Vol 2. Chapter 102: As Beautiful As You

“Vinny, how do you feel you did on the exams this time?”

“Ah, are we at the classic answer-checking session again? Please, spare me. My written results are nothing worth bragging about—if I start checking answers now, it’ll wreck my mindset completely.”

On the unicorn magic carriage, Vinny and Mirexia were idly chatting, naturally drifting to the topic of their end-of-term results.

“This semester, haven’t you been studying quite diligently?”

“I have, sure, but studying hard is one thing. Mirexia, you already know my foundations are terrible. On top of that, I’m not gifted at academics at all—so even if I squeeze out every last bit of effort, I probably won’t produce any great results.”

“Is that so? But I think your learning ability is actually quite strong.”

Vinny could tell she was referring to when he was Vanessa: the way he processed paperwork then—his speed and efficiency were no joke. Despite it being his first time handling such documents, he didn’t need any teaching at all and even did the work more flawlessly than Mirexia, who was already an old hand at administrative matters.

But the “processor” he had when he was Vanessa wasn’t the same as now, was it?

In a sense, Vinny wasn’t without talent or potential. It’s just that all of his potential and talent manifested on the Vanessa side. If not for his bloodline awakening, he really would’ve been just another unremarkable NPC in the background.

Still... as excellent as Vanessa was, he still felt more comfortable and freer as Vinny.

“Well, anyway, my written test scores this time are bound to be a disaster. The only thing I can count on is my practical grades. Honestly speaking, I’m pretty confident about those.” Vinny looked out at the scenery outside the carriage and smiled.

“My practical assignment was special, and the Dean gave Aesphyra and me very high marks for it. Besides that, my duel in the practical battle was tough, but I still won. I should be able to hold onto twenty-third place in the year.”

“Speaking of which, Mirexia, how was your practical battle?”

“It was fine. The opponent I met wasn’t that strong. Of course, maybe I was just lucky.” Mirexia answered.

That was pure modesty. Everyone knew—even among third and fourth years—there were only a handful who could stand as Mirexia’s opponents. Second-years? Forget it.

The expression of the poor soul matched against Mirexia must have been spectacular at the time.

“And what about you, Vinny? How was your opponent?” Mirexia asked in return.

“Ah, well, alright. Okay, the other guy was actually a tough hand. For a while I couldn’t gain the upper hand, but in the end he still fell a step short and lost, while I, being a notch more skilled, scraped out the final victory.” Vinny felt it would be embarrassing to admit the truth, so he “remastered” the story a bit.

“I see. Then it seems your opponent was quite strong too.” In Mirexia’s mind, Vinny’s ability had always been solid. After all, if Vanessa was that strong, then Vinny himself certainly wouldn’t be weak.

The two of them chatted like that, while beside them Shicodale opened his mouth to speak several times but never found a chance. Realizing he simply couldn’t join their rhythm, he quietly shut his mouth, placed both hands neatly on his knees, and sat in silence.

It felt impossible to enter the cadence of these childhood friends.

Their bond really was close.

[Virtue +50]

[Current Virtue: 5084]

Huh??

Sensing the change in Virtue, Vinny glanced at Mirexia’s faint, gentle smile at his side, then at the silver-haired elf across from them, who looked as if he were under a dark cloud of pressure—and suddenly he felt uneasy.

“Speaking of which, Dale, who was your opponent in the practical battle?” Realizing they had been neglecting Shicodale, Vinny hurriedly asked.

“Eh? Me?” Hearing himself mentioned, Shicodale finally raised his gaze, tilting his head slightly.

“As for me, I also won. My opponent wasn’t that strong.” He thought for a moment before replying.

“Oh, I see.” Vinny nodded. He was rather curious how Shicodale had managed to win. Based on his understanding of this delicate elf’s personality, he really couldn’t imagine how Shicodale actually fought others in battle.

Still, he had been admitted to Carillian Academy on his own merit—of course he had his own methods.

...Why did the atmosphere feel so awkward?

Vinny’s gaze wandered back and forth between Mirexia and Shicodale.

