Since that day, Ellie led them to study every evening, and though the four girls were hesitant, they gathered and opened their books, doing whatever Ellie told them to.
She didn’t make them study too harshly.
Even so, since none of them had experience studying for long periods, it couldn’t be helped that it was difficult.
“It’s so hard…”
Isabel, the one with the lowest mental age among the five, whined.
“Ugh… Ellie… can we rest now…?”
“Sure. But let’s take a 15-minute break, then we’ll open our books again.”
“Ughhh…”
Isabel let out a slow, exhausted scream, as though she had no energy left to even scream.
Seeing this, Philia commented.
“Let’s rest for now. After 15 minutes, you might feel better.”
Whether it was kind or sharp, that was just Philia.
Of course, she wasn’t the only one struggling.
Clea was the same.
Stella had strong endurance when it came to pain, but since she wasn’t used to studying, she often rubbed her eyes.
By the way, the five of them gathered in Clea’s room, where there was a large desk and chairs, and they all sat there together.
Isabel’s room had been rejected because Isabel kept trying to bring out things to play with.
Philia’s room was also rejected because Philia, being a bit of a loner, didn’t want to have people in her room every day, even if they were friends.
“Ughhh… then I’ll rest for at least 15 minutes…”
Isabel, now without hesitation, climbed onto Clea’s bed and slumped down as if she were dead.
Then, she asked the question all students plagued by studying eventually ask.
“But why do we have to study so hard…? Can’t we just do it casually?”
“Hmm…”
Ellie thought for a moment but then answered.
She thought it might sound a bit typical, but still said it.
“Well, Isabel, what if you want to do something later, but your grades are bad and it holds you back?”
Isabel’s response was also typical.
“I don’t need grades like that!”
“But what if it’s something you really want to do?”
“Uh, well… then…”
Isabel’s legs, sprawled out on the bed, twitched, as if she was startled.
Ellie almost blurted out, “Don’t do that in a skirt,” but she held herself back.
“Don’t do that in a skirt. It’s messy.”
Philia, again not sure if it was a kind or cold remark, said this, causing Isabel to flinch and cover herself with the blanket.
“Ugh… it’s so cozy… I’m so sleepy…”
“If you want to sleep for a bit, go ahead. I’ll wake you up in 10 minutes.”
“Ah, you’re the devil… Ellie is definitely a devil…”
“Is that so? Then K-people must be like the lords of hell.”
But knowing that forcing someone not used to this wouldn’t help, Ellie decided to comfort them a little.
She could see that everyone was accumulating fatigue.
“Okay, then let’s study until 9 tonight, and after that, we’ll play cards together.”
“Really? You’ll play with us, Ellie?”
“Yep, yep. So, let’s rest for 7 more minutes.”
“Hmm…”
Isabel grew quiet after that.
Maybe she really liked the bed.
Until then, Clea, who had been silent, stretched.
“Uhh… Hah. But Ellie, what about you?”
“Hm?”
“What do you want to do? After graduating from the academy. I’m sure you have something planned.”
The real reason Ellie had been thinking earlier was because she expected this question would come her way.
“What I want to do…”
Ellie wasn’t ready to tell them that she planned to become an emperor.
But she didn’t want to lie completely or change the subject entirely either.
The bond between the five of them wasn’t weak enough for that.
So she decided to tell just a part of it.
“I want to change the things in the world that I don’t like, to fix them.”
Clea, who asked, and the other three girls were surprised by the unexpected answer.
They had expected her to talk about a job or a desired workplace.
However…
“…That’s very like you, Ellie.”
Philia said, and Stella nodded in agreement.
“Yeah, that sounds like something Ellie would say.”
“What’s that? Suddenly making me embarrassed.”
“Hehe, sorry about that.”
Stella said this, stretching as well.
“Uhh… then I guess I’ll take a break now.”
“You and Isabel can switch.”
“Ugh, ugh…”
Isabel seemed reluctant to leave the bed, but she sluggishly got up and returned to the desk.
She looked at the notes she had been reading before the break and sighed.
“Can I memorize all this today…?”
“Even if you can’t memorize it, just try to look at it from start to finish.”
“…Isn’t it better to definitely memorize at least what’s coming up next?”
Ellie shook her head.
“Even if you memorize it perfectly, you’ll forget it after some time. It’s better to review a lot in small chunks, rather than trying to memorize everything deeply.”
“Really…? If Ellie says so, then it must be true.”
Isabel wasn’t saying this as a form of politeness; she genuinely meant it.
Honestly, at this point, Ellie could probably say, “Bread actually grows on bread trees, and bakers harvest it,” and Isabel would probably believe it with a gasp.
‘…The Duke must be right to worry. What on earth is he going to do with this child?’
“Sigh.”
“Lately, I’ve been thinking, but Ellie, do you only sigh at me?”
“Yep. Now, let’s study. After 9, we’ll play.”
“Eh? Huh? Uh…?”
And so, the days passed by like this.
***
Finally, the week of midterms came.
The freshmen were roughly divided into three categories.
“I’m still uneasy about how much I’ve studied.”
“I think I’ve studied enough.”
“I have no idea how much I need to study.”
In reality, most people were in the last category.
Even if they knew their siblings’ level of preparation, everyone was the same when it came to competing in a group—they had never done it before.
“Alright, everyone. Don’t be too nervous for the test today. Just write everything you’ve studied so far. Got it?”
