Sincerely, Vanessa

Vanessa jumped out of bed with a clatter.

***

To Miss Vanessa Rose,

I had a good laugh after reading that you imagined me.

Unfortunately, I don’t have a mustache or white hair. I’m thinking about whether I should try growing a mustache to meet your expectations.

As you said, the weather has been so nice lately that it’s perfect for taking a walk.

Sometimes, just picturing the Bamberg Academy that you describe makes me feel the scent of the trees and grass from that time.

The academy is a place where young people refine many things before entering society.

There is absolutely no need to worry about money, so I hope you try everything you want to while you’re there. Experience is best gained when you have the chance.

I’m glad to hear that you’re adapting well to the academy.

As always, if there’s anything you need or something difficult you’re going through, please let me know anytime.

I hope your morning starts happily today.

From your teacher.

***

Vanessa folded the letter and smiled. With a letter from my teacher starting the morning, how could it not be a good day?

Vanessa stored the letter in a beautiful box in the drawer, then quickly ran to the bathroom to get ready.

“Lina, wake up!”

“This is the worst… when is the break going to come…?”

“What are you talking about? We’re only in the second week of the semester.”

Vanessa woke up the groggy Lina and got her ready, then ran out ahead.

Her morning class was Fundamentals of Magic Engineering, which wasn’t a common class, so it was different from Lina’s schedule.

This class was infamous for one reason: it wasn’t about effort, but rather talent that mattered to a large extent.

“Chevati. You’re excellent as always today.”

Professor Erin smiled brightly as she praised a girl with short black hair. The girl had just solved the problem the professor had written on the board perfectly.

“Thank you, Professor.”

The girl, wearing large glasses, entered without a smile and sat down at her seat. Vanessa, who didn’t know Chevati at all, couldn’t help but admire her.

Is she a second-year student? I heard she’s only 14!

Vanessa thought that if she had to choose a subject where she might end up with below-average grades, she’d pick this one in a heartbeat.

Vanessa couldn’t contain her admiration and felt like she wanted to express her awe to this small girl.

“Hey, that’s really amazing.”

Vanessa whispered quietly to Chevati, who was sitting nearby. Chevati tilted her face slightly toward Vanessa, but quickly turned her gaze back to the board.

“It’s incredible.”

“What is?”

“It’s usually considered annoying,” Chevati said, her lips curling into a slight smile. Vanessa barely managed to hold back her laughter.

“My goal in this subject is just to get an average score.”

“Average isn’t hard. First place, however, would be impossible.”

That arrogance was backed by real skill, making it just impressive.

I should have at least one subject where I can say something like that! Vanessa smiled and focused again on her notes.

Professor Erin’s long lecture eventually came to an end.

Vanessa tried her best to copy everything on the board but only understood about half of it. A few students around her looked up at the board with empty expressions before sluggishly packing up.

However, Vanessa had some free time before the next class, so she decided to organize her notes. If she didn’t review right away, she’d forget even half of it.

“Hmm.”

At that moment, a cough was heard beside her. Turning her head, Vanessa saw Chevati, who hadn’t left yet, glancing at Vanessa’s notes.

“Is there something I missed? Do you want me to show you?”

“No, that’s not it.”

Chevati hesitated for a moment before pointing to something on Vanessa’s notes.

“Here, the math formula is wrong. One of the symbols on each side is switched.”

“What…?”

Chevati, with clear and enlightened eyes, picked up her pen and began explaining.

Of course, Vanessa could only understand about half of it. Numerous mathematical formulas went in one ear and out the other.

Vanessa felt genuinely frustrated. How much effort had she put in every night!

“…Did you get it?”

“…Yeah.”

Chevati eventually gave up and packed up her pen. Vanessa quickly gathered her things and stood up.

It was lunchtime. She had planned to eat alone in a corner of the cafeteria as usual, but today she decided to muster up the courage to try something different.

“As you probably know, I’m Vanessa Rose. Just call me Vanessa.”

Vanessa extended her hand and offered a handshake. Chevati, with her small hand, shook it.

“I’m Chevati Milo Dottie. Nice to meet you. Just call me Chevati.”

“Okay. Chevati, want to have lunch together?”

Chevati blinked her large eyes behind her glasses and stared at Vanessa’s blue eyes. She mumbled something, nodded, and Vanessa smiled brightly.

Vanessa was generally content with whatever meal was provided. No matter what, it was always better than the orphanage food in terms of taste and nutrition. So, she usually stuck to the nearest cafeteria.

But Chevati was a second-year student! (Vanessa acknowledged that she was smarter than her!)

Vanessa decided to take her to a cafeteria with a wider variety of food. Thinking of the children from the orphanage, she wanted to treat Chevati to something even better.

“I’ll treat you as a reward for your kind explanation. What do you want to eat?”

“You’re treating?”

Chevati hesitated for a moment before choosing a sandwich with fresh cheese, butter, and ham, along with onion stew. Vanessa chose a salad and mashed potatoes with butter.

Vanessa took out a golden coin embossed with the image of the wizard who founded Bamberg Academy, “Bam Bandalu.”

This gold coin was given to everyone who entered the academy and served as a substitute for currency.

Of course, it worked on a system where you could exchange money and charge it, but since the professors had placed it in the academy’s accounting department, Vanessa didn’t know how much was in it.

