After a long night (1)
“Kuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!”
It felt strange to call it a stretching sound.
Assistant Professor Claire opened the glass door of the main entrance to the Trix Building while looking at the rising morning sun. She was so glad to see the early morning air that tears came to her eyes.
I ended my long day of duty with Professor Kalide, who didn’t even pretend to eat for one person.
Her blonde hair had become dull from staying up all night, with little hairs sticking out here and there. The puffy eyes have become completely frizzy, so the eyes of the smoked fish dish seem more lively.
There is not even a trace of dignity in the way he stretches ungainly like an old man.
Surely, until a few years ago, Assistant Professor Claire was also a beautiful girl who was an honor student at Sylvania University and gave off an aura that was hard to mess with.
For the first time in a few years, the so-called wise man was posted as he had become so worn down by society that instead of putting on pretty makeup, he was tying up his messy hair in an inconspicuous ponytail.
Was the choice to pursue a teaching career too reckless?
Tears came to my eyes, and even with the refreshing morning air cooling my lungs, I honestly didn’t feel all that good.
“Is there a record of dispatching medical personnel in the early morning?”
“Ah yes… “A student was injured near the North Forest.”
“omg. “A student was hurt?”
“yes. I have compiled a list of the security reports, so you can check them. “This matter has already been reported to the vice principal, so there is no need to take any new action.”
The next worker who was going through the handover process looked at the crowded list and clicked his tongue.
“What happened last night…” ”
“There were a lot of accidents. The Elte Commercial Building collapsed in the residential area. Even though it happened outside the faculty building, we still need to be aware of it.”
“Eh, the Elte Chamber building? What happened? “Have you finished investigating the situation?”
The next worker, with his hair down, pushed up his glasses and spoke as if he was embarrassed.
Assistant Professor Claire closed all the doors she had left open for ventilation, then entered the duty room and spoke.
“They say the explosion was caused by poor risk inventory management.”
It was a pretty refreshing answer.
“Risk inventory?”
“It appears that magic items imprinted with explosion symbols caused a series of explosions in the Elte Company warehouse.”
The shift worker looks embarrassed while checking the list.
“Elte Trading Co., Ltd., which is said to have distributed quite a few products, also makes the same mistake.”
“Well, they say there were no serious injuries or casualties… “The financial loss will be significant.”
Assistant Professor Claire said that without blinking an eye.
The reason why the Elte Commercial Building was destroyed was because of an accident that occurred during distribution of goods.
“Is the handover over? Are you off work now?”
A man sitting with his feet stretched out on a chair at the end of the office, with his face covered in a book, stood up.
The sight of his screaming joints loosening and his body groggily rising up resembles a corpse waking up from the dead.
“Wow, it was long. It was long.”
After spending most of the night just sitting in place, it was clear that he was tired.
To begin with, Professor Kalide always looks tired.
“Ugh, I should go back to my room and rest. “I wonder if there is any beer left at the general store in the living area.”
“Oh, yes… Please enter safely. “Professor Kalide.”
“Claire, aren’t you going in?”
Do you mean to confirm this and kill him? He must have seen it and uploaded the documents.
Claire spoke while holding back tears.
“The school opening ceremony is scheduled for tomorrow. “I have to order the cleaning of the student center auditorium in the morning, check whether the employees have completed preparations for the opening ceremony, and then return.”
“Well… ”
After working all night, work piles up until the morning. It could be said that it was a situation where tears covered my eyes.
Professor Kallade grabbed one of Assistant Professor Claire’s shoulders and clenched his fist on the other side.
“Fighting! Claire! “They said it was okay to go through hardships when you were young!”
After saying that, the back of Professor Kaleid walks towards the front door with unsteady steps.
As I look at the back of the drunkard staggering around with his hands stuffed into the pockets of his white coat, I feel like I just want to hit him in the face.
“Anyway, where is the injured student? Since I have taken over, I think I will have to check it once in a while… ”
At that time, the next worker asked Assistant Professor Claire.
“ah… Student Ed Rosstaylor? I understand that he is currently lying in a hospital bed in the infirmary of the Trix building. They say all urgent measures have been completed, so maybe… ”
“He’s not there now.”
“… yes?”
Professor Kalide spoke in front of the wide open front door, taking out a candle.
“Claire, the last time you went out to check the safety hazard area, you left the Trix building with Lucy Mayril. “I saw it clearly while sitting in the duty room.”
“Oh, no… You went out? What if you just send it to me? “When I looked at him, I saw that he was seriously injured!”
“Don’t worry.”
Professor Kalide, who was puffing smoke, suddenly looked up at the eastern sky.
