All of the day’s classes were over, and Miku, who was preparing to go home, looked over when a classmate called her name.
“What is it?”
“Ah, the twin siblings are here.”
Miku, who immediately knew it was Seiya and Shia, tilted her head.
It wasn’t unusual for them to go home together, but it was unusual for them to come all the way to her classroom to pick her up.
“Understood. I’ll be right there.”
Seiya and Shia were waiting by the classroom door, so Miku quickly headed towards them.
And there, an even more unusual person was waiting for Miku.
“Tobi? What are you doing here?”
While Miku and the others weren’t on bad terms with Tobi, the child of Towa, they didn’t interact with him as much as they did with their own siblings.
Especially at the academy, they didn’t often act together, so it was unusual for Tobi to come to visit them.
Tobi, seeing Miku looking at him with wide eyes, flinched slightly before answering.
“Um. There’s something I’d like to talk about, would you mind sparing me a little of your time?”
Upon hearing Tobi’s words, Miku didn’t answer immediately but looked at Seiya and Shia.
Since it was sudden, she thought they might know the circumstances.
However, contrary to Miku’s expectation, Seiya and Shia shook their heads from side to side.
Having spent her childhood with them, Miku understood that they were saying they knew nothing.
She couldn’t just leave Tobi, who was looking at her with an anxious expression for some reason.
Thinking this, Miku nodded and replied, “That’s fine, but do you have a room reserved?”
From Tobi’s demeanor, she could tell he wanted to discuss something in secret. In that case, the Tea Room would be the best option, but it couldn’t be used if there were no available rooms.
It was here that Seiya finally spoke, looking at Miku.
“If that’s the case, I checked earlier, and it’s fine. I also made a reservation.”
“Is that so? Then there’s no problem. Shall we go?”
If the Tea Room were unavailable, they might have had to go back home and use their private rooms to talk. Miku felt relieved, as she wanted to avoid that if possible given Tobi’s atmosphere.
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Seiya, having moved to the Tea Room, looked at Tobi again and asked, “So? You seem to have something on your mind, did something happen?”
Hearing Seiya’s question, Miku, who hadn’t heard anything prior, looked at Tobi with a slightly surprised expression. She hadn’t expected to hear such a conversation at the classroom door.
Tobi, asked by Seiya, cleared his throat once with a nod, then began to speak with a determined look.
“Um… How do you two study Magic Circles?”
Upon hearing Tobi’s question, Seiya and the others almost simultaneously looked at each other.
As students, it was natural to have concerns about their studies. However, there was a slight sense of unease that Tobi would ask them about it.
Although Miku noticed this, she deliberately didn’t touch upon it and decided to answer only what was asked.
“What do you mean? It should be the same as everyone else… Memorizing what’s in the textbook, learning the basics thoroughly?”
As Miku said this, Seiya and Shia also nodded. All three of them scored well enough in Magic Circle classes to be in the top ranks. However, that didn’t mean they did anything special when studying.
Upon hearing Miku’s explanation, Tobi’s face contorted without hiding his expression. Tobi, who had received royal education as a matter of course, never showed a negative expression in front of others. However, in front of his family, he would sometimes show his emotions honestly. Nevertheless, it was rare for him to change his expression this much, so Seiya and the others exchanged glances again. Seeing Tobi’s face, they understood he was deeply troubled.
“Hmm. I hadn’t heard from Brother Towa that Tobi was bad at Magic Circles, though?”
“Um. My grades aren’t particularly bad. But they aren’t particularly good either…”
Seeing Tobi falter like that, Shia tilted her head.
“Huh? Wasn’t Tobi only supposed to start learning Magic Circles this year?”
“Ah, yes. That’s right.” At the academy, students learned the basics of magic in their first year, and in their second year, they would specialize and engage in both theoretical and practical studies. Therefore, Magic Circle classes were taught starting from the second year. This meant Tobi was troubled by the very beginning.
Hearing Tobi’s words, Seiya returned a wry smile. “No, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with having a subject you’re not good at, but for you, Tobi, that’s not the case, right?”
“Besides, if your grades are average, I don’t think you’re necessarily bad at it?” Seiya followed up with what Shia said.
“Um, that’s true, but it’s still about Grandpa…” Seeing him hesitate like that, Seiya and the others finally understood what Tobi was troubled about.
Tobi openly declared himself to be the biological son of Towa, the current king. This meant he was also known to be Kousuke’s grandson, and with only average grades in Magic Circles, he was being subjected to scrutiny. Seiya and the others had similar experiences, so they understood well what Tobi meant.
“Hmm. I’d say the best thing is not to mind it… but it’s hard to completely ignore it.”
“Right. If you had something you could excel at, like our Spirit Arts, it would be a different story.” Seiya, followed by Shia, said this as they looked at Tobi.
Tobi, much like his father Towa, had high grades across the board. Among them, only his Magic Circle grades were at the lower end, making them stand out even more.
Seeing Tobi with a troubled expression, Miku asked, “So, what do you want to do, Tobi? Do you want to improve your Magic Circle grades? Or do you want to punish the people who say things to you?”
“I-I wouldn’t do that!” In response to Miku’s words, Tobi frantically waved his hands in denial. Of course, he was denying the latter part of her statement. “I know my Magic Circle grades are worse than my other subjects, so I want to do something about it.”
Seeing Tobi say this with his shoulders slumped, Seiya and Shia exchanged glances, wondering what to do. They wanted to help him, but Seiya and the others weren’t particularly good at Magic Circles either. As everyone fell silent, Miku said with newfound resolve, “There’s no point in worrying about it here. In times like these, let’s ask someone else. However, judging by Tobi’s demeanor, consulting Brother Towa seems out of the question.”
“Right. That’s probably for the best.” Seiya nodded in agreement with Miku’s words. They determined that no optimal answer could be found by thinking about it on the spot, and decided that consulting a more experienced person in life was the best course of action.
With that, Seiya and the others took Tobi with them and returned home. Of course, they kept the detailed story a secret, but they informed the castle that they were acting together with Tobi. There, Seiya and the others brought up Tobi’s worries.
It seems he is walking the same path that someone else once struggled with.
To be continued in a personal story.
