Summer was fading away, and the cool season was naturally creeping in. Coincidentally, today the clouds were all fluffy, making the bodies of the students training in the giant stadium look light.
“I haven’t lived long enough to say this, but…”
The refreshing taste of cold lemonade was tapping my tongue through the straw.
“I think there’s nothing more enjoyable than resting alone while others are struggling.”
At my words, Hayun, who had come over to wipe her sweat with a towel, grimaced at me. It was as if to say, “What kind of idiot are you?” but what could she do?
With my right hand broken, all I could do was sit in a shaded seat and rest.
“Ah, at least this is comfortable.”
Honestly, I hadn’t liked the Priestess of Time at all, but thanks to my broken right hand, I was spared from having to mingle with the kids.
Even if I had lost for thirteen years straight, it wasn’t right for me to barge in and play. I didn’t want to become an invasive species that traumatizes those who are growing well.
Of course, the Dean was genuinely disappointed and kept insisting that even with a broken right hand, I could still win.
“By the way, you said you visited the royal palace recently.”
I thought she would just sulk, but Hayun plopped down next to me. Had she sprayed deodorant? Instead of sweat, a lovely floral scent tickled my nose.
“Yeah, I went and resolved a few things.”
“Did you see Uncle?”
Was she talking about Heaven Len? I didn’t remember him being at the banquet hall.
“No, why?”
Since she had been completely estranged from the family, I wondered why she cared about Uncle Heaven Len, but her expression seemed serious.
“I heard the recent movements of the Len family are strange. Even though I try not to pay attention, it naturally comes to me.”
“Strange movements?”
“All the servants working for the family got fired. One of them had taken care of me since I was little, so I met her.”
She mentioned that Uncle’s safe, which had never opened unless it was an emergency, was now empty, and there were weird decorations in the garden and interior.
It sounded like something quite unusual was happening.
I wondered if Hayun still had any sibling love left for her uncle.
“I just hope I don’t end up getting caught in the crossfire. I can make it on my own.”
It seemed like she didn’t care at all what happened to Heaven Len. In fact, she preferred to stay out of it completely.
“Don’t worry too much. Just find your own path.”
“Yeah, that’s what I should do.”
For Hayun, the academy’s flower beggar, matters concerning her family were less pressing than her current living expenses.
Of course, she had developed quite a few regular customers by now, so it wasn’t as urgent as before, but ultimately, a wallet can never have too much money.
“How about with Eris?”
Hayun changed the subject smoothly. My hand holding the lemonade lost its destination and floated aimlessly in the air.
“What do you mean, how about?”
Grabbing my lemonade, Hayun quenched her thirst. Being a flower beggar girl, she showed no hesitation in using a straw someone else had used.
“What I mean is, Eris said she felt something towards you and suggested keeping some distance. I can’t say much, but it seems to me like you need to sort something out within yourself?”
That was a valid point.
I had to accept and acknowledge that I couldn’t view the Eris from before my regression and the current Eris as the same.
“……”
To be honest, I didn’t want to.
It felt like the Eris who had once proposed to me in the Forest of the Demon Realm was shimmering like a mirage right in front of my eyes. The action I was supposed to take now was to reach out and confirm it was an illusion.
‘This is tough.’
But it couldn’t be helped.
Eris was still alive. If I moved right now, I could go meet her. She was clearly alive, smiling, and rejoicing.
But she wasn’t the same?
Was the Eris I remembered different from the current Eris?
Knowing it was true and having to accept it made it all the more painful.
Even with Eris here, I had to let her go.
That was unimaginably cruel, and a deep sadness that surpassed resentment was slowly sinking me like seawater, corroding my heart.
“It’s okay.”
As I sat silently, Hayun patted my shoulder to console me. What I was troubled about wasn’t important.
She merely noticed that I was struggling, and that was enough for her to stay by my side.
“Thanks.”
Every time I talked about love, I felt relieved that Hayun was there. But she didn’t seem particularly interested in the boys around her.
Wanting to help Hayun just a little, I was about to ask if she liked anyone when an uninvited guest barged in.
“Daniel, how’s your hand?”
A white-haired assassin girl, Sen, suddenly popped her head next to my shoulder. Until last year, she had been just loafing around, but now she was training hard for the competition thanks to Hayun and Eve’s urging.
“Whoa!”
Ever since the last time, I had a feeling that the cozy atmosphere of the academy had completely soaked into her. Although Sen had grown, she still seemed to let her guard down too easily.
Sigh, it wasn’t something that could be resolved overnight.
It wasn’t like I expected a nemesis like the Priestess of Time to appear immediately, but a dulled sense facing such beings could definitely be fatal.
But this aspect couldn’t be trained by mere desire to train. If I tried to hone my senses alone in a void, what would be different?
Only in a place like the Forest of the Demon Realm, where your life was constantly in a dangerous situation, could I truly sharpen my senses.
‘Maybe I should go back for a few days.’
Since there’d be another vacation after the competition, I thought about building a villa and living there for a while.
“I’ve decided to play Mana Volleyball. Look at this.”
Sen suddenly leaped up from her seat and struck a pose for a spike. The image of a mermaid leaping out of the sea naturally came to mind.
I had no knowledge of volleyball, but I could tell her form was quite neat.
“You’re covering for your short height with your jump, huh?”
