Huh....

　Goofily, I let my weight rest on the back.

　January.

　The year opened safely and the new year was a tough one with the greetings, but in the gap between the two, I managed to keep up with my studies. Elle's teaching style is so easy to understand that I now spend most of my time studying on my own. He's also busy writing his graduation thesis now, or something like that.

　And it seems that he's doing a lot of things at the academy.....................Rumors of Fee's struggles had reached my ears.


''Alice-sama, today........''
I know.


　Saria's arrival meant that it was time to go out. When I looked out the window, I saw that it was snowing steadily. I wondered if it was that time of year already.

　Up until now, I've been just going with the flow of the season.

　It didn't matter if it was snowing, or cherry blossoms dancing, or the summer sunshine, or the autumn leaves dancing in the autumn.

　But I'm very much aware of that now.

　To the world in general, I guess I'm a student of the exam. Every year, a large number of people make an effort to enter the Canoviria Alchemy Academy. Some of them even study for the exam for more than five years.

　That's how tough the exams are.

　But it's often said that the hardest part of the exam is after you've been admitted.

　Even so, many people still aim to study at the Canovarian Alchemy Institute. Their goal is probably a lot of lofty goals, such as the search for truth. But I didn't have any of those things in mind.

　I just want to see the same scenery as him.

　That's what I did. But strangely, I was motivated, and I've managed to continue studying even now. Even though I've been doing past exams for the written exams, there were times when I exceeded the standard score.

　So I will continue my studies today as usual.


''Miss Alice. There is no more time. Let's go.
Yeah.

　I put down my pen and quickly get dressed and go outside without even closing my notebook as it is. Today, I'm supposed to attend a party at a certain nobleman's house.

　Of course, if I had that kind of time, I'd want to study, but I'm Alice-Canovaglia. I have to perform my official duties as a royalty.


''Huh........''

　When I stepped outside, my breath turned white.

　The snow has gained some momentum and it's freezing cold.

　Even with my scarf wrapped tightly around me, my gloves on, and my coat on top of me, this cold is unbearable... but I could feel it.

　Once this snow was gone what awaited me was the entrance exam.

　If I passed it successfully, I would become a student in the spring.

　The people around me believe that there's no way I'll ever pass it.

　Although I have royal blood, I am a heretic among them. That's why I know that I'm despised. But.........I won't know that until the day comes.

　So I step forward.


''Hey, Saria,''
'Yes? Lady Alice.
I'm sure the entrance exams will be here after this winter.
Yes, sir. I've already completed the formalities. It's just that........it doesn't matter if you are a royal or a nobleman in that academy. It's only measured by the scores of the entrance exam.
'Yes I know, I know. That's why, if I pass, it means I'm a force to be reckoned with, right?
'Yes, sir. I am firmly aware of Alice-sama's efforts. I am sure....
You don't have to tell me where it goes from there.
I'm sorry.


　Beyond this snow, spring is surely waiting for me.

　And I'm walking through that row of cherry blossom trees as a student of the Canovarian Alchemy Academy.

　While believing in such a future──I'm moving forward in this winter.