Chapter 49
Chapter 49
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 49
Chapter Title: Lea's Day
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Warm morning sunlight filtered through the gap in the curtains.
"Mmnya..."
A girl dressed in cute pajamas, lost in the lingering haze of sleep.
Her tousled brown hair a complete mess with no attempt to hide it, she rolled around on the bed.
Ring-a-ling-ling! Ring-a-ling-ling!
Even as the alarm blared to rouse the chronic oversleeper.
"Just... a little longer..."
Lea scrunched her delicate brow and wriggled about.
Just like that, eyes softly shut, she spent the time in a daze.
"Lea, get up already! Honestly... how do you sleep so much?"
Her roommate—who shared the room with her—finally barked, allowing Lea to pry her eyes open.
"Ugh... so sleepy. Why wake me so early... it's barely 7..."
"What are you talking about? It's 8 already! I'm heading out now, so don't oversleep like last time!"
Her roommate was already dressed in a crisp uniform, slipping on her shoes, fully prepped for class.
Even as Lea watched her, she remained half-asleep, drowsy fog still clouding her mind.
Arms crossed, her roommate shot Lea a displeased look.
She soon shoved her own watch right in Lea's face, forcing her to confront the brutal truth.
The gleaming watch proudly displaying 8:00 AM.
Lea stared at the tiny letters through bleary eyes, unable to escape the ordeal inches from her nose.
"...Huh? What did you say... Eek! It really is 8! Why didn't you wake me sooner...!"
"Jeez, I tried waking you over and over? You just kept mumbling 'a little more' and slept on..."
"Th-that's true, but...!"
The remnants of sleepiness evaporated in an instant.
Lea scrambled out of bed and snatched her uniform from the closet in a frenzy.
Blanket left unfolded—a far cry from her usual diligent, capable self—she flailed about in panic.
Watching her, Lea's roommate opened the door to leave with a wry chuckle.
"She's always so sharp and on top of things, but mornings turn her into this every time."
As if it were a familiar routine, she glanced at Lea's teary pout before heading off to the lecture hall.
Left alone, Lea hustled to avoid being late for class.
"Today I'm supposed to hang out with Rowen...!"
She finished a lightning shower, skipping breakfast entirely, and bustled about.
Swish, swish.
Now neatly dressed in her uniform, Lea sat at her desk, gently combing her hair.
With her messy locks tamed, she moved with startling speed—hard to believe she'd been deep in slumber moments ago.
Preparations complete, she gave her outfit one last check and picked up the bracelet on her desk.
Click.
A silver bracelet sparkling in the sunlight.
At its center gleamed a bluish-silver gem that called Rowen to mind, shining brilliantly.
"Hehe... so pretty."
A whole month had passed since Rowen gave her the bracelet.
Yet Lea's gaze upon it dripped with pure delight.
She sat there for ages, admiring the bracelet and thinking of Rowen.
"...Ah! I'll be late again!"
She snapped to her senses and hurried out of the dorm toward the lecture hall.
"Hmm... I wonder if Rowen did well on his exam?"
The midterms had ended early due to yesterday's incident.
She'd worried about Rowen, whom she hadn't even glimpsed during the forest keeper subjugation.
"Fufu, if he's feeling down, I'll cheer him up loads."
Imagining Rowen blushing and flustered by her affection.
A subtly mischievous expression crept across Lea's face.
"Well, best of all if Rowen got good grades!"
Soon to meet him and spend fun times together—her lips curved into a radiant smile.
Her steps toward the lecture hall brimmed with irrepressible joy.
.....
Or so it seemed...
"Say that again?"
"W-wait. Calm down, commoner."
Upon arriving at the lecture hall, Lea pulled a fierce scowl at news that made her doubt her ears.
"So you're saying something bad happened to Rowen?"
Before class, she'd scanned the room for ages, aiming for the seat beside him.
But Rowen—who should have greeted her with a happy wave—was nowhere to be seen.
-"Ahem. Hey, commoner. You looking for that Rowen punk?"
-"Yeah. Know where he went?"
As she wandered about searching for the nowhere-to-be-found Rowen.
Dores Balmont approached and spoke up.
His speech was odd, but his heart was surprisingly kind.
He bickered constantly yet clearly wanted to get along with Rowen—that much stuck in Lea's memory.
He usually kept his distance from Lea, probably uncomfortable around her.
But with Rowen absent, he approached her first for some reason.
-"Well, it's just a rumor... about that midterm incident."
-"You mean the forest keeper suddenly going berserk?"
-"Yeah. Professors handled it quick, luckily. But they say it rampaged for another reason."
Hesitating, scratching his cheek as if unsure whether to spill.
Dores shrugged and continued anyway.
-"A demon. Word is a demon showed up during the test."
-"...And?"
-"Apparently, someone got attacked by it."
Lea had heard rumors of a puppet master behind the midterm fiasco.
She'd brushed it off as bored students spinning tales.
But Dores's serious expression stirred an inexplicable unease within her.
-"I have a feeling one of them was Rowen."
-"...What?"
-"Last I saw the guy, he'd taken a bad hit from Darian."
-"..."
-"Just a hunch. But there's gotta be a reason he never showed up till the end."
Dores hammered home the 'no way' thought she'd half-entertained.
Not that he was certain of the facts...
But Lea's mind swelled with ballooning dread.
"Why him! I didn't even saw him!"
Knowing Rowen's type—he'd charge to aid anyone in peril.
Not just attacked by the demon, but throwing himself into subduing it.
"W-wait. Why the fist? Damn it, I told you everything—I'm outta here."
Dores bolted back to his seat, abandoning the menacingly radiating Lea.
Left alone in the center of the lecture hall, Lea's head swirled solely with thoughts of Rowen.
He'd definitely promised... no more injuries.
Couldn't hold out and got hurt anyway...?
"Seriously... does he need a good scolding to shape up?"
Imagining Rowen sprawled in bed with that dopey grin.
Unwittingly, her mind drifted to the collar tucked away in her dorm drawer.
Hm, now I get it.
"...Hi, Rowen?"
Whatever it was, Lea was seriously pissed.
"Ahaha... hi."
I lay in the infirmary bed, basking in the warm sunlight, letting drowsiness wash over me.
Clack, clack—the urgent footsteps announced Lea bursting through the door.
Panting hard as if she'd sprinted here.
Where was her usual sunny smile?
Her lips barely twitched upward, but her eyes were pitch-black voids.
'Oh crap, big trouble.'
Last time, Lea had warned me: one more injury, and she wouldn't know what she'd do...
Now here I was, swaddled head to toe in bandages, lying there like a mummy on display.
No wonder she was furious...
"So, any last words?"
"..."
Cold smile on her face, she approached slowly.
Cold sweat beaded unbidden; my body began to tremble.
I could practically feel what prey senses upon spotting a predator.
Poof.
"...Lea. Don't be too hard on Rowen..."
Then Estelle Lumeria hugged me from the side.
Sandwiched between Lea and Estelle, I was losing my mind, hopping mad inside.
Yet Estelle's warm body brought a strange sense of satisfaction amid it all.
"...Hah? What do you think you're doing, Estelle?"
"...Rowen did nothing wrong."
Their gazes clashed in the suffocating tension.
"...Enjoying it, Rowen? What's with that dopey grin?"
"...Rowen likes being hugged. And my body's soft, so he seems to love it."
"......"
All I could do was desperately read the room.