.｡.:✧ Chapter 14 ✧:.｡.

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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Thunk.

As Rin emerged from Daniel’s room, she stared blankly into the void. She couldn’t fathom the situation at hand, but Daniel’s icy composure left her with no room for escape into reality.

“Are you okay?” Ares asked cautiously, reaching out subtly to touch Rin’s shoulder, but right now, she couldn’t muster the attention for such gestures.

‘We’ve spent far too long together since we were kids.’

“The closer and dearer someone is, the more they end up hurting you, even over trivial things, due to misunderstandings.”

‘Maybe it’s best for all of us to sort out our relationship here.’

Why?

Rin wanted to scream out in frustration and demand answers, but in such a shocking situation, her brain had frozen to the point of paralysis, a sensation she had never experienced before.

With a stunned expression, she was chased away without uttering a word.

Rin glanced at Ares briefly.

He, on the contrary, wore an indifferent expression, comforting himself.

“Are you… okay?” Rin asked honestly.

They were always the trio in the village, but now they had been torn apart. From Rin’s perspective, it was unfathomable.

“Actually, I thought Daniel might say something like that.”

“What?”

As Rin’s eyes widened in disbelief, Ares sighed before replying.

“Daniel is very different now from the Daniel we knew. He has changed in many ways since coming to Aeos Academy.”

“…”

“I don’t know if it’s a good or bad direction for Daniel, but if that’s what he wants, I think we should support him.”

“What?”

Rin couldn’t accept what she had just heard.

“So you’re going to cut ties with Daniel? We’ve always been together!”

“Rin, you tend to see the world in a rather optimistic light. Our lives aren’t a fairy tale. Separations are only natural. Just because we’ve been together since childhood doesn’t mean we’ll be together for life.”

Rin clenched her fists, wanting to refute him, but she couldn’t. She knew she was forcing something, too.

Seeing Rin like this, Ares felt a pang of regret.

‘Why do you change like this when it comes to Daniel, even though you’re always so rational and sensible? I hate it.’

Ares couldn’t help but notice the subtle difference in how he was treated compared to their childhood days. In fact, there were times when his emotions had become too overwhelming, making him lose control.

But the current Ares was different.
He gently took Rin’s hand.

“It’s okay. Daniel may have left, but I’ll always be by your side.”

Rin lowered her head at his words.

Hidden beneath her hair, it might not have been visible, but Rin’s lips were bleeding from being bitten too hard.

***

“Hush.”

A refreshing morning.

Opening the window, I stepped outside. The food smells from last night had dissipated, but the morning air still carried a slight chill.

“I woke up just in time.”

I changed into workout clothes for my morning exercise routine and headed outside. As the brisk air began to move through my body, it transformed into a refreshing coolness.

“Wow, you’re up early.”

“Hmm?”

After a long run, I was wiping away my sweat with a towel when I noticed Sen, the silver-haired girl who was drinking the beverage I brought with me to sip on later.

“That was for me to drink, wasn’t it?”

I asked with a raised eyebrow. Sen chuckled, her hair swaying as she smiled, and handed me what she was drinking.

“There’s some left.”

“Alright.”

I took it from her and drank it all in one go. Since there wasn’t much left anyway, I was a little disappointed, but Sen playfully flashed me a mischievous grin.
“Did I say something?”

“Not like I’m mourning over it.”

She was making quite ordinary remarks. Perhaps it wasn’t the reaction she expected, as she suddenly gasped in surprise, but she quickly got back on track.

“I’ve finished everything I promised. If you need me to collect anything, just let me know.”

“Okay, thanks.”

“So, here’s the thing. Could you teach me how to make pie one more time?”

“Uh, no.”

“Oh, come on! Elise and Adriana are the only ones who can make it, and they’re too busy to teach me!”

“Well, you should have been better at persuasion.”

If Sen had been the only one here, I might have helped her until she could do it on her own. But I decided to punish her for dragging the others with her and causing me to help all of them.

With a towel and water bottle in hand, I turned to go back inside, only to have Sen suddenly latch onto my back.

“Help meeee!”

“Don’t annoy me. Get off.”

“Help me! Help me! I need to capture Ares’ heart!”