“…Yeah.”
“…I’m nervous, but I got it.”
“Phew… Phew…”
The exams would take place from Monday to Friday, covering the entire week.
Normally, students would have different classes due to the division of groups, but on exam days, everyone took the same tests.
For example, Ellie and Stella attend the common magic language class on Mondays and Wednesdays, while Philia and Isabel go on Tuesdays and Fridays, and Clea attends on Mondays and Thursdays.
However, the exams were held at the same time for all freshmen on Monday.
The same was true for other subjects.
After the exams on Monday morning and afternoon, the faces of the first-year students were filled with exhaustion and frustration.
“Ughhhh…”
“I… I couldn’t even finish half of it…”
“I don’t feel good… ugh…”
“Fuuu…”
Ellie wondered, “What if my friends are in the same state?”
‘Their expressions are quite calm. Thank goodness.’
Whether they did well or not, the results would show, but at least it didn’t seem like they couldn’t even finish half of the test.
And the girls gathered in Clea’s room as usual.
“Alright, let’s prepare for tomorrow’s subjects. Forget about today’s exam. Don’t waste your mental energy on something that’s already over. Come on, if you’re too tired, have some tea. Be careful with the sweets though, don’t eat too much or you’ll fall asleep.”
After Tuesday and Wednesday passed, Thursday afternoon after the Mana Studies exam was over, the friends gathered again in Clea’s room, staring vacantly into space.
***
“Ah…”
It was tough.
Really tough.
But now, only one more exam tomorrow and it will be over.
Finally.
But there was still one day left.
It was hard.
It was clear to see that all their minds were filled with the same thought.
They all had dark circles under their eyes or looked hollow from lack of sleep and stress, their hair was messy, and a gloomy atmosphere was all around them, hard to describe in just one word.
Clea, unlike herself, was biting the skin around her nails.
Philia, ignoring her friends’ gazes, tightly held onto a doll she brought from her hometown.
Stella kept her eyes shut, clenching her molars over and over again, while Isabel seemed dazed, as if half her soul had gone somewhere else.
Even though Ellie had experienced the hell of entrance exams, she didn’t push her friends when they were in this state.
“Hey, guys.”
Ellie spoke in the kindest tone since the exams started, holding each of her friends’ hands to comfort them.
At times like this, what helped wasn’t pushing them to work harder, but gently encouraging them to hang in there and not give up.
“There are only a few hours left. Let’s just finish it.”
No need to rush ahead, just don’t quit.
“…Okay.”
“…”
They nodded.
“Ellie… sob… yeah…”
Hearing four different responses, Ellie returned to her studies.
‘Phew…’
She wasn’t not struggling.
She just hid it carefully.
Because as the one leading the group, that’s what she had to do.
Whether she tried or not, time passed the same way, and the morning after a long night arrived.
***
The last exam was the Phenomenology of Magic.
The start time was 10 AM, and the end time was noon.
It was right at lunchtime.
“AAAHHH!!!”
“We’re freeee!!!”
“Yaaaaaayyy!!!”
Some of the students, released from extreme stress, screamed like wild and ran down the hall.
Whether freshmen or seniors, there were always a few who acted like that.
Some were too exhausted to eat and went straight to their dorm beds to collapse and fall asleep.
Others, as if to make up for all the meals they missed, ordered mountains of food.
And others ran to the carriage to the system.
The drivers, knowing it was a busy day, were already waiting with several carriages.
Ellie and her friends all returned to Isabel’s room, the most comfortable and plush room.
No one spoke.
They just looked at Ellie with dazed eyes, mixed with exhaustion and relief.
So Ellie spoke first.
They were such proud friends.
“You all really worked hard.”
She hugged each of them one by one and patted them, and as she did, each of them was moved and their eyes reddened.
Isabel, in particular, not only had red eyes but also sniffled, letting her emotions spill out.
“I… I…”
“Yeah.”
“I really worked hard… I worked harder than I ever have… sob…”
“Yeah. I saw it. You worked hard, Isabel. Of course, Philia, Clea, and Stella did too.”
Isabel looked at Ellie with teary eyes.
“I… I… I did well, right?”
Isabel wanted reassurance.
She wanted to know if all her efforts were not in vain.
If she really followed Ellie’s guidance and did her best.
If she could produce results.
Ellie, in response to that question, hugged Isabel again and said, “You did well. And you probably did well on the exam too.”
Ellie didn’t know Isabel’s exact grades, so she could only say this.
But she truly believed it.
She had done well.
And she probably did well on the exam.
“Let’s rest today. And tomorrow, let’s go have fun. Let’s enjoy ourselves, as much as we’ve suffered so far.”
The dormitory window faced directly south.
Since it was still mid-fall, it wouldn’t be until a little after noon that sunlight would hit the window vertically.
The sunlight that passed through the curtains illuminated Isabel’s bed.
The silken fabric hanging from both sides acted as a second curtain, making sure the light didn’t reach the girls’ sleeping faces.
It was a bed too large for just one person, but too small for five.
Despite that, the girls were all curled up together on it, sleeping.
Even though they each had their own bed in their rooms, they preferred to share warmth with each other.
And at the very center of the bed was Ellie.
Whether consciously or unconsciously, each of the girls had one of their limbs resting on Ellie’s body.
The synchronized sound of five girls’ breaths remained steady from that night to the morning.