Chapter 52: The Stormy Lunchtime Part 1

Released:

“Everyone, pay attention. Gilbert, if your body has thawed out, please return to your seat.”

“Krrrrgh…!”

During the morning assembly, the topic of conversation continued to be about Rohan.

Since Joo-yeon felt he had done something praiseworthy, she commended and encouraged him in front of everyone. However, she also stressed that the most important step had been contacting the supervising instructor.

And fortunately, everything turned out okay in the end.

Nonetheless, she made it clear that this had originally been a very dangerous act, and with that note, the unusually long morning assembly came to an end.

The moment Joo-yeon left, Gilbert twisted his neck with a crack and immediately spoke up.

“My friend! You did something splendid!”

“Thanks. It’s nice not to be yelled at for once.”

Maybe he had calmed down somewhat after being trapped in the ice. His voice was still louder than that of most people, but by Gilbert’s standards, this was practically whispering.

“You still don’t get it. The depth of praise is not measured in decibels!”

“Don’t act like you don’t know that, you jerk…”

“But! A hearty roar can sometimes be an irreplaceable seasoning!”

Sure enough, it didn’t look like his habit of yelling was going away anytime soon.

After exchanging a few words with some friends who chimed in, Rohan wrapped up the small talk and got ready for class. He took out his books and washed his hands, and when he came back, Ichinose and Noah, who were passing by in the hallway, stopped in their tracks and spoke to him.

“You really deserve praise. That was wonderful.”

“It’s fine. No need to keep bringing it up like it’s a big deal.”

At Rohan’s words, Ichinose shook her head slowly with her eyes closed.

“It doesn’t matter if it was intuition or not. It’s not something just anyone would do.”

“Maybe you’re actually a beastkin, too?”

Ichinose cracked an eye open to glare sideways at Noah as if asking, “What the heck are you talking about?”

“That aside, I also heard you helped Noah study over the weekend.”

“Oh, that? I just get bored when I study alone.”

At those words, Noah’s face lit up as if she had just remembered something important and she wagged her tail. She poked Ichinose with her tail as if to tattle on Rohan.

“Nose! Rohan tried to torture me by giving me homework! Hurry up and scold him!”

“Rohan did exactly the right thing. Well done. If there’s another chance like that, please do the same.”

“Okay, I’ll be sure to do it properly.”

Noah complained it was too harsh while trying to hug Ichinose from behind.

Without even opening her eyes, Ichinose lightly sidestepped Noah’s attempted embrace. She moved like a small animal evading a tiger’s pounce.

They get along well.

Their behavior looked like a comedy sketch. It was heartwarming too.

Noah Frozenheart must have known Ichinose would react like this. Maybe she just needed an excuse to hug her friend.

“Torture is banned under the Three Nations Alliance law! How can you encourage such an inhumane act!”

“…Quit memorizing only the things that suit you and learn the rest, too.”

No matter how many times Noah tried to wrap Ichinose up in her arms, she couldn’t catch her.

Even so, the three of them kept the small talk going as they naturally headed back to class.

And that was just when the break ended.

“Is everyone here? Please take your seats.”

Joo-yeon returned to the classroom with her textbook and resumed the theory lesson as if nothing had happened.

All the while, Noah let out strained groans as she waved her tail frantically, trying to memorize formulas and clutching her head in frustration.

Whenever Joo-yeon asked a question, Ichinose answered perfectly every time without getting stuck once. Meanwhile, Rohan could barely keep up and was just copying down notes.

It was their usual class routine.

At last, theory class ended and lunchtime arrived.

Rohan headed to the academy cafeteria as usual and checked his phone on the way—

“!”

When he saw the message from Clara, he stopped in his tracks.

As soon as Rohan gathered his thoughts, he changed direction and began sprinting back toward the dorms.

***

Sion Testarossa

Even as she walked, the girl worried that she might be inconveniencing Rohan.

Sure, he had said she was welcome anytime, but would it be burdensome for him if she showed up the very next day, jumping on a single offhand comment?

That’s what she thought. She was absolutely certain in her reasoning.

With that determination, she put down the pay phone receiver, returned to her residence, and laid down on the cold blanket.

It’s cold…

She suddenly became painfully aware of the difference between her situation and the warmth she had felt just from that casual, friendly chat with Rohan on the public phone in Academy City.

The distance between joy and sadness felt immense. It was like falling off a galloping horse. Would it hurt this much?

She had even used up all her remaining tokens making that phone call.

And yet, she didn’t regret it.

Those thirty minutes or so spent chatting with Rohan allowed her to temporarily look away from the hopelessness of her reality.

Because of that, she just couldn’t hold back.

