Noble Ethics Class.
For most students, this is the easiest class to get an A in, especially for those who have been taught how to hold a teacup since childhood. However, at the Royal Celestia Academy, nothing is easy. Especially when the teacher is that woman.
Professor Mina Liz Kaiser.
The woman stood tall in front of the class like an iron flagpole. Her jet-black hair was cut into a very precise bob. However, what was most striking and mentally terrifying to the students was the single-lens glasses perched on her right eye.
The lens reflected a cold light every time she glanced at us, as if scanning our sins.
"Close your books," her sharp voice cut through the silence of the classroom.
I yawned softly in the middle row, trying not to look bored. Basically, the Royal Celestia Academy was built with the motto "Without Regard to Status." Ironically, however, this Ethics class taught us how to be elitist in a polite manner.
"Because I'm tired of seeing you just sitting and nodding..." Professor Mina tapped her ruler on the table. "...Your midterm exam will be in the form of a practical test."
She smiled. A thin smile that made the whole class's hair stand on end.
"A Grand Tea Party," she said with a proud smile, "I have already obtained permission from the Rector. So, anyone who deliberately misses this practical will immediately get an E!"
Instantly, a bad feeling hit my head.
Tea Party.
In my previous life, as a writer and lover of fantasy stories about royalty, I knew one unwritten rule about Tea Parties.
It wasn't a tea drinking event. It was a battlefield disguised with lace tablecloths and sweet cakes.
In every novel or comic I had ever read, Tea Parties always ended in disaster. There was always a scene where a Villainess spilled wine on the protagonist's dress, or a moment where someone was accused of poisoning the cake, or the most cliché: mass bullying wrapped in polite laughter.
"This tea party will not be held in a boring, cramped room," continued Professor Mina.
She paced back and forth.
"I have already obtained permission to use the entire Green Field behind the Pure Magic Department building. It's a spacious place, full of shady trees, and open to the public."
Her eyes behind her single lens sparkled.
"And I don't want a small, compartmentalized tea party. The entire class will be invited. First, second, and third years. Even students from other departments can join as guests."
The class immediately became noisy.
"The entire class?" whispered Lyra next to me. "That means the scary seniors will be coming too?"
"Not just scary, Lyra," I replied softly, massaging my temples. "It's obviously going to be a disaster."
A combined tea party for all grades in an open field? It was like Professor Mina deliberately throwing a hundred cats and a hundred dogs into one cage.
"My goal is simple," Professor Mina's voice boomed again, silencing the commotion. "I want to see how you maintain your dignity and ethics in the midst of chaotic crowds. Your grades depend on how perfectly you keep that fake smile on until the event is over."
She glanced at me, or maybe it was just my imagination, before continuing.
"Prepare yourselves. Next week, we'll see who's blue-blooded and who's just pretending."
I sighed deeply, staring at the classroom ceiling.
Why did my gut tell me that at the tea party later, I wouldn't be able to enjoy a single piece of cake in peace?
***
The midterm exams at the Royal Celestia Academy were still two weeks away. This was a break that students usually used to relax or stock up on materials at the library. However, Professor Mina Von Kaiser was not the type of teacher who cared about her students' mental well-being.
With her absolute authority in the Noble Ethics class, the woman with the monocle acted as she pleased by making today a practical exam for the Grand Tea Party, as she had announced a week ago. Her reason was simple: "Unpreparedness is the best spice for testing one's true character."
The dress code applied this time was quite unique, or more precisely, strategically discriminatory.
Male students were required to wear formal black or white tuxedos or tailcoats. No variations, no flashy colors. We were designed to be the background, whose only task was to blend in and serve the conversation.
Meanwhile, female students were free to wear dresses of any color and style.
At first, many female students cheered at this freedom. However, I knew this was a cruel trap. By giving them freedom of choice in clothing, Professor Mina was actually testing their fashion sense, their ability to match colors with their personality, and their sensitivity to time and place.
The practical exam lasted four full hours, starting at four in the afternoon when the sun was still scorching, until eight in the evening when the stars began to appear. It was a test of physical and mental endurance to keep smiling while wearing a corset and high heels.
At that moment, the clock pointed to fifteen minutes past six.
The sky begins to change color. The orange hues of dusk slowly fade, replaced by magical shades of blue-violet. The magical crystal lights hanging from the branches of giant oak trees begin to light up automatically.
The atmosphere of the field, which was previously brightly lit, is now transformed into a romantic and elegant garden party.
Long tables covered with clean white linen tablecloths were neatly arranged at the edge of the field, filled with high-end pastries, colorful macarons, and imported tea with a fragrant aroma wafting into the air. In the middle of the field, a small wooden stage was filled with a string quartet playing light classical music, replacing the hustle and bustle of conversations that were beginning to tire.
So far, this "battlefield" was still dominated by first-year students. The second- and third-year seniors, as well as students from other departments, would finish their classes at seven, but none of them were in sight yet.
I just hoped this false peace would last long.
As usual, the social crowd drained my energy. I chose to separate myself from Aiden, who was surrounded by aristocratic girls. Taking a glass of cold sparkling juice, I slipped into the darkest corner of the field, hiding behind the shadows of a large tree.
