“Yes, I hear that His Majesty the Emperor has decided to replace the entrance exam with the academy graduation exam results for the new recruits to the Imperial Knights this time.”
This was the professor’s announcement.
It was news that, for this occasion, the top graduate of the Luphrantia Academy’s graduation exam would be directly recruited into the Imperial Knights without any further testing if they wished.
There was some discontent over whether Luphrantia Academy, known for its lower overall ranking, deserved such a privilege, regardless of its reputation in swordsmanship.
However, it seemed the noise quickly dissipated due to the close relationship between the academy’s headmaster and the royal family.
If it had been a recommendation for the Tower’s magicians instead of the Imperial Knights, there surely would have been even more rumors and controversy.
Whatever the background, this was an opportunity for Luca.
If she managed to achieve top scores in the upcoming graduation exam, she would have a golden chance to join the Imperial Knights immediately!
An event-based recommendation, and as luck would have it, just in time for Luca’s graduation!
‘If the gods aren’t watching over me, then how else could I explain this stroke of luck?’
“That’s not all,” the professor added. “In addition to hiring the top graduate as an Imperial Knight, they’re also offering a special qualification for the runner-up to become a Holy Knight.”
“A Holy Knight?”
“Yes. Although the Saint has not yet appeared… if a Saint were to emerge in this era, it might be considered an even greater privilege than joining the Imperial Knights!”
Unlike her younger years, Luca now understood everything well enough.
The qualification to become a Holy Knight was, in truth, little more than a hollow honor with no substantial reward.
To select a Holy Knight, the existence of a Saint was essential.
However, a Saint had not appeared in nearly two centuries.
It was foolish to expect a Saint to appear suddenly.
Even so, the privilege of entering the Imperial Knights without an exam was significant in its own right.
“Only one person can claim the top spot, right?”
“Yes, only one.”
Only one person would have the opportunity to join the Imperial Knights.
Upon hearing this, Luca’s friend of three years, Irina, looked at her with a confident smile.
It was that same proud smile, always on display, that had never known defeat.
Luca found herself fond of that smile.
“Luca, let’s have a fair match! No hard feelings, no matter who wins between us!”
“That’s exactly what I wanted to say, Irina.”
***
Several months later, on the day of the graduation exam.
The exam, conducted through one-on-one duels, ended without any unexpected twists.
Luca Heavenishian, who almost never lost the top spot in her grade, defeated her close friend Irina in the finals to become the top graduate of the exam.
‘I did it…!’
At that moment, Luca thought that her time had finally come.
‘This must be the result of the gods looking favorably upon me.’
She had always remained honest in her actions.
She had never turned to anything unjust, however small it might be.
Even if no one cared, even if it didn’t harm anyone, she would never do anything dishonest.
Entering the Imperial Knights would finally allow her to earn a decent income.
What came to Luca’s mind was the orphanage—the children waiting for her, the headmaster, and the nuns.
‘Had Amen and Freya grown a lot? By now, they would be around fifteen years old, likely shedding their childish appearances and beginning to look like a young man and woman.’
She wanted to see her younger siblings as soon as possible.
But.
“Irina…”
“Congratulations, Luca… I’m really glad… that you didn’t hold back… because if you had, I would have been so angry…”
“Thank you… for giving it your all… Congratulations on becoming an Imperial Knight! I… I’ll catch up with you soon…”
For the first time, Irina’s usually unshakable spirit was broken.
Though they were friends, they were also rivals.
While Luca had never lost to her in swordsmanship, Irina would always smile and say:
“I’ll win next time.”
That promise, though never fulfilled, was never empty.
If Irina hadn’t been there to push her, Luca wouldn’t have reached the level she was at now.
So why was it that, in her mind, it wasn’t the smiling faces of her siblings or the orphanage headmaster that appeared, but rather her father?
She remembered his face, pointing to the sky at the docks bathed in the evening glow, saying with clear eyes like a child:
“The gods are watching over you.”
“Irina.”
No matter what she did, or where she went.
Up there, always watching over her.
“I’ll give you the top spot.”
“Are you… sure about this? I… I…”
“Becoming an Imperial Knight was your dream. Honestly, I was just interested because it paid well.”
“Luca…”
“I can always take the separate entrance exam, can’t I? I’m about to graduate anyway.”
After consulting with the professors, they agreed that Irina’s skills were on par with Luca’s in the duel, and they would swap the reward if both wished it.
For Luca, there was no hesitation.
The weight of their aspirations was clear—Irina dreamed solely of the Imperial Knights, while Luca just sought stability.
“Besides, don’t forget the runner-up’s privilege. The Church gives the qualification to become a Holy Knight.”
“But that’s only possible if a Saint descends…”
“Honestly, I’d rather become a Holy Knight than an Imperial Knight. After all, the gods are always watching over us, right?”
“Now that you mention it, you always talked about that, Luca…”
Luca didn’t regret giving the position to Irina.
She was confident enough in her own abilities.
Even without this special privilege, she felt she could join the Imperial Knights through regular channels.
