A few days after meeting Ivan Ernest and Vivian Bright at the café.
Idel realized she had underestimated the chaotic world far too much. The reason was simple.
“Now, Miss Gianna and Miss Idel, look here. This is the heart of the prestigious Niveus Academy of the Empire.”
“Wow…! Professor Hector, the building is enormous.”
“Isn’t it? We call this building the ‘Sacrum Palace.’ If you study hard, both of you can pursue your studies here as well. Now, let’s visit my research lab before I continue the introduction… Huh? Wait a moment, who is this? Ivan! Ivan, is that you?”
“Professor Hector?”
Professor Hector, who was temporarily in charge of the history class for the two, had come out for a field trip to make the lesson more engaging. By chance, he ran into “Ivan Ernest” here.
In this vast academy, at this particular time, “of all people” now,
As she watched him greet the professor while holding several folders under his arm, Idel lightly rubbed her eyes with her hand.
‘Why didn’t I think of this?’
According to her sister’s theory, chaos is made up of 30% ‘coincidence,’ 50% ‘of all things,’ and 20% ‘no way.’
In other words, it wasn’t strange for Ivan Earnest, who should be diligently writing articles at a news agency, to suddenly appear before her.
“Surely, these young ladies…”
Yes, she was also astonished to see him.
Idel rolled her eyes with a displeased expression, listening to his voice mixed with confusion, delight, and astonishment. She was trying to pretend she didn’t know him.
Just as Ivan hesitated at Idel’s seemingly disinterested reaction, Professor Hector burst into hearty laughter and captured his attention.
“No way! To run into you here! I’ve been reading your articles. I remember that you were an excellent writer even when you were a student here.”
“You’re too kind, Professor Hector.”
“No, no, it’s true! The things you wrote were always… Oh, right. I apologize, young ladies. I got distracted by meeting an old student; I forgot to introduce him! Haha! This is Ivan Ernest, who works as a journalist at Shellami. He’s a student I’m very proud of!”
“Wow, a journalist?”
“Yes, that’s right. Now, Ivan, these are the young ladies from the Clementine family, Miss Gianna and Miss Idel.”
“The Clementine family…”
Hearing Professor Hector’s words, Ivan’s lips moved as if he were processing what he had just heard. He seemed to be confirming something he had suspected.
Normally, Professor Hector would have noticed Ivan’s subtle change in expression, but he was too caught up in Gianna’s excited squeals to notice anything out of the ordinary.
“Wow, I’ve never seen a journalist before!”
“Ha ha, it seems you’re interested in journalism?”
“Yes! Very much! So, did you come here to do some reporting?”
“Well, um, that’s a good question. Ivan, what exactly are you doing at the academy?”
Until then, Ivan had been glancing at Idel, but at the professor’s question, he finally tore his gaze away from her.
“Oh, it’s nothing special. I was just checking to see if the materials I’m looking for might be in the academy library…”
“What kind of materials would bring you all the way here?”
“Uh, it’s about the history and theory of imperial black magic… It’s not just simple black magic but also includes forbidden magic, so it seems the empire manages it closely.”
“Did you have an interest in that area?”
Professor Hector stroked his chin, looking intrigued, and then spoke again.
“Hmm, well then, why don’t you come to my research lab? I have some materials that I personally collected that you might find interesting.”
“Oh, that’s…”
Ivan hesitated for a moment and glanced at Idel. The girl, with her arms crossed and lips pursed, seemed somewhat unwilling.
Seeing her expression, Ivan made up his mind and offered a polite smile of refusal to Professor Hector. He didn’t want Idel to feel uncomfortable because of him, especially after she had helped him.
However, just as he was about to say something else, a student rushed in from a distance with an urgent shout.
“Professor! Professor Hector! There’s a big problem!”
“Hmm?”
The student, breathing heavily, pointed a finger toward the back of the Sacrum Palace as soon as he reached Professor Hector.
“Th-there was an explosion in the research lab behind the Sacrum Palace, and the basic data for the Imperial dictionary we’ve been working on were caught up in it…!”
“What? The data for the dictionary?! That’s several years’ worth of work!”
With a pale face, he was about to dash out when he noticed the two young girls. Remembering he wasn’t alone, he urgently turned to Ivan.
