When a new year dawns, some leave, and some enter.
This wasn’t just the case at Constel.
In the Empire, there was one problem that had to be solved somehow before winter ended.
It was the ‘Zodiac’.
With Heldre’s death, a vacancy had occurred in the ‘Zodiac’, where the 12 seats had to be maintained. These 12 seats had to be absolutely maintained, so inevitably, someone new had to come in.
Of course, the Empire considered ‘Enfer de Roach’ as the top priority. The Iron Wall of the North, leading the Roach Knights, the man most deserving of the title of ‘One Man Army’.
However, Enfer had no intention of joining the Zodiac.
He had already rejected the Empire’s requests to come to the central region several times. For him, who disliked the Empire, the Zodiac was an outrageous suggestion.
The Empire had sent invitations to Enfer regarding the Zodiac about six times, but he only replied to the very first one. ‘Rejection’. The subsequent invitations were all ignored.
Those who were worth considering for the Zodiac already understood Enfer’s skills well, and they could tell even with their eyes closed that he would have rejected the Empire’s request.
Then, did they themselves possess skills equal to Enfer’s? The reality of the Zodiac candidates was that they couldn’t easily answer that question.
Thus, a long time passed from Heldre’s death until the next Zodiac member appeared.
It was literally the long period of time from Heldre’s death to Constel’s winter break, Frondier’s journey to the northern part of Yeranhes to obtain the fragment, and his return.
The Empire was worried that this year would pass by like this. The Zodiac was of course important in terms of actual strength, but from the perspective of the nation, its symbolic meaning was significant.
The Zodiac system had to be solid, and the people within it had to be convincing enough to the citizens of the Empire for them to trust in their safety.
And so, just as winter was about to pass completely.
Finally, a man who had been sitting on his heavy backside stood up.
“Watch the house for a bit. I’ll be back soon.”
The man adjusted his shoulders a few times, seemingly uncomfortable with the robe he was wearing for the first time in a long while.
Another man, Hector Dutoit, who had been watching him quietly, sighed.
Hector the White Lion, the man Frondier met at the barrier of Tyburn. He used the surname Dutoit, but he was actually Ludwig’s son.
Hector looked at Ludwig with cold eyes.
“The first thing you say after coming back after so long is…”
“I’m leaving it to you because it might take a while.”
“Why should I watch your house? Suddenly acting like nothing happened…”
“Nothing happened.”
Ludwig cut off Hector’s words.
His tone was the same as ever, but his sunken eyes made Hector flinch.
“Then what was there between you and me? Whatever it was, it’s nothing now.”
“…Don’t try to gloss over it like that.”
“Hector. You told me, you said you would engrave your name on the entire continent someday.”
Hector closed his mouth at those words but showed his displeasure all over his body. Of course, he still had that thought, but he had said those words to Ludwig when he was very young.
“If you haven’t changed your mind, it’s best to follow me now. You can’t hide the name Urfa, no matter how hard you try. This territory, this mansion here, the family, and me. Use everything you can.”
Ludwig finished his preparations and walked towards the mansion exit with a small bag.
At the door, he said,
“Whether you forgive me or not, whatever you think of what happened back then, I don’t care at all. But the fact that you’re my son doesn’t change. I told you to watch the house, so this house is yours for the time being. The mansion’s servants, the knights temporarily dispatched, the territory, everything is yours.”
“…So what.”
“Nothing much. Just keep it in your head.”
Ludwig said with a slightly lonely face,
“As I said before, I won’t be able to come here for a while.”
* * *
The Empire welcomed the new Zodiac member.
Ludwig von Urfa.
A battle-hardened mage who had made remarkable contributions in the war against monsters.
Of course, among the Zodiac, there was Osprey, the headmaster of Constel, who was closest to being an Archmage, but many mages preferred Ludwig over Osprey.
Osprey focused on student education and rarely participated in battles, and his school of magic was too difficult to understand.
On the other hand, Ludwig used most of the well-known magic without being picky, and above all, it was visually spectacular.
Anyone who saw the lightning bolt from his staff strike the ground in one stroke would be amazed by its magnificence.
However, Ludwig himself said, “I don’t like flashy things.”
…While the new year dawned and Ludwig adapted to the Zodiac.
Naturally, Constel also welcomed the new year.
The opening ceremony. The first day of school in the new year.
After seeing off the third-year students, new freshmen arrived.
The freshmen, like the freshmen of the previous year, walked to school with great expectations for the new environment and the name Constel.
Of course, they also talked about the big news of the new Zodiac member, but what caught their attention right now was something else.
“You guys know, right? There’s Aster Evans among the seniors here!”
“The genius with Baldur’s divine power, he’s been super famous since last year!”
“He’s siblings with Ellen Evans. Wow, how can both siblings be so amazing?”
As always, the freshmen had great admiration for their seniors. There was also admiration for the pros, but the admiration for seniors was more realistic and closer.
“Elodie senior with the name ‘Inies’ and Princess Aten!”
“So many famous people enrolled last year! Ah, I wish I could meet even one of them!”
Various names came and went from their mouths. Among them, one student with a slightly cautious expression said,
“But, do you guys know that story too?”
“Huh? Which one?”
“Last year, there was a senior who was even more famous than those seniors. Not in a good way, though.”
At that small voice, the students who were listening laughed as if they understood.
“Ah, I know. Fron, Frondier? He was super famous. Did they say he was always sleeping?”
“He would sleep face down during class, skip outdoor activities, and not join any clubs!”
“So his nickname was ‘Human Sloth’? Wow, that’s too much, even for him.”
They said it was too much, but they were still giggling and snickering.
However, the male student who had spoken cautiously at first still had a tense expression.
“B-But that senior, I heard he’s changed a bit. His behavior within the school has changed, and so has his reputation. So they say it would be a big deal if we treat him based on old information?”
“Big deal?”
“If we carelessly make fun of that senior or look down on him, we’ll be subtly ostracized within Constel, I heard.”
“What? Ostracized just because one senior doesn’t like us?”
To the other female student who spoke with a hint of ridicule, the male student said with an even more nervous face
“No, it’s not that the senior ostracizes us, but the famous seniors we were just talking about? We’ll be ostracized by all of them. If we treat that Frondier senior carelessly or talk about him, they won’t necessarily say anything, but they’ll ignore us and pretend we don’t exist from then on. They do that even to their own classmates, so what do you think will happen to us as first-year students?”
“Hul, really? He must have changed a lot.”
“Yeah. So that ‘Human Sloth’ nickname has changed a bit too.”
“Changed? To what?”
“They say it’s ‘Sloth’.”
The girl who had been listening quietly furrowed one brow.
“Sloth…? Don’t tell me, that Sloth?”