Of course, the boot camp from hell is not just about the physical aspects.
“Elbows!”
Schwip!
“Whew!”
I was jumping up and down with an ungraceful scream with my Sister Thulite, who alternated between a bewitching smile and a demon sergeant’s face, depending on the situation.
…The occasional gleam in her glasses was probably not a hallucination.
By the time I finish building up my strength with physical fitness exercises in the morning, it’s time for lunch.
But lunchtime is equally the time to have my etiquette lessons.
Even if I refuse, there is no corporal punishment. There is no verbal abuse.
Rather, they praise me quite a lot and take me by the hand to teach me.
However, when I make the same mistakes over and over again, or if she sensed that I was losing my concentration, she would send out a sharp voice along with the sound of a whip hitting the floor.
Just how many times has my body jumped up from that sound?
Is this kind of reign of terror even allowed? When I turn to my parents, they were look at us heartwarmingly, saying things like, “Alice is getting better and better, isn’t she?” and “Yes, she’s a special child of ours (although, my father is often away at work.).”
Why?! At first, I went into a state of panic in my brain, but nothing happened.
Everyone has all been down a similar path…
When I heard that, I couldn’t help but be shocked.
“Seriously…?”
But even such a small voice was not missed by Sister Thulite.
“Alice-chan? I don’t know what those word means now, but I felt like the language needed a lot of correction. Why is that?”
“H-hiii!”
And well, that’s how it went.
That is how I was taught various table manners on posture, gestures, language, topic selection and how to keep my mind of gibberish so as not to make any mistakes.
By the way, I heard later that it was not standard for the children of noblemen to be shown a whip.
That is just the ‘Heimer style,’ showing no chance, even in front of the royal family! It’s the ‘Perfect☆Etiquette Course (Short Course Ver.).’
The reason it’s the ‘Short Course Ver.’ is because of Rouge as a whole, so I hope she’ll be boiling in hell until my course is finished.
……Well, inadvertently round 2, I guess.
“I don’t want to be in front of royalty so much…I’ll do the aristocratic work properly, but as long as I can be a magician, that’s all I need…”
It had accidentally leaked out of my mouth, but that only made the Heimer Style Spartan Short Course even more intense.
According to her, “The path of magic cannot be accomplished without training your body and mind. And by the way, you can’t read valuable spell books unless you get along with a great person.”
Damn, they don’t sell advanced spellbooks or anything like that at the bookstore in town…! Isn’t this supposed to be a fantasy world?!
Resisting the urge to slam my fist on the floor, I finished my (hazardous) lunch.
Such a things had been going on for a few days, but today…
I finally got to work on the classwork that I had been entrusted to do ‘after I can sit at a table for a long time with good posture!’
***
“…The world was closed to the darkness for a long time. The darkness took on a will of its own over time. It went from being alone to wanting change…Change was born. Change was Light in the beginning…”
I carefully read out the myths recorded in the super-beginner’s textbook, “Mythology of Magic” that was given to me by Sister Thulite.
Incidentally, Sister Thulite had mumbled, “What subject shall we start with?” to which I quickly replied “Magic, please!” I had pleaded with her, and my wish was granted.
I read it over and over again out loud, making sure I could chant it even with my eyes closed.
“As soon as you say you like it, your concentration comes different…How wonderful, Alice. Now, read the first line on the next page, please.”
I obey Sister’s voice and turn the page.
“Magic is largely divided into origin slots, which draw on the power of spirits and gods, and anima slots, which are done with the power of the soul.”
Whoa, whoa, whoa!
Yeah, yeah! That kind of content is what it sounds like!
I used my scarce facial muscles to barely stop myself from grinning. Over the past few days I had kind of become a smartass.
“Do you know anything about the difference between origin slots and anima slots, Alice?”
“Um……”
I put my hand on my cheek and think back. Hmm.
“When father and mother use magic, I think there are times when they chant and times when they don’t…”
As I said this, my sister’s glasses gleamed.
“Yes, yes, Alice! Anima Slots are done on their own, so they’re not used with chanting or are only used as an aid. However, the origin slots require one to give instructions or pray to a being who can help you. Although it’s very effective, it’s not always suitable for personal combat.”
In what situation would a noblewoman normally engage in such fast-paced personal combat…? I thought, but I dipped my quill into the ink pot and hurriedly made a note on the parchment.
“Do you have to have an exact spell for it?”
I asked her what I was wondering about after watching my parents’ magic a little bit, and her glasses started to gleam even more. It was a little dazzling.
“You’ve got a good eye…No, it’s not nearly as obvious! But people learn the recommended chants at school, so they rarely use anything else. The only people who can put together their own are professional magicians and magic researchers…like me.”
“What? Big Sister Thulite is a researcher?!”
Oh my. That sounds like a wonderful career that I might pursue!!
“Oh, you didn’t hear from Eleanor? In addition to inspecting the territory, I also do a lot of other things such as studying magic, studying ruins…Well, I do a lot of things as my hobby and practical interests, you know?”
“What…eh?”
I quivered.
“Research on magic and ruins…?! You’re so cool, sister! I want to do that too!!
I was so impressed that I stood up and squeezed my fist, and then Miss Thulite also stood up quickly and grabbed my hand.
“You are so interested in it! It’s so rare to find that in girls—it’s amazing!…Okay, let’s switch to the ultimate course of magic and study it thoroughly!”
“Yes, I’ll do it! I’ll follow you for the rest of my life!!!!”
Finally, my sister’s glasses were gleaming with a momentum that I couldn’t see directly, but I was so excited about the full-blown opening of my fantasy, that I couldn’t detect the signs of danger…
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
T/N: Poor Alice-chan has no idea what she’s in for…