I got into school for nothing - Chapter 132
I got into school for nothing (132)
Lesson 27. Simulated Constellation War - 2
Though it was called a Simulated Constellation War, the first session had merely involved adapting to the spatial power generated by an orb while isolated in separate areas, rather than actual combat. As a result, most students emerged from the lecture hall looking deeply fatigued, having excessively drained their mana and mental energy.
Ban Yuwon, too, clutched his throbbing head, swaying unsteadily with a pallid face.
“Ugh, my head is going to split.”
“Yuwon, are you alright? Do you want to lean on me for a moment?”
“Ah, Rucell. And Mira... Thank you, both.”
“Mhm.”
“I thought you would adapt easily. ...Both of you are quite natural about this.”
“I adapted easily, but I was trying something a bit different. How about you?”
“I...”
Ban Yuwon couldn't ask outright, as mentioning details of the lecture was forbidden.
Dokgo Yeon withdrew her exasperated gaze from Mira and Rucell, cleared her throat with a 'hmph,' and replied.
“It was no different from my usual training. The only distinction was materializing what I normally only visualize into reality. It was incredibly helpful.”
“Haa... I was a mess.”
Light, who had been glaring at Mira clinging to Ban Yuwon’s left side, sighed and said.
“It seems my consciousness loosens up in that space. It was hard enough just preventing the Holy Sword from bursting out.”
“Wouldn’t just overcoming that be helpful for your training?”
“Well, when you put it like that, I suppose so.”
Though shocking in many ways, the orb’s space clearly seemed to be a great help to everyone.
However, Rucell, who was supporting Ban Yuwon’s right shoulder, wore a dissatisfied expression.
“Why did it have to be called a Constellation? I don’t like the naming.”
“That’s because the lecture is named ‘Babylon and Constellation,’ of course.”
Ban Yuwon, having recovered some mental energy, lightly pushed the two away, indicating he could walk by himself.
More precisely, he tried to push them away, but they didn’t budge.
They clung to him, as if they had been waiting for an opportunity to get close, refusing to let go even an inch.
“Both of you, back off a bit. The class is over, so I need to go put our club members through their paces.”
Despite only having led the club for a few weeks, Ban Yuwon already possessed the mindset of an enthusiastic trainer, wholeheartedly wishing only for the muscle gains of his 'personal training' members.
Mira wrapped both her arms around his left arm, preventing the trainer from escaping, and said.
“Our schedule for today is already set anyway. Tell them to roll around on their own, and you can hang out with me. You must be exhausted from the lecture, so you need a break.”
“I think the same. Yuwon needs to rest now. Your complexion earlier was really serious.”
Not to be outdone by Mira, Rucell also hugged Ban Yuwon’s arm and insisted.
He was instantly held captive by the two women on either side, unable to move an inch.
And then, to his surprise, even Dokgo Yeon.
“Sometimes it’s fine. I, too, have been thinking you’ve been moving too busily lately.”
She betrayed him.
“I will go to the special admissions training room. While I won’t teach them swordsmanship separately, I will supervise to ensure they wield their swords according to your teachings.”
“Dokgo Yeon, you...”
“I, I’ll follow you guys. Because I don’t know where you’ll take Ban...”
And so, with Dokgo Yeon out, Light joined them instead, and the four of them went out.
Even "going out" only involved a casual stroll through Ronica’s shopping district, followed by sitting at a secluded table in a café Ketra had recommended, sipping coffee.
“They’re finally gone.”
Rucell quietly mumbled as she received her coffee.
When the others tilted their heads in confusion, not understanding what she meant, she gave a wry smile and answered.
“The Student Council Vice President.”
“They were still following us?”
It seemed Mira hadn't known either. Mira would be stronger in terms of raw power, and Ban Yuwon himself was confident his senses were second to none, yet Rucell was more accurate than both of them.
Ban Yuwon shivered anew at Rucell’s animalistic senses.
“From quite a distance. It seemed they were wary of you getting closer to Mira senior. Is there some restriction?”
“That’s right, a restriction. Student Council President Shatie herself placed it. The Iblis are skilled in magic related to contracts and restrictions, due to their racial traits. Woohyeolrin of the third year handles Geas, which is similar to a modified version of the President’s magic.”
Ban Yuwon was impressed by the Student Council President’s thorough aftercare.
Was that why she could be so confident?
He was a little bothered by why she hadn’t mentioned such a method at the time, but... in any case, he was simply grateful that Ketra had been neatly dealt with.
“When we were leaving the lecture hall, they were spying on us so blatantly, so I thought I’d show off a bit.”