From here, I could observe everything without having to engage in exhausting political small talk. Or at least, that was my plan.
"Finally, you're here, Leon!"
A cheerful voice that I knew very well broke my silence, destroying the wall of isolation I had just built.
I turned slowly. The glass in my hand almost tilted.
Lyra Belmont stood there, right on the border between the shadows of the trees and the light of the crystal chandelier. She smiled widely, her eyes narrowing into crescent moons.
And I had to admit, she looked extraordinary tonight.
Usually, Lyra wore a slightly messy academy uniform or practical training clothes. She was an energetic girl, a bit of a tomboy, and always ready to run. But tonight, she had transformed into a different person.
Lyra was wearing a soft champagne gold chiffon dress. The dress had an Empire Waist style—the high waistline below the chest gave her an elegant look and made her petite body look more slender.
The chest had a modest sweetheart neckline, decorated with small white lily embroidery that trailed up to her left shoulder. The sleeves were made of thin, transparent fabric that fluttered gently in the evening breeze.
Her outfit made her look like a fairy of light who had just descended from the forest in a fairy tale.
Her signature asymmetrical bob, bright yellow in color, was now neatly styled, adorned with a simple pearl hair clip on the left side.
"I looked everywhere for you, Leon! I walked around the buffet table three times until my legs were sore!" she complained, "Why are you just standing here like a mushroom afraid of the sun?"
"I'm just tired of socializing like this," I replied casually, trying to calm my racing heart. "And this place is strategic for spending time away from Professor Mina's gaze."
Lyra laughed heartily. Her laughter sounded sweeter than the violin music on stage.
She stepped closer, stepping fully into the shadow of the tree with me. The distance between us narrowed. Suddenly, she slowly turned his body in front of me, letting the layers of his dress flare out beautifully.
She stopped spinning, then looked at me with a different gaze. There was hesitation there. Her fingers nervously squeezed the side of her dress.
"What do you think?" she asked softly. Her voice wasn't as loud as before. "I spent an hour in front of the mirror, trying on five different dresses. Does this outfit look weird on me?"
I looked at her intently.
What she didn't say was that she was dressed like this with a specific hope in mind. She wanted to look beautiful to everyone who saw her.
I sighed softly, smiling sincerely.
"Not strange at all," I replied honestly. "The color suits you perfectly. You look radiant, Lady Lyra."
Lyra's face flushed instantly. The red spread from her cheeks to her ears.
"Th-thank you..." she whispered. She looked down, hiding her shy smile. "Hearing that from you... makes me feel... like my efforts weren't in vain."
"Hm? What did you say?"
"N-no! It's nothing!" Lyra quickly waved her hand, panicking.
Just then, the tempo of the music from the stage changed. The melody, which had been slow, now changed to a faster and more cheerful waltz rhythm. Several students who had been hesitant began to venture onto the grassy area in the middle of the field that was being used as a dance floor.
Lyra glanced at the dance floor, then looked back at me.
"Leon," she called.
She held out her right hand to me, her palm open and inviting.
"Let's dance!" she said enthusiastically. "Professor Mina is busy scolding another class. We're safe from her gaze."
I took a step back. "Lyra, you know I'm not a good dancer. I'd rather watch."
"That's a lie. I saw you dancing with Lady Seraphina at the welcome party. Your moves were perfect," Lyra quickly retorted.
Actually, I really wanted to refuse. Especially since I promised Seraphina that she would be the first person I danced with here.
"Come on, Leon! You promised we'd be good friends, right?"
Lyra took a step forward, looking into my eyes with a pleading gaze that was hard to resist.
"A good friend wouldn't let their friend dance alone. Just one song. Please?"
I sighed deeply. It was impossible to refuse Lyra when she looked at me like a puppy caught in the rain. Besides, seeing her try so hard, I couldn't bear to disappoint her.
"All right. One song," I decided. "But don't blame me if I step on your feet."
"Yes!" Lyra exclaimed softly, clenching her left fist.
Without waiting any longer, she pulled my hand, dragging me out of my comfortable hiding place behind the tree to the middle of the brightly lit grass field.
We took our positions. My left hand held her slim waist, while her right hand held mine.
The music played, and we began to move.
It wasn't a stiff, tense formal dance like when I danced with Seraphina. With Lyra, everything felt light.
Lyra danced energetically. Her steps were light, sometimes she jumped to the rhythm of the violin. She laughed freely every time I almost missed a step, and I smiled back at her free spirit.
"One, two, turn!" she shouted in the middle of the song.
I raised my hand and spun her around. Her dress twirled beautifully, creating a glow around us. Her blonde hair fluttered, and the fresh scent of citrus perfume wafted from her.
For a moment, the world felt smaller. I forgot the tension of the exam, forgot my secret identity as The Numbers, and forgot Professor Mina's threat.
Lyra looked at me, her eyes sparkling in the light of the crystal chandelier. Her grip on my shoulder felt tight, as if she didn't want the song to end. The smile on her face was the happiest I had ever seen from her.
However, we were too immersed in that little bubble to notice one fatal thing.
We didn't realize that we had become the center of attention. And we didn't realize that at the entrance, which was beginning to be crowded with students from other departments, someone had just arrived.
Seraphina Vox Winters stood frozen there.
*****
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