Published: September 6, 2025
The promotion ceremony began with the ringing of the third bell. Feeling the bustling atmosphere in the dormitory as everyone hurried with preparations, I had Lieselotte and Berthilde style my hair. Brunhilde and Grethia were out distributing hair ornaments to the new female students, so they weren’t around.
“Berthilde, you’re really good at doing hair.”
“I enjoy styling hair. Lady Elvira even praised me for it.”
While chatting, Berthilde tidied my hair. She talked about what kind of work she did when serving Mother and the conversations they had. Her rose-pink hair was adorned with a hair ornament given by the new female students and another gifted by her parents to celebrate her enrollment.
For a while, Lieselotte watched Berthilde, but then she started preparing hair ornaments and checking luggage, showing she had passed as an attendant apprentice.
“Lady Rosemine, are Matthias, Roderich, and Brunhilde the attendants accompanying you to the social gathering?”
“Yes, Lieselotte.”
“From information gathered yesterday by the civil officials, it seems there will be a new lord candidate among the freshmen at Classenburg. Should I remind you of their name again, just in case you need to greet them?”
Lieselotte grinned mischievously, sensing I hadn’t been paying attention while absorbed in my reading.
“Please do.”
“She is Lady Jansiane, the third wife’s daughter of Aub Classenburg. You’ll likely cross paths with her several times at the dedication ceremonies.”
...Lady Jansiane, Lady Jansiane...
I repeated the name silently a few times to memorize it.
“Good morning, Lady Rosemine.”
“Good morning, Darmel.”
After finishing preparations and heading to the multipurpose hall, Darmel was there. Hartmut and Brother Cornelius were also present, but since I’d been with them at the noble academy before, they didn’t feel out of place. However, seeing Darmel in the multipurpose hall was unfamiliar and strange—not just because of the azure priest’s attire.
“Leonore and Angelica, please take care today as well.”
Darmel and the others wore azure priest outfits because while we attended the promotion ceremony and social gathering, they had a meeting with the Central Temple’s people. I didn’t know who from Classenburg would attend, but Lady Eglantine had contacted us with instructions for today.
“I’ll leave the dedication ceremony meeting to Hartmut. The rest, please watch over him so he doesn’t go overboard.”
“Understood.”
It seemed another clash between Immanuel and Hartmut was brewing, so I asked Brother Cornelius and Darmel to be especially careful.
“Rosemine, you probably have old friends to meet after a while, right? Enjoy the social gathering.”
“Yes, Brother Cornelius.”
With Brother Cornelius seeing me off, I stepped into the entrance hall. Students draped in Ehrenfest cloaks crowded the space. The nervous faces of the first-years were adorable. Thanks to Brunhilde and Charlotte’s arrangements, all Ehrenfest students’ hair was smooth and shiny.
“Well then, let’s go. New students, be careful not to lose your cloaks or brooches. Also, don’t forget the number of the Ehrenfest door—you won’t be able to return to the dorm if you do.”
Under Wilfried’s command, we left the doorway and headed for the lecture hall.
Though there were some changes in the rankings of the territories, nothing major. We simply lined up at number eight.
The usual promotion ceremony began, with explanations about the lectures. As decided at the lords’ council, acquiring the stave had been moved to the third year, and relatedly, the curriculum had been changed to include many older course elements.
“I was really looking forward to acquiring the stave…”
Berthilde pouted a little in dissatisfaction. Many first-years around seemed unhappy as well. Even if the curriculum change was announced, not explaining the reason understandably caused complaints.
“The stave is a symbol of nobility, so I understand the desire to get it early, but it’s better to obtain it as late as possible.”