When Cyril woke up the next day, he again discovered himself buried under Tigris and Morpho.
No dreams this time, at least.
"Good morning!"
"Good morning."
The white kitten lazily rolled over, falling from his chest to the bed.
Morpho, who was lying on top of him, ended up waking up in a panic and flying up in the air.
"Good morning, Morpho, Tigris."
Cyril got up from the bed, petted Tigris, and went to the kitchen.
Seeing his movements, Tigris slowly bounced from the bed, strolling towards him with a bit of drool leaking from his mouth.
Cyril habitually made eggs and sausage for breakfast, preparing two smaller portions as well.
Morpho carefully nibbled on the food, as it disappeared slowly but surely.
Tigris simply hit the plate with his mouth and quickly gulped everything in it..
Cyril ate calmly, following the familiar noble etiquette.
Rhamn materialized on a remaining seat, her head propped up in her hands.
She simply stared at everyone eating, a warm smile on her face.
For a short while only the sounds of eating filled the dorm.
The window let the morning light in, illuminating the kitchen and the scene within it.
At some point, from outside came the rhythmic sounds of a broom sweeping the ground.
"...?"
They are not usually here at this time.
Getting somewhat curious, Cyril looked out the window.
Ophelia was there, professionally sweeping the ground with a completely expressionless face.
Noticing him, she stopped and bowed.
"Good morning, Master."
Her voice was somewhat muffled coming through the glass.
Cyril opened the window, letting the fall wind in, and looked at Ophelia.
"...How has your time been here?"
"Well enough. Although the number of humans here is more than I am accustomed to."
He slowly observed her surroundings, finding only a black cat nearby, and sighed.
"You shouldn't talk so openly."
"My apologies."
She kept her identity secret for so long. Surely she's not that careless...
At this moment Tigris nudged his leg, already finished with his meal.
His mouth was dirty…
Cyril quickly cast a spell to clean himself, then raised the perpetrator in his arms.
Catching the feline, Ophelia's black eyes shone for a moment.
Ah.
"This is Tigris. A tiger I recently found."
Ophelia stared unflinchingly at the kitten, her face expressionless.
He waved his paw at her.
"Meow."
"…!"
Ophelia bowed to the kitten and made a step forward.
"Hello, Tigris."
She turned to Cyril, in her eyes a certain intent.
"May I?"
"Of course."
The maid reached her hand through the window.
At first the mighty tiger moved his head out of the way, his blue eyes showing reluctance.
However, he couldn't escape the grasp of an old archdemon.
Ophelia's slender white hand soon began caressing the soft white fur.
Can she tell he is a demon? Doesn't look like it...
A few minutes passed as they stood like this.
At first Tigris's face showed resistance, but with time Ophelia's skillful hand managed to melt him into relaxation.
For how long is she going to pet him?
It was still early in the morning, the birds chirped in the park, and only a few students were walking on the academy grounds.
Soon a black cat came over, purring as it nudged Ophelia with its head.
"Sorry, I forgot myself."
The maid reluctantly brought her hand away.
To Cyril it seemed like the atmosphere around her became brighter.
She really likes animals.
The thought appeared somewhat pleasant to him.
"Have a good day."
Cyril nodded to Ophelia and was about to close the window when a new idea entered his head.
"Ophelia, can you get the newspaper for me?"
"Right away."
...
While the maid was running errands, Cyril walked into the bathroom.
Morpho was already there, sitting on the faucet, looking at her reflection in the mirror.
Carefully, using her insect legs, she wiped her wings of any dust and dirt.
Giving her a satisfied nod, Cyril began his own morning routine.
After a shower he stood in front of the mirror brushing his teeth.
Although the cleaning spell Myra taught me takes care of this, it still feels like the right thing to do...
Suddenly Rhamn appeared in the reflection, staring at him with a playful smile.
"I have an idea! It can make the process better!"
"..."
He halted, staring at her with suspicion.
What is it?
Her smile intensified as she snapped her fingers.
Immediately Cyril noticed a change in his reflection.
The skin over his mouth moved.
It retreated to the sides, revealing muscles that soon came alive as well and followed suit.
The lower half of his face now appeared like the result of a terrible accident.
However, the teeth were clearly visible.
"..."
Cyril stared at the gruesome picture with a distant look, his face expressionless.
I am not sure if it's really better.
After a brief delay he resumed brushing his teeth.
"It's more fun."
Morpho stared at his face with wonder, as if expecting it to do another trick.
"Sorry, Morpho. I can't change you in the same way. At least not now."
...
Cyril, dressed in the academy's grey uniform, sat in front of his table, Tigris relaxing on his knees.
In his hands was today's newspaper.
"They simply must write about you rescuing those villagers!"
"If they don't, let's show whoever's responsible the full wrath of a noble family."
Let's not.
He carefully went through today's news, something he usually neglected to do.
At the very front, with bold letters, was a particular event.
Knight Flynn deals with the magic creature wreaking havoc on Daffodil Street. Many are injured as the people complain to the Tower.
"Flynn?"
Cosmas called him the Butcher. He is the youngest knight in history, becoming one at 25.
Rhamn raised her finger with a proud look.
