Chapter 52 : I’m just following orders!
The lunch bell’s chime echoed over St. Freya Academy, signaling a brief respite.
Sunlight streamed through arched windows, casting warm patches in the library’s corner, where dust danced lazily in the beams.
“No, no! Precision control!” Aurora groaned, exasperated, jabbing at a textbook’s intricate magic circle diagram. “Look here—mana output needs to be needle-fine, steady, piercing gently, guiding it along the pattern… not like you’re spraying a fire hose!”
Their assignment, Fundamentals of Mana Control, required students to ignite a small flame with their mana and trace the “Whisper of the Wind” rune in the air with perfect accuracy.
Ailiya sat rigid, her round eyes locked on the rice-grain-sized flame flickering at her fingertip. Needle… gentle… pierce…
She took a deep breath, coaxing her meager mana to guide the flame into the rune’s first stroke. But as she tried to thin the flow, the flame hiccuped, flaring wildly.
“Wah!” Ailiya yelped, hand trembling, losing control. The tiny spark surged half a foot high, a rogue fire snake lunging at her bangs!
“My hair!” she shrieked, frantically reaching to swat the singeing strands.
“Idiot! Don’t use your hands!” Aurora panicked, about to cast a spell.
A frosty breeze, laced with white frost, swept over Ailiya’s forehead, snuffing the flame instantly, leaving only a wisp of smoke.
Ailiya and Aurora froze, turning in unison.
Liliane von Winter stood behind them, violet eyes brimming with exasperation. “Playing with fire in the library? Trying to turn it into a book roaster?”
Her voice was cool, tinged with faint fatigue.
“Lady Liliane!” Aurora’s eyes sparkled, her panic morphing into fangirl fervor. “That ‘Frost Breath’ was textbook-perfect! So cool!”
Ailiya, still shaken, touched her nearly sacrificed bangs and stood, bowing. “Thank you, Lady Liliane…”
Liliane ignored Aurora’s praise, studying Ailiya silently before speaking. “Are you two free later?”
“Free! Super free! Absolutely free!” Aurora answered instantly, nodding like a bobblehead.
That was too quick! Ailiya stared at her shameless friend.
Liliane’s gaze shifted to Ailiya. “And you?”
Ailiya raised a hand timidly. “Um… do I have a choice?”
Liliane’s lips curved into a faint, formal smile. “Of course. I always respect your rights, Ailiya.”
Ailiya eyed her cold smile. …No choice, got it.
Liliane’s private room, in the academy’s main building, required passing a white jade corridor off-limits to most students.
Aurora stepped onto it like a country kid in the city, gawking and sniffing dramatically. “Ah~ Lady Liliane’s daily path… even the air smells noble and crisp…”
“You’re so creepy,” Ailiya muttered.
The heavy oak door, carved with a winter rose crest, opened to a space less like a dorm and more like a luxury suite. Soft wool carpets, vast windows, a velvet bed that screamed comfort. A shower room stood to one side, and near the entrance was a small parlor.
A girl sat on the parlor’s sofa, younger by a year or two, with honey-gold hair and a pristine first-year uniform. She sat primly, hands on knees, like an obedient kitten awaiting orders.
“Let me introduce,” Liliane said, breaking the silence. “This is Seraphina von Rosenthal, daughter of Duke Rosenthal, a new student and our junior.”
Seraphina stood, lifting her skirt in a flawless curtsy. “Greetings, seniors. I’m Seraphina,” she said, her voice soft as cotton candy.
“I’ve taken on Seraphina’s request,” Liliane explained curtly, “to teach her a mid-tier, fourth-rank spell.”
Seraphina added, her tone anxious for her age, “My friends have recently mastered fourth-rank spells. As a duke’s daughter, I can’t fall behind. So, I boldly asked Lady Liliane, the academy’s most renowned, to guide me.”
“Wow…” Ailiya, munching a cookie from the tea table, cheeks puffed like a hamster, zoned out. Fourth-rank spells sound intense… I can’t even handle a third-rank one…
“The Rosenthals and Winters have long been allies; this is a small favor,” Liliane said in a formal tone.
“Thank you for your generosity, Miss Winter,” Seraphina replied, equally formal.
Ailiya, nibbling her cookie, watched their exchange, feeling like she was witnessing a masked play.
She turned to Liliane, mumbling, “Um, Lady Liliane, if it’s about fourth-rank spells, I’m useless. Why’d you call me?”
Liliane’s gaze pinned her, pausing her cookie-chewing. “How many spells do you know, Ailiya?”
“Th-Third-rank ones…” Ailiya tried to dodge.
“How many?” Liliane pressed. “Be honest.”
“…One,” Ailiya squeaked, “and… it’s got a low success rate…”
“You mean that basic third-rank ‘Fire Arrow’ you barely mastered after a week of practice?” Liliane exposed her mercilessly.
You knew and still asked?! Ailiya puffed her cheeks, sulking.
“This is a chance to train you too,” Liliane declared firmly. “No objections, right?”
Ailiya recalled her near-bald disaster, nodding rapidly. “N-No problem! I obey completely!”
“Lady Liliane! What about me?” Aurora pointed at herself eagerly, practically wagging an invisible tail.
Liliane’s formulaic smile returned. “As Ailiya’s friend, you’re welcome to join.”
“Ailiya!” Aurora grabbed her shoulders, voice eerie. “We’re friends for life, right~?”
“Get off! You’re gross!” Ailiya shoved her face away.
“Lady Liliane,” Seraphina asked curiously, “how will you train us?”
“I’m a hands-on type,” Liliane said, standing. “Change clothes. We’re leaving.”
“Where?” Ailiya asked.
“The dungeon.”
After Liliane briefed them on dungeon precautions, she pulled light leather armor and gear from a storage cabinet, tossing them to Ailiya. “Change quickly. Safety first.”
“Okay,” Ailiya nodded obediently.
Then, in the parlor, with Aurora and Seraphina present, she began unbuttoning her maid outfit’s collar, oblivious to the audience.
Her movements were practiced, as if following a routine order. The black dress’s buttons came undone, revealing a white blouse and delicate collarbone. She draped the dress over the sofa, starting on the blouse’s ties.
As the maid outfit slipped from her shoulders, exposing smooth skin, the air stilled.
Aurora and Seraphina’s faces flushed red, eyes wide, frozen at the sight.
Ailiya, halfway through removing her stockings, noticed the eerie silence. She looked up to find three pairs of eyes locked on her half-bare form.
“Why’re you staring?” she asked, confused. “Didn’t Lady Liliane tell me to change? I’m just following orders!”
Liliane sighed deeply, pinching her forehead. “Not here. There’s a changing room.”
“Huh?!” Ailiya’s face turned shrimp-red. Realizing her blunder, she squealed, grabbed her clothes and armor, and bolted barefoot to the inner room.
Watching her flee, Aurora turned to Liliane with a complex look. “Lady Liliane… what have you done to her?”