There was still a lot of dark red in the sky, but the sun was pushing out the darkness and peeking out little by little.
“Permission was given by Vice Principal Rachel Sun. “Don’t touch him, let him do whatever he wants.”
*It’s inevitable to feel dumbfounded after seeing the half-destroyed Elte Commercial Building.
In the first place, a collapsed building is always a sight that strikes the blind spot of an accident.
The sight of a structure that seemed to stand firmly in place for days on end has collapsed helplessly. It’s natural to feel like your daily life has collapsed or that the world has completely changed.
The workers who came to repair the commercial building seemed to all be thinking the same thing, as they all looked confused as they looked at the building, which was now only half of its shape.
It’s the last day of summer vacation.
The students who encountered this major accident as soon as they returned to school were all shocked, but their daily lives did not collapse.
“You came up with an unusually extravagant plan.”
“No, I didn’t know it would get this big… ”
No one seemed to be paying attention to me and Lucy, who were standing outside the cage of Elte Company, looking inside, and Lucy, who was hanging on with her arms wrapped around her arms.
In the first place, the collapse of the Elte Commercial Building itself was disguised as being caused by some kind of explosion.
It doesn’t seem to be a simple misunderstanding, and I have a strong feeling that it was influenced by someone higher up.
Even the sight of the workers starting the restoration work as naturally as water was filled with a sense of discomfort.
“This is enough. “Let’s go to camp.”
“huh.”
I walked side by side with Lucy, holding on tightly to my unsteady steps.
The distance from the living quarters to the North Forest Camp is not short. If you sprint as hard as you can, you can get there quickly, but you’re not in the right physical condition to do that.
Lucy looked at me with great concern as I wandered around aimlessly, but she didn’t try to stop me. She seems to be telling him to do as he pleases.
Lucy followed me into the forest, holding my collar tightly, and every time a hanging vine or leaf appeared, she used her magic power to cut it down.
When I put my hand down on the witch’s hat and stroked it as if to express my gratitude, Lucy put her head on my forearm, seeming to feel very happy.
Even so, it was difficult to deal with the fact that he would occasionally giggle and keep his posture, as if he was aware that it was something very shameful.
So we walked through the forest at dawn for a while.
When I passed this road with Lortel last night, it was so dark that I couldn’t even see an inch in front of me.
But now, as the light of the rising morning sun seeped through the forest, the faintly frosty fog was shedding light in a mysterious way.
As I cross the gap, Lucy’s soft white hair also shines mysteriously.
Lucy’s hair seems to absorb light like a sponge. It turns red at sunset and glows softly at sunset.
“Hey. “I like this forest.”
No matter when it happened, Lucy’s words felt like they came out of nowhere.
This is because it is suddenly brought out without warning.
“I like the smell of grass when I walk like this at dawn.”
It feels like Lucy’s voice is also subtly permeating the sound of insects in the forest that resonates from early morning.
“So, I hope it doesn’t disappear.”
“Do you think the forest will disappear so easily?”
“Not the forest, but the smell of grass.”
“When there is a forest, there is a smell of grass.”
In response to my decisive words, Lucy buried her head in her forearm and sniffed.
Then he closed his eyes and spoke softly.
“Not really.”
It is not easy to read Lucy’s mood from the subtle changes in her expression.
Even for me, who has lived in the camp for a long time, it is difficult to gauge her mood as she always has an expressionless face.
It is often difficult to tell by facial expression alone, so in the end, you have no choice but to analyze it through the tone of speech or behavior.
Just because you make eye contact does not always mean you are communicating directly.
Just like a dog wagging its tail and a cat holding its tail stiffly. What we do when we are in a good mood also varies from person to person.
However, it is not very difficult to interpret the intention of the series of actions in which he buries his head in my arm, sniffs, exhales, and rubs his face.
He looks infinitely satisfied. Analyzing the reason requires more time and understanding, but I also felt relieved to see that he was satisfied.
“Hello, Miss Lucy.”
The satisfied face suddenly turned dark.
When we arrived at the camp, what we saw was… It was Belle Maia, the maid who lit the bonfire first and then sat next to it.
The maid at Ofilis Hall.
He was the archmage Lucy Mayril’s natural enemy.
The satisfied face that seemed to have everything in the world that was visible just a moment ago was gone, and he started to sweat coldly with his eyes squinted horizontally like a cat.
… It was quite a precious sight.
*
“Because the school opening ceremony is scheduled for tomorrow, I asked you to check the room assignment items within today.”
“Ha, I was going to do it. Oh, I’m going to do it today.”
“Fortunately, the. “I was worried that he might not show up at the school opening ceremony this year and that he might take a nap somewhere.”
