Sylvia was the first to get up.

It seemed she had sensed who it was and excitedly went to open the door.

I wanted to stop her, considering she hadn’t changed clothes yet, but I suppose at this point it no longer mattered.

Professor Elena stared in disbelief at her teacher, who had just opened the door in that state.

I couldn’t help but let out a laugh when I saw the face she made.

Sylvia took Elena’s hand and quickly closed the door to prevent any more surprises.

Elena glanced around the room, which looked completely trashed, at the two women still lounging calmly on the bed, and finally at her teacher.

She shook her head and shot me a withering glare.

"Bastard," she muttered under her breath.

My laughter grew louder since I clearly heard it.

Then she turned her gaze to Sylvia.

"The lower levels of the academy are about to start their classes. You have a mountain of paperwork to take care of..."

It seemed she had come looking for Sylvia, though I was surprised she knew she was here.

Sylvia made a face of annoyance, but it wasn’t as if she disliked being the director of this academy, so she began changing clothes without caring who was watching.

Soon she was back in an impeccable uniform, much more fitting for someone in her position.

Sylvia said a quick goodbye and left the room, but Elena stayed behind and turned her attention to me.

"As for you..." She looked like she wanted to say something, but doubt was clearly winning.

A battle of conflicting emotions played across her face — between knowing she had no right to say anything and the fact that I had helped her without really asking for anything in return, other than for her not to bother me.

I let out a sigh.

"Is there something you want to tell me?"

Elena snapped out of her thoughts, remembering that yes, there was something urgent she had to say.

"You should go check on your fiancées. They’re about to destroy part of the academy with their fighting."

I raised an eyebrow, but all I felt was confusion.

"Fiancées?" I frowned, puzzled.

"It seems you were having so much fun that you didn’t even notice Morgana Valois is now your fiancée, along with Cassane."

A crack appeared on my face.

I really don’t know why women like this always show up — the kind who like to put a leash on someone who never asked for it. Though, considering how Morgana had been acting, I suppose it wasn’t that surprising.

"I guess I can go see what’s happening..." I sighed.

...

Morgana Valois and Cassane Windsteel were standing in one of the courtyards of the massive institution.

News traveled fast, and when it involved the marriage of a ducal daughter, it traveled even faster.

The cold air surrounding Cassane was obvious.

Morgana, with her haughty and self-assured gaze, refused to let it affect her. She raised an ironic eyebrow, daring her to do something.

Cassane’s fist tightened even more at the gesture.

"Looks like we’re going to be sisters, ’Ice Queen’," Morgana provoked.

Cassane shook her head.

"I never thought the worthy daughter of a duchy would lower herself to being the second wife."

Morgana let out a soft laugh.

"And why not? So many men in this empire — who don’t even deserve it — have more than one, and then there are those who have none..."

"If I like a man, I don’t stop over small details," Morgana said firmly.

It was one thing for these two prominent figures to show interest or approach someone like Cassian Varkas, but now they were even fighting over who would be the first wife.

Elric watched the two women he admired most talking about the person he had always despised, with absolute disgust and disbelief.

Meanwhile, Lisbeth Vitalis — who had been quite absent, busy with matters no one knew about — had stumbled upon this surprise.

She had a certain impression of that unpleasant man, but nothing that justified these two women fighting over him.

A blush appeared on her remembering that face.

Valeria, who was standing next to Cassane, looked at the growing crowd with concern and sighed as she saw her friend completely caught up in the provocations.

But when the main figure appeared, the atmosphere changed drastically.

Cassian walked toward them with a calmness that bordered on insulting, completely ignoring the chaos around him.

"Well," Cassian said, scanning the area until his gaze settled on Morgana and then on Cassane. "I didn’t know my appearance was valued so highly that it could interrupt classes for the entire academy."

Cassian’s eyes finally landed on Morgana Valois.

There was no joy in them, only cold, calculating curiosity.

"Fiancées?" he repeated, letting out a dry laugh.

"Mmm..." While thinking about what to say next, he fixed his eyes on both of them.

Cassane looked at him angrily, still not over the way he had ignored her, while Morgana didn’t wait for him to speak.

Instead, she approached him first, grabbing his arm and pressing herself against him with a smile as she said:

"Darling, I was just discussing with Cassane who gets the first spot in the bedroom. Don’t be mad~" She tilted her head up to look at him with amusement.

A headache was starting to form.

I sighed, looked at both of them, and as if surrendering, asked:

"Why don’t we talk about this somewhere better?" I said, pointing out the obvious stares from everyone around.

Cassane seemed surprised that he was willing to talk. Though hesitant, she began to follow him, leaving a lost and somewhat uncomfortable Valeria behind.

Morgana smiled and, without leaving his side, did the same.

...

Meanwhile, Elara Demor, who had been "imprisoned" in the palace of her ancestor, looked out the window.

"Master... you forgot about me, didn’t you?"

"And Elizabeth hasn’t said anything either, even though it’s been a while since I went to see her," she whispered.

She lowered her head with a lost look in her eyes.

She scanned the four walls surrounding her and saw the woman who had just entered the room with fear.

Elara felt a knot in her stomach.

A shiver ran through her, and then she felt the sixth-level core she had managed to obtain after weeks of training with this woman.

"It’s time. Everything is ready for you to break through the second limit."

Those words sounded like doom to Elara’s ears.

Although she enjoyed the pain her master gave her, what this woman did was true torture without any reward.

Or at least, without the kind of reward she liked.