The Herb King

192 Special Admission for Olivia

Janrose was staring at Olivia in shock. She had no idea that this little glutton was actually a hidden expert! She was even more impressive than all the young talents who joined the recent battle event! ‘No wonder Sir Aethelwolf is confident enough to let her participate in the examination.’ She thought to herself.

“M-Miss Olivia, how strong are you exactly?” The teacher asked nervously.

Olivia raised three fingers as she said. “I’m a Level 3 Esper.” However, she suddenly recalled that her papa asked her not to reveal her power. ‘Oh no!’ She immediately covered her mouth, but it was already too late.

The teacher’s lips twitched upon hearing this. “L-Level 3 Esper? Then why did you take the, ays nevermind... Miss Olivia, with your power, there is no need for you to take the tests. I’ll inform the other teachers about this and ask for a special admission for you. I believe that they would agree to this once they hear about your astonishing strength.” He forced out a smile as he looked at the little girl.

Olivia tilted her head as she looked at the teacher. She didn’t know what a special admission was so she turned her gaze to Janrose to seek answers.

Janrose smiled lightly when she saw her confused look. She then walked towards the little girl and said. “Olivia, the teacher said that he will ask the other teachers to allow you to become a student of the academy without taking the tests.”

“Ahh... Okay.” The little girl looked at her with a perplexed look.

Janrose chuckled after seeing Olivia’s expression. “Since you don’t need to take the tests, you should look for Sir Aethelwolf. I’ll find you guys as soon as I’m done with the tests.” Although they weren’t related by blood, Janrose treated the little girl as her sister.

Hearing that she could go to Aethelwolf, Olivia’s eyes brightened as she eagerly nodded her head. “Okay.” She then sprinted out of the examination area.

.....

Everyone stared at the little girl with mixed emotions.

The teacher sighed as he muttered. “It looks like I would have to work overtime because of this...”

Janrose gave him an apologetic smile.

Meanwhile, Olivia was searching for Aethelwolf with Hyacinth. Albert was in the testing area of the Alchemy Applicants so he wasn’t there.

“Miss Olivia, what happened inside? I heard a loud sound earlier. Did something go wrong?” Hyacinth asked.

Olivia raised her head and smiled in embarrassment. “I think I destroyed something. Hehe.”

“Oh, I see. Eh? Wait. What did you say?” Hyacinth looked at her in surprise.

Olivia didn’t answer her. The little girl giggled before bolting away like a small fox.

“Hey, wait for me, Miss Olivia!” Hyacinth quickly followed the little girl.

***

“She destroyed the testing beam?” Aethelwolf’s eyebrows jumped up in surprise. ‘That kid. I clearly told her to conceal her power...’

“Yes, Headmaster Aethelwolf. The other teachers all agreed to give her a special admission. We only need your approval and signature so that we can process the documents for her admission.” Madilyn reported.

“Alright. Just send me the documents and I’ll sign them.” Aethelwolf could only nod his head helplessly. At the very least, nothing bad happened so he was also relieved.

No one would question Olivia’s special admission since she was a Level 3 Esper. With that kind of power, she was already one of the empire’s top warriors. Even the teachers had to be respectful to her.

“Yes, Headmaster Aethelwolf. I’ll get the documents and deliver them to you in a while.” Madilyn said before walking away.

“Papa!” An excited voice echoed from the opposite building.

Aethelwolf turned his head and saw a red-haired little girl running towards him with a wide smile plastered on her face. “Olivia.” He muttered her name.

The little girl jumped into his embrace as soon as she got near him.

Aethelwolf caught her and embraced her tightly. He then flicked her forehead. “Didn’t I tell you not to reveal your power?”

Ow! Ow!

Olivia grabbed her forehead. “I’m sorry, papa. Hehe.” She giggled.

Aethelwolf sighed as he put her down. He then held her hand and said. “Let’s go check on Leric and Anna.”