"He is not going to be the youngest for long."
Yes.
He nodded and continued reading.
Oh, this is the zoo Rose talked about... The owner was recently saved from a kidnapping attempt?
"Irrelevant."
Shrine of Juno to be unsealed in the near future.
"Even more irrelevant."
The Emperor responds in regard to the recent attack.
"'Nothing to worry about?' He is not wrong."
The crown prince considers enrolling in an academy, forgoing education at the Tower.
...Nothing about the second prince.
"Hopefully he considers Ailanthus. It would be fun if you beat him in a duel~"
The Empire under attack from the Kingdom…?
"Huh?"
Rennock Trading Company received a blow from a company rumored to have ties to the Kingdom.
That was just a sensational headline to capture attention…
"Despicable!"
He quickly read article after article, and finally, after flipping the paper, he discovered what he wanted to see.
People rescued in a mission led by Thorne…!
Cyril Thorne, a student of Ailanthus, infiltrates a slavers' camp. Guard captain Al tells of the young heir's heroic actions.
"Yes! That guard captain is not bad. He knows how to properly give someone credit."
I wasn't alone there.
"That doesn't matter, Myra probably doesn't care anyways."
Cyril read the news in detail, then again from the beginning.
Whoever made the article was rather flattering towards his family name.
After a while he put the newspaper back on the table and remained still.
"Feels quite good. This will be a great boon to our reputation."
Yeah...
Cyril took a deep breath, stood up, and put the surprised Tigris on the ground.
"Have a good day, Tigris. I am off."
He patted the white kitten one last time and went out of the door.
...
The training hall of the castle was noisy today, with multiple classes using it at the same time.
Still, due to its impressive size, it didn't feel crowded at all.
Cyril stood holding a wooden spear, with Myra and Rose standing near him.
In the distance a few classmates were whispering among themselves, sending him the occasional glance.
Though this time they appeared more confused than anything.
"Have you heard of that duel?"
"I've seen it! That was absolutely messed up."
"Hey, have you read the newspaper? It says Cyril saved some villagers!"
"That's obviously a lie. Don't tell me you actually trust what the newspaper says?"
"The guards probably did all the work, while he only attached his name to it."
"..."
"What's wrong, Cyril?"
Myra tilted her head, looking at him with concern.
"Nothing. Let's get to training already."
...I should've expected such a reaction.
"Small steps, small steps."
Cyril walked towards an unoccupied arena near the center.
After a brief hesitation, Myra followed after him.
"Good luck." Rose waved her hand and stepped away.
She then proceeded to do various exercises, pretending to be busy so as not to be caught by their professor.
"If only we were allowed to use spells, I wouldn't be hiding like this." She mumbled to herself in the middle of doing squats.
Professor Rendel, as soon as he saw Cyril and Myra move, eagerly walked closer towards their arena.
"Hoho, let's see. I hope you two didn't slack off during the short break!"
Cyril immediately glared at the man.
Rendel, instead of being offended, laughed heartily.
"Hahaha! Sorry for a bad question, of course you didn't lose that spark!"
Myra sheepishly walked towards the arena, joining Cyril.
She raised her spear at the ready, focusing on him.
Her dark eyes soon became sharper as her breathing slowed down.
The surrounding students all moved a bit closer, eager to observe as well.
"Ready?"
"Start!"
With Rendel's booming voice, the two dashed forward.
Cyril attacked aggressively, wind howling with each swing and thrust.
Myra nimbly dodged his fast strikes, deflecting whatever she couldn't.
Still, little by little, she retreated back towards the edge of the arena.
Myra dodged a thrust at the last moment, glancing behind her with a frown.
As Cyril followed up with a swing, Myra put strength in her legs and jumped right over the attack.
Somersaulting in the air, she landed on Cyril's opposite side and quickly struck with her spear.
He was barely able to deflect the attack.
With his strength, Myra was pushed back, and both of them took a moment to rest.
They breathed heavily, staring at each other unflinchingly.
"Stop! …That was incredible! Better than I remember! I am so happy to be your professor!"
Rendel's face twisted with a large smile that reached the scar near his eye.
The students observing quickly looked away, pretending to be busy with their own exercises, the wonder in their eyes remaining for some time.
Cyril sighed and stood straight, relaxing.
Myra relaxed as well.
She walked up to him, her eyes shining.
"You improved fast!"
Cyril only nodded and walked towards the bench, Myra following him.
"Haha! Today was a draw! Soon you'll win her completely!"
Rhamn proudly raised her head towards the ceiling, hands on her hips.
Cyril sat down on the bench and sighed.
Yeah.
He glanced at Myra sitting near him.
Her face was bright and eyes clear. Her auburn hair shook every time she moved without any melancholy.
…Somehow, it doesn't feel that rewarding.
"Hey, Rose. Do you want me to spar with you? I'll hold back."
Myra waved to their friend nearby with a smile.
The intellectual-looking girl with brown hair and blue eyes froze in the middle of some stretches.
"N-no, I am fine."
"We are going to train later anyways!"
"Then it's definitely fine!"
Cyril observed their interaction without speaking, then shook his head, getting rid of any stray thoughts.