That evening, after finishing dinner with Rui, Ian returned to her room and continued staring at the magic formulas.
*Give up. The Spring Festival Tournament.*
No matter how many times she read through the complex equations, Rui's expression and tone of voice kept surfacing in her mind, and she dropped her head into her propped-up arms.
She knew herself well enough to know she had a hot temper—but knowing it and controlling it were two very different things.
She caused friction often. Fixing it was never easy.
If only she had calmed down just a little…
*Rui.*
A surge of bitter frustration rose in her chest—at herself, for never being any real support to the friend who had always stayed by her side.
She remembered the time she had been rejected by Elline, and then gone so far as to confront the boy who had become Elline's partner.
If only she had reined herself in back then.
She'd had no ill feelings toward him at first meeting. But because Rui had pleaded with him so desperately, the habit kicked in—and she flared up again, just like always.
*…It wasn't Rui's fault.*
He hadn't done anything wrong. Rui hadn't done anything wrong either.
But she hadn't been able to keep her temper in check, and she'd snapped at him anyway.
"Hff."
And today, she'd ended up snapping at Rui again.
*…*
Self-loathing settled over her. Why did she keep doing this.
Knock, knock—
Quietly.
The sound of someone tapping at her door.
* * *
Despite my stubborn resistance, Elline grabbed my face firmly and turned it toward the dormitory.
"Go. Quickly."
…Right. Same as always.
When Elline says to do something, you do it.
I hoisted her properly onto my back again and started walking toward the dormitory. Elline exhaled a long, languid breath, as if perfectly satisfied.
That was how we made our way back to my dormitory.
"About Rui—"
"Yeah."
"Do you think she can be brought on board?"
"…Your friend?"
We both recalled the conversation we'd had just before parting ways with Rui a little while ago.
*"If you still need more team members… would my friend be… all right?"*
She'd glanced at me sideways as she said it.
I already knew exactly who Rui's friend was, even without being told.
Ian.
The first impression hadn't been great, but with one spot still open, this wasn't the time to be picky.
"If it's Rui asking, I'd think she can manage it."
Of course, it would need to be properly settled.
*That's…*
Something to think about later.
For now, Elline came first.
By the time we arrived in front of the dormitory, I set Elline down.
Not the white stone building of the Alpha Class dormitory—this one had the distinctive warmth of an older wooden structure.
"Have you ever been here before?"
From Elline's perspective, it probably would have been her first time.
"Once."
"Really?"
Elline turned her gaze to look at me.
"When I came to find you."
*…Ah.*
A month ago.
The evening she had appeared in the alley just before I reached the dormitory.
*Let's date.*
Since meeting her, a month had passed—short and yet somehow long.
A lot had happened. But the biggest change was one thing.
The world that had always revolved around me was gradually being filled by Elline.
No—by now, it felt like time itself was flowing around her.
"Rutess."
When I came back to myself, Elline was already looking at me.
…
"What?"
I smiled faintly and squeezed her hand.
Time flowing around Elline.
Not bad, I thought. Actually—more than not bad.
"Let's go in."
"Sure."
I started walking naturally, then stopped.
"…Which way?"
Elline answered immediately, as if the question didn't need asking.
"Your room."
…
Honestly, I'd seen this coming from the moment she said to go to the dormitory.
I knew what she meant by saying it.
She just wanted to study together in the dormitory.
But knowing that didn't stop my heart from hammering.
*Think pure thoughts….*
The only women who had ever set foot in my room were the maids who came to tidy it.
Or my wretched little sister barging in uninvited and turning everything upside down.
I shook my head.
*Focus on Elline.*
It was still early evening, so the dormitory supervisor was probably away from her post.
And I vaguely remembered seeing couples moving freely through the corridors before.
*It should… be fine.*
I took a quiet breath to steady myself and walked inside with her.
Being a weekend evening, most students seemed to already be in their rooms—we didn't pass anyone on the way up.
We climbed to the fourth floor.
Down the corridor, stopping in front of the familiar door I always walked through.
"Just a moment."
I said it quickly and pressed my forehead against the door.
My heart was doing more than just pounding.
