Chapter 16

Josephine had two sisters.

One older and one younger.

The younger one was a year below her.

As the beloved youngest of the family, she was the kind of charming girl who could act all sassy and still win people over with a single cute smile.

Lately, she had started spending nights out without a word. This was likely because she had someone she was seeing. Much to the dismay of their father, who would stay up all night with a sulky expression because of it.

Her older sister was four years older.

She was responsible and kind. As the eldest sister, she had taken on the role of caring for the two younger ones after their mother passed away early.

Though she was now married into a good family and they didn’t see each other often, she always sent heartfelt letters filled with love, and Josephine eagerly looked forward to every one.

And today was the day the eldest sister Amelia was finally coming back home for a visit.

“I’m home.”

As soon as Josephine opened the front door and stepped in, her younger sister Mary shouted,

“Why are you so late, sister? I told you to come home early today since Amelia’s coming!”

“Sorry. I ran into someone in trouble on my way back from work and stopped to help…”

“You should’ve left that to the military police! Why go out of your way to stress yourself?”

“I couldn’t just ignore it.”

“Ugh, you’re too nice for your own good! So who’d you help this time? Did you find a lost kid crying for their mom?”

“Nope. Just some drunks causing a scene at a shop. So I folded them in half.”

“…Remind me never to mess with you.”

Josephine laughed and asked,

“Where’s Amelia?”

“She’s already here and unpacked. She brought so many gifts, you can barely step into the living room! There’s something for you too, so go open it!”

“Someone’s excited.”

Josephine ruffled her sister’s hair.

Mary yelped and ran off in protest.

“Hey! Don’t mess up my hair!”

Josephine followed Mary into the living room and was greeted by a familiar and welcome face.

“Amelia!”

“Look who it is! My beautiful little sister. You’ve gotten even prettier, haven’t you? Mwah, mwah, mwah!”

The moment she saw Josephine, Amelia wrapped her in a tight hug and showered her cheeks with kisses like an oversized dog.

Josephine couldn’t help but burst into laughter at how her eldest sister hadn’t changed one bit, even after getting married.

“How long has it been? About three years? Isn’t this your first visit since the wedding?”

“Yes. My in-laws live so far from Lambart that I can’t just come and go as I please.”

“But there are trains now. You could make the trip in a day or two, right?”

“Well, I do have duties as the lady of the house. I only managed to come this time because my husband had to attend an art auction in the capital, and I joined him on the way.”

“I see.”

“He’s been very understanding. All these gifts…he prepared them himself. He said, ‘You haven’t seen your family in so long; you should bring plenty with you’.”

“Brother-in-law really loves you, doesn’t he? I’m glad you’re doing well.”

Josephine said with a hint of envy, and Amelia gently cupped her face in a warm embrace.

“Oh, my sweet little sister. How have you been? Nothing too hard going on?”

“Nothing special. I’ve been doing fine.”

“I’ve been really worried about you.”

“Huh? Why?”

“Don’t you remember? In the last letter you sent me, you said you were having a hard time because of your fiancé.”

“Oh, right.”

Josephine recalled the letter she had written. It was a letter she had nearly forgotten about. It was about a month ago when she was filled with emotional turmoil and dark thoughts. The letter was practically a cry for help.

Though now, it felt like something that no longer mattered.

Amelia then asked—

“How are things with the baron? Is he still giving you a hard time?”

“No, it’s fine now.”

“Are you really okay? You’re not just pretending to be?”

“Mhmm. We went on a date recently, and he kissed me. Twice… in front of everyone.”

As Josephine said this, her face flushed red, and Amelia believed her without question.

“Oh my, it must be true then. What on earth happened? I can’t believe he’s changed so much.”

“Well…”

Even Josephine couldn’t answer.

The changes that had happened recently felt just as strange to her.

When had things started to shift between them?

Josephine thought back to a few days ago.

The day she slapped her fiancé’s cheek—no, it wasn’t the slap that mattered.

It was the day she had completely broken down when she’d believed there was no more hope.

A single kiss.

That was when everything began.

“I think I must’ve misunderstood him all along.”

Their engagement had been one-sided from the start.

Naturally, it had led to prejudice.

She had assumed he didn’t care about other people’s feelings.

That he only saw her as a possession.

So maybe Josephine had interpreted everything about her fiancé in the worst possible light.

For example, when she heard a rumor that Winter was cheating with another woman, she didn’t even try to confirm it with him. She just got angry.

Because it was humiliating to hear something like that from someone else.

But looking back now, she realized she had ended up trusting a stranger’s words over her own fiancé’s.

Even though the truth might have been something else entirely.

He’s a charming man, so of course people of the opposite sex would be drawn to him…

How could you blame the flower for attracting butterflies and bees?

And yet, I just kept doubting him.

In contrast, how had Winter treated her?

When Josephine had become entangled in a scandal, unable to offer any explanation because it involved the Knights of Candela, her fiancé had said this to her:

That he simply believed in her.

That he knew she was innocent.

At that time, Winter had been the only one who believed in her without asking any questions, without demanding any conditions.

Unlike how Josephine had acted.

All this time, it was my trust that had been lacking.

Shame and guilt—

Those emotions had begun to take root.

Why did it take me so long to realize it? Like a fool.

Suddenly, Josephine found herself missing him.

She wanted to see his face, to share her heart with him.

But it was Amelia’s laughter that pulled her out of those thoughts.

“Oh my, you really are something.”

“Hmm? What did I do now?”

“Fufu, don’t you know? Just look at that expression.”

“What kind of expression am I making?”

Amelia hugged Josephine warmly once again, then smiled gently as she spoke.

“I’m relieved. I believe you now when you say you’re okay. But Josephine, could you answer just one thing for me?”

