Chapter 54
Chapter 54
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 54
Chapter Title: The Interval of Misfortune (2)
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Almost unconsciously, I threw myself in front of the statue crashing down toward us.
There was only one thought in my mind at that moment.
I couldn't let the guy beneath me get hurt.
“Ugh…”
Theodore quickly shoved the falling statue aside, avoiding a direct hit, but it still struck me hard enough.
“Arma!”
“Are you okay? If you can stand—”
“I’m sorry!! Please don’t do that! Please!”
“Aaah, damn it. Fine, I get it. Step back for now.”
I felt a bit dizzy, but not enough to pass out completely.
And for good reason—the statue’s interior was hollow except for the brass packed between the joints to stiffen the armor, and the spear it held had a wooden shaft.
If it had fallen from the sky, that’d be different, but this much wasn’t going to faze me.
The real problem wasn’t the physical pain.
It was my heart.
A nagging discomfort at becoming a creepy presence, coupled with irritation that had nowhere to go, kept surging up.
“Are you all right?”
“As you can see.”
The green-haired guy who’d been sprawled out covered his face and scrambled down the stairs.
His actions made it all too easy to guess what he thought of me, whether I wanted to know or not.
I grumbled and emphasized it once more.
“As you can see. As you can see, Theodore. Let’s go now.”
“Very well. You there—could you call the student council? Looks like we need a safety inspection.”
Theodore picked out the calmest-looking cadet among those gaping up at the railing from below, gave him the message, then swiftly took my rifle case.
“You’re not hurt, are you? Why the rush—”
“Can’t let it show that I’m hurt.”
My knee throbbed badly, but luckily my black pants hid the bloodstains clearly.
If I walked out on my own two feet right now, it’d just be a minor accident—no one seriously injured.
I was experiencing firsthand the shape my surrounding rumors had taken.
Theodore seemed to catch on to my intent at last and quietly followed along.
*Damn, that hurts.*
Blood from my knee wasn’t just trickling anymore; I could feel it soaking the hem of my pants.
It seemed worse than I thought, which worried me.
The onlookers who’d gathered buzzed as I stood up more steadily than expected.
They must’ve been shocked.
Sliding down the stairs on my knee, grazed by a falling statue, yet walking away unscathed.
In places where I shouldn’t show pain, I’d made a habit of hiding it.
*The promotion exam’s not far off…*
I worried if I could stand steady before the target with a knee like this.
Theodore glanced around, then supported me the moment no eyes were watching.
“Where’s the key?”
“I’ll get it out. Whew.”
I fished the brass key from my pocket—it was tied with a leather thong alongside my nameplate—and handed it to Theodore.
In the process, I realized my palm was scraped up pretty badly too.
Theodore hurried to open the dorm room door, set down the rifle case, then came back to me.
Even though I’d only stood alone for a moment, my knee was already pulsing with pain.
“Let’s go to the infirmary first.”
“No. Absolutely not.”
“Understood.”
Having grasped my situation from the earlier incident, Theodore nodded readily.
“Then I’ll tend to the wound myself.”
He went to the washroom, washed his hands, and rolled up his shirt sleeves to his elbows, securing them.
Meanwhile, I dragged the desk chair over with grunts and sat, now able only to watch whatever Theodore planned to do.
“Doesn’t seem broken. You couldn’t have walked here if it was.”
“It’s just a bad scrape. I don’t even want to see what my knee looks like.”
“Is that so? Sorry, but I need to clean the wound.”
Theodore didn’t seem to listen no matter what I said.
Looking around for something, he soon pulled scissors from his pocket with a resigned expression and cut the hem of my pants.
*Scissors… in his pocket…*
I stared in disbelief, and Theodore met my eyes after snipping the fabric.
He didn’t even notice my odd look as he took the severed pant leg without a word.
“Any bandages or clean cloth?”
“Console drawer by the desk.”
From there, things proceeded smoothly.
Due to the academy’s unique setup where every student trains, each room gets an emergency kit.
Theodore deftly pulled out gauze and bandages from the drawer’s kit.
He dragged a backless stool from in front of the fireplace, set my injured leg on it, and said,
“I’ll stop the bleeding.”
“Just do it.”
The pain was worse than I’d braced for.
Theodore pressed the gauze firmly against the wound, regardless of my flinching.
“There’s a lot of blood.”
“I can see that… I slid down the stairs with it grinding in.”
“That explains the length of the gash.”
A few minutes passed like that.
Finally, the bleeding stopped.
