Chapter 30
“S-sorry. I suddenly choked… Stephan, I’m okay now.”
At Jeilin’s words, Stephan stopped patting her back and spoke.
“Oh, that’s a relief. Anyway, students who should be focusing on their studies sneaking into the sacred control room late at night just to go on a date—huh? Is that okay? Isn’t that right, Jeilin?”
“Ah, no… just because we were together late at night doesn’t mean it was automatically a date. We were probably just studying together…”
Jeilin trailed off, mumbling. Of course, she would never dare go on a date with Lionel. It was just a small favor—helping because he was scared of monsters.
“Honestly. If a boy and a girl are alone somewhere secluded, huh? That’s not a date, then what is it?”
“Jeilin’s right. Just being together doesn’t mean it’s a date. Friends can hang out together too, you know.”
“But the place and time are weird! Meeting alone in an empty classroom at night? That’s super suspicious. Wait a sec! Hmph, this is suspicious. Could it be… you? It’s you!”
Stephan pointed accusingly at Nathan.
“Me?”
Nathan laughed playfully and pointed at himself with his finger.
“Yes! You’re such a playboy. Let’s see… last year alone—”
Stephan started naming off girls, but soon gave up with a shake of his head.
“How many girls has it been, anyway? Ugh, I don’t know. Even just the ones I know, your dating partners have changed dozens of times.”
Nathan didn’t bother denying that he had dated multiple girls.
But the idea that he would take a date to an empty classroom was absolutely unacceptable.
“Why would I take a date to an empty classroom? Maybe if it were a nice restaurant or a beautiful place, I could understand. I’m not a hopeless romantic like you.”
Nathan ran his hand through his dark, fine hair and shrugged.
“Hopeless romantic…?”
Jeilin muttered, glancing at Stephan, who quickly waved his hands in protest.
“I’m not a hopeless romantic! Jeilin, don’t believe him. It’s not that I can’t—I just don’t! I don’t have time to waste on romance. I have grand dreams to achieve!”
At Stephan’s words, Nathan put on a solemn expression.
“Hmph, ‘romance’? How important can it be? No matter how tired or stressed you are, if someone you like smiles at you, doesn’t the world feel beautiful?”
“Ridiculous.”
Adrian shook his head in disbelief at Nathan’s words.
“You still don’t understand the power of love, Adrian.”
“Watching you spout nonsense makes me think it’s better to just stay ignorant.”
“Wait, speaking of which, Sasha, isn’t that you?”
Stephan asked Sasha, who was stretching and loosening her body.
“What about me?”
“Last night, the student who ran out of the control room—he said the girl had yellow hair and the boy black hair. He said the boy was really tall. That’s totally you and Lionel, right?”
Stephan pointed at Sasha as Nathan nodded in agreement.
“You two are secretly dating, right? Huh? Huh? Huh?”
Sasha narrowed her eyes at Stephan.
“Stephan, did you forget we were sparring yesterday while preparing for the mock battle?”
Stephan scratched the back of his head as the memory came back to him.
“Oh, right.”
Sasha continued.
“And do you think there are only one or two students with that hair color at this academy? Forget that idea entirely.”
“That’s true. Anyway, they should’ve gotten caught and punished properly. Only then would they stop causing trouble in this sacred Pelodian Academy.”
Jeilin felt a thrill at Stephan’s words. She hadn’t realized it was serious enough to earn a penalty. She thought it was fine since Lionel had guided her without concern.
Sasha clapped her hands sharply, standing up from her seat.
“Alright, break time is over. Midterms are coming up, so stop wasting energy on useless things and focus on training!”
“Mm…”
Although she muttered agreement, Stephan continued to hesitate.
Finally, Sasha raised her fist.
“Get up!”
Stephan, unable to overpower Sasha, reluctantly rose.
“Hmph, hurry!”
Annoyed at Stephan’s slow movement, Sasha made a threatening noise with her mouth.
Stephan, eyebrows drooping, reluctantly left with Sasha to resume training.
“Which number?”
Nathan asked Adrian, who had returned from the control room to the waiting area to determine the exam order.
Adrian, leaning against the wall, unfolded his arms and shook his fingers.
“Five, huh? That’s a good spot.”
“Why does the order matter? It’s the same conditions for everyone.”
“But still, good is good.”
Nathan smirked and lightly tapped Adrian’s arm.
Jeilin, standing nervously in a corner of the waiting area, didn’t even notice Adrian coming in and standing beside her.
She had prepared diligently but was unsure if she could perform well.
Even though it was a hologram, it was so lifelike that it felt like a real creature, which made her even more anxious.
Of course, if their plan went smoothly, she wouldn’t have to face the hologram monsters directly.
“…Ilin.”
Adrian called her name.
But Jeilin, trapped in her worry, didn’t hear anything and continued pacing in circles.
Adrian raised his voice.
“Hey, peanut!”
Finally, Jeilin heard him and looked up.
“Huh?”
“Are you a spinning top? Why are you running in circles everywhere today?”
“Me…?”
“Yes.”
Jeilin realized she had been pacing aimlessly and stopped.
“S-sorry.”
“Enough. Since your mind’s all over the place, either sit here or stand still. Pick one.”
Adrian pointed at a nearby chair irritably.
“Mm, okay.”
Jeilin slumped into the chair, shoulders drooping more than usual.
Adrian thought she wouldn’t act so frantically now that she was seated.
But the situation didn’t go as easily as he thought.
Jeilin began pulling at her clothes, sighing heavily.
Adrian tried to ignore it, but the growing sighs made him intervene.
“Hey, what’s gotten into you today? You’re usually so quiet I wonder if you even breathe. Why are you so restless now?”
“I- I’m just… worried I won’t be able to follow the plan, so…”
Adrian exasperatedly ruffled her hair, placing a hand gently on her head.
Despite his rough tone, what came out was comforting.
“You’re so small but think so much. So what if you mess up? It’s just a test, it’s not the end of the world.”
“B-but… I’m not doing this alone. It’s a team effort, and I’m scared I’ll mess it up for everyone…”
“Don’t worry. I could make a mistake, Nathan could make a mistake. We all take responsibility together.”
“Mm, okay.”
“Even if you make a mistake, just move on. You did your best—that’s what matters. Got it?”
Nathan, overhearing the conversation, smirked.
“What’s this, Adrian? You’ve got a soft side?”
Adrian glared at Nathan, displeased with the teasing.
“Go away.”
“Eek, scary.”
Nathan laughed slyly, unfazed.
Then, Sasha’s team entered the waiting area with a loud cheer.
Her voice boomed throughout the room.
“The process doesn’t matter! What’s our goal?”
No one answered, so Sasha raised her voice again.
“What’s our goal?”
“First place…”
Two students following her muttered quietly.
“Hmph. That’s all the volume you’ve got? Battle is all about spirit. Louder!”
“First place!”
Stephan and the student next to him reluctantly raised their voices. Their faces were pale, almost black from exhaustion—a testament to how intense the training had been.
Watching from a distance, Adrian chuckled at Stephan’s drained expression.
“No idea how hard they’ve been pushed.”
Sasha continued her boisterous speech.
“Number one is up! What does that mean? It’s a divine revelation—we are destined to win! Our team taking first place is inevitable!”
“Wow… yeah, yeah.”
Stephan, with hollow eyes, echoed the empty cheer. It was a learned response—anything less would invite Sasha’s relentless torment.
“Now! Let’s go for first place!”
With Sasha’s battle cry echoing to the sky, the first group exited the waiting area.
