Teenage minds were quite malleable.

They were far easier to manipulate than adults who had a fixed way of looking at the world.

And teenage girls... well they were the easiest to play with.

"I will be with you."

"..."

My statement was met with silence, as Diana processed the words, as if replaying them a thousand times in her mind.

For the next ten seconds neither of us spoke, as Diana kept looking into my eyes, as if searching for any hints of deception.

But there was none.

After all, it was the truth.

I would always remain with Diana, just the way in which I would end up fulfilling the promise was on my own terms.

"But wouldn’t those people be stronger than you?"

"..."

Though that may have been the truth... hearing it from Diana’s mouth, for some reason made me feel... I couldn’t exactly describe it in words, but it didn’t feel good to be considered weak.

"I was joking."

Hm?

Diana soon burst into a chuckle while lightly pushing me on the chest, which made me reflexively grab her hand for support and—

"..."

"..."

The position that we ended up in wasn’t the best one out there.

Diana’s face was a mere inch away from mine, as I could clearly feel her breath on my face.

Haa...

Though I didn’t like the position... I couldn’t exactly push Diana away, as that could end up ruining all my prior efforts.

"S-Sorry."

Diana, as if realizing her mistake, was quick to get up as she adjusted her clothes before clearing her throat.

"Are you returning to the academy?"

"Yes, the assignment would soon begin, so I would have to return immediately."

"Give me some time... I will quickly pack my belongings, and then—"

"Sure, let’s return together."

Completing the statement for Diana, I made my way out of the kitchen before heading towards the exit.

"Be quick."

I didn’t like it when my time was wasted, so I had to remind Diana about the same.

"Yes."

Diana replied from the kitchen, though her voice felt a little different than before.

Hm?

Maybe it was the same.

I still hadn’t tracked the one who was responsible for suppressing my instincts.

Even now I felt like something was wrong here, but before I could think in that direction, my instincts seemed to betray me, as they were completely ineffective and didn’t help much.

I would have to learn everything from the information around me without relying on my instincts, but that was easier said than done.

The culprit still hadn’t acted out against me, so... maybe it really was someone who was tasked to protect Diana.

Haa...

Thinking about the emperor, since when had he become so insecure about his daughter’s safety?

From everything that I knew about him... the emperor always stressed the fact that one should always solve everything on their own.

Why would he even go out of his way to protect his daughter, and that too in his own palace, where she should have been the safest in the entire world?

Thinking about it, Arthur behaved the same way when it came to matters relating to his own daughter.

Haa...

I couldn’t really understand the mindset of these fathers.

***

Click.

’Diana’ heard the door being closed, as Kael had left the room.

Still, she moved towards the door and once again confirmed whether the boy had really left her room.

After verifying the fact herself, Diana let her hair loose as she walked towards her bed before elegantly sitting on it.

But— 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

That was only for a second, as Diana lifted her right leg before placing it on the bed, with her left leg hanging down, as if she was sitting on a branch of some tree.

Then... she placed her index finger in her mouth before repeatedly biting on it.

"Kael Frost... Hehehe."

Muttering Kael’s name, Diana let out a laugh... that felt closer to a declaration of excitement that had been building in her mind for quite some time.

"Hehe... Hehaaahahh"

The laugh soon turned louder, though glancing at the door, Diana lowered her voice, not that Kael would have been able to hear it.

She had already covered the entire room in her mana, making it impossible for anyone to scan the details within the room using their mana sense.

And... according to Diana, the kid’s mana sense wasn’t much developed.

After all, he was still a kid.

Though it was commendable that he was able to use mana sense while being a mere Silver core.

"Academy, huh."

Flicking her hair, Diana got up from her seat before picking up a bottle from the nearby table.

It had a drink that she had prepared for herself quite some time ago, but the kid’s interference had stopped her from drinking it.

Diana could have simply refused to open the door, but her battle instincts that had been sharpened over years of war and politics had told her one thing for sure.

The kid— Kael Frost, would have broken the door to enter her room.

After all, Diana could see that the kid was trying to manipulate this body... her body.

"Hehe."

Another chuckle echoed in the room, and soon... darkness spread throughout the area, enveloping Diana within.

After years of effort, ’she’ had finally been able to get back on her path.

This empire was strong, and so were its forces.

But Diana knew that with sufficient planning she could achieve everything that she had been unable to despite years of her struggles.

"I will be with you... Hehehehe"

Diana chuckled once again, as she remembered the words spoken by the kid.

He was interesting.

No matter which generation... the Frosts had always been an interesting bunch.

But... as interesting as they were, Diana wasn’t foolish enough to underestimate them, even if the one who had just left was a mere kid.

Diana had felt it.

The kid... he was trying to manipulate this body into doing his own bidding, but—

She had to accept it.

The kid was good at it.

Even she felt her heart beat at each one of his words.

"Antics, hehehe."

There was one time when he seemed to have slipped with his words, or maybe... he had purposefully done so.

Diana couldn’t tell, but she found it interesting.

Though the little girl couldn’t tell... Diana knew it.

Kael never cared for this body, but... she would make him care for it.

"Kael... my Kael—"

Drinking the entirety of the drink in a single motion, Diana threw the bottle on her bed.

She had to get ready.

This academy... it seemed interesting.