Alves didn't seem very happy after he heard where Nunnaly was going. I'm guessing that as a Royal Guard he won't be able to visit her at all due to how far Haare probably is from the capital. Maybe he thought that, with her determination in being the best, she was planning on the same as him or at least to work as a court wizard or something. Anything within the capital so he could see her during his time off or if his work happens to coincide with hers. Despite how much of a jerk he has been, their little rivalry was kinda cute and it seemed like he mellowed out a bit as he got older, if that last time skip is anything to go by that is. I kinda feel for him, especially after seeing his dejected face on that last page. Seems like the only one that could have noticed how heartbroken he seemed was the Prince, but since we didn't see the Prince's face we don't know if he noticed it either. Knowing that the one person that you felt equal to, especially someone you fell for, is going to live a life you won't be able to follow probably hurts a lot.
@tgb089 I think the requirement for offensive magic is in case of an emergency situation, like if the receptionist in question needs to protect themselves from an unruly guest or if they get attacked by monsters while out and about. I'm not entirely sure why it's necessary other than for those two possible reasons, but maybe it'll be better explained later. I mean, even if you're not going to be a receptionist for adventurers/quest hunters in a settlement that isn't surrounded by walls, it doesn't hurt to be able to protect yourself. It just so happens that Nunnaly went above and beyond what was necessary by aiming for first place(and technically succeeding) and thus becoming one of the most skilled magic practitioners of her age, if not the most skilled one there.
@Serverclosed I kinda want the two of them to end up together, so I wouldn't mind such a cheesy line from him. If nothing else, she makes a great foil for Alves, and the two of them consider each others equals if their rivalry is anything to go by. I'm a sucker for romance in general, and the rivals/enemies-turned-lovers trope is one of my old favorites thanks to Kaichou Wa Maid-Sama and, more specifically, Special A. Skip Beat also helped, as did Shugo Chara. Now that I think about it, a lot of my first romance series I got into were basically that trope it seems. Explains a lot...