The One Within the Villainess

The next few weeks passed by peacefully, and we slowly got used to life at the academy. Unsurprisingly, it was not so different from the lessons I had in high school back in my previous world. The core curriculum was divided into theory and practice, which made sense, and naturally, I was more at home in the theory portion.

Of course, Lumiere was more comfortable with the practical classes. After we had lessons on the different kinds of elements and how to read runes, we were then asked to change to gym attire and brought to the field to manifest these spells in reality. For example…

“...each mage will have specific elements they have affinity for. The higher your affinity with an element, the more powerful the spell that manifests when you cast it. This is why it’s important for you to find out which element you have the most affinity with. That said, even if you have low affinity with other elements, it’s not impossible to use them. A few people use magic support devices to make up for their lack of affinity.”

The bell rang, a soft, melodic chime that was soothing to the ears. Even before the mystical song finished, students were already packing up, shoving their notes into their bags.

“All right, that’s it for today.” Master Miranda, a teacher with long brown hair, emerald eyes, and a curvaceous figure concealed under purple robes, knew that it would be futile to hold the chattering students back. She shut her book and erased the notes on the front board with a wave of her hand. “Don’t forget to submit your homework by next week. A thesis on elemental composites.”

There were groans, but no one objected. Though it wasn’t as if everyone loved studying, we were all here to learn. The vast majority of us were nobles, burdened with the responsibility of governing our family’s provinces in the future. Mastering magic was mandatory.

However, the excitement stemmed not from the lesson ending, but because everyone was looking forward to the next one. As the students slid their notes and books into their bags and exited the classrooms, the class split into two directions when we hit the corridor.

“I’ll see you later,” Lumiere said to me before turning toward the left pathway. I nodded and joined the flow of guys in the opposite direction. Divided by gender, the two groups headed for their respective changing rooms, where we swapped our formal uniforms for more comfortable gym attire.

This truly was a typical high school experience.

As I changed, shedding my jacket and trading my shirt for a t-shirt, I noticed that the other guys gave me a wide berth. They were muttering darkly and shooting hostile stares. Especially in the direction of my head.

Ah. They didn’t like me because of my black hair. Classic.

Still, when they weren’t staring daggers at me, the conversations I overheard appeared typical of horny male teenagers.

“Man, if only I could sneak into the girls’ changing rooms.”

“Who do you think is the biggest? Lady Lillianna seems like she might be a G-cup.”

“I prefer Lady Charlotte. She’s only a C-cup, but that combination of innocent beauty, sea-blue eyes and blond hair…”

“Lady Silvia’s pretty cute too. If only she hasn’t already been engaged to his highness…”

“Hey, don’t even think of touching his highness’s woman! Are you looking to be executed for treason?”

“Nah, I’m just saying…”

“Oi, don’t even say such things aloud, even as a joke!”

A hush fell among them. I stayed quiet, not wanting to participate because the conversation made me uncomfortable. I didn’t like treating girls like collectibles, and for some reason, I was glad that they hadn’t included Lumiere in the conversation. Otherwise, I would have blown up.

Finally, another guy broke the awkward silence.

“Who do you think is the most beautiful girl in our cohort?”

A second later, almost all the guys turned to stare at me. I felt a vein twitch in my temple. Damn it, I should have known it was too soon to feel relieved.

“I’m not a girl.”

“No, not you!” One of the guys, a green-haired fella with freckles, spluttered. “We’re referring to your wife!”

“My…wife?” I repeated incredulously.

“Lady Lumiere.” The mild-mannered guy with brown hair and innocent eyes – the one who asked the question in the first place – said.

“Oh. Yes. She certainly is the most beautiful.” I nodded proudly. Part of me wanted to inform them that she wasn’t my wife, but for some reason, I didn’t want to. What was this feeling of not wanting other guys to talk about her? To play along with their misunderstandings so that they would know not to approach her? Was I actually feeling…possessive?

“The black-haired demon couple,” a guy with red hair muttered snidely, and flinched when I stared at him sharply.

“Trust me,” I said as I slammed the door to my locker shut. “If we really are demons, the kingdom would long have been destroyed already.”

Both guys and girls rejoined as one class on the field adjacent to the fire tower, stretching on the grass or warming up by jogging on the spot. A few had already begun casting spells to circulate their mana and brace themselves for the practical session ahead.

“Seems like you’re all looking pretty sharp!” Bruno strolled onto the grass, his arms folded and a whistle hanging from his neck. He grinned and raised the silver whistle to his lips. “As usual, I’m going to call a bunch of beasts here. You know the drill by now…the more beasts you slay, the higher your score!”

Cheers erupted, particularly from the hotblooded guys. The girls were more subdued, but many of them hardened their expressions, looking determined. Lumiere seemed calm, mostly because she already had combat experience. One of the things we did during the two months when I served as her tutor was to hunt monsters, to see if the close-ranged spells I conceptualized for her would be effective in reality.

However, by now, I knew her well enough to be aware that excitement was bubbling just beneath that calm facade. She caught my eye and ventured over.

“Let’s pair up.”

“Sure.”

There were chuckles and dark mutters again. Obviously, the “black-haired demon couple” was repeated, and I was getting sick of hearing that. At the same time, I secretly felt pleased. I didn’t know why. It wasn’t as if I was a masochist.

The other students also split up into their parties. Though I suspected cliques were a more appropriate term. The groups were divided not by maximizing combat effectiveness and covering all roles, but by social connections and perceived friendships.

