Chapter 16: An Unexpected Conclusion
During the lunch break after the second noble magic class in the morning, I didn’t go to the school cafeteria or return to the dormitory, but instead sat alone on a bench in a deserted garden on the school grounds.
“Cheer up, Rachel. There’s no point in thinking negatively.”
Leaf whispered in my ear, comforting me.
“Thanks, Leaf, you’re encouraging me.”
I smiled weakly back at Leaf, who comforted me.
“Rachel, if things get tough, you can just run to the forest. If I’m with you, I’ll show you plants you can eat.”
Leaf was probably trying to encourage me, but was he telling me to try to survive alone in the forest as the daughter of a noble? I couldn’t imagine living such an eccentric life. In the first place, what’s with Leaf, who is a plant, encouraging me to eat her fellow plants? There must be a fundamental difference in the way we think about this between Leaf, who is originally a plant, and me, a human. From Leaf’s point of view, my worries might seem strange.
Thinking about this, I felt a little better. I don’t know if she had thought it through that much before she said it, or if she simply said that I should run away if it gets dangerous, but thanks to Leaf, I was able to be more positive.
“Thanks, Leaf. You’re making me feel better.”
“You’re welcome♪”
Leaf replied cheerfully as I cheered up.
I was so stunned that I wasted the previous lesson, so I pulled myself together and got myself pumped for the afternoon class. The afternoon class was “Imperial Law.” Law classes are difficult, and they are held in the afternoon, so it would be better to be hungry so I wouldn’t get sleepy.
However, if there is a possibility that I will have to live on the run as Leaf said, perhaps studying subjects like botany or agriculture would be more useful in the event of survival. I’ll look into whether I can take those classes next time.
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After my afternoon class, I was on the corridor leading to the chapel after school. Thanks to Leaf, my spirits had lifted, but my steps were heavy. The moment I entered Diva-sensei’s office, there was a possibility that I would be arrested and detained as a suspect in the case of Martina-jou’s coma.
I had just attended an Imperial Law class, but it was still only the preface, so I don’t know if this world has what we would call juvenile laws in modern society. Well, since it’s a society that prioritizes the nobility, I have a feeling that I’ll be punished whether I like it or not.
As I continued walking with these thoughts in mind, I arrived at the door to the chapel. This time, I turned the handle properly and pushed the door open. Inside the chapel, unlike last night, sunlight was streaming in through the many windows, creating a sacred space filled with light.
I went deeper into the chapel and called out to one of the priests who was cleaning.
“Excuse me, but Diva-sensei has called me. Where is his office?”
“Ah, if it’s the professor’s office, go through the door next to the altar at the back and it’s the door at the back.”
Saying this, the priest points to a door at the back. Sure enough, it’s the place where I heard the voice yesterday when I brought Martina-jou here. Perhaps it was Diva-sensei who had spoken that time.
I thanked the priest and headed towards the door. There was a corridor on the other side of the door, and it seemed there were rooms on either side, but the professor’s room was at the back.
I knocked on the door.
“Is someone there?”
Then, I heard Diva-sensei’s voice from inside.
“This is Rachel. I’m late, but I’ve just arrived.”
“You may enter.”
With permission to enter, I opened the door and entered, bowing slightly. After closing the door, I raised my head and looked inside the room, and saw Diva-sensei wearing a monocle and sitting at his desk in the back, with a low table and sofa in front of his as a reception set, and in front of that, or rather, in front of the door, there was a chair.
“Please take a seat in the chair.”
Diva-sensei told me to do so, but the fact that there was a chair in front of the door probably meant that I should sit in that chair. However, it was a mystery as to why he was treating me like a mother-in-law bullying her daughter-in-law.
Since I’m an adult too, I didn’t feel rebellious, so I obediently sat down in the chair in front of the door, holding my school bag on my lap, and turned to him, wondering what he was going to say.
However, Diva-sensei frowned and said nothing, just stared at me.
As expected, he must have found out about what happened with Martina yesterday, and is probably thinking about when to interrogate him. I don’t show it on my face, but my heart is pounding.
“It’s about the textbook…”
The silence seemed to go on forever, but suddenly Diva-sensei spoke.
“Ah, yes!”
I answered, my voice rising a little.
“It looks like it was cut up. What’s going on?”
I pumped my fist in my mind.
‘Great! It’s not about Martina, it’s about the textbook.’
It seems that my worries were unfounded. I let out a cry of joy in my heart. However, how should I report that it was torn apart… If I tell a poor lie, it might lead to digging into my secrets that I don’t want to be exposed. I’ll be honest here.
“It seems that I left the textbook in the classroom and was harassed…”
“I see… so do you have the textbook now?”
“Yes, I do.”
“Then, put it on the low table.”
I take the textbook out of my bag and, wondering why he didn’t tell me to hand it to directly to him, I place it on the low table in the reception set between me and the teacher.
After I return to my chair, Diva-sensei stands up, goes to the low table, picks up the textbook, and looks at the torn cover.
“I see, it seems like a common form of harassment. In that case, use this textbook instead.”
After staring at the torn cover, the teacher takes a new textbook from his pocket and places it on the low table, then takes the torn textbook and returns to his seat.
This time too, the textbook was not handed over to me, but handed over on the low table. Wondering if this was a response in consideration of sexual harassment between students and teachers, I went over to the low table and picked up my brand new textbook.
“Thank you, Diva-sensei.”
I bowed my head and expressed my gratitude. I had been thinking of buying a new textbook myself, so to be honest, I was grateful to be given a new textbook.
“This is a special measure just this time. In the first place, leaving your textbook, an important learning tool, in the classroom, while you are a student, is not something to be praised for. You should reflect on that…no, be deeply remorseful.”
With a stern look and voice, Diva-sensei scolded me.
I had left my textbook in the classroom as a decoy to see if Martina’s harassment event would occur, but as expected, leaving your textbook behind in this world was not something to be praised for.
“Yes, I have deeply reflected on this and will keep it in mind…”
I bowed my head, pretending to look remorseful.
“Then you may leave.”
As I bowed, Diva-sensei readily gave me permission to leave.
Still a little taken aback, I put my textbook back in my bag, bowed my head again, and headed for the door. As I left the room, I saw the teacher peering at the torn up textbook through his gleaming monocle, and then I closed the door.
