WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Arsène

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ Spring Never Comes to Stolen Fields ◈

Chapter 11: Admission

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The academy was located in the Neutral Territory at the center of the Human World.

At present, four nations maintained a tense balance of power.

The Ibellis Empire, the Kingdom of Zeros, the Kingdom of Ilios, and the Principality of Eodin all sent their most promising talents to the academy.

The reason was that if talented individuals from each nation earned the chance to join the Hero's Party, their nations would gain greater political leverage in the distribution of rewards after the Demon King was defeated.

Therefore, the talented individuals gathered here could generally be seen as people hoping to catch the Hero's eye and travel alongside her.

At their family's behest, for personal honor, or out of simple curiosity, young people were given the chance to demonstrate their abilities at the academy.

And even if they failed to join the Hero's Party, this place also served as a vast social arena for the children of each nation's upper class.

The Ibellis Empire, which had produced this generation's Hero, was probably feeling quite smug right now.

Everyone had come here with their own goals, but I could say with certainty that nobody shared ours.

Because I intended to ruin Celia's "Proof."

On the day of the entrance ceremony, Luna and I went over the details of our new identities one last time.

"So I'm the only daughter of House Iaros, Luna Iaros. And Sirius is my servant... Hmm... Let's say you're my butler."

But could a butler even enroll here?

The thought suddenly occurred to me, but after looking around, I was relieved to see that everyone seemed to have brought one or two servants with them.

"Let's be careful not to make a mistake."

If we said something strange and our identities were exposed, it would obviously become a headache.

Still outside the academy gates, we headed toward the line at the entrance.

We had been walking along just fine when Luna suddenly tugged on my arm.

"Sirius."

"Yeah?"

"Come over here for a moment."

She led me into a thick patch of bushes and took my hand.

"Sirius..."

Her voice sounded anxious.

"You love me, right...?"

Unlike in the Demon World, Luna's eyes were blue as she looked at me, clearly seeking reassurance.

She seemed nervous about meeting Celia soon.

I'm nervous too, so why are you getting nervous as well?

I pulled her into my arms.

"Don't worry. I'm not going anywhere."

"I'm... scared... I mean, to you, the Hero is..."

She couldn't finish her sentence.

I already knew what she meant without her saying the rest.

Because of my Innate Magic, Luna became deeply anxious whenever something involved me.

The small worries and anxieties she probably would not have shown if not for my Innate Magic had grown inside her until they swept over her like a disaster.

I bore some responsibility for the way she was, so I soothed her.

"I love you, Luna."

I stroked her silver hair and whispered to her as if casting a spell.

"...You're not lying, right?"

"I mean it."

"Kiss me."

Our lips met.

Intoxicated by the scent of her orange-scented soap, we spent a heated moment together until just before the entrance ceremony began.

The entrance ceremony was held in a huge auditorium.

We were on the verge of being late, so we took the empty seats at the very edge.

There was a sheet by the entrance listing the order of events.

The most notable parts were the headmaster's welcoming address and the Hero's speech, scheduled for the very end.

A speech from Celia...

The Celia I remembered hadn't been a natural leader.

She had never seemed to enjoy stepping forward or be particularly good at it.

I wondered what Celia looked like now that she had grown, but I was also curious what she would say.

How serious was Celia now about the Hero's duty of defeating the Demon King?

The ceremony began, and the headmaster appeared at the podium.

Helvern Tiaros, a man called one of the strongest warriors in the Human World.

He was not a Hero, but people called him a man as close to one as anyone could be.

Though he had grown old and retired from active service, he was not someone to take lightly.

He swept his gaze over the students gathered in the auditorium, then spoke.

His deep voice echoed through the hall.

"Welcome, everyone. The mere fact that you reached this academy makes you all worthy of recognition."

"Here, you will be able to rise to another level through competition with higher-caliber rivals and training that mirrors real combat."

"I hope you are chosen as the strongest warriors and earn the honor of defeating the Demon King alongside the Hero. Strive your hardest!"

Listening to his voice almost made me feel like I had to defeat the Demon King too.

He was quite the speaker.

Sorry, but I couldn't agree with the sentiment when a single finger snap from the Demon King would erase me the moment I did anything foolish.

