The Headmaster’s Straw

Lamierre’s tea had grown stone cold. As I swirled the lukewarm liquid, my reflection on the surface rippled. Having nowhere to set the cup, I kept it cupped in both hands on my lap and tilted my head to the side. Lamierre was holding a thin bracelet encrusted with small red gems. He mentioned it was a gift from the ruins but hadn’t heard what its function was.

I, however, knew exactly what it was. That bracelet was an artifact that generated a defensive barrier. In the original story, Kallios received it after clearing the ruins. Regardless of whether it was a magic or physical attack, it blocked anything harmful to the wearer. It couldn’t be used infinitely; a gem would be consumed with each activation.

In the original, it felt like a throwaway item given to Kallios because it was useless to him, but for the still-unrefined Lamierre, it was a decent—no, an excellent—insurance policy.

Still, it was inferior to what he should have received. The orb Lamierre originally obtained was a treasure so rare that even 7th-circle mages at the Academy would covet it. Items that can significantly amplify mana—especially elemental mana—to a perceptible degree… there are likely only a few even in the Arnevus Imperial Treasury.

“I… I want to offer this to Your Highness,” Lamierre said hesitantly. I looked at him and let out a chuckle.

“Without even knowing what it is?”

“Uh…”

Lamierre held out the bracelet with both hands, looking like a dejected puppy.

“Still, it came from an Imperial ruin… so wouldn’t it be something good?”

I handed the teacup to Isaac and pulled Lamierre’s left hand toward me.

“I’m fine without it.”

I didn’t need a barrier artifact. I was always in a safe place.

I fastened the bracelet onto Lamierre’s wrist.

“No, Your Highness…”

“It’s an auto-trigger barrier artifact. It might be a bit annoying having it dangle, but don’t take it off.”

“If it’s that good, all the more reason for Your Highness to have it.”

“For me?”

I patted the back of Lamierre’s hand as he tried to undo the clasp.

“Forget it. You keep it.”

“But, I heard you are leaving the Imperial Fortress.”

“I’m not going alone. The Knight Order and the Mage Order will be going with me.”

While this hadn’t been explicitly negotiated with Kallios yet, it was likely how it would go. I anticipated two knight orders, one mage order, and one legion previously stationed at the Aphelion border. When I depart from the capital, it might just be the knights and mages, but by the time I reach the old Royal Castle of Aphelion, it will be a substantial force. Even if someone attacked with ill intent, I wouldn’t have to see it with my own eyes.

I stood up, watching Lamierre fiddle with his arm with a lingering look of doubt. The sun was setting. Even if we left now, we wouldn’t arrive until the dead of night. Isaac placed the two teacups on Lamierre’s desk, then went to the door and opened it first. I stroked Lamierre’s head.

“I should go now.”

I ruffled his hair, patted him twice, and then pulled my hand away.

“I’ll come back next week. If you’re still having the same dream then… let’s try another way.”

I turned away without waiting for an answer.

“Your Highness.”

“It’s a bit early, but I hope you sleep well tonight.”

I cut off his voice firmly and stepped out of the room. I heard the door click shut. I let out a long-held sigh and rubbed my face.

“Are you tired?”

“Yeah, a little.”

Isaac immediately sat in front of me and offered his back. I gave a small laugh and climbed on.

Every night, Lamierre dreams of my death.

The dark night, the empty road, the silent carriage racing with bright lights, and the man with black hair being crushed upon impact. I asked him several times to repeat the description that forced me to recall memories I had never once forgotten. Did you recognize the road? What were the surrounding buildings like? Did you see the person’s face? Lamierre shook his head to every question. It was a scenery I’d never seen before. The buildings were different from those in the Empire. The face… I’m not sure. It’s blurry once I wake up.

I see.

It must have been… very hard for him.

It was difficult to speak while acting nonchalant. I was grateful for the tasteless tea Lamierre had given me. Without that cup to hold, it would have been hard to hide my trembling hands.

