The destination was the third floor of the central main building, the Starlight Council meeting room.
As we left the student cafeteria and entered the central plaza, gazes naturally gathered on us.
Elysia and I had already become quite the conspicuous pair at this academy.
The young lady of House Vallerion, and the silver-pink fox familiar often perched on her head or held in her arms.
And on top of that, today was the day the Starlight Council had summoned us personally.
“Look over there. It’s Lady Vallerion.”
“Haku’s with her too.”
I curled up slightly in Elysia’s arms.
For some reason, I felt nervous.
It wasn’t as if I had done anything wrong.
If anything, this was closer to them trying to maintain order because too many students had been crowding around.
Even so, the fact that it felt like being “called in by the student council” left me feeling uneasy for no reason.
Thinking in terms of my previous life made it even worse.
Being summoned to the student council room just strongly felt like it couldn’t be for anything good.
‘It’s probably nothing.’
I soothed myself that way.
Checking the regulations on contact with familiars.
Confirming my safety rating.
And if possible, bringing up the issue with Rihart as well.
That was all.
When I thought about it, this might actually be a good thing.
Even if Elysia didn’t step forward separately and make the problem bigger,
the Starlight Council would be able to verify things naturally.
When we crossed the central plaza and arrived in front of the central main building, I looked up at it once.
The large stone structure felt even more imposing up close.
Above the main entrance was carved the crest of Exelia Academy.
A sword. A star. A cogwheel. Wings.
Seeing four symbols, each with a different meaning, gathered into a single crest
made me realize once again that this place was not simply a school.
It was a place of learning for students, and also a place that managed and evaluated the children of nobles and those with talent.
And the place we were about to go up to was, even within such an academy, a space responsible for the politics and order of student society.
As we entered the main building, the marble beneath our feet gave off a low echo.
Inside, it was much quieter than outside.
It was completely different from the bustle around the student cafeteria.
There were fewer students coming and going, and more adults who looked like professors or administrative staff in the corridors.
Even the students who were present were mostly upperclassmen dressed neatly in formal uniforms.
It seemed this was a place frequently visited by members of the Starlight Council and those handling various official duties.
As if she was used to it, Elysia headed toward the stairs.
“It was the third floor, right?”
‘Yeah. The Starlight Council meeting room.’
“Are you nervous?”
I thought for a moment, then answered honestly.
‘A little.’
Elysia gave a small laugh.
“I am too, a little.”
‘You too?’
“Yes. It’s my first time coming to the Starlight Council on personal business.”
For some reason, those words eased my mind a little.
So I wasn’t the only one nervous.
We went up the stairs, passed the second floor, and arrived on the third. The atmosphere changed even more.
The corridor was neatly arranged, and flags symbolizing each department hung on the walls at regular intervals.
The sword of the Magic Knight Department, the star of the Elemental Magic Department, the cogwheel of the Magic Engineering Department, and the wings of the Special Familiar Studies Department.
Between them were framed photographs of the Starlight Festival and lists of past Starlight Council officers.
‘It really feels less like a student council and more like a small noble assembly.’
It felt far too different from a student council room in my previous life.
There was none of the atmosphere of a meeting room with cookie crumbs rolling around,
or a clubroom thrown into chaos while preparing for a festival.
This was truly an “official place.”
When we walked to the end of the corridor, a door made of dark wood came into view.
Beside the door hung a silver nameplate.
Exelia Academy Starlight Council Meeting Room
And in front of the door, someone was already standing.
It was a male student wearing a dark navy uniform with silver epaulettes.
His year badge marked him as a third-year.
From his neatly swept-back hair and upright posture, I could immediately tell he belonged to the Starlight Council.
When he saw Elysia, he bowed his head lightly.
“Lady Vallerion, I presume?”
“Yes. I came after receiving the letter.”
“We’ve been expecting you.”
His gaze naturally lowered to me.
I looked up at him from within Elysia’s arms.
The student blinked for a brief moment when he saw me.
It was only for an instant, but an expression crossed his face that said I looked far more like an ordinary fox than he had expected.
He was probably thinking something like this inside.
The Starlight Council really moved because of this little fox?
I would have thought the same.
He quickly composed his expression.
“Haku may enter with you.”
‘Of course. I’m the reason we were called here.’
I muttered inwardly.
