A quiet silence lingered in the office where only the two of them were present.
Flora looked at Ludger’s face, now close enough that she could hear his breathing.
What was this situation supposed to be? Why was the professor standing this close? And what was this posture, anyway?
Flora’s mind refused to work properly.
A situation that had existed only in her imagination was now unfolding in reality, and her brain simply couldn’t keep up.
So, to organize the situation: she had teased Ludger mischievously, and in response, Ludger had pinned her against the wall.
Flora felt her neck stiffen and the muscles all over her body tense up.
She was so startled and nervous that she turned her eyes to the side to hide her expression.
But before she realized it, her gaze drifted back on its own, fixing on Ludger’s face.
It couldn’t be helped. Opportunities to see him this close were rare.
And perhaps because he really was handsome—just looking at him made her feel good.
So much so that she couldn’t even pay attention to the proud mask she usually wore slipping away.
The fact that she hadn’t broken into an obvious, foolish smile on her own was impressive enough.
Gulp.
Overly tense, Flora swallowed her saliva. The sound felt as loud as thunder to her ears, making her anxious that Ludger might have heard it.
“Why so nervous, Flora? Isn’t this what you wanted?”
“T-that is, well......”
His face was close.
She could hear his breathing.
If he moved just a little closer, she might even feel his warmth.
Suddenly, Flora wondered what it would be like if she kissed Ludger right here.
For the continuation of the Lumos family, they would need a son-in-law, wouldn’t they?
Ludger Lumos. Didn’t that sound like a perfect name?
No, no. That was going too far. Ahem. Right, marriage was too much—but dating should be fine, right? People usually date for about three years... would that work? No, three years was too long. One year—yes, exactly one year should be fine.
As Flora let her imagination run wild and dreamed of a rosy future, she gently closed her eyes.
But for some reason, the sensation that should have followed when faces grew this close never came.
Puzzled, Flora slowly opened her eyes.
Tuk.
Ludger lightly tapped her forehead with his finger.
“How about waking up from your dream now, young lady.”
Flora rubbed her forehead with her hand, then belatedly realized just how embarrassing she had been.
A sense of betrayal welled up inside her, but she couldn’t bring herself to get angry.
Looking at Ludger smiling playfully at her, any urge to be upset melted away like snow.
“Hmph. To kick away such a rare opportunity with your own foot—you’ll regret it.”
“Yes, yes. I already feel like beating the ground in regret, so let’s stop here.”
“......Anyway, let me know the schedule for the next lesson separately. I need to adjust my own schedule to match.”
Flora had no intention of giving up teaching Hermoa.
Part of it was the excuse it gave her to come to Seorn and meet Ludger alone.
But the fundamental reason was that she had found teaching Hermoa surprisingly enjoyable.
As the head of the ducal family, Flora had to present herself in a manner befitting that position.
She hadn’t had many personal hobbies to begin with, but the weight carried by the role of family head was considerable.
At times, she needed room to breathe—and teaching Hermoa Entiro was perfectly suited for that.
Until now, she had only ever been the one receiving instruction. Teaching someone else was a first. Yet once she tried it, it didn’t feel bad at all.
“So this is what it feels like.”
If she hadn’t become the head of the Lumos family, she might have become a teacher at Seorn.
Just like the man standing before her—someone worthy of respect.
“Then, I’ll see you next time.”
As if nothing had happened, Flora left the office with her usual proud stride and closed the door behind her.
Then, leaning her back against the door, she unconsciously slid down into a crouch.
When she rubbed her face with both hands, a burning heat transferred to her palms.
Anyone could tell—her face must have been flushed bright red.
‘What on earth did I just do?!’
* * *
‘Well, this is awkward.’
Ludger recalled the sight of Flora hastily leaving.
She had tried hard to hide it, but even her earlobes had turned red—it was impossible to miss.
Ludger ran a hand through his hair, feeling awkward.
‘She used to be just a student I had to look after... but she’s grown into an adult before I realized it.’
Not only had she matured outwardly, but the immaturity she’d had as a student was almost nowhere to be found.
Even the way she subtly tried to entice him—though meant as a joke.
‘If it were the old me, I wouldn’t have cared at all. Is it because I’ve gained some emotional leeway? I suppose I’m starting to worry about things in more ways now.’
In truth, he already knew.
Flora might act playfully, but between her actions, there was a faint sincerity shining through.
Affection sent by the opposite sex. Ludger had no idea how he was supposed to deal with that.
‘When I was focused solely on returning to Earth, I didn’t have the capacity to care about anything else.’
That was why, even when he noticed, he deliberately ignored it and turned away, telling himself it couldn’t be helped.
But now things were different. Ludger had returned to this world, and he’d decided to live with some measure of ease.
And so, things he had once noticed and passed by inevitably came back into view.
If it were a complicated magic formula or an awkward unsolved mystery, he would have gladly devoted time to solving it.
But a person’s heart—especially affection from the opposite sex—was something even Ludger found deeply troublesome.
‘And it’s not just Flora.’
Hadn’t Instructor Selina confessed to him directly?
And Rine, and Sedina Roschen as well—and if Flora was added to that, then Casey Selmore too......
‘......Hmm.’
Realizing the number was larger than he’d expected, Ludger’s expression grew serious.
What worried him even more was the possibility that there might be others who harbored feelings for him as well.
‘Surely not.......’
