Sincerely, Vanessa [EN]: Chapter 3

Vanessa also extended her hand, and they exchanged a polite handshake.

“This is Vanessa Rose. She’ll be in our grade. She’s a mid-term entrant, so she was using the room first.”

“It’s okay. I left my luggage all over the place, so it must have been hard to organize.”

“No, there’s plenty of space, so it was fine.”

The polite conversation, a subtle dance of first impressions, ended. Lina, who had been fidgeting with her short-cut bangs, suddenly lifted her luggage.

Lina, now fully inside the room, placed her luggage near her desk and bed and began unpacking.

Vanessa hesitated, then returned to her desk and started to review her notes. However, her attention kept drifting back to her new roommate.

“Ahem.”

At the small clearing of throat, Vanessa cautiously turned to see Lina Dellina sitting on her bed, looking at Vanessa with open curiosity. She seemed quite intrigued by her new roommate.

“We only introduced our names! I’m seventeen and from the Aurelia region. You’ve heard of my family, right? Where are you from?”

“Ah…”

Vanessa hesitated for a moment. *If I say I came from an orphanage, this pretty girl might feel uncomfortable and want to change rooms.*

But she didn’t want to hide it.

“I’m eighteen years old. And because I don’t have parents, I came here with the help of a sponsor. If you’re uncomfortable, you can change rooms.”

Lina’s eyes widened.

“A sponsor helped you get into Bamberg Academy? Wow, you must be really capable!”

“No, I don’t have any special abilities. Why?”

“Oh my gosh. Do you know how much the tuition is for Bamberg Academy? It’s the most expensive! They wouldn’t send just anyone. So, you grew up in an orphanage? Or did you have a benefactor, like a godfather or godmother?”

Vanessa paused, the seemingly careless words digging into her past. *If the children at the orphanage had said such rude things, she would have given them a scolding.*

At the continued silence, Lina realized she had been insensitive.

“Um, sorry. I was just curious. I don’t know anything about that… No! That was rude too. You don’t have to answer.”

Lina Dellina said, looking around, then slapped a hand over her mouth. *Damn it, Lina Dellina!*

“No. Um, I grew up in an orphanage.”

“I see… Ahem. The previous roommate couldn’t keep up with the classwork and assignments, so she dropped out. She said she couldn’t stay here. I think she said she was going to Bardo Academy. Are you planning to study a lot?”

“I’m going to try my best. Make yourself comfortable while you unpack.”

“Thank you.”

The two couldn’t shake the awkward atmosphere and returned to their respective desks. Vanessa still had a lot to do.

She barely finished her assignments and picked up her pen to write a short letter to ‘Teacher’.

Just a few lines. She felt strangely depressed. Afraid that this feeling would show in the letter, she eventually put down her pen.

*There must be many wealthy children at the academy. And smart children too. Can I do well among them? Just fitting in seems like a challenge.*

The excited feeling disappeared, replaced by a sense of unease.

Vanessa got up from her desk and changed into her pajamas.

“Ahem, light gray really suits your eye color.”

Lina Dellina said primly.

“The orphanage prefers these colors.”

Lina Dellina mentally slapped herself from inside the blanket. *Damn it, every step is a landmine!* Vanessa noticed and chuckled.

“I’m not angry, it’s just the truth. The orphanage likes colors that don’t get dirty easily. Do people usually not wear these kinds of pajamas?”

“Pajamas all look pretty similar.”

*The material is different…* Lina Dellina, wearing pure white pajamas, swallowed those words. Vanessa lay down on the bed and burrowed into the blanket.

In the silent air, Vanessa hesitated and then spoke.

“Um, is it really hard for mid-term entrants to keep up? Everyone just says it’s okay.”

“There must be a reason why the professors allowed you to enter as a third-year.”

“Isn’t it because I’m a bit older?”

“Here, even in the same grade, ages vary. There are people from sixteen to twenty-four years old in the third grade. So, the grade is the most important thing. They wouldn’t have done it because of age alone in a place like this.”

Lina said encouragingly. Vanessa turned off the lamp.

“Thank you, good night.”

As Vanessa whispered her greetings, Lina Dellina mumbled.

“Good night.”

Soon, the room on the far right of the fourth floor became quiet.

⚜ ⚜ ⚜

To Teacher,

Hello, Teacher. It’s a spring day with a fairly warm breeze. I hope everything is peaceful for you.

I’m doing very well. I’ve been so busy learning new things every day that the intervals between letters have become a bit longer.

What? I thought I heard a voice saying it doesn’t matter at all, but I must be mistaken, right?

I don’t know how happy I was to receive your first reply.

I actually thought it would be okay even if you didn’t read my letters. I talk too much!

I’m so happy that you’re taking the time out of your busy schedule to reply.

I found a very pretty box. Your letters will be stored here, one by one.

Regular classes finally started a week ago. I was so nervous that day that I couldn’t even drink a glass of water because my stomach was so tight.

Because I was so pale, my roommate handed me a glass of water without saying a word.

My roommate is a really pretty girl. Her neatly cut bangs and the just-right curly red hair that brushes the ends of her shoulders made me think she was like a noble lady.

I haven’t had many conversations with her yet, but I think she’s the eldest daughter of a very well-to-do family. Her name is Lina Dellina.

At first, I thought we would never get along. Especially when she tied her neat uniform tie into an elegant ribbon.