He vaguely felt something was off, but Mirexia herself didn’t think so at all. From her perspective, this was simply Vinny’s delicate, pitiable, homeless roommate visiting his childhood friend’s home.

As Vinny’s childhood friend, she felt she ought to take care of this fragile-looking boy who didn’t seem like a boy at all.

In truth, Mirexia had always thought Shicodale looked far too delicate. If not for his faintly visible Adam’s apple, no one would even believe he was male.

But then again, thinking of him as an elf, Mirexia let go of those thoughts. Maybe some male elves really did look like this. After all, elves as a race were famed for their beauty, and it wasn’t rare to see ones with softer, androgynous features.

The journey passed quickly, and soon night fell. The three of them, along with the other students on the carriage, each returned to their rooms to rest.

The unicorn magic carriage’s destination was the Camella Capital, so naturally all its passengers were students from the Camella Kingdom. Although they were curious why an elf student had joined the ride, their attention was far more drawn to Mirexia.

Although they attended the same academy as the princess, Mirexia was always buried in Student Council work and had no time for idle meetings.

Now that they finally had the chance, everyone wanted to strike up conversation with her. Yet whenever they approached, they felt an invisible force of repulsion. Especially when she was with Vinny—whenever they spoke, it felt impossible for anyone else to interject.

What was going on?!

Watching Mirexia and Vinny inseparable day after day, the young nobles of the kingdom were puzzled and frustrated.

Everyone knew Mirexia and Vinny were childhood friends, but it was a topic no one liked to mention. Weren’t their relations always terrible?

Vinny had clung to her on the grounds of being childhood friends, confessed to her in public, and fainted like a clown when rejected—becoming a laughingstock of the entire kingdom.

That was how the nobles defined their relationship. To them, they were worlds apart: one, the radiant, dazzling future queen; the other, a pauper toad, his family ruined, unable even to prove his own identity. Naturally, they believed the two would only grow farther apart until they had no ties left at all.

So just what had happened this semester? Why did their relationship look repaired?

No—it wasn’t just “repaired.” The kingdom’s noble youths simply refused to admit it, but the two now looked inseparably close.

No one among them could explain it.

Surely not just because Vinny got lucky entering Carillian Academy and achieving decent grades, right? That couldn’t possibly be enough to restore their bond?

Like a fleeting shadow, a week passed.

The unicorn carriage safely reached the Camella Capital, descending at the royal station built specifically for such carriages.

While the other students rejoiced at finally being home, only Vinny wore a gloomy expression.

That was too fast. Couldn’t it have taken another day? He hadn’t even grown tired of the carriage food yet.

“Dale, we’re here. Once the carriage stops, we’ll get off.” Vinny picked up his luggage.

“So this... is Vinny’s hometown?” Through the window, Shicodale gazed curiously at the grand human city. Unlike her homeland, this place was bursting with people and activity. The architecture too was utterly different.

Aside from palaces and altars, elven structures were usually small and delicate. They did have large buildings, but elves valued refinement over scale, caring more about decoration and elegance.

The kingdom’s students filed out one by one. Outside, two rows of fully armored Dragon-Knights and several royal courtiers stood waiting. Clearly, they had come to welcome the students home—and to receive their princess.

“Vinny.” Mirexia glanced at him. The meaning was clear.

“Mm. You go on ahead. I need to drop off my luggage and settle in.” Vinny knew that as the princess, Mirexia had duties to return to the moment she arrived. Of course he wouldn’t hold her up.

Mirexia gave him a slight nod, handed her luggage to waiting maids, and began speaking with the royal steward who had come to meet her.

Other noble students likewise had servants waiting to receive them.

Only Vinny strolled casually with his own luggage, weaving through the lively crowd as if none of it had anything to do with him.

“Vinny, wait for me!” Shicodale, who had been staring absentmindedly at Mirexia’s conversation with her steward, suddenly noticed Vinny was leaving and hurried to catch up.

“What are you spacing out for? Don’t fall behind.” Vinny glanced back at him.

