Sairin's Probing Gaze
Derke’s voice blended with the shadows. “Welcome back. I have quite a lot to report tonight, you know?”
As I climbed to the third floor, a gentle voice greeted me. A clear, crystalline tone echoed down the hallway. Feminine and refined, it called out to me. The voice wasn’t familiar, yet it didn’t feel awkward either. It carried the same warmth as Sofia’s, but with an edge that kept it from being purely kind.
The girl waiting for me on the third floor wasn’t Tina, the black cat-like thief. Instead, it was a young lady with a gentle, narrow-eyed smile and striking blue hair. She was the owner of the voice that always harmonized with Raylin’s—the one whose true thoughts remained impossible to read.
“Oh? Miss Sairin?”
“Ufufu, you’ve worked hard again today.”
Sairin looked down the stairs, smiling in a way that seemed genuinely friendly. Her laughter sounded relaxed, yet somehow it felt like she was urging me to hurry up.
Raylin’s twin sister, Sairin. I remembered her because she was the only pair of twins in the story. Twin sisters both being SSR-rank was something I could never forget. I’d had almost no direct contact with Sairin. We’d only exchanged a few words during roll call. As I mulled this over and met her gaze, Sairin curved her eyes into a narrow smile, as if she could already guess what I was thinking. It was the look of someone ready to begin her report.
She was the complete opposite of Raylin in every way. Even their appearances were polar opposites. If Raylin was fire, Sairin was water. I remembered their attributes clearly. Their hair colors alone made it obvious. While Raylin had passionate red locks, Sairin possessed long, straight hair the color of the deep blue sea, reaching all the way to her hips.
Their clothing styles differed just as sharply. Raylin wore a traditional outfit resembling a cheongsam, whereas Sairin had on a simple pastel dress that didn’t look Eastern at all.
“Worked hard? Not at all. It’s simply my duty.”
“You’re far too humble for a human. Or perhaps you’re just skilled at navigating social situations?”
Unlike the boisterous Raylin, Sairin spoke very little. Instead of chatting, she seemed to read my thoughts through those unreadable narrow eyes.
“As someone who serves the young ladies, I believe a certain level of perceptiveness is essential.”
“Well, that’s certainly true.”
“By the way, why are you here, Miss? Where did Miss Tina go…?”
“Hmm? Because there’s no one else to give the report right now, so I’m standing in. You all must have been quite busy today, weren’t you?”
Sairin replied in a nonchalant tone. Though her words were gentle, they lacked Sofia’s soft warmth. Beneath the smooth delivery lay a subtle barb, as if she were questioning how I could possibly not know.
“Ah, so that means…”
“Yes. You would know better than anyone what happened today, wouldn’t you?”
Her blue eyelashes curved further. It felt like she was confirming I had the right answer—like she was using those narrow eyes to read my mind.
Anyway… if my guess was correct, the aftermath of this afternoon’s incident was still lingering. Tina had been involved in that event as well. Whatever she’d been doing, it seemed she hadn’t been able to return yet because of it.
“The fourth-year seniors, along with Tina and the others in Diora’s group, are all currently excused from duties.”
“Excuse me? You mean they still haven’t returned at this hour?”
“That’s right. The vice principal must be quite furious. They’re probably still running laps around the dragon training grounds in full gear.”
Insane…? This was basically military punishment—running the field in full equipment all day long. Just thinking about it was horrifying. She really must have been angry. The dessert incident had probably been resolved smoothly earlier, so this had to be punishment for the group’s unauthorized outing. Still, how much must it have bothered her for her to keep them at it this late?
“…So does that mean there’s no one on the fourth floor right now?”
“Correct. So there’s no need to go up. They probably won’t be back until late at night.”
It was unfortunate that they were being punished, but it was also the most welcome news I’d heard in a while. Once I finished roll call on the third floor, I could go straight to bed. Good thing I’d negotiated with the mint chocolate earlier. Otherwise… ugh, just imagining it was dreadful. I’d probably still be stuck with the young ladies, suffering under Benetric’s orders right now.
“In any case, let’s finish the third-year report.”
“Ah, yes. Please proceed.”
“Third-year total: 28 students. Present: 15. Excused: 13. Reason for excuse: group disciplinary action. That’s all.”
Sairin recited the report in a crisp, unwavering tone. She wasn’t even the class representative. She maintained an almost expressionless narrow-eyed smile the entire time, as if none of it mattered.
“Thank you for the detailed report.”
“Ufufu, it’s nothing.”
This was the first proper evening roll call I’d received from the third-years. They really hadn’t wasted their time here. Still, “Diora’s line”? Did that mean the rest belonged to Sofia’s faction? Even group punishments were divided by cliques? This really was starting to feel like military life. Then again, with semesters lasting nearly a hundred years, it wasn’t strange that political factions would form. Dragons weren’t so different from humans after all.
