Episode 24

The weekend passed, and Monday morning arrived. Even the best students in the empire’s academy found the first class of the week to be a struggle.

Rose Bell was an exception. She arrived early at the mineralogy classroom and took a seat in the front row. As Rose prepared for the class, she looked around the room leisurely.

‘He hasn’t arrived yet.’

Jasper Conway was nowhere to be seen. Maybe he was planning to arrive right before the class started.

At first, Rose didn’t think much of it, but as Professor Luis entered the classroom, she began to feel a sense of unease. Other students had all taken their seats, and Jasper was still nowhere in sight.

‘…Is he running late? Did he oversleep?’

Jasper wasn’t the type to be a diligent model student, but he wasn’t the type to be late either. He had a habit of waking up early every morning for his morning training.

Just as Professor Luis was about to call the attendance, Jasper still hadn’t shown up.

“Jasper Conway.”

There was no response, and the classroom fell silent. Professor Luis tilted his head in confusion.

“Hmm? Jasper? Jasper Conway… Ah! Oh dear. I forgot he requested sick leave.”

The mention of sick leave Rose surprised Rose. 

‘Jasper’s sick?’

Jasper Conway, the strongest student in the academy?

The combination of “sick leave” and “Jasper” felt incredibly strange.

‘What’s wrong with him?’

Rose unconsciously fiddled with her pen, feeling anxious. If Jasper, who appeared so strong, was skipping class, it must be a fairly serious situation.

During the weekend, Rose hadn’t seen Jasper anywhere in the academy. She assumed he had gone home, but something must have happened over the past few days.

Lost in her confusion, Rose tried to focus on the lecture. However, she kept missing Professor Luis’ words as her mind kept wandering with questions about Jasper.

Professor Luis continued his lecture enthusiastically, almost talking to himself.

“Some people have an unusually high mana sensitivity. They are much more adept at distinguishing between mana stones and regular minerals. In some cases, they can even identify which type of mana element is most abundant! Isn’t that remarkable? Of course, using an analyzer would provide more accurate results, but…”

Professor Luis began to distribute small mana stones to the students, moving around the classroom and giving one to each student.

“Everyone, these are mana stones. They may be of a lower quantity, but still valuable. Now, everyone, go ahead and touch them to feel the mana.”

Rose took a pebble-sized piece of the mana stone in her hand.

“Before the development of analyzers, the ability to discern mana stones was highly regarded. In ancient times, it even considered one a great sorcerer.”

Rose gently stroked the mana stone. Outwardly, it looked just like an ordinary rock, but when she grasped it, a faint warmth emanated from it.

‘Is this a fire mana stone?’

Rose wondered as she carefully examined the stone from all angles. Touching a raw, unpurified mana stone was a rare opportunity.

‘I bet Jasper would have found this lesson interesting…’

Jasper had a personality that didn’t find interest in things without clear properties. Directly handling mana stones might have suited his taste.

Rose glanced at the empty seat next to her. It was a bit disappointing that Jasper Conway wasn’t there.

* * *

After the mineralogy class, Rose walked toward the central part of the main building to meet Rebecca and Briley. They had made plans to go to the restaurant together.

‘Having a meal with Rebecca…’

This would have been unimaginable last year.

Since sharing their secret in the garden, Rebecca’s attitude has changed slightly. Joining the same club had made her feel some sort of connection. She still had that arrogant tone, but it seemed different now.

Rose knew that Rebecca Sherman had a fragile ego beneath her pride, but seeing her sobbing uncontrollably had made her feel even more sympathetic.

At that moment, the cause of Rebecca’s emotional breakdown caught Rose’s eye. Caleb Sidoor was coming out of the classroom.

“Uh…” 

Rose’s lips trembled as she looked at Caleb. Normally, they would pass each other without making eye contact, but now things were different.

Rose was curious about Caleb, not only his relationship status but also why Jasper skipped class.

Rose cleared her throat nervously. As she was sneakily glancing in Caleb’s direction, Caleb unexpectedly approached her first.

‘…What is it?’

They had never spoken separately before. However, Caleb approached Rose as if he had known her from the beginning, without any hesitation.

“Scholarship student, did you look at me?”

Rose took a deep breath. She didn’t think she had been too obvious, but Caleb seemed perceptive.

‘No, not at all. It’s a good thing, isn’t it?’

Rose cautiously opened her mouth and spoke to Caleb.

“Oh, that… I wanted to ask you something.”

“To me?”

Curiosity flickered on Caleb’s slick face.

