The Rumor Mill and the Fire Spirit’s Vow

Was Ensius truly worth it to Agniele—worth swallowing his pride and apologizing in front of everyone? Or was it simply due to Agniele’s characteristic disregard for the opinions of others?

Whatever the truth, Ensi had never encountered someone in this life who conveyed their sincerity so ruthlessly. He still hadn’t decided what kind of attitude he should adopt.

“And if you’re comfortable with it… um, I’d like to start as friends.”

“That’s—”

“So, let’s just watch.”

Ensi was about to reflexively refuse the offer without a second thought, but Titania’s voice suddenly flashed through his mind, making his shoulders flinch.

…Even if they are just simple words, sometimes they become a powerful constraint.

“—I suppose friends would be fine.”

As Ensi whispered his consent, Lily, who had been desperately pinching her lips shut next to him, gasped in shock. Conversely, Agniele, receiving a positive response unlike yesterday, wore a smile he didn’t even realize was there.

“Thank you.”

Remembering his friend’s warning not to push too far on the first day, Agniele turned and returned to his seat immediately after receiving his answer.

As soon as Agniele vanished from sight, Lily, who had been holding her breath, grabbed Ensi’s arm and shook it violently.

“What are you planning to do?!”

At Lily’s low-hissed question, Ensi wore a weary expression and shook his head slowly.

What am I planning? It wasn’t even a calculated move; he had just made an impulsive decision because Titania’s suggestion was weighing on his mind. He had nothing to tell Lily, even if she shook him to pieces.

Lily chewed her lip anxiously before letting out a massive sigh and roughly ruffling her hair.

“I give up. I don’t know anymore.”

“Me neither.”

I really don’t know either.

At his hollow murmur, Lily swatted him on the back. Even though her hand made a resounding thwack, Ensi just wiped his dry face with his hands.

This is why one should control their impulses. Lately, it felt like his regrets were only multiplying.

Rumors are meant to be secret by nature, but unfortunately, this one was anything but. It had reached the ears of the involved parties in less than a day; this rumor possessed an incredible scalability rather than discretion.

“Your popularity is skyrocketing, Ensi.”

Donovan listened to the rumors carried by the wind with a hint of amusement. The spirits, sensitive to his emotions, read the latent joy and curiosity in Donovan’s heart and poured out even more stories.

Ensi also felt the clamor ringing directly in his head rather than his ears, but he didn’t pay it much attention since it wasn’t in a language he could fully parse. Most importantly, since those whispers were only delivered clearly to those who desired them, there was nothing he could do even if he were interested.

“Just a few days ago, no one cared about me.”

“Do you feel eyes on you every time you walk down the street now?”

“Yeah.”

Ensi sighed and pressed down on his heavy eyelids. While no one attending Eglia Academy was “unremarkable,” there was still a hierarchy of recognition. Because there were so many prominent figures, Ensi had naturally fallen into the category of being relatively unknown. He was only famous within his own department as the ironic student who barely attended lectures but maintained high grades; outside the department, most people reacted with, “Was there someone like that?”

“It’s exhausting.”

“It can’t be helped since the other party is Young Lord Lasias. He’s the sole heir, after all.”

Donovan reached out toward a spirit circling him. Instead of landing on his hand immediately, the spirit teased him by spinning around before hurriedly settling down just as Donovan was about to pull his arm back.

“I heard you agreed when he asked to start as friends?”

“……Titania said it might be good to just watch for a bit.”

“That sounds like something she’d say.”

As Donovan offered his shoulder, the spirit expressed its joy by leaving a quick peck on his cheek. Not to be outdone, another spirit—swinging its legs while hanging from his other shoulder—whispered a new story into Donovan’s ear.

“Oh boy. It seems there were more people targeting Agniele than I thought. You might want to be careful walking at night for a while, Ensi.”

“Is there anyone in this Academy who could actually be a threat to me?”

“Not physically. But a blade to the throat isn’t the only kind of threat.”

Even if there was nothing they could do within the Academy, things were different outside. Of course, Donovan didn’t think Ensi would be in real danger, but there were always variables, so being cautious didn’t hurt.

“Will the rumor reach Count Alemir’s ears?”

“That depends on how diligently the students act as messengers.”

“Then it’ll definitely reach him. In a world with so few forms of entertainment, gossip is an addictive pastime.”

Still, it would take time. While there were many ways to send news outside the Academy, gossip like this tended to be lower on the priority list. He could rest easy for the time being.

Donovan then listened to the spirit sitting on his crown, whispering slowly. If a heavy stone could speak, it would sound like this. Listening to the serious message—unlike the other spirits—he suddenly burst out laughing.

