Elina and Igni were climbing a mountain together. Elina invited Igni and told him that she would take him to a point where they could look over the local area. Igni would never be able to say no to an invitation from a girl so he agreed within seconds to climb the mountain together.

They climbed for half an hour and as they reached the top, they were able to take a long look at everything around them.

Elina: Look at this, Igni. This is my familys territory.

Igni: It is amazing.

Below them, they could see the Owlight Mansion. Though there were a few other buildings around the mansion, it looked closer to a town than a city. Though the Owlight owns a lot of territory, there population isnt that high. Nearby, there were many large farms expanding across the land.

That is because this is the farthest rural edge of the Kingdom.

They say that there are many precious minerals inside the mines, but they do not quarrel with other Noble families often. That is because the Owlight Family is also in charge of the rural area to be the first line of defense to protect the country.

Igni: This farmwhat does they grow?

Elina: Hm? Oh, they grow fruits there. We sell a little bit to other territories.

Igni: The fruits of the Owlight family, huh. I hate to be rude, ,but.they are not well known.

Elina: It cant be helped. We are famous for our Mithril more than anything else.

And Elina smiled as she spoke.

Elina: Would you like some water, Igni?

Igni: Yes, I would like some. Since Igni cant use [Water] Type Spells, Elina made water for him, and he drank it all down.

Igni: Its good.

Elina: Yes, it really is. A hike up a mountain is a good thing.

Igni: Do you like hikes?

Elina: When I was little, I used to climb up this mountain with my brothers.

She looked far into the distance as she said the words.

Elina: Back thenI was still on good terms with my family.

Igni: Back then..? Though Igni wasnt sure if this was something he should bring up, he asked the question anyways. Since Elina began the conversation, she may have been looking for someone who would listen.

Elina: Yes. The rift between my family and myself began.when I got 2nd place during the mid-term.

Igni: Thats pretty recent.

Elina: Yes, but it shows how <normal> it was to be top of the class here.

Igni: .........normal, huh.

Igni murmured as he recalled how much hope his father had placed on him. But he immediately scoffed at the notion because of how much emphasis was placed on this word, normal. What is normal purely depends on the individuals perspective.

Igni: Then Elina, lets show them theyre wrong.

Thats why Igni spoke as he stared at the same place Elina was.

Elina: Show them?

Igni: Yeah, if you can show them an overwhelming result, everyone will have to accept your position.

Elina: BBut I dropped to 2nd place..and I dont even have a Wizards title either.

Igni: I dont either.

Igni looked straight into Elinas eyes.

Igni: Elina, I of all people know that you have worked harder than anyone else. I know how youre the most amazing person. So Elina, this time, you can rely on me.

Elina: On you..? Popularity Etiquette No. 13 When in trouble, always find a person you can depend on. If this is the first part of the rule, then

Igni: Yes. Remember? During the exams, you helped me a lot, right? So now, I want to help you, Elina.

and also be someone dependable for the same reason.

Igni: Elina, I think you already know, but I am <strong>.

Elina: YYes. I do know.

Igni: So if I can teach you everything I know, then Elina, you can become much stronger.

Elina: BBut thats!

Its not as though Elina understands how Igni truly fights. The only time she got to see his strength was during the [Spell Gladiator Tournament]. She only saw that he defeated the strongest Wizard from the [Golden Generation], Fray with just {Fireball}.

But shes also heard rumors.

Rumors of how he fought against the Extremes in the Principality. Rumors of how after Elina passed out from being overly exposed to Magic Power on that night on the beach, Igni faced off and defeated the [Extreme] of [Darkness].

Elina: BBut is that really okay? A person like me..being taught by you

Igni: What are you saying? Its <because its you>, Elina.

Elina: Because..its me

Elina repeats the words quietly to herself.

Igni hasnt looked away from Elina.

Igni: Thats right. Thats why you can always rely on me. You saved me back then, so I want to help you.

Elina: .........okay.

Elinas face brightened and blushed as she nodded.

Igni: (So cute..)

Elina: Okay, Igni. Lets start our descent. Itll be lunch time soon.

Igni: Yeah, lets do that.

And the distance between the two shrunk slightly as they returned to the mansion.