“No wonder you were oddly clinging to me earlier.”
“Considering they followed us all the way here, wasn’t it quite effective?”
Mira took a sip of her cafe mocha with a perfectly delighted expression, then, looking satisfied and languid, leaned back into the chair’s cushion.
Cutting out just this moment, she truly looked like a figure who could perfectly be called a villainess.
“Perhaps that senior will hold a grudge against us?”
Light said with a sulky expression.
“He’s obsessed with you, senior, he might even try to do something bad to us. What will you do then, senior? I hear he owes Ban a lot, wouldn’t that actually cause you harm?”
“Ketra senior? Pfft. That will absolutely never happen.”
Mira narrowed her eyes as if she’d heard something ridiculous.
“Ketra senior is someone who joined the Student Council to raise his own standing. He values others’ opinions, their evaluations, that much.”
“He didn’t seem like someone so lacking in confidence, though.”
“On the contrary, he strives to gain confidence, which is why he remains in a position where he can gain everyone’s favor. That’s also why he can’t even make a peep at the Student Council President who piles him with excessive work, and simply follows orders. And of course, he wouldn’t even dare commit a crime. He fears the gaze of criticism that would fall upon him as a result.”
Light still wore an expression that showed he didn’t understand, but... Ban Yuwon, recalling Ketra’s amiable face during their first meeting, which had maintained an image that wouldn’t cause any repulsion in others, automatically nodded in understanding.
“Perhaps his approaching me now, pretending to still have lingering feelings, is because I clearly told him ‘no’. He’s the type who cannot accept being disliked by others, and tries to gain only favor. You can rest assured now that you’ve heard all this, right?”
“Mmm...”
Coming this far, Ketra’s image was unintentionally painted.
However, there were astonishing overlaps with the character Ban Yuwon had originally envisioned for Ketra, making him naturally nod in understanding.
“I don’t like it. Someone who only approaches to confirm that they are loved by everyone. I... I like someone who strongly pulls me in, regardless of my will. Someone who intensely seizes everything from me, like that—”
“I know what you’re trying to say, but if anyone overhears you, they might mistake me for a criminal, so please stop.”
Ban Yuwon couldn’t endure Mira’s steadily flying, intense gaze and turned his head away.
Mira chuckled softly at his reaction, placed her coffee cup on the table, and then, suddenly changing her expression, said.
“And you two, I’m telling you this because your senses in this regard seem a bit numb.”
“Huh?”
“No matter how much lingering affection there is, there aren’t any crazy people in the Academy who would commit a crime over romantic issues. How hard is it to get into Union Academy? Why would they risk expulsion for such a trivial matter?”
Now that she mentioned it, she was right!
There was that madman Ortima, who even mobilized dimension pirates to possess Dokgo Yeon, but he only did that because he had the incredible backing of one of the Ten Great Families. Ordinary people couldn’t go that far!
But did Mira realize?
That what she had just said was stabbing her in the back like a boomerang!
“Staring at me like that won’t do anything. I’ve forgotten everything from before I met you. The me before meeting you and the me now are separate. Wasn’t that the contract?”
“That’s a very convenient excuse, alright.”
Ban Yuwon sighed and drank his tea.
But for Mira, it wasn’t an excuse; it was the unvarnished truth.
“Mhm... Hehe. Still, it’s nice to sit down like this and talk.”
Rucell, who had been sitting opposite them, quietly drinking her coffee, suddenly chuckled and said.
“I’ve really wanted to sit down like this with you, Mira senior, and genuinely lay out our thoughts.”
“Mhm, well, it’s the same for me too.”
Mira’s violet eyes sparkled.
Ban Yuwon tensed, unsure what conversation would emerge, but the discussion unfolded in a somewhat different direction than he imagined.
“Everything we talked about today was helpful. I also got a good sense of what Mira senior thinks of Yuwon.”
“And you, just seeing you naturally sit in a position to protect Yuwon, I’m getting a rough idea. Also, how you noticed Yuwon’s condition before I did today...”
Mira and Rucell’s gazes met in the air.
Though they often seemed to compete whenever they encountered each other, now, surprisingly, no trace of animosity could be seen between them.
Eventually, it came to this.
“...Can I call you Rucell?”
“Then, can I call you Sister Mira?”
“Mhm, it’s nice to meet you. Feel free to speak casually.”
“Mhm. It’s nice to meet you too, Sister.”
...Huh?
What is it? Why do they suddenly seem to have become close?
Seeing Light's eyes wide as saucers while he drank hot milk beside him, it seemed it wasn't just Ban Yuwon's imagination.