“Well, I didn’t think like that.”
A bonfire has already been lit, and the camp, which had become a mess, has been basically cleaned up here and there.
It seems that he returned to Ofilis Hall late in the morning yesterday, but he arrived at the camp around sunrise and completed the basic organizing.
It was a sight I couldn’t believe even with my eyes open, so I couldn’t help but hold my tongue.
“Are you really sleeping? bell?”
“I take a quick nap in between work days, and on days when I don’t have a schedule, I sometimes take long naps.”
“Anyway, it’s like that… People are not machines… ”
Belle stood up in a casual posture and nodded in greeting.
“Were you at peace last night? Master Ed. It doesn’t look like it… ”
“He was seriously injured.”
“I had a rough idea of the situation after arriving at the camp. “Still, I’m glad that your life doesn’t seem to be in danger.”
In fact, it feels like I saw it in just a few hours.
Meanwhile, Belle went back to the Ofilis Pavilion, took a quick rest, washed her body, quickly changed into new clothes, and came back fully dressed.
Afterwards, they organized various tools lying around the camp and erased any traces of the mess.
“You just go back and get some rest. “Now is the time to get busy as students return to school.”
“yes. “Most of the students in Ofilis Hall have also returned to school, so I think we will have less free time now.”
“In the first place, it doesn’t make sense to take care of the other camps while also managing the Ofilis Hall. “It’s not like there are two bodies.”
“Therefore, I cannot spend a long time at camp for the time being. Well, I came here to report on those things, I also wanted to make sure you were okay, and I also had something to tell you.”
Belle was boiling water after placing an iron pot on a stand above the campfire. In the meantime, he was thinking of preparing a simple breakfast.
I waved my hand and instructed her to just go back to Ofilis Hall.
Belle, who was staring at me with a somewhat dissatisfied look on her face, nodded that she understood.
“What do you mean by message?”
“Miss Tanya is returning from school today.”
Tanya Rosstaylor.
He was the person standing at the center of the catastrophe that occurred in the Ross Taylor family.
They said they would send me back to Sylvania first, and then stay on the scene to rally forces and take care of the aftermath.
In fact, he is on his way to becoming the next head of the family.
He is in a very delicate position politically, but he has succeeded in uniting his forces even under such adverse conditions.
According to rumors, the head of the Bloomriver family and even the head of the Calamore family took Tanya’s side…
I was almost curious as to what kind of skill they had used.
“I would like to meet you sometime.”
“of course. “Tell him I’m going to the Ofilis Hall.”
After saying that, Belle turned her gaze towards Lucy.
Lucy, who was hugging my forearm, trembled as if she had been stabbed by a sharp object.
“Okay then, Miss Lucy. “To prepare for tomorrow’s school opening ceremony, please check the requests from now on, prepare your body, and tell us what you need to know.”
“No, I can do it alone.”
“no. “I will help you.”
“no! “I can do it on my own!”
Lucy, who said the same line twice, tried to take a step back, but before she knew it, Belle had put her hands tightly in both of Lucy’s armpits and was holding her down.
Lucy, who was hanging around, was caught by Belle. There were no signs of resistance, as if tears were welling up in his eyes.
“It’s really busy now, so let’s go back to Ofilis Hall first.”
“Aren’t you actually here to catch Lucy?”
“No way. How could I have expected Lady Lucy to show up at a place like this? only… ”
Belle spoke without changing her expression.
“It was just luck and timing that were just right.”
“… ”
So Bell bowed his head and said hello. There were still a lot of questions I wanted to ask, but I didn’t necessarily have to ask Belle.
Above all, it is the beginning of school season. Now, the maids at Ofilis Hall are properly returning to their jobs.
It would be better to think of taking care of the camp as a side job during vacation.
It’s really convenient to have Belle take care of the camp, but as I get used to it, I also start to feel tired.
If you want to continue living in the wild, you must not lose your sense of sharpness.
“Anyway, what about Lortel?”
He asked Belle’s back as she was about to leave and asked him one last question.
The most important question raised in last night’s battle to recapture Elte Company was the whereabouts of Lortel.
“Don’t you know that I went to camp early in the morning?”
Belle spoke in a friendly tone.
“She is my employer. She used to be like that, and she is like that now. Please finish the story well.”
After saying that, Belle disappeared into the forest just as she had snatched Lucy.
Seeing Lucy not even trying to struggle, I felt faint.
If we are to say that the only person in this world who can properly control Lucy is Belle…
*Even though the dark night is long, the sun rises.
As if to prove that fact, the morning sun sticks out its head and greets me.
