The Distant Trail Of Ciara Badvia

The Saria Magic Academy
Part 3: The Eccentric Faculty Member

A PEACEFUL SLUMBER AFTER AN EXHAUSTING DAY

It was half past four when the second lecture ended.

Tyril headed back to Professor Forster’s research lab once again and told him about what she’d learned today. He listened to her and read through her notes. Then, his expression turned serious just as he was about to speak.

But Dyne cut in first.

“Professor, today is her first day. Cramming anything into an exhausted head isn’t going to help.”

Forster seemed to agree. “All right,” he murmured and returned the notebook. “I suppose you should take a good rest for today.”

Tyril gave her thanks with a bow, then left the laboratory.

The moment the door closed, she finally felt that the day had ended. The sound of a tense string being cut seemed to echo in her ears, causing her to involuntarily slump in front of the door. No, she nagged herself. I shouldn’t slack off before I’m back in my room.

Leaning against the wall, she stood up and walked away unsteadily.

Her journey to the research building this morning had only been five minutes at most, but heading back the same way felt like climbing one mountain while being weighed down by another. As soon as she opened the door to her room, that weight disappeared; her legs gave way and she collapsed on the spot.

“Welcome back… Wait, Tyril, are you okay?!”

Misty came out of her room and rushed to Tyril’s side upon seeing her on the floor, with her cheek pressed against it.

“I’m all right, I’m all right. I… I was just a bit out of it and couldn’t stand anymore…”

“I see. Yeah, that makes sense. Your fatigue caught up with you, huh? From the looks of it, it seems like you drove yourself hard the entire day.”

“Y-yes, I suppose…”

“Mm-hmm. Well, if you’ve been working hard, you’re bound to get tired come the end, right? Come on, let’s get you up. Can you make it to the bed? Don’t worry about anything else.”

“I can…” Tyril slowly stumbled to her feet and headed to her room. She was aware that she was unintentionally polite there, but she didn’t have the capacity to apologize.

Under Misty’s watchful eye, Tyril entered her room and drew back the curtains. She gasped.

Her room was still plain, but there were still changes.

On the desk were quill pens, black ink bottles, numerous notebooks, and expensive writing tools all neatly arranged. What had been a mostly empty bookshelf now held valuable and complex-looking books, taking up more than half of the space. When Tyril cautiously opened her wardrobe’s drawers, she found about three or four uniforms on the lower shelf, with the rest of the space occupied by stylish dresses, neatly folded and stored.

“People from the castle came by earlier,” Misty explained. “They said they’re leaving the necessities for now, and that they’ll prepare more if it isn’t enough.”

Misty handed Tyril a small leather pouch while she stood in a daze. Tyril tilted her head and opened it, almost collapsing on the floor again as she saw what was inside: around fifty banknotes of one thousand lans at a rough glance.

“W-what…? This is… so much.”

Misty peeked from the side, whistling appreciatively. “A small fortune, yes. You could cover half a year’s worth of tuition with this.”

“Oh. Oh. That’s it! This is for my tuition fee. I see. That makes sense.”

“Yeah, no. A person from the castle said they wanted you to use it as living expenses—that money is all yours. It’s really something, you know? Even if you eat at the more expensive cafeteria every day, you wouldn’t even spend a fifth of this. And they left that much money, just like that! People from the castle really have a different perspective on things, don’t they?”

Tyril felt dizzy. In truth, she saw Misty’s perspective to be just as different; she couldn’t understand how Misty could smile so casually in the face of so much money. Or was it because the matter had nothing to do with her that she could?

“Somehow, I feel exhausted again…”

“Right, right. Well, we can talk tomorrow. You should just take a break for today. Want to eat something? Or go straight to sleep?”

“Sorry, I think I have to lie down for a while. I’ve got a headache.”

“Well, it is your first day, so it’s only natural to be this tired. Still, you’re a delicate girl, aren’t you?” Misty chuckled as she moved to leave the room. “Oh, and I stay up late, so feel free to call me if you need anything!”

“I’m sorry. Thank you very—er, thanks, Misty.”

This time, Tyril managed to correct her polite speech, making her roommate burst into giggles.

With Misty gone, Tyril slowly took off her uniform and hung it over the back of her chair. Even changing into her loungewear felt like a chore, so she slipped into bed wearing only her underwear.

It’s only the first day. Can I really keep up with this?

To say that she wasn’t plagued with anxiety would be a lie. But before her doubts could fully occupy her mind, she quickly fell into a deep sleep.

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MTL Note: That’s it for Part 3!
Releases will be weekly from now on. At least once a week, Friday at the latest and near midnight or so in my timezone (GMT+8), and at least three chapters.

For more from the author, visit:

Narou: https://mypage.syosetu.com/1258514/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/inui_takafumi

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Last revisions: 25/08/23

Glossary:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1_D4XF1ID8j7zti3pG-fqtcd0h0T9aZHK_CXsCrr5gwY/edit?usp=sharing

Revisions:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1jS9QeSLaJfl6P_-Gl-zAY0dnKPep3or9fUl-HPukc9g/edit?usp=sharing