I was about to return to my PMC office when I received another call from Kageyama. I sighed. Being a Magical Girl meant being famous. It was the norm for me, who was the daughter of Shirayuki, but it sure was tiring. I asked Felicia to link to my phone and picked up the call using telepathy.

  "Lily, I just got a call from your school. You've been absent for over a month. They said you need to show up once in a while."

  My blood ran cold. I had completely forgotten about school. No wonder my life seemed so easy lately. I hurriedly asked Felicia for a summary.

  "Felicia."

  "You have about 20 homework assignments, and you've been absent for 40 days. According to school rules, if you don't attend for a month straight, you'll be expelled. I guess Kageyama pulled some strings to delay your expulsion. The problem could be instantly solved if you told them you're a Magical Girl. However, since you chose to keep that private, there's no way to cover for you."

  "Yes. I'll att…" My voice trailed off, and my blood ran cold again. I had forgotten about my schoolmates. It seemed like such a long time ago, but they had betrayed me—Nana, Miss Agathe, Li Wei. I wondered how they were now.

  "Anything wrong?"

  "Ah! Nothing. Yes! Yes! I'll attend." I suddenly realized I was still on the phone with Kageyama.

  "Hm… You're a Magical Girl. Moreover, you have such a loyal familiar with you. You don't really need to go to school. They don't provide much, except maybe a glimpse of how people used to live," Kageyama said.

  "That's fine. It's exactly what I need," I replied.

  "Good. I'm glad becoming a Guardian hasn't gone to your head. Some Guardians have been getting a bit arrogant lately, so it's refreshing that my niece isn't like that. Please attend school until the expedition. Shining Arrow and I will handle the PMC in the meantime."

  "Mr. Sebastian, please change course to my home. I have school tomorrow."

  "Of course, Miss Lily." My Seinjet driver nodded and drove me home.

  "Felicia, what should I do about my homework? There's so much of it! Twenty assignments!"

  "Well, I took the liberty of doing it for you. You can rest easy," Felicia replied with a hint of pride.

  "Eh? You can do that?"

  "Of course. I am the most advanced Zenith technology—a Magical Girl's familiar. Using resources from the internet and all digital books available, I completed essays and research for your English, history, and biology assignments. This math homework? Finished in 9 microseconds." Felicia's voice brimmed with confidence, clearly bragging about completing all of my homework in under a minute. But that wasn't the issue.

  "I mean, are you allowed to help me? Won't that be against the rules?"

  "Ah, well… technically, yes, it's breaking the rules. Should I delete the homework I completed for you?"

  "No... At least help me study. But why did you write these kinds of answers…"

  I sighed in defeat. I knew I wouldn't make it if I tried to do it all myself, but I couldn't just ignore it either. This is no different from cheating. I resolved to study the material, even if Felicia's work gave me a head start. I stayed up all night reviewing before finally dozing off at my desk.

  The next morning, Felicia woke me up, and Sebastian drove me to school.

  Checking my phone camera, I saw my black hair cascading down my back. I was Yuri again. As I was going to school. A part of me resisted the idea, the lingering trauma bubbling up.

  As I walked toward the building, I could feel gazes boring into me. Being from Shirayuki often attracted attention, but this was different. The stares were more intense, more focused. It wasn't admiration—it was scrutiny.

  When I finally realized it, I stopped in my tracks.

  "Was that Yuri?"

  "She's Yuri, right?"

  “That Yuri? From Shirayuki?”

  They whispered among themselves, talking about me, but their words weren't malicious. I suddenly regretted skipping school for so long. Still, I kept moving toward my class. In moments like this, acting oblivious was the best approach. This was not the first time anyone ever whispered about me.

  As I entered the classroom, the noise died down, and all eyes turned to me. Nana stared at me with a mix of disbelief and excitement.

  "Yuri-sama!!!"

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  I winced at the nickname I had almost forgotten. They were calling me Sama to make fun of me due to my background. The fact they did this immediately after my return was exhausting.

  "Nana, please just call me Yuri. No '-sama' or anything like that, okay?" I replied in the same tone I used to.

  "Thank you! Yuri-sama!" she chirped, completely ignoring my request.

  "Did you need something?" I asked, puzzled by her overly polite demeanor. Nana usually only acted like this when she wanted help with homework or a study session. But today, there was an odd sparkle in her eyes as she used the honorific. I tilted my head at her enthusiasm.

  "Nothing! I just made some cookies! Please have some!"

  "Hey! That's not fair! Ugh, I should've brought my gifts with me! If only I'd known she was coming today!" another student grumbled.

  Suddenly, my classmates scrambled to retrieve items from what appeared to be a pile on my desk. Before I knew it, they had lined up before me, each holding a gift.

  "Class is about to start soon. Let's save this for later. May I ask what these gifts are for? I don't recall it being my birthday." I asked while wearing my usual banal smile.

  "It's for your welcome-back party! Welcome back to Eden School, Yuri!" one of my classmates shouted enthusiastically.

  "I see. Thank you, but I don't need so many gifts. Your kind thoughts are enough," I said with a smile, trying to return the items.

  I had come here on a whim, prompted by Kageyama's suggestion just the day before. Yet, despite the short notice, a literal mountain of gifts awaited me. Didn't they have better things to do than lug around presents for someone who might not even show up?