No matter how hard I tried to collect myself, bringing a woman into my room was something that had never happened before.
*…*
I kept taking slow, deep breaths.
"Just a moment—let me tidy up."
"Okay."
I barely managed to get the words out in a voice that didn't crack, then slipped inside.
To my eyes it looked clean enough, but that was only my perspective.
Right now, every single detail needed to pass inspection.
*Calm down.*
Desk, bed, wardrobe, window, ceiling, floor.
I swept my gaze across each spot in turn, straightening anything that looked even slightly off.
The desk was the most important.
Hoping there was nothing incriminating on it, I started scanning it with the frantic thoroughness of someone sweeping with their eyes.
*…Good.*
That should be enough.
I opened the window to air the room out, then looked up at the night sky, already deep with dark blue.
Stars, please give me strength.
"Haah."
I couldn't stall any longer.
I walked slowly to the door, took hold of the handle, and opened it.
Elline was still standing in the corridor exactly where I'd left her, motionless in front of my door.
"…Come in."
At my words, she gave a small nod and stepped inside.
Tap, tap.
Elline walked to the center of the room and stopped, slowly turning her head to look around.
The academy dormitory rooms were reasonably spacious.
I'd heard the knights' academy to the south had extremely cramped quarters—maybe it was because mages were such a rare resource.
Even with her inside, it didn't feel crowded. That was a relief.
"…Elline, sit down for now."
"Okay."
I managed to steady my voice enough to offer her the chair, and she sat without a word of protest.
Then she slowly rolled it forward until she was at the desk.
The sight of Elline sitting in my room—a room that had only ever seen other men walk through it—was genuinely surreal.
She glanced at the books on the desk and carefully picked one up.
Books she had lent me from the library, some time ago.
"Have you read much of it?"
"Most of them."
Elline flipped through the pages, her eyes moving rapidly down each one.
Those eyes—like she'd read it dozens of times already.
*Impressive.*
A book I'd struggled through laboriously, and she was turning pages like that.
I couldn't help but feel a quiet admiration.
"…Oh."
I'd been watching her in a daze. I barely caught myself.
"Would you like something to drink?"
Elline seemed absorbed in the book, but she looked up at my words and nodded.
"…Please."
* * *
The sound of the door closing.
She set down the book she'd been reading.
As his footsteps faded away, Elline quietly let out a breath.
"…"
She rose from the chair and slowly looked around the room.
*So this is.*
Rutess's room.
The familiar, comfortable scent she had always associated with him was woven deeply into everything here.
Through the open window, the Alpha Class dormitory building she lived in came into view.
"…"
Had he noticed her cheeks flushing?
Had he heard her heartbeat grow louder?
Every little thing she did here was a first, and she kept wondering whether she was being too much for him—
But she couldn't stop the wanting from surging ahead of everything else.
Her gaze came to rest on one spot.
The space that occupied a third of his room.
The bed.
This was the fourth floor.
Rutess would have had to go all the way down to the first floor to get something to drink.
She sat carefully on the edge of the bed. A soft creak answered her.
*…*
Nice.
Elline closed her eyes.
One month.
She let herself drift back through the time she had spent watching Rutess.
At first, she had wondered if something was wrong with her.
Only three times. Why had she fallen so completely?
She had even considered the possibility that it was a mistake—that she had simply failed to name an unfamiliar feeling and called it something it wasn't.
But then, over the past month, every time she had been with him—
The way he worked hard for her sake. The way he kept moving forward.
A man who stayed focused when they studied, and yet always made room for her.
No. It hadn't been a mistake.
Rutess was a good person.
And the feeling of liking him had only grown more certain.
If time allowed, she wanted to stay by his side.
Even if the future was uncertain, difficult to predict—
This feeling, at least, she wanted to carry with her no matter what came.
…Yes. Keep carrying it.
She opened her eyes again.
Looking out the window, she could see the small shapes of the academy buildings.
And beyond them, the night had arrived—stars beginning to appear, one by one.
*If we're together…*
Even if the path wasn't laid out for them, she wanted to walk it.
Thud—
Something touched her hand.
Elline looked down. At the edge of the bed sat a pillow.