He tried to brush the thought aside, telling himself it couldn’t be so, but he couldn’t completely shake the unease lingering in his heart.
Knowing that dwelling on a problem with no answer was pointless, Ludger decided to focus on something else.
As he reviewed materials to prepare for the next lesson, his face—if one looked closely—was faintly but unmistakably flushed.
* * *
The next student Ludger planned to teach was Eric Willow.
Eric, a distant cousin of Headmaster Elisa Willow, still maintained the same shaggy hairstyle Ludger had seen before.
“What kind of lesson will I be receiving?”
Eric asked in a voice tinged with anticipation.
He had clearly heard that Ludger taught each Special Class student in a different way.
“What do you want?”
“Me?”
“Do you want to learn to control your Magic Eyes? That seems to be your biggest problem.”
Eric fell into thought for a moment, then nodded.
His greatest issue was indeed the unwieldy power of his Magic Eyes.
Those who possessed Magic Eyes usually had only a single ability, but in Eric’s case, multiple characteristics overlapped.
As a result, even a momentary lapse in concentration could cause harm to those around him.
Suppressing even one power was difficult enough; with several running wild, he couldn’t relax even in daily life.
‘And yet, such a calm mindset. His mental fortitude is exceptional.’
If Mina had been wounded by her overwhelmingly immense talent and chosen escape,
Eric, on the other hand, avoided contact with others not out of flight, but out of rational judgment.
‘If he has confidence in his own actions, teaching him won’t be difficult.’
Ludger handed Eric a glasses case.
“What is this?”
“It’s something you’ll be using from now on.”
Inside, as expected, were glasses.
The rimless glasses didn’t look particularly strong in prescription, but gold accents throughout gave them an elegant appearance.
“They’re also an artifact.”
“Where did you get something like this?”
“I modified something I was already using.”
Creating artifacts was difficult enough, but modifying an existing one was even harder.
Yet Ludger spoke as if it were nothing.
‘Well, no point questioning it.’
Eric had fought Ludger himself and knew just how extraordinary his ability was.
Even when Eric had unleashed the full power of his Magic Eyes and charged at him, he hadn’t been able to leave a single scratch.
And that was when Ludger wasn’t even serious. His level was so far beyond measure that it was hard to comprehend. Modifying an artifact would be trivial for him.
Eric removed his old glasses and put on the ones Ludger had given him.
“How is it?”
“This is......”
The moment he put them on, it felt as if the world suddenly brightened.
Normally, because of the overflowing power of his Magic Eyes, Eric always struggled when trying to see anything.
The power of his eyes swirled chaotically, so the scenery he perceived was always a torrent of mixed colors in violent flux.
Even the blue sky others saw so plainly appeared to him as a bizarre, mind-warping flow.
Using high-prescription artifact glasses had helped somewhat, but it was far from perfect.
But this was different.
“I can see... incredibly well.”
It sounded like an offhand comment, but for Eric, it was the highest praise he could give.
The world was bright. And clean.
The turbulent power of his Magic Eyes, which had thrashed inside his eyes, was pressed down and calmed by the artifact Ludger had given him.
“How much is this worth, anyway?”
“I didn’t put a price on it, so I wouldn’t know. In any case, to anyone but you, it would just be an ordinary pair of glasses.”
“......So in other words, to me, it’s something priceless—something no amount of money could replace.”
Eric let out a sigh. He already felt as if he owed Ludger a tremendous debt.
“Don’t think of it as a debt. It’s just preparation to make your lessons go smoothly.”
“This is...?”
From the way he handed over such a precious artifact without hesitation, Eric could tell—Ludger truly meant it.
“So, how is it? Does it work well?”
“It works so well it’s shocking. I feel like I shouldn’t even take them off when I sleep.”
Eric brushed his bangs aside.
The world, once hidden behind his hair, appeared even clearer.
From the color of the sky to the interior of the classroom—
When he looked out the window, the Seorn campus appeared perfectly ordinary.
It was a sight everyone else saw every day, but to Eric, that kind of ordinariness was something incredibly precious.
“I’m glad to hear that. But artifacts are, in the end, not something you can rely on for your entire life. You know that, right?”
“......Yes. They’re not a fundamental solution. I have to suppress my Magic Eyes with my own power.”
In the end, the glasses artifact was merely an assistive tool.
Relying solely on an assistive tool meant you could never truly walk on your own.
“That’s exactly what I intend to teach you.”
“You mean... how to suppress my Magic Eyes?”
“I’ve had a similar experience myself.”
“A similar experience?”
“Yes. If we’re being precise, something even more severe than Magic Eyes.”
Eric couldn’t understand what Ludger meant.
It was hard to believe that Ludger had suffered from something even worse than his own Magic Eyes, which overlapped multiple powers.
But that was only natural.
What Ludger had endured was something far more serious—enough to make Eric’s Magic Eyes seem trivial by comparison.
Divine Perception.
From childhood, he had been forced to hear the whispers of gods.
Some gods treated him kindly, but others acted violently, trying to consume him at any cost.
He was the greatest vessel through which they could project their power into the mortal world.
They didn’t stop at coercion—many openly threatened him.
Even the favor of gods wasn’t a good thing. Their goodwill was far too excessive and heavy for a human to bear.
“What I will teach you is sealing magic.”
Though Ludger had suffered under those gods, he was fine now.
All thanks to the sealing magic he had created with his teacher’s help.
“With the magic you will newly master, you will seal your Magic Eyes.”