“Yes, well… Senior shares a room with Jasper, right?”

Rose was momentarily confused about how to address him.

Suddenly, a previous conversation with Jasper came to her mind.

“He’s no senior. He was in his second year, and now he’s stuck with us.”

“Oh, so we don’t have to call him senior then? That’s awkward.”

“Whatever. Do you have any business talking with Caleb? Why worry about it?”

Back then, she never expected this situation. A day when she would talk to Caleb one-on-one, and about Jasper Conway at that.

Caleb smiled subtly and said, 

“Just be comfortable.”

“What?”

“No need for formalities. And call me Caleb.”

“Yes… um, okay.”

“So, what did you want to ask?”

“Jasper skipped the morning class… Is he very sick?”

Caleb touched his firm jaw, his eyes full of suspicion.

“Well, he’s not feeling great.”

Rose widened her eyes slightly.

‘Where is he hurt?’

Jasper Conway, who seemed like he could easily win against anyone, what happened? He was perfectly fine until Friday night.

Rose’s face showed puzzlement and worry. Caleb, with an intrigued expression, stared down at Rose.

“I guess you’re pretty close to Jasper if you’re worried about him like this.”

Rose hesitated, her shoulders trembling, and quickly blinked her eyes.

“Not really… It’s not like that…”

Rose found herself trailing off unintentionally. She absentmindedly scratched her cheek with her fingertip.

After hearing Caleb’s words, Rose felt strangely unfamiliar with her concern for Jasper. Just a few months ago, they didn’t even speak to each other. She had resolved not to get too close, but somehow she had started to consider Jasper a friend. Lately, not seeing the face she had been encountering regularly made her anxious.

‘Does he think I’m crazy?’

Rose’s large pupils wavered.

Lately, she had felt more open to others. Until now, she intentionally spent her time alone at the academy. She had always been a loner, but she had never felt sad or lonely. Then, with Jasper’s help, she managed to stay at the academy and met Briley, who treated her without prejudice.

‘Maybe I was a bit lonely?’

The emotional barriers she had firmly built, fearing to reveal her true self, were slowly opening, and her innate personality began to emerge, much like when she spent time at Quilts.

Growing up as the daughter of a poor family, Rose Bell had ingrained in her the habit of taking care of others as if it were second nature. Perhaps this habit had unconsciously spilled over to Jasper.

Caleb looked at Rose, who was biting her lip.

“Your name is Rose Bell, right?”

“…Uh, yes.”

“I’ll let Jasper know that Rose Bell was worried.”

“No, there’s no need for that. We’re in the same class, and I just asked because I heard Jasper was sick…”

“Hmm. Really? I thought you and Jasper were especially close.”

“Th-that’s not true.”

Caleb spoke with a teasing smile and a playful tone.

“Why, it’s quite noisy these days. I’ve heard something like a scandal. A scholarship student, a transfer student, and the second son of the Grand Duke Conway getting involved…”

Rose quickly straightened up.

“…Leave me out of that.”

“Weren’t you in a love triangle?”

“You heard wrong… It’s not like that at all.”

“Ah, right. You shared a room with Briley, didn’t you? Not as a romantic partner, but as a helper. To check on Jasper on behalf of Miss Lawrence?”

Caleb’s face was filled with a mischievous expression.

Rose looked at Caleb with a bewildered expression. She knew what the rumors were, yet it seemed like he was deliberately teasing her.

“…Think whatever makes you comfortable.”

Rose replied with a hint of sharpness, and Caleb chuckled softly.

“Anyway, you’re not involved with Jasper in any way, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Ah, I see. Well, then it’s fine if I hooked up with you.”

“What… What did you say?”

Rose was so flustered that her eyes widened. She couldn’t immediately comprehend what she had just heard, and her mind went blank for a moment.

“You seem like an interesting person. I’ve become interested.”

“Me…? No, why me… all of a sudden…”

“Well, there have been some things.”

Rose felt like her brain had suddenly turned to stone.

‘Player and a heartbreaker, they said!’

It was no different from the rumors. Rebecca Sherman had been in tears just two days ago because of this guy. 

‘What on earth is going on? And there were even talks of marriage? Rebecca’s cousin…’

Rose’s values couldn’t possibly align with Caleb’s. The more she thought about it, the more her mind felt like it was spinning.

Caleb looked at the frozen Rose and burst into laughter cheerfully.

“It was partly a joke. Shall I be more serious?”

Rose took a step back and spoke with a stiff tone. 

“No, no need for that.”