A soft, plump pillow in a white cover.
"…"
She looked at the door again.
No footsteps yet—but judging by how long it took to climb the stairs, he would be back soon.
Elline carefully picked up the pillow.
She looked at the door, then back at the pillow. Back and forth, twice.
After a brief hesitation, she drew in a short breath.
And then—
She hugged it with everything she had.
"…"
She closed her eyes.
The pillow, stuffed full of cotton, compressed softly under her arms, and Elline exhaled in a shallow breath.
She held it as though she would never let go unless someone pried it away.
Thud.
From somewhere far off, the faint sound and vibration of footsteps began.
*…!*
She startled and quickly set the pillow back down.
As flat as possible. As if nothing had happened. She smoothed it out and placed it back exactly where it had been.
She walked back to the desk and sat down as if nothing had happened.
The footsteps stopped outside. The door opened, and Rutess stood there holding two glasses of cool water.
"I didn't know what you'd like, so I went with something safe."
"Okay. Thank you."
To avoid repeating the same mistake as last time, Elline kept her ears carefully covered—
And Rutess would not have seen.
Elline did not make the same mistake twice.
* * *
All that nervous tension, and Elline simply sat there and walked me through everything I didn't understand, calmly pointing things out one by one.
*Hm.*
I'd expected as much from Elline, honestly—but I still felt a little embarrassed at myself for getting so worked up over nothing.
"…Are you listening?"
"Yeah, I'm listening."
Elline watched me for a moment, then closed the book. She slid a blank sheet of parchment and a quill pen across to me.
"Can you draw the Purification formula right now?"
"Right now?"
Instead of answering, Elline nodded.
I picked up the quill and held it over the blank parchment, turning the formula over in my mind.
*Purification.*
One of the more advanced spells in the support branch.
It could restore mental confusion caused by monster attacks, or neutralize harmful substances like deadly poisons—a crucial spell.
It looked complicated at a glance, but since it was really just an application of foundational concepts…
*Was it like this.*
I traced through my memory as carefully as I could and began writing out the formula.
Where my memory faltered I paused, but somehow managed to pull it back and connect the pieces—and what came out was rough around the edges, but felt like it might actually be right.
"Done, Elline."
The moment I said it, Elline's eyes moved down the formula as if checking it over.
I flinched inwardly each time her gaze paused somewhere in the middle—
But she reached the end without stopping, and gave a small nod.
"Well done."
Praise always felt good, no matter how many times you heard it.
*Right.*
What was there to be tense about, really.
This—just talking with her like this, at ease—this was what was good about it.
Being here now felt far more comfortable than all those evenings alone in this wide room.
But time doesn't wait forever.
"I'll head back now."
When the hour came, Elline rose quietly.
I glanced at the clock. Early evening had long since passed; it was edging toward deep night.
"Tomorrow, come to Training Hall Two in the afternoon."
"Got it."
In the morning I had to meet Balrod and convince him.
I figured he'd hear me out—but then I remembered his lukewarm reaction the last time I'd brought up the tournament in passing.
*…Tomorrow's going to be a bit of a challenge.*
Elline opened the door to leave, and I stood up from my seat.
"Don't come out."
Elline said it firmly.
"Hm?"
"You walked around a lot today. Just rest."
Fair enough.
…Come to think of it, I had spent the whole day searching for Rui.
Elline had been walking around with me too, and I'd been carrying her on my back on top of that.
"I'll at least walk you to the entrance."
"…All right."
She didn't argue with that much, so she let it go.
On the way down, a few students were in the corridor, but no one seemed to pay us any particular attention, and we made our way quietly down.
Back on the first floor, we reached the dormitory entrance. Elline turned her head.
"Go back in now."
"…Mm."
Normally I should have turned around and gone back up.
But the path back to her dormitory, visible behind her, looked very long. And very far.
…
I stepped forward.
And took her hand.
"Rutess."
Elline's voice rose slightly, as if caught off guard.
"Just to the dormitory entrance."
"This is the dormitory entrance…"
Maybe it was the first time I'd ever said something like this to her.
But I wanted to say it plainly.
"Walk with me to *your* dormitory entrance."