Genius Wizard Conceals His Origins

The midterm exams at the Frauvian Federal University of Magic are held daily over a period of about a week, with one exam per day.

While there may be differences between lectures, the difficulty generally follows the prestige of the school. In other words, it’s hard.

As the midterm exam period approached, the library gradually began to fill with students carrying thick textbooks and notebooks.

#May 15th. 

Today, ten days before the start of the exams, both libraries on campus finally achieved the feat of being fully occupied.

“Ugh…”

I quietly stretched in the quiet atmosphere.

It seems time has flown by as I continued studying with concentration. The sky, which had been emitting a clear blue light, was now tinged with the full color of sunset.

The season is spring.

Unlike winter, when the sun drops in an instant, we’ve passed the vernal equinox (T/N: spring equinox), so the sunset means it’s approaching evening.

I put down my pencil and packed up my things.

Words Susan once said with a gentle smile.

There was still a strange pressure in those words, so I maintained the habit of returning home before dinner, no matter how late I studied.

I started studying on my own. Since my concentration didn’t drop at home, it wasn’t too difficult to keep this implicit rule.

As Susan said, it’s more enjoyable to have meals together.

So I shouldered my bag and stepped out of the library. [Only on Galaxy Translations! / Axiomatic]

To head towards the shortcut that could quickly lead to the main gate, I walked to the deserted back path of the library.

…And now I’ve come to this situation.

“…”

A person has collapsed.

Could the onomatopoeia ‘thud’ be more fitting than this?

If someone falls in front of you, it might be virtuous to quietly leave the scene to reduce embarrassment, but I approached instead.

Because the fallen female student wasn’t moving at all.

I hurriedly tried to raise her body and check her consciousness.

Or, more precisely, I was about to…

“I don’t know who you are, but I’m fine. The floor was slippery, and I just fell.”

“!”

The corpse speaks.

No, the female student, who had been lying face down as if dead, opened her mouth.

The floor is not slippery; it’s a dry stone floor. Yet, the female student elegantly explained the situation as if without any embarrassment.

As I kept my mouth shut, she continued.

“Oh. If it’s not too much trouble, could you help me get up?”

“Alright.”

“…Oh my. It’s a male student. Please, if you would.”

Hearing my voice, she laughs nonchalantly.

But as someone who knows her, it was difficult for me to smile back.

Julia Müller.

The owner of all sorts of epithets, starting with being the daughter of a university professor. A freshman that many men are desperate to befriend.

However, only two things are visible in my sight right now.

The wand rolled on the floor beside her, and that still artificial smile.

I recalled her trembling body as she got off the carriage on the day of the entrance ceremony.

She didn’t slip. She collapsed because she couldn’t walk.

Perhaps Julia’s composed tone and flirtatious smile are desperate attempts to hide this simple truth.

Whatever the truth may be, it’s unnecessary speculation in the current situation.

“I’m going to grab your arm.”

I grabbed the arm of the fallen girl and lifted her up.

Soon, Julia’s posture changed to a demure sitting position.

This also meant that Julia could finally see my face.

“Phew, thank you.”

The moment she raised her head and recognized who I was, her lips closed.

The gentle smile broke a little, and her white skin flushed red.

It must be due to shame.

“I’ve shown you an unseemly sight twice now.”

“Shall I bring you your wand?”

“…Please do.”

I picked up the high-quality silver-plated wand that was rolling on the floor and handed it to her.

“[Levitation].”

I quietly recited the activation word.

The target of the spell wasn’t me. It was Julia.

“Huh, what?”

Whoosh―

Her chestnut hair flutters.

Matching her frail physique, Julia lightly rose into the air. However, I didn’t lift her high into the sky but adjusted it so that she floated just about waist-high.

It was to raise her without touching her body.

Soon after, Julia, realizing my intention, adjusted her posture and placed both feet on the ground.

Thud. 

As [Levitation] was released, the weighted wand hit the floor hard, and her posture became unstable.

But Julia seemed satisfied with that.

“Thank you for your help. I won’t forget and will surely repay you.”

“No need for repayment.”

“…Hmm.”

When I said that, her eyes narrowed slightly. As if she had seen something interesting.

After observing me for a while, Julia smiled brightly. [Only on Galaxy Translations! / Axiomatic]

“You’re Mr. Eugene Oslo, right?”

It was a smile befitting the child of a high-ranking person like a professor. Her refined movements and lips, which were soft yet firm, stood out.

