As the departure ceremony for the Hundred Academy Exchange drew nearer, the atmosphere within the academy grew increasingly heightened.
This atmosphere was complex, both excited and tense, like a taut violin string buzzing softly in the breeze.
The excitement stemmed from the students' anticipation—they eagerly hoped their representatives would perform spectacularly in the exchange, opening the eyes of students from other academies and demonstrating the true strength of Glory Cael Magic Academy.
In the corridors, the dining hall, and beside the magic training grounds, discussions about the exchange could be heard everywhere.
Some speculated on which representative had the best chance of claiming victory, others analyzed famous representatives from other academies, and some had even set up private wagers on the ultimate winner of this exchange.
Even the students who usually paid no mind to public commotion would glance twice at the representatives' names when passing the bulletin board, quietly hoping they would bring glory to the academy.
The tension, on the other hand, arose because although Glory Cael Magic Academy ranked among the Five Great Academies, four equally formidable institutions were eyeing the tournament hungrily.
Ironpledge Crucible Magic Academy of the Human Empire, being close to Demon territory, excelled in ruthless physical combat magic.
Ember-Eye Tower Magic Academy of the Dragon Duchy specialized in awakening the Word Spirit magic sleeping deep within ancient bloodlines.
Branch-String Sanctuary Magic Academy of the Southern Elves taught traditional elven magic and archery.
Trench Altar Magic Academy of the Orc Federation focused on shamanic magic, which could be cast directly through roars, battle cries, and totems.
These Five Great Magic Academies had long occupied the top spots among the premier institutions, serving as the most coveted destinations for anyone studying magic.
Of course, besides them, brilliant prodigies could also emerge from the rest of the hundred academies, capable of standing toe-to-toe with representatives from the elite schools.
No one dared to let their guard down, for no one knew whether a genius capable of taking the whole venue by storm might be hiding in one of those obscure, lesser-known academies.
However, as one of the representatives, Greg felt not a shred of tension at that moment.
Because his mind was consumed by a single question:
"How did I run into Vivian again?!"
"Is this girl intentionally ambushing me?!"
Earlier that afternoon, he had finally seized an opportunity while Victoria was busy putting out a figurative fire to escape the lab alone.
He intended to take advantage of this rare opening to meet with Allie and Wendy and discuss their arrangements for heading to the Empire.
After all, they were setting off in a few days, and he needed to make sure that idiot maid could reach her destination smoothly instead of getting lost along the way.
Yet just as he was about to step through the academy gates, he happened upon that beautiful, familiar figure once again.
Vivian stood quietly by the academy entrance, gazing at Greg. The afternoon sunlight bathed her, casting a gentle warmth over her cold demeanor, yet doing nothing to melt the natural aloofness between her brows.
Simply standing there, she resembled an artwork carved of ice—stunning and distant.
"..."
The smile froze on Greg's face.
The frequency of their recent encounters was indeed enough to arouse serious suspicion.
Whether in the dining hall, the library, or the corridors, he kept bumping into the Student Council President.
He had even begun to suspect that it wasn't his terrible luck at play, but rather Vivian deliberately ambushing him.
Otherwise, how could it be such a coincidence every single time?
In reality, however, Vivian wasn't intentionally laying in wait for Greg.
She had long decided that until Greg was completely prepared to take her hand in marriage, she would not actively disturb him.
Thus, the recent wave of frequent run-ins had instead led her to believe that Greg was intentionally creating opportunities for them to meet.
He surely wanted to see her very much, but was too embarrassed to say so directly, so he resorted to this method—"coincidentally" appearing at different times and places every day, all so she would spend more time with him.
The thought sent a surge of warmth through her heart, even if her face remained devoid of expression.
"Heh... What a coincidence, Vivian."
Greg forced a smile in the end and offered a greeting. "Are you planning to head outside the academy for a walk at this hour too?"
"Mm."
Vivian looked at him and gave a soft nod.
Her expression was calm as still water, but in those ice-blue eyes, there seemed to be a softer sheen than usual, like a warm current quietly flowing beneath a frozen surface.
Greg felt the atmosphere growing somewhat subtle, an indefinable awkwardness lingering in the air.
He hurriedly searched his mind for a topic to break the silence:
"Speaking of which, you're one of the second-year representatives this time, right? Have you finished all your preparations for the exchange?"
"Mm." Vivian nodded again, brief and concise.
Greg fell silent for a moment, then looked up at the sky and said, "The weather sure is nice today."
"Mm."
Vivian still merely responded with a light hum, her tone unchanged.
Greg: "..."
Since you don't want to talk, can you actively let me leave now?
Looking at how Vivian showed no intention whatsoever of ending the conversation on her own, he felt a headache coming on.
Based on his understanding of Vivian, she was an aloof person who valued efficiency and despised meaningless small talk and wasted time.
He had assumed that making trivial small talk would bore Vivian into ending the conversation and walking away.
To his surprise, she was remarkably patient today and showed zero sign of leaving!
But remembering that he still had serious business to attend to and shouldn't waste any more time here, Greg decided to take the initiative and bring this awkward exchange to a close.
Taking a deep breath, he said in as natural a tone as possible:
"Um... Vivian, you must have plenty of things to take care of too, right? In that case, I won't bother you any longer. I'll be taking off now."
With that, he turned, about to leave.
Vivian's lips pouted slightly.
Although she fully understood by now that Greg was a tsundere, at this moment, she still found this tsundere idiot to be quite a handful.
In her view, running into Greg at the academy gates right after finishing her Student Council duties clearly meant this was another chance encounter Greg had deliberately arranged.
And the purpose of this chance meeting was obvious—he surely wanted to invite her out for a walk together, but was too shy to say it outright, using those trivial topics as a setup while trying to find the right moment.
Yet after laying all that groundwork with his rambling, this idiot went full tsundere again at the crucial moment!
Even though he desperately wanted to walk with her in his heart, he insisted on pretending like, "Alright, I'll be off then."
This habit of hiding his true thoughts was both exasperating and endearing to her.
Thus, seeing Greg on the verge of giving up and turning away, Vivian took a step forward, reached out, and grabbed his wrist, speaking in her quiet, aloof tone:
"I'll go for a walk with you."
Greg: "Huh?!"
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