  "Please accept them!"

  "…Very well," I relented under their insistent gazes.

  Felicia discreetly scanned the gifts, checking for anything malicious. After a moment, she reassured me, "They're all harmless—just ordinary things like handkerchiefs, cookies, chocolates, spoons, and so on. No spy cameras or poison."

  Relieved, I realized this wasn't because they knew my secret as a Magical Girl. These gifts were addressed to Yuri, not Black Lily. That thought warmed my heart.

  "Greetings, Yuri. I'm glad you finally returned to school. It's reassuring to see that New Mesa didn't leave you too scarred. It must have been an indescribable trauma to experience an Anathema attack like that. By the way, if you have time, please visit Miss Agathe—she's been worried about you," Miss Liese said with a warm smile before turning back to her lesson on vertical plantation and farming techniques.

  None of the teachers even asked me for my homework, and when I handed it in voluntarily, they praised me for completing it.

  "Yuri! Are you free this afternoon? Want to hang out? There's this new clothing store I've been dying to check out!"

  "Yuri-sama! Have you heard about the 100% Earth-enchanted clothes? I heard they can resist Anathema attacks up to Level 3!"

  The day felt busier than ever, with people constantly approaching me.

  "Excuse me, I need to speak with Miss Yuri," Francesca, a student council member, interrupted. The chatter in the room died down instantly as everyone made way for her.

  "Yes, Miss Francesca, how can I help you?" I greeted her.

  "Could you stop by the student council room? We'd like to talk to you." She returned a similar smile. Francesca was not only a student council member here, but she was also the daughter of the CEOs of Newstar. If I am not mistaken, she was Jonathan's cousin.

  "I was planning to visit Miss Agathe first, but I can come by afterward."

  "Perfect. Please don't forget." Francesca nodded politely. Her upbringing and gestures proved that we were a similar breed.

  "Of course." I bowed slightly, and she returned the gesture before leaving. Her presence seemed to calm my classmates, giving me a brief reprieve to prepare for my visit with Miss Agathe.

  I took several deep breaths as I stood before the teacher's office door. Gathering my courage, I opened it. The room grew silent, and every pair of eyes turned toward me. Scanning the space, I spotted Miss Agathe at her desk. I walked over, noticing her flustered expression as she hurriedly cleared her workspace and closed whatever app was open on her laptop.

  "Good afternoon, Miss Agathe," I greeted politely.

  "Good afternoon, Miss Yuri. Is there something you need?"

  "Miss Liese mentioned you wanted to see me. Is that true?"

  "Liese? Oh, um… yes! There's something I need to give you!" Miss Agathe stammered. "Let's go to the cafeteria for a while. No… actually, let's go to the counseling room instead. We'll have more privacy there…"

  She was clearly nervous, a stark contrast to her usual cheerful and composed demeanor. Her unease puzzled me. Why was she acting as though I was some kind of menace?

  The counseling room, a sterile white space often used as a detention area for troublesome students, felt stifling. I'd never set foot in this room before. I had no issues with my lessons, and my future as a Shirayuki seemed set in stone. But now, as a Magical Girl, the trajectory of my life has shifted dramatically.

  Miss Francesca, the counseling teacher, nodded to Miss Agathe and left as soon as she saw us enter. Her hurried steps hinted that she didn't want to get involved. I sat down neatly, trying to anticipate what this meeting was about.

  "Ahem. For starters, here's the ID card to your mansion that you lent me before…" Miss Agathe reached into her breast pocket, took out the card, and slid it across the table toward me. For some reason, she seemed very nervous.

  I tilted my head, confused. The mansion had been utterly destroyed. What was the point of this ID card now? Then I looked at her face and realized what she was trying to do.

  "Thank you for keeping this card, Miss Agathe," I said with a smile, though my chest felt tight.

  "I'm so sorry... Yuri... I was supposed to be your teacher. But I left you there." Her voice cracked as tears welled up in her eyes. Her emotions came out like waves, "I'm so glad you survived, but I can't forgive myself! I abandoned you, left you to face the Anathema! I… I killed you!"

  "Miss Agathe, it's fine. I forgive you," I replied softly, though my own emotions churned beneath the surface. "What matters is that we're both alive. You're a teacher, not a Guardian. Your responsibility was to ensure the other students survived, and you did that beautifully."

  "...Thank you, Miss Yuri. You're such a kind person," she said, tears streaming down her face as she leaned forward and hugged me.

  I patted her back, murmuring reassurances until her sobbing subsided.

  Once she had composed herself, we exchanged goodbyes. As I stepped out into the courtyard, I gazed at the sky. Despite her gratitude, a quiet rage simmered inside me. Her confession had infuriated me.

  I wasn't kind. It was all a lie—a carefully maintained facade. I hated them all. Yet, I hadn't said a word of this. Hurting her would've been easy, but I chose not to. Instead, I bore the burden of this anger alone.

  After spending a while in the courtyard to calm myself down, I remembered the student council had requested to meet with me. What could they want?

  "If I recall, the student council room is…"

  A map materialized before me, and Felicia marked the location on the school's 3D layout.

  "Thank you, Felicia."

  "You're welcome!"