Even a Scoundrel Gets Tired

178 – Encounter with the Juniors, 1 Minute Until

To be frank, a tiny sliver of me,

had anticipated something like this.

After all, Silvia –

no matter how much she was nominally a student of the Academy –

was, at her core,

unequivocally a princess of the Great Forest,

bound by treaty with the Empire.

The professors’ fawning,

was, in a way, almost a natural order;

no matter how fastidious a nature

one might possess,

even Professor Oliver was,

before her, merely

a professor.

Still, I hadn’t expected him to so

easily permit her accompaniment.

Well, to anyone else,

this might seem

like making a fuss over nothing,

but the other party being Professor Oliver changes things.

You could scour

every nook and cranny of this world,

and still struggle to find such a stickler for principles.

Professor Oliver had always,

despite his mild demeanor,

acted according to meticulous plans.

And I remember when students asked him

what he hated most,

he answered that it was

having his plans disrupted.

He was, as they say, one of those rigid sorts.

He was the type to

never tolerate his plans going awry.

“…Hmph, do as you please.

But you’ll have to meet the standard, you hear?”

“Of course, I have a certain level of skill, too.”

‘I have taught many young elves, you know.’

From his lips,

when permission finally fell,

even the professors

around him wore expressions

of disbelief, for a fleeting moment…

By now, I imagine you have

a rough idea of what

his usual image must be like.

And how fiercely he glared

at me after he

finished speaking.

As the professors

in charge of those juniors

were also there,

the paperwork was swiftly settled.

“Hmm… last time I left in

such a hurry, I didn’t notice

there are quite a few things to see here.”

“Ah, in that case, perhaps

these sorts of things might also interest you…”

‘…Why do they seem so friendly?’

“Get distracted and fall behind, and I’ll leave you.”

And so, we, including

Isabella, who was waiting

outside the faculty office,

departed for the

meeting place where the juniors awaited.

Truthfully, today was

a day with scheduled classes,

but judging from the fact that

the other professors present

didn’t say a word,

it seemed everyone was

tacitly allowed

to skip class.

Well, if even that

couldn’t be resolved,

considering Professor Oliver’s personality,

he wouldn’t have burdened me with this task to begin with.

Even if I knew nothing else,

I knew he was always

sincere when it came to the students.

Sylvia… well, being royalty, let’s just call her an exception.

From the beginning, she wasn’t one

to be bound by such rules anyway.

With a heavy sigh,

I turned back to see them.

Still admiring the surrounding decorations,

lavishing praise with every breath,

trailing after us, who had gone on ahead,

at a leisurely pace.

It was as if I was watching children who’d just emerged into the marketplace.

Sylvia, examining everything with interest,

taking her time with each detail, and

Isabella, standing beside her,

indulging her curiosities to the fullest.

To an outside observer,

they couldn’t appear more different,

yet they seemed as close as

sisters who had been together for over a decade.

That couldn’t just be my imagination.

Even Professor Oliver, who had been

leading us just moments ago,

was now glancing at them,

casting approving glances,

and even now, on our way to see the underclassmen,

the countless gazes fixed upon them

were proof enough.

…Frankly, it probably just stems from seeing an Elf and a

Human being so close.

Besides, it’s not like they could help

standing out. Their appearance

was just too transcendent.

Even a male student walking with

his girlfriend stopped to stare.

It was enough to make your head

turn of its own accord.

“Hey, what are you looking at?”

“Ah…no, it’s not that…”

“Ha, forget it. I’m leaving.”

“Wai…wait a moment…!”

‘…Serves you right.’

After offering a somber blessing

to the couple who seemed

already broken,

I asked the professor, who was walking ahead,

to wait for just a moment.

Because from a little while ago, the distance

between her and us had been steadily growing,

and if we got any farther apart,

it seemed they wouldn’t be able

to catch up easily.

Just moments ago, she had been looking

at the flowerbeds meticulously tended

by the academy’s students, but now,

as if her mind had

changed once more,

she was admiring the crystal money tree

that stood tall in the very center

of the academy.

As the stories went,

it was a crystal tree that had been

with the academy since its earliest days,

and certainly, just by looking at it,

it seemed to be that old,

towering as it did.