“Sir Aethelwolf! Wait for me!” Hyacinth’s exhausted voice echoed behind them. When Aethelwolf looked at her, he saw Hyacinth drenched in sweat. She held her knees as she panted heavily, but she soon noticed that Aethelwolf was already walking further away with Olivia so she could only follow them.

The three arrived in the testing area of the Alchemy Applicants and they spotted Albert waiting outside.

“Sir Aethelwolf!” Albert bowed lightly.

Aethelwolf waved his hand and asked. “How are the kids?”

“They are doing great. They are now taking their second test. With their speed, they should be able to complete everything in just half a day.” Albert replied.

***

“Joseph, what do we do now?” Dave asked.

Joseph glared at him and answered coldly. “What else can we do? Aethelwolf, that arrogant punk, has already given us his command. We might be kicked out of the academy if we don’t do our job well.”

He has been in a good mood lately after the death of his strongest rival for the family head position, Enrique Maynard. However, his happiness was short-lived because of Aethelwolf. “That darn bastard! Dammit!” Joseph cursed angrily.

Everything was going well for him so far, but Aethelwolf’s words earlier made him feel uneasy. He seemed to know about Enrique’s death. ‘How did he know about it? We didn’t even allow our servants and the low-ranking members of the family to get out of the estate. Do we have some spies in our midst?’

“Dave, let’s go back to the estate first. I need to talk with the family head.” Joseph muttered in a serious voice.

“What about Aethelwolf’s commands? He might punish us if we fail to do our task.” Dave replied hesitantly. He felt fearful towards Aethelwolf and even with the Maynard Household backing them, he still couldn’t remain calm.

Joseph scoffed as he looked at him. “We would need more men to distribute the notices to those distant towns so let’s go back to the estate first.”

“Fine.” Dave could only agree.

The group went to the Maynard Household’s estate and Joseph immediately headed to the family head’s office.

Knock! Knock! Knock!

“Father, I have something important to discuss with you. May I come inside?” Joseph said after knocking on the door.

“You may enter.” An aged voice could be heard inside the room.

Joseph glanced at Dave and said. “Stay here and wait for me.” He then entered the room.

“Why did you visit me at this hour? Aren’t you supposed to be in the academy?” Count Lucas Maynard frowned while looking at Joseph. He was already old, but he still looked strong and full of vigor. However, Joseph knew that his father was ill.

“Oh, that... Aethelwolf, I mean the headmaster told us to visit the rural areas for a task. I decided to drop by here before leaving since I have something to tell you.” Joseph paused to look at his father’s expression.

“What is it? What do you want to discuss with me?” Count Lucas asked before taking a small sip of his tea.

Joseph put on a serious look as he said. “Father, I think the headmaster knows about Enrique’s death. Although he didn’t say it explicitly, I believe that he knows something about it. Father, do you think that there are some spies hiding in our estate?”

Count Lucas frowned at his words. “It seems like Aethelwolf is closely monitoring our Maynard Household.” The old man put down his teacup and added. “Don’t worry about him. I’ll take care of it. For now, complete his task first so that you can go back to the academy. I spent some effort to get those spots for you guys so you must treasure it well. The academy would soon become a strong force in the empire so our Maynard Household shouldn’t be left out in this huge opportunity.”

Joseph heaved an internal sigh of relief upon hearing this. “Alright. Just tell me if you need anything, father. We will take our leave now.”

“Go.” The old man waved his hand and Joseph left after bidding him farewell.

Inside the room, Count Lucas suddenly let out a deep sigh. “Aethelwolf must be suspicious about Enrique’s death. I thought that they were not that close, but it looks like Aethelwolf treated him as his friend...” A moment later, the old man’s face turned frosty as he muttered. “Joseph, just what are you planning to do? You killed your brother. Are you also thinking of killing me?”

He knew from the start that Joseph had something to do with Enrique’s death, but he feigned ignorance to prevent the Maynard Household from being divided. If he punished Joseph for his crime, his supporters might try to do something that would lead to the downfall of their family.