29
Her roommate, who had been watching what was happening with a curious look, returned to her room again.
“Yes, thank you.”
Lemora secretly breathed a sigh of relief, and followed the employee with hesitant steps.
“You worried me unnecessarily.”
Perhaps because she was preoccupied with Evie Alden, the thought crossed her mind that she might have been discovered.
Then, suddenly, she wondered if she had lost something.
“But, what is it that I lost?”
“Well, I don't know exactly.”
There was something strange in the employee's tone, it seemed different cold than it had a moment ago.
"What's going on? Why is he acting like this?"
In the room, the employee was speaking kindly and friendly, so what made his behavior suddenly change? Lemora couldn't understand why.
“Of course, even employees discriminate.”
In the academy, everyone, whether noble or commoner, is assumed to be equal students. But, is this really possible?
Even the students themselves were courting and cajoling in front of the senior nobles.
“I'll show you later.”
Lemora stared at the employee's back with a fiery look as she followed him.
She thought he was going to take her to the staff room in the hallway, but he led her deeper into the building.
“Ask the people inside.”
The employee said that, then turned around and left immediately.
“What the heck is this?”
Lemora knocked on the door. When she heard a voice from inside asking her to come in, she opened the door and entered.
At that moment…
“……!”
Suddenly, she felt as if someone had pushed her from her back, and she jerked forward violently.
Bam!
The door closed right behind her, and the lights went out.
“What's going on?!”
Terrified, Lemora tried to get up to open the door, but the darkness left her struggling just to find the handle.
Moreover, the door that I opened so easily before did not move no matter how hard I tried.
"Why? What's going on?! Is there anyone there?!"
Lemora knocked on the door in panic.
She shook it hard until it shook, but no sound came from outside.
This made her more nervous. Isn't this like being locked in the dark?
Bam! Bam!
In the darkness, she knocked on the door with all her might. Her hand hurt from hitting the thick door, but there was no time to care about that.
The fear of being trapped alone in the dark overwhelmed her, and a cold sweat trickled down her forehead.
In the end, she couldn't bear it any longer, and she screamed at the top of her voice:
“Save me!”
suddenly!
At that moment, the darkness vanished like a lie, and the place around her lit up.
Lemora, startled by the sudden change, turned to see what was behind her.
When I entered, the room was completely empty, but now, there I stood… Evie.
The moment she saw Evie, Lemora lost her mind.
“You! You did this, right?!”
Lemora strode forward and grabbed Eevee.
“You, are you trying to get revenge on me for locking you up? Funny, really!”
She thought that she had been shaking and screaming for help because of this girl just before, but she saw nothing but anger.
Even as she screamed, Evie kept looking at her calmly, unwavering.
“Answer! This is…”
When Evie didn't answer, Lemora extended her hand.
“Okay, that's enough.”
At that moment, Serafina appeared from the side and grabbed Lemora's wrist.
“I wish that wasn't the case, but... for a student to intentionally trap another student?”
Seraphina shook her head with a sigh, as if she couldn't believe what had happened.
Lemora looked at the stranger in surprise, then regained her composure.
"Yes!"
I finally realized the mistake I made.
“I said it myself.”
In a moment of anger, I said what I did without thinking.
I felt angry at her stupidity. Her hands shook and she felt dizzy. Lemora bit her lips and tried to think desperately.
“If I could only silence this woman.”
Anyway, no one would believe Evie's words. There are no witnesses either.
So, if this employee ignores it...
At that moment, Serafina sighed and said:
“You seem to think that silencing me will make things easier. My name is Seraphina Redom, I am the dean of this academy.”
“……!”
As Seraphina introduced herself, Lemora opened her mouth in shock.
The Lemura family was a family that produced many scholars.
Therefore, she had close relationships with the academy's graduates and prominent figures.
Among them, Serafina Redom was the person that the Lemora family had always wanted to build a relationship with.
Seraphina Redum, a rare genius that appears once in a century.
During her studies at the academy, her grades and theses were unmatched, and she is one of the few mages loyal to the current Emperor.
However, because of her wanderlust, she rarely visited the capital, and had no close friends.
And now, this woman standing in front of her is Seraphina?
Lemora realizes that she is facing someone she cannot beat, and her face turns ash.
Then her eyes fell on Evie, who was still looking at her.
She had only one choice left.
