“Li! You! What is that outfit?!”

The one complaining to Li was, as reliably as ever, the Crown Prince.

Perhaps from excitement, his face was slightly flushed.

“Today I am not a student, I am an instructor.”

“So what does that mean?!”

“Please mind your manner of speaking, Your Highness.”

Li replied with a slightly composed expression.

“Li!”

At that moment the male instructor stepped in.

“Li Earlychar Karasebed Quewa will serve as a proctor during the exam.”

“What?! You’re not taking the exam?”

“There was an order from the headmaster. The exam has been waived. If you have complaints, take them to the headmaster.”

Normally speaking, having an exam exemption would be strange.

However this was a country governed by a noble system.

A single word from someone as powerful as the headmaster carried enormous weight.

Even if the one objecting was the Crown Prince.

In other words he had no choice but to stay silent.

However...

“That’s unfair! Unfair, Li! What kind of trick did you use?”

“Ugh! Why can’t you just stay quiet!”

The Saint stood up, clearly irritated.

At the same time a wave of anger unlike anything before stirred among the girls.

The situation was on the verge of exploding.

The atmosphere practically screamed: Crown Prince? Who cares?

Everyone except the Crown Prince held their breath under that unusual tension.

“With Li’s ability it’s obvious she’d be exempt! There’s no point in her taking the exam!”

“Saint, why do you defend Li so fiercely?”

“I’m not defending her! And how many times do I have to say it? Stop calling me Saint. My name is Erika!”

Perhaps overwhelmed by Erika’s intensity, the Crown Prince fell silent.

Taking advantage of that moment, Li suddenly struck the blackboard with a short whip she had produced.

The sharp sound tore through the air and echoed through the classroom.

Everyone’s attention turned to Li.

“I believe I told you to watch how you speak.”

Snap.

The sound rang again.

“She’s so cool,” murmured the young ladies.

Li’s figure looked dignified.

Like a valkyrie confronting a villain.

“Thank you very much!”

Blue (name) stood straight as a board.

“If you have complaints, take them to the headmaster. Anyway, I’ll leave the rest to you.”

As if wanting nothing more to do with the argument the male instructor quickly left the classroom.

In the classroom where things had somehow become vague and unresolved, Li began distributing the exam papers.

Soon the time for the exam arrived.

“Please do your best in a way that does not disgrace the name of the Rosenkreuz of the Rose Maiden Cross.”

When Li spoke those words, determination filled the eyes of the girls.

The Crown Prince no longer mattered.

They simply could not embarrass Teacher Li.

The bell rang and the written exam began.

As for Li, she calmly brought out a chair and sat elegantly.

She even produced a tea set and began drinking tea.

In her hand was a half-read grimoire.

The sight was so perfect it looked like something out of a painting.

Even so she did not neglect supervision.

Because small birds—her shikigami—were flying around the classroom.

But even if the world changes, there will always be challengers.

Red glanced sideways, trying to peek at the answers of Green seated next to him.

Without even looking at Red, Li flicked the piece of chalk she had been playing with in her palm.

It was a technique that once made Li’s heart race with excitement.

By striking the junctions of muscles, it allowed the human body to be controlled at will.

Li had once mastered this devilish technique purely out of curiosity.

The small piece of chalk struck Red squarely on the forehead and shattered.

“Aghhh!”

Red fell backward, blood streaming from his forehead.

To make matters worse, every fragment of the chalk had already been retrieved using magic.

“W-what happened?”

Green, who was sitting next to Red, shouted in surprise.

“It is nothing. Please ignore that scoundrel and concentrate on the exam.”

Cheating was a serious crime at this academy.

Allowing him to get off with only that level of damage was actually Li showing mercy.

“Red, there will not be a next time.”

Red nodded while pressing a hand to his forehead.

Seeing Red’s condition, the male students more or less understood the situation.

If they did something foolish, they would end up the same way.

For some reason only Blue looked restless.

There was hesitation in his expression.

Should he do it or not?

That was the question.

Would he protect something important as a person, or abandon it?

“Blue, that will not do. Focus on the exam.”

With Li adjusting her glasses slightly as she spoke, Blue snapped back to his senses.

It seemed he had managed not to cross the line.

And so, with various little incidents along the way, the first day of the written exams ended safely.