Academy's New School Nurse (4): “Commoners Who Can't Read the Room Don't Even Deserve to Eat!”
I stopped in my tracks just as I was about to enter the cafeteria, deciding to listen in on whatever was going on.
Instead of peeking around the entrance, I turned my clairvoyance toward the inside of the dining hall.
Three female students were bullying a lone male student.
One girl had splashed water from a cup onto him, another was giggling at the sight, and the blonde one who seemed to be the ringleader was just sitting there with a smile on her face.
No way... is this that infamous villainess lady I've only heard about?
Twenty years into my life in this medieval world, this was the first time I'd laid eyes on a real-life villainess noble.
“Get lost already?!”
“……”
The girl who seemed to be the enforcer glared at him fiercely. The boy, his hair dripping wet, just stood there silently.
“Hah.”
At that moment, the boy let out a sigh, ignored them completely, and turned to leave—as if he'd just encountered a gross bug on the roadside.
“H-Hey? Has that commoner lost his mind? Where do you think you're going?! Stop right there!”
The enforcer girl, pissed off by his dismissal, reached out toward him.
“……”
“Eek?!”
But when the boy turned and fixed her with an icy glare, she flinched and backed away.
She's scared.
His eyes screamed that if they touched him one more time, he wouldn't let it slide.
Anyway, it looked like the situation was wrapping up as the boy started to leave again.
“...I haven't given any orders yet. Where do you think you're going? Trius.”
The ringleader girl finally spoke up softly.
At her voice, the boy halted his steps and turned back to face them.
This is getting pretty entertaining. I wonder if the academy sells popcorn?
“Do you need something from me, Lady Serpia?”
She must be the Serpia that girl just mentioned.
“Come closer.”
I swallowed hard at what happened next.
Slap!
“Whoa...”
With that sharp crack, the boy's head snapped to the side.
Most people would say you have to step in at a scene like this, but I decided not to get involved.
I was just the school nurse, after all—not in a position to teach or discipline students.
Besides, the other teachers in the cafeteria were just watching without intervening.
I didn't want to stick my neck out and get tangled up with nobles.
“How's that? Feeling more awake now? Seems like a little water wasn't enough to knock some sense into you.”
“……”
But that seemed a bit much.
Whatever technique Serpia used, the sturdy-built boy's lip had split open, blood trickling down.
I'd thought it would just sting a bit, but that looked seriously painful.
“...No answer?”
Slap!
“Still nothing?”
Slap!
“Guess I'll have to keep going until you snap out of it.”
Then Serpia started slapping him repeatedly, like she was assaulting him.
Blood droplets were splattering on the floor by now.
Yet even in that state, the other teachers just kept watching.
Commoner or not, they were all students—treating him like that was too far.
“Hah, I really didn't want to get involved...”
In the end, worried she'd actually kill him if this kept up, I reluctantly started to step in.
“Miss Erdel.”
“Oh, Lucille?”
Lucille grabbed my shoulder and stopped me.
“Yes. But please don't get involved yourself.”
She shook her head, implying that if I jumped in, it might backfire.
“But leaving it like that...”
The chilling slap! sounds showed no sign of stopping from inside the cafeteria.
And Serpia was wearing white gloves—magic tools that amplified her strength, no less.
It might look like a simple slap, but it was basically like hitting him with a hammer.
“I'm not one to step into things like this either. But you're right—it does seem problematic to let it continue.”
With that, Lucille strode into the cafeteria with a blank expression.
The relentless slapping sounds had been echoing for a while when the door opened, drawing everyone's eyes to her—including Serpia's.
“...Serpia Rosenberg.”
Lucille approached Serpia and said her name in a low voice. Her presence was pure charisma—cold and expressionless, like a block of ice.
“Oh, Lady Lucille?”
Rosenberg, huh? Was this the Serpia that Priya mentioned...?
“What brings you here...? Ah, for lunch, I suppose?”
Serpia smiled with her eyes, acting completely nonchalant—as if nothing had happened.
Her brazen attitude was astounding.
“The academy cafeteria is a public facility used by other students and teachers alike.”
“……”
Her tone was as cold as the boy's earlier, but on a whole other level—the whole cafeteria felt frozen solid.
“So don't cause a scene here. Handle your family matters back on your estate.”
“...Understood. Sorry if we disturbed you.”
In the end, even this villainess-like Serpia bowed her head, stood, and left the cafeteria.
I caught a glimpse of her flustered expression. Honestly, even I was intimidated by Lucille's icy glare just now.
How to put it... like one of those strict bishops back at the temple.
Kids these days are scary.
“You go too. If you're eating, do it.”
With that, Lucille swiftly wrapped things up, even telling the bloodied boy to leave.
He nodded quietly and exited.
“Hey, hold up a sec.”
“?”
I called out to the departing boy.
His face was a bloody mess; as the nurse, I couldn't just let him go like that.
“Here's some ointment. Clean the blood off and apply it. If the wound seems bad, come to the infirmary.”
I handed him a handkerchief and the ointment.
“Ah, got it... Thank you.”
“Sure, take care going back.”
He looked a bit dazed, bowed politely to me, and left.