That day, Seta informed Elina about the incident at the mines, and we were going to leave early tomorrow morning. And knowing that there is no way that hell be able to get up on time, Igni kindly asked Elina to wake him up and dived into a deep sleep.

The next morning, before the sun was barely up, Igni was woken up, and they left on the horse carriage.

Igni: (yawn)......today is a horse carriage, huh.

Igni was still feeling sleepy, and he asked the question to Elina while still yawning. Elina nodded to him in response.

Elina: The Dragon Carriages need a flat road or else it will be too dangerous. Right now, were heading to the farthest edges of the Owlight Territory. There are sections where the road is not maintained well. It would be dangerous if we went over those parts with a Dragon Carriage.

Igni: I see. That makes sense.

Elina: And for now, it will be nightfall before we arrive today.

Igni: Night, huh..

For Igni, it would be faster to fly, but said nothing. He understood the importance of easing the concerns of the local residents and the miners by making a show of public appearance.

Igni: But I never thought that they would ask us to wear our school uniforms

Igni pulled at his Rolmod Wizard Academy school uniform as he spoke. Since it was his formal wear, he brought it just in case, but he never would have thought that it would come in handy for a Quest.

Elina: Yes, the people will be relieved to see both the Owlight Family take action and also see that they sent Rolmod Wizard Academy students.

Igni: .......yeah, thats understandable.

The Rolmod Wizard Academys school uniform is centered around the color white, so its quite bright. The uniforms material is made from materials with anti-blade and anti-magic, but the purpose of the color is <so they stand out more>.

Typically, Spells have a wide destructive radius and can inadvertently blow up your friends, but the citizens will be at more ease to see a famous Wizard Academy be dispatched for these Quests. With those goals in mind, the Rolmod Wizard Academy made the uniforms this way.

Now then, they were slowly being rocked and shaken by the horse carriage for several hours.

By the time the sun began to set, they could see a town far in the distance.

Igni: ........my back hurts..

Ella: Thank you for your patience during your travel, Lady Elina and Sir Igni. Today, we will be staying at that inn over there.

Ella has been staying with them without rest this entire trip, and she maintained the same expression the entire duration. Seeing that, Igni decided to ignore his back pains and looked upon the town.

Igni: It looks like its quite the small town.

Ella: Yes, it is. But this is the closest town to the mines, so tomorrow, we can reach the mines from here.

As the horse carriage neared the town, an elderly man with white hair hurriedly came running out.

Oh my, oh my. We welcome you, people of the Owlight Family. Thank you for making such a long journey to our town.

Ella: Mayor, please guide us to our lodging tonight.

Of course, of course. Here, please guide our guests.

Yes. And a girl with white hair stepped forward. She wore simple clothes as a citizen of that town, but the clothes were obviously made for a girl, and it pleased Igni. Even if they were wearing similar clothes, you can still make subtle differences between male and female clothes, and evaluated it as a professional tailor would.

Please come this way.

And our guide bowed to Miss Ella and walked in front of us to lead the way. We were guided to the center of town.

The house we were led to was actually built in a more luxurious fashion than any other house there.

Its very likely that this house was made specifically for when people from the Owlight Family come and spend the night.

Elina got off the carriage first, and when Igni followed, the girl who was guiding them suddenly let out a cry of surprise.

Igni! Its been a while! And Miss Elina too!

Igni: .........?

Igni tilted his head in confusion.

Igni: (Do I know any girls in this kind of town?)

But as he thought, it was Elina who recognized their guide first.

Elina: Oh! Its Yoori! It has been a while!!

Igni: Huh? Yoori?!

Igni couldnt hide his shock.

Yoori: Oh, I see. Im wearing this so it was hard for Igni to tell.

Elina: What do you mean? You look lovely in that. Yoori, it would be a shame if you didnt wear more clothes that girls should be wearing..

And Igni immediately tugged at Elinas sleeves to interrupt what she was saying.

Igni assumed that Elina had a slight misunderstanding and decided to tell her.

Elina: Hm? Whats wrong, Igni?

Igni: Oh, Elina.

Elina: What is it?

Igni: Yooris a guy.

Elina fell to her knees at the news.