For a while, everything went back to normal. There was no need for training on magic manipulation anymore, but every morning, I would continue casting light magic on Nate’s face until my magic ran out. Whenever I placed my hand on his face to cast the light magic, I would feel nervous, and I knew I would never get used to it. Despite having been casting light magic on him every day for 9 months, I was still amazed by my lack of talent in magic, given that the range of effect hadn’t changed. I couldn’t help but laugh, thinking that perhaps the gods knew I only cared about playing the piano well.

As winter set in, I was given a magical tool to warm my stiff hands before playing the piano. By then, Nate’s lips no longer twitched, and his mouth was now noticeably more composed. His nose had also become neat, and although I hadn’t yet seen under his bangs, I had a feeling he was quite handsome, which made me smile and look to Rose for agreement.

Nate’s aunt was an eye-catching beauty, so Rose said Nate was likely to be handsome too. Rose and Nate’s aunt were school seniors and had a good relationship. When Nate asked about his aunt’s name, Rose was quite surprised.

Some time after Nate’s lips stopped twitching, he told Melissa to stop the treatment and suggested he could play the piano in the morning instead.

“I think it’s fine to stop treatment here, but if you find the burn marks unpleasant, I want you to treat them until you’re satisfied.”

“It’s not so much that it’s unpleasant, but it’s painful to look at, and it makes me worry.”

Saying that, Melissa didn’t stop her treatment. Whether he was handsome or not, she wanted to know everything about Nate and was curious to see his face, but she didn’t say this out loud because it was embarrassing.

In the coldest part of winter, Nate went to visit his aunt, with whom he had been exchanging letters, at the Reeves Border Marquisate. That day happened to be his older brother’s 13th birthday.

Of course, there was no invitation to his brother’s birthday party, and Melissa hadn’t sent any letters or gifts either. Every year, his brother requested a specific song for his birthday, and Melissa would play it on the piano. She remembered practicing hard for difficult songs, which were always too difficult for her small hands, and the fun she had doing it.

This year, neither his father’s nor grandmother’s birthday was celebrated. She had once craved their love so much in spring, but now, she felt nothing, and she didn’t think she was being cold-hearted. After all, there were people she loved and who loved her. On her mother’s death anniversary, she sent pressed flowers made from the blue flowers that bloomed by the lakeside, asking the housekeeper to place them on her grave.

Nate returned after only three days with an application for the Telfort International Music Competition as a souvenir.

Nate’s aunt had welcomed him warmly without scolding him. Since she was currently living in the Border Marquisate’s servant bachelor quarters, Nate discussed things with her and decided they would continue living separately in Lawton and Reeves.

The day after Nate returned from the Border Marquisate, during the first treatment session in three days, Melissa, Josh, and Rose gathered to read through the application details and a book on imperial musicians. Over the past few months, they had been gradually gaining knowledge from the bookstores and libraries in Lawton, but it was through the application and the book Nate brought back that they learned many new things.

“Miss, were you close with the Second Prince or the Queen?”

“I’ve hardly ever spoken with the Second Prince. There’s no way I could get a signature from any member of the royal family.”

Josh asked this because the Telfort International Music Competition was open to anyone over 15, regardless of nationality, status, or criminal record. However, for nobles and their children, the signature of their head of family or a member of their royal family was required to apply.

The Telfort International Music Competition is held once a year, and if one wins the highest prize, the Apollon Prize, they automatically become a court musician in the Empire. Of course, it’s a highly competitive position. The number of applicants and odds were unknown, but there were five rounds of judging, and sometimes, there were no winners of the Apollon Award in a given year.

As Josh had said before, court musicians were the property of the emperor. Nobles would lose their noble status, and foreigners would become imperial citizens. Although not a noble, they would be of the same status as a one-time noble, and no one could force a court musician to do anything without the emperor’s permission. If they were injured, forced to perform, restricted, or pressured into marriage, they could be punished under imperial law.

Once, a high-ranking noblewoman from another country entered the competition and became a court musician. This caused a dispute between her parents and the Empire, nearly leading to an international incident. For this reason, nobles and their children must have a signature from their head of family or a member of their royal family confirming they were applying.