And so, Sion found herself back in the Academy City of Elysium yet again.

She had tried so hard to wait and wait, but Rohan’s encouraging words from the other end of the line lingered in her mind, making her think it might be okay to pay him a visit.

“…….”

It was a weekday, 11:50 in the morning.

Who would be at the academy dorms at this time of day? The area was bright and lively, yet as deserted as the dead of night.

Even so, Sion repeatedly confirmed that there was no one else around.

With a firm thud, she extended her leg and moved gracefully. She started scaling the wall of the academy dormitory.

The closer she got to the window, the more she found herself letting out a dry chuckle at her own actions.

It was absurd, wasn’t it?

Back when she had first met Rohan, she had coldly retorted that there was no way she’d ever need to call him, even though he had told her to do so if anything came up. And yet, how had things ended up like this?

Click—

Sion felt a sense of relief as she realized the window wasn’t locked. She perched herself on the windowsill.

Before stepping onto the floor, she took off her thick battle boots and glanced around the room to assess the situation.

“Rohan?”

She spoke in a voice that wasn’t loud but was clear enough to be heard.

Even though Sion called out for Rohan, no answer came. Not a single sound or trace of movement could be heard.

Just as I thought from outside… he’s not here, is he?

Now that she thought about it, wasn’t Rohan supposed to be undercover in the academy? Maybe he had gone to class as expected.

Sion climbed down from the windowsill while holding her boots in one hand, and closed the window behind her.

Before deciding whether to head back to her base or wait for Rohan, she opted to follow at least the bare minimum of proper etiquette.

She neatly placed her boots in the shoe rack and turned around to look behind her.

“.……?”

A room devoid of its owner, Rohan.

Sion stared silently at the empty space for a moment, then narrowed her eyes and lowered her stance.

Her right hand slowly moved toward her weapon.

There was a faint, unnatural tension lingering in the otherwise silent room.

It wasn’t something she could explain with words; it was an inexplicable sensation caught within the realm of pure instinct.

Whether it was because Sion’s senses were sharp enough to rival those of a beast or because of the battle style she had honed over time, she couldn’t tell.

One thing was certain…. someone in the room was desperately trying to avoid being discovered.

Snipers and assassins were always skilled at concealing themselves, which meant they were equally adept at detecting hidden presences. That was exactly what had triggered Sion’s suspicion that someone else was in this space.

A critical factor, however, was that Clara hadn’t hidden herself perfectly. Not even for the briefest moment that could have been considered flawless.

How long had Sion remained frozen in place, holding her breath completely still?

“Uh, um….”

“!”

There was someone. Her instincts had been correct.

One thing was certain. It wasn’t Rohan’s voice.

Sion reacted instantly and pulled the dagger from her waist with a sharp ping!

Meanwhile, Clara unfolded her balisong knife with an elegant, practiced flourish and its metallic clicks echoed crisply in the air.

To the right!

With her sharp, pointed ears, Sion caught the faint sound of metal coming from her right.

She swung her dagger toward where the hidden figure must have been.

Clang!

The blades clashed, producing a brief, screeching sound as the short edges ground against each other.

As Clara blocked the attack, a thought crossed her mind.

Could this be the person Oppa mentioned yesterday…?

[Rohan Oppa: While I’m out, there’s a chance a guest related to work might visit the dorm. I wanted to call them and let them know that you would be there, but—]

Clara remembered every single word of the long message Rohan had sent her yesterday. She hadn’t forgotten a single character of it.

The message had mentioned an elf, but it hadn’t mentioned anything about the person being a woman. Or being this stunningly beautiful.

Seriously, oppa….

Clara unknowingly pouted her lips. Her cheeks seemed like they might puff out.

Even as she expressed her irritation toward the absent Rohan, Clara noticed that the dagger Sion had swung was double-edged.

It wasn’t meant to kill. Just to subdue.

When her dagger was blocked, Sion didn’t continue the attack. Instead, she jumped low to create some distance.

She spun the double-edged dagger in her hand and began observing the unknown woman in front of her.

“W-Wait a second…!”

There stood a twin-tailed girl whose outfit made it unclear whether she was dressed or undressed.

She was frantically fastening the buttons of her suggestive-looking undergarments, trying to cover herself up.

This bizarre sight only heightened Sion’s wariness.

She’s strong. Can I win with the equipment I have now? And… she’s wearing shoes.

Did this mean she had broken in? It seemed likely.

Perhaps this person was after Rohan.

From Clara’s perspective, it was an instinctive reaction to cover her tracks, but even she couldn’t deny how suspicious it might look.

Sion grabbed her gun with her empty hand and asked the woman,

“Who are you?”

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