“Well then, I’ll conclude the roll call here. Have a pleasant evening. I’ll be heading down now…”
“Wait a moment.”
“Yes? Did you need something from me?”
Just as I was about to bow and leave, Sairin called me back. Strange—none of the years seemed willing to let me go tonight.
“There’s something I’d like to ask.”
“Please, ask me anything. I’ll answer to the best of my ability.”
Whatever it was, I just wanted to answer quickly and go to sleep.
“My sister. Why is Raylin in that state?”
“Ah? You mean Miss Raylin?”
“Yes. She hasn’t been drinking, yet she’s been stumbling around and singing about some ‘white mutt’ while breathing fire everywhere. I just barely managed to put her to bed after cleaning up after her. Do you have any idea how exhausting that was?”
A deep crease formed between Sairin’s brows—the first crack in her usual poker face. She must have been quite irritated from dealing with a drunken Raylin. Even though they were twins, their relationship didn’t seem particularly close. Their attributes and personalities were complete opposites. It was almost funny that such incompatible elements could be twins. How did they even share blood?
“Ahaha… You must have had a rough time.”
“Don’t laugh. Answer me. From the way she kept muttering about a ‘white mutt,’ it seems you were with her.”
Sairin’s narrow eyes sharpened in an instant. I couldn’t afford to dodge this.
“Ah, well… Miss Raylin asked me to cook something using flowers, so I served it to her.”
“Hmm? A dish made with flowers?”
“Yes. I’m not sure if it was because of the flowers added to the recipe, but after eating it, she started staggering quite badly. Still, I’m glad she made it back safely.”
“Oh? Is that so…?”
Sairin let her words trail off, sounding genuinely surprised. Then she relaxed her gaze and glanced at me through her narrow eyes.
“Did I do something wrong…?”
“No. I think I understand now why Raylin keeps calling you a white mutt.”
“Um, Miss? I’m asking because I genuinely don’t know—what does ‘white mutt’ mean?”
I figured I might as well ask while I had the chance. Sairin seemed to know something about it. What on earth was this “white mutt” that kept coming up?
“Raylin didn’t tell you? Well, if she had any shame, she probably wouldn’t bring it up herself…”
“Excuse me? I have no idea what you’re—”
“Never mind. You can go now.”
Sairin deliberately cut me off. Once again, I didn’t get the answer I wanted. It seemed there was some deep history tied to this “white mutt” person—or whatever it was.
“…Understood. I’ll take my leave.”
I turned away without pressing further. My curiosity was piqued, but right now I just wanted to lie down and rest as soon as possible. Besides, from Sairin’s reaction, she wasn’t going to explain it easily anyway. Well, if the opportunity arose later, I could always ask Raylin directly.
“Ufufu, good night. If I get the chance, I’d like to sample your cooking as well.”
Sairin murmured softly to my retreating back.
—Click, thud!
After finishing roll call, I immediately threw myself onto the bed in the duty room—my own little sanctuary. Today’s schedule had been especially grueling. Lying there, something felt off. I’d started all this to make my life easier, so why did it feel like the workload kept growing?
‘No, I just conquered Sofia and Raylin, didn’t I? Things should start getting easier soon.’
I’d even brought the vice principal over to my side. From now on, life would definitely get more comfortable. It had to! Absolutely!
“Haaam! Now that I think about it, wasn’t there something tomorrow…?”
Despite my exhaustion, sleep wouldn’t come. I had that nagging feeling I’d forgotten something important. Like there was something I absolutely couldn’t afford to overlook.
What was it? I thought I’d wrapped up all the major quests for today…
“Ah, right. Benetric…!”
The moment I thought of quests, Benetric’s face flashed through my mind. I recalled the conversation we’d had at Diora’s hideout earlier.
—I’ll come by tomorrow to properly assess your skills. I’ll drop by around lunchtime, so prepare something with an unusual combination, just like the dessert you made today.
—You’d better prepare thoroughly. Depending on your performance, I’ll decide whether to allocate a budget for the lounge or shut it down permanently.
I’d completely forgotten about that massive quest…
“Ha, whatever.”
—Flop…!
I’d just sleep for now. My brain couldn’t handle any more. I’d figure out a plan after waking up.
—Kuuu…
Breeder pushed aside all complicated thoughts and surrendered to sleep, trusting that tomorrow’s self would handle tomorrow’s problems.
“Hnn… Even though I made it myself, I can’t eat any more mint choco… I really can’t…”
Just as he was muttering in his sleep, tormented by a terrible nightmare—
—Creaaak…!
The door to the duty room slowly and carefully opened.
—Sparkle! Sparkle!
Then, through the narrow gap, two bright lights gleamed. Green eyes that resembled those of a nocturnal creature.
‘Me too, me too…! I don’t want just a kiss on the cheek—I want to kiss Oppa properly…!’