12 Signing Up (Remastered)

(3 years after reincarnation)

[Kyrielle's POV]

"Boo! And now I'm angry!... And now I'm happy! And now I'm sad!"

In the morning, I worked my face muscle trying to create faces, making my little baby sister laugh. She sleeps on a baby bed inside my room, so I took care of her.

"Ehehe!"

"Huhu. Thank you Marielle, I'd be in great trouble if you didn't laugh... Big sis will head out today, and Ghyse will be the one to take care of you. Be reasonable okay?"

"Ah!"

Alright then, it's time to head out.

I put on the red coat that mom gave me and looked at myself in the mirror.

"Yep, cute."

Being a girl is nice, getting to wear cute clothings like this! Come to think of it, I have already started to get used to this new body surprisingly quickly.

I expected to not be familiar with this body of another gender at all but surprisingly it feels all natural now. I guess that's because men and women actually shares more in common than they are different huh?

"Kyrie, are you ready to go?" Mom was sitting on the couch of the living room, waiting for me.

"Yes, all is set."

"And I have all your birth documents as well... Let's go then. Ghyse, today is your last day so please take care for the shop and Marie for me."

"Understood, madam. Please find a suitable mentor for Kyrielle."

"Mmm. Let's go Kyrie."

"Okay!"

Today, we'll head towards a magic school known as 'Zoward's Magic Academy' in the city... It's simply to hire a tutor to teach me about magic until I am old enough to attend the school.

Tutors normally are hired mages that don't work with the school, but we need approval from the school to do that. Mages are like guns in the modern world, you need license and if you are unregistered you'd be considered dangerous, which can be charged with a criminal offense.....

I've heard that they don't execute unregistered mages, but they'd be punished by working for the government. Regardless, I don't want to be punished so I'd better just abide by the laws.

"Oh, Miss Buffet. You are taking your girl out for a walk? How rare." A man hosting a stall talked to mom from the roadside.

"Yes, I'm taking her to the school. You'd not believe me if I said this but this she could already cast magic! She's amazing!"

She.... She's bragging me to that merchant guy.

"Seriously?... My son could do that as well! Or at least he's trying."

"Your son was named Michael right?"

"Yeah. He's taken an interest in magic, although he still can't cast them right now."

"I see. Well then I'll have to go so see you around."

"See you, big mister."

"Your daughter is quite cute....."

"Don't even think about it, Thomas will kill you."

"I wasn't thinking of anything!"

We continued on the way, and soon we arrived at the front gate of the school. The school looked like a giant mansion, with at least 3 stories and is so large that it is comparable to most modern schools.

"Here we are Kyrie. Zoward's Academy, it is a very prestigious school and a bit on the expensive side, but you'll be studying magic here when you are ready. It will likely cost an entire year's earnings from mom."

"An entire year?! Will we even be able to afford it?..."

I used to work as a part timer back on earth and it learned the hard way that an entire year's salary is A LOT.... You could buy so many things with it.... This school almost costs as much as attending university on Earth huh.

"Don't worry about it, our family isn't so poor. But it's odd for a child like you to understand the value of money so well.... When I was a child, I wouldn't bat an eye to "

"Eh?!... Umm... I learned it from the customers! They were buying expensive potions afterall!"

"Really?.... Hmm... Well, you are a smart girl afterall. Let's go, Kyrielle." Mom said that.

"O-okay...." I replied, feeling a bit nervous.

That was too risky, sometimes I get carried away and forget that I'm supposed to be acting like a little kid! I need to stay in character!

We walked into the building and the first thing we arrived to is a lobby. There's a counter with a staff, and then 2 big stairs that lead to each sides of the building, much like a manor.

It is unusually quiet for a school, or maybe I'm just used to schools in Japan where every corner you went, you could hear sounds of teachers and students talking and learning.

"Can I help you?" The staff lady at the counter saw us and then asked immediately.

"Yes, I want to gain an approval to hire a mage as a tutor for my kid."

"Approval.... Okay. Is this girl proficient with magic yet?"

"She can use magic, although I don't know how good she is at it. But I do know that she's not extremely good yet."

"Very well, I will consult with the principal first, please wait for a moment. Feel free to take a seat at the couch."