Lemora gritted her teeth, walked towards Evie and said:
"I...I'm sorry. I made a mistake."
She is an orphan, and no matter how smart she is, she is just a seven-year-old.
Lemora remembered the child who used to be happy as soon as she talked to her.
“Then, if I apologize first and bow my head, you will definitely forgive me.”
All day long, she had been enduring harsh looks from the other students, unable to join them, yet she didn't show any negative expression, that naive child.
“You will certainly forgive me.”
Since things had come to this, she decided to sincerely apologize to ensure forgiveness and make sure the topic wouldn't come up again.
She must also explain to Dean Seraphina that what she did was just a “mistake.”
She didn't need to make much effort, as tears began to well up in her eyes from anger.
“I was just going to joke around... I didn't expect it to get this bad.”
While her shoulders were trembling and her tears were falling, she seemed to anyone to be pitied.
“I should have told them...I was so scared...”
Lemora wiped away her tears with the back of her hand, then bowed deeply in front of Evie.
"I'm really sorry! I really made a mistake. I will never do this again. Please, forgive me!"
Lemora was about to get on her knees.
“That should be enough, right?”
Her apology was so exaggerated that anyone seeing it would say, “Does it have to go to that extent?”
“And if she said she would forgive me, the dean wouldn’t be able to say anything.”
While Lemora was thinking like this, the reply came:
“No.”
"What?!"
Lemora was surprised by Evie's response, which was completely different from her expectations, so she raised her head.
Her shock was so great that her tears dried up.
Evie wasn't angry, nor did she seem to enjoy the sight of Lemora's humiliation. Her face held a vague sadness.
"It was cold and dark. If it had been another student who was locked up, he would have been very frightened. He probably cried a lot."
“Well, it might be so... but you didn't cry...”
Seraphina looked at Evie's face upon hearing Lemora's words.
“Indeed, she didn't cry at all.”
She was locked in that place alone, and she knocked on the door until her hands were swollen, asking for help. But no one came, so she faced the night, shivering from the cold.
For a seven-year-old girl, it was expected that she would break down crying or collapse from exhaustion.
Even if that hadn't happened, she should have cried of relief upon seeing who had come to save her.
But Evie's face bore no trace of tears.
At that moment, Serafina sighed.
She had seen children like her during the war.
Children, having witnessed horrific atrocities, no longer cry unless they are faced with fear or grief beyond what they have experienced.
“I heard she's only seven.”
Being alone in the dark for long hours was not a problem for the life Evie lived.
A wave of pity washed over Seraphina.
“I was scared too. If it wasn’t for that painting, I probably would have been sitting in a ball and not moving.”
Evie remembered the painting she was looking at.
A painting that wasn't scary unlike the other paintings.
Something made her want to talk to her, give her something precious that she had.
“And if you knew you made a mistake, you should have said it immediately. You may be afraid of punishment, but the person in prison was more afraid.”
Evie leaned down to meet Lemora's eyes.
“You knew and didn't say anything. The dean said it wasn't a mistake. So, I won't forgive you.”
Faced with this firm response, Lemora had nothing to say.
So was Serafina, who was watching.
Honestly, when she saw Lemora bending down to ask for forgiveness, she expected Evie to forgive easily.
But, contrary to her cute appearance, Evie now showed amazing strength and fortitude
.
deal!
Serafina deals her hands hard. It's time to take charge.
“Since Evie, the victim, will not forgive, there is no other choice.”
“So…”
Lemora looked at her, shivering.
"Don't look at me with that face. What? Are you afraid I'll kick you out?"
“……!”
When she heard the word she feared, Lemora trembled.
“Expulsion from the academy is not a decision that is taken lightly. It requires a meeting of at least five professors… Moreover, you did not cause physical harm, so the punishment here is ambiguous. The academy’s rules do not clearly address psychological problems yet.”
Seraphina then looked at Evie's hand.
It was swollen, but not to the point where it could be considered an injury.
“But it cannot go without punishment. So, I will impose light discipline on you without penalty points.”
Lemora's face lit up. Discipline without penalty points is no big deal.
“As I expected,
Even
“Seraphina Redum cares little for public quarrels.”
While Lemora thought she had survived, Seraphina said:
“Starting tomorrow, you will sincerely apologize to Evie Alden at least once a day, until you obtain her forgiveness.”
At that moment, Lemora's face turned yellow.
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