Even if a court musician is a former commoner, they can marry a noble, and of course, they can marry a commoner. They were called “living national treasures” and were cherished and admired by all imperial citizens.

The highest rank for musicians in the Empire was that of a court musician. Of course, Melissa wanted to aim for that and worked hard. However, the average age for winning the Apollon Award was 28.

A pianist who isn’t a court musician would need a noble patron to find work in the Empire. Typically, commoners or foreigners don’t have such connections, but if one could make it past the third round of the competition, where nobles watched, they could catch the eye of a noble patron and secure work.

Even if one misses the Apollon Award, simply entering the competition could open up many doors.

The competition could be entered as many times as one wanted, and there was no entry fee. The ideal way to make a living as a pianist in the Empire was to compete in the competition every year.

To enter the competition, Melissa would either need to get a signature from her father or a royal family member, or become a commoner. Since she wasn’t planning to attend a noble academy, she thought it was unnecessary to get a signature from the head of her family. But upon further reading, she found out that even if one didn’t attend a noble academy, those who were 15 still needed a signature from their family’s head. This applied even to illegitimate children. Since some countries didn’t have a noble academy or had different systems, anyone could apply, regardless of nationality.

“It’s not realistic to get a signature as a noble. Even if I convinced them to let me be a pianist in the Empire, they would probably change their minds and marry me off somewhere before I won the Apollon Award. I need to hide the fact that I want to become a pianist in the Empire. The only options are to run away before entering the noble academy, or to fail deliberately and leave after becoming 16. I can attend the magic academy as a commoner.”

Based on Rose’s opinion, everyone started thinking about their options.

Melissa wanted to graduate from the magic academy. If she didn’t, her magic would be sealed, and she would have to wear heavy cuffs on both arms. She was worried about how her fingers would move once her magic flow changed. She didn’t want to be unable to play the piano the way she wanted.

“I’m just worried about what my family will do if I run away. If they really wanted to make use of me, they wouldn’t leave me alone like this. But I’d like to think they won’t go through the trouble of looking for me.”

“Nate’s aunt works at the Reeves border gate. I think she could help cover up the exit record if you ask her.”

“When Vanessa passed away, I inherited some personal assets from her family. With that, I could live as a commoner for 20 years. I grew up in a poor baron’s family, so I can help.”

Rose said she would come with Melissa if she decided to live as a commoner.

“Can we afford to hire you with that money?”

“Of course. Besides, I’d be able to hear your piano playing every day for free, and I’ll make sure you don’t get fooled by any bad people.”

Thus, their plan was set.

They would ask Nate’s aunt to help set up an imperial bank account and move the personal assets there. They would prepare for life in the Empire.

Melissa would cut her hair and make a wig with her current brown hair.

The name on the account would be “Mel,” a commoner’s name.

If the noble academy she entered in a year was in the Empire or another country, she would attend as a duchess’s daughter and then run away just before graduation.

If it was a local academy, she would return to the duke’s family, wear a wig, and live in the dormitory, avoiding family interactions. Then, just before graduation, she would run away.

She would then attend the Empire’s magic academy as a commoner, and when she turned 16, she would apply for the competition.

Rose said it was strange that Amelia, who appeared to be a kind and hardworking person, wasn’t training her magic manipulation for her sister’s sake, so she must be training secretly.

According to Rose, it was rare for someone like Melissa to have managed to stop her magic from leaking out so quickly. She would be able to avoid suspicion until she entered the magic academy.

Since Amelia, who had been vying for Melissa’s position as a duchess, was still around, it seemed unlikely that Melissa would be sent to a local noble academy. The Empire was the most familiar neighboring country, and it was likely that she would be ordered to attend an imperial academy. This news gave everyone a bit of a shock, and their excitement grew.

They thought of the Empire as a land of opportunity. The Empire’s capital had the finest schools in the world. Whether or not they could enter the magic academy depended on their skills. That’s why they all agreed that their lives were going to change dramatically from here on.