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It was the day of the entrance ceremony.
It was almost the same as the entrance ceremony in Japan, with the ceremonial speech by the school principal along with the welcome speech by the president of the student council.
After the ceremony was over, I headed to my assigned class.
It seemed I was in class A.
When I entered the classroom, there were already many students there.
I found my seat, and the moment I sat down.
“Owen, it’s been a long time,” Natalie called out to me.
She was as pretty as ever.
Her eyes were bright and I wanted to ask her how long her eyelashes were.
They looked like they could hold five or six mechanical pencils.
But there are no mechanical pencils in this world.
“Natalie. Long time no see.”
“Huh? Have you lost some weight?”
“Yeah, do I look good?” I said jokingly.
She replied nonchalantly, “It’s not that different”
“I- I see… By the way, how have you been?”
“I was bored. I can’t forget that night I spent  with you.”
“Oh, come on, don’t say stuff like that, people will misunderstand.”
Some people in the class looked at us with shocked eyes.
Where did you learn those words?
Those are not good words for kids to use.
“Misunderstand? What misunderstanding are you referring to?”
Natalie giggled.
She knows what she’s doing, doesn’t she?
It’s not like she’s the one who said, “I have responsibilities as a Duke daughter.”
I’m worried that she’s going to be the kind of woman who can take advantage of men.
“You know… I’m just glad we’re in the same class.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Well, what’s that about ?”
“You do understand that this school is a meritocracy, don’t you?”
“Well, at least that much.”
There are classes from A to D, and those with the best grades are assigned in order from A to D. Magic grades are especially emphasized.
“How do they determine the ability of first-year students? It’s not like we’ve done any ability assessment.”
“Well… Those with magical qualities, in other words, are determined by their family’s rank.”
Noblemen with higher titles are more predisposed to magic.
I’m not sure if it’s a good thing or not.
Of course, even if the parents do not have any magical qualities, a child who can use magic may suddenly be born.
The opposite is also true.
Even if the class is decided by the rank instead of the ability test, it can be said that it is also in order of ability.
The exceptions can be compensated for in the second year.
“That’s it. I’ll see you for the next eight years.”
“Eight years…”
“That’s right. We’ll be in the same class for the next eight years because we never drop out of A”
“You seem to have a lot of confidence in your skills.”
I don’t know the level around me, so I can’t have that much confidence.
If I have an advantage it would be gravitational magic.
“I’ll try my best not to drop out of class A.”
Just as I said that, the door to the classroom opened with a bang.
“Oh, there are so many of you. You guys, take your seats for now.”
The one who came in was the good-looking female teacher who stopped the commotion at the gate.
“All right, now that you’re in your seats. Then, I will introduce myself. My name is Chris Clifford. There may be some people who already know, but even if I look like this, I am a three-star Magician. I’m proud to be able to teach you about magic. I’ll be with you for one year.”
Chris-sensei’s self-introduction caused a buzz in the classroom.
They were probably surprised to hear that she was a three-star magician.
I’ve heard that the teachers at Sanzar Academy are of a high level, but a three-star teacher is still unusual.
They probably didn’t expect such a high-spec teacher to be assigned to the elementary school.
“Quiet!” Chris-sensei settled the situation, “Next, you’ll introduce yourselves. There’s no fixed order, so whoever wants to introduce themselves first should do so. You don’t need to worry about your status here. It doesn’t matter who starts first.”
I guess they value autonomy.
In Japan, people usually introduce themselves in order of name, but it seems to be different there.
One of the boys raised his hand.
“Let me start.”
It was a beautiful blond-haired boy who stood up.
I wondered if I imagined that the area around him seemed to glow.
Some of the girls looked at the boy with fascinated eyes.
I swear in my heart that he should explode.
“Whoa, that’s the third prince.”
Sorry, he’s Prince, isn’t he?
You don’t have to explode, it’s fine.
So please don’t charge me with disrespect.
“I’m Berg Litton. I’m a member of the royal family, but I want you to treat me as one of you regardless of my status here. I’m very much looking forward to having a pleasant school life with you all. Please take care of me.”
Berg’s greeting was met with a round of applause.
The next to introduce themself was Farren.
We had previously met during the carriage riot, and she was in our class.
I was thinking that the name Antonelli didn’t sound familiar until I heard people talking in hushed tones next to me.
“Isn’t Farren Antonelli the name of the saint?”
“Oh, my God, she’s famous.”
Oh, so she’s a saint.
A saint is a person who can use holy magic.
There are very few users of holy magic, and since only women can use it, they are revered as saints.
A third prince, a saint, and the duchess, Natalie, aren’t there a lot of famous people in this class?
As soon as Farren finished introducing herself, I immediately raised my hand.
I raised my hand as soon as Farren finished introducing himself.
Since no one else had raised their hand, I stood up and started to introduce myself.
“Nice to meet you all. I’m Owen Pepper.”
When I said that, the people around me started to buzz.
—The Pepper family?
—That’s a failed count family, right?
—I’ve heard that Owen is incompetent.
“Quiet, boys. Owen won’t be able to talk,” Chris said, making the students quiet.
It seemed that the bad rumors about Owen were spreading more than I had thought.
I bowed my head and said, “I came to this school to become a first-class wizard. I’m still in my infancy, but I’m hoping to work hard with everyone. Please take care of me.”
My self-introduction went off without a hitch.
—He seems like a nice guy, but …….
—Isn’t he different from the rumors?
—I’ve heard that he’s much fatter than that, but he’s not as handsome as I thought.
There’s a lot of chatter going on around me.
But I was so relieved that my self-introduction was over that I didn’t hear their words.
After the introductions were over, we were taught the basic rules and regulations of the school, and then we were dismissed.
Incidentally, the boy who caused the commotion in the carriage, Dominic, was also in the class with us.
Dominic was quiet as he introduced himself.
With the third prince and Natalie around, I guess he can’t be that obnoxious.
As I was about to leave the classroom, Natalie stopped me.
“Where are you going?” she asked.
“I’m going back to my dorm.”
“You don’t seem busy. Come with me.”
“Well, okay. Where are you going?”
“I’m going shopping.”
So it’s a date!
Then I have to go.
I left the classroom with Natalie.