Chapter 60
Chapter 60
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 60
Chapter Title: Shina Under the Moonlight (3)
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“Ah, an educator! It's a pleasure to meet you. I am Cosine Silver, of the fourth noble rank. My father is an administrator in Creas. Forgive my forwardness, but I was smitten the moment I saw you. It would be an infinite honor if you would grant me the good fortune of seeing you home.”
Shina sluggishly pushed herself upright. But instead of looking at Silver, she rested her forehead in her hands and sighed.
‘Sigh, what a pain. I just wanted to get drunk today.’
It seemed like only bad things were happening today. Showing her weak side to her students, being ignored by Keira, and now even strange men were pestering her?
A bitter smile touched Shina's lips as she had this thought. Perhaps her current state was the very picture of a heartbroken woman.
‘Heh. Still, there's someone who says he likes me. A woman like me, with a foul temper and no compassion.’
She had never felt love for anyone. Even when Armin appeared with Keira three years ago, she didn't feel betrayed. But it seemed there had been a sliver of expectation. A feeling of wondering what it would be like if they met again. But could that really be called love?
“I seem to have gotten carried away with my introduction. My apologies. My desire to make a good impression must have been overwhelming, as I've met a woman I simply cannot let slip away. Please forgive me if I was rude.”
“It's fine. I'm tired, so please leave.”
Shina was truly exhausted. Of course, for a Grade 6 certified mage, sobering up with mental strength wouldn't be difficult, but she still needed the surreal haze that alcohol provided.
“It is not chivalrous to leave a lady alone. I will escort you by carriage. Please, lean on me.”
As Silver reached for Shina's shoulder to help her up, Shirone and the others immediately objected.
“What do you think you're doing? Don't you dare touch our teacher.”
“There seems to be a misunderstanding. I'm just trying to escort her home. This is no business for children, so you all should head back. Your teacher can take a carriage.”
Silver tried to forcefully support Shina. At that, Shirone grabbed his wrist. Silver's face, which had been a gentle lamb in front of Shina, twisted in an instant. Being ignored by a woman was something he could endure to achieve his goal. But being treated this way by a child was something his pride would not allow.
“Hey, you insolent little brat. Where did you learn such atrocious manners? Let go of my hand while I'm asking nicely.”
“Our teacher said she's not interested. Please leave. We will escort her.”
“You little brats are getting ahead of yourselves. I saw you plying her with drinks earlier. What are you scheming? What school are you from? Do you all want to get expelled?”
Shirone's expression turned cold. The reason he deliberately brought up their school was to pressure Shina. A teacher causing trouble in a place like this would become the subject of gossip.
Iruki said.
“So you've been watching us this whole time. In that case, this is even less your business, isn't it? And let me tell you one more thing: this teacher is not someone a person like you should be hitting on.”
“You? Did you just address me as ‘you’?”
“Well, if I don't call you ‘you,’ what should I call you? Should I call you a pervert?”
“You disrespectful little bastard!”
Silver converted his tipsiness into rage and grabbed Iruki by the collar. But immediately, a sharp pain shot through his side, and his hand lost its strength. Wincing, Silver clutched his stomach and staggered back.
“Urk! What was that?”
Nade was generating electricity in his palm.
“Get lost. Next time, I'll fry your family jewels.”
The handsome man who had been waiting to use force if necessary approached from behind Silver with a serious expression.
“Hey, those kids are magic academy students.”
“Magic academy? Alpheas Magic Academy?”
Silver's expression soured. A magic academy held a different status from the schools ordinary nobles attended. Moreover, Alpheas Magic Academy was one of the kingdom's five great schools, where only the top nobles from across the country gathered.
As Silver's eyes darted around, trying to grasp the situation, Iruki scoffed and approached him.
“I hear you were going to have us expelled?”
“No, that's…”
“I am Mercodine Iruki. If you can get me expelled, by all means, try.”
“M-Mercodine?”
He felt as if all the alcohol he'd drunk had evaporated. No matter how provincial a city Creas was, there wasn't a single noble in the Tormia Kingdom who didn't know the name Mercodine.
Not only were they of the first noble rank, but they were also the most esteemed family of scholars, having held the position of head of the 'Dragon's Thunder,' the king's advisory council, for hundreds of years without fail.
As Silver's pupils trembled violently, Iruki wore a displeased expression as if he'd expected it. So-called 'family-name-dropping' nobles were everywhere. Still, the reason he'd intimidated Silver in a way he despised was to protect Shina. He knew the guy didn't have the guts to pull any real tricks, but he'd nipped it in the bud, just in case he tried to use her position as a teacher against her. Of course, he didn't think she, a member of the Oliper School, would be shaken by something like this.
“Let's go, Silver. Hey, Silver!”
The handsome man pulled on Silver's arm. Silver, grateful to his friend for saving him some face, scurried away. Even after they disappeared, Shirone's group couldn't calm their anger. Seeing how openly he'd hit on Shina, it was clear he hadn't even considered them a threat. With their small builds, they must have looked even more pathetic to him.
“The crowd here is terrible. You really can't judge a place by its sign. Let's never come back.”
“Yeah. Anyway, let's get out of here. It's gotten dark.”
“Teacher. Are you okay?”
“Mm. I'm fine. Let's go.”
Supported by Nade, Shina struggled to her feet. The sudden appearance of those gnats had annoyed her, but she wasn't in a bad mood. What was there to fear when her students were protecting her so reliably? Even a Grade 6 certified mage was, on the outside, just a woman accustomed to being escorted according to the etiquette of the nobility.