Late at night. My body was exhausted, yet sleep wouldn’t come. I tossed and turned for a long time. I hated being alone, of all things. If only Kallios were here, sitting at the table occasionally flipping through a book he wasn’t even reading… It was a ridiculous thought. What would I even do if he were? This was something I could tell no one.

I had possessed the body of thirteen-year-old Kaian. I wasn’t reborn; I had stolen ‘Kaian’s’ life. I didn’t feel immense guilt because I thought it was a life that would have ended quietly in sickness anyway, but a theft was a theft, so it wasn’t a story I could proudly broadcast. Furthermore, since I had decided to live as ‘Kaian,’ the fact that I had a past only I knew didn’t matter.

Yes. If it were a past only I knew, it wouldn’t have mattered.

Why was Lamierre having such dreams?

I wondered if the events in the ruins were the cause and asked him, but Lamierre said he couldn’t remember. All that remained was an overwhelmingly sad emotion and a fragment of a dream that haunted him every night like wreckage.

Even though I knew thinking about it wouldn’t yield an answer, I felt strange as the thoughts kept resurfacing.

I had lived as Kaian for ten years. At this point, the memory of my old death didn’t torment me, nor did I miss my finished past life. It was just… peculiar.

I recalled my first death.

That day, I had worked overtime for an entire month, and then again on the first day of the new month. I felt like I was literally going to die of exhaustion. I think I had grumbled out of worry, wondering if I might die of overwork. I was surfing the web on my phone, but since nothing was registering, I put it in my pocket and trudged along. Trudge, trudge, trudge. I’m definitely quitting this d*mn company. I had those thoughts while walking down the deserted street. I must have. At that time, my mind was filled with nothing but thoughts of resigning.

And then… did I get a call and answer it? I remember the bell ringing and taking out my phone. I’m confused as to whether I was hit by the truck with its high beams on after pressing the call button or before. I looked up at the sound of the vehicle racing toward me, thought What the fck?*, and then it was over.

Did I say it out loud? If I had, Lamierre would have mentioned it. I must have only thought it.

Imagining Lamierre saying with sad eyes, [That person said… what the f*ck. Did he perhaps curse at me?], was a bit funny. Ah. I’m glad I didn’t curse out loud. Truly.

Isaac seemed displeased that both my first and second outings were for the purpose of seeing Lamierre. However, I ignored his pouting face and hurried my preparations. Last time we left in the late morning, but today I started the bustle as soon as I woke up.

I was curious if Lamierre had continued to have that dream during the week, but there was another objective as well. After sending the volunteer worker Cigarette to the Grand Duchy, I grew greedy.

The more workers, the better. Young workers who aren’t jaded by society, yet are competent, passionate, and pure, are even better. It was the mindset of a past-life boss who thoroughly exploited the passionate, un-jaded me… but I’m different because I’ll compensate them properly. My workers will be able to stand tall before themselves, their families, and those around them. Unlike me, who became a mute when asked how much I earned after working overtime all month.

Anyway, fully intent on picking up some slaves—no, workers—I sent a formal letter to the Academy Headmaster stating my scheduled visit, unlike last time. Perhaps because of that, there were many people at the entrance when we arrived. An old man with a bushy Santa-like beard and well-dressed… likely professors on the Headmaster’s side. They greeted me as soon as I stepped out of the carriage. I returned the greeting with a smile.

“We greet the Grand Duke.”

“You’re good at greetings, aren’t you? Even if your accident handling was a mess.”

The Academy Headmaster, Herenso, let out a jolly laugh and stroked his Santa beard.

“You must have been very disappointed by that incident.”

“The disappointment was likely felt by the children who were abandoned back then.”

“It was a natural disaster.”

He wasn’t wrong. Had they known a monster wave would occur, they wouldn’t have taken inexperienced students to the northeast. it was an accident, and the Academy handled it reasonably well. They recovered as many students as possible as quickly as possible.

