* * *

Everyone could tell something had happened between Ray and the Divine Beast of Water. But since it was a family matter, no one pressed him about it.

Especially since Ray didn’t even glance at Rihardt, who was sprawled out on the ground, and simply said, “Let’s go.” They missed the timing to ask.

Thanks to Fire’s warmth, Ray and Rosie’s clothes dried quickly.

In the end, Rosie’s group decided to just eat first.

Luckily, no one knew what sort of watery disaster had occurred on the rooftop.

Either way, Caliban, Theo, Julian, Rosie, Zahid, and Ray all headed together to the dining hall.

“Brother.”

Julian had been holding Rosie the entire time, but oddly enough, his expression looked dazed.

Rosie, who noticed something was off about him, leaned in and whispered.

“What’s wrong? Are you sick? It looked like you hit your head pretty hard earlier—shouldn’t you go to the infirmary or something?”

“Ah… no. I’m fine.”

Still, during the meal, Julian fought off the rest of them to claim the seat right next to Rosie.

“Here, kid. Eat this and grow up big and strong.”

Julian piled a mountain of meat onto Rosie’s plate.

“So, if any shameless brat tries to lift your skirt, just kick him. Hard.”

“I didn’t lift her skirt!”

“Make sure you aim right in the middle, got it? With all your strength.”

Ignoring Ray’s protest, Julian just kept loading more food onto Rosie’s plate.

“Hm? Look over there. It’s Assistant Yuta.”

Meanwhile, Rosie, Zahid, and Ray were chatting quietly among themselves.

“Oh? You’re right! It really is Assistant Yuta!”

While the kids were chattering away, Julian forgot to eat and just absentmindedly stroked Rosie’s hair.

He couldn’t quite hear what they were saying about this Yuta guy.

Because earlier, when he’d rushed up to the rooftop and got slammed in the head by the metal door—

“You have a younger sister with the same mother.”

Suddenly, a fragment of memory flashed through his mind.

“I’m not in a position to take care of her, so I ask you to do it.”

“What? A sister? What are you talking about? Who even are you? Come out and show yourself!”

Julian couldn’t tell anything about the person who had hidden themselves and only delivered their message by voice.

There was no other information either. But the owner of the voice seemed to know something.

At the time, just those words—“You have a younger sister”—were enough to spur Julian to search the entire continent until he found her.

Ugh… that’s it? Nothing else is coming back.

Julian frowned, feeling unsettled.

According to Rosie, one day he had suddenly shown up at the Temple looking for her.

Was it because of a tip from some unknown person?

Do I need to get smacked in the head again to remember more?

His head still throbbed from how hard he’d hit it earlier.

It honestly hurt so bad it brought tears to his eyes.

Julian felt like he was going insane, chasing a thread of memory that always slipped just out of reach.

While he was clutching his head in frustration, the kids were still talking about that assistant—Yuta or whatever.

“Ah… he’s looking over here. Hello!”

“Ah, he’s going into the snack shop. Buying a boxed lunch? Guess he’s eating alone.”

“Huh? Didn’t he say earlier that he was leaving quickly to eat? Why’s he here now…”

At Rosie’s concerned comment, Theo, who had been silently eating, suddenly cut in.

“Lowly people like you don’t need to concern yourselves with an assistant’s circumstances.”

At first glance, it sounded like one of Theo’s typical stiff, rule-abiding remarks—drawing a clear line between students and staff.

“Especially with Assistant Yuta. He sometimes receives direct messages from the High Priest. He may be late due to personal matters like that.”

But his follow-up made even the Count of Noart, who had been shoving food into his mouth, pause.

The High Priest.

A middle-aged man with golden hair as radiant as the sun and red eyes.

Though he looked to be in his 40s, he had been the master of the Temple for over a hundred years.

Because of that absurdly long reign, he was someone no one dared oppose.

Even within the Temple, only senior priests or those receiving direct orders had ever even seen him.

He was like a massive spider, spinning webs across the Empire, rarely moving from within the Temple itself.

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

If someone communicated directly with the High Priest on a regular basis, what kind of high-ranking position must they hold in the Temple?

A heavy silence fell over the table.

They had all known that Yuta was from the Temple—but none of them had expected this level of influence.

“…Ah.”

Ray slowly opened his mouth.

“But… why would someone like that be at the Academy…?”

Theo answered flatly.

“In the pursuit of knowledge, there is no such thing as background.”

It was the kind of completely unhelpful remark no one could argue with, so everyone just cautiously glanced around.

Theo had never involved himself in the affairs of the Noart Count Family. Even though he knew how deeply the Count opposed the Temple.

But now, he had essentially handed them a piece of crucial information on a silver platter.

That someone in the Academy was in real-time contact with the High Priest—one of the Temple’s closest operatives.

“I overheard it during tea time with Rosie—she said she had some kind of bad experience at the Temple.”

Theo spoke in a low voice.

“So I’ve had a bit of a change of heart. If it helps Grandfather in any way, I should do what I can.”

Julian furrowed his brows, watching Yuta’s glittering blond hair shimmer like sunlight as he left with his lunchbox.

“Wake up. Drink this, it’ll help. You can’t die here.”

The bump on his head started to throb again.

Something was trying to resurface—faint and distant.

From right before that big accident, before he lost his memories—the last thing he had heard…

“Whatever happens, return to the Count’s estate. You have to survive. Think about your sister, who’s still waiting for you.”

The same secretive voice from the past.

Even when he was on the brink of death, he had seen that same shining gold.

* * *

That night.

Zahid and Ray came to my dorm room.

“Father’s aide showed up in a hurry and took my brother and Athena away.”

Ray shrugged as he spoke.

“Anyway, Athena’s master is Father… it’s not like she could stay long anyway.”

Rihardt wasn’t seriously hurt. But it was said he’d developed a phobia of water.

And if he feared water, there was no way he could handle the Water Divine Beast.

So now, he could no longer claim that the Divine Beast should choose him or that he should be the successor—Ray smiled faintly at that.

“Then… you planned for the Divine Beast’s rampage too?”

Zahid asked, sounding exasperated.

Ray nodded casually.

“I was ready to lose a leg if it came to that… but thanks to Rosie, I got out unharmed. Thanks.”

He flashed me a bright smile, but Zahid stepped in between us, arms crossed, blocking my view.

Then he said coldly—

“That’s not the important part. The Divine Beast’s master? Let’s talk about that.”

Ray had called both me and Zahid together to say something.

He cleared his throat and began.

“There’s a Divine Beast master’s mark on Rosie’s thigh.”

At that, Zahid’s brow furrowed sharply. He narrowed his eyes and muttered—

“Divine Beast’s master? But didn’t Athena go back to Duke Lavendal?”

“I asked Father’s aide to confirm—and Father’s mark is still there.”

“…So that means Rosie has an extra one?”

As I watched them go back and forth, I blinked and quickly interrupted.

“Guys? Not to be left out or anything, but I’m actually really interested in this Divine Beast master ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ stuff too. I know I’m late to the topic, but could you let me in? Just, y’know, keep in mind I’m not from a ducal house, so I have absolutely zero background knowledge.”

All this red and blue mark talk—I couldn’t understand a word of it.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep