This Reincarnation Requires a Subscription Fee

To think that he had once prided himself on being a genius, only to realize that someone of this caliber existed. Memories of his past arrogance flashed through his mind, especially how recently he had been lazing around, thinking, “Even if I take it easy, I still outperform others. I might as well slack off.”

But to this kind of genius, he must look like nothing more than a dull stone. His face flushed with embarrassment at the thought.

* * *

‘What’s going on? Did I get a lot wrong…?’

Seeing the scholar’s face turn beet red as he checked my exam paper, I anxiously fidgeted with my feet. He had asked why I wrote that answer for the last problem, which must mean I had written something utterly ridiculous. His expression clearly read, *“How could a stupid kid like you come up with such a nonsensical answer?”*

I felt completely wronged.

‘Who knew the test would be subjective instead of multiple-choice!’

If it had been multiple-choice, my legendary intuition would have easily led me to the correct answers. But when I received the exam paper with just five questions and no options to choose from, my heart sank. I barely managed to keep my wits about me and scribbled down the numbers that felt right, but I knew they were unlikely to be correct.

*Sigh.*

A sigh escaped me.

The reason I decided to take the Ivory Tower’s exam in the first place was to salvage Reshia’s tarnished reputation. Most people now suspected me of being a “fake saint who can’t even wield holy power.” In such a situation, no one would listen to anything I said.

‘A saint should be in a position where it’s easy to gain support.’

All I’d need to do is say something vague and follow it up with, “This is a message from Heaven!” That would easily win over the temple and any devout believers. But right now, I couldn’t even enjoy that advantage.

‘That’s why I thought passing the Ivory Tower’s exam might help restore some of my reputation.’

But it seemed I had botched the exam, and all my efforts would be in vain…

“Lady Reshia!”

Just as I was about to give up and step down from the chair, a hand suddenly grabbed mine.

“Please, teach me!”

‘Huh…?’

Teach… what?

* * *

‘This is unbelievable.’

She got them all right! Every single answer was correct! I was still in shock, my mind reeling from the revelation. Although the official results hadn’t been released yet, a perfect score would undoubtedly mean she passed.

‘Legendary intuition… so this is what it’s capable of!’

It seemed I had received a fantastic reward for donating a large amount of Heaven Coins at once.

‘I’m really lucky.’

As I stepped out of the exam room with a smile, I immediately heard a voice nearby.

“You must have done well on the exam?”

It was a young boy’s voice. I quickly turned my head and saw a neatly dressed boy with red hair and golden eyes, leaning against the wall with a smile. He looked to be about six or seven years old. While he was older than me, he was still just a kid, so I didn’t feel the need to be overly formal. Besides, he had spoken to me casually first.

“Yep.”

I nodded in response, and the boy approached me. Now that we were face-to-face, I could see his features more clearly. From a distance, I hadn’t noticed, but up close, he looked very similar—no, strikingly similar—to someone I knew.

“…Servian Kol?”

The boy looked exactly like how I imagined the Spirit Sorcerer Servian, one of my old comrades, would look if he were a child. Hearing my murmur, the boy touched his cheek with his hand.

“You got it right. He’s my father, and I take after him a lot.”

My eyes widened.

“Oh! Then…!”

“Nice to meet you. I’m Leonid Kol.”

The red-haired boy, Leonid, kindly extended his hand for a handshake. I was so shocked that I didn’t even think to take his hand, my mouth hanging open in surprise.

‘Servian’s son? Leonid!’

I had seen baby Leonid in my past life. Back then, he was just a wrinkly newborn with barely any hair.

‘That baby has grown up this much?’

It was hard to believe, considering the wrinkly little thing I remembered. 

‘By my calculations, he must be seven years old now.’

I couldn’t help but marvel at how fast children grow.

Leonid, seemingly realizing that I was too dazed to shake hands, retracted his hand and smiled.

“You really are as dumb as they say, huh? I was hoping you might be sharp, but you’re just a typical four-year-old.”

“…Huh?”

I couldn’t believe my ears at the harsh evaluation that contrasted with his gentle tone.

“Did you just call me dumb?”

“I don’t get it. Why would Duke Elpinard give someone like you a chance? He’s a very fair person.”

Leonid muttered to himself, stroking his chin as if he hadn’t even heard my question. His gaze swept over me, analyzing me like an object, which left me speechless.

‘How did that adorable baby turn into such a snarky kid?’

I suppressed my disbelief and started jumping up and down in front of Leonid, waving my hands in front of his face. I needed to protest this uncalled-for insult immediately.

“Hey! Did you just call me dumb? Answer me! Huh?”

‘There’s someone here!’ 

After waving my hands energetically, Leonid finally locked eyes with me, stopping his scrutinizing gaze. Though his face wore a gentle smile, it lacked warmth.

“I don’t know how you managed to convince the Duke, but I don’t like kids like you. Being lumped together with you lowers the standard.”

“What…?”

Even if he was Servian’s son, I couldn’t just stand there and take it. I was ready to roll up my sleeves and start a fight when the closed door of the exam room suddenly opened, and the scholar who had supervised my exam stepped outside.

“Leonid? Lady Reshia?”

He noticed the tense standoff between me and Leonid and tilted his head in curiosity. I was about to speak up to set things straight, but Leonid beat me to it.

“Dr. Lukas, I came by to greet Lady Elpinard since I heard she was taking the exam.”

Leonid put his arm around my shoulders in a friendly manner, and Dr. Lukas smiled warmly, seemingly pleased by the gesture. I was so shocked that I could only stare at Leonid with my mouth agape, but Lukas seemed completely taken in by his charm.

“Ah, I see. The Kol family and the Elpinard family have a long history together.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Leonid acted like a sweet, well-mannered boy, a stark contrast to his earlier behavior.

‘Wow, what a sly fox!’

He even inherited this cunningness from his father!

* * *

I was fuming as I left the Ivory Tower, but my anger quickly dissipated when I saw Axel waiting for me outside. I was so surprised to see him that I forgot all about my irritation, my eyes widening in disbelief.

“Why are you here? Where’s Lily?”

The Ivory Tower had very restricted access. Only students studying there, scholars teaching and researching, and direct descendants of the Elpinard family who had founded the tower could enter without special permission. Since Lily wasn’t allowed inside, we had planned to meet at the entrance after the exam was over.

But instead of Lily, there was Axel, casually waving at me. It was naturally puzzling.

“I was curious about how you did on the exam, so I offered to come and get you.”

“Why didn’t you wait inside?”

Since Axel was a direct descendant of the Elpinard family, he should have had no problem waiting inside the tower.

“Today, I’m here not as Elpinard’s heir but as your ‘older brother’ who came to pick you up after your exam. It felt more appropriate to wait outside.”