Those who wanted to suck up to higher-ranking individuals clung to them like packs of hyenas crowding around smaller prides of lions. Those who sought political alliances. Then there were others who had known each other from childhood and couldn’t be bothered with making new friends. There were as many motivations as there were individuals.

“Okay, seems like you’re ready.” Once he had confirmed we had split up into our respective parties, Bruno nodded in satisfaction before he blew the whistle.

As the shrill sound pierced the air, an invisible wave rippled across the courtyard and the atmosphere began to warp. Almost as if emerging from a parallel, invisible dimension, a horde of black-furred beasts stepped into the courtyard from unfolding space and surrounded us. Possessing lupine forms, dagger-like teeth, and eyes as black as night, the shadowy creatures prowled, digging deadly claws into the soil and tearing up grass.

A few pounced, but the students countered instantly, fireballs, lightning, wind blades, violent vines, earth spikes and icicles slamming into the swarm. I watched from a distance, but had to focus on our own assailants bearing down on Lumiere and my position.

“Allow me,” I said, and stepped forward, already weaving a spell. The temperature plummeted and I could feel moisture condense in the air. Enjoying the sudden cold, I watched in satisfaction as ice materialized, spreading over the limbs of the wolf-like beasts and pinning them in place.

They howled and thrashed, but found themselves held fast by frozen restraints. I stepped back and bowed.

“It’s your turn now, my lady.”

“Leaving the hard work to me now, aren’t you?” A smile splayed across Lumiere’s lips, but she obliged. She strode toward the trapped wolves, flames swirling around her arm. With a single punch, she obliterated the poor pack in a heated vortex that immediately dispelled the cold and vaporized the ice into steam. The shockwave knocked over the surviving creatures, sending them sprawling and making them easy prey for the students, who were more prepared this time.

After the first couple of practical lessons, our classmates had gotten used to avoiding ending up as collateral damage during Lumiere’s attack. They even knew to avoid the steam.

The superheated air billowed into nearby clusters, scalding the poor creatures and causing them to yelp. I encased a couple more in ice so that Lumiere could pulverize them in fire, leaving yet another smoldering crater.

“Hey! At least leave some of the monsters for me to kill!” I protested. “At this rate, you’ll hog all the experience points! I won’t be able to level up!”

Lumiere glanced at me, confused. “You find this level of experience insufficient?”

“No, never mind.” I scratched my head. Even if I attempted to explain the reference, she wouldn’t get it. It was from my previous world, after all. Still, even as I surveyed the outcome of our battle, I couldn’t help but feel pride from how far we had progressed when working as a team. Lumiere possessed immense power, while I, not having her monstrous amount of mana, provided pinpoint precision. It appeared we could make up for what the other lacked.

The other students mopped up whatever stragglers were left, their spells bombarding the now fleeing beasts who whined in an almost pleading manner. From a distance, Bruno watched with his arms folded, and he shook his head in dismay.

“This is the only class that has it easy in practical lessons. At this rate, we’re going to run out of monsters for training.” He stroked his chin thoughtfully. “At this rate, I think we can send this batch to the border for real combat.”

“Master Bruno?” One of my classmates called out. He blinked and looked around, only to see that the beasts he had summoned were annihilated. Holding back a sigh, he glanced at what appeared to serve as a watch in this world.

“Holy heavens, there are still 30 minutes before the end of class.” He looked around at the devastation again and grimaced. “Well, no point holding you guys back. As a reward for your magnificent display of combat prowess, you get to go home early. Hit the showers, kids.”

There was a cheer. I turned and trudged toward the changing room, feeling reluctant to separate from Lumiere so soon. Now that I thought about it, she was literally my only friend in the academy. We were shunned, the both of us. While I trailed behind the whooping guys, I glanced at her. As I expected, she was isolated from the other girls, but unlike me, she confidently strode at the front, being among the first to reach the changing room.

Well, I should hurry too. I didn’t want to keep her waiting. Now that we were released early, maybe we could head to the city and have lunch outside school before returning to the dorm by evening. With that in mind, I hastened my pace and jogged toward my locker.

After a nice, warm shower, I changed into clean clothes – the standard red, white and gold uniform of Arcana – and loitered along the corridor. Several of the girls were already in the midst of leaving, but there was no sign of Lumiere.

I waited patiently, pacing up and down, much to the disgusted stares of the departing girls and the bemusement of whatever guys still lingered behind, exchanging small talk.

Did I miss her? Did she already leave?

I felt foolish. This was bordering on stalkerish behavior, and I felt a sudden chill. Wasn’t I repeating the same mistakes as in my previous life, intruding into the girl’s space and causing her to be uncomfortable? I had thought I had learned my lesson, but evidently, I was still a creep.

Grimacing and cursing myself, I turned to leave. I supposed it was fine to have a day all to myself, once in a while. I could catch up with her next time.

Before I could take more than a few steps, though, I heard the pounding of feet. Whirling, I caught sight of a flustered Lumiere bursting out of the changing room, on the verge of tears. There was a whiff of fragrance, the citrus scent of the shampoo she had used, but her uniform – normally neat and buttoned in a prim and proper manner – was in disarray, her collar undone and her top button unfastened.

“Lady Lumiere? What happened?” I had never seen her so frustrated before. She blinked the moisture from her eyes and latched onto me, grabbing my sleeves.

“My pendant…the one I received from Mother.” She stifled a sob. “It’s gone.”