"That woman seduced His Highness the Prince!"
"Oh my God, even a little mudblood like her dares to dream of tainting the royal bloodline? I swear, I'd love to kick her ass with my uncle's boots!"
"How much will it take for you to leave His Highness Linen? I'll name a price you won't be able to refuse."
The corridor of Eden Royal Academy in the Zijinghua Empire was spacious and ornate.
Several extravagantly dressed girls stood in a circle, surrounding a young girl in a modest school uniform. Her clothing might've been plain, but it couldn't hide her striking beauty. Their gazes swept over her with undisguised mockery, full of the arrogant disdain born from privilege looking down on the lowborn.
Elena drew in a quiet breath.
Her hands, hanging at either side of her skirt, clenched and relaxed again before finally settling against her smooth, toned thighs. In her clear blue eyes, something flickered briefly—then was buried. She raised her head slowly but steadily and spoke in a calm voice:
"Sorry, I don't understand what you're all talking about. I'm not close to the prince, nor do I plan to leave the Royal Academy because of him."
"If you don't have any other business, please step aside."
With that, Elena turned, intending to leave through the other end of the hallway.
But a noble girl who'd been silently observing from the back blocked her path without a word. A faint green glow shimmered in the girl's palm.
[Arcane Wind Blade]
Elena immediately recognized the spell being cast — an Arcane-class attack prepared in advance. Not deadly, but fast and subtle, enough to inflict real harm if it landed. And judging by the angle... was the target her face?
Private spellcasting was strictly forbidden at Eden Academy. Anyone caught would face severe punishment.
But if it was a noble girl targeting a mudblood commoner who'd gotten in through the entrance exam... would the rules even apply?
Getting expelled might be a minor inconvenience to a noble. But for Elena, Eden Academy was the only path to changing her fate.
She bit her lip and subtly shifted her posture, trying to angle the attack toward her shoulder instead of her cheek.
If they see blood, maybe they'll stop…
Wait—?
Just then, a strong arm suddenly reached across from the side, roughly pulling Elena back and shielding her behind a broad back—blocking the wind blade's trajectory entirely.
"Miss Idira. Violating school rules and attacking your fellow students with arcane spells—hardly behavior befitting a lady, wouldn't you agree?"
The cold rebuke came from a tall boy with radiant blond hair who seemed to appear out of nowhere.
"Y-Your Highness Linen!"
"Wait, that's Linen?"
"Aaaah! He's so handsome, even when he's angry!"
"What's the noise? Even His Highness Linen is— hey, curse at me too!"
The moment the golden-haired boy appeared, the corridor descended into chaos. Female students who'd been watching from the sidelines leapt up, their faces flushed as they twisted and squirmed in excitement. Among the noble girls who'd come looking for trouble, one even had a sudden nosebleed and fainted on the spot.
Linen paid them no mind. Or rather, he was already used to this kind of reaction.
Any ordinary pretty boy might've caused a third of this commotion—but if that pretty boy bore the surname "Norton," then wherever he went, women's sanity turned to jelly.
Linen Norton — third prince of the Zijinghua Empire, and a first-year student at Eden Academy. Today, he just happened to be the gallant hero passing by.
"Y-Your Highness, I can explain…"
The girl named Idira quickly dispersed her wind blade, panic written all over her face.
A noble could assault a commoner with spells and suffer little consequence, but if she even scratched a hair on a royal prince's head, her noble father might wake up tomorrow to find five hundred new suits of enchanted armor in the basement and a squad of Shadow Knights digging through his closets.
What's more, the whole confrontation had started over jealousy for Linen — she'd never dare actually hurt him.
"If you ladies leave now, I'll be willing to consider this just a small misunderstanding," Linen cut her off coldly.
...
As the noble girls fled in embarrassed haste, a soft voice spoke up from behind him.
"Th-thank you, Your Highness Linen. This is the second time you've helped me... counting the entrance ceremony."
Elena gave a slight bow.
Linen turned and looked at the girl with chestnut hair bowed before him. Smiling faintly, he reached out and gently patted her head. As he felt the silky strands tremble slightly under his palm, he chuckled:
"No need to thank me. Protecting the people is the duty of royalty."
"Besides, I heard there's an old saying from the eastern lands of Zhendan: 'Those who stand firm in the face of gold are truly precious.' If someone like that were to walk alongside me through life, it would be my honor."
Boom.
The words dropped like a bomb. The moment they landed, every girl within earshot instantly broke down.
"Wait—is His Highness confessing to that mudblood?!"
"I must still be dreaming. I'm going back to sleep!"
"I heard the royal family has dragon blood. Could this be... dragon instincts?"
"I don't care, I just—I don't want him confessing to anyone else!"
But instead of blushing, the soft, fuzzy head under Linen's palm abruptly jerked back, putting some distance between them. Elena turned her face slightly, looking troubled, but her voice remained firm:
"Y-Your Highness, you're a good man. But like I said before… I must decline."
Linen blinked, clearly surprised by how decisive her response was. But the next second, he chuckled lightly.
"Just kidding, Elena. I only meant that we'll be classmates from now on. That's all. I wish you a pleasant semester."
With that, and a wave of relieved sighs behind him, Linen turned and walked away in the opposite direction, leaving the girl standing in the corridor—visibly thrown off.
Just a joke...?
But as she stared at his retreating back, his shoulders subtly trembling like he was holding something in, Elena felt a flicker of doubt and guilt.
After all, since she'd arrived at the Academy, this prince was the only one who had ever reached out to help her.
If he really meant it... maybe I was too harsh.
She hesitated. A soft glow began to pulse from the arcane sigil forming in her palm.
...
Meanwhile, having finally reached a secluded spot, Linen dropped all pretense. His steps turned erratic, barely restrained glee bubbling from his lips as he muttered:
"Heh—she totally bought it! She really thought I was confessing!"
"System, how'd I do this time? What's the rejection rating?"
[Ding! Rejection Empowerment System at your service!]
[Generating Evaluation: Cringe-worthy savior act, greasy one-liner confession, smug headpat routine, abrupt and awkward pivot into denial…]
[Summary: A perfectly expected failure.]
[Congratulations, Host! You've received]:
[Wind Blade, Tier 1 Arcane] (Perfect) — Skill Proficiency acquired!]
[Plus, 50% of a Tier 1 Arcane Mage's mana reserve.]
[Accept reward now?]
Mana again?
Adding this to the reward he'd gotten from the entrance ceremony, Linen now possessed the mana reserves of a full Tier 1 Arcane Mage—without a single day of meditation or practice.
"To go from a powerless waste of a prince to a real Arcane Mage—clearly, it's all thanks to my unmatched talent and tireless slacking! Accept it now!"
In an instant, mana flooded his body like a river into a parched desert. Linen couldn't help but throw a punch in the air, the sound of the wind slicing past his fist ringing in his ears.
This—this was the true value of a Tier 1 Wind Mage!
Just like his future: bright, bold, and blazing with glory.
Let's fucking go!