The Weight of the Silver Lion
A transfer student.
How many times in my life had I ever felt this many eyes on me?
The teacher, who had been in the middle of conducting his class, shifted his gaze toward us. He had a calm impression, with neatly swept-back platinum blonde hair. Wearing glasses, he cut a highly intellectual figure. Upon spotting Shandroi, he bowed his head in a silent greeting. Shandroi raised a hand to acknowledge the gesture.
"Are these the children you mentioned before?"
"Yes, indeed. Carmel."
The gaze of the man called Carmel swept over me, Shine, and Rain. For a split second, his eyes widened to the size of saucers. He stared in sheer disbelief, as if convinced he was hallucinating. He took off his glasses, rubbed his eyes, and stared at us once more.
Why was he looking at us like that?
Following the line of his gaze, I realized his eyes were locked onto Rain, who was currently shrinking back and hiding behind me. Why on earth was she trying to use me as a shield?
"Hey, Rain. Why are you hiding?"
"Shh!"
No matter how much she tried to conceal herself, my own frame wasn't exactly large, making it impossible to cover her completely.
"Now, off you go."
Shandroi gave us a gentle nudge on our backs and promptly slipped out of the classroom. His exit was so clean and abrupt, as if his job was officially done, that I couldn't even utter a word. Left behind, Shine, Rain, and I took hesitant steps toward Carmel.
Carmel's gaze, which had seemed permanently glued to Rain, finally shifted back to the front of the room. His expression sharpened, a stark contrast to his earlier look, as he addressed the class.
"Attention, everyone. As I mentioned previously, we have some new friends joining us today. Please give them a warm welcome."
No one spoke in response to Carmel's words. They simply stared at us in heavy silence. Amidst those glittering gazes, I could sense a thick layer of arrogance, pride, and condescension. The atmosphere was incredibly hostile. Of course, it wasn't as if there weren't any students casting friendly glances our way, but they certainly weren't the ones dictating the mood of this classroom.
It was a familiar sensation. In fact, I found this kind of cold reception rather comfortable.
"Jeff, Shine, and Rain... Could the three of you please introduce yourselves? Tell your classmates a bit about who you are."
Carmel took a step back after speaking. It felt as though we had suddenly been thrown to the wolves. Swallowing hard, I was the first to step forward. Neither Rain nor Shine looked like they had any intention of going first.
The collective gaze of the classroom, which had been divided among the three of us, converged entirely on me.
Introducing myself to others is surprisingly difficult, I thought.
Taking a deep breath, I opened my mouth.
"Hello."
Again, there was no response. One student had instinctively started to reply, but quickly clamped their mouth shut with a look of sudden realization.
"My name is Jeff."
Even after I gave my name, no one welcomed me. I turned my head to gauge Carmel's reaction. He merely nodded, looking as though he was entirely accustomed to this sort of reception.
Just as I was about to sigh and step back, a voice spoke up.
"I have a question."
It was an unfamiliar girl's voice. I turned my gaze toward the sound. Sitting quietly with her hand raised, a girl was studying me intently. She had long blonde hair tied into cute twin tails, but her expression carried a subtle, mean-spirited edge.
Her brown eyes gleamed as she continued, "Where are you from?"
There was no overt malice in her voice. It was simply a question meant to probe my social standing—a query where her attitude toward me would shift entirely depending on my answer.
It was a question I had anticipated. Before we came here, Amy had prepared us with answers to a few common inquiries.
Instead of giving a verbal reply, I raised my hand, making sure the Silver Lion Ring on my finger was clearly visible to everyone in the room. As I displayed the ring, I recalled the conversation I'd had with Amy.
“If anyone asks about your background, just show them that ring. They won't be able to say a single word. They won't even dare to look you in the eye.”
“Is this ring really that big of a deal?”
“Oh, it's a massive deal.”
Perhaps because of the distance, the girl didn't show any particular reaction upon seeing the ring. However, the students sitting in the very front row could see its design with perfect clarity.
"Does this answer your question?" I asked.
At my words, a wave of agitation rippled through the classroom. Whispers quickly began to cascade toward the back. Students stared with wide, disbelieving eyes, scrutinizing the ring on my finger. Their hushed voices rapidly carried all the way to the back row.
"Y-You... No, what is your relationship with Lord Ferman?"
The girl's voice was trembling violently now. She asked about my identity with extreme caution, far more polite than before, as if still unable to believe her own eyes.
"He's my grandfather."
At my reply, the girl's eyes shook with sheer panic. Watching her small frame begin to shudder, I couldn't help but find her display somewhat pitiful.
"P-Please forgive my insolence..."
My jaw dropped slightly at the nameless girl's unexpected plea. I had merely shown them the ring, yet suddenly, not a single soul in the room dared to meet my gaze.
"Hey, Rain. Is this place always like this?" I turned and whispered to her.
Rain squirmed slightly at my question before nodding in response. "Yeah... It's been like this since Amy went here. Though it feels a bit more extreme now than it did back then."
I nodded at Rain's answer. In any case, I wasn't a fan of this stiff, suffocating atmosphere.
"You weren't being rude," I said to the girl.
Her eyes widened in surprise.
"And I'm not offended either. So please, don't look at me like that."