“It will be hard from now on... but let’s both support Yuwon well. This is actually something I’ve always wanted to say to Sister Mira.”
“Only two of us still? Can I... consider myself second?”
“There are no rankings, Sister. Even if we were to decide, it would be Yuwon’s choice.”
“Right... that’s good information. Thank you. Honestly, I didn’t want to lose to you either.”
While Ban Yuwon and Light’s eyes were wide with surprise, Rucell and Mira exchanged words back and forth, and then, with smiles, even shook hands.
It didn’t seem like pure affection, but it even exuded the feeling of fair and square rivals competing.
“I-Is this... the world of women?”
“Don’t ask me, Ban. However, however, I’m feeling very unhappy right now.”
Light suddenly put down his milk glass and declared, seeing the two women sharing a smile full of vigor, as if forging an alliance or a fair competition pact.
“I don’t care about the order you two decided, but I’m Ban’s closest friend! Make sure you know that!”
“...What’s wrong with him?”
“Idiot.”
“Rucell, did you just call me an idiot?!”
Mira nodded, watching Light’s tearful face.
“Mhm, we won’t need to be wary of him.”
“I know it’s not my place to say, but you two are really treating him too harshly, aren’t you?”
Fortunately, Ban Yuwon mixed some medicinal elixir jam into Light’s milk, making an instant fruit latte, and Light’s mood quickly brightened.
“So, Yuwon, why were you so exhausted after today’s lecture?”
“Ah, that was because—”
After that, the four of them continued to discuss the "Simulated Constellation War" that had taken place that day, succeeding in building their own kind of camaraderie.
It was such a good occasion that Dokgo Yeon’s absence felt regrettable.
* * *
“Run.”
Dokgo Yeon’s chilling voice was met with a brave retort from Stonemason.
“No, Junior Ban Yuwon isn’t even here right now!”
“So you won’t do it?”
“No, I will....”
And he deflated instantly.
“W-What’s wrong? She was already scary, but she seems even more upset today.”
“Now that you mention it, why is she the only one here today? I wanted to earn some points with Junior Yuwon by showing how hard I work, how annoying—.”
“You need to rest a little when the camera isn’t rolling to even endure it; our Yuwon is really so demanding....”
Even the members who seemed to have lost focus in their training due to the absence of Ban Yuwon, who usually monopolized the attention and affection of his senior club members—.
“You there, come out. It’s sparring time.”
“Huh?! We just did that!”
“It seems you still have energy to spare, so I’m offering to spar. Or do you object?”
“N-No! I’ll do it!”
Everyone equally became docile lambs before Dokgo Yeon.
“You’re going through a lot of trouble on your own. Did everyone else abandon you to go play?”
“Hmph.”
Woohyeolrin, a third-year and the only one among the seniors present who had a contract with a Constellation, nevertheless bravely spoke to Dokgo Yeon.
Despite having been beaten up enthusiastically by her just recently, he seemed to have completely forgotten about it.
“I believe you are also taking the same lecture. Did you not see?”
“I saw you together, but I don’t eavesdrop. It seems the Head of Public Relations went along too...”
“That is correct.”
“How did the Head of Public Relations get close to Junior Ban Yuwon anyway? I’d say it’s a bit frustrating; I’m curious where the difference came from.”
Woohyeolrin had previously subtly revealed during a sparring match with Ban Yuwon that he had good feelings for Mira.
Unlike some other fairy folk, he seemed to have neatly given up now... but he was taking advantage of her absence to show a lingering bit of regret.
“It is their personal matter, so I do not know. Even if I did, I could not say.”
“My apologies, I must have been rude. It’s their personal situation, so it’s natural for a junior not to know, but I rudely presumed.”
“...”
Dokgo Yeon slightly tilted her head, watching Woohyeolrin retreat without a hint of regret after saying that.
Then she stopped him and asked.
“Do you ever unnecessarily incur dislike from those around you?”
“Huh? No, of course not. You may not know it, but I pay a lot of attention to my image.”
“Is that so. Then remember this from today onwards.”
Dokgo Yeon drew her wooden sword and said.
“I just unnecessarily dislike you. Everything you say bothers me. So, from now on, you’ll have to be extra careful with your words around me. ...Now, let’s spar.”
“W-Wait a minute, you’re just going to hit me, aren’t you? What on earth did I do—”
—Whack, thwack! Thump!
Dokgo Yeon beat Woohyeolrin to a pulp under the guise of sparring.
Only then did it feel as if the stifling feeling inside her had finally begun to ease.
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