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“Has anyone ever told you that you look like a rabbit?”

“…No.”

“What about a squirrel?”

“…Nope.”

“I suppose no one has ever said you look like a chick either?”

“Nope.”

“Hmm. I see.”

Leonid nodded to himself, seemingly satisfied with my responses, then turned his attention back to the front. His questions made absolutely no sense, leaving me puzzled.

As I tilted my head and opened my book, something fluttered down to the floor.

It was a four-leaf clover.

‘I didn’t put that there.’

It must have been one of the girls—Lily, Rose, or Daisy—who, after seeing the basket full of clovers, decided to use one as a bookmark. I reached down and picked up the fallen clover. 

I didn’t really believe in superstitions, so the idea that a four-leaf clover symbolized luck didn’t resonate with me. To me, whether it was a four-leaf or a three-leaf clover, it was just a piece of greenery.

‘But giving it to someone else? That’s a different story.’

There was a quest reward at stake!

“Leonid.”

I casually placed the four-leaf clover on Leonid’s desk.

“Here, you can have it.”

Leonid stared at the clover for a moment before tucking it neatly between the pages of his book.

“The probability of finding a four-leaf clover in the wild is one in ten thousand.”

“Uh-huh, interesting…”

He was still speaking in riddles, but that didn’t matter—Leonid had accepted the clover, meaning the quest was a success.

[Message from Heaven]

(Notification) Quest (Repeat) Completed!

Congratulations. You have been awarded 100 Heaven Coins. Would you like to claim your reward now?

[Yes/No]

By now, I was so familiar with this notification that I could recite it by heart. But this time, it wasn’t just one message that appeared.

[Message from Heaven]

(Notification) Fortune’s Blessing

You have repeated the quest ‘Four-leaf Clovers, the Symbol of Luck!’ 10,000 times, raising the Favorability of the God of Luck, Platous, to 10,000.

As a reward for achieving this Favorability, ‘Fortune’s Blessing’ has been activated.

‘Huh?’

Fortune’s Blessing!

The moment I had been wondering how to achieve had finally arrived.

* * *

The Ivory Tower’s Invitation Committee had convened. The purpose of the meeting was to reach a final decision on the special invitation of “Eugene Kreutz” to the Ivory Tower, a matter that had remained unresolved for some time.

“We will decide by a vote.”

The scholars murmured at Duke Elpinard’s announcement. It was rare for a decision to go to a forced vote without reaching a unanimous consensus through discussion. This indicated just how contentious the issue had been.

“The vote will be by a show of hands.”

In the Ivory Tower, anonymous voting was not practiced because every decision needed to be justified logically. The committee chair, Duke Elpinard, would not vote to avoid influencing the outcome with his authority, leaving the seven other members to cast their votes. Abstention was not an option. Even if both choices seemed flawed, the lesser evil had to be selected to move forward.

“First, those opposed to the special invitation.”

Two scholars raised their hands.

“And those in favor?”

The remaining five raised theirs.

The majority believed in the Saintess and her divine revelation, favoring the special invitation. Among those who voted in favor was Lukas, who had personally observed Reshia’s test and had been a staunch supporter from the start.

“Then, it is decided that we will acknowledge the Saintess’s revelation and extend a special invitation to ‘Eugene Kreutz’ to join the Ivory Tower,” Duke Elpinard declared calmly.

After days of intense debate, the conclusion was reached swiftly. However, the scholars present didn’t seem entirely satisfied. While they spent most of their time immersed in research, they were not oblivious to the political implications of this decision.

“Will the Duke of Kreutz accept our invitation so easily?”

The fact that the Saintess’s revelation pointed to Eugene Kreutz, the illegitimate son of the Duke of Kreutz, who was considered a rival of Duke Elpinard, made this a politically sensitive issue. The Duke of Kreutz might see this as his son being taken hostage by Elpinard.

But Duke Elpinard appeared unfazed by this complication.

“The invitation from the Ivory Tower is akin to an imperial decree. Refusing an imperial decree would be tantamount to treason, wouldn’t it?”

Everyone knew this. However, laws and rules didn’t always apply uniformly to those in power. Of course, since this was a matter concerning the authority of the Ivory Tower, they wouldn’t back down easily.

“I will personally deliver the invitation. The Duke of Kreutz wouldn’t dare oppose it if I’m the one presenting it.”

The scholars were taken aback by this. They hadn’t expected the mighty Duke Elpinard to involve himself directly, but if he did, there was no need to worry about the invitation being rejected.

“And there’s another matter I’d like to seek your opinions on.”

Just as the scholars began to relax, Duke Elpinard’s serious tone brought back the tension. Was there another issue aside from the special invitation?

The scholars had no idea what this could be, but given that the Duke himself was raising the topic, it was likely something significant. All eyes were fixed on the Duke.

“A birthday present.”

“…Excuse me?”

A birthday present?

The scholars exchanged puzzled glances, unsure if they had heard correctly. Duke Elpinard continued, ignoring their confusion.

“What do you think would make a good birthday present for a girl about to turn five?”

* * *

“Miss, do you happen to have anything you particularly like?” Lily asked as she gently washed my face with warm water.

Though it was Lily who posed the question, Rose and Daisy were also subtly listening in, their ears perked up with curiosity. I tilted my head, wondering why they were so interested, and Lily quickly added an awkward explanation.

“It’s a maid’s duty to understand the preferences of their mistress.”

“Exactly. It’s only natural,” Rose chimed in.

“Absolutely!” Daisy added enthusiastically.

Come to think of it, they weren’t wrong. I’d heard that maids in noble households were expected to know their master’s preferences down to the smallest detail.

But… what do I actually like?

Nothing came to mind immediately. Of course, I had things I liked, but…

‘They’re not exactly childlike.’

Growing up in the slums, money had always been the most important thing. You needed money to survive, so when asked about what I liked, my answer was always money. It was a very practical and worldly preference.

But what would a pure, four-year-old saint like?

‘Chocolate? Candy?’

Only those kinds of clichés came to mind. Once a brain had been tainted by worldly desires, it was impossible to revert it to a childlike purity. A once-gray mind could never be turned back to white.

As I hesitated and fumbled for an answer, the three maids’ faces darkened.

“You haven’t had much time to think about what you like until now, have you?” Lily said sympathetically, exchanging glances with Rose and Daisy, whose expressions grew even more somber.

“Don’t worry. You can start figuring it out now. It’s not too late,” Lily encouraged, her fist clenched with determination, prompting Rose and Daisy to chime in as well.

“Exactly. It’s never too late. First, you should find out what flavors you like. You eat food every day, after all!”

“Then you can think about what colors you prefer, and what kind of music you enjoy. That’s how you start expanding your tastes.”

I blinked at their suggestions. Mentioning flavors, colors, and music when thinking about likes and dislikes felt very refined and cultured.

* * *

Meanwhile, Axel was at his desk, where a pile of letters had accumulated. Without even reading them, he casually tossed the entire stack into the trash. All of the letters were from the Magic Tower.