The Extra’s Academy Survival Guide - Chapter 191

“Kyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!”

It felt a bit strange to just call it a stretching sound.

Assistant Professor Cleoh opened the glass door of Trix Hall’s main entrance as she looked out at the rising morning sun. She burst into tears from how pleasant the morning air she missed was.

Alongside Professor Kaleid, who didn’t even pretend to do his share of the work, she had finally ended her extremely long watch duty.

Her blonde hair, which had become frizzy from staying up all night, was sticking out all over the place. Her eyes were completely disheveled and she looked dead on the inside.

There was no trace of dignity as she stretched like an old man.

Just a few years ago, Assistant Professor Cleoh was a pretty and young honor student within Silvenia. One who exuded an atmosphere around her that made it difficult for people to hastily talk to her.

Over just a few years, she was thrown into society and had completely changed. No longer did she try to wear pretty makeup or fix her unruly hair.

Was the decision to become a professor too reckless?

Even while taking in the fresh morning air that cooled her lungs, bringing tears of joy down her cheeks, she still wasn’t feeling all that great.

“Why are there records of medical personnel being dispatched at dawn?”

“Ah, yes… A student was injured near the North Forest.”

“Ugh. A student got hurt?”

“Yes. I have prepared the report, so you can check it out. There is no need for you to take any further action, as the incident has already been reported to the deputy headmaster.”

The next worker on duty, who was in the middle of the handover procedure, clicked his tongue as he read through it.

“Just what happened last night…?”

“There were quite a few incidents. The Elte Store located on the eastern side of the commercial district collapsed. Even though it happened outside of the education district, it wasn’t something we could ignore.”

“Huh, the Elte Store? What happened? Have you finished the investigation?”

The worker pushed his glasses up, speaking as if he were flustered.

After closing the door that had been opened for ventilation, Cleoh entered the watch office and spoke.

“They say it was an explosion caused by the lack of risk inventory management.”

The answer was really simple.

“Risk inventory management?”

“It seems that magic items engraved with an explosion spell ended up causing a chain explosion in the Elte Company’s warehouse.”

While checking the list, the worker responded as if completely bewildered.

“The Elte Company, the ones who distribute nearly every type of item there is, made such a mistake?”

“Well, there were no serious injuries or casualties, but… The financial loss they will face will be significant.”

Assistant Professor Cleoh spoke without blinking.

The reason the Elte Store was destroyed was because of an accident that occurred during the distribution of goods.

“Is the handover done? Can we finally leave?”

Sitting on a chair in the office with his legs stretched out, a man with a book on his face got up.

He grunted as he stretched, standing up and then staggering around like a corpse.

“Ahhh, that was too long.”

He was clearly exhausted after spending nearly the entire night in that seat.

Though, from the start, Professor Kaleid always looked like an exhausted mess.

“Ahhhh, I should go back to my room and rest. Do they still have beer at the general store in the commercial district?”

“Ah, yes… Good work, Professor Kaleid.”

“Cleoh, aren’t you coming?”

Shooting a corpse. He was making sure she would stay back to report and submit the documents.

Cleoh responded while holding back her tears.

“The school’s opening ceremony is scheduled for tomorrow. So, this morning I need to go over to the auditorium in the student union building to make sure everything is coming along okay.”

“That…”

After working all night, she still had a pile of work waiting for her in the morning. No one could blame her for crying.

Professor Kaleid put one hand on her shoulder as he clenched his other fist.

“Good luck, Cleoh! They always say you should work hard while you’re young!”

After saying that, Professor Kaleid staggered away towards the front door.

Watching the drunk man wobble away with his hands tucked away into the pockets of his white coat made her want to throw a rock at his head.

“By the way, where is the injured student? Since I’ll be taking over, I should go and check on them…”

Then, the next on-duty worker asked Assistant Professor Cleoh about the student.

“Ah… Ed Rothstaylor? From what I know, he should be at Trix Hall’s infirmary right now. They finished all the urgent care, so he should be resting…”

“He’s not there anymore.”

“…Pardon?”

Professor Kaleid, who took out a cigarette while stopping at the front door, suddenly spoke.

“Cleoh, when you went to check the hazard area, he left Trix Hall with Lucy Mayreel. I clearly saw them running away as I sat here in the watch office.”