“I’ll see you next time in [Understanding Literary Genres].”

Saying this, Julia slowly brushed past me.

Thud. Tap. 

Making the sound of tapping her wand.

“…”

I don’t know why she wasn’t in her wheelchair as usual, but Julia’s retreating figure walking into the sunset was enough to convey her message.

It looked as if she was insisting on walking by herself, even if it meant stumbling like a baby animal, rather than accepting support.

It feels familiar.

Where have I seen such a sight before?

“Ah.”

I remembered.

That’s exactly how I looked on the refugee path.

“Phew.”

Having barely returned to my place, I sat down demurely and closed my eyes.

I want to catch my breath. Even though I just went to the bathroom, my heart is pounding and my head is dizzy from forcing myself to walk. With the added seasoning of shame, my mood plummeted even further.

But I must sit calmly and composedly.

Because even now, someone in this library is probably watching me.

Whether it’s a freshman, a senior, or one of my father’s colleague professors, someone surely is.

My recent university life had become chaotic to the extreme.

At the beginning of the semester, there was still some awkwardness, and only female students approached me, so I could just respond quietly.

But now, a month later, the situation has changed a lot.

Perhaps they were intoxicated by the scent of flowers? In the past few weeks, there have been more than a few male students confessing their feelings.

Among them were quite a few idiots whose true thoughts, like ‘I can even accept you with your crippled legs’ were clearly visible.

I rejected them all.

Then, they started changing their tactics, approaching under the pretext of offering to pull my wheelchair.

It might be understandable if it were just one or two, but when I saw about seven people gathering and discussing ‘who will be in charge of the wheelchair’ without even my permission, it was hard even for me to contain my anger.

So, I boldly tried to live using a cane instead of a wheelchair.

In reality, I could endure quite well during the day.

But to make such a mistake at the very end…

Grip. 

I clenched my fist under the desk.

I recalled the man who had just helped me up.

“Eugene Oslo.”

As I remember, my first impression on him was the worst.

On the day of the entrance ceremony, when I wasn’t feeling well…

Let’s set aside the fact that he saw me struggling to get out of the carriage and sitting in a wheelchair.

That man clearly frowned when he saw my smile.

My number one weapon that no one had ever seen through. He immediately furrowed his brows at the smile I had practiced over and over again, so much that even my family couldn’t notice.

“…”

I was a bit surprised when I learned that man, Eugene, was the top scorer in the entrance exam. But that was all.

Since then, until now, we haven’t exchanged a single word.

Eugene didn’t approach me, and I didn’t feel the need to approach him either.

He’s from outside Frauzen, almost the antonym of a child of a high-ranking family. He only occasionally hangs out with the ruffian from School 4, otherwise consistently roaming the campus alone, devoted to his studies.

If things had gone as usual, we probably wouldn’t have had any interaction until graduation…

Wait.

Maybe it’s fortunate that Eugene was the one who witnessed that scene.

If one of the female students who cling to me had seen it, rumors would spread throughout the school in less than three days, and if it had been a male student, they might have used it as an excuse to become even more annoyingly clingy.

But Eugene treated me in a thoroughly businesslike manner.

As if he had seen right through that this was what I wanted.

“…Hehe.”

Laughter escapes me.

A good idea came to mind.

Perhaps I could use that man to break through this situation.

If so, there was something I needed to do.

‘Custom settings’.

“Eugene. Mr. Eugene. Sir Eugene.”

Just Eugene would be good. The rest not only sound bad, but among various honorifics, the formal address will stand out in its uniqueness.

What expression should I make? [Only on Galaxy Translations! / Axiomatic]

I took out a mirror and tried various expressions.

Smiling gently? He saw through that from the first day of the entrance ceremony. Smiling energetically is good, too, but that doesn’t really match my image at the university.

Right. I’ve decided.

Grin.

In the mirror, my crimson lips drew a smile as if painted.

#May 16th. Clear.

“Phew. Not late.”

Morning.

Due to the tight schedule, I burst into the [Understanding Literary Genres] lecture room, flinging open the door.

There are no friends to greet. I just need to avoid getting on the professor’s bad side.

I was about to walk towards an empty seat, tidying up my clothes without concern, when suddenly.

“Oh my, aren’t you a little late?”

“…Huh?”

For the first time, someone spoke to me.

“Good morning, Eugene.”

Chestnut hair and a wheelchair. It was Julia Müller.

Unlike usual, her petite face was tinged with a seductive smile.