Although the Matou Family, said to be located in the countryside, had also been passed down for five hundred years, compared to the thousand-year-old Bartholomello family, if the Matou Family could win, wouldn't that prove his rejection of bloodline supremacy was correct?
Besides... even within the Clock Tower, Bartholomello's views were the most extreme, even among the Aristocratic Faction.
However, Waver could only keep such thoughts to himself. He did not yet have the courage to openly voice his beliefs.
As the bell for class was about to ring, the groups discussing matters in every corner of the classroom gradually returned to their seats...
Just then, as Waver was about to shake his head and get himself focused for class, he suddenly heard someone calling him.
"Waver, Waver Velvet..."
Turning toward the classroom door, Waver immediately spotted the lecturer calling for him. Judging by the El-Melloi Faction emblem hanging from her chest, she was clearly from the El-Melloi Faction.
"Um... I'm Waver Velvet. May I ask what you need from me, Professor?"
"You are Waver Velvet?"
"Yes."
"Very well. Pack your books and come with me to El-Melloi Castle immediately. Lord Kischur Zelretch and Lord Marisbury wish to see you."
"Huh? See me..."
Waver's Choice, His Future Life
What was a top-tier family in the Magecraft world?
Waver finally saw it for himself today.
There were no gaudy decorations like those of a nouveau riche.
Nor were priceless treasures and artworks hung all over the walls.
As Waver walked through El-Melloi Castle, everything he saw was not only proper, but steeped in history.
Led by an attendant, he entered the reception room Kischur Zelretch had arranged.
Before the thoroughly uneasy Waver could adjust to the change in lighting from the corridor to the reception room, a voice that felt exceptionally familiar and distinctive reached his ears.
"You must be Mr. Waver Velvet?"
"Professor Kischur Zelretch... that's me."
Hastily rubbing his still-blurry eyes, Waver instinctively responded to the voice, then immediately straightened his body. Like an office worker seeing his boss, he promptly... stood at attention.
Seeing how nervous Waver was, Kischur Zelretch, seated side by side with Marisbury on the reception room sofa, could not help finding it amusing.
Although he had indeed been rather strict while teaching.
Still... aside from being somewhat sharp-tongued, he should count as a qualified lecturer, shouldn't he?
"Alright, alright, don't be so nervous. Come sit down."
"Oh... yes."
Nervous. Extremely nervous...
If he had only been facing Kischur Zelretch alone, Waver would not have been this nervous. After taking quite a few classes under him, Waver knew his professor reasonably well.
But... Kischur Zelretch was not the only one in this reception room. There was also the Marisbury he had never met before.
How could an 'ordinary' magus like Waver not be nervous when facing two Lords by himself?
His entire body stiff, nearly moving his arms and legs in unison, Waver moved like a robot and eventually stumbled onto the sofa opposite Kischur Zelretch and Marisbury.
Looking at his student, who was so blankly adorable, Kischur Zelretch could not help chuckling. Then, realizing that this was somewhat impolite, he instinctively coughed. After composing himself, he turned and introduced Marisbury to Waver.
"Mr. Waver Velvet, allow me to introduce you. This is Lord Marisbury Animsphere, Lord of the Department of Astronomy."
"Greetings, Lord Marisbury Animsphere. I'm Waver Velvet..."
With a gentle smile that naturally inspired goodwill, Marisbury nodded at Waver.
"Hello, Mr. Waver Velvet. I am Marisbury Animsphere. It is a pleasure to meet you."
Marisbury's smile, combined with his gentle and respectful words, finally made Waver understand what it meant to feel like he was basking in a spring breeze...
He excitedly stood up, then rather rudely bent over and extended his hand toward Marisbury... Clearly, Waver, a 'nobody' in the Clock Tower, was overwhelmed.
Fortunately, Waver quickly realized his lapse in manners. After awkwardly apologizing, Waver looked at Marisbury with unconcealed fondness before sitting back down under Kischur Zelretch's stern gaze.
