The Rebirth Of The Hero’S Party’S Archmage [EN]: Chapter 88

Magic Academy.

This is the most prestigious university in the Holy Human Empire, founded by Emissa Page, the originator of magic.

Even today, a thousand years later, talented individuals who aspire to dominate the magical world fiercely compete for a diploma from this institution.

“Look at that!”

“Oh, it’s them…!”

Even within this sanctuary of learning, some students distinguished themselves and led their peers: the student council officers.

“It’s Rain Ludwig and Krista Warden, who have consistently ranked first and second in all exams during the first semester!”

Only students demonstrating exceptional performance early in their enrollment are eligible to join the student council.

The opportunity to prove this excellence arises only twice: during the mid-term and final exams of the first year.

“Don’t they look good together?”

Each time Krista Warden overheard such comments, veins throbbed on her forehead as she gritted her teeth.

“Could they be, you know, *like that*?”

*Crack.*

*Crackle.*

“That’s right! I heard they both nominated each other as most deserving of the top spot in the valedictorian competition!”

“Oh my!”

The next moment, a dull thud echoed, abruptly silencing a cute scream.

“You! Why have you been following us around and muttering to yourself since earlier!”

The pigtail girl, Gertrude Fenton, who was now tearfully clutching her head after being punched by Krista, was none other than her maid.

“Well, such narration often appears in plays. I’m merely attempting to voice what the young lady secretly desires to hear, however inadequately…”

“What I want to hear? What?! Are you kidding me! I should just crack your skull open!”

“Eek! That hurts!”

The handsome, black-haired Rain Ludwig, who was walking ahead, sighed deeply and glanced back.

“Hey, can’t you two just stop bickering and move on?”

“Can I just ignore her when she keeps spouting such nonsense?”

“You can just ignore it. Why get so worked up about everything? Let’s go.”

*Just ignore it?*

*When she’s spewing such embarrassing nonsense?*

Krista felt a surge of frustration, but as a junior being guided by a senior in the student council, she decided to follow in silence.

That’s right.

Krista Warden had also become a student council member after this final exam.

Originally, only the top student could attain this honorable position, but if one student secured the top spot twice in a row, the runner-up would also be granted a place.

“How are the student council seniors?”

“How else? They’re all just diligent,” Rain Ludwig replied casually, though his eyebrows twitched slightly before adding something cryptic: “But be careful of the student council president.”

“Careful?”

“Don’t get too close to him.”

This struck Krista as odd.

If he was the student council president, wouldn’t that mean he was the highest-achieving student currently enrolled at ?

He should be someone to respect and learn from, so why maintain a distance?

“I’ll be going in.”

As they spoke, they arrived at the student council room on the 4th floor of Dragonscale Hall, the faculty’s main building.

Krista straightened her clothes and composed herself before following Rain into the room.

The student council room, which she hadn’t visited in a while, remained spacious, elegant, and meticulously organized. Most of the furnishings boasted aristocratic curves.

“I’m Krista Warden. I look forward to working with you,” she said, lightly lifting the hem of her skirt with both hands in a display of aristocratic etiquette. The student council seniors greeted her with applause.

“You’ve returned, young lady,” said the vice president, Felix Drake.

Believing Krista would become the top student, Felix had invited her to the student council even before the mid-term exams.

“Krista! I’ve been waiting!” exclaimed Sandra Keppel, the young lady of the Keppel family, who always acted friendly and embraced her whenever she saw her.

“……”

And then there was Triwis, who, as always, simply bowed his head lightly without uttering a word or showing any expression.

“I wish you had come before that slick guy,” remarked the student council president, Valencidies, renowned as the most beautiful student currently enrolled at .

His striking features and long eyelashes captivated women as much as ever.

Not only was his appearance remarkable, but his skills were also outstanding, and Krista had planned to seek his guidance after joining the student council.

“I’m very sorry to hear that,” Rain retorted rudely, clicking his tongue, interrupting Krista’s thoughts.

*What’s with them?*

The two seemed to be on bad terms.

*Does he not like that he’s talking informally to the son of a powerful family? But Rain doesn’t seem to care much about that.*

“Then let’s immediately hand over the clerical work.”

Seeing the mountain of documents, Krista could only gape in dismay. Felix offered a weak smile.

“It’s because the seasonal festival is coming up soon, and things piled up during the exam period.”

“Even so, this is…”

*There’s too much.*

Rain placed his hand on her shoulder as if to encourage her and swiped his finger under his nose.

“It’s a path everyone has gone through. Just accept it.”

Sandra also swiped under her nose and shrugged her shoulders with the expression of an adult reminiscing about bittersweet memories.

“That’s right. Those were truly painful days. But we were able to overcome it because we had a sense of duty as student council members.”

*Oh, if that’s the case…!*

Just as Krista’s determination began to surge, Triwis unexpectedly swiped under his nose with a mechanical motion on his expressionless face and said, “The top student only does it for two months at most and then is freed, though.”

*Two months?*

*Come to think of it, the top student….*

A cynical smile crept onto Krista’s lips as she realized the truth.

“Hmm, and then what? Everyone has gone through it? A sense of duty as a student council member? Are you kidding me?”

As soon as she coldly muttered and made a contemptuous expression, Rain and Sandra flinched and coughed violently.