However, she thought there would be enough to pay for about two meals, and she was right. The payment process went smoothly.

Vanessa fiddled with the gold coin for the first time before putting it back in her pocket.

The two of them sat at a table by the window, chatting and eating.

“What? The next class is

“I’m preparing to skip a grade. I need to take all the third-year classes if I want to move up to the fourth year.”

“So you’re taking both second-year and third-year classes at the same time?”

Vanessa was momentarily shocked. She thought her own course load was crazy, but there was someone even crazier than her!

Chevati said nonchalantly.

“It’s not exactly like that. For subjects numbered 1 through 6, if you can understand the higher-level course, you don’t have to take the lower-level ones.”

“Ah, so you’re not taking

Vanessa scooped some mashed potatoes into her mouth. The salty flavor was just to her liking.

“You’re a late enrollee, right? Isn’t it hard for you?”

Vanessa hesitated at the reverse question. Was it hard? Or wasn’t it?

“I’m just happy I got the opportunity to learn. As you know, I only managed to get in thanks to my benefactor teacher.”

Sometimes, physically, I do feel exhausted, and I don’t think I’m as energetic as I used to be. I’ve been feeling a bit anxious for no clear reason.

But even so, it’s still a huge blessing. Without the teacher’s help, I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to learn so much at a place like this, or gain the chance to go out into society.

So, despite the hardships, it was still luck.

“I’ve heard the professors praise you.”

Chevati said, sipping her juice.

“They say you work really hard.”

Chevati Milo Dottie was a bit shy, but the reason she was eating lunch with Vanessa was because she had become curious.

The academy was a small society in itself, and gossip spread quickly.

Vanessa Rose was an exceptional case, entering as a third-year student.

Late enrollees usually started in their second year, so entering as a third-year student proved that she had some kind of “talent.” As a result, she drew secretive glances.

Additionally, her brown hair, deep blue eyes, dark eyebrows, and sharp features made her undeniably attractive, and people often lingered around her.

Even though she was already an adult, her appearance seemed to blossom more as she aged.

However, Vanessa Rose didn’t particularly stick to those types of people. She wasn’t the type to hide her background, so everyone knew that she was the child of a fallen noble family and had come from an orphanage.

Even though her current grades weren’t particularly outstanding, she attracted even more puzzled looks.

How did she manage to enter as a third-year?

But Chevati Dottie knew how hard Vanessa worked. They took quite a few classes together, and Chevati could tell that Vanessa seemed to be completely absorbed in the lessons, not even recognizing Chevati’s surname.

People like her might be slow, but they were bound to shine eventually. Unlike those who use tricks, you couldn’t even compare them to the foolish people who don’t make any effort.

Chevati took another sip of her juice through the straw, her eyes sparkling behind her large glasses.

“Then, do you want to sit together in class?”

Vanessa asked with a bit of excitement. She was feeling lonely without a friend sitting next to her. Chevati nodded.

“Sure.”

***

Most of their conversation was Vanessa talking and Chevati responding.

“Wow, your mother won the highest award? Your brother too?”

Chevati answered.

“My brother is currently in the Royal Magic Technology Department. I barely have any magical power, but he’s different.”

Vanessa wasn’t confident about the

The two of them caught quite a few eyes — a third-year late enrollee and a very young second-year student preparing to skip a grade.

But neither of them noticed, too busy talking to each other.

“So, what’s your least favorite class?”

“I’m good at everything.”

Chevati hesitated, and Vanessa grinned.

“Honestly, Professor Elliot’s literature class is barely above average for me.”

Vanessa chuckled quietly. Just then, Lina Delina, who was entering through the back door, spotted the two of them.

Upon seeing them, Lina’s eyes sparked with anger. She ignored the friends who were calling her and walked straight up to Vanessa.

“What’s this, Vanessa! You keep ignoring me when I asked to sit with you, but now you prefer sitting with a second-year genius?”

Lina said, sulking, and threw her bag onto Vanessa’s left side.

“I see friends calling you over there.”

Vanessa whispered, glancing behind her. A girl with flowing hair and a boy with his hair pushed back were staring at them. Lina snorted.

“I’ll be right back. I can’t let my roommate’s first seat get taken. Second-year, Vanessa is mine.”

“First time I’ve seen you sit together?”

A spark flew between Lina and Chevati. But Vanessa, too busy with her study prep, didn’t notice the tension at all. Not at all.

Still, she enjoyed the afternoon class. It felt like she had finally built a solid foundation in this small society.

***

To the teacher,

Today’s letter is very short.

I’ve made two new friends, and I wanted to brag about it to you right away!

In addition to Lina Delina, I made a new friend named Chevati Milo Dottie.

She’s one year younger than me but four years younger in age. But she’s preparing to skip a grade, so we have many overlapping classes. We’ve decided to always have lunch together if our schedules match.

And today, for the first time, I sat in class surrounded by friends. It was so exciting.

Afterward, we all went to the library to work on our assignments, and I was scolded by the librarian for the first time. She told us to be quiet!

It’s been almost a month since I started at the academy, and now I finally feel like I’m truly accepted into the school.

Teacher, thank you. I really like you.

I feel so happy, like I’m walking on clouds,

From Vanessa Rose.