—————————————————————–
Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Yuziro
—————————————————————–
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
They quickly arrived at the infirmary.
Fortunately, Charlotte’s room was located on the fourth floor.
Compared to his own previous hospitalization, he could see she was admitted under much better circumstances.
“Oh dear… the professor was alright, but now the student is hospitalized,” Headmistress Violet muttered worriedly, leading the way.
The infirmary staff bowed their heads respectfully, without exception.
Violet held a high position, and her appearance at the infirmary was not a common occurrence.
“Headmistress, where should we guide you?” the well-trained infirmary staff asked, flocking to Violet.
Their destination was, of course, Charlotte Forte’s room.
He followed the staff, walking through the infirmary.
Passing through the hallways, he caught glimpses of injured academy students here and there.
Most of them wore expressions filled with worry, regret, and despair.
It was understandable, considering they were injured so close to the all-out competition.
However, offering them comfort wasn’t his role.
Unnecessary attention could further wound them, so he thoroughly ignored them, heading straight for Charlotte’s room.
“We’ve arrived.”
Charlotte’s name was written on the nameplate next to the door.
He nodded curtly and tried to enter.
“…?”
But the door wouldn’t open, resisting with a click.
Even when Headmistress Violet tried the doorknob, it remained locked.
“Oh…”
The Headmistress looked at the infirmary staff with an inquiring gaze.
The staff member, who had been about to leave, straightened up and began to explain.
“Ah, well… the patient has expressed that she doesn’t want to see anyone right now. There’s nothing we can do. Rules are rules.”
Rules.
Even the Headmistress couldn’t easily break them.
Of course, they had no intention of forcing the door open either.
“Could you please inform her that her professor is here?”
“Yes… I understand.”
The staff member began typing on the small screen next to the door with mana-coated fingers.
After exchanging a few messages, she shook her head at them.
“I told her that her professor was here, but she still wants to be alone. It seems she needs to rest…”
He felt a bit puzzled by this.
Charlotte was naturally timid and introverted, so it wasn’t unusual for her to avoid people.
But he thought she would have opened the door for him, at least.
‘Well, it’s shameless of me to expect that.’
He was the one who had been cold to her to transfer Lepista’s power.
So, it was only natural that she would distance herself from him.
‘Yes, let’s be content with this for now.’
Instead of trying to find a way inside, he added a question to the staff member.
“Is she in good health?”
“Yes, she just collapsed from overexertion. She’s receiving nutrients intravenously, so she’ll be fine soon.”
He breathed a sigh of relief, and Headmistress Violet, who had been listening, also sighed.
“That’s a relief. Lately, so many things have been happening around the failing class that I couldn’t help but worry something serious had occurred.”
“I was also quite worried, but thankfully, it’s nothing serious.”
Since they couldn’t enter Charlotte’s room, they started conversing in front of the door.
“Is the failing class preparing well for the all-out competition? They’ve been showing such new sides to themselves lately that I’ve found myself looking forward to it.”
He glanced sideways at Violet’s face.
Perhaps she misinterpreted his look as a glare, because Violet gave a nervous chuckle and waved her hands.
“Hey, I’m not teasing you. I might have in the past, but now I’m genuinely rooting for the failing class.”
“I wasn’t looking at you strangely either. It’s just my face.”
“Is that so? That’s possible. Anyway, so, are the preparations going well?”
“They’re… going well, I suppose.”
His vague response prompted Violet to speak again.
“Actually, I checked the failing class’s representative list this time. You selected Charlotte as the representative for Mana Sprint.”
He nodded silently.
Then, he looked out the window for no particular reason.
The academy grounds were peaceful, as always.
Violet followed his gaze and continued, “It’s good to have a student you cherish. I had a student like that too… Anyway, the student can always tell when they’re being cared for.”
“What are you trying to say?”
“Whether you treat her well or not, the student reacts and feels much more strongly than you think. So, please take good care of the student you trust!”
With those words, Violet turned around.
“Well, that’s all for today! I’ll be going now!”
Her retreating figure seemed strangely lonely.
Come to think of it, that’s right.
Before becoming entangled in worldly affairs, Violet had a cherished student.
But that student eventually died.
What did it feel like to lose your only cherished student?
He couldn’t understand, as no one in the failing class had died yet.
No, he didn’t want to understand.
He quietly watched Violet’s retreating figure for a moment.
‘Charlotte…’
It seemed he would be standing in front of this door for quite some time.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Charlotte, sitting dazedly in her room, stared at the notification on the screen with wide eyes.
It was a message informing her that Adrian was here.
“What do I do…”
She hurriedly typed back, “Absolutely not,” and scrambled out of bed, grabbing the materials placed on the side table.
“No… not yet.”
Why had Professor Adrian come to see her?
There could be several reasons.
A visit, checking in, discussing the materials, talking about the all-out competition…
“So, no.”
She had only managed to internalize about half of the material.
Even the parts she had grasped, she wasn’t sure she could demonstrate perfectly in front of Adrian.
He would definitely be angry.
He came here to be angry.
He would tell her, face to face, that he had never seen such an incompetent student.
That she was removed from the all-out competition roster.
He must have come to say those things.
She could have asked him directly, but she didn’t.
To ask him anything, she would have to answer his questions, and she didn’t have the courage for that yet.
As she locked the door again, Charlotte immediately began studying the materials.
Fortunately, the room was spacious.
Even bigger than her room back home.
“Let’s do this… No, I have to…”
First, she frantically read through the materials.
For a while, the only sound in the room was the rustling of pages turning.
Had Professor Adrian left?
Was he waiting outside the door?
What if he could see inside?
It was a ridiculous thought, but she was so terrified that she seriously considered such possibilities.
She etched small magic circles in every corner of the room and used the “Basic Flame Barrier” she had recently learned.
Done.
Now, there wouldn’t be any damage outside the room from her fire magic.
A makeshift training ground for practicing fire magic was complete.
Just as she was about to start training…
“…”
Just in case, she touched her forehead.
Then, she took a deep breath through her nose.
Her head didn’t hurt, and her breathing was normal.
…She had simply been sleep-deprived.
Anyway, she was relieved she was fine now.
“…I have to do this.”
Charlotte focused her mind and began drawing the formulas.
Once, twice.
She was still dissatisfied with herself, as she couldn’t even properly manage three repetitions.
But the mana recovery function in the room was top-notch.
Her depleted mana quickly recovered, and Charlotte began drawing the magic circles again.
“This isn’t why they gave me the IV…”
Still, there was no other way.
She absolutely didn’t want to be disliked by Professor Adrian.
One day, two days passed, and finally, the speed at which she drew the magic circles increased.
The number of attempts she could make also grew.
Was this exploiting the infirmary’s healing capabilities?
If so, she hoped they would forgive this small transgression.
Adrian visited the room several times, but she avoided him until the end.
Because she was afraid.
Terribly afraid.
And finally, the day of the all-out competition dawned.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
[Working hard or hardly working?]
