In that fraction of a second both of them had reinforced their bodies with mana and Imra; they weren't using their full power, but this could end badly. Shawu moved close enough to try to take the blonde's hand. The new girl wouldn't let go of my hand and dropped her free arm to strike Shawu's hand.

Why does this happen to me? While I question the universe for these kinds of things, I decide to do something. This is my mother's and grandmother's fault—I inherited most of my good, easy traits from them. I make a prison of gravity, ice and Imra for both of them and stop their movements just before they can hit each other, applying a little more force to make it solid.

No one around us noticed anything; I exhale, relieved I didn't cause another uproar in front of all these people. Both girls stare straight into my eyes—Shawu looks angry because I stopped her, and the blonde looks excited for some reason. "Shawu, calm down—she's only inviting me for a drink." I try to free my hand from the other girl while they remain inside my prison.

The blonde keeps pressing hard; she won't let me go. Why does she make this more complicated? They look at each other and both stick out their tongues before turning away. Do these two know each other? I can't imagine another situation. "Do you two know each other? And please, could you let me go?" Their reactions were so obvious when I asked—they do know each other.

"No, Maki, I'm not letting you go." I blank for a fraction of a second when I hear her answer.

"Let him go, Brendu. He's with my group." Shawu remains frozen; I didn't restrain their faces so we could talk. Brendu? Is that her name? She's perceptive—she noticed my reaction and winked when our eyes met again.

"Shawu, I'm not willing to be rejected if I'm only inviting him for a drink." Brendu looks very determined. "Maki, do you want to go with them and reject my invitation? It's just a couple of cans of beer." Now I'm interested in getting to know Brendu; she's making an effort to talk to me and it doesn't seem wise to refuse her.

"Obviously she doesn't want that—no one would want to drink with you." Shawu sticks out her tongue; Brendu just rolls her eyes. "Okay, let him go, Brendu, and Maki set us free—I'm calm now." I look at both of them a couple of times before agreeing and releasing them.

"Do you two know each other?" Depending on their answers I'll decide whether to refuse the offer or accept it out of curiosity.

"Yes. She's in the final year like me—and she's in my group." Shawu is beside me, holding my other free hand and trying to pull me away from her.

"What a cold introduction, Shawu—we've known each other for years; we could be friends." Shawu looks at Brendu with a big question mark over her head. "Nice to meet you, Maki. My name is Brendu Qolud." When I hear her full name something in my mind stalls; something connects and the gears start turning.

Qolud? Is she the daughter of the king of Juka? I remember reading Brendu somewhere. My facial expressions must have been very clear because Brendu laughs before continuing. "Yes, I'm the fourth daughter of the King of Juka."

I look at Shawu, who acts like a child when someone tries to take something from her and hides behind her older brother. It's ironic because she's many years older than me. If she's a king's daughter I can't refuse her invitation—not even with Susan on my side. I don't want to ask Susan a favor for something like this; it'll only be a few minutes.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Princess Brendu." I take advantage of her own grip to bring her hand to my lips and give it a kiss—a common greeting for royal women when you meet them for the first time. Brendu looks at Shawu and sticks her tongue out coquettishly; my friend almost explodes with rage.

"Princess, I must go with Shawu back to my table." My response makes my friend smile from ear to ear. "I promise I'll come get you when I leave the drinks with them." Now they're the complete opposite—Brendu's smile shines and Shawu seems to have short-circuited.

"My table is on the other side. I'll be waiting." She points to a VIP group on the other side of the huge venue before turning to leave. "See you tomorrow in class, Shawu." Those were her last words.

"I knew something like this would happen. I knew it wasn't a good idea to send you alone to buy." Shawu seems to reproach herself for letting me come alone.

"Don't worry. It's better this happened now than later." Shawu keeps grumbling all the way back to our table. When we arrive I explain the situation and their responses vary. No one's upset, but no one's happy about what happened either.

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"Brendu is special… she's not a bad person, but if she likes something she wants it for herself and she's pretty spoiled about letting go of things she's interested in. She's never broken the limits of what's possible, but she can bend some rules because of her status." Areci sighs. "She definitely isn't a bad person—I've seen her help many types of people. Just make things clear from the start, and if you have any problems tell her you're my mother's protégé."

Areci's last words detonated the group. Not only was I surprised to have to reveal my relationship with Susan, but everyone else's jaws basically dropped when they discovered this last detail.

