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“Ugh… my head hurts…”

As soon as I woke up, the sudden headache made it hard to gather my thoughts.

“Eh… I’m back at the dormitory…”

What happened yesterday… I’m sure Nova woke up and…

The three of us, including the shaman, had a meal together, and then…

I can’t quite remember…

“Oh, you’re awake?”

“…Yeah.”

Feeling thirsty, I headed towards the kitchen and noticed the shaman casually greeting me while cooking something.

It was such a natural scene that I almost overlooked it, but then I realized something felt off.

Why are you here?

“Why are you here?”

“Huh? This is my room, you know?”

The shaman looked confused by my question.

“What do you mean…”

“Oh! Stella, you’ve been in the hospital for a week, sleeping and eating, so you probably don’t know, but we’re roommates!”

Is this for real…? Of all people, a kid for a roommate? I felt like protesting to someone.

The kid isn’t inherently bad, but it’s just hard to deal with.

“Did you manage your hangover well? You were really drunk yesterday.”

“Yesterday?”

Now that I think about it, I did drink… Oh yeah, the kid insisted I try their country’s liquor…

“!!!”

In that moment, scenes flashed in my mind like a broken film reel.

Embracing Nova,

sniffing him, and then…

“Ah… ahhh…”

“Uh, Stella?”

“AAAHHH!”

No way. That can’t be true. No, that was definitely just a dream!

It must have been a dream! No, it has to be!

Doing something so shameless in front of Nova…

It was too vivid to just be a dream.

“Um, um, Shia…”

“Yes, Stella?”

“About what happened yesterday…”

“Oh, do you remember? You had a drink of White Liquor and got drunk, then hugged Nova, seducing him.”

“Ah…”

Should I just kill myself? Yeah, let’s end it.

Seriously, I felt like the will to live had left me.

Let’s make it go away and pretend like it never happened.

Let’s start all over again.

I’ve thought about dying many times, but it’s never felt this strong before.

As I picked up the knife from the table, ready to stab my neck, Shia rushed over and grabbed me.

“Yikes!! What are you doing, Stella?!”

“Let go of me!… I’m going to die!

I want to die! Aah! Aahhh!”

“First, put that down and calm down…

Calm down! You crazy girl!”

*

“Ugh…”

“Geez… how long are you going to stay like that…”

“I don’t wanna… I can’t show my face… I’m so embarrassed I wanna die…”

Seeing me curled up in my blanket like a caterpillar, the shaman sighed and spoke.

“It’s okay, Stella. Even the most perfect people make mistakes sometimes.”

“Ugh…”

“This is different from what I imagined… It’s not bad, though…”

Muttering something, she pulled my blanket off, forcefully dragging me to the dining table.

“You can’t be late on your first day at the Academy! Especially since you’re the top student.”

“…It doesn’t really matter.”

“Don’t say that. Eat this! Ah~!”

“…I can eat by myself.”

As I said that, I put the shrimp tempura she made in my mouth,

and I was ready to complain if it tasted bad, but…

“…”

What is this? It’s surprisingly good! The crispy batter and perfectly cooked shrimp were just perfect!

“Good, right?”

With such a happy face, there’s no way I could bash it just because I’m not in a bad mood.

I’m not Nova!

“…Yeah.”

Next time, I’ll cook for you!

*

After finishing our meal, while heading to the Academy,

it became natural for us to go to school together since we were leaving the same room.

Is this how it’s going to be from now on?

Well, I guess it’s not bad now,

but making new friends is hard and stressing,

so not thinking about anything feels good.

“So, about that~”

If it weren’t for the chatterbox beside me, it would have been more peaceful.

As we passed through the Academy gate while she chattered about nothing important, I heard a loud noise.

“Who do you think you are, lowly noble?!”

As I moved toward the source of the loud voice,

I saw some guy gripping a female student’s wrist and yelling.

“How dare a mere baron’s daughter disrespect me, Yestine?”

His voice was so loud that students gathered around, watching the scene.

The shaman whispered in my ear,

“Looks like a noble faction fight.”

“Probably…”

“Do you know him?”

I feel like I’ve seen that female student before… Who was she?