After the various addresses and explanations ended, it was finally time for the last event, the Hero's speech.

"Now, we will hear a few words from the Hero!"

Silence fell over the auditorium at those words.

Everyone seemed to be waiting tensely for the Hero to appear.

Click, click.

A silhouette appeared at the back of the auditorium.

As the footsteps grew louder, it felt as if my heartbeat did too.

Then the Hero.

Celia.

Appeared in the auditorium.

Her golden hair was still glossy and neatly kept.

Her features seemed sharper than before.

She had grown quite a bit taller too, though she was not especially tall.

She was about the height of an average woman.

Standing before the podium, Celia silently looked over the students gathered in the auditorium.

"...To be honest, I have little interest in defeating the Demon King."

Everyone wore stunned expressions at her first words.

Luna and I probably looked much the same.

For someone who should represent and lead humanity, it was a shocking opening.

Celia paid no attention to the murmuring around her and continued.

"There is only one thing I care about."

Everyone's attention focused on her.

"The only reason I, as the Hero, intend to wipe out demons and defeat the Demon King is because of that one thing."

They all listened with desperate curiosity written across their faces.

"It doesn't matter whether you're strong or weak. But if you solve this for me, I will immediately give you the opportunity to join me in defeating the Demon King."

Hyena-like gazes appeared throughout the hall.

For those who lacked confidence in their strength, it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

After pausing for a moment, Celia delivered her final words and stepped down from the podium.

"Find a twenty-year-old man named Yuwol, with pale skin and black hair. If you find him, I will allow you to join my party without any conditions."

I could hear people around me whispering, asking who Yuwol was.

Ha... Celia... What on earth are you thinking...?

She seemed to be finished, but suddenly climbed back onto the podium and added one final line.

"That man has a mole on the right side of the back of his neck. Keep that in mind."

Without looking back, she casually stepped down from the podium again.

I felt like a wanted criminal with a bounty on his head.

Did these people sitting around me know?

That the golden ticket was sitting right beside them.

Feeling like ripe fruit, I turned toward a sound from beside me.

Luna had clenched her fists and was grinding her teeth.

Her pretty face was twisted into a vicious scowl.

Then I heard her mutter.

"...That fucking bitch of a Hero..."

No swearing, young lady.

Anyway, since I was her butler from today on, I figured I needed to correct her.

* * *

Proof had begun.

The Ibellis Empire had already explained the process to me until my ears hurt.

There was nothing difficult about it, really.

I just had to take first place in everything, gather people around me, and graduate.

The thought that I could not search for Yuwol because of something so trivial made my throat feel dry.

So on the day of the entrance ceremony, I threw away the speech prepared by the Empire and announced that I would reward whoever found Yuwol.

I was not expecting much, but everyone here was somebody in their respective nations, so I thought they might be helpful.

The moment I stepped down from the podium, my servant Julia scolded me in a panic.

"Oh my, Hero, where did you put the speech the Empire gave you? Why would you make such a bombshell declaration?"

In truth, Julia was the one who would be reprimanded whenever I did something like this, so I felt bad for her.

"I'm sorry, Julia. Just let this one slide."

"Sigh... How am I supposed to explain this now?"

Julia already knew that I was obsessively determined to find Yuwol.

So whenever the important people of the Empire complained about it, it was always Julia's job to make excuses for me.

The only people around me who gave me any comfort now were Julia and my teacher, Duke Aiern.

The Duke had sympathized with me over my traumatic first vacation and helped me greatly in my search for Yuwol.

Now that I was done with the entrance ceremony, I was about to leave the auditorium when I saw an incredibly familiar face at the edge of the hall.

A face I had always dreamed of.

A face I had searched for over the years.

There was no way I could mistake him.

It was Yuwol.

It had to be Yuwol.

Beside the man who looked like Yuwol stood a silver-haired woman.

For reasons I did not understand, Yuwol seemed to be walking on eggshells around her.

One step, then another. I hurried toward Yuwol.

Just as I came up behind him and tried to embrace him, the silver-haired woman appeared in front of me at a speed even I could barely follow and slapped my hand away.

She had struck so hard that even I, the Hero, felt my hand go numb.

"Don't touch what's mine, you insolent bitch."

What the hell was with this bitch?

Footnotes:

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