“What is it?”

Josephine tensed up at her sister’s serious tone, but Amelia’s question left her utterly deflated.

“How on earth did you manage to win back that stoic man’s heart? Did you act cute? Appeal to his emotions with tears? Or maybe, hmm… use some seductive tricks?”

“What?”

“Come on, teach your big sister so I can try it on your brother-in-law too.”

“Ugh… I can’t say.”

“Why not? Are you embarrassed? So what if it’s a little cheesy? I’m asking nicely, so please, just tell me. Please?”

“It’s not that…”

In the end, Josephine couldn’t bring herself to answer.

After all, she couldn’t very well tell her sister to try slapping her brother-in-law across the face.

***

Just an ordinary spring afternoon.

The student cafeteria of the Royal Academy’s First Magica Department was, quite literally, bursting at the seams with people.

The reason? A school-sponsored event that had cut meal prices in half.

The air was filled with the scent of cheap yet fresh food, and the clatter of dishes echoed noisily throughout the space.

Amidst the commotion, however, there was one table no one even considered sitting at.

Mine.

Even the students wandering around in circles, searching for a place to set down their trays, didn’t so much as glance in my direction.

Given Professor Winslet’s notorious reputation, it wasn’t surprising.

There was no point in offering the empty seats to anyone, so I quietly sipped the coffee I had ordered.

The coffee sold at the student cafeteria was hard to recommend, aside from being dirt cheap and hot enough to scald your tongue.

Still, it probably helped struggling students get their caffeine fix without hurting their wallets.

Maybe the foul taste even helped keep them awake.

I had drunk about a quarter of the terrible coffee when I started getting the feeling that forcing down any more might hurt my willpower.

Right around then, the person I was waiting for appeared.

“Look over there! It’s Lady Sophia!”

“What’s she doing here? Isn’t she a professor in the Theology Department?”

“Are you dumb? She’s obviously here to meet the person sitting at that table…”

Like a celebrity parting the crowd, a graceful woman walked toward me as the students split to let her pass.

The elegant lady stopped at my table and pulled out the chair opposite mine before sitting down.

“Sorry I’m late. Have you been waiting long?”

I tapped my cup with my index finger and replied.

“Be grateful for this cheap coffee.”

“…Huh?”

“What I mean is, if this coffee had been even remotely drinkable, I would’ve finished it and left already. It’s so bad I haven’t been able to get through it, and that’s the only reason I’m still here.”

“……”

She let out a sigh.

“I ran straight here the moment my class ended at the Theology main building. All because some selfish man decided to set the meeting spot practically next door to his office.”

“You’re the one who asked for this meeting, Professor Sophia. So of course it makes sense for you to come to me.”

“Sure, sure. It’s not that important anyway, so let’s move on.”

Pushing aside the untouched coffee cup to the right, I pressed my fingers together.

Then, I asked the question.

“So, what business does someone from the Theology Department have with me?”

“Professor Winslet, I heard a rumor that you’re planning to duel a student.”

“Are you talking about Shannon Quinlivan?”

“Shannon. Yes. That girl’s name was Shannon. Is it true that you’re going to duel that foreign student?”

“And if it is?”

“Stop it. Immediately.”

Bad news really does travel fast.

“So the word’s already out. But you’re awfully nosy, aren’t you? This doesn’t concern you.”

“It does concern me. As an educator myself, I can’t just stand by and let a student come to harm.”

“That’s what we call meddling. The duel wasn’t my idea; it was hers. I merely accepted. Where’s the problem in that?”

“You really don’t see the issue? You’re a professor, and you’re talking about fighting a student.”

“It’s not a brawl. It’s a duel. If you can’t tell the difference, I don’t know what to say.”

“There’s no way this could ever be a proper duel. You’re a 7th-class mage, and she just barely reached adulthood. Don’t tell me you think the two of you are on equal footing.”

“Even so, the duel must go on.”

“Why?”

“Because Shannon Quinlivan is a mage.”

“……”

Sophia furrowed her brows and started mulling over the meaning of my words.

“I heard it was you who insulted her first. That you said something considered taboo among mages.”

“It’s true.”

“Then apologize to her. If you’ve done wrong, you should show remorse.”

“I won’t.”

“Why not?”

“Because I did it on purpose.”

Sophia’s expression darkened for a moment.

“I knew it…”

Knew it?

“Are you planning to kill another student? And make it look like an accident…?”

Did something like this happen before?

It was a thought that briefly stunned me.

If what Sophia said was true, then the misunderstanding I now faced and her interference made sense.

To this devout believer, such evil under the same sky must have been utterly intolerable.

“I won’t let something so horrific happen again. If you’re trying to harm a student under the guise of a duel, I won’t stand for it.”

“And if you won’t stand for it, then what?”

Bang.

Sophia slammed the table and stood up.

“Then I’ll stop you. By force if I have to.”

Where her palm had struck the dining table, a swirl of radiant light now shimmered—

It was a trace of divine power.

There were only two people in this academy who didn’t fear Winter Winslet.

One was the madwoman Monastrell,

And the other was this very woman who was famous in her own right.

A visiting professor in the Theology Department where she taught Spirit Magic and Healing Magic. And also the Saintess of Aeon, the Church of Eternity.

In the doctrine of Candela of Judgment, the power to command spirits was classified as divine power.

After all, spirits were the material manifestations of nature’s will or thoughts,

And all of nature had been crafted by the Creator’s own hand.

Thus, Sophia who was revered as a saintess by the Church was a master of Spirit Magic, blessed with an S-Rank talent in the field.

“Come outside. Right now.”

Just like that, two academy professors were about to go head-to-head.