"...I'm sorry, Professor Kischur Zelretch, I..."
"Alright, Mr. Waver Velvet. You are my student, and I have seen your usual conduct. I will not reprimand you over such a trivial matter. However, do not do anything so foolish again. Lord Marisbury, let us get to the point.
Mr. Waver Velvet, have you ever been to Japan?"
Wearing a puzzled expression as he looked at Kischur Zelretch, Waver, who had never been to Japan, shook his head.
"No, Professor Kischur Zelretch. I've never been there..."
"Never been... Then do you know anyone of Japanese descent?"
"No. I've never interacted with anyone connected to Japan."
Kischur Zelretch turned to exchange a puzzled glance with Marisbury. Clearly, new questions had arisen in both their minds.
However, neither of them showed it in front of Waver. Instead, Kischur Zelretch continued questioning him.
"Then, Mr. Waver Velvet, if you were given an opportunity to enter the upper ranks of the Clock Tower, but the price was that you had to join my El-Melloi Faction and become my formal disciple, would you accept?"
The conversation had leaped from whether he knew any Japanese people to such a question. Waver did not dare answer rashly.
Though Waver was a nobody in the Clock Tower, and though he had just appeared clumsy and dull.
In reality, this unnoticed Waver was a truly intelligent person.
The reason he behaved so awkwardly was merely due to his personality. If Waver were braver and more mature... the talent he possessed would draw the attention even of the two men seated across from him.
Pies did not simply fall from the sky. Waver had understood that principle since childhood.
Therefore, the 'wonderful pie' Kischur Zelretch was offering did not make Waver ecstatic. Instead, it filled him with unease.
"The price... What is the price, Professor Kischur Zelretch...? I don't believe there are benefits without reason... And I don't think I possess the talent worth offering such benefits to..."
Kischur Zelretch gave a slightly disdainful snort, removed the white glove from his hand, and ran his fingers through his hair. At that moment, he seemed to have returned to the classroom that belonged to him.
"Mr. Waver Velvet, it is good that you know how to weigh the pros and cons. However... your analysis is far too shallow. Haven't I already told you the price? Join the El-Melloi Faction and become my formal disciple."
"But..."
"You wish to say that is a benefit? Mr. Waver Velvet, can you only see what you would gain by joining the faction, and not what you would have to give? And do you have no understanding at all of the situation facing the El-Melloi Faction and myself?"
"...I've heard a little from my classmates."
"If you truly become my disciple, Mr. Waver Velvet, I will arrange special training for you... Now tell me your choice."
His fingers heavily tapped the mahogany coffee table between them.
Having roughly explained the disadvantages Waver would face if he accepted the proposal, Kischur Zelretch seemed to have lost patience with this 'foolish boy.'
Helplessly pursing lips as rosy and soft as a girl's, Waver, who still had the face of a delicate-looking 'bottom,' appeared rather pitiful as he turned toward Marisbury with a pleading look in his eyes.
In response to Waver's plea, Marisbury calmly lifted his tea and took a sip before offering his advice with a smile.
"Mr. Waver Velvet, the choice you make today will shape the rest of your life..."
However, Marisbury's advice seemed little different from offering no advice at all.
After a long silence, his expression changing several times... Waver finally gave his answer...
PS: Things will be a little busy these next few days, so there may temporarily be only two or three updates per day. Updates will return to normal after the Dragon Boat Festival on May 3.
Lineas and Sakura, the Final Day Before the Duel...
The day of the duel agreed upon by the Matou Family and Lorelei was drawing closer and closer.
Waver, once a nobody in the Clock Tower, began visiting El-Melloi Castle more and more frequently.
Finally, on the day before the duel.
A car carrying Sakura arrived in London and drove into El-Melloi Castle...
