6. Changing Course Registration Makes the Professor Sad
6. Changing Course Registration Makes the Professor Sad
After the Understanding Literature class ended, I walked toward the female dormitory with Lucia to pick up the novel.
Since the route cut right across the interior of the academy, we had to pass through the central lawn.
We could have taken a detouring path around it, but why bother?
The spring weather at the academy was sunny. It was cool when the breeze blew, and warm when standing still.
Flower buds were forming on the cherry trees, as if previewing the full bloom of cherry blossoms that would cover the academy grounds in just a little while.
Perhaps because of the nice weather, enrolled students gathered in small groups here and there across the lawn, laying down mats and hanging out.
They were drinking tea or coffee, or eating an early lunch brought from the student cafeteria.
Among them, naturally, there were quite a few male and female pairs who looked like couples.
If they were sitting glued to each other without caring about the glances around them, they had to be couples.
Suddenly, I wondered if I should suggest sitting down here for a moment since the weather was nice. Wasn't this a decent opportunity to build up affection?
It felt like a waste to just take the book and go straight back, and I thought maybe sitting and hanging out would make us closer.
"Hey, the weather's nice. Do you want to sit here and get some sun for a bit before going? You really need to see some sunlight. You still like staying inside your room all the time, right?"
Unlike me, who brought it up by barely recalling the setting and memory that she liked being stuck inside her room, Lucia just blinked her eyes once, looked up at the sky, and then...
"S-Sure, okay. The weather is nice."
She answered bluntly without much emotion.
However, when we actually tried to sit on the lawn, everyone was sitting while maintaining a subtle distance from one another, so we ended up taking a spot in the corner of the lawn.
"... But don't we lack a mat or something?"
... We were missing the most important thing.
"Ah, just sit on my jacket. I don't mind the bare ground."
I took off my school uniform jacket and spread it out at Lucia's feet.
"......."
Lucia, without saying much, took off her own jacket and spread it at my feet.
"The formal uniform can just be washed. You sit on mine too."
"... !!"
To my embarrassment after thinking, 'She can do cute things too,' Lucia flopped down onto her seat and let out a long yawn without even covering her mouth.
Is that really the appearance of a heroine who is interested—or supposed to be interested—in me?
... Is a real yandere really this hard to win over? Isn't she supposed to be obsessed at first sight?
Even though I hadn't read any walkthroughs, I'd seen comments a few times on the Game Gallery saying that Lucia's route was the easiest ending to get.
Looking at the current situation, there wasn't even a hint of that.
She really doesn't have a single drop of cuteness, huh.
Sitting side by side on the lawn, watching a few clouds drift across the sky together, Lucia suddenly spoke up.
So she knows how to bring up a conversation first too.
"W-We used to play like this often in the past too. Do you remember?"
I searched through my head, but no such memory stood out clearly.
Even if they were Edmon's memories, memories were memories. Some parts might be distorted or completely forgotten.
"... Is that so? I don't remember it clearly. It was so long ago, after all."
I answered like that without thinking.
"... !!!"
Instantly, a chill ran down my spine.
That phrase just now. Isn't she going to get mad that I forgot the good childhood memories of playing together with her?
Fearing she might pounce on me as if to kill me right away, I carefully glanced at Lucia from the corner of my eye.
"I-I see."
It was a surprisingly calm reaction. I breathed a sigh of relief inside.
"I miss the place where I lived back then sometimes. The city where I live with my parents right now is so crowded with people that it's a bit chaotic."
Lucia pulled her knees up to her chest as she sat and let out a small sigh.
She's talking pretty well today, though. It's only been a day, but I wondered if she had already gotten a bit used to me because we originally knew each other.
Like our silent note-passing earlier, there wasn't any sign of her being obsessed with me, but it didn't feel bad because it felt like we were getting closer little by little.
Still, at this rate, I couldn't even imagine how she managed to get along with other people.
"... ?"
While sneaking glances at Lucia, her sitting posture with her knees pulled up in front of her chest caught my eye.
Isn't that... completely visible from the front? True to dating sim character design, the academy uniform skirt was quite short, and if she sat like that, it looked like the inside of her skirt would be fully visible.
In a hurry, I snatched Lucia's jacket lying beneath my butt and covered Lucia's knees with it instead.
"W-What's with you all of a sudden?"
Lucia asked with a puzzled face.
"......."
Did I overreact for no reason? Embarrassment surged over me. While agonizing over how to explain, I ended up blurting it out directly.
"Hey, y-you, if you sit like that, your underwear is going to be totally visible from the opposite side."
