NOVEL NEXT Chapter 20
“So… no, what do you mean?”
Inside the dean’s office.
Standing dean opposite me as I sit in her chair, spinning a pen while organizing my thoughts, suddenly she spoke to me.
“Huh? I didn’t say anything?”
“I just mentioned that we need to keep surveillance.”
“Wow, that just slipped out of my mouth without me realizing.”
“You think about that?”
Seeing the dean’s flustered expression, I awkwardly cough and slowly rise from my seat. Anyway, if my thoughts came out like mumbling, she must have a rough idea of the request I’m about to make.
“Please watch over Rin from Class A, Year 3.”
“…”
“I don’t need the little details, but just figure out where she goes after school. I don’t need her grades, but I need to know how skilled she is in swordsmanship and magic.”
I handed the dean a paper with the recording on it, knowing she didn’t understand why she had to do such a thing.
“I’ll stop asking for favors, so please.”
Of course, I have a separate recording, but it was my way of expression, and the dean, looking uneasy, eventually snatched the paper from me.
This might create tension with the Reiros family, and I worried that if I pushed her too hard with other requests, it would show clearly on my face.
“Alright, I get it. I can keep an eye on her within the academy, and even if I don’t know the details of where she goes outside, I can at least confirm that she left. As for swordsmanship and magic, I can casually ask the professors about her.”
Good.
I can’t do much about her going outside the academy, but Rin doesn’t frequently go out, and when she does, she always goes with friends.
‘Then there wouldn’t be a big problem.’
After all, there’s still ten years left until Rin becomes the master of the army and brings destruction to the world.
‘I need to confirm whether Rin really changes on her own or if she is caught up in something.’
To know that, I needed to observe Rin closely.
But doing it actually made me feel a pang of self-loathing.
‘What am I doing?’
Feeling pathetic, a sigh escaped my lips. I justify my actions by saying if I interfere deeply in Rin’s academy life, different variables from my past life might emerge.
Truth is, I just didn’t want to be around Rin.
‘Last time, the place where my heart got stabbed hurt again.’
I could bear the seasickness and nausea that had gotten a bit better, but it seemed like a new illness had arisen. Especially when she stared at me with those emotionless eyes that pierced my skin, I instinctively shrank back.
‘At 28, I’m afraid of a kid.’
I was annoyed, but there was no helping it.
The trauma of death weighed on me more heavily than I thought.
“……Having a crush is quite strange.”
“What?”
Seeing the dean’s face smiling softly made me frown involuntarily. Wondering if she had lost her mind or what, I asked her back, and she startled, shaking her head that it was nothing.
‘Guess it could appear that way.’
Well, it honestly didn’t matter since no one else but me and the dean would know anyway.
*
Recently, Rin was getting thinner by the day.
Her once plump and flawless white skin was becoming rough, and even after washing her hair with soap, it lost its luster.
‘Why…’
Her close friends and even the male students secretly harboring feelings for her were heartbroken over these changes, but in Rin’s mind, there was only one boy.
‘Why me…’
Despite saying to sort out all relationships, how could that even happen? Still, I could understand why she felt that way.
Ever since entering the academy, she hadn’t been able to spend time with Daniel like before, and even Ares didn’t seem to regard Daniel at the academy.
‘Dumb Ares.’
I blamed him once, but still.
So Rin wanted to start again.
Choosing Daniel for the second exam wasn’t about benefiting the team.
Actually, it was Rin who was surprised to see him moving with such confidence.
In the town’s duel, Daniel had a good build, but due to his timid personality, he could never swing his sword correctly and always lost to Ares.
‘I wanted to help him.’
The reason Rin wanted to choose Daniel was also to give him points since he was struggling with his grades, but more importantly, it was about starting over.
‘I want to approach Daniel again.’
Sorting out relationships was Daniel’s own wish, and he had also reached some sort of realization at this academy, so I finally understood that now.
It truly pained my heart, but if that was Daniel’s wish…
So she wanted to restart.
As they encountered each other for the first time at the academy, she tried to suggest starting over, but…
‘He ran away.’
Daniel didn’t even show his face and just bolted.
Who knows how much of a shock that was for the girl?
Three days had passed.
Rin was unable to eat properly or study, suffering heartaches.
‘I confessed already.’
[Why did you give up so easily and started dating another girl? Why? How long have we spent together! We’ve always been together! That shouldn’t change!]