“Yeah, the captain of the volleyball team calls me a secret weapon.”
Seeing her satisfied with a subtle smile, I found myself touched unexpectedly. Was this really the same assassin who had been numbed by drugs?
This brother is proud of you.
I couldn’t help but reach out and ruffle Sen’s hair before sitting back down as students entered the stadium.
The number of students was quite similar to ours, but they were wearing different uniforms and had professors I’d never seen before leading them.
“Pales Academy.”
“I heard they were coming today.”
At Sen and Hayun’s words, I stretched my neck out while sitting and scanned the newcomers. Even from afar, they looked quite intimidating.
They must have known that Aios had arrived earlier to train, yet they showed no impatience and arrived according to their original schedule.
That meant they were confident and looked down on us.
Amanda, the professor in charge of Class E and in charge of running, stepped forward to exchange words with the opposing professor, then suddenly spun around dramatically to tell the students to return.
“What? Is it ending early today?”
I wondered if they were already finished since it was only the morning practice, but Hayun, who had already experienced the competition twice, explained.
“The rental fee for the large stadium in Bairn is expensive, so the two academies split the cost. So at this point, we have to share the time.”
Ah, I see.
Now we were stuck having to yield since we had used it for so long.
Having only brought lemonade, I gathered the remaining drinks and joined my friends sipping as I approached.
Eve and Tana, drenched in sweat, came straight to me with pride.
“Daniel! I placed 2nd in the running! The hellish dawn running practice is paying off!”
“I’m also a cricket candidate! I thought you made me do it just so you could see the girls puffing and panting, but it’s working!”
“Right, I kind of get that you know how to phrase things positively, but judging by how you’re mocking me, you really didn’t want to do it.”
Next time, I’ll push them harder.
Chatting with the kids, we left the stadium. Passing by the Pales Academy kids, they shot us nasty glares.
‘They really seem to be firmly divided into two sides.’
About half of them had a clearly delinquent vibe like Mei, glaring ferociously at us.
The other half looked like studious model students, staring down at us in contempt.
“Aios is full of idiots, but the girls are pretty.”
“Hehe, usually the empty-headed ones are good-looking.”
“That blue-haired girl’s body is insane! Her chest is……”
“Did you see the girl with black hair? I didn’t see her last year, but she was really insane! A goddess.”
“Ah, why don’t we have girls like that?”
I could hear their base conversations. It wasn’t something that leaked out accidentally; they were clearly talking loudly for us to hear.
While sipping lemonade, I turned to Eve and Tana.
“Should I go over and clobber them?”
“No, Daniel, your right hand is hurt, so it’s fine.”
“Yeah! It’d just be talk anyway!”
“Hmm? Alright, I got it.”
Nodding, I threw the remainder of the lemonade bottle at the guy who had just been whispering about Eve.
“Ah! What the hell!”
The guy, with hair not naturally blonde like Tana and Elise but dyed or magically colored, charged at me, excited.
“Are you crazy? Why are you throwing this all of a sudden! I’m all soaked now, you bastard!”
Despite his appearance, he had a foul mouth and was about to throw the bottle I threw back at me.
The surrounding students gathered around us, starting to buzz. Tana and Eve attempted to stop me in surprise, but it was none of their business.
“Hey, why the heck did you drink someone else’s lemonade without permission?”
“……What?”
He glared like I was talking nonsense, but my hand was already moving forward, grabbing his jaw with my index and thumb.
“Uh, ugh!”
Surprised by the sudden grip strength, he bent backward involuntarily.
I hadn’t expected that, just saying it lightly to Ares, I’d show them how to kill someone with just two fingers here.
“How do you expect to drink my last bit of lemonade like that, buddy? What’s your name?”
“Uh, ugh!”
As I pressed underneath his chin with my thumb and above with my middle finger, his expression turned to one of a puppy throwing a tantrum.
His friends tried to rush over, but infused with Yggdrasil, I didn’t budge and kept squeezing him.
“If you have a theft problem, just say it, or are you parched? Is that why you thoughtlessly drank my drink?”
“Uh, uhhhhhh! Ahhh!”
I whispered down at him, looking down.
“Think carefully and say it again.”
As I smirked and released him, he covered his mouth with both hands and whimpered.
“I-I’m sorry……!”
Thwack!
Before his apology could fully come out, his crying face slammed down into the ground, knocking out a tooth that now decorated the stadium.
With his short hair closely cropped and no larger than other students, he still had well-toned muscles reminiscent of a wild horse grazing in the field.
He had sharp eyes, appearing ready to charge at any moment, his rough exterior showing.
The guy, who had practiced kicking the face of a fellow academy student, put his hands in his pockets and glared at me.
“Are you seriously apologizing out of fear of a weakling?”
In the eyes of the surrounding students, it seemed to be a muscle-flexing situation full of tension, but—
“Heh.”
I couldn’t help but let out a chuckle.
But honestly, what could I do?
Humans are creatures of comparison.
Are you better, or am I?
Is the land they own really that good, or is the horse I possess more worthy?
Were the insane zealots I fought before ever that intimidating, or was a frog croaking in a well at the academy more terrifying?
“Are you laughing?”
Sorry, but compared to the lady who charged with a clock hand, this delinquent boy seemed genuinely innocent and cute.