Lucia's eyes, which were usually sullen, instantly grew wide and round.
Then they returned to her usual eyes.
Lucia nonchalantly set the jacket aside, then lightly pulled up her skirt with her fingertips.
"O-Of course I wear safety shorts when the skirt is this short."
Underneath her black pantyhose, short black safety shorts were clearly visible.
... It really was an unnecessary overreaction.
Feeling awkward, I turned my gaze away to pretend I wasn't embarrassed and muttered.
"I-I see. Well, it doesn't matter much if safety shorts show like that..."
"......."
Lucia was silent for a moment, then suddenly stood right up.
"... Let's go to the dormitory now."
"U-Uh. Okay."
'Heuaaaaang!!'
Lucia screamed internally. It was her third scream today.
Getting some sunlight outside like this for the first time in a really long while naturally put her in a good mood, making her talk a lot for no reason and bringing back old memories creeping in.
Because of that, her excitement had risen strangely high.
'...Just because I was wearing safety shorts, does it make any sense to abruptly lift my skirt in front of a male friend?'
She had done weird things multiple times in class earlier, and even after coming outside, she wondered if doing this made any sense even to herself.
The more she chewed over the recent situation in her head, the more frustration flooded in. Her own mindset of lifting her skirt so naturally without any hesitation was terrifyingly creepy.
'Should I really stop reading weird adult novels? Because they do things like this without hesitation in those books, it feels like my mindset is getting polluted.'
Walking briskly ahead toward the dormitory, Lucia suddenly slowed her steps. Mindful of the flutter of her skirt hem for no reason, Lucia pulled down the edge with her hand.
'...What if Edmon keeps staring?'
With such an anxious thought, Lucia deliberately slowed her walking pace to stand side by side next to Edmon.
'Heu-heung, this should do it.'
Feeling proud of herself over a minor scheme, Lucia gave a slight nod.
A little distance away from the female dormitory, Lucia told me to wait there.
Indeed, it wouldn't look good for a guy to wander around in front of it for no reason.
Even thinking about Estel standing in front of my dormitory this morning proved that point.
"T-This is Part 1 and this is Part 2. I'll lend them to you at the same time."
Lucia approached me carrying two books in her arms. They were thicker than I thought.
Would I really have the time to read all of that? It was true that I liked books, but I doubted whether I had the leeway to leisurely read a novel in this current situation.
"I'll just borrow Part 1 for now. Once I finish reading it, I'll come back to borrow Part 2."
"Mm-hmm, will you?"
Tucking the book under my arm, I waved to Lucia. Lucia, still with her stooped posture, gave a small wave back.
In my heart, I wanted to eat lunch together and take the afternoon general education class together too, but right now there was a place I had to go.
To change my morning and afternoon general education classes entirely to the ones Lucia was taking, I headed to the department office.
On the 1st floor of the Magic Department building, in the office across from the classrooms, several staff members were busily organizing documents.
"Excuse me, I came because I want to change the general education courses I registered for."
I handed my student ID to one of them and called out the names of the subjects to change.
Morning and afternoon Basic Swordsmanship to Understanding Literature and Arts and Philosophy, respectively.
...While it wasn't as extreme as the general education courses Estel was taking, Lucia's side was no joke either. Why on earth would anyone take general education courses like Arts and Philosophy?
It was right at the moment I was about to sign the change confirmation document handed over by the staff member.
"Are you changing your course registration?!"
A high-pitched voice burst out from behind my back.
Looking back, a tall, slender beauty with short dark blue hair was standing there. She had a cool-looking impression and was even wearing metal gauntlets on her hands, but her actual expression was tearful like a child's.
"I-If even one more student drops out now, my class will be canceled..."
With a face that looked ready to burst into tears at any second, the woman grabbed my hands tightly.
"Hey, student. What's your name? You're taking Basic Swordsmanship, right? Could you please not change your registration? Please, I beg you. If this lecture gets canceled again, I'm really going to get fired... If it's because of grades, I'll definitely give you good ones. I guarantee it—"
"—Professor Nord, that's illegal solicitation."
"W-Why is me asking a student considered solicitation?!"
At the staff member's dissuading words, the woman screeched. As if used to this situation, the staff member didn't show it and just chuckled softly.
"Huh, yeah? Please, I beg you. If you don't want to take both morning and afternoon, please take at least the afternoon one. Please, please..."
...I never imagined I would meet this person here.
I even deliberately skipped the morning class to avoid meeting her and ran away.
This pathetic-looking professor, whimpering in front of a student, is the third heroine of Love in Academy, Sylvie Nord.