When she visited Daniel’s room late at night, she didn’t mean to ask him to be her boyfriend, but it was almost like a direct confession of her feelings.
And yet, he avoids her?
Her heart ached so much that she felt like she would just die.
Bad feelings kept bubbling up inside her.
At that moment, her best friend Hare approached her awkwardly with a smile.
“Rin, we’re going to a café downtown today! They brought in pastries from the capital, and there are a ton of different kinds!”
Hare was trying to sound cheerful. Rin was going to shake her head to decline but suddenly recalled something and replied she understood.
So after school.
Rin, who thought she was just going with Hare, was taken aback by the growing group.
A total of ten people.
It felt like she wasn’t going out for a date, but with a golden ratio of five girls and five boys.
She glanced at Hare, implying what kind of plan this was, but Hare was scratching her cheek with a surprised expression.
“No, the moment I said you were going, everyone wanted to join too.”
She leaned in and whispered.
“They’re just trying to cheer you up. Let’s not be like that, and just go together.”
“……Okay.”
Not really in the mood for such a joke.
Even so, when Rin came into the downtown area, she sneaked a glance toward the academy.
‘As I thought.’
Recently, she felt a strange mana trailing her, but once she stepped outside the academy, it disappeared entirely.
Though it seemed like someone was watching her from a distance, they didn’t appear to be doing anything else other than observe.
Wondering if they would follow her out to the outside, she thought it seemed they were only keeping an eye on her within the academy.
‘Time to start tracing back.’
Having watched from so far, it was unclear whether they were looking at her or other students, but having the surveillance disappear when she left the academy confirmed it.
‘It seemed to be around the dean’s office area.’
She didn’t know their intention, but she planned on going back and trying to find evidence today, entering the café with her friends.
In front of the menu, the boys rushed towards Rin.
“I’ll buy! Rin, what do you want?”
“This! It’s really delicious. It was a total life pick last time I came.”
“How about something like this? Eating only desserts will just make you bloated and gain weight! Ah, of course, I don’t mean that you gained weight or anything! On the contrary, you…”
‘What is he talking about?’
They were saying something, but unfortunately, it didn’t come through clearly.
“Today, I’m paying for Rin!”
Hare hugged her tightly, acting as her cover. The other girls behind them were scoffing, including Elise and Adriana, who were fond of Ares.
“Being overshadowed by other girls is a new experience for me. It’s not bad, I suppose?”
“Elise always stands out wherever she goes.”
Elise, with her radiant golden hair and haughty attitude, exuded an aura far superior to other nobles, finding this a fun new experience, while Adriana adjusted her glasses as she responded.
Everyone sat at the table and started chatting.
The boys did their best to lighten the mood with funny stories or reminiscing about past incidents, and indeed carried the conversations well.
“……”
Yawn.
“That’s fun, but don’t be too down.”
Rin listened quietly without much reaction, while Elise, obviously bored, yawned, and Adriana awkwardly laughed, trying to console her, but that only hurt deeper.
“Are you guys seriously aiming for her?”
Finally, Hare chimed in.
Usually, the boys were focused solely on Rin.
Elise?
Stunning.
Of course, she radiated beauty and grace while excelling in every aspect, truly a superhuman.
Adriana?
A girl with big glasses and braided hair. To some, she resembled Eve in atmosphere and figure, but their grades were completely opposite. She was a genius at magic.
While it would be nice if both did well even without Rin, those two were already enchanted by the monster Ares and didn’t even notice other boys.
How could one approach two people already holed up in an impregnable fortress? That’s why they were targeting Rin, who was so beautiful that it was easy to approach despite her being a commoner.
“We’re not even looking at you girls.”
The reddish-brown-haired girl named Mei, sitting next to Hare and sipping her coffee, groused.
In the past, she may have appeared to be a model student with a friendly image, but she was actually the leader of a tough crowd and now gave no sh*ts about hiding it.
‘Why am I…’
Even though she was also in Class A, if someone asked her if she wanted to join in, of course, she would say no. But thanks to that recording!
Since her aunt, the dean, ordered her to accompany Rin if she went outside, she found herself involuntarily involved.
Was it her complaints? One of the boys shifted the topic.
“Mei, you were amazing in the second exam! I really didn’t expect you two to win!”
“Wow, I was cheering while watching.”
“That wasn’t me! It was Daniel! Well, it was a team effort, but…”
Perk up.
Rin straightened her posture and subtly turned to Mei, but the boys seemed to think that was some signal and excitedly kept talking.
