Later that day at the academy, Liebe found himself surrounded the moment he entered class.
Everyone was still in disbelief that a noble had voluntarily relinquished their rights.
Of course, Licht had to step up and announce,
"Liebe will not be taking any personal questions during class."
Lumos looked at Liebe and asked, "Are you okay?"
Liebe smiled faintly. "Yeah, I'm good."
"Good to see," Lumos said, relieved.
M folded his arms. "What you did is truly something I can't comprehend."
Liebe shrugged. "Well, at least now I won't be tainting the angel you worship—
not anymore, at least."
M gave a sharp glare. "You really don't understand, do you?"
"Nope," Liebe replied casually. "Now I can die in peace. So feel free to kill me if you want."
M sighed. "There's no point in doing that anymore."
"Damn," Liebe said with a small grin. "And Mavia—thanks."
"Thanks? For what?" M asked.
"For seeing my flaws as mine," Liebe replied, "and not as something born from the fact I'm a halfbreed."
M didn't answer, but the silence that followed said more than words could.
During lunch, Licht nudged Hedin, who was sitting quietly, staring into his plate.
"Yo, Hedin, you've been quiet all morning. You thought about saying something to Liebe?"
Hedin shook his head. "I don't deserve to. I've been clinging to things I should've let go of long ago. Liebe was able to let go so easily, and here I am… crying about something so trivial.
I've lost my pride. I can no longer stand beside him—he's far above me now. His declaration is something I can't even comprehend."
Licht sighed. "Same here. But just know—he had his reasons, and you have yours. Don't compare your burdens to his. They're both heavy in their own ways."
Later that afternoon, as Liebe and Licht were walking down the hallway, they were suddenly ambushed by Yuna and Darel—both sprinting toward them at full speed.
Before Liebe could even react, the two shoved handfuls of sweets into his mouth.
Liebe muffled, "I—can't—breathe!"
"Eat up!" Yuna laughed, forcing another piece of cake at him.
"Yeah, come on, Fleet Admiral!" Darel teased.
As they kept shoving sweets into Liebe's mouth, Licht shouted, "Hey! Don't kill the poor guy!"
Darel grinned. "Oh, you're not escaping either!"
Before Licht could run, they caught him too—and soon both of them were victims of what could only be described as sugar-based torture.
After a few minutes of chaotic laughter and protests, the two collapsed onto a bench, panting.
Liebe groaned. "What… was that… for? If we offended you, I'm sorry."
Yuna smirked. "Nah, it's actually tradition. Whenever a new Fleet Admiral is chosen, the former gets to mess around a little. Today was your turn."
Liebe blinked. "If I knew that, I never would've challenged you."
"Exactly!" Yuna said proudly. "That's why I didn't tell you. It's called Rag Day. A long-standing tradition."
Darel added, "Oh, and Alicia will be your assistant—one of the three Senior Vice Captains."
"Sure," Liebe said, still recovering.
Darel grinned and turned to Licht. "So, when will you challenge me next?"
Licht looked horrified. "After what I just saw? Probably never. I'm not dying from sweets."