Chapter 16: Second Place, Mischief, and Misunderstandings

“Celie is first place, as expected.”

In everyone’s hands are their midterm report cards. The difference of just a few numbers on those sheets brings joy or disappointment to the students.

The same goes for us, comparing each other’s grades, though to a lesser degree than the others.

Yuri already knows her practical score lags behind, and Anne is aware her written score is lower. So, neither of them expected high grades in the first place. Since the practical score has a higher weighting, Anne’s overall grade is slightly higher.

And then there’s Celie, a perfect student acknowledged by her classmates and teachers alike, excelling in both academics and physical skills. She took first place in both the written and practical exams, making her the top student in the Swordsmanship department.

So, what about me?

Of course, aiming for first place was half-abandoned because of Celie. However, my grades are still important since I’m hoping for a scholarship. While my rankings vary slightly by subject, my overall score is second place, right behind Celie.

The final exam is still ahead, but with this, I have a good shot at securing a scholarship, even if it’s not a full one.

“But, what’s up with that cat?”

“Hmm… I’m not sure? I don’t know much about Meow.”

Anne asked about the cat sitting on my lap. Meow has become friendly enough to approach me first and settle on my thigh when he sees me, yet I still know nothing about this cat’s origins.

Who owns him, where he lives — all I can guess is he’s well-fed based on his shiny fur.

Meow has warmed up to me quite a bit, so maybe it’s time to try again: the ultimate technique no cat can resist. The failure last time was likely due to Meow’s wariness of me and my lack of finesse after so long.

From his head to the tip of his tail, I pet him slowly, making sure not to reveal my intentions to Meow.

I am an assassin. Assassins must be patient enough to stay still for days, silently waiting, and they must not miss a single fleeting chance. So, I wait — until that one moment arrives.

And finally, the moment comes.

“Purrr…”

With a low, barely audible purr, Meow has fully relaxed under my technical touch. I don’t miss this perfect opportunity.

Pop!

I give Meow’s backside a light tap.

Startled, Meow raises his tail and tries to jump up, but I, a former assassin and a would-be sword master, won’t let a mere cat escape my grip.

Pop!

I give his backside another light tap before he manages to jump out. And then again, another, and yet another.

Quickly enough that he can’t escape, but lightly enough that I’m only using the snap of my wrist to tap-tap-tap.

Meow’s reactions are adorably funny. After the first tap, he tried to escape, after the second he squealed, and on the third he gave my thigh a little bite.

But by the fourth, Meow, succumbing to his feline instincts, could no longer resist. Lost in a daze, he lightly scratched my thigh with retracted claws, unable to keep his senses.

Yes, this is it!

Excited, I use both hands to intensify the “butt-patting.”

I only stopped when I noticed my friends giving me looks of quiet exasperation.

I wanted to continue, but it seemed like this was enough for today. I’m satisfied, and so, it seems, is Meow, who sprawled out contentedly.

Look at that. Even Meow, with a satisfied expression, gazes up at me.

Thud!

After slapping me, he ran off far away.

Why! You enjoyed it too!

“Well… El, you went a bit overboard.”

Yuri, reaching out toward the direction Meow disappeared in, was comforting me as I felt the pain of heartbreak in real-time. Only Yuri truly understands me.

Meanwhile, Celian is looking at me… but is she glancing at my backside? No, that must be my imagination. Yeah, let’s go with that.

“Ugh… The fact that Ian got better grades than me… It’s humiliating.”

Anne seemed more devastated by her grades being lower than her younger brother’s than by the fact that I got slapped by Meow.

For reference, Ian’s grades are among the top in our class. Although his practical score was slightly lower than Anne’s, his written score was overwhelmingly higher. Hardly anyone’s written score was lower than Anne’s in the first place.

“Come to think of it, Ian and Anne are twins, but they really don’t look alike.”

Thinking about Ian, it’s truly hard to find any similarities between him and Anne. At best, they both have red hair?

Their weapons, fighting styles, auras, and body builds are completely different. Their faces are somewhat similar, but the difference in their builds makes it hard to notice.

“Really? Well, even though they’re twins, they’re fraternal.”

“I have an older brother too… but we’re very different. Unlike me, my brother…”

Yuri’s voice took on a slightly gloomy tone. Because of their Sword Master father, she must have been compared to her brother both inside and outside their home.

Yuri works hard, swinging her sword every day and learning without hesitation. She even seeks questions and guidance not only from the professors but also from us without any reservation.

However, despite Yuri’s efforts, her skills haven’t improved much. It’s a bit sad to say, but Yuri truly didn’t inherit her father’s talent as a Sword Master.

If she had inherited even a fraction of her father’s abilities, she would have surpassed her current level long ago.

“Celie! What about you? You have an older brother too, right?”

To lighten the mood, Anne quickly turned to Celie. Now that I think about it, according to the documents I read when I was targeted, the Deretia family has one older brother above Celian. As a family of heroes, he’s a pretty skilled swordsman as well.

However, he’s not particularly renowned, and as a result, the Deretia family’s expectations are focused on Celian, who is the leading candidate for a hero.

“Well… I’m quite a few years younger than my brother. I used to try to imitate him all the time when I was young.”

I believe Celian’s brother is about five years older than her? I remember he also graduated from the academy.

