Whenever Emily heard the beast’s voice coming from deep in the dark forest, she felt restless.
「You should get yourself together. This isn’t a lot」
「Ugh. Ruu-nee will never know how I feel」
「Geez. Shut it! Stop whining and get some sleep!!」
「Sniff. Sniff…」
Emily curls up on the simple base she made a bed.
Ruu’s confident and imposing, blowing any obstacles with her might, meanwhile, she’s trapped in a black shell.
She hates herself for making that comparison. She admires Ruu, she wants to get closer, she tries her best, and she can finally give up because she can’t be like her.
Emily solidified her magic and produced a stone in her hand.
A pitch-black ordinary stone. Why is her magic like this? Other people’s magic is sparkling, shining, and beautiful. Only hers is different.
「Nothing’s changed since I was in the village」
Going to the Upper Dragon Academy, she was pampered by her male classmates.
She thought that she had changed. She thought she could be friends with the senior Kiryu.
But it was a misunderstanding.
「Why am I not different from the Junkiryu or Zatsuryu?」
She grew up in the mountainside, and she entered the upper Dragon Academy without knowing anything. She saw Ruu, a Kiryu woman.
Vermillion-gold hair, Red Eyes, and a confident expression on her face. It all was a shock to Emily. She never met such a beautiful woman in her life.
Wanting to become like Ruu, she looked after her as the first apprentice.
She was nervous about meeting a Kiryu in the same grade, but everyone was kind and listened to Emily’s requests.
Beautiful beds, luxurious and delicious meals, cute clothes made by designers. She learned about the sparkle, the fun, and the beauty she didn’t see in the rural village.
A rural girl who knew nothing became a princess. Emily’s definitely a star of her story.
And yet.
「Because of that Zatsuryu…」
He pushed her down in the bath, kissed her forcibly, and rubbed her breasts.
Nobody could’ve done that to the princess Emily.
There was no point in appealing to Ceres and Ruu as they were not doing anything, and they valued the Zatsuryu more.
The Zatsuryu took Emily’s place at some point.
Nobody’s there to pamper Emily. She’s separated from her class, and Ruu’s very strict, and the monsters are scary. What shielded Emily has been taken away, and she’s afraid.
The lava Ruu created had hardened in an instant, but the black stone Emily creates can’t do that. It’s brittle, soft, and an ugly stone made by the failure of Emily.
Aah–my magic’s undone.
Emily’s magic. The Princess Mimi.
Slowly, it breaks down.
It returns to stone.
She’s afraid that the hands of the clock turn to 12 o’clock.
「I wish tomorrow never comes…」
Even so, tomorrow will come and Ruu will wake Emily up.
The person Emily admires will wake her up from her dreams.
■■■
Even if someone wants.
Even if someone wishes.
Time will continue, and seasons go around.
The warm spring will pass before you know it, the lush summer will soften, the fruits will fall with the leaves, and the cold winter will be over.
Before you know it, a year has passed.
A new spring is about to arrive at the Upper Dragon Academy.