Children Should Go to Bed Early

Her face drained of color, Lotto pleaded with her peers, her voice trembling.

"I'm telling the truth! She said it right before the blackout happened. She specifically told me there was going to be an outage today! How else could she have known that right at that exact second?"

"Are you sure you didn't just mishear her?"

"No! She was the one who caused it! Even if she didn't pull the switch herself, whoever is backing her definitely pulled the strings!"

Lotto's classmates exchanged quiet, uncomfortable glances.

"Lotto. When you're this exhausted, it's best to get plenty of rest."

"You look terribly unwell. Why don't you skip our social gatherings for a while and focus on recuperating?"

It was a polite, thinly veiled banishment: Don't ever show your face here again.

She realized then that the very peers she had known and associated with since their days back in the Empire didn't believe a single word she said. Yet, with her reputation in tatters, Lotto had no choice but to bow her head and accept it. She had been used and cast aside, but protesting would only invite open mockery.

"...Understood. I'll reach out once I'm feeling better."

"We wish you a swift recovery."

Cowards, the lot of them.

She had zero faith in their shallow pleasantries. Now that she had been ousted from the faction, their paths would never cross again. Distance would grow between them until they became total strangers.

Whoosh! Crack!

Late into the night, Lotto stepped out of the training grounds, drenched in sweat after venting her frustration on the dummies. Just as her body sagged under the weight of exhaustion, a chill prickled the back of her neck, sharp and heavy like a blade drawn in the dark.

"Who's there?!"

"Pfft. Way too slow."

Her back was completely exposed.

Even if her body was spent from training, allowing someone to slip behind her this effortlessly meant only one thing—the intruder was an elite.

Lotto kicked off the flagstones, throwing herself backward to create distance. Her opponent made no move to pursue, standing motionless right ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠where she had appeared. It was a girl wearing a fox mask, who gave a casual, mocking wave.

"Was that story you were blabbing to your friends really true?"

"...What are you getting at?"

"About Orknodi knowing the blackout was coming."

"It's true! Everyone thinks I'm just making up pathetic excuses to save face after losing to a kid, but it really happened! I didn't lie!"

"I believe you."

"...You do?"

"I saw it with my own eyes. The moment the lights went out, she unleashed the most magnificent sword qi. She might have fooled everyone else, but she couldn't fool me."

It was Zhuang, the masked assassin. Her vision never faltered, not even in pitch-black darkness—especially when someone mobilized mana.

All it takes is an ocular technique to see it. The precise circulation of mana.

The girl's blade was aimed with surgical intent, poised to sever an opponent's leg the exact millisecond the safety barrier dropped. When the darkness fell, she hadn't flinched or stepped back. Instead, she had advanced two precise strides toward her enemy, driving forward a blade coated in sword qi aimed straight for the limbs.

That kind of reaction speed was impossible unless she had known what was coming down to the exact second.

Master claimed the Foundation's scholarship students were mere small fry not even worth being wary of, but...

That child was an entirely different beast.

Zhuang spun on her heel, turning her back on Lotto.

"Still, I wouldn't run around flapping my gums about it if I were you."

"Are you threatening me?"

"A threat? Why would I waste the effort? It's much simpler to just slit your throat and be done with it. Consider this a polite tip in exchange for an entertaining piece of gossip. Friendly advice, purely for your own good."

Zhuang tilted her head, her voice dropping into a chilling murmur.

"Think about it. Even if it was only a freshman training facility, there is an organization capable of tampering with the Academy's grid and triggering a blackout at the exact second they desire."

"...!"

"If I were you, I wouldn't go around publicly crossing a syndicate that could make a single freshman vanish off the face of the earth without leaving a trace."

Lotto's knees buckled under the paralyzing terror, and she slumped onto the stone pavers.

"Ah, ahh... a-ah..."

I'm scared. Please, someone help me.

She reached a trembling hand out into the empty air, but Zhuang, who had been standing right before her eyes, was already gone without a rustle.

They were on completely different levels.

The private tutors her family had hired, the fabricated fame, the lavish praise heaped on her—none of it meant anything before true masters. Today alone, she had slammed headfirst into three insurmountable walls: Orknodi, Hestia who had blocked that monster, and now this masked girl who was just as terrifying.

From now on, I have to live as quiet as a dead mouse.

Having had modesty violently beaten into her, Lotto made a solemn vow to live as a meek, well-behaved girl for the rest of her days.

The moment I stepped out of the dueling arena, Giselle and Son Ocheon laid into me with a barrage of scolding.

"That was far too reckless, Milady! Swings of your blade with lethal intent against such a fragile opponent? If a lethal accident had occurred, you could have faced severe disciplinary action before the entrance ceremony even began!"

"Gwahaha! Hey, little squirt! Get addicted to carving people up like that, and we'll be seeing your mug on a wanted poster long before the graduation album comes out! What, are you aiming to become an all-star five-star fugitive or something?"

"Uuuuugh, that's so mean! I fought my heart out, and all I get is you two telling me I'm going to end up with five stars on my bounty poster!"

It was an accident! A complete fluke! At any rate, totally not my fault!

"They aren't being harsh in the slightest."

"Isabelle!"

"If Hestia hadn't stepped in personally, it would have turned into an absolute disaster."

"I'm sorry..."

"Save the apologies for her. Make sure you give her a proper thank-you."

"Okaaay."

In the original game, someone had died, leaving a mess that couldn't possibly be swept under the rug. Here, though, I hadn't even managed to lop off a single leg as originally planned, and with zero casualties, the entire duel had sputtered out into a vague draw. Lotto had scrambled away looking like she'd crawled back from the brink of the grave, and the Group B Upper Class students who had picked the fight retreated with bitter, glaring faces.