Looking at the young girl before him with a complicated expression, Waver had not yet been publicly announced as Kischur Zelretch's formal disciple or as a member of the El-Melloi Faction, but he knew... this young girl named Sakura Matou would become the BOSS of his future life.
The position of Director of the Sealing Designation Enforcement Bureau, a position he had never imagined for himself, might soon be won by the young girl before him and placed over his head.
Compared to Waver's complicated feelings.
Lineas, who was seeing Sakura in person for the first time, felt even more conflicted.
As Kischur Zelretch's chosen heir, she did not know exactly what Kischur Zelretch, Marisbury, and Sakura had discussed that day. However, since Lineas had not been deliberately kept in the dark during the execution of the plan, she still knew more or less some things.
For instance... Marisbury and her brother Kischur Zelretch firmly believed that the little girl before her, about the same age as herself, could defeat Lorelei head-on.
Could she really be that strong? How could she possibly be that strong...?
People naturally had a competitive streak.
Although Lineas could not compare to a true favored daughter of heaven like Lorelei, she had still been born in Rome. No matter what, she should be stronger than Sakura, who had been born as little more than livestock.
Yet in her brother's eyes, this livestock who had emerged from the countryside was already standing shoulder to shoulder with the sun. Lineas found that hard to accept.
In the banquet hall of El-Melloi Castle, Sakura was attending a welcome banquet jointly held for her by Kischur Zelretch and Marisbury.
And at this welcome banquet, Lineas... this future blonde beauty and young lady 'Sima Yi,' naturally caught Sakura's attention.
"You're Lineas?"
"Yes, I am Linez El-Melloi Archisorte. You must be Miss Sakura Matou. On behalf of the El-Melloi Faction, I welcome your visit."
Her temperament was elegant, and her bearing and expression impeccable.
Lineas truly was a young lady born into El-Melloi.
But... such conduct was somewhat unnecessary for a 'country bumpkin' like Sakura.
Faced with the standard Western etiquette Lineas displayed, Sakura, who understood none of it, could only awkwardly return the gesture with several movements that were riddled with mistakes in Lineas's eyes.
Country folk really are country folk... Hmph! So what if she's powerful? She's nothing but a barbarian...
A trace of smugness flashed through Lineas's eyes. Already dissatisfied with Sakura, Lineas undoubtedly felt she had won one round against her.
However... that was merely Lineas's wishful thinking. Sakura did not care about such things at all.
Catching the fleeting smugness in Lineas's eyes, Sakura could roughly guess at her current mindset. Rather than disliking Lineas, she found her to be an adorable little tsundere.
Still, even though Sakura did not dislike such a little girl... her mischievous side wanted to 'teach this adorable little tsundere' a lesson.
Smiling, Sakura wrapped an arm around Lineas's shoulders. Then, when Lineas revealed a flustered and embarrassed expression, Sakura leaned close to her ear and whispered.
"You dislike me?"
Her whole body tensed. Knowing how highly her brother Kischur Zelretch now regarded Sakura, Lineas immediately became nervous upon hearing Sakura's whisper.
"I... don't... How could I dislike you?"
"Then why are you so nervous... Ah, never mind. I should just pack my things and return to Japan."
"Ah... don't."
"Why not? Don't you dislike me...?"
"No, I don't dislike you... I just..."
"Just what?"
"I'm just a little unconvinced..."
Watching the two young girls in the distance whispering while embracing each other, Kurumi nearly wore an auntie smile.
However, Kurumi knew perfectly well that although the two young girls appeared harmonious, behind that scene, her own 'little mistress' was likely bullying someone again.
Yet for a certain someone, the scene was not nearly so heartwarming.
"Hmph... Such meaningless behavior. Clearly, killing half the nonhumans would be enough to make Sakura take over this country."
Hearing Luo Hao's mood-killing words, Kurumi, who was already at odds with Luo Hao, gave her an annoyed glance before muttering softly.
"Straight woman of steel..."
Before you continue