“H-Huh… He left? And you didn’t stop him?! He was seriously injured!”

“Don’t worry.”

Professor Kaleid, who was smoking, suddenly looked up at the eastern sky.

The sky was still a rather dark red, but the darkness was slowly being pushed away by the rising sun.

“I got orders from Deputy Headmaster Rachel. Do not touch him. Let him do whatever he wants.”

* * *

It was impossible to not be in awe upon seeing the Elte Store destroyed.

Though, a destroyed building was always quite a sight to see—regardless of the circumstances.

Seeing something that had once stood there firmly for days, months, or years suddenly collapse… It was only natural to feel as if your life had collapsed, or that the world had completely changed.

Perhaps the employees who came to repair the building were all thinking the same thing as they looked at the remains of the building, at a loss for words.

The last day of summer break.

As all the students returned, they were in complete shock upon seeing such a major accident. However, their daily lives didn’t collapse.

“You’ve come up with quite the spectacle of a plan, unlike your usual self.”

“No, I didn’t expect it to blow up this big, either…”

No one seemed to be paying any special attention to me as I stood outside, looking at the Elte Store with Lucy wrapped around my arm.

In the first place, the Elte Store’s collapse was disguised as being caused by an explosion.

It was an extremely simple excuse that felt as if someone from higher-up had personally covered it up.

Even the employees who were restoring the building felt that something was strange.

“Alright, let’s head back to the camp.”

“Okay,”

With Lucy holding onto me tightly, it was hard to keep my balance as we walked.

The distance from the commercial district to the North Forest wasn’t short. If I were to sprint, I could get there quickly—however, l wasn’t in good enough physical condition to do that.

Lucy looked at me as if she were worried, but she didn’t try to stop me either. It seemed as if she was okay with what I was doing.

Lucy followed me all the way to the forest while clutching my arm tightly. Every time a hanging vine or branch appeared in our way, she used magic power to cut it down.

As I tapped her witch hat to thank her, Lucy would hang onto me even tighter, as if she were in a good mood.

However, as if she would suddenly get embarrassed, she would start squirming around and fixing her posture to avoid leaning on me so much.

And like that, the two of us walked through the forest for a long time.

When I walked that way with Lortel the night before, it was so dark that I could barely see in front of me.

With the morning sun starting to rise, filling the forest with its light little by little and cutting through the fog, it was a rather strange feeling.

As we continued to walk, Lucy’s hair also started to shine under that sunlight.

Lucy’s hair seemed to take in light like a sponge. At sunset, it was dyed red, and at sunrise, it glowed softly.

“You know, I like this forest.”

Then, Lucy suddenly said something that seemed out of place. She spoke without any warning.

“I like the smell of the grass while walking through the forest at daybreak.”

In the early morning, Lucy’s voice was heard alongside the bugs buzzing in the grass.

“That’s why I hope it doesn’t disappear.”

“Would an entire forest disappear so easily?”

“Not the forest, but the smell of grass.”

“If the forest is there, it will always smell like grass.”

Listening to me, Lucy buried her head in her forearms and sniffed.

She then closed her eyes and spoke softly.

“Not necessarily.”

It wasn’t easy to read Lucy’s mood, as she only had subtle changes in her expression.

Even though I lived with her back at the camp for a long time, I still found it difficult to gauge how she felt past that expressionless face.

Since it was difficult to read her through that expressionless face, the only choice was to figure it out from the tone of her voice or her actions.

Just because we made eye contact didn’t mean we were always communicating directly.

Just like the difference between a dog wagging its tail and a cat straightening its own. What people did when they felt good also varied.

However, it wasn’t difficult to figure her out after seeing her put her head in her arms, sniffing, and exhaling deeply as she rubbed her face.

She looked extremely satisfied. It would take more time and effort to figure out the reason behind it, but either way, seeing her look satisfied made me feel relieved.

“Hello, Lady Lucy”

However, that satisfied expression quickly faded.

When we arrived at the camp… Bell Maya was sitting next to the campfire she had lit.

The head maid of Ophelis Hall.

The natural enemy of the Archmage Lucy Mayreel.

That satisfied expression she once had, as if everything in the world was great, had turned into cold sweat and trembling, wide-open eyes.

…It was quite the sight to see.

* * *

“I asked you to check the room assignments today because school starts tomorrow.”