Her students suddenly looked cute to her. Shina, who had readily paid for their dinner, staggered out the door.
The moon was in the sky.
As moonlight poured down from the cloudless sky, Shina let out a sigh filled with ecstasy.
Strangely, she felt good. It was probably the alcohol, but maybe she had made a new leap forward today. She felt that she could finally step out from Armin's shadow and live her own life for the first time. It was probably the alcohol…
“Ah, I feel great. I feel so great today.”
Like a young girl, Shina looked up at the moon and twirled around and around. Shirone's group, who had just come out of the restaurant, stared with their mouths agape.
Had the alcohol managed to melt her frozen heart, even for a moment?
With her violet hair let down, she was beautiful under the moonlight. The way her trench coat fanned out like an umbrella as she spun was also amusing. People wandering the night streets turned their gazes to her, but no one clicked their tongue or scowled.
That's how lovely Shina looked.
Shirone and the others had no desire to stop her. Instead, they watched with fascination, seeing a drunken side of her they had never seen before.
“So this is what our teacher's really like. This is unexpected.”
“Wait… did we just get a major scoop?”
Iruki's eyes gleamed as he was lost in thought.
“Hmm. So this could be used as a weapon? A weapon to prevent the dissolution of our research society.”
“If we frame it right, it might just be possible. Teacher Shina isn't the type to lie. She'd probably be embarrassed if she remembered this, right?”
While Nade and Iruki were plotting, Shirone pointed at Shina and shouted.
“Hey! L-look!”
Shina's footsteps, which had been circling the same spot, were getting tangled. Like a top that had lost its spin, she looked like she was about to fall over any second.
“Catch her!”
It would be a disaster if she collapsed in front of everyone. Shirone supported her back while Nade and Iruki grabbed her arms from either side.
“Teacher, pull yourself together. We can't get back into the academy unless you're on your feet.”
“Ugh. I'm dizzy.”
Shina staggered in a zigzag. How could she be clear-headed after downing a whole bottle of cognac in an hour and then spinning around dozens of times? It was less like drinking and more like downing a punishment shot.
“Hey, hey! This isn't working. Shirone, you carry her on your back.”
“What? Why me?”
“You're the strongest one here.”
Shirone sighed. Although there were three 18-year-old boys gathered, they had all neglected sleep and meals to focus on their magic training, so their stamina was lower than that of their peers.
At least Shirone had a history of climbing mountains and trees since he was young, so he had a bit more physical strength than his friends.
“Can't be helped. Alright, help me get the teacher on my back.”
“Don't make it so obvious you hate it. You think you get many chances to carry our teacher? I'm actually dying of envy.”
Nade's expression showed not a hint of envy. On the contrary, he was grinning smugly with eyes full of relief.
“Tch. Talk is cheap.”
With Shina on his back, Shirone started walking. Once they left the noble district, the number of people on the streets dropped noticeably. For commoners who lived day to day, leisure activities were nothing but a luxury.
“You know, Teacher Shina is surprisingly small. Now that I'm carrying her, she feels really petite. I always thought she was about my height.”
“It's probably psychological. Teachers always seem taller, don't they?”
“You think so? But she's also surprisingly heavy. This is getting tough.”
Iruki nodded and laughed.
“Hahaha. Of course she's heavy, she's a person. Women are made of bone, muscle, and flesh too. You didn't actually think she'd be light as a feather, did you?”
He hadn't thought that, but he had vaguely expected her to be light. However, he couldn't let them find out he'd never so much as held a girl's hand, let alone given one a piggyback ride.
“No! I knew that much. But this is really hard. I don't think I can make it to the academy.”
“If you can't make it, none of us can. Just bear with it and walk.”
“Can't we use magic? We could just float her with air magic.”
“She's still our teacher. That seems a bit…”
Now that he thought about it, it would look strange. In the end, Shirone, stuck playing the role of a palanquin, grumbled at the unfairness of it all.
“There are three guys here and we can't even carry one girl? What's wrong with us? This is when I envy Rian. Rian could probably carry me carrying Teacher Shina. I should have just learned Schema instead.”
Nade and Iruki remained silent. Honestly, it was a situation that made them feel pathetic, being unable to carry a single slender woman.
But really, women were heavier creatures than one might think, and they, who knew nothing but books, had not a shred of physical strength.
“What can you do? The only exercise we do is breathing. I'm confident when it comes to using my head, though.”
Iruki snapped his fingers.
“Then let's use our heads. You can learn Schema right now. Shirone, what do you think? Can you do it?”
“Does that even make sense? How am I supposed to learn Schema all of a sudden?”
“You can at least try. In my case, I got Spirit Zone on my first try. Don't tell me you guys couldn't?”
Nade said.
“No, I succeeded on my first try, too. I just got a feel for it and it worked right away. Shirone, what about you?”
Shirone, who was groaning under Shina's weight, lifted his head.
“Huh? Oh, I did it on my first try, too. To be honest, I didn't even know it was the Spirit Zone at the time.”
Could someone enter the Spirit Zone without even knowing what it was? Thinking that was just so like Shirone, Iruki chuckled.
“You're a strange one. Anyway, that's why I'm saying you should try it now. Isn't the basic principle the same?”
Hearing him say it, Iruki's words sounded plausible. Of course, aptitude was a factor, but there was no harm in trying.
“Should I? Should I really give it a try? My arms are so sore I feel like I'm dying.”