherna Grandeum.
“Did the princess show any particular interest in anything? Anything at all.”
“The princess said she doesn’t dislike schemers. In fact, she prefers them.”
“Our surveillance that we placed beforehand was obviously noticed, right?”
“…It seems so.”
“That’s alright. It was just a matter of course.”
Emeldia gave a kind smile.
“There should be no events that harm the Academy in the next year for the princess.”
Emeldia warned the entire Student Council.
Such a statement from her was somewhat risky. If the Blossom family hadn’t proven their loyalty to the royal family for centuries, it might have raised suspicions that Emeldia Blossom had chosen her allegiance.
Fortunately, Emeldia was known as a loyalist of the royal family, so everyone nodded in agreement.
“It seems like she has arrived.”
Creeeak—
At that moment, everyone tensed and straightened up.
Most of the students had seen Epherna Grandeum before, but it was merely seeing her from afar.
The tension of seeing such a great person up close, along with the natural pride that arose, made their shoulders tense.
*****
Epherna thought about the serious atmosphere of the Student Council.
‘The atmosphere here could put a national assembly to shame.’
She had to stifle a laugh.
It was quite amusing to see teenagers younger than or the same age as her trying to look dignified.
“Hello, Princess.”
Looking at the Student Council President, who was trying to lighten the mood, she thought.
‘You’re working hard.’
Although most of the students probably didn’t notice, Emeldia was a bit flustered by the students’ unexpected reactions.
It was good to have pride in the student council, but turning that pride into arrogance was not ideal.
Since the majority of the student council exhibited such behavior, Emeldia felt a mix of embarrassment and frustration.
Epherna spoke up just as she had with Leon the other day.
She had come out of curiosity and was interested in what the student council did.
As she spoke to the Student Council President and other members, their expressions quickly brightened.
She was one of the very few students who had spoken to the princess.
Such thoughts were clear to Epherna.
‘Ah… why is this so amusing?’
Was it really this easy to manipulate emotions?
While it was difficult to maneuver those in important national positions like the Minister of Finance, she could easily see what the student council members were thinking and what they wanted.
‘Was this how Mister felt when he looked at me when I was 15?’
A child with puffed-up shoulders. It was bad enough when only the shoulders were puffed up, but some of them even had their bellies full of air.
Epherna found it so amusing to see them puffing up their imaginations as if they were already high-ranking officials that she could barely control her expression.
‘I should leave for today.’
She had seen everything she needed to and had done everything she had planned.
She felt like she might burst out laughing if she stayed any longer, so Epherna gave a warm smile and left the Student Council room.
*****
As Epherna chatted with the members of the student council, she gathered some useful information.
There was a new club at the Academy that has recently won an award, and it’s called the Harmony of Magic and Alchemy.
At first glance, it seemed like a normal name, but apparently, the club president had been behaving strangely lately.
The club, which focused on alchemy as suggested by its name, had been purchasing a lot of alchemical ingredients recently. They had bought so many unusual and expensive materials that it was causing issues with the student council’s budget.
Recalling Ern’s recent involvement with aphrodisiac magic, Epherna decided to visit the club room.
“Is this the place?”
Upon opening the door, she saw various flasks and unknown alchemy ingredients.
There was no one inside.
Since it was club time, they were likely either out or had gone to fetch something.
Epherna glanced at the materials, trying to figure out what could be made from them.
Although she hadn’t formally studied alchemy, she had read many books and had acquired basic knowledge.
She could make educated guesses about the possible directions of their experiments, even if she didn’t know exactly what they were making.
Crash—!
The sound of something breaking startled her.
Turning toward the entrance, she saw a mint-haired girl, who looked like an ordinary noble young lady, with a frightened expression.
Epherna noticed the broken glass tubes on the floor.
Since leaving them as they were would be dangerous, she was about to instruct someone to clean them up.
“Helpppppppppppppp! We’re screweddddddddd!”
The mint-haired girl left in a full sprint, leaving behind the broken glass.
Epherna was stunned by the unexpected turn of events.
The mint-haired girl soon returned with a black-haired girl.
“Hello, Princess.”
The black-haired girl appeared quite calm, unlike the mint-haired girl, and seemed open to conversation.
“May I ask why you’ve come to our club…?”
But she too was hiding an inexplicable fear in her heart.
Epherna prodded gently.
“I came to check if this is the club I was thinking of.”
The black-haired girl’s eyes shook violently. Unfortunate for her, she was unable to lie due to her evident unease.
She had probably already realized that Epherna had come with certainty.
“…Well, the thing is.”
“Go ahead. Tell me.”
Epherna was even questioning if she was correct.
She had expected this but found it surprisingly fragile.
Though they were in the wrong, she felt an odd sense of apology.
“…We made a mistake.”
“What mistake did you make?”
“We used aphrodisiac magic on Sir Astra… I mean, on the Professor.”
“I see. Why did you do that?”
“Just… wanted… to see what kind of reaction would occur…”
“You’ve been reading too many novels. Because of you, I haven’t been able to speak a word to Professor Astra for days. Did you know that?”
“…Sorry? I didn’t know…”
“Please be more careful in the future.”
“Yes…”
“This time, I’ll let it slide as a warning, but there won’t be a next time. Even minor issues won’t be overlooked.”
“I’ll be careful!”
The black-haired girl bowed at a 90-degree angle and apologized profusely before finally lifting her head.
Epherna sighed with a sense of emptiness.
She felt she had overestimated the Student Council and the club.
The academy was originally a place for students younger than her to gain experience.
Unlike other nobles who had decades of experiences, these students had almost none, and the most they did was feel a sense of superiority based on their grades compared to other students.
To Epherna, it all seemed rather futile.
‘Experiencing a lack of experience at an Academy that is supposed to provide experience.’
Despite her young age, she felt continually disappointed.
However, Epherna didn’t realize something.
“By the way, how did you create aphrodisiac magic?”
“Are you interested…?”
Students at this age lack experience.
On the other hand, their creativity is limitless.
“The idea of mixing magic and alchemy is common, but it’s quite intriguing to see how you realized aphrodisiac magic.”
Aphrodisiacs typically refer to substances that enhance sexual desire. They are different from hypnotic magic, which affects the mind.
So, the idea of aphrodisiac magic is intriguing.
It implies that the effects of a drug are being recreated through magic. Epherna was curious about the detailed process and wanted to see how it was done.
“Your Highness, why don’t you join our club?”
Joining the club, huh.
If she joined, would she be able to learn about aphrodisiac magic?
If that’s the case, it might be worth considering.
