The Academy’s Crude Pink-Haired Martial Artist

I gave up on sleeping and downed the potion Sara prepared for me. Then, I quickly put on the training outfit and hoodie that the Academy had handed out and stepped outside right away.

Whoosh

With sandbags on my hips, I ran 10 laps.

Thud thud thud

Doing light bodyweight exercises in the open field.

I drank a low-grade potion midway and then ran 20 laps this time.

Puff puff

As usual, I came out at dawn and, by the time the sun rose, I sweated it all out, clearing my mind.

Exhale

Morning workouts are truly the best.

Huff…

Arriving at a secluded spot, I took off my hoodie and gathered my unkempt hair into a ponytail.

The wind brushing against my nape cools my sweat.

The sound of birds greeting the morning and the nearby fountain splashing water feels refreshing.

Splash splash

As I inhale, the crisp air fills my whole body, and as I exhale, a brisk breeze sweeps away my breath.

While it’s not as fresh as the air in the Eustetia Duchy, it’s noticeably better than in the islands.

The concentration of mana diffused in the air, and the occasional breeze definitely contribute to that.

Seeing as the device only works inside the Academy, there must be something magical surrounding this area.

Unless there’s a Dragon Heart buried underground or something.

Gasp

If that’s the case…

“I’d like to borrow it for a bit when needed!”

Chuckle

Lost in odd thoughts, I flopped onto a bench.

As I enjoyed the refreshing breeze and my breathing became calm…

“So… who’s been watching me like this?”

I turned my head towards the gaze that had been sneaking glances at me for a while. A thick tree. Behind it, I caught a glimpse of a squirrel’s tail peeking out.

Surprised by the unexpected figure, I quickly smiled and called out to its owner.

“Hey! Friend!”

The tail trembled with delight.

“Friend! Pina! Come over here!”

Like a tiny electric shock, the fur on her tail puffed up and then flattened. Soon after, a pair of frightened eyes cautiously peeked out.

I waved my hand playfully at her, and with her lips tightly puckered, she carefully approached and sat beside me.

After staring at Pina for a while, I finally spoke up.

“What are you doing here?”

Her alert brown eyes widened in surprise.

“Why were you spying on me?”

Shake shake

Pina shook her head furiously as she pulled out a device from her tucked-away tail.

Wait, why is a device coming from her tail?

As I was bewildered, she finally handed me the device after some tock-tock tapping.

[I’m sorry. But I wasn’t spying.]

“What do you mean, then?”

[I had things to do behind the tree.]

“No matter how urgent it is, doing that outside is a no-go. At least dig a hole and cover it up, you can’t just do whatever you want!”

A questioning look appeared on Pina’s face, her eyes growing wide, then her mouth opened and closed while making a gasp gasp sound. She hurriedly started tapping her device.

[Absolutely not! I really just had something I needed to do! Please believe me!]

Her tiny lips quivered as she expressed her innocence.

“Okay, okay. I’ll keep today’s incident a secret, but next time, be discreet about it. How embarrassing would it be for the one who has to clean that up?”

[Really not like that! Please believe me, I’m not that kind of Beastman!]

“Fine. I’ll trust you this time.”

Giggle

Seeing Pina near tears, I chuckled and let my tied-back hair down while leaning back on the bench.

I closed my eyes and let out a soft sigh.

There’s so much to think about.

Behrhaigen.

Stella Behrhaigen.

The Dark Mage chasing her, the snake.

The Dark Mage who knows about it, Adelia.

The movements of Vice Headmaster Leona, who resembles Arisa.

Only a day has passed since enrolling in the Academy.

And yet, so many thoughts have taken root.

Back home, I was only concerned about the secrets of the Eustetia family, but now that’s no longer a possibility.

Every single one of these burdens weighing on my mind feels interconnected with my former allies.

Thud

I’ve definitely become closer to them than before.

The target that was once a mere illusion is now clearer.

The closest one is Kaloso, that jerk, but that’s still fine. If I can just find one of them, the rest will be easier.

Chuckle

I don’t feel bothered by it at all.

In fact, I’m rather thrilled.

Maybe coming to the Academy was the right choice after all.

At this point, should I write a thank-you letter to my mother? A sudden gratitude might be awkward; I think I’ll write a letter just to check in… Hmm, it’d be better to send one to both my father and mother separately.

Ding ding

As the sound of the bell signaling 7 in the morning rang out, I realized I had sweated enough.

There isn’t much time to leisurely eat and wash up. I’d better just rinse off quickly and grab something to eat.

I quickly gathered my hair and flipped the hoodie’s hood over my head.

As soon as I shoved my feet into my shoes, I heard a tap-tap beside me.

“Eep?! Whoa…”

A solid object poked into my side.