"Please explain to them, Areci." She looks at her friends and smiles softly. "It's better not to let her wait and solve this as quickly as possible." She agrees with me, and I turn to go to Brendu's VIP table.

Point of view — Brendu:

Maki… has a good face, still with many boyish features; pretty eyes, a well-defined body from training. Physically he's someone you look at twice—even I did as the king's daughter. He caught my attention from the moment I saw Shawu dive at him; I was lucky to be nearby.

He's not just a pretty face—he seems strong. He created a prison-type ability in less than a second and contained both me and Shawu. Neither of us tried very hard to get free, but Maki didn't seem to be serious either—he simply didn't press harder because he didn't need to. Not only that, but his Imra control and composure under pressure are remarkable.

"Interesting. I've found someone very interesting." I join my group of four—they're also nobles' children from my kingdom. I can't fully trust them at first glance; they tend to treat me like a goddess and try to please me, so I rarely see typical friend behaviors.

"Princess—did something happen? You took a while." The son of one of the counts looks worried; he's a year younger and seems the most concerned, like a friend.

"No, nothing. Calm down. By the way, I have a guest. I'll take two chairs to talk with him at the other end." This VIP table is in a room with enough space to sit a little apart so no one can hear our conversation; it's designed for groups of twenty.

Everyone seems about to voice an opinion, but in the end no one says anything relevant. They simply accept without objection. I'm used to that treatment: a little alcohol brings out my emotions. These people care for me, but it's the "princess treatment" rather than as a direct friend.

I sit in a chair to wait for my guest. When Maki appears in my view, an involuntary smile forms on my face; I hide it in less than a second and only show a half-hearted happiness—the smile I've practiced a thousand times.

Maki greets my group before approaching where I'm seated. "Take a seat. Here we can talk without interruptions." I try to sound casual and free; I don't want a formal conversation like with anyone else.

"Thank you, Princess." He sits beside me without fuss. "I have beer, wine, and rum with juice, Princess—would you like any?" I don't understand why it annoys me to hear the word princess from his mouth. Why can't he treat me like he does Shawu and Areci? They're daughters of an Obsidian-rank family and their status at this school isn't lower than mine.

"Call me Brendu." I look at him seriously, showing no sign of happiness. I see him hesitate; he opens and closes his mouth as if searching for words. "I'll feel more comfortable if you call me by my name. In this school status doesn't matter so much." That's both true and false—I only allow people to call me by my name if they've earned it; otherwise it's forbidden.

"All right. I'll call you by your name on one condition." Maki accepts quickly—very quickly, which is suspicious. "Only when we're talking alone. When there are more people around I'll call you Princess. If you agree to my condition I'll call you Brendu from now on." His natural smile and fearless eyes are captivating.

"Okay, Maki. Pour me a glass of wine, please." He pulls two goblets from his storage bracelet and pours the wine carefully for each of us. "Now tell me a bit about yourself—I want to know who Maki is and how he became such a handsome, strong young man." His eyes waver for a moment; he looks down at the floor before meeting my gaze again.

I make reading expressions easy—I was trained to gain this ability from a young age: intensive lessons in reading faces, behaviors and subtle signs for many years. Now I can easily tell people's behavior and my passive ability helps me distinguish many intentions when I speak to someone.

Maki begins his story after a few seconds of thought. The conversation flows naturally; nothing is forced. Questions come and go, natural laughter I haven't had in a long time. At one point I end up talking about my school experiences. This wasn't what I expected—I only wanted to tease Shawu and Areci about their friend.

Seconds became minutes, and nearly an hour passes in fluid conversation without interruptions. This noble boy from a remote village would never have had a chance to meet me under other circumstances. Life can be unfair sometimes—I'm glad I saw him by chance; I haven't laughed like this in years.

When he mentions his last tournament victory I remember his name—so this is the same Maki whose name spread everywhere. Defeating the rising star of the Merno kingdom gave him a reputation in every corner; people will forget him if he doesn't do something big again.

A slight irritation rises within me when I hear the repeated names of three girls: Sol, Arisa, and Marga. A duke's daughter, a marquis' niece, and the first daughter of a promising noble in the Empire—the flowers of their territory are famous in my kingdom. How did he come to be connected with them? I want to ask, but I don't want to invade his privacy on the first day.

We talk a while longer about trivial topics. Before he goes back to his friends I take his arm. "Come find me before the party ends. I want to talk with you a little more." His eyes blink a few times before accepting, slightly hesitant. I release his arm and wink. "Maki Vichag… I won't forget that name."

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