‘It might take some time, but wouldn’t the gods always be watching over her?’
And so, instead of joining the Imperial Knights, Luca gained the qualification to apply to be a Holy Knight, concluding her graduation exam.
***
Time passed, and a new year arrived.
That day was the academy’s graduation ceremony.
Though she had finished second in the exam, Luca’s outstanding performance overall had led her to deliver the graduation speech on behalf of her peers.
Up to this point, everything had been perfect.
It felt as though a path of roses awaited her for the rest of her life.
“…Huh?”
That is, until she returned to her hometown and saw the scene.
The sun had already set, but her home—the Heavenishian Orphanage—was still burning in a fiery red blaze.
‘W-What… What is this?! What happened?!!!’
Without even having time to assess the situation, she ran toward the burning orphanage.
Some children…
…were lying on the ground, bleeding.
She could see the fallen bodies of the nuns, too.
Then.
“Luca…!”
“W-Warden?!”
She ran towards the sound of the voice.
Thump, thump.
Her father’s voice echoed in her ears like a heartbeat: ‘The gods are watching over you.’
Before her, the warden, covered in blood, looked up at Luca with a worried expression.
“I-I’m sorry… that it turned out this way… I wanted to explain…”
“J-Just a moment! I’ll go get help right away!”
“They’re already gone… to call for help… It will be resolved soon.”
“What in the world happened? What… what happened here?!”
Instead of answering, the warden smiled.
It was the smile of someone who knew that the time granted by the gods was running out.
“Luca… congratulations on your graduation…”
“Warden…”
In that instant, Luca’s world stopped.
She couldn’t hear anything.
She screamed at the top of her lungs, until her throat hurt.
She was vaguely aware that people were rushing toward her from behind, but she couldn’t hear them.
Instead, all she could hear was her father’s voice.
The words about the gods watching over her.
‘They are watching over you. Always.’
The gods.
Through everything.
Good and bad things alike.
They are watching over everything.
The gods…
are watching…
over you.
If…
If that’s true…
01741…
Was this… an answer from the gods?
The answer, it turned out, was that a plague outbreak nearby had recently led to a surge of bandit attacks.
The bandits were captured, and more than half of them died during their punishment.
Their leader was beheaded.
Those deeply involved met with death.
As for Luca, she did nothing.
The headmaster of the academy, concerned for her, offered her a place to stay so she could survive—but her eyes no longer held the spark of the living.
She lived merely to sustain herself, drinking minimal water and consuming just enough food.
She spent more than half her days lying in bed.
Her only concern was one thought.
‘If it’s true that the gods are always watching…’
‘Is this the answer they gave me?’
There had been many unfortunate moments.
Even so, she had pressed forward.
It was fine, she told herself, because they were watching over her.
She had never done anything to be ashamed of. ‘So why?’
‘Why… why?’
She hadn’t asked for much.
Just that nothing be taken away from her!
“Luca.”
The headmaster’s voice called from outside the door.
Luca didn’t answer, but the headmaster didn’t press her, as if he understood.
“I have something to tell you. You don’t need to come out; just listen from there.”
“The Saint has appeared.”
“Luca, this means you are eligible to become a Holy Knight. I’ll submit your application. So—”
“I know you’ve been through a difficult time, but I hope this serves as a stepping stone for you to rise again.”
With that, his footsteps receded.
Thump, thump—her father’s voice.
‘The gods are always watching over you.’
The headmaster didn’t tell Luca the full truth.
That the Saint’s appearance had only been a coincidental opportunity, and that Luca’s chances of becoming a Holy Knight were practically zero.
Ophel Aichel Transrente, Linnea von Einsberg.
The odds of Luphrantia Academy’s second-place graduate surpassing these renowned figures were nonexistent.
Even though it was the gods who sent the Saint, it was humans who decided on the Holy Knights.
He simply wanted her to regain her strength.
He was willing to support her wholeheartedly if she showed any motivation.
Luca’s talent was too precious to waste in her current state.
After the headmaster left, Luca buried her head in her pillow.
Normally, she would have been surprised at the news of the Saint’s appearance.
But now, she wasn’t.
Luca’s spirit had been broken.
Having lost her second family, she chose to halt rather than move forward, whispering in her heart.
‘O gods.
So… was it You after all? I apologize. Calling You ‘gods’ is familiar to me, so please forgive me.
“Are You there?”
“Are You always watching over me?”
“Then, is this another trial I must overcome?”
“If I endure and push through, will good things come, like when I got into the academy?”
‘Just like now, when the Saint has appeared and I have the chance to become a Holy Knight?”
‘But… but.’
‘Family…’
She’d already lost her family twice.
‘Would becoming a Holy Knight have any meaning?’
‘Is all this truly the will of the gods?”
She asked the question that would never receive an answer.
She asked, and asked, and asked…
Her father—or the presence she associated with her father’s voice—whispered to her.
‘The gods are watching over you.’
‘The gods are watching over you.’
‘The gods are watching over you…’
Like a broken record, it repeated: click, click.
Click, click…
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