~Chapter 133~
Oh, of course, my dad is rich too.
But isn’t it always better to have more rich friends?
I smiled and stacked my books neatly again.
“By the way… it looks like those guys have bullied you more than once. How about talking to the professor?”
I spoke honestly. But Jerdin shook his head softly.
“If I do that, the nobles might try to get revenge… It’s okay. I can just put up with it a little longer.”
“Ehh…”
He thinks it’s best to not stand out.
I understood his feelings, so I nodded. “Okay, I get it.”
Just then, Sortie finished packing and tapped me.
“Let’s go have lunch!”
“Yeah! Oh, right. Titi, for lunch…”
Before I could finish, Haben, who had been staring at me, suddenly stood up and rushed over.
“Hey! You!”
“Yeah? What?”
“You just wait and see!”
He was really trying to scare me. I fiddled with my fingers and looked away.
“Whoa, um… did you really run all the way from the back of the class just to say that? Really?”
“Ugh, you’re just a commoner but you keep talking back!”
“Haben, stop it!”
At that moment, quiet Sortie spoke up.
“Why do you keep being mean to your friend? Did your parents teach you to do that?”
Good job, Titi.
Funny enough, Haben got angry, but he couldn’t act so tough with Sortie.
‘He must be tired of hearing that from another noble.’
How childish.
“Hey, why are you on the commoners’ side?”
“You know, saying ‘commoner’ all the time is banned—Professor Yuliophe said so!”
“Ugh, so annoying! Let’s go, guys!”
Finally, Haben stormed out with his group.
Sortie glared at his back with a frustrated face, then turned quickly to me.
“Do you like pepper spray or chili powder spray?”
“Huh…?”
“Pick one! Pepper spray, chili powder spray! I’m going to bring it from tomorrow!”
“You even brought that? Wow, you’re amazing.”
“I brought it to chase away bugs for the outdoor party on the last day!”
“But, using it on people is…”
When I saw the sparkle in Sortie’s eyes, I closed my mouth.
“It could be a way. I want the mix, Titi!”
Finally, she smiled brightly.
After the morning class, Yuliophe went to the staff building where his office was.
Ugh, I’m exhausted.
Teaching took more energy than I thought.
“I don’t even have much energy to use! Hahaha! Hahh…”
His crazy laughter quickly changed into a deep sigh.
“Professor Yuliophe?”
At that moment, Odely, wearing red butterfly glasses, came over.
“Oh, Principal.”
“Today’s the official first day. How is it? Aren’t they all cute?”
“Yes. But my overtime is not cute at all.”
Odely glanced at him.
“Hohoho! Thanks to you, you’re getting a nice bonus, right? You know our academy pays better than South Mariard?”
“Of course, dear Principal.”
Yuliophe put his hands together and bowed very seriously.
“So please negotiate my salary well for next year…”
Hehe. And if not, I’ll just get a better offer somewhere else.
Odely laughed again, not knowing what he was thinking.
“That depends on how well your camp turns out.”
“Oh, I think I hear my body and soul breaking somewhere…”
I’m so depressed.
Yuliophe drank his recovery drink all at once.
“By the way… how was Lady Zebbert?”
“The lady?”
“Yes. The Duke seemed worried that she was very shy. Did she adjust well?”
Hmm. Adjusting…
Yuliophe looked unsure.
“I think she adjusted okay… but I can’t tell if she’s really shy or not.”
“What do you mean?”
He remembered the name tag, scribbled with “Lu,” and the sharp look in her eyes when she faced Haben.
Even when people called her “commoner,” she didn’t bother to correct them.
‘She must not like getting attention.’
The youngest child of the famous Zebbert family. Even more, the only daughter.
Everyone knows the Duke and Duchess’s story, so it was obvious what it meant for them to adopt a daughter.
Thinking about all the attention on her before the camp started, Yuliophe made a dull face.
‘But still, I can’t give her special treatment.’
Nobles or not, they’re all students to him.
If students fight, he’ll only step in as a professor.
He actually hated it when social rank caused problems in class.
“Well, she’s doing fine so far. Looks like she made some friends, too.”
Odely stared, eyes wide.
“You have to take really, reeeally good care of her. You know how much the Zebbert family donates to our academy?”
“Huh? That’s not my business. It’s not like the Duke’s money goes straight into my paycheck, right?”
“Hmm. Don’t you hear something?”
“What?”
“The sound of your salary getting cut, Professor Yuliophe.”
Ugh. Yuliophe plugged his ears and shook his head wildly.
Odely just smiled and patted his shoulder.
“Anyway… what about the library?”
Yuliophe finally lowered his arms and picked up the old book he had under his arm.
“…As you see.”
Odely’s face became serious.
“I’ve been staying up all night trying to find a way, but there’s no answer.”
“Sigh… I see.”
Odely rubbed his tired forehead.
“Once camp ends, we’ll have an audience with the Emperor. I’ll ask for a wizard to be sent.”
“…A wizard?”
“Don’t look like that. Our old library has never let wizards in before, but… there’s no choice, right?”
“Sigh…”
That was the old library’s rule.
Never broken, not once, in the academy’s long history.
It was just normal for principals and professors to follow that rule.
“This is troubling…”
Gulp, gulp.
Yuliophe drank his recovery drink again.
“Well, anyway, as long as I can just get off work…”
The principal suddenly snapped.
“You can go home and rest! Why do you always spend the night in your lab when your house is right by the front gate?”
“Go… home…”
“Are you eating properly? Professor Yuliophe!”
Yuliophe pretended not to hear and walked away, sniffling.
In one hand, he held his beloved old book.
Yuliophe was walking unsteadily to his office when he suddenly stopped.
“Professor!”
He looked up and saw a girl running toward him from far away.
It was the same girl they talked about earlier—Rubian.
“…Miss Rubian?”
The girl with the cute strawberry hairpin bowed in front of him.
“Hello!”
Yuliophe focused his tired eyes.
“Um, I’m sorry for the trouble I caused this morning.”
Her blue eyes sparkled. It was his first time talking with her, but she seemed smarter and more polite than he thought.
“Hmm, it’s fine. Is that all you wanted to say?”
“Oh. Well, actually, there’s something else.”
Rubian shifted her feet, looking shy.
“Today’s lesson was really meaningful. Could I maybe… take a look inside the old library?”
Yuliophe’s eyes grew wide.
“Does that mean you’re interested in old books?”
“Yes. For some reason, I feel really close to them, and I keep wanting to look at them… I just get this burning desire to read them fluently at least once.”
“Ahem, ahem!”
The young professor’s face turned red.
‘No special treatment!’
But…
“Not many students are interested in ancient languages… ahem!”
But this isn’t special treatment, right? He’s just teaching a student who loves learning!
He tried to keep a calm face, but it was hard to stop his smile.
Without thinking, Yuliophe patted Rubian’s head—and then froze.
‘What a feeling…’
She’s precious. This student.
‘For some reason, I don’t want to lose her.’