“Ensi, Lily might have a hard time.”

“Lily? She avoided the engagement, so she shouldn’t have a reason to suffer.”

“It seems the rumor that the House of Lasias was trying to form a marriage alliance with the House of Florence had spread quite a bit. But then Agniele suddenly confessed to you.”

“……Surely there aren’t rumors of a love triangle, right?”

“A story straight out of a romance fantasy novel is circulating.” Except Lily is being portrayed as the villainess, Donovan added in a whisper, stroking the head of the spirit that gave him the amusing news.

Since this commotion seemed less intense than the trials Titania and Cyril had faced, he was completely relaxed and enjoying himself.

“The fiancée blocking true love… that certainly sounds like a Ro-Pan (Romance Fantasy) trope.”

“Right? Though it’s a story Lily—who is devoted to Nocturne—would find quite unfair.”

But what could be done? No matter how publicly Lily continued her relationship with Nocturne, what the gossips valued more was the will of the families. From the moment the marriage talks between Florence and Lasias were mentioned, the relationship between Nocturne and Lily became nothing more and nothing less than a childish fling in the eyes of society.

Realizing he had heard all the stories circulating in the Academy, Donovan gave the spirits the things they liked, one by one. The fire spirit, which had been by Ensi’s side at Donovan’s request, shifted its weight restlessly at the sight.

Ensi pondered for a moment as he watched the spirit clearly expressing its envy, then touched the spirit’s shoulder.

“I will give you that flower.”

When he whispered that he would give it the Sun Grass still planted in the ground, the spirit’s eyes went wide. It tilted its head as if asking, “Really?”

“Yes. As long as that flower doesn’t die, it is entirely yours.”

“Ensi! That’s too big of a price!”

Donovan, hearing Ensi late, tried to stop him. Giving away something that doesn’t disappear immediately meant the bond would become that much stronger—and that wasn’t always a good thing. Spirits were, by nature, fundamentally different from humans.

“Then shall I set a condition?”

The spirit, which had been flying joyfully toward the Sun Grass, stopped dead in its tracks. Its movements, which had been fluid like flickering flames, looked stiff for the first time.

“It’s not a difficult task. Just share your warmth with me occasionally, like you did today.”

At the simple proposal, the spirit spun in circles, unable to contain its excitement. Donovan hurriedly waved his hands to quench the sparks that flew off. In the meantime, the spirit flew to Ensi and left a kiss on his forehead.

[It’s a promise.]

A voice as clear and innocent as a child’s echoed in his mind. Ensi was momentarily taken aback by the spirit’s first clear expression of will, but he soon nodded with a faint smile.

“Yes. I promise.”

“……Seeing this, Ensi, you can be quite stubborn too.”

Donovan sighed as he watched Ensi give a whole Sun Grass flower to the spirit.

“It seems I’ve ended up with more dependants. I suppose I had to become stubborn.”

Donovan glared at Ensi’s slick reply. Still, the saving grace was that Ensi had set a condition, and the spirit had accepted it readily. All things considered, it wasn’t a bad trade. Donovan lightly tapped the head of the spirit settled on the Sun Grass.

“So, what are you going to do from now on?”

“About Agniele? Well, wouldn’t I just do things friends do? What do people usually do?”

“In this world… um, poker and billiards? Even if it’s a game, it’s usually played with stakes… Oh, sometimes they smoke cigars together. But Cyril banned cigars, didn’t she?”

“The hobbies here are… quite unwholesome.”

Donovan just shrugged at Ensi’s completely unenthusiastic expression. The examples he gave were actually on the wholesome side. If they hadn’t been from a previous life, they would have accepted this world’s culture naturally.

“Is hunting no good either?”

“Finding it ‘fun’ to extinguish life as a game… my past life remains too vivid for that.”

Donovan nodded calmly at Ensi’s look, which asked if he felt the same. If asked if he had never gotten blood on his hands since being born into this world, he’d have nothing to say—but he could swear he had never trampled on life for the sake of amusement.

“Maybe things will just fizzle out depending on how Agniele acts.”

Donovan revealed his inner thoughts without hiding them, saying he was actually looking forward to this story. Titania and Cyril’s stories were more about urgency and tension than excitement, making them hard to enjoy. But Ensi’s story, unlike theirs, had a stronger sense of fluttering anticipation.

“I see you’re more excited than Lily now.”

“Haha, is that so?”

Ensi let out a hollow laugh as he faced Donovan’s bright smile—a smile that seemed to be slowly discovering the joy of romance since meeting them.