“Ahem, ahem! Senior, even so, there are too many documents, so how about helping out a little?!”

“Nice idea, Rain! We should help each other! Because we have a sense of camaraderie as student council members!”

That’s how her first student council activity began, but suspicions about Rain’s strange behavior continued to deepen.

“President, this document is─”

“─The president is busy, so ask me.”

Whenever she tried to ask the student council president something, Rain would interfere.

On top of that, there was an inexplicable chill between the two of them, and whenever a discussion arose, it would invariably end with one of them making sarcastic remarks about the other.

“I didn’t know the president was interested in such matters. That’s unexpected. I thought you were only interested in how to efficiently destroy the human body.”

Rain would say something like this.

“Oh, was it too humble a topic to discuss with the noble young master of a powerful family?”

Valencidies would retort with something roughly like this.

With these sarcastic remarks as the final words, the conversation would end… and the indoor temperature would plummet, as if time had frozen.

But even so, they seemed to be on good terms, as Rain took on all the tasks of assisting Valencidies.

“To the Dragonscale Hall with me─”

“─I’ll go.”

“This seasonal festival publicity promotion together─”

“─I’ll do it.”

In those incomprehensible and ambiguous days, Krista’s stamina was being drastically depleted.

“The work, the work never ends…”

Therefore, every day after student council activities, she would stagger back to the dormitory and collapse. The next day at school, she felt like she was going to die from exhaustion.

*‘There was a reason why Rain always looked sleepy after joining the student council…’*

School life, club activities, and student council activities—there was no time to rest.

Then one day, on her way to the student council room after school, Gertrude Fenton asked if student council activities were fun.

“Fun? How could it be fun? It’s a constant battle with documents every day, and right now I’m about to die from writing the minutes.”

“Is there anything going on with Rain?”

“How could there be?! Hmph, other than me, there’s something strange about that guy.”

“Strange? Where?”

Krista yawned softly and told her about Rain’s actions towards Valencidies.

“Isn’t it strange? I heard they were on good terms before I joined. Did something happen during the final exams?”

She wasn’t expecting any particular answer, but Gertrude nodded with great interest, her eyes sparkling.

“Could it be… that he’s keeping you in check?”

“Keeping me in check? What kind of check?”

“Oh my! Don’t act so innocent! What else could it be! He’s keeping you in check because he’s afraid you’ll be taken away by the student council president! In other words, it’s jealousy!”

Check? Jealousy?

Krista’s face turned red in an instant.

“What nonsense are you talking about! What kind of check! That guy and I are rivals! We don’t have any such feelings for each other! Hey! Are you not coming to work?”

“Hehe, the young lady might not, but the young master might feel differently!”

Krista stopped herself from chasing after Gertrude, who was running away, to beat her up. She had work to do in the student council.

*‘I can’t believe it. Does he not know the principle of keeping a distance between boys and girls after the age of seven [a Confucian principle emphasizing separation between genders after childhood]? Neither he nor I have any intention of spending our school days with such an easygoing mindset.’*

Hmph, she crossed her arms arrogantly and cleared her mind as she climbed the stairs of Dragonscale Hall. When she reached the 4th floor, the student council room door was slightly ajar.

Curious, she approached, but the hand that was about to push the door stopped at the sound of voices coming from inside.

“……I don’t know what you’re so dissatisfied with.”

It was the student council president’s voice.

A voice that was as cool and relaxed as ever.

“Don’t you think your behavior is too excessive? If you keep doing this, people will start to find it strange.”

“Knowing your true nature, this is nothing. I don’t care if they find it strange. What’s important now is to monitor and keep you in check.”

The cold voice that answered was Rain Ludwig’s.

“Hmph, calm down. I have no intention of doing anything that would worry you about Krista Warden.”

*Anything that would worry me?*

*I don’t know what they’re talking about, but why am I eavesdropping on this in the first place?*

*I should just go in,* she thought, and just as she was about to push the door open.

“Who would believe that?”

“Whether you believe it or not is up to you. But I’m telling you that’s my true intention.”

“Then let me tell you my true intention too. I’m warning you, if you touch that girl, you’ll be in for a rough time.”

*Not just that girl, but other people too….*

Before she could even hear the words that followed, Krista Warden gasped in surprise and hid behind the door.

Her face, redder than a carrot, was burning hot.

*– He’s keeping you in check because he’s afraid you’ll be taken away by the student council president! In other words, it’s jealousy!*

*Rain Ludwig, what is he…?*

*Was Gertrude’s words true?*

*Come to think of it, there are more than one or two strange things. Like how he suddenly sat next to me on the first day and became my partner.*

*‘And the fact that he told me to just let Gertrude’s prank go three days ago… was it because he liked being misunderstood like that?’*

*What is that hopeless guy thinking after coming to college?*

*I need to make it clear. We are competitors, and we are not at an age to have such feelings.*

*But it’s strange. Why is it so scary to open the door and go into the room? My heart is racing uncontrollably, my face is hot, and I can’t even speak.*

That’s why she had no choice but to run away from that spot. She didn’t even know why she was running away….

As soon as the door slammed shut and the sound of footsteps running somewhere faded, Rain turned to the door and tilted his head.

“What?”

On the other hand, Valencidies, who saw Krista coming, gave a meaningful smile, having deliberately created this situation.

“Who knows, maybe it’s the death throes of youth.”