Chapter 70
Chapter 70
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 70
Chapter Title: Academy's Saintess (5)
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From that day on, Aisha's school life changed completely.
Whether the rumors had spread in just one day, no one dared touch the girl anymore. The daily bullying that had shadowed her every step, the sneers, the looks of contempt—all vanished. In fact, even those fearsome delinquents were the ones avoiding her gaze first.
As a result, how she was treated within her class shifted entirely as well.
Students began approaching her first. Some even struck up conversations, saying they wanted to get close from now on.
"Hey... Aisha. Want to have lunch together?"
"I heard you aced Managerial Math on the last exam? Mind if I invite you to our study group?"
But the girl politely turned them down.
"Thanks for the offer, but I have things to do."
It was an opportunity to make friends she could only have dreamed of just a few days ago—a proposal she would have accepted without hesitation...
But now she knew.
That none of it was real friendship.
They had stood by and ignored her when she was being relentlessly bullied by the popular delinquents, not even acknowledging her existence. Now they were swarming because they'd heard rumors of her connection to "that person," hoping to snag some scraps.
Still, Aisha didn't particularly despise them for it. That was just how the world worked. Everyone acted superficially, ignoring anything they deemed useless.
That made them ordinary people.
Which only made that feel all the more special.
The kindness of someone who had reached out to her—a total outcast with no value to anyone—solely because they wanted to be her friend.
"......"
Recalling yesterday's unforgettable memory, Aisha unconsciously pressed a hand to her racing heart.
The more she thought of that dazzling figure, the more her heart squeezed and pounded, her face flushing hot. The teenage girl had a vague idea what this emotion was called, but she pushed it away. Not yet... she didn't want to name it just yet.
Naturally, her "friend's" terminal contact info floated into her mind. The number they'd given her, telling her to call if the bullying ever started up again.
Fearful of losing it, Aisha had memorized the number by heart.
But she never had occasion to use it. The bullying had vanished cleanly. Some of the delinquents who used to torment her daily had even snuck over that day, begging forgiveness and kowtowing right in front of her.
The absence of those constant tormentors had clear results.
"This quarter's top first-year spot goes to... Aisha. Congratulations."
It might have been inevitable.
A scholarship student was a genius who attended the coveted corporate academy and got their tuition waived. Given a focused environment and motivation, she had the talent to claim first place.
Until now, that talent had only drawn envy and jealousy. But with no one left to hinder her, Aisha never missed first place in any test from that day forward.
But... somehow, it still felt insufficient, the girl thought.
She couldn't say what was lacking or why. Her heart just felt unfulfilled.
Amid those tangled thoughts, Aisha finished classes and headed home that day when she suddenly heard a familiar sound.
Deep in an alley, uniformed students had someone surrounded and were beating them.
"Argh, seriously. Why do you keep crawling back after getting your ass kicked? Drop out already! Trash like you doesn't belong in the academy!"
"......"
At the all-too-familiar sight, Aisha's legs began to tremble.
The bullying was gone, but the memories lingered. The trauma she'd briefly forgotten surged back.
Her heart pounded wildly. She wanted to run.
But then, Aisha thought of someone.
Remembering the person she admired, who had saved her, ignited courage from somewhere within.
The girl who'd been backing away steeled herself and marched into the alley, shouting at the top of her lungs.
"Stop it!!!"
The sudden voice made everyone freeze.
The thug-like boys turned to her with baffled expressions. Realizing some tiny girl was interrupting them, they twisted their faces viciously and advanced.
"Who the hell are you? Wanna get beat too?"
Faced with the threat, Aisha squeezed her eyes shut. But she didn't regret it.
Just like that person who had stepped in without hesitation to save her from injustice... she wanted to be bold too.
She'd summoned courage she'd never known she had, and a miracle happened.
One of the boys advancing on her urgently grabbed his friend's arm.
"W-wait, Wilson! That's... that girl...!"
After a bit of hushed whispering among themselves, their faces all drained of color.
"Tch, of all the..."
Having heard whatever rumors, they turned their backs on Aisha and scattered swiftly.
Left alone, the girl stared in a daze, realizing what she had accomplished.
'I... I did it.'
She had triumphed at last. Overcome the memories of her own bullying, and even helped someone else.
Pride welled up from her chest.
But still, why did it feel like something was missing?
Then Aisha's gaze landed somewhere.