“Come to think of it, everyone here has a brother…”

Anne has a younger brother, and Yuri and Celian both have older brothers. You’d think there’d be some sisters, but everyone has only brothers.

“Elle has a younger brother too… Ah…”

Yuri was about to say something but suddenly stopped, covering her mouth with her cute hands in surprise.

“S-sorry…”

?

I tilted my head, wondering what she meant, and then I remembered — the information about Elysia Frentz.

The Frentz family had all perished in a past attack by demons. I, Elysia Frentz, am the sole survivor of that attack — a backstory created by the assassin guild.

In other words, every member of the Frentz family, aside from Elysia Frentz, had died, including Elysia Frentz’s younger brother, Zeno Frentz.

Yuri, who was close to me from a young age, likely also had a close relationship with Zeno. She must have been about to mention him earlier.

“It’s okay. It happened over ten years ago, and I barely remember it now.”

If we talked more about it, I might accidentally slip up and say something related to it. So I brushed it off lightly.

In the meantime, Anne and Celian, who are already aware of the Frentz family tragedy, noticed Yuri’s slip-up. Perhaps to show me some consideration, Anne held my hand.

“Elle! How about visiting my house this summer vacation? I’m sure it’ll be fun!”

I guess it’s a considerate invitation, given that, unlike them who have homes to return to during summer, I’d be left alone in the dormitory with nowhere to go. Although it’s a bit burdensome, there’s no reason to decline.

“Shall I? I’m already looking forward to it.”

“P-please visit my house too.”

Celian, holding my other hand, said this. Since I already accepted Anne’s invitation, there’s no reason or excuse to refuse.

“Sure. I’d be grateful if you invited me.”

“Then how about spending the summer vacation taking turns staying at each of our houses? Elle, if you come to my house, wouldn’t it bring back old memories?”

Yuri added, going a step further. But no matter how nostalgic Yuri’s suggestion is, I won’t suddenly remember memories that don’t exist just because I go to her house.

So, although we had just finished the midterms, we were already planning for the summer vacation.

While we were excitedly discussing whose house to stay at first, we noticed a paper airplane flying toward us from far down the corridor. Whoever sent it had made it fly incredibly well, without a single wobble.

It flew so well that it seemed unnaturally steady, not falling toward the ground at all.

Plonk.

The paper airplane, which had been flying steadily, hit me squarely on the forehead, losing its momentum and dropping to the floor.

It didn’t exactly hurt, but I rubbed my forehead out of reflex and picked up the paper airplane that had fallen to the ground.

Looking around, it seemed that no one was coming over to retrieve it.

However, once it was in my hand, the paper airplane unfolded itself.

It turned into a letter in my hand.

“Tonight at 10 p.m., in the lab. I’ve notified the dormitory, so don’t worry. – Presia Gatina -”

Up until the midterms, I’d helped a few times with experiments, starting with the first accelerated magic experiment. But during the midterms, she hadn’t summoned me even once, maybe out of consideration. Now that the midterms are over, I finally received a call from the boss.

By the way, magic experiments had always been scheduled for the evening, but this time, for some reason, she wants me to come at night.

Even asking the school for permission… not to mention, she skipped class to take a nap last time. It seems our boss isn’t your typical student from the magic department. Maybe she’s like the Celian of the magic department?

“What is it? What is it?”

“Oh, it’s someone I know calling me.”

“Do you have to go right now?”

“No, she asked me to come around 10, so I don’t have to go right away.”

“10? Isn’t that just when the dorm curfew kicks in? Who’s calling you at that hour?”

It wouldn’t be a problem to just tell them, but for some reason, calling her “boss” feels a bit awkward. If I mention that I’m working because I have no money for meals, my kind friends might worry unnecessarily. It wouldn’t be an issue, but I’m reluctant to bring it up myself.

I couldn’t just call Presia  “boss,” so I was thinking about how to introduce her without using that title.

“Huh? Who is it? Who is it?”

But Anne, determined to get an answer, kept firing questions at me non-stop. Without thinking, I ended up saying one of the titles I had in mind for Presia.

“Master…?”

Crack.

Celian, who had been trying to stop Anne from shaking me, turned her head toward me with an intimidating look. Wait, did I just hear a scary sound?

“Eep…”

Even Yuri’s face had turned completely red. Why was Yuri reacting like this?

“W-what? M-Master!?”

Anne, who was gripping my shoulders, started shaking me again, this time a little harder. Ah, now that Anne had heard me call her “Master,” I realized what kind of misunderstanding they were having.

I had to clear up this misunderstanding, even if it meant revealing my financial situation. So, I explained “Master” to my friends.

“It’s not what you think. I’m just getting a little money, that’s all.”

But my explanation only made things worse. Anne shook me even more fiercely, Yuri hid her face entirely, flushed bright red, and Celian stared at me with eyes as wide as they could get.

Uh… Celian? Your eyes are unfocused, which is kind of scary—maybe try some kind of expression? Actually, no, smiling with those eyes would be scarier. Just stay as you are. No, please stay just as you are. I’m begging you.

After more than an hour of persuasion, I finally managed to clear up their misunderstanding.

 

 


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Anonym
Anonym
3 months ago

Something tells me Celian did see the mark last chapter and has an even bigger misunderstanding than the rest of them

Alex Smith
Alex Smith
2 months ago

Uh oooooh- Dear Elysia, you may have a little trouble with your lo- I mean… Friend~