Unlike fighting for the sake of girls in dolphin shorts, throwing down to protect a muscle-bound girl really didn't get my motivation pumping. I had jumped in during the heat of the moment, but seeing my affection scores violently crater like this gave me heartburn. If I had just stayed on their good side, a fast-track promotion after graduation would have been practically guaranteed!

Now that my standing with them had plummeted straight into the abyss, any dream of a smooth career was out the window. If I didn't want them using their political weight to crush me later, I had no choice but to stack up overwhelming grades and build indisputable combat power.

"Ah, excuse me!"

Hestia was hurrying away with giant strides. When I called after her, she glanced back, her eyes scanning the massive crowd swarming around me. Her expression stiffened into an unreadable, stoic scowl, and she slipped out of the arena alone.

Poor loner...

Being an introvert meant crowds were exhausting, so she probably just didn't want to get dragged into the mess. Watching her scurry off felt a little pitiful, but at the same time, I couldn't help being jealous.

"Hey, what was that swordsmanship earlier?"

"They weren't kidding when they said you were the top qualifier! You're crazy strong!"

"Do you want to train together sometime?"

I was an introvert too, dammit! Surrounded by a sea of girls giving off sweet, fragrant scents, my vision started spinning from the sheer sensory overload.

"Uwaaah, save me, Isabelle!"

"...Sigh. Back off, everyone. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Orknodi ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠just finished a duel and she's dead tired. If you crowd around a tired kid like this, you're going to scare her."

"Ah, sorry about that."

"We didn't mean to frighten you!"

"Hey, if you feel like it, come out to the dorm entrance at four in the morning tomorrow! Let's go for a morning run!"

Four in the morning? Who the hell wakes up that early?

"No, thank you."

"Aww, don't be like that~"

"Children have to get their full sleep if they want to grow tall!"

I stated my boundaries with absolute clarity. The girl who had made the offer raised a hand and poked the top of my head. Then, pulling her hand back to her own body to measure...

Squish.

My head leveled off right against her chest.

"Wait, what? Let me try!"

"Pfft! She really is just a baby."

"At this height, she needs to be sleeping until at least ten in the morning!"

My lips pouted out in pure indignation at the dolphin-shorts crew's vicious torment, which was practically on par with the pantyhose faction's hazing.

"Ugh, she comes up right under my chin."

"Hah! She hits me right at the bottom of my bust."

"Damn it... she only reaches my collarbones."

Vicious, evil dolphin-shorts wearers. Stop turning my height into a competitive sport!

After being thoroughly humiliated as a living yardstick, I trudged back to the dormitory with a sullen pout. Dragging my exhausted feet down the corridor toward my room, a massive silhouette suddenly blocked the hallway ahead.

What the? Did I just walk into a wall?

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

I tilted my head back, only to realize it wasn't a wall at all—it was a pair of colossal human legs.

Wait.

Why was this person so ridiculously tall? I tilted my head up, and up, and up, yet I still couldn't see their face, suffering an acute sense of defeat as a fellow human being.

"Orknodi."

It was a voice I had heard only a couple of hours ago. The owner of this towering frame was none other than Hestia.

"Did you... follow me here?"

"N-No. I was just heading back to my room..."

"Ah. You were on your way back. Sorry for getting in your way."

We ended up walking side-by-side down the hall. Even though she was half a step behind me, Hestia's colossal shadow draped entirely over my head, completely swallowing my own tiny shadow underneath it. It was profoundly humiliating.

Damn it.

If I had possessed a male character, a towering 190-centimeter giant like Hestia wouldn't have bothered me at all—I could have easily cleared her height. Looking up at someone from a perspective where I had only ever looked down felt profoundly bizarre. Having people who were weaker than me physically looking down on me from above almost made me feel like an actual weakling.

I need to grow at least another hundred centimeters.

As I steeled my resolve and reached for my door handle, I felt a sharp, startled jolt of presence behind me.

"O-Orknodi."

"Hm?"

"You... do you live in Room 111?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Then... were you the one who helped me... every single night...?"

"Huh? What are you talking about?"

"N-No, it's nothing!"

Hestia bolted, practically scrambling in a panic into Room 112. It was a reaction so transparent that even the most oblivious person on the planet would have pieced it together.

She thinks the conversations she had with The Answering Door were with me.

I had aimed for that misunderstanding from the start, but not knowing what they had actually talked about left an uncomfortable itch in the back of my mind. It was probably just mundane loner venting, like: Eating alone is so awkward because people stare at me, or Waiting in line at the training grounds is exhausting because I don't have friends to hold my spot. Something along those lines, surely.

"Hey, Hestia."

"What?!" came her squeak through the door.

"Nothing. Good night."

I rubbed my bleary eyes and let out a long yawn. From the other side of the wall came a flustered, stammering reply: "Y-Yeah, you too."

I threw a dirty look at the stubborn, unyielding wall in my room, then collapsed face-first onto the mattress.

Sleep first. Everything else later.

On the other side of the wall, a sudden realization struck Hestia like lightning.

Orknodi couldn't sleep on time because she was staying up every single night just to talk to me!

She had drawn so much comfort and solace from that tiny child, yet her own selfish need for companionship had left the little girl utterly drained and exhausted. What kind of adult did that make her?

Hestia hung her head in deep remorse.

From this moment on, talking through the wall would strictly follow a nine-to-nine schedule. She would only speak between nine in the morning and nine at night, without exception.