Startled, I turned my head to see Pina holding out her device.

There weren’t any words written on it.

All I could see was a number pad.

“What? You want a phone number?”

Nod Nod

“Why do you want my number, even though you always get scared when you see me? Aren’t you afraid of me?”

Shake Shake

“Oh, so you just don’t like me then?”

Shake shake shake shake!!

Pina’s head shook as if it might break off.

Her expression was pleading, saying ‘Is that not okay…?’

There’s no reason I can’t share my number.

But…

“I don’t know my own number.”

I don’t know my own number. They said I could check it by pressing a button, but I completely forgot.

I hadn’t even turned on the device since talking to Yurasia last night.

“Please don’t make that face. I really don’t know.”

Pina’s mouth hung open in shock, and her pale face shivered as she kept bowing her head and tried to tuck the device back into her tail.

“I’m not rejecting you… Okay, it’d be quicker if you entered your number here.”

Resigned sigh

Reluctantly, I pulled out the device I had stuffed in my pocket and handed it to Pina.

“I don’t know how, so add your number to mine, and then you can send a message, and with that, my number will be saved on your device.”

That’s how Yurasia did it yesterday.

If Pina is skilled with devices, it should be easy for her.

Maybe that thought was correct, as Pina’s face lit up, and she clutched my device with both hands, starting to tap-tap-tap at the screen.

A moment later, she cheerfully passed the device back to me with a beaming smile.

“Did it work?”

In response to my question, Pina tapped the device again.

Ding

And with a light vibration, the black screen lit up.

On it read…

[Thank you! (squirrel smiling brightly) I think we can communicate much more comfortably now!]

A message Pina sent popped up.

The squirrel face peeking between the words was peculiarly cute.

“Okay then. See you in the classroom later. Good luck!”

[Yes! (squirrel nodding)]

After confirming the last message, I hurried my steps towards the dormitory.

I should have a light breakfast of pork cutlet sandwich.

*

I washed up but… I didn’t eat.

Before I was dragged away by Leona yesterday, I forgot to pass my card to Yurasia.

Having dried my hair poorly, I went to the restaurant and hurriedly punched the order on the kiosk, and managed to pull it off smoothly…!

But then I couldn’t eat.

Why the hell doesn’t the Academy just accept cash?

While I was grumbling to myself heading to class, I bumped into Stella, who looked rather disheveled.

“Ah, Eliaernes… you…”

“What’s up? Why do you look so pale? Did you not sleep well or something?”

“What…? What are you talking about all of a sudden?”

“Your face looks pale.”

“What? No I don’t! I slept just fine!”

Then again, it’s unlikely she struggled to sleep.

Having spent quite some time in a makeshift house, Stella slept soundly at the place I stayed, even drooling in her sleep.

The dormitory would undoubtedly have better facilities than that.

“Well, that’s a relief.”

“Were you busy yesterday?”

“Oh, I was kind of busy? Tired too.”

A faint glimmer appeared on Stella’s previously pale face.

“R-really? Heh… you were busy and tired, then that makes sense. Yeah.”

After mumbling a few more things under her breath, she hesitated and awkwardly blocked my path.

“Um, did you get a device too? What do you think? It’s kind of… amazing, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, it is amazing.”

“It’s an artifact that allows portable communication magic! Of course, it only works within the academy, but still, it’s incredible technology.”

Taking a step closer and fidgeting with the device in her pocket, Stella’s face turned a shade of red.

“I mean, such incredible technology would just feel wasted to let it rot… as a Mage, I find that kind of artifact really fascinating.”

What in the world is she trying to get at with such meaningless words?

This girl shouldn’t be asking me about this.

“How about you? Have you used messages or anything?”

“Yeah, I’ve used them.”

“Oh… so you’ve used it, huh? Who did you talk with?!”

“Yurasia.”

“Uh, Yurasia unnie?! When? Ohhh, you must have used it right after getting it!”

“Not exactly, I used it at night.”

“…huh?”

Stella cocked her head.

“At night…? With Yurasia unnie…? W-what… what did you… talk about?!”

What did we talk about?

Did we even talk about anything significant?

Nope.

“Not much, really.”

“N-n-not much…? Then why…?”

Stella’s mouth fell open in shock.

Her fingers, which had been fiddling with the device, started trembling, and her purple eyes glistened.

“Why do you want to know that?”

Even with my question, Stella remained silent, appearing to ponder something earnestly while continuing to fidget with the device.

“If you don’t have anything else to say, I’m leaving.”

When she still didn’t respond, I continued my steps.

Though time was tight, I still had some left.

If I could rush to the restaurant after getting the card from Yurasia, I’d have time enough to snag a sandwich.

Conversely, if Yurasia isn’t in class, I’d have no choice but to skip breakfast.