I addressed the class, who were all refusing to meet my eyes as if they were looking at some terrifying monster. Yet, despite my reassurance, none of them dared to look up.
My introduction was over. As I stepped back, Shine marched forward to introduce herself.
"My name is Shine. Don't come near me. I hate you all. And don't you dare get close to Jeff, either."
The atmosphere, which had thawed ever so slightly, instantly froze over like ice at Shine's harsh words. Even Rain's introduction did nothing to ease the tension. Perhaps because she had arrived with us, Rain didn't receive a single question either.
We walked over and sat in the empty seats Carmel pointed out. The desks immediately surrounding us were completely vacant. It looked as though students had been sitting nearby just moments ago, but the second we arrived, they had vanished like ghosts.
Carmel resumed the interrupted lesson. The rigid, formal class was a far cry from the school life I had always imagined.
Carmel's teaching style was highly unusual. He would simply present a problem to the students, explain the method to solve it, tell them to solve the textbook exercises, and wait a brief moment. After that, he would immediately move on to the next topic. He didn't even bother to check if the students had actually solved the problems correctly.
Yet, the surrounding students acted as if this was completely normal. There were no questions, no presentations.
If things go on like this, what happens to the kids who can't keep up with the pace and fall behind?
"Rain. Are classes here always like this?"
"Yeah. Most of these kids have private tutors at home anyway, so there's no chance of them falling behind."
"Still, this feels a bit strange."
"Well, the truth is, they don't really come to school to learn."
"Then why are they here?"
"To build connections, I guess you could say?"
"Connections...?"
"Mhm."
I nodded at Rain's explanation and scanned our surroundings. Rain did the same, whispering to me, "They're all children who will inherit their family businesses. Since they've been raised that way from a young age, this is just how things are."
I nodded. Keeping up with the class wasn't particularly difficult for me either, thanks to all the studying I had done with Amy beforehand.
As I kept my pen moving for a while, a loud bell rang out, signaling the end of the class.
A school bell in this day and age?
Startled by a sound I had only ever heard in movies, I snapped my head up and looked out the window. Outside stood a tall bell tower, where a massive bell was slowly swaying, letting out a deep chime.
Bong—!
"Make sure you aren't late for the next period," Carmel said, before promptly leaving the classroom.
Even though the teacher had departed, not a single student stood up from their seat. They were all warily eyeing us—specifically me, Shine, and Rain.
I was about to ask Rain another question but held my tongue. In a room this silent, even the quietest whisper would carry to everyone else.
Sighing, I stood up from my seat.
The soft sound of my exhalation seemed to echo through the hushed classroom. The students around me flinched, their bodies tensing up. None of them even dared to approach us. I had never imagined the Silver Lion Ring possessed this kind of absolute authority.
I grabbed Rain and Shine and led them out of the classroom. Only after we had crossed the threshold did the other students finally begin to move. Leaving the sudden burst of murmurs behind us, we headed toward a deserted area.
"Rain. I have a question."
"W-What is it?"
As we walked down the hallway, Shine, who had been quiet until now, threw a question at Rain.
"Do you and Carmel know each other?"
"Huh? What? No? I don't think so?"
I nodded at Shine's words and grabbed Rain's hand. I was curious about the two of them as well. The reaction Carmel had shown when we first entered the classroom made it absolutely clear that he recognized Rain.
"I'm curious too. Tell us."
"Ugh, no, really... We don't know each other..." Rain stammered, startled as she pulled her hand away and took a step back.
I narrowed my eyes at her reaction. "Are you sure?"
"I'm sure."
"Really?"
"Really!"
At Rain's desperate denial, Shine narrowed her eyes as well. Mirroring each other's expressions and postures perfectly, Shine and I crossed our arms and stared Rain down.
"Rain, you mentioned it before. That you were coming back to this school, and that you had already graduated once."
"That's..."
"Could Carmel be from back then too?"
"Th-That's...!"
Shine pulled out her phone. "Maybe we should just text Amy and ask her who Carmel is. I'm sure she'll tell us right away."
At Shine's threat, Rain trembled, her face crumpling into a tearful pout.
"H-He is..."
Rain took a slow, deep breath. Judging by how flushed her face was, whatever she was about to confess was deeply embarrassing to her.
"He's... my junior..."
"Your junior? As in, younger than you?"
"Mhm... He was a year below me..."
"So when you were in the fifth grade, Carmel was in the fourth grade?"
"Yeah..." Rain answered weakly, burying her face in her hands.
Her bright red face was incredibly adorable. Without thinking, I reached out and pulled Rain into a hug. She didn't resist, snuggling right into my chest.
"Is that why he reacted like that?"
"Yeah... I seriously, seriously can't believe this... My own junior became my teacher... Amy never told me about this..."
Tears began to well up in the corners of Rain's eyes. She looked genuinely devastated.
"I used to be a dignified senior to him... and now he's the teacher, while I'm back in an elementary school uniform... Do you think he thinks I'm doing some weird cosplay? Don't I look strange? I mean, did you see the way he looked at me when we walked into the classroom...?"
I looked down at Rain as she ranted. The school uniform suited her perfectly. There was absolutely no way anyone would think she looked strange.