“I-I’m going to. I-I’ll do it today.”

“That’s a relief. I was worried you wouldn’t show up at the opening ceremony, and instead would have run off somewhere to take a nap.”

“I-I never thought of that.”

The campfire was lit, and the camp had been somewhat cleaned up.

It seemed she had gone back to Ophelis Hall late last night, yet she still managed to come back to the camp around sunrise. She even somewhat cleaned up the mess that was left behind.

It was unbelievable to see what she had accomplished, to the point that I could only open my mouth in awe.

“Do you really sleep, Bell?”

“Sometimes I take a nap in the middle of work. And when I don’t particularly have anything scheduled, I sleep for a longer time.”

“Still… People are not machines…”

Bell stood up politely as she nodded her head, greeting me.

“Were you able to rest peacefully last night, Young Master Ed? It doesn’t particularly seem like you did, but…”

“Well, I was seriously injured.”

“I have a rough idea of what had happened after I arrived at the camp. Though, I’m glad it doesn’t seem like your life is in danger.”

It felt as if it only happened a few hours ago.

But during that time, Bell had returned to Ophelis Hall, took a quick nap, washed herself, quickly changed clothes, and returned looking as ready as ever.

She then cleaned up and organized the mess that was scattered around the camp, erasing any traces of the fight that had broken out.

“You should hurry back and rest. Pretty soon, you’ll be busy again with the students returning.”

“Yes. Most of the students from Ophelis Hall have also returned, so I don’t think I’ll have much free time anymore.”

“In the first place, it doesn’t make sense for you to take care of both Ophelis Hall and the camp. It’s not like you have two bodies.”

“That’s true. For the time being, I won’t be able to devote much time towards the camp. However, I came because I wanted to see if you were okay, and there was something I needed to tell you.”

Bell placed an iron pot above the campfire as she boiled water. It seemed like she was planning on preparing a simple breakfast.

I waved my hand in the air, telling her to hurry back to Ophelis Hall.

Bell, who looked at me with a dissatisfied expression on her face, eventually nodded her head.

“But what did you want to tell me?”

“Today, Lady Tanya is returning to school.”

Tanya Rothstaylor.

The one at the center of House Rothstaylor’s catastrophe.

She told me to go back to Silvenia first, while she stayed behind to gather support and take care of the aftermath.

She was in the middle of stepping up to become the next head of house.

Although she was in a rather politically delicate position, she still succeeded in gathering power. Despite the circumstances.

Rumor was that the head of House Bloomriver and House Callamore had joined sides with her…

I wondered how she managed to pull that off.

“I think you should meet with her.”

“Of course I will. Tell her that I’ll visit her at Ophelis Hall.”

After saying that, Bell turned to Lucy.

Lucy, who was holding my arm, trembled as if she had just been stabbed by a sharp object.

“Well then, Lady Lucy. If you want to prepare for the school’s opening ceremony tomorrow, you’ll need to go and check that everything is prepared. I’ll make sure to dress you up and inform you of what you should do.”

“No, I can do it myself.”

“No. I will help you.”

“No! I can do it myself!”

Lucy, who had said the same line twice, tried to take a step back. However, at some point, Bell had managed to put her hands tightly under Lucy’s armpits, holding her.

Lucy was now hanging in the air after being caught by Bell. She didn’t even try to resist, as it seemed as if tears were welling up in her eyes.

“Now that I’m busy, I should head back to Ophelis Hall.”

“Didn’t you just come here to grab Lucy?”

“Of course not. How could I anticipate Lady Lucy appearing in a place like this? It was just…”

Bell spoke without changing her expression.

“I just happened to be here at the right time. It’s all luck.”

“……”

And with that, Bell bowed her head and said farewell. There were still a bunch of things I wanted to ask, but there was no need to bother Bell any longer.

After all, the semester was starting again. The maids of Ophelis Hall had to return to their main jobs properly.

It would be best if she just considered taking care of the camp as a part-time job over break.

It would be great for me if Bell took care of the camp, but if I became too accustomed to it, I would start getting lazy.

Living in the wild, it was crucial that you never lost those senses.

“But, what about Lortel?”

I asked one last question as Bell was about to leave.

The most crucial person behind the fiasco with the Elte Store last night. Lortel’s whereabouts were still a problem.

“Do you still not know even after seeing me come to the camp this early in the morning?”