“Won't you treat him right away? You could heal a wound like that in an instant, Miss Erdel.”
After he was gone, Lucille returned and asked.
It didn't feel like scolding or prying—just genuine curiosity.
“Oh, well, if I'd treated his face right there, it might make things worse with that Serpia girl...”
I couldn't admit it was because of my hemophobia.
I'd have loved to heal him on the spot, but with all that blood on his face, focusing would have been a disaster.
So I gave him the ointment I had on hand instead. It was one I'd made myself—pretty effective, so he'd be fine.
“I figured this was better for him than an immediate fix.”
That seemed like a decent excuse.
“...Considering Lady Rosenberg's temperament, healing him on the spot might indeed provoke her more. A wise judgment.”
Thankfully, Lucille paused thoughtfully, then gave me a warm smile—like I'd made the right call.
It was a total one-eighty from how she'd looked at Serpia.
Hard to believe it was the same person.
“So what was that all about? Nobles and commoners aside, how do teachers just stand by while a student beats another senseless...?”
“If it had been typical noble and commoner students, that would have warranted severe punishment for Lady Rosenberg.”
Lucille explained as we re-entered the cafeteria together.
“Really? Then why let it slide this time?”
“Because that boy is Lady Rosenberg's servant.”
“Servant?”
She meant the one getting slapped.
“Yes, a commoner the count family took in as her adopted playmate and attendant.”
Basically, a servant.
“Arcanum Academy has a few unspoken rules. One is not to meddle in other families' affairs—let them handle it themselves. Teachers included.”
“Ah, that explains it...”
Noble internal politics were a messy, dangerous web—best not to get involved.
That made the teachers' indifference understandable.
“Plus, the teachers here are commoners or low-ranking. They couldn't just step in.”
Especially if their noble status was below the Rosenberg family.
“It couldn't be helped, then.”
In noble society, status could wield more power than money itself.
Commoners who crossed nobles could even face execution.
The temple had taken in plenty of kids orphaned that way.
Tragic, but those were the rules here. When in Rome, right?
“Yes, from the teachers' perspective, it was unavoidable.”
Still, letting a kid get beaten to a pulp felt excessive.
But I'd stood by too, so I had no room to complain.
“At least you sorted it out, Lucille. You were like a prince just now—super cool.”
“No, I just reminded her of her dignity as a fellow noble.”
The Rosenberg family was a count house, but Lucille's Eleanor was a duchy.
Her status was far higher, and as the eldest daughter, she might even inherit it.
In that pyramid of nobility, Serpia had no choice but to obey.
“You were the impressive one, stepping up yourself. Priests hold near-noble status, but it's still daunting.”
“Ah? Yeah, you're right—it is pretty burdensome...”
I forced an awkward smile.
Technically, a saintess ranked just below the pope or emperor.
But I was just Nurse Erdel now—no intention of bringing up my old identity.
“Anyway, you should eat soon. Lunch break ends in under thirty minutes.”
“What? For real?!”
I checked the clock at her words.
Only twenty-five minutes left.
Food first, food first.
The drama had been so riveting I'd forgotten to eat.
I sat at the same table as Lucille and started my meal.
“Oh, right—so that boy and Serpia are basically childhood friends? Or something like that, despite the status gap.”
A sudden thought popped up, and I asked.
His name was Trius, right?
“Something like that.”
“But if they're close, why the brutal treatment? If she didn't like him, the family could just kick him out.”
Yet they'd both enrolled at the academy.
A count could cover tuition easily, but who'd pay for someone their kid hated?
“...Hmm, I don't know the full story between Lady Rosenberg and that student, but I can guess.”
“Some deep backstory?”
“Yes. House Rosenberg is one of the empire's oldest mage families. And that boy has the talent to become at least a 1st Class Mage.”
“...A 1st Class Mage is basically just below Archmage, right?”
Mages had a hierarchy too.
Five ranks total, with 1st Class right under the pinnacle Archmage.
Like priests with near-noble status, they held high positions in society.
“Then why not be thrilled? A 1st Class Mage would be a huge asset to the family.”
“Normally, yes. But Lady Rosenberg can't use magic at all.”
Ah... I get it now.
Jealousy over a talent she lacks.
Just your standard villainess.
Her servant not only outshone her but had genius aptitude in magic she couldn't even touch.
“Though honestly, even I have some questions about their relationship.”
Lucille dabbed her mouth with a napkin and said.
“You too? In what way?”
“Before I enrolled, our family hosted guests from various houses. The Rosenbergs were among them, Lady Serpia included.”
Probably for face-time since they were peers.
That's how it usually went.
“From what I remember, they were like close siblings until just before academy.”
“Really?”
That was surprising.
She'd been beating him like she wanted him dead earlier.
“Even after that, whenever I saw them, they seemed closer than actual siblings.”
Closer than siblings.
“No idea why they've become like this now. Not that it matters to me.”
Lucille soon lost interest, set down her napkin, and stood.
“I see...”
I adjusted my clairvoyance as I rose too.
Since I could use it anyway, maybe I'd keep an eye on those two?
Nothing much waiting back at the infirmary.