As the dawn’s light creeps up and illuminates the camp, there is no sign of the gloomy darkness or the rain that used to make people gloomy.
Occasionally, the light reflected from the remaining puddles of water tickles my eyes, but it is not enough to bother me.
When you look at the view of the camp like that, you get the illusion that you have returned to normal times.
However, I know that there are many things that have not yet been concluded.
Too many forces were intertwined last night, and too much happened… In the end, there are only two facts that are most important to check.
What happened to Tailly in the end?
What happened to Lortel in the end?
Whether my efforts to create this mess last night were fruitful ultimately comes down to the answers to those two questions.
I raise my head for a moment and look beyond the campfire.
In the rain, the image of Tailly, who was standing up while gritting her teeth, seems to overlap.
First, let’s check the basement of Lortel’s villa.
With that thought in mind, I headed toward Lortel’s villa with my still sore body.
I gently pulled the door and found that it was not locked. As expected, the bell just rang.
The view you see when you open the door is… It was as expected.
“oh… “You came early, sir.”
“… ”
“You must have been hurt a lot, so why don’t you rest more.”
Traces of many people rushing in and searching the inside.
Furniture was falling here and there, and miscellaneous things like books and inkwells were rolling around on the floor.
The entrance to the wine cellar, which I had worked hard to block, was also clearly cleared. At the end of the space leading underground, there will be a pile of gold and silver treasures that clearly appear to have been embezzled by Lortel.
The imperial convoy came and searched everything. And it looks like he may have even found the mountain of gold coins.
However, Lortel Kecheln was not escorted.
He was sitting at the work desk in the center of the villa, smiling softly like a fox.
I pulled up a nearby rolling chair and sat down. Because it was difficult to stand any longer.
“I have a lot to ask.”
“What happened last night?”
“of course.”
“Shall I tell you slowly, starting with the circumstances, or shall I tell you the conclusion?”
Pain rose up from my body, but I didn’t show it for no reason. She didn’t necessarily want to worry Lortel.
“From the conclusion.”
“There are three conclusions.”
Lortel spread three fingers. It was the index, middle, and ring fingers.
“Tailly was taken back by Ayla. Ayla’s expression looked shocked, and she would explain her situation at that level. Maybe we need to meet again and talk… “Your thoughts seemed a bit complicated.”
It catches exactly what I’m curious about. First of all, this is what Lucy told me.
Lortel might not even know the truth about Belbroke, but it’s an amazing intuition.
Like that, Lortel folded his ring finger.
“The embezzlement case on the part of Elte Trading Company was completely blamed on Dune. This is something that puzzles me a bit, and I still can’t figure out how the situation came to be like this. I am in a situation where I should be the first to be suspected. “I’ll have to check it out once the commercial building is finished.”
That is somewhat predictable to me. I think it probably went as expected.
Just like that, Lortel put down his middle finger.
Then, holding a gently straightened index finger, he quickly got down from the writing table, came up to me who was sitting quietly in the chair, and poked my lips.
Satisfaction blooms in a bewitching smile.
“… .What.”
“The last thing is that I became that person. “In some ways, this is the most important conclusion.”
After saying that, he immediately hugs my head.
Even I was taken aback by the feeling of our lips being overlapped.
Anyway, she is a girl who is adept at attacking people when they are off guard.
Lortel kissed me for so long without even giving me a chance to pull my head back.
It’s not my first time experiencing a surprise kiss, but this time it took a long time.
Lortel held her head tightly, and only after pressing our lips together for a while did she lift her head.
The sinister smiling face now resembles the Lortel I used to know.
The look that had been soft all night was gone. Rather, I feel reassured by that sight.
Eventually, the lines that would come out of Lortel’s mouth were somehow predictable.
“Is the second one me too?”
“… ”
She smiled like a lady, so I answered.
Since I was going through a lot of hardships, I couldn’t help but feel a subtle grumpiness creeping up on me.
“It’s not the second time.”
“… yes?”
The bewitching face that looked like an impregnable snake collapsed in an instant, and Lortel’s eyes widened.
“… ”
“… ”
“… . “Then who is the second one?”
While wondering what to say in response to that, I quietly rubbed Lortel’s shoulder.
“Anyway, I’m glad to see that you’re safe.”
Lortel gently held my hand on his shoulder and… Her eyes were tightly closed and for a moment she felt the warmth.
A villa in a deserted camp. There was a calm warmth in the early morning forest.
We stayed still for a while, exchanging the warmth of our hands. A strange sense of satisfaction arose between us.
Eventually, Lortel slowly opened his eyes and asked again.
“so… Who is the second one? ??”
She was a surprisingly obsessed girl.
