In any case, Katrin looked so apologetic as she said she was sorry. She seemed much more feminine and at ease than she had as a mercenary, as though this were who she had always been. The way she behaved with the Queen was less like a younger sister with her older sister and more like a daughter whining to her mother. They looked as comfortable as a family sharing tea.

Perhaps she was a little too comfortable, because the Queen gently scolded her. “Goodness, how old are you? Is that any way to behave in front of a guest?” Katrin was entirely unfazed. “It's fine. He's not a guest. We fought together.” “Hmm. You must be closer than I thought.”

The Queen tilted her head and studied me again, snapping my drowsy nerves taut. The Queen taking an interest in me was trouble of its own. I'd hoped it would end with her sponsorship, but it didn't look as though it would. Fighting seemed easier. If a sword took my head off, I could simply start over. But if I mishandled a political relationship like this, I was sure I'd suffer endlessly without even getting a chance to start over.

“I already told you everything that happened,” Katrin said.

“That's what I find so hard to believe.”

The Queen gave me a curious smile as she looked at my still-young face. Admittedly, seeing me might make it difficult to believe what had happened. But wasn't that all the more reason to sponsor me?

“That doesn't mean I doubt Katrin's word,” the Queen said. “I'm very grateful that you helped her, young master. You did a great service not only to Katrin but to the House of Rattenhammar. As a member of the family, you have my thanks.”

We had found a relic left by her ancestor together, so perhaps it was only natural for her to thank me. But I'd received quite a reward for it myself, which made her gratitude feel undeserved. I'd even come away with a rather strange dagger.

Tsk. That dagger had spoken as though it were something remarkable, but it had been silent ever since. I didn't know whether speaking that one time was all it was meant to do or whether it needed some new trigger. Either way, quite a while had passed without anything else changing. Fortunately, its ability hadn't disappeared, so it wasn't a serious problem.

“No, Your Majesty. Katrin—I mean, Lady Katrine has already rewarded me generously.”

“Oh, ‘Katrin,’ is it? You really must have taken a liking to him.”

The Queen looked at her younger sister with amusement, and Katrin shrugged. Still, we were in the royal palace, in front of the Queen. Was it all right for the atmosphere to be this relaxed? I was worried because I kept letting my guard down.

“That was a reward from Katrin and the family. Think of this sponsorship as a separate reward from me. You needn't feel burdened.”

That made me feel even more burdened. What worried me now wasn't the reward but the possibility of being drawn into politics. I couldn't say that in front of the Queen, though. All I could do was thank her.

After that came some lighter conversation. We talked about the ducal house and my adventures with Katrin, and the Queen proved an excellent listener.

“So that's what happened. Katrin's account was so stiff, I thought I was listening to a report.”

Apparently, I was a fairly good storyteller. As our chat drew to a close, the Queen asked me a question.

“May I ask what you intend to do after graduating from the academy?”

My future, all of a sudden? It felt as though I'd been stabbed out of nowhere. This was awkward. I'd made several plans, to be honest, but I couldn't discuss them here. The Queen was still smiling, yet her eyes were sharp. There was no way this was simply a sponsor worrying about her beneficiary's future. It was plainly a question loaded with politics. Beside her, Katrin looked a little uncomfortable.

It seemed they'd finished looking into my background. Perhaps I'd shown Katrin too much of what I could do. I was still only a fourteen-year-old boy, but both women were clearly treating me like an adult. Pretending to be a child was no longer going to work. I sighed inwardly and opened my mouth.

“After I graduate...”

KNOCK, KNOCK.

Before I could continue, someone knocked at the door. Was that a stroke of luck? But who would knock while the Queen was speaking?

“The princess has arrived.”

At the maid's announcement, the door opened to reveal a little lady—a small, doll-like girl of about ten. She beamed when she saw Katrin in the room, but her expression stiffened as soon as she spotted me. Clasping her hands together, she walked slowly inside.

“Mother, Aisha is here.”

She greeted the Queen, who said, “Welcome, dear. I called you because there's someone I'd like you to meet.”

They'd announced the princess, and the Queen's daughter was named Aisha. So the girl who had just entered was surely Princess Aisha, the third child of this kingdom's king, who had so few children, and third in line to the throne.

She wanted to introduce me to the princess? Why? I could only blink at the unexpected turn of events. The princess seemed just as puzzled. But I couldn't remain seated after the Queen had spoken. I rose and greeted the princess with a knight's salute.

“It's a pleasure to meet you, Your Highness. I'm Alex de Gresia.”

Hmm. I hadn't stammered this time.

“I'm Aisha de Carlos. It's nice to meet you.”

