“It must be about you and my engagement with Leo.”

“B-but this soon? I haven’t prepared myself yet!”

“Please calm down. It’s not like she’ll eat you alive.”

“That’s not helping at all!”

After Ran’s abrupt message, Leila began to freak out. But thanks to charlotte, she somehow managed to get (drag) her into the carriage as they made their way to the queen.

This would be the first time that she entered the castle’s grounds as she had previously run away.

A maid led the two girls inside. The castle was a lot larger than she thought and she would have easily gotten lost.

Leila had at some point grabbed her hand to calm her nerves, but even now she could feel Leila’s hands shaking and covered in cold sweat.

“My queen, I have brought your guests.”

“Come in.” from the other side of the door, the servants opened the door and the two waked inside. There, the queen was sitting on a sofa while sipping her tea. Even though she had already turned 33 yrs old, she still looked like a woman in her twenties and had a slender figure. She gently placed the cup down as she shifted her gaze to the two. With a gentle voice she spoke as she gestured “Please, have a seat.”

The two curtsied and went forward.

“My, what lovely young ladies you are. I’m guessing you must be Lady Charlotte and you Lady Leila, correct?”

“I feel honored that the queen knows of me.”

“I too, my queen.”

She sweetly smiled at them “You should know what I have summoned you here for, no? my son has already told us everything. However, are you truly alright with this, Lady Charlotte?”

Charlotte returned her smile as she spoke with utmost curtsey “Of course, my queen. My feelings towards the two are that of friendship, nothing else. If by doing this brings them happiness, then as their friend, that is the right thing to do.”

“I see. I am glad you do not seem to hate them for this.”

“Most certainly not. I find them rather difficult to hate.”

“As a mother, it makes me happy to hear you say that. Lady Leila, I do hope you are prepared if you truly wish to stay by my son’s side.”

“Yes, my queen. I will do my best.”

“My my my, it truly pleases me that my son has a good eye for people. Do not worry. My husband and I, as well as the duke have begun to make preparations. It will take time, but rest assured, if it is for our son’s happiness, then we will do everything we can.”

As the one who had decided to break their engagement, Charlotte excused herself and let the two have their private conversation as future mother and daughter in laws.

Wandering through the castle grounds, she asked a guard to lead her to the research facility where Professor Karin worked while not teaching Charlotte.

“Professor Karin, sorry for disturbing you. I hope you do not mind my sudden visit.”

“Ah! Lady Charlotte!” when she saw her, she was a little startled. The place was extremely messy with papers and tools lying about. Apart from her, there were also her colleagues present.

“I was a little curious so I wanted to have a look. I have already received permission from the queen, so I hope it won’t be a problem.”

“No no no. But, what would you like to know?”

“Ah, yes. In five months the academy would start with their enrolment exams. Although I still have yet to reach the required age, father had said that he would pull some strings so that I could enter earlier. I wanted some advice about the school, if you don’t mind.”

“Eh? Well, certainly, Lady Charlotte’s knowledge is quite amazing, so it isn’t impossible.” Karin took a chair and sat opposite Charlotte as she explained “Also, with your magic progress, I’m afraid you have more than enough to even enter the senior section.”

The academy allows only students between the years 12 to 18 years old. Within the school exist two separate sections; the junior and senior section.

The junior section is for students between the ages 12 to 14 and the senior section for the students 15 to 18. Of course, early graduation is also possible if you meet the requirements. Karin had graduated at the age of 17 and is one of the geniuses of the country and also works as a court mage as well as a researcher at the same time.

On the other hand, Professor Steins had graduated at the age of 16, another genius. But, while Karin studied about magic, Steins focused more on scholarly knowledge.

As for Charlotte, she still didn’t make any plans on which course to choose.

“Of course, with Lady Charlotte’s talents, you would probably be able to graduate for all subjects.” She stated proudly. As her teacher, it gave her great pleasure that her student was such a hard worker.

“Well, the real reason why my father suggested the idea was because he thought it to be a good chance to get to know other children my age and, of course he also mentioned that I needed to look for a new fiancé.”

Charlotte had consulted Professor Karin on a lot of things. Even she was unable to think of everything on her own and needed an adult’s advice.

As for the matter with the new fiancé…she wasn’t really all that enthusiastic about it.

Love… Was she capable of falling in love once more?

Unknowingly, she entered a daze as she thought of her previous life. It was a cold and harsh one, a life of black and white. The one to change her into the person she was now, the first person to ever make her experience those emotions….

She stared in a daze at professor Karin, yet the one she was looking at was someone that was not here. Her heart suddenly felt tight, a single tear rolled down her cheeks.