When the student knocked on the door, a calm voice came from inside.
“Come in.”
The door opened.
The inside was, as I had expected, closer to a small council chamber than a meeting room.
A long oval table.
Neatly stacked piles of documents.
A magic tool for recording minutes.
The symbolic flags of the four departments hanging on the walls.
And around that table, several students were already seated.
There were male students and female students.
Most of them looked to be second- or third-years.
Among them, the female student seated at the center facing the door caught my eye first.
Neatly tied hair, posture without the slightest disarray,
and an atmosphere that made it clear she held authority even without saying a word.
She was probably the student council president—no, the Starlight Council president.
Looking at Elysia, she spoke calmly.
“Thank you for coming, Elysia von Vallerion.”
Then, immediately after, she shifted her gaze to me.
“And you as well, Haku.”
My ears perked up in that instant.
My name had been called far too naturally.
Of course, even on the documents I was probably recorded as the registered familiar “Haku,”
but being called that in such an official setting felt strange.
Elysia adjusted her hold on me a little more securely and greeted them.
“Thank you for inviting us.”
The Starlight Council president did not rise from her seat, but she nodded politely.
“There is no need to feel burdened.
Today is not a disciplinary hearing or a formal evaluation,
but strictly a meeting for confirmation and coordination.”
‘That makes it sound even scarier.’
I grumbled only inwardly.
Outwardly, however, I stayed as well-behaved as possible.
If I did something that stood out at a time like this, it might only become more troublesome.
The Starlight Council president lightly turned over a document placed on the table.
“Recently, interest in Haku within the academy has spread faster than expected.
Requests from students to make contact have been flooding in excessively,
and we have received reports that some students have even been circulating separate waiting lists.”
So that really was true.
I averted my eyes, pretending I knew nothing.
The Starlight Council president continued.
“Ordinarily, contact with a personal familiar should take place autonomously under the permission of both its master and the familiar in question.
However, the current situation has gone beyond departments, with even upperclassmen gathering around,
so we judged it necessary to set minimum safety regulations and standards for rest.”
That was easy enough to understand.
Honestly, judging by the atmosphere over the past few days, someone needed to draw at least a minimal line.
The students didn’t have malicious intent, but when their numbers grew, that alone became a burden.
Elysia also nodded calmly.
“I agree with that point.”
The Starlight Council president glanced down at the document once more, then continued.
“And the second matter is a simple confirmation regarding Haku’s safety rating.”
‘Safety rating.’
“At present, the temporary materials from the Special Familiar Studies Department list him as ‘no signs of danger, classification pending.’
However, taking into account his resonance values, spirit reactions, and the level of student interest,
we deemed it necessary to reorganize the standards from a protective standpoint.”
Classification pending.
That wasn’t exactly wrong.
They probably didn’t know how to classify me either.
I looked like a fox, but I wasn’t just a fox. I seemed like a familiar, but I wasn’t an ordinary familiar either.
On top of that, the reactions of spirits and other familiars to me weren’t normal.
It was then.
As I quietly looked at the Starlight Council president, I thought,
‘It’d be better to say it now.’
In any case, this was a meeting for rules and confirmation.
If so, it was right to bring up what Rihart had done now as well.
It would also let us check whether he would actually be punished, or whether the matter would simply be buried.
From within Elysia’s arms, I slowly swayed my tail once.
Then I looked up at her.
As if she had noticed my gaze, Elysia took a very brief breath and spoke to the Starlight Council.
“There is something I would like to have confirmed as well.”
Every gaze in the meeting room gathered on Elysia at once.
The air, which had been relatively gentle until just moments ago, became faintly tense.
The Starlight Council president asked calmly,
“Please speak.”
Elysia pulled me a little closer into her arms and said in a clear voice,
“A student in my class, Rihart, once used magic against Haku during class.
And after school, in a place where no one was watching, he picked a fight with me and attacked me.”
The meeting room fell silent for an instant.
I held my breath quietly in Elysia’s arms.
Good.
Now let’s find out.
Whether this academy truly operates according to its rules.
Or whether matters between noble children are simply glossed over and buried.
The Starlight Council president’s gaze sharpened ever so slightly.
“……That is a report I am hearing for the first time.”
And in that moment, the atmosphere in the meeting room began to change completely from what it had been just before.