The morning sunlight filtered through the stained glass, casting mottled shadows onto the high dome of the Academy Greenhouse. The air was thick with a peculiar scent—a mixture of hay, animal feathers, and a certain herbal disinfectant.
This was the classroom for the Magical Creatures Class, though it looked more like a zoo.
Villanelle clutched her heavy notebook, standing at the edge of a group of fashionably dressed classmates. Her gaze swept over the creatures confined in metal cages or enchanted fences.
There were giant snakes with gaudy colors, listless salamanders, and Rhinoceros Beasts that occasionally rammed against their enclosures…
Most of these creatures wore a Restraint Collar around their necks.
The professor for the course, Gwen Hiram, a tall, thin woman with her hair tied meticulously behind her head, stood before the students giving her lecture. Her tone was clear and cold.
The cuffs of her mage robes were embroidered with an emblem of intertwined wheat stalks and a scalpel—the insignia of the Empire’s Society of Biological Management and Application.
“…Therefore, identifying the habits, danger levels, and basic obedience symbols of magical creatures is a practical skill that every spellcaster must master, especially those of you who may need to handle mounts in the future.”
Lady Hiram’s gaze swept over the students like a probe.
“Theories on paper are meaningless. Starting next week, the practical portion of this course will enter a new phase.”
She paused slightly at this point to ensure she had the students’ full attention.
“Starting next week, every student must provide and bring a magical creature partner of their own to be used for the next stage of teaching.”
A low stir ripples through the crowd, a mix of excitement and tension.
The children of the nobility exchanged looks, having clearly already heard the news through certain channels. Some had already begun to boast about their families’ collections.
Villanelle’s heart sank slightly.
She had heard rumors of this requirement, but she had been holding out hope that it was just a fabrication.
“The requirements are as follows,” Lady Hiram continued to announce in her rigid tone, ignoring the students’ commotion. “First, the creature’s danger level must not exceed Level 2, as referenced in the Imperial Magic Creature Classification and Control Catalog. Second, an application form must be filled out in advance to pass the academy’s security audit. Third, during class hours, the creature must wear a temporary Restraint Collar issued by the academy to prevent accidents.”
Her gaze lingered for a few seconds on several students who came from families of beast tamers.
“I have a question, Professor,” a sweet, dainty voice rang out.
Hiram looked toward the student who had spoken.
The Fourth Princess, Julia Adrian, toyed with her curly silver hair and asked with feigned innocence, “What if one cannot find a suitable partner? After all, not everyone has a stable at home.”
A burst of suppressed laughter broke out, and many eyes flickered toward Villanelle, intentionally or otherwise.
“Solve it yourself,” Lady Hiram replied bluntly, adjusting her glasses. “This is a course requirement and part of the competency assessment. The Empire needs spellcasters who can solve practical problems, not bookworms who can only recite regulations. Of course—”
She seemed to remember something and added a few more words: “If you truly cannot find one, you may choose to opt out of the practical portion of this course, but your final assessment will be recorded as ‘Incomplete’.”
Incomplete?
Villanelle’s fingers paused while transcribing the requirements, and she quietly tightened her grip.
Magical Creatures Class was a required course at the academy. If she failed a required course, she would only face more trouble when she graduated in the future.
“As for the source of the magical beasts,” Hiram said finally, “the Academy Trading District has magical beasts for sale that have undergone quarantine and basic domestication. You may also obtain them from your families. Class dismissed.”
Villanelle pursed her lips.
She knew the trading district had them, of course, but the prices would not be cheap. It was something she truly could not afford.
Students who could find a suitable magical creature would not go to the trading district at all, while those who could not find one could not afford the district’s exorbitant prices.
It was a dead end from both sides.
The students flooded toward the greenhouse exit, talking animatedly.
“My father has already prepared a Tundra Hoofed Rabbit for me. I heard it was bought for a high price from the Northern Realm!”
“My brother promised to lend me his raven for a while. That thing’s peck is quite painful, I don’t know if it’ll pass the audit…”
“We even have to submit an application form. What a pain. Can’t I just bring any one I want?”
Villanelle packed her notes and quill back into her cloth bag, took her staff from where it leaned against the wall, and followed the crowd in silence.
The discussions around her pricked like needles.
Tundra Hoofed Rabbits? Ravens?
To her, these were unreachable things, nothing more than illustrations and text in a corner of a textbook.
The only living things in the Twilight Tower were herself, the butler Heinrich, a Black Dragon hatchling, and a bunch of rats.
‘Wait, does the little guy… count?’