Searching the monster-infested northeastern mountains just to save one ‘Special Trainee’ like Lamierre, who wasn’t even a formally enrolled student, would have been irrational. One should praise their quick judgment. However, as Lamierre’s guardian, I was disappointed by the Academy’s quick abandonment. I’m only disappointed because he returned safely; otherwise, I would be cursing it as a god-awful school.

“We owe much to young Weaver.”

“…”

“Thanks to young Weaver’s wit, eleven students from the Knight Faculty and four from the Magic Faculty were able to return safely.”

“…”

“I knew his talent for magic was exceptional, but I heard his handling of the crisis was also perfect. Young Weaver will become a great mage.”

I suppressed my rising smile and cleared my throat. Headmaster Herenso bowed his head to me.

“I thank the Grand Duke for entrusting such a young man to us.”

“No… well, give your thanks to that kid.”

“Of course. I am very good at ‘greetings’ after all.”

I decided to treat him not as royalty, but as a guardian who had entrusted a child to the Academy. Upon hearing my polite speech, he wore a warm smile and naturally led me inside.

It followed naturally into an introduction to what Lamierre had experienced at the school and the professors teaching him. I sat leaning back on the plush sofa in the Headmaster’s office, drinking the same tea I drank in my palace.

Headmaster Herenso tested me using a witty manner of speech, just enough not to be offensive. I didn’t ask if it was a habit from teaching children for a long time or for some other reason. Since he had started with an apology during our first meeting, I intended to overlook it once with generosity, whatever his goal was.

The conversation, which had flowed through topics like the Academy, education, and talent, hit a lull. I moistened my dry mouth with tea after talking so much. Headmaster Herenso picked up his teacup and set it down, then pulled out a thin, round object resembling a pencil case from his sleeve. I watched while taking another sip. What he pulled out of the case was a straw. With a chuckle, Headmaster Herenso dipped the straw into his teacup.

“If I use this, my beard doesn’t get wet.”

It did seem like it would be quite funny to see a white beard stained with red tea. I nodded with a smile.

“It looks useful.”

“It is very useful. Especially since it has an auto-clean spell on it, it’s quite convenient. Like this.”

He pulled the tea-soaked straw out, pointed the tip downward, and drew a circle. With a flash of light, the straw became clean.

“Then you just put it back in the case.”

Isn’t putting an auto-clean spell on a straw a bit of a waste? Still, it did seem convenient. I recalled the silicone straws I bought in my past life to protect the environment. I ended up neglecting them because washing them was a hassle and eventually lost them. Mmm. Drinks are best when sipped directly from the rim. After a clean sip, I wiped my mouth with a nearby napkin.

“I happen to have one more straw.”

I picked up a cookie. I snapped it in half.

“Even for me, it would be shameful to accept two gifts.”

Headmaster Herenso, holding the straw in his mouth, gave a broad smile. It wasn’t bad to look at, as it resembled the crinkled eyes of Santa Claus. I shrugged and broke the cookie into bite-sized pieces. As I brought it to my mouth, I asked.

“Why. Do you want to settle this with just one straw?”

The cookie was dreadfully sweet. I grimaced, and Headmaster Herenso laughed out loud.

“Ho ho, of course not! I have the second gift prepared as well.”

I swallowed the cookie with some tea and brushed off my hands.

“But before that, would you grant me a little more of your time?”

“Do you need more testing?”

“How could I possibly test someone who receives the blessing of the Dragon God?”

He says that so smoothly after doing it as much as he liked. I stared at him with a crooked smile. Headmaster Herenso pulled the straw from his now-empty cup, cleaned it, and tucked it neatly back into the pencil—no, straw case—and slid it back into his sleeve.

“The meals at our Academy are quite delicious. I would especially like for you to taste my favorite menu.”

As I stood up with him, I asked with a look of dissatisfaction.

“I hope that isn’t something sweet as well?”

He laughed heartily and guided me toward the dining hall.