“But what about that Daniel guy?”
“Pretty impressive for a commoner, huh?”
Though it didn’t sit right with me, everyone already knew Daniel was Rin’s childhood friend, so they began to flatter him, and Rin’s expression started to soften.
Hare secretly gave a thumbs up, signaling them to keep it up, but…
“However, that guy’s been going in and out of the dean’s office lately. Didn’t he cause trouble again?”
One clueless boy snickered and tossed that out.
Under the piercing gazes, Mei casually replied.
“He was just going to confirm something he asked the dean. Nothing serious.”
With Mei backing it up being related to the dean, her words carried credibility. Just as the atmosphere was subsiding, Elise looked at Rin and spoke.
“You like that guy, don’t you?”
Pfft! Cough! Wh-wh-what…?!
Rin’s face, which had lost vitality, instantly turned crimson as she stared at Elise, prompting Elise to continue speaking.
“I came here with Adriana to tell you about that today. Try to do well! That way Ares might give up.”
“That’s a bit too direct.”
Adriana reprimanded her, but Elise crossed her legs and spoke.
“I’ll help you if you do well.”
“Ah, alright.”
Rin, who was clueless about romance and didn’t understand why Ares was mentioned, didn’t refuse the offer to help.
“Way to ruin the mood.”
Mei spat irritably.
She used to be unable to speak a word around girls close to Ares like Elise, but now it was different.
Since her character was already exposed, and thanks to the shocking intimidation Daniel had caused, she had managed to gain some courage.
To put it simply, she had grown some guts.
Elise furrowed her brow and, seeing the surrounding students, sighed and nodded.
“Then let me tell you a fun story.”
Elise’s fun story, which was nothing like her aura, had the others eagerly listening.
“So, I directly captured him myself, and that’s how it ended.”
“……That was supposed to be a fun story?”
The mood became even colder.
The story was about how Elise caught a stalker who had been following her since childhood by setting a trap.
The stalker had been watching Elise’s every move, making notes, and keeping her in sight. But when they finally met, he was so timid he couldn’t say a word and instead fled, which was quite a bizarre tale.
“Yuck! That’s gross.”
“Is there really someone like that?”
“Isn’t he insane?”
“I think they call that sexual deviance or something.”
While they were busy expressing their horror, something strange began to sprout in Rin’s mind. The problems that had never made sense began to knit together, her head feeling clear.
[Daniel started to avoid her now.]
[Recently, someone has been watching her.]
[It’s probably the dean.]
These were Rin’s main pieces of information. And the newfound clues from the café today coupled with the knowledge she had gathered before began to converge.
[The dean almost expelled Daniel due to false accusations.]
[Daniel visits the dean’s office often. It seems he’s asking for something.]
[There are those with special conditions that act as sexual deviants.]
[Some people approach the one they like by stalking because of their timidity.]
Suddenly, she jumped up.
“Wha-what?!”
“What’s wrong?”
Hare, who was beside her, and Elise in front were startled by Rin’s sudden movement. Still, she couldn’t even mutter an apology as she dashed outside.
‘Could it be, could it be?’
A thrilling sensation began to ripple through her.
She needed to confirm this.
It was still too weak to be certain with just this.
However, she felt as if she had reached some answer, like inserting a key into a keyhole. All that was left was to turn it.
So Rin dashed back to the academy and headed straight for the dean’s office.
Where she would hear half the truth.
*
The next day.
“Hey guys!”
Rin’s bright voice echoed through the corridor. It was a stark contrast to the lifeless appearance she had shown until yesterday, now overflowing with energy like her usual self.
“I’m sorry for just leaving yesterday. In exchange, I’ll treat you all today!”
“Whoa!”
“Rin is the best!”
The boys were excited at the idea that they could once again have something resembling a date with Rin, while Hare smiled at the sight of Rin returning to her original self.
As they walked down the corridor chatting about trivial matters, they happened to pass by Daniel’s group.
Within that group, Hare felt proud.
‘She’s finally back to normal.’
Daniel mumbled upon seeing that, to which Tana and Eve replied.
“Why are they so excited?”
“Guess something good happened.”
“Must be a celebration!”
And Rin thought to herself.
‘If I acknowledge him, he’ll feel burdened and run away again. It’s alright, so let’s take it slow. Hmm, I see someone watching from outside? If I pose like this, wouldn’t I look prettier?’
Sadly, the country girl was on her way to a gradual breakdown.