The Distant Trail Of Ciara Badvia

The Saria Magic Academy
Part 5: Secret Revealed

CIRCULATING RUMORS

By the next day, rumors about Tyril had spread all over the school.

Well, perhaps “all over the school” was overstating things. Tyril’s social sphere was so small and limited, she wasn’t able to confirm with anyone outside it how far the gossip had reached. At the very least, from where Tyril could see and hear, the topic of conversation was unanimously about her.

And this wasn’t simply her being self-conscious. In the entire classroom and hallways, it was obvious that all eyes were fixed on her. She could hear Badvia’s name in hushed whispers. Tyril hadn’t expected the actions of the young man, whom she never saw again, would leave such an impact.

Yesterday, she’d reported the day’s events to Master Forster. He merely nodded and didn’t offer any specific advice. Tyril couldn’t discuss it with Dyne since he wasn’t around at the time, but she did with Misty when she returned to their room. While she was concerned for tomorrow, Misty told her that things were going to sort itself out and not to fuss over it too much.

Tyril had gone to bed wondering if she was being overly concerned. When she woke up and stepped out of her room, however, the air in the academy was exactly as she’d feared. She tried her best to ignore all the attention, but there were limits to that.

Maybe tomorrow. Tomorrow, for sure, she repeated to herself each night as she retreated into her room with all that fatigue weighing on her. But the next day, she faced even more scrutiny and much harsher gazes. No matter how many days went by, there was no sign of the rumors abating.

Just like that, a week passed.

Today’s classes were Introduction to Magical Science in the morning and Practical Exercises on Manipulating Magic. Both were related to her major, so naturally, Vanilla wasn’t there, leaving Tyril to suffer through curious glances all by her lonesome. She endured them in silence.

The magic manipulation class, just like the summoning class, was a practical class taught by Master Raknag. Considering recent revelations, it was also the perfect class to observe Tyril.

“To start with, I’ve prepared blocks of ice for each participant. Today’s practical exercise is to shave them off and try to create the smallest spheres possible within the time limit. The smaller they are, the higher the score, but their melting immediately at room temperature after you’re finished will earn you a deduction.”

As Master Ragnak spoke, a few young students—Are they his pupils?—brought bowls in front of Tyril and the others. Each one was holding a large piece of ice, distorted and in different shapes. His instructions were simple, but both he and Tyril knew that she might not achieve good results in this task.

She also keenly felt the prying eyes from all around the practical room. The manipulating and summoning magic classes had the same attendees, so they should all be well aware of her abilities. Still, they wanted to see for themselves whether the rumors were true. It baffled Tyril.

The outcome was as expected.

Her magic had improved to the point that she couldn’t be called hopeless anymore, but she only managed to shave off the ice into half the size of a fist. This was, in fact, a remarkable improvement for so short a time—she was no longer the worst student in the class!—but that meant nothing to the observers.

“Isn’t it a lie after all?” someone murmured. “It just can’t be possible, not with her level.”

Though it was spoken in a hushed tone, it reached Tyril’s ears clearly all the same.

Had Tyril looked up, she would have noticed that Master Raknag’s eyes were already roving around, his brows furrowed, searching for the source of the disturbance. This was the third practical class where something like this had happened, yet he failed to find a culprit each time. With no major harm being done and no way to ascertain the person responsible, he let it pass in the end.

Class ended. There were no supplementary lessons with Master Raknag today.

Knowing full well that she’d just draw curious eyes in the cafeteria, Tyril immediately rejected the idea of having lunch there. I’ll just buy something light and pass the time in the lab… And so, a sandwich from the store in hand, she headed straight to Master Forster’s lab in the research building, until…

“Hey, Zeeland.”

Someone called out to her.

Her shoulders jumped, and her heart began to race.

Tyril was in a seldom-visited hallway of the research building. Rarely had she crossed paths with anyone there, nor had someone called out to her by her name here before. She turned around slowly, hoping it would be someone familiar.

Her hopes were dashed. Behind her were three girls she didn’t recognize. They stared at Tyril with a nasty look in their eyes, much like a cat eyeing a mouse, and grinned.

“I’d like to have a little chat with you. Is that okay?”

The girl standing in the center had short black hair and sharply slanted eyes. She folded her arms and gave Tyril a confident, winning smile, though it didn’t reach her eyes.

Clearly, she was the one who called out to Tyril. Whatever the relationship between the three were, her position and demeanor indicated that she was the leader.

“U-um…”

“I just have a few questions. It won’t take long.” The girl’s smile didn’t falter for a second, and her forceful tone left Tyril no room to refuse.

She’s waiting for my say-so, but I don’t think she’ll accept a no. “Well…”

“We’ll be brief. We just have one quick question to ask,” the girl on the right said with a voice quieter than the one in the center. She had very short, dark brown hair and stood out the most among the three by having a slightly taller and more solid build.

“Now, now, you don’t have to be scared.”

Finally, the girl on the left, the smallest of the three, spoke up innocently, sporting a mischievous smile. Her shiny golden hair was tied back into twin tails.

Tyril’s anxiety was amping up; she was starting to quiver on the spot. But being unbending and fleeing from the scene didn’t seem the best idea to her.

“Uhm… What can I help you with?” Tyril asked cautiously.

The black-haired girl giggled, pleased. “I see you’re listening. I’m glad.”

All three of them wore similar expressions and slowly advanced towards Tyril, cornering her against the wall. It was in an effort to intimidate her, she realized.

“Everyone’s been spreading such strange rumors, haven’t they? Did you know, Zeeland?”

“Y-you see…”

“Oh, I guess you didn’t? You know, for some reason, everyone’s acting like you’re unapproachable. It’s so strange, isn’t it? Gossiping about someone you can’t even talk to…” They snickered.

Their behavior unsettled Tyril. If they have something to say, they should just say it clearly. What’s with this teasing, mocking way of speaking?

“Everyone’s calling you Ciara Badvia’s daughter, and they’re trying to figure out whether that’s true. They’re all trying to wrap their heads around it. You really don’t know?”

“I, I do know, but…”

“Good. That’s good. It looks like you’re not a complete knob head, then. But don’t you think that’s weird? I wonder just where on earth that rumor’s coming from…”

The girls, feigning innocence, were waiting for her agreement. How Tyril wished she could just give it to them casually. Unfortunately, she wasn’t that dense. She had an inkling as to what the girl confronting her was trying to imply.

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For more from the author, visit:

Narou: https://mypage.syosetu.com/1258514/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/inui_takafumi

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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