Chapter 95
Dorothea de Chamber.
An elf whose age is unpredictable and an expert in pharmacology from the Gregorian United Kingdom.
Surprisingly, this mysterious woman was the vice principal of the elementary section at Cosmos Academy.
Her existence served as a device to inform players that Cosmos Academy is a place that educates all races without discrimination.
The developers of ‘Legend of Academy’ meticulously calculated and hid her presence.
First-time players of Reoa might naturally think:
[What? There are only humans at Cosmos Academy?]
The developers cleverly induced this thought.
Of course, if you take the demon king route, you’ll discover that Citrine’s true identity is a ‘changeling,’ but that’s an ‘extremely unique case.’
In the hero or normal routes, Citrine’s true identity remains completely unknown, so players naturally assume that the academy is populated only by ‘humans.’
Additionally, the demon exchange students belonging to the New Helheim club are holed up in the clubhouse and rarely come out, so players mostly see only humans day and night.
Since I, Murmur, was a fifth-grader in the elementary section, I couldn’t join the club, so I wouldn’t meet future NPCs prematurely and get spoiled.
Thus, players are led to believe:
Cosmos Academy is home only to ‘humans.’
But the moment the first summer vacation passes, the story changes as ‘Dorothea’ returns to the academy.
[An elf as the vice principal? What’s pharmacology? Where can I learn that?]
Dorothea’s existence represented the possibility of races beyond humans and the potential for new skills.
Of course, I, Murmur, already knew that the academy was attended by a variety of students, so it wasn’t that surprising.
…But come to think of it, I did meet Torlin, the dwarf. That’s another difference from the main story, right?
It doesn’t make sense that there isn’t a single ‘non-human’ among my classmates.
Anyway, the reason I, Murmur, suddenly started thinking seriously about this was…
“Murmur-sama, do you dislike Vice Principal Dorothea?”
Because Monica asked this question during lunch.
“Murmur doesn’t like Vice Principal Dorothea.”
“…I don’t like her either. Her vibe just doesn’t sit well with me.”
After hearing Nicasia’s words, Monica glanced at Citrine.
“I don’t have any particular feelings. Rather, I’m curious about why you two dislike her.”
“There’s no big reason. It’s just the vibe, I guess. The way she talks or her aura gives me the creeps.”
Nicasia wiped the steak sauce from her mouth with a handkerchief as she spoke.
“Murmur feels the same. Murmur hates being treated like a child.”
“I understand Nicasia’s opinion, but Murmur-sama? Vice Principal Dorothea is an elf.”
Ugh! That’s why it’s even worse!
“From the perspective of a long-lived elf, we humans will always seem like children.”
“That’s why Murmur hates it even more. Murmur hates being treated like a kid.”
“Fufufu, but Murmur is still a cute little kid, right? A fifth-grader in the elementary section~”
The moment Nicasia said this with a laugh, Esme, who was inhaling a baked potato, burst out laughing.
“Nicasia, you’re also a fifth-grader in the elementary section like us!”
“Ah, I know! But Murmur is a bit different, right?”
What’s that? Why is Murmur different?
“Hmm… I think I understand a bit. Murmur-sama is a bit different.”
“Well, I also think Murmur looks like a cute little kid who suits a woolen pajama set perfectly!”
Is this bullying?
It’s bullying, right?
As I, Murmur, pouted my lips, everyone chuckled softly.
They’re definitely teasing me!
“Murmur… hates being treated like a kid!”
“That’s right! Murmur-sama isn’t a child but a cool hero!”
“Well, considering how Clotilde-senpai scolded her, you can’t really call her a child.”
Esme added a comment while munching on her tomato spaghetti.
“But I think I understand how Murmur feels. I felt uncomfortable during our conversation yesterday.”
“Nicasia, you too?”
“Yes… Her gaze was… how should I put it? It felt really unpleasant. Her tone had a sinister vibe…”
Nicasia groaned oddly.
“And the way she said she’d help Murmur just because she’s cute was a bit…”
“Murmur thought that sounded super creepy!”
“Y-Yeah! It was creepy! Like those people who get too close at social parties!”
Citrine glanced at me, Murmur, and Nicasia, then cut her salmon steak with a knife and spoke.
“It seems like a bit of an overreaction.”
“Citrine, aren’t you being too calm? Her tone and actions were seriously creepy.”
“Vice Principal Dorothea is, after all, an ‘elf,’ different from us. It’s natural to feel a sense of alienation in her behavior and speech.”
It’s not wrong, but it’s wrong!
Citrine is misunderstanding!
“But listening to Citrine, it doesn’t seem entirely wrong…”
“I’ve interacted with many non-humans in the upper circles, and I’ve experienced the feelings Nicasia described. But in the end, it’s not that they’re perverts or mentally unstable, just that their culture is different.”
Nicasia nodded and took a sip of juice.
“Citrine is right. Murmur. From Vice Principal Dorothea’s perspective, we’re just really cute kids, so she’s being nice.”
“Like how some grandmothers give gifts or treats just because they think you’re cute!”
Even Esme is saying that?
“No! Murmur doesn’t think so!!”
I can’t tell you everything this creepy vice principal might do, but…!
“Vice Principal Dorothea is a super scary child lover! That’s why Murmur hates her!”
“A, a child… lover?”
“Pfft…!”
Nicasia lowered her head and her shoulders shook.
“M, Murmur… what, what kind of word is that?”
“I’ve never heard that before.”
