Back in his dorm room, Charles lay on his bed, ntally reviewing and analyzing the earlier battle.
Kurogane Ikki was definitely no weakling—his performance had given Charles much to reflect on and even learn from.
Take strategy, for instance—Ikki's combat tactics were precise and well-considered.
But after thinking it over, Charles dismissed the idea of doing the sa. Ti spent scheming was better spent training his fundantals. After all, raw power was the most reliable ally.
Just as his thoughts began drifting off into nonsense, Charles sensed a familiar presence just outside his door.
Frowning in confusion, he quietly got to his feet. It wasn't just that this person had co to his room—it was that she was pacing nervously outside it.
He walked to the door and yanked it open without warning.
The girl outside froze mid-motion, one hand raised in preparation to knock.
Seeing how awkward the mont had beco, Charles broke the silence. "Um… Stella-san? Did you need sothing?"
Standing there, caught in the act, was none other than the Crimson Princess herself—Stella Vermillion.
For so reason, she'd been pacing outside his room for quite so ti. But now that the mont was upon her, she clearly had no room left to hesitate.
Taking a deep breath—several, in fact—she took a step back and bowed at a perfect ninety-degree angle.
"Please, Charles-kun… I want you to teach how to beco stronger!"
Charles blinked. "You're already strong, aren't you? Why co to ?"
Stella remained bowed. Charles couldn't see her face.
Biting her lip with frustration, she answered bitterly, "I'm not strong. Not when I compare myself to you or Kurogane-san… I still have so far to go."
Charles remained silent for a mont before asking gently, "Why do you want to beco strong?"
Stella looked up at him in confusion.
Charles continued, "I an, what are you fighting for? What is it you want strength for?"
Stella straightened up and declared firmly, "For the sake of the Vermillion Kingdom—I must beco stronger!"
Because of her, many around the world had even learned that a country called the Vermillion Kingdom existed in the far corner of Europe.
The kingdom was small, with little in the way of land or resources, and rarely made headlines on the international stage.
Yet to Charles, it had always seed like a peaceful utopia—a nation free from war, its people living tranquil lives. What could possibly require Stella to fight so desperately?
But Stella pressed on. "I must live up to the hopes of the people who believe in !"
Honestly, Charles found it difficult to understand such deep bonds between royalty and commoners.
In his previous life, emperors existed only in history books. And in the Clover Kingdom he'd been to, the royalty and commoners might as well have been from different planets.
So this bond she described felt… distant.
What Charles didn't know, though, was the origin of the Vermillion Kingdom itself.
Back when it was still known as the Kingdom of Quidoran, the people had lived under tyrannical rule. Then ca the rebellion, flying the banner of the House of Vermillion.
To stop the war, the forr royal family had offered the flesh and blood of Vermillion hostages as a cruel form of extortion.
But the Vermillion duke had refused, sacrificing his own kin to secure victory for the people.
Because of this, the citizens of the kingdom had since given their royal family unwavering loyalty and love.
Even during the World War, when Europe was engulfed in flas, the people had chosen to endure torture rather than betray their beloved royals.
Stella, as their princess, was truly adored like family. And in return, she wished to beco strong enough to protect them all.
Charles might not understand all the history, but he could feel her sincerity.
Rubbing his chin thoughtfully, he said, "I don't mind helping. But until I get permission from the Grand Elder, I can't pass on any of the Dragon Temple's martial arts. And besides that, I don't know if I really have anything useful for you…"
Charles had looked into it—though both were called "magic," the magical energy he used and the energy of this world followed entirely different rules.
And the techniques he'd learned over ti weren't "abilities" like the Blazer powers here. They wouldn't necessarily translate well.
He really couldn't think of anything offhand that he could teach her—other than martial arts and maybe a few tricks.
But Stella's eyes lit up. She stepped forward and clasped Charles's hands tightly.
"That's more than enough! I promise, I'll take anything you teach seriously."
Charles was briefly dazzled by the sheer brilliance of her smile—radiant as a blooming flower.
And that line of hers… it sent his imagination spiraling down the wrong kind of rabbit hole.
He forcefully pulled his mind back from the brink with a cough.
"Alright then," he said, collecting himself. "Let's start now. Before we begin formal lessons, I want to understand where your strength currently stands."
Stella perked up and struck a classic muscle-flexing pose, her tone energetic and full of fire. "You got it, Charles-sensei!"
"Sensei's personal tutoring, after-school honor student"—wait, wait, stop thinking that, Charles scolded himself, horrified by where his brain was going.
Still… he never quite got around to correcting her suggestive way of addressing him.
They returned to the arena. Though the battleground had been torn apart during his fight with Ikki, the stage was now pristine.
Not because of Japan's construction speed, of course—but because Kurono Shinguuji had repaired it using her ti-space interference ability.
She could rewind the ti of objects—aning even absurd-sounding feats like "undoing destruction" were completely within her ans.
Charles was starting to suspect that the real reason the League had made her the academy director was to save on maintenance costs.
Since this was just a diagnostic session, there was no need to fight. Stella rely demonstrated her full arsenal of techniques.
She cycled through her defensive Noble Art Empress Dress, her offensive Dragon Breath, and even her ultimate technique, Calusaritio Salamander—the "Fla Emperor Dragon King's Wrath."
Charles crossed his arms and nodded.
"Alright. I've got a good grasp of where you're at. There's definitely room for improvent. I'll think about which training thods might work best. Let's start your lessons tomorrow."
"Then I look forward to learning from you!" Stella bead—her smile even more dazzling than before.
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