Chapter 71
“I’m really sorry. I’m in a hurry right now, and I got lost….”
“Got lost?”
“Yeah. So… do you happen to know where the infirmary is? Could you tell me?”
The girl glanced me over from head to toe.
Judging by my claim of being lost and my outfit, she seemed curious about who I was.
“You look like an outsider. Why are you looking for the infirmary? Planning to treat that dirty hand of yours, by any chance?”
“It’s not like that! I’m just… trying to find someone…”
The girl’s half-lidded eyes stared at me intensely.
It seemed she was highly suspicious of me since I had grabbed her carelessly earlier.
I waved my hands frantically, trying to ease her doubts.
“My child collapsed and is in the infirmary.”
“Collapsed?”
The girl tilted her head.
“Are you looking for someone named Estelle?”
“Yes! Do you happen to know Estelle?”
Since she knew the name, she clearly knew her.
I looked at the girl with sparkling eyes, as if I had found a savior.
“Hah!”
The girl scanned me up and down once more, then suddenly let out a scoffing laugh.
Her expression had changed from suspicion to something else.
She relaxed her furrowed brows and even smiled slightly, seeming to ease some of her caution toward me.
She flipped her hair back over her shoulder and spoke.
“Of course I know her.”
“So she’s a friend. That’s great. Then… could you guide me to the infirmary? Oh, if you’re busy, just telling me the way is fine…”
“Oh my, but…”
Suddenly, the girl interrupted me.
She crossed her arms and raised one corner of her mouth in a smirk.
“I don’t really know either.”
She shrugged her shoulders, let out a snort, and spun around to walk away.
Click, clack—the sound of her shoes echoed.
“Huh?”
The fleeting expression I had caught before she turned was subtle.
It was a condescending smile, as if she had expected this.
“Could it be that you two aren’t on good terms?”
I absentmindedly watched the reddish-brown-haired girl walk away.
Then—
“Reina!”
A voice called from behind me.
“Cain!”
It was Cain.
I didn’t know when he had been looking for me.
He was running toward me, gasping for breath.
I ran to him at full speed, grinning like I had found a savior.
“Seriously! How can you run off without knowing the way? And what’s with that wound?!”
“Ah… hahaha…”
“Are you laughing right now?!”
Feeling awkward, I scratched the back of my head at his scolding.
“Sigh. Alright, let’s go to the infirmary. This way.”
Cain let out a deep sigh and led me into the building.
Arriving at the academy’s infirmary, I immediately opened the room where Estelle was lying.
Inside, I saw a bed with a small shadow lying on it.
I was certain.
That shadow had to be Estelle.
I ran to the bed in a single step.
“Estelle!”
The moment I saw her face, I couldn’t breathe.
Her flushed face, the furrowed brows even in unconsciousness, the labored, wheezing breaths, and the quickly rising chest.
It hurt just to see her.
My legs gave way, and I collapsed.
“Are you alright?”
Someone grabbed my arm, their voice full of concern.
I lifted my gaze along the hand supporting me.
A man with black hair and blue eyes.
“Claude…?”
Ah, not Claude.
He resembled Claude, but his eyes were slightly darker, and his face looked younger.
“Oh, sorry. I thought you were someone I knew.”
“It’s fine. It’s natural to mistake me for him—we are siblings, after all.”
The boy extended his hand to me.
Should I take it?
I hesitated.
He grabbed my hand first and helped me to my feet.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Aris Xenofesia. You can call me Aris.”
“I’m Reina. I’m Estelle’s guardian.”
Aris released my hand and introduced himself.
I bowed slightly in gratitude.
“I’ve heard a lot about you from Estelle.”
“From Estelle?”
She talks about me at the academy?
I widened my eyes and asked Aris again.
He nodded.
“Yes. We talk often, though we’re in different grades.”
“I see…”
“Ah, don’t worry about Estelle. The doctor just checked her. She even got a shot, so she’ll be fine soon.”
Aris smiled faintly, seemingly trying to reassure me.
But I wasn’t calmed.
Seeing Estelle still struggling despite the shot only made me more upset.
I gathered myself.
I couldn’t break down until Estelle woke up.
“Reina.”
At that moment, the hospital door opened, and a familiar voice rang out.
Black hair and clear blue eyes.
It was unmistakably Claude.
“Claude.”
For some reason, seeing Claude made heat rise to my eyes, as if I were about to cry.
I bit my trembling lips and rushed toward him.
“Are you okay? Your arm is bleeding.”
“I’m fine. But Estelle…”
I couldn’t finish my sentence; my chest tightened too much.
I lowered my gaze and gripped my skirt.
Then—
“Are you Estelle’s guardian?”
A person in a white coat spoke from beside Claude.
“Yes. Are you the academy doctor?”
“That’s right.”
Ah, I had so many questions but couldn’t see him properly. Thank goodness.
I took a few steps toward him, asking with worry-filled eyes.
“Is there something wrong with Estelle? She’s never collapsed suddenly like this… She doesn’t have a serious illness, does she?”
I was extremely anxious.
The final exam would be soon.
Then she would face the biggest challenge to regain her family.
‘It would be cruel if it ended like this so suddenly.’
Just imagining it made my heart ache.
I clutched my skirt tightly and looked at the doctor.
“Based on the tests, there’s nothing serious. She’s not sick either.”
“Then why did she collapse suddenly?”
The doctor, who had been answering calmly, suddenly trailed off.
‘Why is that?’
There’s nothing serious, and she isn’t sick.
So why the troubled expression?
I stepped closer, urging him to answer.
He stepped back slightly, maintaining distance, and lifted his glasses, blocking my gaze with his hand.
“I think it’s probably due to high fatigue and accumulated stress.”
Sigh.
Seeing him avoid my gaze and hearing his speculative answer, I couldn’t help but lament from the depths of my heart.
‘That’s what people say when they don’t know the real cause.’
Of course, I know that high fatigue and stress can make someone unwell.
Most people experience it.
That’s why we manage stress.
And Estelle is even more vulnerable to stress.
Which is why she requires careful management.
The higher the stress, the more likely she’s to hit various bad endings or death routes.
‘Luckily, unlike ordinary people, I can check her stress level numerically and respond immediately.’
So I could say for sure:
Stress: 23
Estelle’s stress wasn’t dangerously high—enough to collapse.
It was actually low.
‘And she didn’t look that tired this morning.’
She had looked well-rested and refreshed, as usual.
Perhaps that’s why I couldn’t fully trust the academy doctor.
“When will she wake up? If she rests a bit, will she wake up?”
“That… I can’t guarantee. We’ve done everything we can here in the infirmary…”
Can’t guarantee?
My trust, already shaky, dropped further.