Perhaps because of its rather beautiful

and radiant appearance,

this crystal tree had established itself

as nothing short of a symbol of the academy,

but even so, since it was, after all,

an artificial structure,

I hadn’t thought it would be able

to attract the attention of the elves,

who clung so stubbornly to nature itself.

“Certainly, arranging plants

in this way,

“Decorating the surroundings is a good idea, wouldn’t you say?”

“..Uh, this isn’t a real plant, though..”

“I know, but still,

plants similar to this,

I can conjure them up as much as I please, no?”

“..Really?”

“Yes, of course. Later,

shall I send you a bloom?”

“Then I’d be ever so grateful.”

“Elves consider even such sensibilities a luxury…a sense of aesthetics─”

Well, listening to her conversation,

it seems she’s not interested

in the tree itself, but rather,

in using plants in this way,

only interested in the method

of decorating one’s surroundings itself, it seems.

In any case, I,

having endlessly looked around

with them, approached,

tapped their shoulders a few times,

and then pointed

to Professor Oliver, far in the distance.

To be precise, him worrying

he’d be late for his appointment.

I’d wager, had the people

in this place not been

of the same status as them,

they’d have heard

Professor Oliver’s hurricane-like scolding.

For him, an appointment was one of the most important things of all.

‘..Well, even so,

he couldn’t possibly treat

a Duchess and Princess that way, I suppose..’

“Ah, my apologies, we’ve

taken up too much of your time.”

“So..sorry, we’ll be right there.”

..Come to think of it, Sylvia’s

manner of speaking feels

quite different from when we were in the Great Forest… but,

perhaps it’s simply

because there are external

eyes upon her, that is,

Perhaps that was the reason.

If word got out that an

Elven Princess treated a mere Baron

with such ease,

she, of course, and I both, would be plagued by all manner of scandals.

Furthermore, I had even

ventured into the Great Forest once.

It was a significant issue;

suspicions about the nature of

her relationship with me might arise…

As someone who wished to avoid

anything troublesome,

I couldn’t help but be quite pleased by her consideration.

…Though whether it truly was consideration, I couldn’t say.

‘…And why is *she*, again,

watching me so intently?’

Lately, I found myself utterly

unable to comprehend the minds of

the people in this world.

Especially when the subject was women.

In any case, with great effort,

we managed to set our feet

forward once more,

and after walking for perhaps ten minutes,

the Professor, who had been

leading the way all along,

stopped for the first time and turned to face us.

“Listen carefully; beyond here,

your juniors will be waiting… but.”

“…But?”

“…Haaah, I will reiterate the precautions one last time.”

Uncharacteristically, he

scratched at his head repeatedly,

then, with a faintly anxious look,

he began to emphasize the points we needed to keep in mind.

Well, the precautions weren’t

anything particularly exceptional.

In short, our juniors

might be severely lacking in manners,

but under no circumstances

should our hands strike first.

“As much as possible, refrain from crushing them with power.”

The purpose of calling us here in the first place

was to, for a time, amend their arrogance,

not to break their spirit

or instill in them

a sense of despair, they said.

Well, for others that might be

a somewhat fussy demand, but

for me, it was as easy as pie.

Re-educating arrogant, self-willed

new recruits was

long ago, one of the many things I had quite a bit of experience with.

“Alright, any questions?”

“….”

“Yes, Jennison. What is it?”

“If it’s to amend

the junior’s character,

is it alright to, perhaps, apply a little pressure?”

Whether the subject was human or beast,

to make them listen well,

there was, regardless of era or region,

a surefire method;

before indiscriminate violence,

personalities that seemed

they could never be changed

would all be transformed.

This method was something

I had actually experienced,

and from directly employing it,

there was, undoubtedly, nothing as effective.

Personalities like wild dogs

could be instantly turned

into loyal hounds.

Of course, they were still students, so

observing them while applying

a certain measure of restraint,

I thought it a rather decent method…

“….”

“….”

“…”

The reaction of those around me…

It felt strangely cold.

No, not just cold, but

almost laced with contempt, perhaps..?

Even Isabella, who had just been

watching my every move,

narrowed her eyes

as she gazed upon me this time.

“…Just don’t leave any lasting wounds.”

What was that?

That reluctant tone, that grudging permission.

Somehow, I felt like

I’d become a complete oddball,

and for the first time in a while, I felt a bit sour.

‘…Guess I’ll have to unwind a little, for old time’s sake.’