“Vinny, isn’t the President going with us?” Shicodale asked.

“What are you thinking, silly? Mirexia is the First Princess. She has plenty of royal matters to attend to. Now that we’re back in the kingdom, she and I stand as monarch and subject. Do you think it’s fitting for the princess to visit my cobweb-ridden little shack?” Vinny chuckled.

“Eh...?”

“Come on, don’t dawdle.” Vinny walked ahead, with Shicodale following, and the two left the central district of the city.

“So this is the Camella Capital?” Shicodale followed, eyes full of curiosity, glancing left and right at everything.

“Well? How does it compare to your homeland?”

“It’s much larger than my homeland.” Shicodale sighed.

“See that wall? That’s the capital’s wall. And there’s another inner wall as well. Both are built from advanced resistance magic-stones of different elements.” Vinny pointed to the faintly visible towering walls in the distance.

“Amazing!” Shicodale’s eyes shone as he murmured, “If only my homeland had walls like that... perhaps then the tragedy could have been avoided.”

“If I’m not mistaken, didn’t the Moon Elves have a natural barrier for protection?” Vinny asked.

“Yes... but... at the time, an accident happened. If we’d had a wall like this, we could have bought more time, let more clansmen escape, and organized what strength we had left.” Shicodale’s voice grew heavy with regret.

Vinny didn’t know how to console him, so he simply kept walking in silence.

“We’re here.” Vinny finally stopped before a familiar courtyard.

“Mm?” Shicodale, who had been lost in thought, lifted his gaze to see the overgrown weeds and decayed house before him.

Still the same as when I left.

Vinny thought.

Though he had been gone only a few months, it felt like years, as if he hadn’t come home in a long, long time.

He slid the key into the rusty lock and opened the courtyard gate. Looking at the weed-filled yard, he let out a deep breath.

Instead of carrying his luggage inside, he went straight to the back yard, to the two gravestones.

Time had passed so long that birds perched upon them, only to scatter when he approached.

“Dad, Mom, I’m back.” After a long silence, Vinny finally spoke.

Sometimes he wondered—was it simply the original body’s memories influencing him? Or...

Was he always Vinny, only with an extra set of past-life memories and an awakened bloodline?

Who could say? Memory itself was mysterious. ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) One more set of memories, and you could be a different person entirely. Obsessing over it was meaningless now.

He only knew that whenever he closed his eyes, fragments of the past would resurface in his mind.

When he opened them again, he suddenly noticed Shicodale had silently approached the graves and gently placed a bouquet of white flowers on each.

“Um... this is our elven tradition. When honoring the dead, we place white Fengrui flowers on the grave. They symbolize remembrance and release.” Seeing Vinny’s eyes on him, Shicodale hurried to explain, worried he had done something wrong.

“If this custom clashes with human traditions, then I’ll take them away...”

“No need. These flowers are beautiful, pure.” Vinny smiled lightly. “Just like you, Dale.”

“U-uh!” Shicodale froze, then his ears flushed crimson at a speed visible to the naked eye.

[Virtue +150]

[Current Virtue: 5234]

His Virtue had risen again. What Shicodale didn’t know was that his thoughtfulness had also quickly raised Vinny’s favor toward him.

“Thank you, Dale. But... where did you conjure these flowers from?”

“Eh? Oh, um, that’s my Spirit Soul.” Shicodale explained shyly. “My Spirit Soul can learn a kind of magic called ‘Flower Magic.’”

“Although the flowers it summons vanish quickly, Vinny, your feelings for the departed won’t vanish, will they?” Shicodale tilted his head in the wind, smiling sweetly. The breeze lifted his moon-silver high ponytail, carrying a faintly sweet fragrance into the air.

“You’re right. That’s true.” After a pause, Vinny smiled sincerely and poked Shicodale lightly on the forehead.

“Alright, come on. Let’s go inside.” After paying respects to his parents, Vinny led Shicodale back into the house.

The moment they stepped through the door, a wave of dust swept up, making Shicodale cough violently.