NOVEL NEXT Chapter 297: Unintended Cohabitation
༺ Unintended Cohabitation ༻
“Gasp, gasp…”
“W-why are you like this?”
As Frey struggled to breathe, he lowered his head with a pale expression. Seeing Frey suddenly gasping for breath, Aria asked him with a slightly bewildered look.
‘I can’t breathe. I can’t…’
However, Frey’s condition only worsened atAria’s questioning voice.
“…Where does it hurt?”
Aria, who had been silently observing him, finally asked quietly.
“N-no. It’s nothing.”
Hearing a hint of concern in her voice startled him, he bit his lip and turned his head sideways.“It’s strange.”
After scrutinizing Frey for a while, she eventually tilted her head.
Having observed Frey’s deteriorating condition since childhood, she instinctively sensed that something was wrong.
– Crackle…
In that situation, Frey closed his eyes tightly and exerted force on his left arm.
– Shaaa…
Then, dark mana began to flow from his arm.
“…So, it’s a side effect, huh?”
Seeing that, Aria, lowering her eyes, muttered in a cold voice.
“That’s right. That’s what it is.”
“…Ugh.”
At that moment, a cold energy once again penetrated Frey’s chest.
‘H-has the curse of Aishi recurred?’
Thinking along those lines, Frey began to feel his chest, but he felt no chill.
In a way, it was inevitable.
It was because it was a phenomenon rooted in psychological reasons.
“Let me get straight to the point.”
Aria finally spoke after silently watching Frey confusedly touching the area around his heart.
“I’m enrolling as a first-year student starting today.”
“…”
“So, I came to get your stamp as the professor in charge.”
Then, she took out a piece of paper from her pocket.
“I’ve already received permission from the dean and board of directors. So, you have no right to refuse. Just stamp it already and stop trying to weasel out of it…”
“A-A-A-Aria.”
“Huh?”
Aria spoke with a firm voice, thinking Frey might be up to something again. She was startled when he suddenly called her name and grabbed her hand.
“C-Can you listen to me for a moment?”
“Wh-What are you doing right now?”
Unfazed, Frey tightened his grip on her hand and began to speak.
“Please, don’t enroll in the academy…”
“What?”
“P-Please. I’m begging you…”
Slowly rising from his seat, he pleaded with an earnest gaze and voice.
“…W-what is this?”
Aria’s gaze slightly wavered as she observed his expression.
“What the hell are you doing…”
It was the appearance of her older brother, whom she had longed to see again and thought she would never see again.
The one who used to carry her when her legs hurt.
The one who always shared delicious food, dividing it evenly onto her plate.
And when she stumbled and got scratched, he was the one who would rush over, terrified, and blow on the injury before she could even cry.
He was making that same expression and gaze at this moment.
“It’s a dangerous time now. You shouldn’t come.”
“What?”
“Several worst-case scenarios could occur. There might be casualties, and in the worst case, we might fail. Right now, everything is uncertain…”
“W-wait a minute! What in the world are you saying!”
However, the words coming out of his mouth were too difficult to understand.
Scenarios? Casualties? Uncertainty?
What in the world was he talking about?
“What kind of trouble are you trying to cause?”
No matter how much she thought about it, Aria could only speculate that Frey, as a key figure, was orchestrating a massive incident.
Then, there was also Ruby’s warning of a grand conspiracy that could endanger the entire academy.
“You bastard!.”
Therefore, Aria strengthened her slowly chipping determination and thought quietly to herself.
‘Is this… effective in any way?’
“Uh, uh.”
‘Despite everything I’ve said so far, she hasn’t batted an eye at all… Mhm?’
Then, her eyes widen when she hears a sound coming from in front of her.
“I-I’m sorry, Aria…”
Frey looked at her, trembling with a pale and aghast face.
“I’m sorry as your brother…”
With an expression filled with guilt and concern, he left those words behind, before lowering his head.
“Now you’re pretending to be hurt?”
“Sorry… I’m Sorry, Aria…”
“Don’t mention my name with that mouth of yours!”
Aria, unable to bear the strange sight of his brother trembling like a frightened cat, pushed Frey’s hand away, and stood up from her seat.
“Heik…!”
Frey, with a frightened expression, hunched.
“It’s my fault…”
Then, he closes his eyes tightly and speaks in a trembling voice.
