Schne Haidel's Consultation
“I'm Schne Haidel.”
A student with fluttering lavender hair. That total rainbow-colored mane never got any easier to get used to, no matter how many times he saw it. Raban nodded.
“Schne student. What brings you here?”
“...I wanted to talk to you for counseling.”
Since she was a stranger, he started with polite speech. Raban was about to check the peer counselor's schedule in his files when he sensed something off and asked back.
“To me?”
“Yes.”
“Uh, student. I'm just temporarily filling the spot. You'd be way better off talking to the peer counselors.”
“I have concerns about my friendships.”
Raban closed his eyes. No, seriously—why ditch your good friends to come find the amnesiac uncle (it's a concept)?
“It's about my friend, the student Nai Hyun.”
Ah. Raban nodded. There were consultations where adults could understand better than peers, and others where you didn't want your friends to know. This one was clearly the latter.
Raban quickly ran the numbers. He wasn't confident in counseling. He'd lived practically alone even back home—how was he supposed to give advice to others? But dodging with that excuse wouldn't fly, not with the sheer amount of mana this Schne girl had. If he could extract her negative emotions, it'd be a solid boost to his mana recharge.
“I'm no expert, so anything I say is just general advice at best. But if that's fine with you, sure—I can listen.”
Raban flashed his salesman smile.
“So, it sounds like Nai Hyun student seems to have some worries?”
“Yes.”
“But she hasn't told you about them?”
“Yes.”
Raban kept his smile. Perfect. He glanced at Schne again. This lavender-haired girl undoubtedly saw herself as Nai Hyun's closest friend. Otherwise, how could “my friend won't confide in me” even be a worry?
And this means Nai Hyun's aware of her inner feelings, too.
Of course. Stuff like “I've been feeling kinda lonely lately” is tough to spill to a friend. You'd just imagine them snapping back, “Then what am I, chopped liver?”
The worst possible outcome here was Schne Haidel hearing out Nai Hyun's troubles. What would happen then? Their friendship deepens, Nai Hyun's loneliness fades, yesterday's worry becomes a glowing teenage memory to giggle about years later. Problem solved, sleep improves, grades rise from better rest, confidence boosts social skills. In the end, the negative emotions vanish like they never existed.
Absolutely not.
Draining my battery like that? What a devious scheme!
Raban stared at Schne in horror and dismay. She was class president, right? The school's real rulers were probably those mascot freaks, so this class prez might be their frontwoman. Plan to extract negative emotions from Schne? Scrapped. Priority now: fend off those shady hands reaching for his mana battery.
With heightened wariness toward Schne, Raban carefully forged his words. He needed persuasive nonsense to block their friendship from deepening.
The dark-haired man slowly opened his mouth. Schne paid close attention to the decadent man's words and demeanor.
In truth, Schne had wondered if Raban was the cause of Nai Hyun's worries. Her friend's mood had darkened right after he showed up at school.
Schne Haidel was a magical girl, but also a high schooler savoring her youth. Has my friend finally found her first love?! She was at that age where cute misunderstandings were par for the course.
If Nai Hyun really likes this guy...
She wouldn't be able to hide it. Nai Hyun sucked at lying about anything else. She could barely keep her magical girl identity secret now—there's no way she wouldn't get caught crushing on some uncle while sharing a room with him!
Schne waited with a pounding heart for Raban's response. A perceptive adult would deflect with something like, “That's quite the pickle for a man my age...”
“Hmm, nothing really comes to mind.”
“Pardon?”
Outwardly maintaining her icy composure, inwardly Schne deflated.
“How about thinking of it this way instead?”
Raban met Schne's eyes. Dark circles stark under his jet-black hair. Yet his gaze gleamed coldly.
“You came to ask because you're worried about Nai Hyun, right?”
“Yes. Nai Hyun... isn't the type to get down easily.”
So I figured it had to be first love. But some other serious reason? Inward Schne was past deflated—now freezing over.
“Then I should start with what I've seen of Nai Hyun.”
Raban slowly laid out his impressions.
“Kind, sweet, confident, bold.”
“...You know her well.”
“Yeah. She even gave me food once.”
But, he paused dramatically before pronouncing judgment.
“She's also someone not easy to approach.”
“......”
“Being Na Ju Pharma heir family and all. Kinda floats above the friend groups.”
Could that be the reason? Schne's mind grew tangled. But Nai Hyun had always been bold, ignoring it entirely—why now?
Raban watched her thoughtful frown, then added slowly.
“That's why I felt relieved.”
“Relieved?”
The word didn't fit the conversation at all. A bright-on-the-outside student hiding inner turmoil? Worry should come first, right?
“It means even Nai Hyun can show her true feelings in front of you.”
“Ah...”
Raban's lips curved slightly. A far cry from his usual weary vibe.
“Put positively, Nai Hyun's been in a peer group that doesn't warm to her. So she's always acted extra confident and bold to cope.”
“A kind of defense mechanism,” Raban added.
Like a hedgehog bristling its spines, putting on an even stronger front. Schne recalled the knuckle duster Nai Hyun carried. When she'd asked about the weird accessory, she'd just said it was her taste. Was this part of it?
“But with you, she doesn't need that facade. She's comfortable enough.”
“Then should I ask her directly what's bothering her?”
Raban shook his head, stroking his chin.
“Not sure if it fits, but there's this 'cave' concept. About how people handle problems. Some retreat to their own cave to mull it over alone; others share with people.”
Once more, he reminded her it was just general theory.
“I figure Nai Hyun's used to brooding solo.”
Schne was about to ask why when Nai Hyun's home life hit her anew. No family to lean on. Since the Na Ju Pharma incident, she'd been alone. Her uncle—the other survivor—didn't even live in Hikarius City, as far as she knew. Nai Hyun always had to make big decisions by herself.
Schne looked at Raban with newfound respect. Piecing together her family and social situation from tiny clues, diagnosing it flawlessly—it made his “I'm no expert” claim feel like a lie.
“So, how about just waiting a bit?”
“...Will that be enough? Wouldn't it be better to ask?”
Schne bowed her head. As class president, she cared for every classmate, extending a hand when needed. That's what she believed, and she acted on it. She'd clashed with Nai Hyun early in her Magilister days for that reason. Nai Hyun was like a proud lone wolf, ignoring outstretched hands. Getting this close was a miracle. The closer they got, the more she wanted to care.
Raban shook his head. Schne wilted further.
“Don't worry too much. Just you being there is a huge help.”
“Pardon?”
“From my teen years: even without spilling my guts to family, knowing they were there was reassuring. To me, you're that for Nai Hyun.”
Raban added a few more words. Schne was probably the first real close friend Nai Hyun had in ages. Unfamiliar with approaching others, she's also unused to being approached—so wait for now.
His advice wrapped up like this: Just be there. She'll emerge from her cave someday, smiling brightly.
Whew...
“Thank you,” she'd said, leaving with a much lighter expression. Looked like his excuse landed.
Raban massaged his stiff neck in relief. He'd even pulled from those Earth self-help books for prep.
“No one else should come bugging me with this stuff now. Who'd want counseling from a temp seat-filler uncle anyway?”
Now he could quietly wait for Nai Hyun's visit and harvest her negative emotions bit by bit!
Raban let out a sigh of relief.