The thought made her footsteps falter. A Black Dragon, even if it was just a hatchling, would surely have a danger level far exceeding Level 2.
Moreover, the little guy was her family now, one of the few sources of warmth in the Twilight Tower. How could she treat him as a “magical creature partner needed for a course” and force him to wear a cold Restraint Collar?
Just the thought of that image made Villanelle feel a pang of distress in her chest.
“Yo, our noble Princess.” Leo appeared out of nowhere, a malicious smile hanging on his face.
“Why the long face? Surely you aren’t worrying about your ‘magical creature partner,’ are you? Oh, I forgot, besides rats, you probably only have yourself over there, don’t you?”
His two lackeys let out a synchronized, piercing laugh.
Villanelle clutched the bag in her arms and walked away quickly, leaving the mockery behind her.
But Leo’s words were like a knife, stabbing deep into her heart.
What should she do? Buy one?
She struggled just to scrape together enough for her textbook fees, let alone spend a fortune on a magical creature.
Borrow one? But who could she even ask?
The only things the butler Heinrich was likely familiar with were the rats of the Twilight Tower.
Give up? That would mean failing the class and having to retake it later.
Then, there was only one final possibility… ask the little guy.
The thought was something Villanelle both resisted and involuntarily began to consider for its feasibility.
He was a dragon, but Professor Hiram had not strictly limited the species of the magical creatures. If—if she could prove he was docile and controllable…
No, it wouldn’t work.
Villanelle truly did not want to put him in that position.
Not only would she have to collar him like an animal, but he would also have to face all kinds of prying, ill-intentioned stares… She couldn’t do it.
But if she didn’t do it, what other choice did she have?
The day at the academy passed by under the weight of her heavy heart.
In the evening, Villanelle returned to the Twilight Tower as usual and pushed open the heavy wooden door.
“Miss, you’ve returned?” Heinrich smiled kindly. “Put your things down and have dinner first.”
“Mm.” Sensing the familiar scent within the Twilight Tower, Villanelle relaxed and nodded to the old butler. “How is Ignis?”
Heinrich’s expression became a bit strange.
“He hasn’t eaten much, and he’s been… lying by the fireplace all afternoon.”
“I’ll go check on him.” Villanelle looked worried as she turned to carry her bag and staff up the stairs.
The moment the door opened, the scene by the fireplace came into view.
Ignis was splayed out in his little nest, belly-up, with a peaceful expression on his face.
If his belly weren’t still rising and falling, Villanelle almost would have thought he had been gone for a while.
She didn’t know whether to laugh or cry as she set down her bag, leaned her staff against the wall, and tiptoed over to Ignis’s side to crouch down gently.
As if sensing her presence, Ignis slowly opened his eyes.
He had been swallowing gray mist all afternoon. His stomach was stuffed to the brim, and he was nearly losing his sense of taste.
“What’s wrong? Why did you get yourself into this state?” Villanelle’s slender fingers gently brushed over Ignis’s head, her tone gentle.
Ignis rubbed his nose against her hand in response.
‘I’m just stuffed, it’s no big deal.’
He felt like a divine farmer of another world, just blindly eating; anyway, he would get used to it once he ate enough.
Looking at the stretching Ignis, Villanelle bit her lip and hesitated several times before finally speaking her mind:
“In the Magical Creatures Class today, the professor required us to each bring a magical creature next week for the course.”
Ignis’s eyes, which had narrowed into slits as he stretched his body, suddenly snapped open to stare directly at her.
Villanelle continued, bracing herself. “The magical creatures brought there have to wear a Restraint Collar, but I truly have no other way. Can… can I take you with me?”
Ignis thought for a moment and then nodded.
‘Sure, no problem.’
Staying in the tower all day was indeed too dull. If possible, he really wanted a chance to go out and breathe some fresh air. Besides, never helping out at all always made him feel a bit uneasy.
“Do you… know what a Restraint Collar is?” Villanelle asked hesitantly.
She even suspected whether Ignis could understand what “attending a class” meant.
‘Of course I know. It’s to prevent animals from suddenly going crazy and hurting people during class.’
Ignis nodded again.
“Alright then.”
Villanelle suddenly felt a bit guilty, but there was nothing else she could do.
She would explain the related concepts slowly later.
Since he had agreed and didn’t look the least bit unhappy, there was only one problem left to solve.
How was she supposed to bring him to class with the academy’s permission?
“Miss, the soup is getting cold.” Heinrich’s deep, resonant voice drifted up from downstairs.
Regardless, things had come to this. She might as well eat first.