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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 4
Chapter Title: First Day at the Academy (1)
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“This is the dining hall.”
“Hmm.”
The next morning, Kanto guided Sei-an towards the dining hall for breakfast.
“……”
Kanto couldn't hide his look of surprise as he watched Sei-an walk beside him.
He was recalling how Sei-an had spent the entire previous night sweeping and cleaning his own space.
Kanto, who had fallen asleep marveling at the sight all night, woke up in the morning and couldn't help but wear a dumbfounded expression when he saw Sei-an's spot, sparkling noticeably different from yesterday.
Sei-an had always been a somewhat tidy person, but he was certainly not someone who would pick up a rag and clean himself.
“You can get your meal over there.”
“Understood.”
But after seeing that, Kanto felt Sei-an become much more approachable.
And now, watching Sei-an casually go to get his own meal, that thought deepened.
At Juist Academy, students were not allowed to bring servants or maids. It was part of a policy stating that within the academy, everyone, commoner or noble, was just a student.
However, nobles quickly found others to act as their hands and feet in place of servants and maids: commoner students.
Consequently, very few nobles would go directly to the serving line in the dining hall.
There were always those who would fetch meals for them.
Of course, nobles with less influence, or those who couldn't find commoner students willing to curry favor, sometimes had to get their own meals.
The old Sei-an was like that too. Although Count Shurayton's influence wasn't weak, Sei-an himself was largely ignored at school, so no students tried to attach themselves to him.
In any case, such nobles often blushed or were too embarrassed to lift their heads when getting their meals.
Some even barely ate when others were around. Sei-an, too, had reacted that way in the past.
‘He’s really changed a lot.’
But now, there was no trace of that.
Watching him get his meal with him and walk to find a seat, without bowing his head or showing any embarrassment, Kanto unconsciously smiled faintly.
“……!”
Then, Kanto's expression quickly hardened as he looked where Sei-an was headed.
Some in the group seated along his path were waiting for Sei-an to pass by, a sneer on their faces. Kanto could tell at a glance that they were preparing to play a trick.
“Sei—!”
Kanto tried to call out to Sei-an in a hurry, but Sei-an, who was already walking ahead, approached them directly.
They chose a childish yet effective method: the moment Sei-an passed, they stretched out a foot in front of him.
*Stops abruptly!*
“……!”
But Sei-an, with exquisite timing, stopped right in front of their feet the moment they extended them.
“What is it?”
“……”
“Are you asking me to step on them and pass? Understood.”
“What?”
*Stomp!*
And with that, Sei-an stepped squarely and as hard as he could on the feet they had extended, then walked past them.
“Ugh!”
“Aaah!”
Horosha and Pilbe, whose feet had been stomped by Sei-an, let out small groans and jumped to their feet.
Both of them had always enjoyed tormenting Sei-an.
They were scions of a viscount’s family from the Chezaros Empire, but they had picked fights with Sei-an, relying on Illnis, the son of Duke Jaimel, whom they followed.
“What do you think you’re doing?!”
“Weren’t those feet extended for me to step on and pass?”
“What?!”
Sei-an merely spoke with an indifferent expression towards the two, who were shouting in a furious rage.
His gaze implied, ‘Weren’t you really asking for it when you stuck out your feet?’
“Cut the nonsense!”
Horosha and Pilbe, who had intended to play a trick on Sei-an, began to rage even louder.
But Sei-an merely continued to speak to them with an unperturbed expression.
“Or perhaps those feet were extended to trip me?”
“What?”
“Th-that’s…”
At that, the two were flustered instead. Although they had subtly harassed and teased Sei-an, directly provoking him was risky because Sei-an also had the backing of a count.
If it became clear that they had deliberately picked a fight, it could lead to significant problems.
“If not, then never mind.”
Sei-an saw their confusion and simply walked away, indicating he had no intention of continuing the conversation with them.
“……!”
“……!”
Horosha and Pilbe, who had instantly become strange guys who picked a fight for no reason, stared at Sei-an with bewildered eyes.
“What?”
“What happened?”
Because in the past, Sei-an would either blush and flee from their small pranks, or glare at them like a girl before leaving the spot.
The two stared blankly for a long time at Sei-an, who had gone to a corner, sat down, and started eating his meal.
“Heh!”
Meanwhile, Kanto, who had witnessed the entire scene, let out a small laugh.
“……”
He thought that from now on, just watching Sei-an would give him plenty of reasons to smile.
***
“Hmm.”
So this was all the reason.
Sei-an had only been here for a day, but he had no time to feel bored due to the excessive attention people paid him.
*Whiz!*
*Thwack!*
Sei-an let out a small laugh, thinking that simply catching various objects thrown at him and tossing them back would be enough for a day’s exercise.
“Have you not received the basic education to put trash in the trash can?”
*Whiz!*
“Dispose of it accurately in the trash can.”
“……!”
Sei-an said this to a classmate who had just thrown a wad of trash at him, casually catching it with his hand and throwing it back.
“That guy…”
At the sight, all the classmates taking the lesson with Sei-an had to stare at him with surprised eyes.
This was because in the past, Sei-an would either get extremely angry at such minor bullying, or bite his lip and give up on class, returning to his room.
“And…”
Receiving everyone’s gazes, Sei-an slowly rose from his seat and approached the person who had thrown the trash at him.
*Slide!*
“……!”
Then, he brought his face close to the other’s, meeting his eyes, and began to speak in a dry yet chillingly cold voice.
“Whatever else, if you throw dirty trash at me one more time…”
“Th-throw it one more time?”
“…I will make sure you understand what cleanliness truly means.”
“……!”
Jade, who had unconsciously repeated Sei-an’s words, shivered involuntarily at Sei-an’s next words, spoken with a deep smile. He didn’t know how Sei-an intended to make him “understand cleanliness,” but he felt an inexplicable chill.
