Episode 79
The items scattered on the floor were just worthless things: broken pencils, broken pens, and notebooks with incomplete writing.
In fact, these items were more like waste than just sundries. In front of this scene that completely contradicted their expectations, the students surrounding the place stood in amazement.
Among them, Isiliera was the most confused.
“This…this isn’t true…” she muttered.
The moment Evie opened the box, Ezelira felt an inner victory. She thought Evie would finally give in and reveal the stolen items.
But what was contained in the box was not even worth stealing; it was something that no one would want to take even if it was offered to them for free.
"impossible!" Isilera shouted as she rummaged through the items scattered on the floor.
But, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't find any of the bracelets or valuables that she imagined belonged to her friends.
Then I spotted among the items a carefully folded paper bag, closed at the top.
Unlike other randomly placed items, this bag seemed more carefully hidden.
"This is it!" Isilera exclaimed, and violently yanked the bag, tearing off the top end. What was inside it fell to the ground with a soft sound.
"What is this?"
Voices of astonishment rose again among those present.
“Cakes?”
“And there are other sweets too.”
Crumbs of the smashed cake were scattered, giving off a sweet, sweet scent. Isilera looked inside the bag in amazement, but all she found were the remains of crumbled cake.
“No, this can't be true...”
She snatched the box from Evie's hand, who was still holding it, and shook it violently hoping something else would come out, but nothing came out.
Her arrogant confidence disappeared in an instant. Iselira turned back, finding that the students who had joined her in attacking Evie had backed away, their faces reflecting fear. Her throat felt dry.
The students who had been enthusiastically encouraging her moments ago were now looking at her with eyes that clearly said: “It seems you made a mistake.”
Cloyce stood up, carrying Evie in his arms. The theft charge has been removed from her, and now it is time to treat her wounds.
"Wait! Where are you running to?"
Isriela screamed desperately, ignoring her fear for a moment, and grabbed Cloïs's clothes.
She backed away quickly when he stared at her, but she didn't give up completely.
“Evie Elden is not a liar!”
It was true that Evie's accusation of theft had failed, but she was sure of something else: this man was not Professor Sian Rushen.
Her older brother had confirmed this information to her many times. She pointed her finger at Cloyce and said, "You! You're fake!"
Arcel and Luska could not stand Isileira's words and behavior, so they rushed to respond, but Cloys motioned for them to stop.
He was curious to know the extent of what Isriela had discovered and where she had gotten her information from.
“Our family has verified everything. Professor Sian Ruochen is a professor of geology, he is over seventy years old. He returned to his hometown, and fell ill, so he stayed there. So why are you claiming to be Sian Ruochen? Come on, say it! Are you really Professor Sian Ruochen?”
Isilera screamed madly, and Clois answered calmly: “Yes, as you said, I am not Cian Ruochen.”
His words sparked murmurs among those present. "finally!" Isilera breathed a sigh of relief.
She was in a panic after she accused Ebi of stealing and beat her without finding any evidence. So, her accusation of this man of faking it had to be at least true.
More easily than I expected, the man admitted that he was not the professor. “He won't be able to escape either.”
The place was surrounded by students, and the academy staff had already arrived and were standing in the corridor.
At that moment, Eppie, who was trembling in Cloïs’s arms, turned and asked him: “Professor, aren’t you?”
“Evie, I…”
Cloyce tried to respond quickly, thinking that she was disappointed that the person she trusted lied to her.
But Evie interrupted him, saying: “So, does that mean I won’t see you anymore?”
Clois paused, feeling his throat tighten. Evie wasn't blaming him for his lie. She was afraid that, if he wasn't the professor, and he was exposed, she wouldn't be able to see him again. Her sparkling green eyes were trembling.
“Go away, everyone!”
The academy staff began to file inside. Isileira stood confidently, pointing at Cloïse and said:
“Catch this crook! He's in cahoots with Evie, the lowlife, and is pretending to be a professor...”
Cloyce interrupted: “Why do you call Effie such a lowlife?”
“Because she's from the orphanage!” Isilera replied.
“I ask you: Why is someone coming from the orphanage considered lowly?”
“Ah, that...”
Isileira was confused and could not find an answer. Isn't it normal for orphanage children to be considered lowly?
“This... just...”
Isilera stuttered, then she saw the objects scattered on the ground, and her eyes lit up as if she had found a way out.
"Look at this! She collects what others throw away, and eats from it! If we search carefully, we will definitely find something stolen from other people's things!"
At that moment, Evie opened her mouth, and said in a voice trembling with fear: “No! I didn’t steal anything!”
She was still trembling, and the pain was evident in her voice.
“All these things I collected from what others left behind. Here, everyone throws away their things... so I thought it would be okay if I took them... so I collected them...”
Her voice gradually faded.
The academy's students were either from noble families or from well-to-do families, even if they were commoners.
These families are the ones who can provide education for their children, so it was natural that most students did not care about their belongings. They throw away pens if they break, and bury notebooks after using a few pages or if they look dirty.
Yvette collected and preserved these objects. How humiliating was it for her to say in front of everyone that she collects what others throw away?
Cloyce felt bitter as he smelled the scent of cake spreading throughout the room.
Evie would wrap these things, which no one cared for, in paper several times and store them carefully in the box, as if they were a precious treasure, for her distant friends.
“Now I understand why you didn't want to show me the contents of the box.”
Even children have pride. Naturally, Evie doesn't want others to know that she picks up what they throw away. And for her to plan to send these things as gifts to her friends at the orphanage is even more delicate.
While Cloyce felt sorry for hurting Evie's pride, she looked at the items scattered on the floor.
Since arriving at the academy, her life has been full of beautiful moments. It was true that there were those who annoyed her like Lemora sometimes, but Professor Cian, Irene, Arcel, Lusca, Professor Mallis, and others, treated her kindly.
It wasn't just people. Every day she slept in a warm and comfortable bed, ate as much delicious food as she wanted, found answers to all her questions, and browsed any book she wanted.
“Is this paradise?”
Evie wrote letters to the orphanage daily, telling them what she saw, what she learned, who she met, and what she ate. But, while writing, she would suddenly stop.
“I'm the only one living this wonderful life.”
Her friends at the orphanage still eat only a limited number of potatoes, and share one old book. While she lives here for days like a dream.
Feeling guilty, Yvette wanted to share even a little of what she enjoyed with her distant friends.
Then, I noticed a pencil lying on the classroom floor, only the tip broken, but it had been left behind because its owner no longer wanted it.
I started collecting things like this. She knew the days of throwing sweets in the restaurant, and she would take a handful of them before they were thrown away.
“I didn't steal anything. I just took what you left...”
Suddenly, a strong voice rose from the side of the door: “What is this commotion?” It was Serafina.
She pushed everyone and advanced, and when she saw Cloise in the middle, she shouted in surprise: “Your Majesty the Emperor! What is happening?”
“His Majesty the Emperor?”
Everyone stopped, unable to comprehend the meaning of her words. Moments later, a wave of astonishment spread among those present, surpassing everything before.
°. • .✦ . ◌ ⋆ ° ✬ • ✫ ⋆｡ .° ◌ • .●