I was worried that many people would treat me with prejudice, thinking, ‘Vanessa? The girl who grew up in an orphanage?’ so I judged Lina with prejudice too.

But Lina was a really nice girl. When I barely managed to swallow a sip of the water she gave me, she kept looking around and making sure I was okay.

Fortunately, the first class was a common third-year class, Professor Marina’s . It’s a class that looks at the history of various countries little by little, but it’s so dizzying because it covers such a wide range of things.

As I walked next to her, hugging my book tightly and trembling, Lina playfully slapped my waist and said.

“Neck long, back straight, eyes forward! That’s what my mom and dad say every day. Elegance comes from posture.”

After hearing those words, I straightened my body as much as possible. Lina looked me up and down and then smiled and opened the back door of the classroom.

Then people started calling Lina from here and there. Lina told me to come with her, but there was only one seat left near her, so I sat separately.

Lina doesn’t need to take care of me. Right?

And after about a week, I realized why Alisa said it wouldn’t be difficult to adapt. Everyone is so busy with assignments that they have no time or mind to spare.

Of course, I sometimes have time on the weekends, but I don’t have time to relax. Thanks to the remaining assignments.

I ended up finishing everything and falling asleep at 2 AM yesterday.

The professors don’t really give strict deadlines for the remaining assignments. But I’m afraid of falling behind, so I always end up finishing them too quickly.

Then the professor gives me another assignment, and I do it quickly with a vengeance, and then another assignment, and another….

Is this what they call a vicious cycle?

What have you been doing lately, Teacher?

The weather is nice, are you taking a walk once a day? I hope you’re enjoying reading my letters too?

I sometimes imagine what you look like.

You’re sitting in front of a magnificent and enormous book, wearing a formal suit with impeccable etiquette.

And you’re looking at documents while grooming your elegantly swept-back white hair and sharply grown mustache, and then you read the letter I sent and smile. Then I feel a little proud.

I’ll stop here. I’m going to bury myself in assignments again today and finish the day.

To the teacher who receives this letter, I always pray that good things happen to you.

From Vanessa Rose, whose cheeks have become gaunt in just one week.

⚜ ⚜ ⚜

Vanessa finished the letter, sealed it, and put it in Hornir [a magical mailbox]. The wax that sealed the letter was red, making it look like a painting.

Soft yellow light lingered for a moment inside Hornir, and then the letter was gone.

Looking ahead, the textbooks for , , and , which were today’s classes, were proudly displayed on the desk. They were thick enough to break someone’s bones if they fell on their feet.

Vanessa eventually sighed.

“It’s easier to give up.”

Lina, who noticed the sigh, lay down on the bed and said primly.

“Vanessa, you’ve signed up for too many notoriously difficult classes. Just , , and , which are common classes, are enough to kill you, but and too?”

Lina Dellina made a firm judgment.

“You’re crazy. You should have signed up for something like ! Or a foreign language.”

Vanessa said gloomily.

“ is good. If I had met you sooner, I might have known too. But when I took the supplementary classes, Professor Guido didn’t give much homework.”

“That’s exactly the trick. Professor Guido tries to discover even one more student with magical talent. Most of them just end up blowing their hats off [failing spectacularly], and many have no magical talent at all.”

Vanessa tore at her disheveled hair.

“Oh my gosh. I probably won’t be able to sleep until after 3 AM again today….”

“How about just lying down like me?”

Vanessa glared at Lina Dellina for a moment, resenting Lina lying down and beckoning as if tempting her. The fluffy blanket smelled of soft soap, making her want to bury herself in it right away.

“You’re just saying that, but you’ve already finished your assignment. How are you so good at statistics?”

“If you’re born into a family that runs a trading business, that’s how it is. I grew up memorizing math formulas from the age of four.”

Lina giggled.

Vanessa and Lina bickered for a while. The two had become quite close in the week they had spent together.

At that moment, a soft blue light swirled in Vanessa’s Hornir. As the two turned their gaze to Hornir, candy began to pour out of Hornir’s entrance.

“Oh, oh!”

Vanessa managed to catch a few of the overflowing candies, but countless chocolates, taffy candies, and jellies that she couldn’t catch poured onto the desk.

“Did your sponsor send it? Oh, this is Alpine candy!”

Lina picked up a candy that had fallen on the floor with curious eyes.

“Alpine?”

“Well, he’s not a great magician, but it’s candy made by a magician. If you eat this candy, you’ll probably feel a little more energized. It’s very expensive. Anything with even a little magic is expensive.”

The candy wrappers were also unusual. Gold, blue, silver.

The wrappers full of all sorts of colors had someone’s signature on them. It was probably the signature of a magician named Alpine.

Vanessa picked up two candies, gave one to Lina, and peeled the other and popped it into her mouth. Lina also put one in her mouth and crunched it.

Vanessa felt like she really had more energy.

“Okay. I’m definitely going to sleep by 1 AM today.”

Vanessa put determination in her eyes and tied up her hair. Lina Dellina snorted and covered herself with the blanket.

⚜ ⚜ ⚜

Beeeep!

Vanessa, with a tired face, hit the alarm clock that was squawking loudly next to her.

*I must have just closed my eyes for a moment, but it’s morning, this is a lie. I should have just slept when Lina was sleeping….*

The gloomy feeling was fleeting, and soon her eyes widened. There was a letter in the entrance of Hornir.