“I don’t know what’s going on, but your scheme won’t fool me. You thought I’d accept you again just because you come to me now and say that…”
– Tremble…
“…”
At first, Aria looked down at him with a still, cold gaze, but eventually, seeing Frey trembling, she reached out to him.
“Wh-Why are you doing this? Did you eat something bad…”
Unconsciously, Aria tried to caress his pale cheek that looked so cold…
“…!”
As her hand moved closer, Frey, with a terrified expression, instinctively shielded his face with both arms. Startled by his actions, Aria stepped back in confusion.
“Ugh…”
The frightened gaze in Frey’s eyes was quietly directed towards her through the arms covering his face.
– Ssk…
His arms also covered his right cheek.
It was the very spot Aria had struck a few months ago when she declared she would cut her ties with Frey.
– Swish, whoosh…
Frey’s frightened eyes darted back and forth.
“…”
Only then did Aria reminisce about the events from a few months ago.
‘Come to think of it… What happened after that?’
On that day, in that final moment, she summoned weapons made of stellar mana into the air, filled with murderous intent.
She then lost consciousness and, in the next moment, found herself lying in the temporary headquarters of the Hero Party.
In other words, her memory wasn’t clear.
‘What happened that day… and what happened afterwards?’
Aria started to break in cold sweat as she tried to recall the memories.
– Ssk…
As Frey cautiously lowered his arms in front of her, She shifted her gaze towards him.
“Huah… Gasp…”
Frey continues to breathe heavily as he leans against the desk in a desperate attempt to regain his composure.
– Rustle, rustle…
Then he quickly rummaged through his pocket.
It was because sometimes, in moments of panic, he had a go-to item that he would hold to regain a sense of security.
“…Ah.”
However, as Frey was about to take out that object from his pocket, he stopped abruptly upon seeing Aria in front of him.
– Squeeze…..
Pulling out Aria’s handkerchief in front of her could lead to an irreversible situation.
– Rustle, rustle…
So, as Frey forcibly tucked the handkerchief back into his pocket, he checked out Aria’s reaction, only to furrow his eyebrows when he felt something else in his pocket.
– Ssk…
Eventually, what came out of his pocket was a letter.
[☆Sincerely Yours, Glare☆]
It was a letter from Glare, decorated with sparkling star stickers that he received a day before he came to the academy.
It was another letter sent to ‘Professor Frey’, different from the letter sent to the ‘Hero of Money’.
– Hellow, Professor!
Right now, I’m on a little duty? Mission? Or something like that!
“Hmm…”
Although it was a letter he hastily took out instead of Aria’s handkerchief, as Frey read it, he began to regain his composure.
– When I told my Master that I had swallowed the stigma of slavery, she hit me on the forehead! But now I can’t undo it, so there’s nothing I can do!
“…Pftt.”
Perhaps it’s because of her peculiar way of writing that makes it so cute. Which he wondered where she learned it from.
Or was it the relief that came from seeing a new helper?
Or maybe it was because she happened to be the same age as Aria and felt like his own younger sister.
– Anyway, I’ll try my best to return as soon as possible! So, don’t be too disappointed without me!
Anyway, that letter had undeniably helped him come out of his panicked state.
“Sorry.”
Frey, still pale, but sitting straight on the chair, looked up at Aria with a tired expression and spoke.
“I guess I’m having a hard time. No, I’m exhausted… No, that’s not it.”
However, he began to ramble again.
“You are having a hard time? Exhausted? What in the world did you do?”
“…..S-Sorry.”
“Forget that. Is that a letter from that girl, Glare?”
While silently gazing at Frey, Aria asked in a slightly trembling voice.
“It is that little kid who lately keeps following bro— you around, right?”
“…”
Frey closed his eyes for a moment and remained silent at those words.
– Thud…!
“…Take it.”
As his heart beat rapidly again, Frey weakly stamped the seal and spoke.
“Let’s talk again when I have time.”
“W-wait a moment.”
“Forget about what happened here today. Nothing happened.”
Aria was about to say something to Frey, but when she noticed that Frey’s eyes were trembling as he glanced at her, she clenched her fists and turned her back.
“Sorry, please leave…”
Behind her, Frey’s trembling voice reached her ears.
– Ssk…
In the end, Aria left without saying anything, but suddenly she slowly turned her head and glanced behind her.
“Huah… Gasp…”
Frey lowered his head and breathed heavily with a pale expression on his face, looking quite hurt.