“Uh… I can’t seem to remember.”

“Say that again, and I’ll have you come under me, Archemia!”

“Let go of my hand…!”

As the boy tried to forcibly drag the girl away, the shaman seemed ready to step in.

“I can’t watch this anymore!”

But just before she could, another figure stepped forward.

“Stop it.”

The guy who held the male student’s wrist was

a tall Beastkin with wolf ears and flowing white hair, easily standing at 180cm.

Wait a minute…

“Eh?”

The shaman, who was about to step in, froze at the sudden appearance of this guy.

“What… who are you?”

“I don’t know what’s going on, but you clearly don’t want this. Let her go.”

“Who do you think you are?! Just a Beastkin, don’t interfere!”

“A man should protect a woman, shouldn’t he?

Is that different for humans?”

“How dare a filthy Beastkin get in my way?

You’ll regret this!”

As the guy motioned, his underlings, looking like his followers, struck at the Beastkin with clubs.

“What… what’s happening…”

The impact of their swing didn’t crush the Beastkin’s head,

but the club broke in half upon hitting him.

“I’m clearly lacking experience. Raised by wolves,

I don’t know the ways of humans, but…”

Crack!

“Gahhh!!”

“The strong should protect the weak.”

Saying that, the Beastkin let his strength flow,

and the male student’s arm suddenly snapped.

“And my kin are not primitive.”

“Markus! Damn,

you think you can get away with touching him and still attend the Academy?”

The goons of the male student yelled, surrounding the Beastkin.

“This is troublesome… I heard not to make a fuss about that guy…”

“Ugh… You think you can look down upon a mere baron’s daughter and a lowly commoner?

I won’t let this go! I won’t allow either of you to attend the Academy comfortably!”

Should I step in now?

I can’t keep pretending I don’t know someone forever.

“I’m also a commoner. Want to show me what that supposed power feels like?”

“What? Who do you think you are?!”

As he shouted at me, he looked over and suddenly quieted down.

“Woah, it’s Stella…”

“The Archmage’s disciple?”

Out of nowhere, students turned their attention to me.

I really hate this kind of thing…

“You. You don’t have to get involved! Just go on without interfering!”

Look at that! His attitude completely changes when it comes to me.

He doesn’t want to make the Magic Tower an enemy, does he?

Well, my current status is high enough that even prominent nobles don’t bother me.

Any attempt to pressure from a mere noble is laughable.

Unless you’re a princess from the Empire

or a noble from the Kingdom,

there’s no one who can dare challenge me.

If they charge in with force, even more so!

“There’s no hierarchy at the Academy!

Are you embarrassed to come here flaunting your family name?

You’re nothing but a child hiding behind your parents’ authority!”

“Yikes!!”

I provoked him, deliberately waving my finger.

“If you’re mad, come at me.

I’ll take you on, whether it’s with magic or a fistfight!”

“You… just wait!”

With that, he stormed off with his minions.

“Th… thank you.”

Turning around, I saw that girl from earlier thanking the Beastkin.

“It’s only natural. I shouldn’t deserve any thanks.”

Then, the female student’s gaze locked onto mine.

“I also did something natural, so it’s not worth thanking me…”

But before I could finish, she disappeared without a word… How awkward.

Is it just me, or did she glare at me before vanishing?

“What was that about!

Stella helped, and she just leaves without saying anything!”

“It’s okay; she might be embarrassed.”

And soon after, he came up to us.

“Hey, isn’t that Stella!”

“Yeah, long time no see, Anubis.”

Seeing my reaction, the shaman looked shocked and said,

“Eh? You two know each other?”

“Yeah, we met a while back.”

What’s with that face? It’s not like I don’t have a single person I know!

“Good to see you, my friend. I owe you again.”

“I never imagined you would come to the Academy.”

Just as he reached for my hand to shake, someone suddenly swooped in and snatched my hand away.

Oh, Nova?

“Hey, who are you?”

“Hmm? Who are you? Are you a fellow townsfolk of Stella?”

Nova’s aura was sharp,

radiating a different energy than usual.

“Is this! The love triangle I’ve heard of? I need popcorn right now!”

What’s he talking about?

 

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