It’s exactly what Nicasia thinks—she’s a pervert, right?!
“Murmur heard it from rumors!”
To convince my friends, I stopped eating and waved my hands up and down.
“Vice Principal Dorothea! She loves giving cute, frilly dresses to elementary students as gifts!”
Citrine tilted her head.
“I’ve heard that story too. She gives cool clothes to boys and cute clothes to girls.”
“See! She’s a pervert!”
“Um… isn’t that just giving clothes to kids normally?!”
No! She dresses them up and goes ‘hehehe’ with a creepy smile!
“Murmur also heard rumors!! She loves hugging elementary students tightly!”
This time, Monica tilted her head.
“I like giving tight hugs too?”
“I don’t think that’s a bad thing, Murmur.”
“That’s right. She’s not a scary dwarf teacher with a beard.”
No racial discrimination!!!
So it’s okay for women but not men?!
…Thinking about it, that makes sense?!
“M, Murmur… heard rumors. She clapped after hearing kids sing nursery rhymes!”
“That’s part of the normal classes, right? Murmur?”
“Professor Aphrodite also enjoys nursery rhymes, right?”
What’s going on? Why does it feel like the more I talk, the less serious it seems…?!
“Murmur heard she feeds kids cake!”
“Lady Jepar did that too, right? And I’ve had cake before?”
Esme pointed at herself.
“It was a normal time where kids with good grades got together to eat delicious cake.”
“M, Murmur thinks her ‘hehehe’ laugh is creepy!”
“Can’t help it if her laugh is weird, right? Just like how some people are short or tall, it’s not something she can control.”
Ah, no.
What should I do? Even if I bring this up, it just sounds like bad rumors…!
“M, Murmur saw it! Vice Principal Dorothea sitting elementary students on her lap and reading them fairy tales!”
This time, Nicasia tilted her head.
“Riola once sat me on her lap and read me a fairy tale too, Murmur?”
“It’s not creepy at all and just something adults normally do for kids… right…?”
Citrine, who had been speaking with a smile, suddenly trailed off.
Then she suddenly pulled away and whispered something to Nicasia.
“Huh? What? Ah?!”
“What is it? What’s going on? Tell me too…”
Citrine’s whisper passed from Nicasia to Esme and then to Monica.
Nicasia’s eyes widened, Esme covered her mouth slightly, and Monica nodded slightly.
Everyone’s expressions instantly changed to an ‘Ah…’ of understanding.
…What’s going on?
“Now I understand. Why Murmur feels that way.”
“We didn’t consider Murmur-sama’s circumstances enough.”
Suddenly?
“Murmur just wanted to let everyone know that Vice Principal Dorothea is a bad person.”
“I get it too. From Murmur-sama’s perspective, Vice Principal Dorothea must seem like a bad person.”
“Uuuh…?”
The wording feels a bit off?
It doesn’t feel like they’re agreeing with me?
It’s more like they’re pitying a poor little lamb…?
“Murmur didn’t know that kids get treated so affectionately, right?”
“Eating delicious cake, reading fairy tales, dressing up in cute clothes, praising them, patting their cheeks, clapping for them… it’s not creepy, it’s normal, Murmur.”
Esme and Nicasia’s voices were incredibly kind.
“I also did a lot of that when I was in the Holy Nation! Sister Anna still gives me pats these days, right?”
“I wasn’t used to it at first either. But my mother spent a lot of time with me and even slept with me often?”
…What misunderstanding are they having now?!
“Murmur wasn’t talking about that! Vice Principal Dorothea is dangerous!”
“It’s okay, Murmur. She’s not dangerous. It’s just an adult showing affection to a child.”
Nicasia stood up and hugged me, Murmur, in a warm and soft embrace.
What? What’s going on? Why is the conversation going this way?!
“And Vice Principal Dorothea is just being nice to all the elementary students!”
“I heard she was away during the first semester because of academy business.”
This atmosphere… no matter how logically I argue, it’s pointless, right?
“From Vice Principal Dorothea’s perspective, even the high school seniors must seem like kids.”
“B, but! She only treats elementary students like kids and rubs cheeks with them! She’s a pervert!”
“Hmm… but Murmur? Think about it. You don’t like being treated like a kid, right? Maybe Vice Principal Dorothea understands that and holds back with the middle and high school students?”
What’s with that kind interpretation?!
She’s just an unforgivable, terrifying child lover, okay?!
“Uuuu… so everyone thinks Murmur is weird?”
Nicasia was startled and patted my, Murmur’s, back.
“We’re not saying you’re weird! Just that you misunderstood.”
“That’s right! If my mom and Pearl hadn’t read me fairy tales when I was little… sitting on someone’s lap would’ve been embarrassing.”
Esme also approached me, Murmur, and touched my hand as she spoke.
“I can understand why you’d misunderstand. But Murmur-sama, you don’t have any reason to misunderstand now, right?”
“Oh~hohoho! Vice Principal Dorothea seems to have good intentions toward Murmur-sama, so maybe it’s time to think differently.”
Not a single person is outright saying I, Murmur, am wrong.
“Uuuuh…”
…Maybe it’s safe for now.
I haven’t heard about her hiring a new secretary, so there’s no way she has dangerous thoughts.
If you ask whether Dorothea de Chamber is an unforgivable trash criminal at her core, that’s not it.
This elf just loves kids.
She’s just an unforgivable child lover.
“…Murmur gets it. Murmur will try to think differently.”
