Cleio Aser, Registered at Seventeen (1)
***
"Hey, it's not like I'll run away even if you don't use magic…"
"Ah, hold still for a second. The magic formula's confusing enough already. [May our words remain a secret forever!]"
The [Soundproof][Barrier] spell wrapped around Cleio and Dione, illuminating the room. Behemoth scratched its belly with a hind leg, lazily eyeing the magic circle.
"Eeooong, nyak (Look at them fussing like they're deciding the fate of the nation)."
Inside the barrier, Dione shouted in her clear, ringing voice.
"So you've decided to side with Prince Arthur now? Is that your final choice?"
"How did you…"
"When the Third Prince keeps coming by every other day, how could I not notice? Until now you looked reluctant, so I didn't say anything."
Cleio, speechless, just blinked. Dione leaned forward and playfully bumped her forehead against his.
"Why that tragic face? I never said I was against it."
Despite the cute gesture, the headbutt hurt. Cleio rubbed his sore forehead and reluctantly began to speak.
He couldn't keep hiding from his partner that he'd chosen to sail with Arthur.
"You know it better than anyone—it's a dangerous path. The Third Prince lacks both power and wealth, and until now he's had no justification."
"You said you hated politics, and yet you're jumping straight into the biggest game. You realize your words and actions don't match, right?"
"Sometimes things… just turn out that way. I'm not exactly thrilled either. I might be stirring up trouble in a perfectly fine country."
"Well, who thought Philip would become king twenty-seven years ago? In horse racing, too, when the last-place horse turns the tables, the payout's bigger."
"…You never cease to impress me with your boldness, Lady Dione."
"You have to bet big to win big. Besides, I have something to rely on."
"Something to rely on?"
Instead of answering, Dione suddenly let go of her hands, sending Cleio crashing onto the floor. Before his dazed head cleared, she snatched up his right hand.
Even when he tried to pull back, her grip was firm.
Dione pushed a stream of ether into him and examined the sign that flared up. A blue-green rectangular mark glowed clearly on the veins of Cleio's hand.
"As I thought, a sacred mark. This one's related to 'Prediction,' isn't it? You said earlier 'until now'. That means the 'justification' doesn't exist yet—but will in the future, right?"
'Why is everyone so sharp? They pull ten meanings out of one phrase. Ugh.'
Her guess was completely off, but all he could do was nod.
Given the circumstances, it was the only explanation that made sense.
"Wow, my business partner's a prophet. I feel safer already."
"I can't foresee everything. Often the details are wrong, or the outcome isn't what I imagined."
"If you knew everything, life would be boring! You've got to accept a little thrill."
The magic sigil quietly faded away.
Dione, acting as if she hadn't just ambushed him, straightened her clothes primly and asked,
"So, how are you going to thank them for the gift?"
"For now… I'll write a letter of thanks. Keep it as formal as possible."
"And to your father?"
"Are you going to tell him?"
"Even if I don't, there are plenty of literate people at the manor. Telegrams travel fast."
"Then I'll just say I didn't know what it was when I accepted it."
"Wow, so basically you've got no plan!"
"Let's just call it flexibility."
***
The clock tower, the lecture hall nestled among dense woods, the dormitory by the riverside—
Returning to school after two months stirred a wave of nostalgia.
Deng— deng— deng—
The chime of the tower bell rang out on schedule, exactly as it had on the day he first awoke in this world.
Now he knew—the bell was a famous feature of Rundane. Cast from magic ore, its clear tones carried for miles.
'Can't believe I missed all this…'
So much had happened during the break that it felt like two years, not months, had passed.
As soon as the carriage door opened in front of the dormitory, Behemoth hopped out and disappeared into the woods for his long-neglected territory patrol.
Cleio went up to his room, pulled the safe from his luggage and hid it in the wardrobe, leaving the wine inside the suitcase.
Then he requested a meeting with Dean Zebedi and politely declined the offer to skip a grade—he needed to stay in the same year as Arthur now.
The dean seemed disappointed but also pleased to keep teaching a student who had reached Level 3 during the summer of his seventeenth year.
When Cleio left the office, it was already evening.
The dorm cafeteria was quiet since most students hadn't yet returned from home. He sat in a corner and took a spoonful of warm beef stew.
'Even the cafeteria food feels nostalgic.'
The luxurious meals at the estate had been delicious, but the big-batch stew here had its own simple charm.
Halfway through his meal, a dorm attendant brought him the evening paper he'd requested.
Cleio unfolded it out of habit—and froze. The spoon slipped from his hand.
'!!!!'
Announcement of Railway Extension Linking the City of Dubris and the Capital
New Terminal Station to Be Built in the Eastern Orails District of Rundane
Crown Prince Melchior's Bold Decision: Royal Land Sold for the Station Site
Business Circles Voice Enthusiastic Support
Cleio's eyes burned holes through the paper as he read line after line.
But he didn't get far before small hands tugged at his hair.
"Cleio, you look like an old man."
"Yeah, old man."
"Why're you reading the paper while eating?"
"My dad does that too. But you're only seventeen!"
It was the twins, Liphy and Leticia.
They each plunked their trays beside him and poked at him as he stared at the newspaper.
'Well… technically I am older than you two, but still…'
"That's harsh, you know."
"What's harsh?"
Liphy grumbled as she adjusted the ivy-leaf ornament in her hair. Both sisters were nicely tanned and looked stronger, their arms more toned than before.
'Yeah, they definitely got tougher…'
"How was your vacation?"
Both girls pouted in unison.
"Terrible."
"All we did was sword training."
"School's better than home."
According to records, the House of Angelium was an old martial family from the southwest.
Judging by their expressions, the twins had endured a harsh summer break.
