Althea Crowne had started haunting Lucien's thoughts ever since he returned from the pub.
"Make Althea Crowne fail, and your career will be safe." Both Celeste and the Dean had both said that—or something to that effect.
Althea Crowne was a descendant of the second most influential noble house in the kingdom—was the academy really looking to pick a fight with them?
Could this be a scheme orchestrated by the royal family?
The most effective way to sabotage an enemy was to peel away their reputation piece by piece.
Just like in the modern world, students who got expelled were marked with a lifelong stigma.
No, perhaps it was even worse here.
After all, most of these 'brats' bore proud noble surnames and had entered this academy carrying sky-high expectations.
Althea Crowne might not be in direct line to inherit her family's power, but she was still a political asset.
No one wanted a failed product.
And yet, something didn't add up.
"This academy was founded by House Crowne, you said?"
That night, Lucien decided to return to the library. He needed anywhere from one to ten extra books—just enough to dig into everything about Althea Crowne.
It was already nine o'clock. For some reason, both librarians—Orla Vein and Heath Mannerick—were still around.
"Er ... isn't that common knowledge?" Orla scratched the back of her neck sheepishly.
"Not everyone's a bookworm like you," Heath said, crunching on a snack.
"I-I was just looking into it, alright? My father said it's good to know what kind of place I'll be working at."
But Heath turned to Lucien instead. "Professor, are you really okay sharing something like this?"
"I never thought it was supposed to be a secret. And honestly, I wouldn't mind if this bit of gossip got around too."
"Too?" Heath raised an eyebrow, grabbing another chip.
"Everyone knows the library's the source of all gossip—at least this one is."
Lucien's remark made Heath choke, while Orla pretended not to notice.
"If someone really is out to bring down Lady Althea—"
"Lady?"
Heath, now recovered, threw an arm around Orla with exaggerated friendliness. "Ah, this girl here was lucky enough to be born into a newly risen noble family. Compared to Lady Althea, it's like an ant to a dragon."
"Hm …" Lucien was reminded once more that this world still operated under a rigid feudal hierarchy.
Does that mean I'll have to call her 'Lady' next time?
Lucien wasn't even sure if he counted as a noble himself. But that sounded like a hassle, so he decided against it.
"You shouldn't go around blabbing people's family backgrounds," Orla said, pushing Heath away with a scowl.
"So you believe the royal family isn't involved in this, Ms. Vein?"
"Yeah, I mean… if it were them, wouldn't it be a bit too obvious?"
"So, another noble house with a grudge against the Crownes…"
"No," Orla said, as firmly as she could manage. "I think… this might be the Crowne family's doing."
Lucien narrowed his eyes. "Please elaborate."
Being stared at by both Lucien and Heath made her visibly nervous. "M-my clan is a vassal to the Crownes, and Lady Althea is fairly well-known. They say she's a once-in-a-century genius. I-I've heard a lot of amazing things about her, but the most famous is… that her mana was already stable at birth."
Only Heath reacted as though this was extraordinary.
"That's a big deal?" Lucien asked, genuinely curious.
"Professor! You… how could you?" Heath gasped theatrically. "Wait, is this a test? You're testing our knowledge, aren't you?"
"Professor, in case you've forgotten, no human has ever had stable mana at birth. That's why babies cry when they're born."
"I only learned how to stabilize my mana flow at fifteen."
That bad, huh?
Lucien recalled only the basic facts about mana.
A unique substance flowing through the bloodstream, supporting every organ in the human body. Magic was said to be a form of metabolic regulation that kept mana from collapsing entirely.
"The Crownes have a genius in their bloodline." Lucien shrugged. "I don't see why that makes her a threat."
"Lady Althea's existence has been a threat from the start," Orla muttered, glancing around as if something invisible might be watching. "You know she's the second child, right? Her older brother's infamous for being a spoiled brat. Now imagine…
"...a proven genius versus a chaotic mess. As a citizen, who would you choose to lead?"
*#*
It was becoming clearer.
Althea was a scapegoat. Maybe she would've been taken more seriously had she been born male.
But again—this was a feudal world.
No one wanted to be ruled by a woman.
A foolish attempt to end a succession crisis before it could begin.
Yet somehow, it also made a kind of sense.
In the end, like Althea, Lucien too was just another pawn—crippled and maneuvered into place to keep the grand drama on track.
Screw that.
Honestly, he didn't really care whether Althea passed or failed.
Genius or not, her principles were solid as stone, and Lucien would be a fool to try and move a stone wall.
But even stone walls could be toppled.
What made Althea's presence significant, in Lucien's mind, was her role as the glue holding the class together.
He hadn't been wrong to place her at the top of the food chain in that cursed class. Well, maybe 75% of the chain.
Still, it wasn't a rigid hierarchy shaped by millennia of tradition like Orla Vein versus Althea Crowne.
It was… something far more fragile.
"There'll be a combat training simulation?"
"I'll be in the same group as Lady Althea?"
"Outdoor study?"
Tessa Nightwell, Vin Almeris, Selene Linhardt—just a few of Althea's 'loyalist'.
After a dull day-two session, Lucien called them into his office one by one.
And gave them all the same instruction:
"I want you to help Ms. Crowne pass this simulation—by any means necessary."