If that happens, I might need to… ask Stella…?

…What am I even thinking? It’d be better to just eat a flea’s liver instead.

*

Stella stood frozen in place, secretly wiping her tears as she glanced back.

She spotted Eliaernes walking away, fast-paced and without looking back.

Just in case, she searched her pockets.

Nothing rustle rustle was heard.

Her macarons… the ones she always gave were absent.

It’s not something she took for granted.

She was always grateful for them.

Not receiving them isn’t odd.

But…

But why did she have to not receive them today?

Stella clenched her trembling lips while recalling Eliaernes’ previous words.

I communicated with Yurasia unnie through the device at night, spending time chatting about trivial matters.

But there was not even a mention about her.

Yurasia didn’t even bother to send one message.

“…W-why…?”

Stella began to tremble. Wasn’t Yurasia unnie and I getting closer?

We even ate together, and had dessert too.

We’re even at the level of going to the bathroom together!

“Sniff”

Emotion choked her, triggering a wave of hiccups.

If it had come to this, she should’ve just told the truth from the start.

She should’ve asked for the unnie’s number.

She should’ve asked Eliaernes to pass her number along.

She had thought sounding too clingy would be off-putting, but she never expected it would turn out like this.

Had she acted too rude?

She treated her unnie carefully…

Did that come off as keeping a distance?

Or maybe it was glaring at Eliaernes, who was closest to her unnie, that made her look unlikable?

She had no idea.

She didn’t know what to do.

Stella, who had never had a proper friend before, found herself trapped in a dilemma of confusion and regret.

“Sigh”

At that moment…

“Loser.”

A rustling sound accompanied a melodious voice.

“Here, today’s macarons. They’re a bit lukewarm since I bought them yesterday… what? Are you crying?”

Then, pink hair floated before her hunched face. Shocked, Stella quickly wiped her face and looked up.

“Gasp! W-what?! Why are you back again?!”

Eliaernes stood there, her wide pink eyes filled with surprise.

“I came back to give you macarons. But why are you crying?”

“Sniff N-no! I’m not crying! Why would I cry?!”

“Then why do you look like you’re about to cry? I knew it! You’re getting bullied already, huh? I told you. It would be easy to get bullied because of that Jo-dong!”

Stella’s complexion turned as pale as a ghost.

“Wha-what? Bully…?”

“Yeah, be careful. Always speak nicely. Don’t start fights, okay? Live your life kindly. If anyone bothers you after that, let me know.”

Eliaernes comforted Stella by patting her back and handed her two macarons.

Rustle rustle

Stella, holding the slightly squished and lukewarm macarons, suddenly found tears forming in her eyes.

“What can you do if I tell you…?”

“At least I can do more than you can. So, listen to me. If you do, good things will happen, you know?”

“Sigh Stop talking like a know-it-all.”

“This is all valuable advice that will help you, you know? There’s nothing bad about listening to me, you brat.”

Even as she endured the teasing and know-it-all remarks, Stella felt her mood lighten.

Strangely, the corners of her mouth began to lift.

Trying to hide her upturned lips, Stella bowed her head differently than usual.

“…I really don’t like you.”

“I don’t like you either.”

Eliaernes, who laughed lightly, stepped back.

The faint scent of shampoo lingered in the air from her not-quite-dry hair.

The scent was comforting.

Even though it was presumably the same shampoo, it smelled distinctly different, making Stella look up.

Two steps away, Eliaernes was smiling.

Her eyes narrowed into a gentle grin and the corners of her mouth curled up into a mischievous smile.

It was annoyingly charming. She felt like hitting her.

Yet, to Stella today, that smile felt exceedingly warm.

“I’m going ahead. Don’t be a crybaby and get in there already.”

“Hey! I’m not crying!”

As Eliaernes walked away, Stella called out, flapping her arms.

Ding

Right then, her device chimed.

[Oh no… what do I do? I was so out of it yesterday I forgot to send a message… (dog sniffling) I’m so sorry…]

It was a message from Yurasia.

“Sniff So she was busy too…”

A pleasant sound escaped Stella’s lips.

Wiping her nose with her sleeve, Stella put the macarons in her pocket, chuckling as she tapped her device.

[No worries. It’s okay. I fell asleep quickly too.]

Then…

“Hm… sending this feels too stiff…?”

[Let’s cheer up today!]

“That feels a bit too lively…”

[Have a great class today! (cat holding a cheer stick)]

“Ah, this is good.”

After hitting the send button, Stella kept her eyes glued to the device while waiting.

And then ding

[Yes! You too keep up the good work! (dog holding a cheer stick)]

Finally, after confirming Yurasia’s reply, she stepped outside with a calm heart.

“There’s no way unnie would leave me out… heh.”

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