Chapter 4
Chapter 4
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 4
Chapter Title: Bullying and Misunderstanding
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“Hmm.”
After classes ended.
It had been a while since I'd felt like taking a stroll around the academy now that all the lectures were finally done.
Of course, I wasn't just wandering aimlessly. My mind kept circling back to how I could avoid expulsion.
'No matter what, I have to clear my name.'
The exam part might be fixable somehow, but the real issues were the assault on a classmate and the sexual harassment of a female student.
For those, I'd have to confront the people claiming to be victims themselves.
'The girl was that one from today.'
The kid from Class E who, like me, sat off on the fringes listening to lectures. We'd made eye contact a few times, but she'd always flinched and looked away—that stuck with me.
'But she didn't seem disgusted.'
If anything, her eyes held a flicker of guilt and melancholy, which gave me some hope.
If she'd framed me out of malice, it meant her conscience was bothering her. If someone had put her up to it, she knew the truth.
'Why didn't I think like this back then?'
I'd often gotten frustrated with my old timid self, but now that I was living it firsthand, it was infuriating.
“Wow, it's been a while here too.”
The school rooftop.
I'd come up to catch some breeze and enjoy the view, but unexpectedly, there was a commotion.
A girl's scream.
I cracked the door open and stepped out onto the rooftop. A few female students were bullying one girl—and I recognized the victim.
'Come to think of it, I still don't know her name.'
Sadly, I didn't know her name yet, but she was the blonde girl who'd been trailing me all day.
She seemed popular, energetic, and sociable—hardly the type to get picked on. But when I saw who was leading the bullying, I couldn't help nodding.
'Isn't that the girl always trailing after Ares?'
Reddish-brown wavy bob cut.
She was definitely above average in looks, but her fierce eyes stood out.
“You think you can hit on Ares?”
“I-I didn't!”
As if.
Earlier by the bathroom, the second I talked to him, she'd come bounding over like a puppy greeting its master.
The bob-cut girl grabbed her by the hair, yanked her up, and sneered.
“Don't act like you're from the Mayas main house. You're just branch family trash anyway.”
“She thinks she's the prettiest girl in the world.”
“Did you see her smiling with her eyes today? Made me wanna puke.”
The other girls chimed in one after another, echoing the bob-cut leader. It was ridiculous, and I wondered if Ares even knew about this.
'Maybe I should tell him.'
He might swoop in like some white knight on a steed. He'd always pulled off that role stylishly back in the day.
Like when Rin and I got jumped by the neighborhood thugs—he'd charge in and save us.
Lost in old memories for a moment, one of the girls suddenly pointed at me in panic.
“M-May! Someone's over there!”
“What?”
So her name was May.
Anyway, May spotted me, panicked, dropped the hair she was gripping, and glared daggers.
“What are you doing here? Pervert?”
“That's the guy. The one behind the sexual harassment and violence incidents.”
“Why hasn't he been expelled yet?”
“What's the Dean doing?”
Oh, looks like the target had shifted to me now. The girls started whispering among themselves. Back then, I might've bowed my head, apologized, and bolted—but not anymore.
“You girls play cute.”
To me now, they just looked like kids blushing and making excuses to cover their mistakes.
My snort must've felt like a taunt.
May scowled and marched over.
“Shut your mouth and get expelled already, you sex offender. It's disgusting breathing the same air as you.”
“Hm.”
“What? Gonna try it on me too? Go ahead. Do it. Scum like you belong in jail.”
She had some guts. I chuckled and said,
“Does Ares know you're pulling this crap?”
“......What?”
What a joke.
“Hilarious. There are tons of girls around Ares, so why drag this one in and pick on her?”
She probably knew it herself—that's why she was doing this. The girls around Ares were stunning, even by my standards.
From age-appropriate cuties to surprisingly mature beauties.
The guy had real talent; I couldn't help smirking inwardly.
“You can't touch the others, so you're taking it out on the easy target.”
“You—!”
I snatched her wrist as she swung for my cheek. I could tolerate their petty insults with a laugh, but not actual violence.
“And it's not like you're any better than her. You're just looking down on her because she's Mayas branch family.”
If that girl were main house Mayas, the story would be different. They'd probably be wagging their tails to befriend her.
The gap between Mayas main and branch was like heaven and earth.
“You...!”
She tried to say something but came up empty, just huffing. I let go of her hand and stepped aside. She bolted down from the rooftop like she'd been waiting, her followers hurling one last barb at me before trailing after.
I didn't say anything to the dazed Mayas branch girl staring at me.
She looked confused about why I'd stepped in, but I hadn't really saved her.
I'd just come for the view, and they'd picked the fight with me first.
'She probably needs some alone time.'
Still, being a girl, she'd have a mirror to check herself. I gave her space to compose and headed down myself.
“Back to the dorms?”
I planned to visit the male student who'd claimed I assaulted him.
This one was trickier since it involved a guy...
“Huh?”
As I pondered how to approach the conversation, I spotted a bespectacled girl by the main entrance, reading a book.
Her deep navy hair tied neatly at the ends gave her a refined air. She saw me, slowly closed her book, and approached.
'Hm.'
I could tell she had something to say.
For a second, I hoped it might go smoothly, but no such luck.
“Um, excuse me! Could you please stop staring at me during lectures...?”
She'd mustered some courage, but her face was red and eyes fixed on the ground. Blurting out what she wanted without preamble—she clearly wasn't great at talking to people.
“Why? Does it bother you?”
I could see she'd shrink more if I pointed it out, so I kept it gentle to draw her out.
“Y-Yes... It keeps distracting me.”
“Why?”
“......Huh?”
She hadn't expected that, panicking as she looked up and met my eyes—then flinched and looked away again.
'Name's... Eve.'
Thanks to her nameplate—the ones others took but never wore—I knew her name.
“Why does it bother you?”
“W-Well... Sorry!”
Eve rolled her eyes desperately, twisted away to flee—but no escaping someone who'd hunted countless beasts in the Demon Realm Forest.
I grabbed her hand and smiled.
“Want me to tell you why it bothers you?”
“Uh, ugh.”
“Because you framed me. Right?”
Guilt.
The storm of emotions inside her was pure, unadulterated guilt.
And intuition hit me.
She hadn't framed me willingly—there was another reason.
“I'm getting expelled in a week. Because you painted me as a sex offender.”
“N-No.”
“No? What do you mean? You went and testified. That Daniel McClaine groped your chest and butt.”
Her face flushed crimson as she gripped her book cover so hard it crumpled.
'Just push a little more.'
Confident, I pressed on—but Eve cracked first, screaming at the top of her lungs.
“Y-You did grope me!”
“......What?”
What the hell?
She didn't seem to be lying. A timid, quiet girl like her— this was her bottled-up resentment bursting out.
“In the library! You kept touching me! S-Sniff, so stop looking at me! It's scary!”
I stared in bewilderment as Eve broke down sobbing.
Clearly, there was some misunderstanding between us.