I wiped the sweat beading on my nose as I endured the hell Theodore calmly inflicted.
Then, with my help to clean the wound, he sat me back in the chair and bandaged it.
The treatment looked far too expert for a teenager.
“Will this be okay by tomorrow?”
“No.”
“Let’s hope for the best?”
“No matter how you look at it, it’ll be tough. It’s already swelling.”
“Damn.”
Hearing Theodore, I smacked my forehead in frustration.
Now if that green-haired guy—who I didn’t even know—learned I was hurt, he might froth at the mouth.
Some cadets at Aegis Academy believed harming me would rebound on them twofold or threefold.
Arma Cruise would become a legend etched in the academy’s long history.
An utterly wicked legend preaching the gospel of reaping what you sow.
“The rumors would’ve died down soon anyway. Was there really a need to push yourself and pretend you weren’t hurt?”
“No, you wouldn’t get it. There’s something I haven’t told you yet.”
After splitting from Theodore at the infirmary, I recounted the past few days’ events in as much detail as possible.
Theodore nodded and said,
“Where’s that note?”
“Tucked between some books. Why?”
“I want to compare it to the one I got.”
“The note… oh!”
Hearing that reminded me why Theodore and I had grown this close.
Theodore had received a clumsy note mimicking my handwriting, come to the chapel where I lay collapsed, and gotten burned for it.
“I’ll get it.”
Trying not to move my bandaged leg, I retrieved the note hidden at the back of the drawer between books and handed it to him.
Theodore examined both notes carefully before returning them.
“Arthur would know for sure, but they feel like the same handwriting. Or lack thereof… it’s got this weird feel, like no personal style.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. No writing habits I can pick up. Best to show Arthur directly.”
“…Is Arthur okay now?”
Theodore didn’t answer my question.
Even though I was close enough that he should’ve heard clearly.
Feeling uneasy, I scooted closer on my bad leg and tapped his shoulder.
“Might be aftereffects of mental suppression.”
For Theodore, unaware of the full story, that was the most logical conclusion.
It might even be closer to the truth.
With a heavy heart, I sensed it was time to meet Arthur, whom I’d been putting off.
.
.
.
With Theodore’s help changing clothes, we left the room as the sun began to set.
I followed him past the chapel and great garden on the long trek to the Thorn Crown Class main building.
“Is the vibe here always like this?”
“Like what?”
“Like a mad black mage is about to burst in shaking a vial of purple liquid like crazy.”
“Pretty much.”
This island, full of salt-tolerant plants that withstand sea winds, had scenery starkly different from the mainland.
Even so, sharing the same central island, I couldn’t grasp why buildings and surroundings varied so much by major.
*It’s dreary.*
It shared a worldview with the stern, imposing Black Lily Class but felt slightly off.
This place carried the peculiar impatience of knowledge-seekers, laced with a strange melancholy.
My scraped knee stung as the scab formed, but enough time had passed that I could walk decently now.
“There’s probably a sprain. Couldn’t you wait till I fetch Arthur?”
“Nah, it’s fine.”
The Wooden Cross Class tended to be a bit standoffish toward all other classes.
If lined up from closest to ordinary folk, we’d be first.
We could cast amateur spells, but nothing compared to real mages, and even the humanities-focused Silver Chalice Class outdid us.
*And honestly, Wooden Cross has a lot of special admits.*
Meaning, it was also a gathering of ambiguous folks shoehorned in by adult circumstances.
Anyway, if infamous academy figures like Arthur Usher or Theodore White kept popping in and out of my dorm, it’d spell headaches.
“And Arthur’s a patient too.”
First time since carrying him back from the woods.
My heart grew heavy recalling Arthur’s last state.
His trembling eyes and lifeless expression matched the dream Arthur perfectly—and he’d even refrained from hurling accusations at me, like that dream version.
Lost in those thoughts, I noticed Theodore growing visibly restless.
“What?”
“I think I messed up. If Arthur’s lost it and shoots at Arma Cruise or something…”
“…Does he even carry a gun?”
Theodore’s worry was utterly pointless.
Even if Arthur snapped and went wild, I trusted Theodore wouldn’t look the other way.
“Just to be sure, but if you and Arthur fought, who’d win?”
“…”
Was it too childish a question?
Theodore’s silence left me anxious, and I buttoned my uniform jacket tightly.
Today of all days, the academy’s no-concealed-carry rule felt cruel.
We’d walked quite a ways like that.
“Theo.”
At last, I came face-to-face with Arthur Usher.