[Lifespan Remaining: 21 days, 23 hours, 13 minutes.]
’Ugh...the Seer of the Stars and Witch of Black Ice.’
Noct really wished he had connected the dots sooner, but from their title as well as her similar-looking fashion sense was all that he needed to put two and two together.
But alas...his failure to realize really would be his downfall. He had been so occupied with hiding what happened in Altaire that he had forgotten the most obvious problem.
The person helping him hide it could still talk to other people.
’And apparently, she talks quite a lot...’
"I don’t know what you’re talking about," Noct finally decided to break the silence. "Fairies? Like those things in children’s books?"
"Fairies are just another colloquial name to describe wind elemental spirits," Scarlett explained. "But you already know that, don’t you?"
Noct resisted the urge to rub his forehead. There was no explanation he could give that wouldn’t lead to another question, and he really didn’t have the energy to spend another hour denying things she already knew.
So he decided to stop trying.
"I’m afraid there’s been a misunderstanding. I’m not a Fairy King, I don’t know anything about your stars, and I would really like to go home."
"Very well."
That was definitely not the response he had expected.
"...Really?"
"Well, if you say that you don’t know anything. Who am I to say that you’re wrong or that you’re lying?"
The statement sounded a lot like she was trying to guilt-trip him, but such tactics are easy to defend. The best answer...is to give no answer at all.
Noct placed his hands against the armrests, preparing to stand before she could change her mind.
"Wait..."
’Ugh...what now?’
"Before you leave, I’ve got something for you."
Scarlett reached forward and opened one of the drawers under her desk. Noct almost sat back down out of resignation, only to stop when she placed a small wooden case in front of him.
The Academy’s crest had been engraved into its lid, held together by a thin golden clasp that looked anything but simple.
The Headmaster slowly pushed the case toward him. "This belongs to you, as promised."
"...What is it?"
"Open it."
He did as told, slowly undoing the clasp, the suspense and curiosity slowly killing him from the inside.
Resting inside was a slender glass vial, nestled along a lining made of a dark velvet fabric. The liquid it contained shimmered underneath the light, shifting between a pale gold color and another he couldn’t quite describe.
Even while perfectly still, it seemed to move whenever he looked at it from a different angle, kind of like those photocards that gave a different image when turned at certain angles.
But well, even before seeing it clearly, he already had a building suspicion. The context clues did give it away.
"Liquid Fate..."
He carefully lifted the vial, checking it from every side before looking back at Scarlett and putting it back down.
"Why are you giving this to me?"
"It’s the first-place reward."
"I know what it is, but why are you giving it to me?"
He knew for sure that he spent most of the examination consuming every monster core he could get his hands on. And Noct hadn’t exactly shown the most gusto in slaying Undeads as well.
From a pure quantitative standpoint, he really shouldn’t have won.
’Unless...’
"A 5-Star monster is worth five hundred points," Scarlett explained. "Your bracelet recorded half the participation, awarding you two hundred and fifty."
’It can do that...?’
Noct hadn’t checked the bracelet’s records since camp was attacked, and the objective of getting Liquid Fate had slowly been dropped out of the priority list, or rather, slowly slid to the very bottom.
Pressing a finger against its surface, he allowed a small amount of mana to enter. Immediately, a translucent panel appeared above the silver band.
[Candidate: Noct Arcadia]
[Total Points: 547]
He opened the record under it, only to see entry after entry appear before his eyes, way more than he ever expected.
[Undead Warrior has been defeated.]
[Undead Warrior has been defeated.]
[Undead Mage has been defeated.]
[...]
Upon closer inspection, he realized that the time logged was exactly the same for all a hundred something entries.
That was when his thoughts returned back to the black fragments embedded inside the skeleton’s skulls.
He had been so focused on pulling them out that he hadn’t thought of those creatures as anything more than the extensions of the lich. But according to the bracelet, they really were individual scores.
’So each undead that had a gem with it...was counted as a score when they all perished after I purified it?’
"What about Alice?"
"Alice Alstromeria?"
"She received the other two hundred and fifty, didn’t she?"
Scarlett nodded. "Your bracelets recorded an equal contribution to the lich’s defeat. Well, she received a bit more for dealing the final blow."
"Then she’s second?"
"She is."
"Huh..."
The two of them had been trying to avoid getting killed, and somehow, they had taken the top two places in the entrance examination along the way.
He wasn’t sure whether to laugh or complain about how close they had come to never receiving the rewards. Then another thought occurred to him.
"What about Tristan Sylvaine?"
"Third."
"And Robin Fortis?"
"Also third. Their scores were tied."
Well, he hadn’t expected for such a gain, but when life gives anybody lemons...it wouldn’t be right not to make lemonade.
Noct grabbed the case and quickly clasped it once more, making sure it was secured before moving toward the door.
"Thank you, Headmistress."
"Say hi to Stella for me," Scarlett simply waved him along, much to his elated surprise.
And with nothing else holding him back, Noct left the Headmistress’s office hurriedly, eager to finally get some sleep.
Once he was gone though, the Headmistress simply sighed, staring at the projection coming from the Star Map.
With a wave of her hand, the projection wavered, allowing the real image to be displayed. And on it...was an encroaching darkness, threatening to swallow the stars and plunge the world into chaos. One of the stars had already grown dim, leaving only fourteen left.
But even so, a part of the darkness latched onto two stars in particular and refused to let go. But all Headmistress Scarlett could do was sigh.
"We’re not ready for it—"
"Not yet."