Saying that, the staff wrote something on a weird instrument on the counter, it looked like a small stand with a board on top of it.

"Big sis, what is that?" I got curious and asked the counter lady.

"This? This is a telepathy board, which connects to another board through telepathy magic. It is a magic item that let you write to the other side of the board almost instantly, like a letter."

"Oh...."

That's cool, it's like a messaging app but magic.

"Come on Kyrie, let the lady focus on working."

"Okay."

____________

(2 minutes later....)

"MIss, the principal is free now. Your daughter can start the interview right away."

"I see, let's go Kyrie."

"Mmm."

"Foow me, I'll lead the way to the office." We started walking to the principal's office with the staff member guiding us...

Along the way, I saw a lot of classes, and rooms that appears to be research labs with many odd looking magical equipment inside. There are many students inside the classes which can be seen through the windows, but somehow there's no noise whatsoever...?

And not just that, it seems that I can feel that the environment inside the classes are almost opaque looking....

....Ah I see! All the classes inside the school is covered by a layer of magic barrier, this is rather interesting.

After walking for a bit, we arrived in front of an office with a wooden door that has nice sculpture carved into the door. This fancy room must be the principal's room huh?

'Knock knock' The staff knocked on the door.

"Come in." A muffled voice was heard.

The staff opened the door.... And sitting inside the room is an old man, with his back turned to us while he faces the window of the room.

"Kyrie, you need to talk to the principal by yourself. All students that come to the school must go through this same interview, they must do so alone."

"E-eh?!... But I'm nervous..." I said that as I played with the tail of my hair.

"It will be fine, just talk to him like you do to dad."

"O-okay... I'll try my best!"

"Mmm, give it your best shot, you can do it."

I reluctantly entered the office.... As soon as I stepped foot into the room, I felt like my entire body is being squeezed lightly by something..... My Reserve Mana became repressed, and I can't control it at all. The door behind me is closed, and I'm left with the Principal alone.

The principal himself is a middle aged man of a slim build. He looks only like about a 35 middle aged man, dressed in a well-mannered suit giving a suave feel which makes my heart skip a beat.... Oh no, he's hot!

....Wait, what the hell am I thinking? Did I just seriously thought that he was handsome?

"So, are you the little girl that I'm supposed to interview?"

"Y-yes.... My n-name is Kyrielle Buffet. It's nice to meet you sir."

"Sir? There is no need to be so polite with me, you can have a seat."

"Mmm...." I nervously sat down on the chair in front of the desk....

"Would you like some sweets?" He said as he took out a bottle of candy and handed one to me.

"M-mm.... Thank you..." I said as I put the candy into my mouth.

It tastes sweet like strawberry, so it's very tasty. But more importantly, this sweetness calmed me down a bit.

"As you may already know, I am Jack Derrick, a master ranked mage. There's no need to be so formal with me, we don't prioritize that in this school. But I was rather intrigued that a child of your age would be here for an interview..."

"Gulp..."

"So tell me, are you good at magic? "

"I-I think so..."

"You think so huh? How about a little test then? We'll see if you can actually back up your words, and see if you are truly valuable enough to our school that we'd want to let you in."

"A test?..."

"Yes. It won't be easy, but since you are a mage you must have felt your mana being crushed by the barrier in this room right?"

So that was why I felt that my body is being squeezed lightly... It's the effect of the barrier inside this room.

"Yes."

"Then try spreading your mana freely here."

Spread my mana huh?... Sounds simple enough.

"Hoo... Hah...." I closed my eyes and imagined the mana inside my body flowing out of my body like gas orbiting a planet.

"Urgh..." I can't seem to get my mana out of my body no matter how hard I try.

"Relax. If you are so tensed up, it'd be very difficult to visualize the mana loosening up."

"....." Stop thinking and focus... Focus in visualizing the mana inside me leak out of my body.... Force out the stuck mana inside my body...

I felt my body being loosened up, it's working.... Almost as if all the stress that was pressing on each of my muscles were let loose at the same time, giving a very comfortable and satisfying feel like a massage.

I sensed my mana flowing out from my body, leaking into the air while simultaneously sticking to my body.

