The Magical Holy Woman Seraphina - Chapter 32

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The Holy Mage Seraphina
32
“The next day I went to school and told my teacher that yes, I had incited Paul, and I apologized for lying.”
“…Why?”
“I needed a Letter of Recommendation from my teacher to get into the Academy.”
Just as the teacher said, I had no parents who could protest, ‘Why won’t you write my child a letter of recommendation? I’ll sue you,’ because I was an orphan.
Without that letter, there was no way for me to even sit for the Academy entrance exam.
“The teacher probably knew, too. That’s why things happened the way they did.”
‘The victim’s parents heard my side and agreed to drop the charges. They said they couldn’t ask an orphan for damages no matter what.’
‘Yes.’
‘See? Since you admitted it, everything worked out, didn’t it?’
‘…Yes.’
‘Because you were honest, I’m just going to let it go and move on, understand?’
‘Yes.’
“When I looked at my teacher then, there wasn’t a shred of remorse in her expression.”
“How could that be possible?”
“In my opinion.”
I stopped mid-sentence and let out a hollow cough.
I’m talking about something that happened so long ago, and suddenly my throat closes up like this.
Arden was kind enough to pretend he didn’t notice.
I steadied my voice as it began to tremble and continued.
“I think the first time is the hardest.”
That one moment when you first decide to sacrifice someone else instead of yourself, to dodge your own responsibility—that single moment is what’s hard.
After that, it gets easier. Because you’ve already done it once.
There’s no remorse anymore. By then, rationalization has already taken root in your own mind.
“Looking back now, I think my teacher crossed some kind of line inside herself that day.”
And it piled up. It kept piling up.
The experience of crossing a line without ever facing a consequence accumulated.
That’s what created the teacher she is now.
Knowing there would be no disadvantage to her own actions, she treated the weak with cruelty.
“I wrote a Reflection Letter. I wrote an Apology Letter. I received Disciplinary Action—cleaning the teacher’s restroom for a week. I signed the Disciplinary Record. …And in exchange, I got the Letter of Recommendation.”
“…….”
“As I was leaving, I heard my teacher say something to another teacher behind my back.”
‘Can you believe an orphan with no money is even thinking about going to the Academy? Isn’t Academy tuition eight million gold a semester?’
‘Why would you say that, Isabel? That’s precisely why she needs to go.’
‘I was just curious.’
On Isabel’s desk lay a Letter of Recommendation for a student studying abroad—someone whose scores weren’t even half of mine, who only got there because their parents had money.
Mine was exactly three lines.
Theirs was three pages.
“At fourteen, I didn’t suffer that situation because I didn’t know it was unfair. I knew it was unfair and suffered it anyway.”
I knew full well, but there was no way out, so I endured it with my eyes wide open.
“It’s exactly like today.”
That was where the old story ended. I finished with a smile.
After that, I realized I’d rushed out wearing my school uniform.
I thought ‘oh well’ to myself and bowed my head, when—
Suddenly Arden jumped up beside me.
For someone so tall, he nearly leaped a full meter straight up in place.
“Don’t cry!”
“Uh….”
“Don’t cry. There’s nothing to cry about. Well, there is something to cry about, but! Staying sad until now over something that already happened in the past—that only hurts you, that kind of, that kind of thing.”
“…….”
“Anyway, don’t cry. I’ll figure something out.”
“…….”
“Don’t cry, all right?”
“Uh….”
But I’m not crying….
Except Arden is being so frantic about it that I can’t find a moment to tell him….
“Should I get you a handkerchief? Or should we go to the Imperial Palace right now?”
He tried to cup my face in his hands, then jumped back startled, clenched his fists, unclenched them, pressed his palm to his own forehead, looked up at the sky—he was a complete mess.
“Truly. Truly, I’ll figure something out. So please don’t cry.”
“Um… thanks?”
But like you said, it’s all in the past now, so there’s nothing you can do about it.
“And I’m not crying.”
“What did you just say?!”
“No, I….”
Why are you looking at me with such a betrayed expression, Arden?
“…Should I start now?”
“No!”
Look at him waving his hands like that. It’s funny at this point.
“Heh.”
“Why are you laughing!”
“You just told me not to cry.”
“Don’t laugh either!”
“Then what am I supposed to do?”
“Keep a straight face!”
“Heh!”
As my laughter bubbled up, a smile spread across Arden’s face as well.
You know what? When Arden smiles, he gets dimples.
We stood there laughing at each other for a long while.
Before I knew it, we’d reached the heart of District 1. I spoke while looking at the distant Royal Library building, which had once served as a cardinal’s palace.
“Thanks for bringing me here.”
“Of course.”
“The library may not be our home, but…”
Do you want to come in? I looked up at Arden. He shook his head.
“I have something important to attend to.”
He bowed slightly and began walking away with long, steady strides.
His gait was so expansive that he was already far off.
I watched Arden’s receding figure for a moment, then turned around.
“…But why is he heading toward the Imperial Palace.”
He must be returning to the Knight Order.
He’s not actually going to have an audience with the Emperor, is he?
“No, that doesn’t make sense.”
The Emperor isn’t Arden’s mother — just because someone wants to see him doesn’t mean they can.
It couldn’t be. Shaking my head, I approached the librarian.
“Hello, I’m looking for books on civil litigation….”
“After all, the path lies within books.”
It felt good to be in the library again after so long.
I stayed buried in books until the library closed.
I borrowed quite a few, though it didn’t seem like much — twenty-one volumes in total.
Can an adult woman alone carry twenty-one books? The librarian, seeing me hesitate, handed me a bundle to wrap them in.
On the way home, my books bundled up and ready.
“Lulu.”
“Why are you coming back so late!”
“Huh?”
Arden, who’d been waiting in front of my room, snapped at me the moment he saw me climbing the stairs.
“I’ve been waiting!”
“For me?”
Did we agree to meet?
No, more importantly—
“What’s wrong?”
You look urgent. I asked, puzzled.
At that, Arden quickly took the bundle of books from my hands and asked,
“That woman from earlier, the one who was your mentor—”
“Yes?”
“Her name wouldn’t happen to be Isabel Goli, would it?”
“It was Isabel Rosen, I think… and since she seems to have gotten married, her surname would have changed.”
In the Empire, a woman’s surname doesn’t change upon marriage, but some do change it for inheritance or rights.
“Either way, Isabel is correct.”
“And she has a daughter?”
“I’m not sure if she has only one, but she does have a daughter.”
The one I saw earlier.
“Sigh.”
Arden pressed his fingers to his temple.
“What’s wrong?”
Now genuinely curious, I asked.
“Don’t be shocked.”
“About what?”
Did those people come back to the costume room and cause a scene? I asked.
Then Arden said,
“Isabel Goli’s husband, John Goli, runs a business that…….”
“A business?”
“Is heading for bankruptcy.”
“Huh?”
What did you say?
Arden nodded as I asked again, bewildered.
“Yes. Your teacher. Isabel Goli—who was once Isabel Rozen.”
…….
“That woman filed for bankruptcy effective today.”
…….
Wow.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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