“Ivan, if you don’t mind, could you… just for a moment…?”
“I understand. Please, go quickly. I’ll take good care of the two ladies.”
“Thank you, thank you!”
With those words, Professor Hector vanished like a bullet. Silence soon enveloped the space.
Ivan, standing awkwardly, exchanged glances with the sparkling-eyed Gianna and the sulky-faced Idel, letting out a sheepish laugh.
“Well, shall we reintroduce ourselves? I’ve already been introduced, but I’m Ivan Ernest. You can just call me Ivan.”
“Yes, Ivan! Please just call me Gianna! It’s sudden, but I’m really excited that I get to spend time with a journalist like you. Idel, you’re also excited, right?”
“…Not really. I’m not excited.”
“Oh, come on, don’t be like that!”
Seeing Idel’s blunt response, Gianna burst into laughter and turned back to Ivan on behalf of Idel.
“Idel can be a bit less than honest. Just the other day, she pretended not to care but remembered my favorite fruit cake and brought it for me!”
“Hey, that’s—”
“So please understand, Ivan! Since you’re an adult!”
Despite Idel’s protests, Gianna continued, causing a slight smile to appear on Ivan’s lips. He adjusted his glasses lightly and nodded calmly in agreement.
“Of course. Actually… I think I understand what Miss Gianna means.”
“Hmm?”
“Not long ago, I received help from Miss Idel at Florent Café. Of course, at that time, I didn’t know it was Miss Idel because she didn’t give her name.”
Pausing for a moment, Ivan carefully turned to Idel and spoke.
“I’m really glad we have the chance to meet again like this. I definitely wanted to see you again. Both me and the Countess.”
“Wow!”
Gianna gasped as she bounced on her feet, her eyes wide. It was a clear sign that she wanted to hear more details.
Of course, Gianna knew Idel wasn’t the best person to explain things. So instead of pestering Idel unnecessarily, she decided to ask the smart-looking journalist about the situation.
“Idel? When, why, what, and how?”
“I think Miss Gianna would do well as a journalist.”
Ivan, smiling at the child’s demand for details, slowly explained the outline of the incident.
He started from how Idel became involved with him at the café and how she helped him after he was humiliated by Farell.
Gianna, who had been intrigued from the beginning, listened intently with her hands clasped. Neither Ivan’s journalist-like dry narration nor Idel’s annoyed interjections could distract Gianna from becoming fully engaged in the story.
“Idel, you really are like a hero!”
“Are you not hearing me right? That’s not the case.”
After hearing the entire story, Gianna sighed contentedly, unfazed by Idel’s outburst.
Idel’s grumbling was nothing new to Gianna.
Instead of comforting her sister, Gianna looked at Ivan, wanting to express her gratitude for sharing the story.
And as she looked at Ivan, Gianna’s eyes widened, and she tilted her head in confusion.
“Um, Ivan?”
“Yes?”
“According to your story, everything turned out okay, right?”
The sudden question caused confusion in Ivan’s eyes as well.
“Huh? Yes, that’s correct. With Miss Idel’s help… Is there a problem?”
“Oh, no. It’s not that…”
After hesitating for a moment and fidgeting with her fingers, Gianna rolled her eyes and spoke again.
“It just seems like Ivan looks a bit troubled.”
“Me… troubled?”
At Gianna’s words, Idel quickly looked up and examined Ivan’s face. His expression, rubbing his cheek with a look of confusion, definitely appeared somewhat dark.
‘What’s going on?’
Idel squinted, crossed arms, and tilted her head.
Ivan, unsure of how to react to the children’s curious gazes, found himself speaking without realizing it. It wasn’t a story meant for young children, but for some reason, he had a gut feeling that they would understand.
“Actually, not long ago, Lord Farell visited the Count of Bright’s household. I thought that was understandable, but the problem was what happened afterward.”
“What happened afterward?”
“Well…”
Ivan’s voice was hesitant as he rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.
“The thing is, they say Lord Farell is pregnant with Countess Bright’s child…”
Idel and Gianna’s eyes widened in shock.
So, who did what?
TL/N: It’s not a mistranslation. It is what it is. 😂
LMAO WHAT?? 🤣