“…Pftt.”
Then, when he stared at the letter by his side, Frey found his smile back.
– Creak…
Aria watched him blankly for a moment, and when Frey, who had been looking down at the letter for a while, raised his head, she hurried out of the room.
“…”
And silence filled the room.
“No matter how much I think about it, something feels strange…”
In that situation, still holding onto his pounding heart, Frey took a deep breath and displayed his information in front of him.
[Stats]
Name: Frey
Strength: 10
Mana: 10
Intelligence: ???
Mental Strength: 0.1~1
Passive Status: Terminal Illness / Mental Strength Degradation LV MAX
Disposition: Hero
Goodness Stat: 100
“Ah…”
Frey’s complexion darkened abruptly as he checked his mental strength.
.
.
.
.
.
– Creak…
Stepping out of the waiting room and into the hallway, Frey quietly surveyed his surroundings.
– Ssk…
Because of that, the gazes of some students and professors who were in the faculty office were now fixed on him.
“Ugh.”
Frey sat down in his seat with his face turning pale, and muttered in a low voice while clutched his head.
“From now on until the next performance evaluation… I have to live as a second-year student…”
Despite becoming a ‘Special Lecturer’ and obtaining access to the ‘Professor’s Dormitory’ and ‘Faculty Office Pass’, Frey’s official status remained that of an academy student.
Having to live as a student for a week and then as a professor for the next week, coupled with this mysterious debuff, was akin to a death sentence.
“The next main scenario is the student council president election, and I haven’t finished preparing for the performance evaluation yet… Damn it all…”
Main Quest: Student Council President Election
Quest Content: Prevent Alice from becoming the Student Council President!
To make matters worse, as soon as the entrance ceremony scenario ended, the next important scenario began, so Frey’s anxiety was reaching its peak.
– Grit, grit…
Due to the traumas accumulated since his childhood, Frey had been suffering with various neurosis, mental fragility, anxiety disorders, and auditory hallucinations.
Therefore, he could only forcibly suppress the desire to go crazy or give up everything by utilizing his mental strength, which was pushing between 9 and 10.
However, if his mental strength became fixed between 0.1 and 1, it was clear that something drastic would happen.
“Look, it’s Frey.”
“Is he really sitting in the faculty office? How shameless.”
“So, starting tomorrow, he will join class 2A, right? I’m really looking forward to it.”
“I’m dying to know how the commoners will treat him.”
Frey glanced around nervously with a pale expression on his seat. He lowered his eyes in fear when he heard gossip about himself from afar.
Just a few minutes ago, this action of his was something that would have been unthinkable.
‘K-Kania… I should contact Kania. No, Lulu? Is Lulu closer to me?’
He shuddered at the feeling of everyone’s eyes crawling around his body like bugs, and began to think urgently.
‘I should also check the special system… Maybe there’s a way to overcome this. But, no matter how much I think about it, how can I find tranquility…’
“Frey? What’s going on?”
Amidst the chaos in his head, a familiar voice reached him from the side.
“W-Why are you biting your nails like th—”
“Sister Isolet”
“…!?”
Realizing that Isolet was looking at him with a worried expression, Frey urgently grabbed her hand and spoke.
“Why is your hand so cold…”
“Take me somewhere.”
“Wh-where to?”
“…To the faculty dormitory.”
Hearing this, Isolet made a perplexed expression.
“I don’t know why you’re acting like this, but if you’re sick, you should go to the infirmary…”
“I’m scared.”
“What?”
“Everything is so scary. I feel like I’m going to go insane…”
Isolet’s gaze slowly started to tremble as Frey looked at her desperately.
“I want to go to the quietest place possible… I need someone who almost never gives me trauma… Please…”
“Wh-what’s going on… Hik!”
“Please take me there.”
When Frey pleaded and buried his face in her stomach, she bit her lips in concern.
“But, the room isn’t ready yet for an unexpected addition like you…”
“I-It’s an order.”
When Frey raised the ring of oath in his right hand and summoned all the strength he had left to make a dignified expression, Isolet fell silent.
“Take me… right away… You can see this ring, right? Hurry up, follow my order.”
‘This… It can’t be helped. He doesn’t seem in a good state, but for now, I’ll play along…’
“You’re my property… Isolet.”
‘Mm-hmm. I can’t help it. It’s an emergency.’
Two professors entered the quiet faculty dormitory as the day drew to a close.
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