“Let’s not go overboard.”
She was tugging at my clothes so forcefully that I thought they might rip if I tried to forcibly pull away, so I ignored her and walked inside.

“Oh? This is kind of interesting.”

Is her head really empty?

***

“So, did the students end up fighting each other instead?”

Looking at his niece who came to his office as soon as he got to work, the Dean sighed.

“…Yes. And the senior students they fought with were overly aggressive. They couldn’t even remember if they had fought.”

“What? If they got beaten up so badly, they should’ve gone to the infirmary.”

If a group of fourth-year students had come to the infirmary, it would have been a given. However, May shook her head.

“They used healing magic to treat their wounds.”

“Huh?”

“So, the seniors aren’t admitting defeat. They remember who they fought, but it’s hazy…”

“How foolish. It’s not that they got beaten so much that they lost their memories; someone used memory magic.”

“Yes?”

May, still confused, hadn’t thought in that direction, probably because memory magic was challenging due to its complexity.

Daniel’s magic grades were below average, not good enough to be considered good, so he thought it was odd that he was able to use healing magic, but he never thought he could use memory magic.

The Dean, lost in thought, ignored his bewildered niece.

“That kid isn’t just confident for no reason. Judging by the memory manipulation magic, he’s clearly hiding his skills.”

Despite the McLean name he carried, it was evident that he wasn’t just a namesake.

The Dean drummed his fingers on his desk.

“Call the students in again today and get him.”

“Today? Even though it seems unlikely that they can win against them?”

Daniel hadn’t taken the practical test, so his abilities were unknown. But it was clear he was skilled in memory manipulation magic.

Although May was taken aback by the idea that he might be that strong, the Dean smiled.

“That’s precisely what we’re counting on.”

***

“Hah.”

Sitting idly in the gym, I stood up, patting my rear. The fourth-year students, led by Fenil, who hadn’t shown up last time, entered.

The students of Class E looked bewildered as their seniors suddenly crowded in, searching for their professor. But the professor had just left after being called by the Dean.

“Daniel, this looks…”

Tana, who had avoided eye contact with me today, was the first to approach me in this situation.

Eve, with a worried expression, tried to approach me as well, but I gestured for her to step back.

“What’s going on?”
The class president from Class E stepped forward first, but the seniors strolled up to me, seemingly ignoring him.

“Are you Daniel?”

“I thought you were too lazy to show up last time, but here you are.”

“We don’t know what you pulled last time, but be prepared for a real fight this time.”

“Alright.”

I wondered what they were suddenly talking about, but Fenil swung his fist without any further words. I could have dodged it, but I let him hit me cleanly in front of everyone, just in case they accused me of starting the fight.

‘But to do this to me in front of so many people?’

It was an odd atmosphere. These guys were clearly here to take me down, but there was a different intent coming from the one who sent them, and I could feel it.

“Who cares.”

I knew the situation was going to unfold with me eventually winning, so I immediately retaliated.

It took exactly five minutes.

“Seniors, maybe you should get some exercise.”

I chuckled as they lay defeated, but they seemed to be unconscious, unable to respond. I wondered if there were enough beds in the infirmary for these people.

The students from Class E were too surprised to approach me, but Eve and Tana came over to check if I was okay and if I had any injuries.

“Wow, but you’re really strong.”

“Hmm?”

“No, I’ve heard you’re childhood friends with Ares, so I thought you’d be decent, but you’re really impressive.”

Tana teased the seniors by poking them with her foot while warning them not to do anything unnecessary. I also assured Eve that I was fine despite my wrists getting hurt while blocking a punch.

“But Tana, are you feeling better now?”

When Eve turned her attention to Tana with a somewhat disappointed expression, Tana was surprised and looked back and forth between me and Eve.

“Yeah, today, you suddenly kept your distance for some reason.”

I wondered what had happened, but Tana’s explanation was rather ordinary.

“Well, I had a weird dream, so I felt a bit off.”

“A dream?”

Eve, who loved books and stories, asked about the content, but Tana somehow managed to change the subject.

A few minutes later, the professor returned.

The next day, I was summoned to the Dean’s office, and he announced my expulsion.

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