"The only fun part was at Novantes. We ate a ton of good food and didn't have to train."
"Why didn't you come see us back then?"
Reading the newspaper was already a lost cause.
Cleio was surrounded on both sides by the chattering twins, their nonstop voices throwing him into chaos.
"I've got something urgent to deal with… Hey, let's at least finish eating before we talk, alright?"
"Hmph."
"Fine, whatever."
"Now that school's started again, you can't slip away from us so easily."
Only then did the sisters pick up their spoons and begin eating their stew like little birds pecking at grain. Their posture was perfectly straight, their movements precise and polite.
Truly, they were products of strict discipline.
"By the way, why are you two so happy to see me? It's not like I've ever done anything for you."
"Well, Ray, you're strong at magic."
"That [Wind] spell you used back then was the strongest Level 2 spell I've ever seen in my thirteen years."
"Being strong is cool."
"And admirable."
"That's all it was?"
Cleio slumped, deflated. The twins, unconcerned with his disappointment, continued scooping their stew with cheerful focus.
"All, you say? The Angelium family refuses to adopt any sons because they insist the strongest child must be heir. To those girls, strength is the highest virtue."
Chel set her tray down across from Cleio and smiled. His face was still infuriatingly handsome and smooth.
"Ray, you look worse than before. Lost some color."
"Maybe… because the vacation was too long?"
"Ha! Running all over the place buying land—you probably didn't have time to put any flesh on those cheeks."
"You're well informed."
Chel reached over the tray and pointed at the headline on Cleio's folded newspaper.
"Well informed? Hardly. Who doesn't know about the new railway station in the east side of the capital now? It's all anyone talks about. I even got dragged into being a messenger."
"A messenger?"
"Yes, the messenger who's supposed to deliver a message to you. My mother wants to see you."
"Really?"
"Would I lie? What's with that grin?"
"I'm just… so happy."
Cleio's smile was brighter than ever before. Across the table, arms crossed arrogantly, Chel looked almost like an angel come to deliver good news.
"And what do you think she wants to talk about?"
"There's only one thing your mother could want to discuss with me."
Chel narrowed her eyes, studying him as though to read his intent.
Even under her openly suspicious gaze, Cleio's confidence didn't waver. She let out a small laugh.
"Ha. When Mother said she'd found the real owner of the Orails property, I couldn't believe it. Who would've thought that behind that clueless-looking face lurked such a schemer? Talk about a twist. Guess you really are a son of the Aser family."
Cleio had asked Dione to keep the owner's identity hidden as best she could to avoid attracting unnecessary attention, but deceiving Katarina's eyes was impossible.
'Not that I ever intended to fool Katarina anyway.'
"Haha, say what you like. So when does your mother have time to meet?"
"As soon as possible. Whenever preparations are ready."
"And the place?"
"I'll tell her you agreed. She'll contact you herself."
"I'll be waiting."
Forgetting his stew entirely, Cleio downed his watered wine in one go. His spirits soared sky-high.
Meanwhile, the Angelium twins—having finished their meal—started begging him to show them a magic demonstration.
"Can't you cast [Wind] again, like during the final exam?"
"We were going to ask back in Novantes!"
Their olive-colored eyes sparkled with excitement.
Now he realized—that must've been the only reason they'd clung to him from before the vacation till now.
'Kids, really…'
He was a Level 4 mage now; using [Wind] and [Float] while leaving half his magic-formula slots empty wasn't even difficult anymore.
"Well, sure. If you're finished eating, shall we head to the drill field?"
"Yay!"
"Yaaay!"
"Ray, you're the best!"
'Ah, whatever—it's a good mood!'
Thanks to Katarina's invitation, Cleio's heart was unusually generous that night.
The two girls ran ahead and circled around him, laughing gleefully.
Their twin braids bounced lightly with every movement.
Falling behind their quick steps, Cleio walked at an easy pace, feeling oddly warm inside.
"You really like this, huh?"
"Of course!"
"There aren't any mages back in our domain, you know. It's amazing to see one up close."
"Thanks, Ray!"
"Thanks!"
The way they thanked him was so genuinely adorable that the last of Cleio's inner walls crumbled.
'Well… if I'd gotten into trouble back in high school, I could have kids this age. Never been married, yet here I am giving them their first flight. Ridiculous.'
Cleio unfolded a magic circle and gently lifted the twins' light bodies into the air.
That night, the circle's glow never faded from the drill field, and the laughter of the floating twins echoed late into the night.
***
The first class of the new semester was Magic Fundamentals II.
"Did you all have a good vacation?"
The model students—like the Angelium twins and Isiel in the front row—answered crisply, but those in the back didn't.
Arthur, Cleio, Nebo, and the rest.
Cleio, completely worn out from being harassed by the twins until right before bedtime, didn't even attempt a weak reply—he was half-asleep, nodding off.
Arthur, sitting beside him, was outright collapsed on his desk, breathing evenly.
Professor Zebedi clicked his tongue.
"Tsks, those boys in the back are hopelessly lazy. Looks like they didn't so much as glance at a single magic formula all vacation."
Zebedi's irritation was obvious—definitely a sign that a mountain of assignments was coming.
"That's not true, sir. Please don't spring a surprise assignment on us."
As always during magic class, Nebo—half-asleep but loud—pleaded desperately.
"The more you beg, the more I want to assign one. Why can't you understand that?"
"Ughhh—"
"Before we begin, let me introduce a repeating student who'll be studying with you this semester. If you don't train properly, this could be your fate next year. Stand up—Francis Gabriel Hyde-White."
'What? Francis?'
Cleio, who'd been drifting off with his textbook half-open, shot awake at the sound of the name.
Read more chapters here : https://ko-fi.com/ripper1920
or on payhip: https://payhip.com/Beastnovels