She took hold of her dress and curtsied to me. The little girl's dainty greeting was adorable. Hmm. I felt oddly soothed.

“Hehe. It's a scene I'd like to preserve in a painting.”

The Queen chuckled as she watched us greet each other, and Katrin smiled beside her. Hmm. Did I still look cute, too, and not just the princess? It was a strange feeling.

“You see, Aisha's awakening day isn't far off.”

The princess was ten, wasn't she? The royal family's awakening day must be different from ours. But what did her awakening have to do with introducing us? The Queen wasn't finished.

“Her awakening day hasn't come yet, and she's still young, but she does need a proper education. So Aisha will be entering the academy this year.”

“The academy?” I repeated before I could stop myself.

This little girl was going to be in the same entering class as me? She was a kid! The age gap between us was... Oh. It was only a few years. She definitely was a kid, though. No, wait. Come to think of it, I was still a kid myself. Looking at her that way, there didn't seem to be much difference in our heights, either. Good grief. People treated me like an adult so often that I'd started to confuse myself!

But was I really going to take classes alongside children this young? I knew that even in my previous life, before modern times, it hadn't been unusual for different age groups to study together. Actually seeing it in front of me was another matter.

Wait. Did that mean my brother Manuel would be in the same entering class as this little princess, too? Oh! This would be much more awkward for him than for me.

“Since you'll be entering together, young master, please look after my daughter. She's still a little girl, and she's only ever lived in the palace, so I worry about her terribly. Please take good care of her as a fellow new student.”

The Queen had come over without my noticing. She took my hand firmly as she spoke, and cold sweat ran down my back.

I was doomed. Completely doomed. What I'd do after graduation wasn't the problem. Neither was the political position her sponsorship might put me in. I was in trouble starting on the very day of the entrance ceremony. I'd escaped a wolf only to land in a tiger's cage.

The princess watched my half-stunned face with shining eyes.

* * *

Still reeling from that unexpected meeting, I left the palace. Katrin had told me to look forward to the next time we met, but I had no presence of mind left to wonder what she meant. Back at the mansion, Manuel kept hovering nearby, curious about my palace visit. Even the servants, who had never paid me any attention, gave me strange looks. I couldn't spare a thought for any of it.

Time passed quickly. Between recovering from the shock and resuming my training, the day came to enter the Royal Academy. Perhaps thanks to my visit to the palace, life at the mansion wasn't too bad, either. I was even allowed to ride in the same carriage as Manuel to the entrance ceremony.

“You bear the name of the ducal House of Gresia too, so don't do anything to disgrace it. If I hear anything strange about you, I'll report it to the family at once. You'd better behave yourself!”

Manuel fixed me with a stern look as we rode in the carriage. He seemed to think he was giving me a serious warning, but I found him nothing but cute. Apparently I was alone in that opinion. The butler from the capital mansion, who was riding with us, nodded in satisfaction.

The carriage headed south through the capital. The royal palace stood at its center, surrounded by government offices, knights' headquarters, and nobles' mansions. The Royal Academy occupied a vast tract of land in the south, beside the outer wall.

This enormous educational institution, known as either the Royal School or the Royal Academy, was one of the first national institutions established after the Great War by the kingdom's founding king. Though the war had been won, countless monsters still remained in the world. The new royal house also needed people to help build its foundations. And the inherited abilities passed down from the heroes who had brought victory in the Great War needed to be taught systematically.

Of course, there was another reason more important than those respectable ones: to hold the children of the new kingdom's nobles and regional magnates hostage. Marriage alliances involving many wives were impractical because they would spread inherited abilities indiscriminately. That left the pretext of educating promising young people as a way to take their children hostage. It was why not only the Kingdom of Carlos but the empire and other kingdoms had hurried to establish academies in their capitals after the Great War and enroll the children of their nobles.

After a long drive beside a seemingly endless high wall, our carriage finally reached the Royal Academy's main gate. Its broad doors stood wide open, and fine carriages bearing family crests were passing through. They belonged to nobles and other powerful people.

Through a smaller entrance beside it, people went in on foot. Judging by their clothes and the way they looked around, they were clearly commoners. This world and kingdom were remarkably advanced for something I would have called medieval, but they were also rigid class societies built on the supernatural power of inherited abilities. The sight was only to be expected.

If I hadn't awakened, or hadn't gained a useful ability, I would have been going in with them. No—I might have died before that. The guards thoroughly inspected each person entering on foot, but carriages bearing family crests passed through without inspection. When they recognized ours as a carriage of the ducal House of Gresia, the guards even saluted as they let us through.