'Fwuom...' Suddenly, the air around my body starts to distorts and formed a weak whirlwind around my body.

I had successfully let out my mana aura... But I actually let out much more than I originally intended.

"Hmm... You may stop now."

"Okay." I stopped pushing the mana and the air around me returns to normal. I opened my eyes again.

"Umm... Did I pass?"

"...I want you to answer me first. Why have you come to our academy?"

"I want an approval letter for a magic tutor...."

"A magic tutor? At such a young age?"

"Yes."

"I see. Do you have no intentions to join our school in the future?"

"That's not my meaning! I do want to join the school, but it's just that I was too young to do so."

"Ah... What age are you?"

"3."

"3 years old..... Very well, you'll be approved by the academy to hire a magic tutor, but on one condition."

"?"

"You must attend the school at the age of 7. Will that be fine for you?"

I must huh?... Although this meant that I can be coerced into attending the school, in this end that is exactly what I wanted anyway so it wouldn't hurt right?

"Y-yes..."

"Hmm. Do you have any questions?"

"Umm... Did I passed the test just now?"

"Hahaha, are you asking that seriously?"

"?..."

"...You passed with excellent results. At first, I didn't expect you to be able to do that at all. This barrier is one that is of Adept rank, it is not easy to just overpower it's effect of locking down your Reserve Mana."

"Oh... But why did you want me to join the school so much?"

"That is because this school and myself prioritize the development of magic. For someone of your caliber to not join our school is a bit of a waste, that is why."

"I see... I have no more questions."

"Good. You may ask your mother to come in now, I have something to discuss with her."

"Okay."

I headed back out of the office. Standing besides the office door is mom, waiting patiently.

"How did it go?"

"I passed... But the principal wants to see you now."

"Let's head in then shall we?"

"Mmm."

With mom in hand, I walked back into the office. Principal Jack is writing into a paper, and as he did so we sat down in front of the desk again.

"So Madam Buffet, your daughter Kyrielle just passed the exam with excellent results."

"Excellent result?!"

"Eh?" Why was she so surprised?

"Yes. Although I've done the test on a whim and couldnt test her on her knowledge of magic theories, her mana control is far better than any children her age. She passed with great results."

"Then that is great! Kyrie, you are such a genius girl!" Mom said as she pinched my cheeks happily.

"Uwee... It hurts, please stop...."

"Your request for an approval to hire a magic tutor is granted. This is the approval letter." Jack said as he handed the letter he wrote to mom.

"Thank you very much!"

"As for the future... I want her to attend this school when she is the age of 7. Of course, I'll need the parent's approval for this since the cost is actually very great, this choice shouldn't be made by a child."

"Hmm... Me and my husband has considered that her talent with magic will go wasted if we don't let her attend the school at a young age. So I can say that both is us has plans for her to attend this school in the future anyway, even if the cost is big."

"I see, that is a big commitment for you two parents. But I have a good news for you..."

"A good news?"

"She might be qualified for a scholarship program that was recently installed by the government."

"A scholarship program?"

"Yes. This means that when a student is among the top of the school, the government will pay for whatever costs that the student may have. Although this can't be decided at the moment because the test just now is not an official one, she is very likely to have the skills to be able to qualify for the program in the future when she do attends the school."

"I see.... So this meant that in the future if she were to maintain her current abilities, she'd be able to attend the school for free right?"

"Exactly."

Wow... A Scholarship.... I'd be extremely stressed to just maintain my level as I study...

"So, my point is that your girl has the potential to contribute to the development of magic itself. This tutor that you'll hire will be very important to decide whether or not she can keep up with her studies in the future, that is why I advice you to hire a good tutor."

"I see. I'll talk about this with my husband, and thank you for your time mister principal."

"Thank you, Mister Principal!"

"Naturally. You may leave now, if you have no more questions."

"Let us go, Kyrie."

"Mm!"

Still... I don't know if I can keep up with the stress of being a scholarship student. In the end even though mom and the principal is praising me so much, I am nothing but a normal person... I can't easily become so good at something and keep it up....

But I am willing to try. After all, I do want to give my best shot at living this new life that I was given.

(Chapter end)