A boy with a battered face covered in dirt stared at her, equally stunned.
Remembering how she must have looked not long ago, Aisha unconsciously smiled faintly and extended her hand.
"You're Jayden from Class B, right?"
"Y-yeah..."
The girl helped the boy to his feet and brushed the dirt from his clothes.
Suddenly struck by a good idea, she spoke up.
"I'll keep helping you from now on, so in return, could you do one thing for me?"
"W-what...?"
"Let's be friends."
Hearing that, the boy nodded slowly, still looking dazed.
From that moment, Aisha became a shield for bullied students across grades and classes in the academy.
Most were scholarship students like her, without any backing. Once Aisha stepped in to help, no one else dared touch them. Freed, the scholarship students began showcasing their talents freely, standing out.
"That kid took first in the grade again?"
"Second and third are scholarships too, right?"
With their consistent top scores, the scholarship group rose to become one of the academy's power factions.
Top performers had high chances of placement in key subsidiaries or departments after graduation.
The other students might grudge them, but they no longer dared treat them roughly.
Thus, backed by the scholarships, Aisha unwittingly became their central figure.
The old timid girl would have found the position burdensome.
But not anymore.
Aisha now had one special aspiration.
'If we don't have anyone pulling strings for us, we'll band together ourselves. Use that as a springboard to climb higher—ever higher.'
Because her goal was in the heavens.
A star impossibly out of reach, yet the angel who had descended at her most desperate moment to become her friend.
That person had called her a friend, but Aisha couldn't truly believe it. Their positions were still worlds apart.
Yet she wanted to get just a little closer anyway.
Every time she recalled that strong, beautiful figure who had stepped up for her sake, her heart raced and her cheeks burned. Even if she couldn't touch it, basking nearer in that radiant light felt like she could achieve anything.
No more aimless days of being tossed about by others.
Her life, devoid of purpose until now, ended there.
Now she knew her life's goal—what and where it was.
If she kept climbing higher, ever upward without end...
Wouldn't a chance to fulfill that lofty wish eventually come?
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["Today's lesson ends here. Good work, miss."]
"You too, teacher. See you next week."
With the farewell, the vivid hologram of the chattering instructor before her vanished like a mirage. It wasn't a real person, after all.
I switched off the projector, stretched my stiff body, and let out a long sigh.
"Fuuu..."
As it appeared, lately I'd been taking remote classes from the church—management studies and more. Special class students got most lessons as private holographic tutoring, so there was no need to attend in person every day.
Unless it was the scheduled 'social gathering' day, all classes would probably continue this way.
Recalling the academy building I'd visited just once led my thoughts to the connection I'd made there.
'I wonder if that kid's doing okay?'
The cute-faced girl I'd first met at the academy, Aisha.
After helping the bullied girl, I'd checked in a few times out of concern, but each time came back her spirited "No problems!"
I'd been worried, but... it seemed the dean had handled the matter as I'd requested.
["We're sorry for causing you worry over our academy's issues, miss! We'll resolve it immediately!"]
I could still vividly picture him shouting that, sweat pouring from his exposed forehead.
With such bold assurances, it looked like everything had been sorted.
'Still, next time I go to the academy, I should talk to Aisha in person. Let me think, when's that again...'
Special class students only attended for the 'social gathering,' so as I mentally tallied the date against the church schedule,
my comm terminal suddenly chimed.
Ding-!
"...?"
The name on the screen was from an unexpected sender.
'Sophia...?'
A name I hadn't seen in ages.
Now a distant memory: the trigger for our Radiance Church's founding.
The mother and daughter who'd come seeking a miracle for their blind artist-wannabe girl—Sophia and Karen. The daughter's name was Sophia. I still remembered clearly how they'd wept in joy after she regained her sight through the miracle.
Since then, the pair had kept expressing gratitude, occasionally updating me on their lives.
Just a few weeks ago, I'd heard the good news of Sophia passing the art school entrance exam safely.
So I assumed this message was the usual check-in...
'What's this? An e-ticket?'
But attached were several exhibition invites.
Curious, I read the message, where Sophia had explained.
'Eve sis! Hope you're doing well? The invites are for the student exhibition at the municipal art school. My painting got picked as the freshman representative... They let us invite family or friends, and since you're the biggest benefactor who let me paint again, I really want to show you my work. If you have time, could you come see it?'