Tanmya finished reading all of Aeren's reports and looked at Valerius. "Why didn't you doubt Aeren? He looks more suspicious in these reports."
Valerius glanced at Tanmya and shrugged. "He's only fifteen. What could he possibly do?"
Tanmya stared at Valerius with disappointment. "Are you an idiot? Can't you see what's in your own academy? There are monsters like Lira, Adelind, Renn, and others, yet you think he's harmless just because he's fifteen?"
Valerius sighed. "It's not that I'm underestimating him. I haven't seen a single quality or talent in Aeren. The only skill I've found is that his mana can't be sensed by others. Beyond that, there's nothing impressive about him."
Tanmya looked even more disappointed. "If you can't tell anything about him, that makes him more dangerous. How are we supposed to know how strong Aeren really is? We need to keep an eye on him."
Valerius met her gaze. "I've already done that and found nothing. I'm actually more disappointed in him now."
"What do you mean?"
"I watched his routine. Aeren's café was destroyed by a slum gang, and he did nothing about it. After that, he went and tried to kill himself. Normal humans only take two to three days to heal from such injuries, but Aeren took a whole week. There's nothing noteworthy to see." Valerius was so disappointed that he had stopped watching Aeren entirely.
"Hmm, let's keep an eye on him for one more week. If we find nothing, we'll leave him alone," Tanmya said with a serious expression.
"Fine, do whatever you want." Valerius didn't want to witness Aeren's pathetic life again. He didn't mention that Aeren hadn't earned a single coin all week.
Tanmya and Valerius left the office.
***
*Half an hour earlier...*
Aeren emerged from the principal's office and was about to find his new dormitory when he heard a voice in the distance.
"Hey Aeren, over here!" Uria called out loudly.
"What are you doing here, Uria?" Aeren asked.
"I was waiting for you," Uria replied, looking at the floor with red-rimmed eyes.
"Let's go to the canteen," Aeren said in his usual flat tone.
Uria nodded, and Aeren led the way while she followed behind. As they walked, whispers from other students reached their ears.
"Did you hear? Adelind and Lira are going to spar!"
"What? My goddess is going to fight?"
"What happened? Why are they fighting?"
"Oh, Adelind tried to hit Princess Elenya, and Lira saw it. Lira almost lost control until Arin suggested an official spar."
Hearing the whispers, Aeren looked at Uria and spoke.
"Let's go watch the match."
"Okay," Uria agreed reluctantly. She didn't particularly want to go, but she had nothing else to do and no other friends. Aeren was the only person she knew now.
***
*Present...*
Aeren and Uria arrived at the Official Battle Field. Aeren scanned the crowd until his eyes stopped on Lena, who was standing with a group of people.
Aeren made his way toward Lena and approached the spot where she stood with Crain, Arin, Selevara, and Elenya. As Aeren and Uria joined the group, he said, "Hey, Lena."
Lena froze. Elenya immediately gripped Arin's shirt tighter, and Selevara ignored him completely. Crain looked at him with anger, while Arin smiled briefly before noticing Elenya's reaction and quickly looking away from Aeren.
"My lord," Lena said quietly with a solemn expression. Selevara noticed this and couldn't understand the situation.
Seeing Lena's discomfort, Crain was about to say something when Selevara spoke first.
"What are you doing here, Aeren?" Seeing Lena's reaction, Selevara felt irritated.
"I came to watch the match and wanted to meet my fiancée," Aeren replied politely.
Selevara looked at Lena again and said coldly, "Get lost, or something might happen." She could sense the tension—Aeren was frightening Lena, and she suspected he was using his authority, knowing about their relationship.
Aeren stared at Selevara for several seconds in silence. Crain watched, waiting for his reaction.
After the brief silence, Aeren asked, "Why would I listen to you, Ms. Selevara?"
Arin observed the entire situation while his sister hid behind his back. Uria looked on, scared and confused about what was happening.
Selevara glared at Aeren. "You were obedient when you were doing menial jobs, but now that you've seen a little success, you think you can be my equal?"
Aeren remained silent.
*BOOOOOM!*
Fire suddenly erupted across the entire Official Battle Field. The ground blazed with flames as Lira stood amidst the fire, looking down at the body at her feet. Adelind lay defeated at Lira's feet, and she gazed down at him with cold eyes.
Then Lira spotted her little princess and leaped directly onto the stage. She glanced briefly at Aeren before taking the princess's hand and leaving the group.
Selevara, Arin, and the others stared at Lira in shock. They had known she was strong, but they hadn't realized she was a magician.
Magicians were so rare that in the entire Vardias Kingdom, Lira was the only one they had. Magicians couldn't be found anywhere, and rarely did any kingdom possess even one.
Aeren looked at Lena and said, "Lena, don't forget our relationship." Then he walked away.
Uria started following behind him. Lena watched Aeren's retreating figure and sighed with relief.
Selevara looked at Lena and asked, "Why are you reacting like that?"
Lena met Selevara's gaze. "Nothing. I'm just showing respect as his fiancée."
"Why are you still his fiancée? I heard your family is stable now. Why don't you annul the marriage? You're talented and have a bright future. Why would you want to be his wife?"
Lena looked at Selevara with barely controlled anger. "It's not your concern." She felt fury inside but managed her emotions. She also didn't want to marry him, but saying "no" to Aeren seemed more dangerous than betraying her country, from her point of view.
Lena also left, her anger simmering.
Selevara watched Lena leave while Arin went to help Adelind.