Bell spoke in a friendly tone.

“She is my employer. As in the past, and still now. So, please take care of the rest.”

Having said that, Bell disappeared into the forest, holding onto Lucy.

Seeing Lucy not even trying to struggle was a strange feeling.

Truly, the only person in the school who could properly control Lucy was Bell…

* * *

Even after a long, dark night, the sun would still rise again.

As if to prove that fact, the morning sun started to shine brightly, greeting me.

As sunlight slowly lit up the camp, all signs of the once-gloomy darkness and rain disappeared.

Occasionally, the light reflected from the remaining puddles and shone in my eyes, but that didn’t bother me.

Seeing the camp as it was, I really felt as if my daily life had returned.

However, I knew that there was still a lot left that hadn’t been concluded.

The night was long, many people were involved, and a lot took place… However, ultimately there were only two crucial things I needed to check.

What happened to Taylee?

What happened to Lortel?

The answer to those two questions came down to whether my efforts last night had paid off or not.

I lifted my head for a moment and looked across the campfire.

I still remembered seeing Taylee standing there in the rain with his teeth clenched, not giving up until the very end.

First, I needed to check the basement in Lortel’s villa.

With that thought in mind, I headed towards Lortel’s villa. My body was still a little sore.

I pulled the door open gently, seeing that it wasn’t locked. That made sense, as Bell had just come out of there.

And what I saw when I opened the door… was as expected.

“Oh… You’re back already.”

“……”

“You were quite injured. You should have rested longer.”

There were still traces of a large number of people storming inside and searching around.

Furniture was toppled here and there as books and writing tools were rolling on the floor.

The entrance to the wine cellar, which I had blocked, was also opened. All the way inside would be the basement. Piles of gold and treasures that would clearly prove Lortel’s embezzlement.

The imperial convoy came and searched everything. So, they also should have found the mountain of gold coins.

And yet, Lortel Kehelland was not arrested.

Sitting at her desk in the middle of the villa, she was smiling like a fox.

I propped up a nearby chair, sitting on it. It was difficult for me to stand any longer.

“I have a lot to ask.”

“About what happened last night?”

“Of course.”

“Shall I tell you the entire story slowly? Or should I jump to the conclusion?”

My body was still in pain, although I didn’t let it show. I didn’t want to worry Lortel.

“Start with the conclusion.”

“There are three conclusions.”

Lortel spread out three fingers. The index finger, middle finger, and ring finger.

“Ayla took Taylee back. She looked rather shaken up, so you should probably meet with her again and talk about it… Though, that seems to be quite a hassle to do.”

She was answering exactly what I was curious about. Then again, that was also what Lucy had told me.

Even though Lortel didn’t know about Velbrok, she had quite the intuition.

Lortel folded her ring finger.

“The embezzlement case of the Elte Company was completely covered up. This is the part that I’m also a bit puzzled about. I still haven’t quite figured out how it happened. It would make more sense if they were suspicious of me. I’ll have to look into it more after I fix up the building again.”

I had somewhat predicted that as well. It probably went as I had expected.

Lortel folded her middle finger.

Then, with her index finger still stretched out, she hurriedly came over to me. As I sat in the chair, she pressed her lips against mine.

That smile of hers said that she was completely satisfied.

“…What?”

“The last thing is that I became yours. Isn’t that the most important conclusion?”

Saying that, she immediately went and hugged my head.

The feeling of our lips touching left me bewildered.

She really was a girl who was well-versed in catching people by surprise, no matter how vigilant they might be.

Without even giving me a chance to pull my head back, Lortel pushed her lips against mine for a long time.

It wasn’t the first time I’d experienced a surprise kiss, but it was my first time having such a long one.

Lortel held onto my head as she pressed her lips tightly against mine for a while.

That mischievous smile on her face was like the Lortel I always knew.

Finally seeing that face that I hadn’t seen all night… I felt at ease seeing her back to normal.

The words she said afterwards were unexpected.

“Was I your second time as well?”

“……”

Seeing her smile like that, I calmly answered her.

“That’s not my second time.”

“…What?”

That mischievous expression of hers, so like a snake, quickly disappeared as her eyes widened.

“……”

“……”

“…Then, who was your second?”

Thinking about how I should answer that, I quietly stroked Lortel’s shoulder.

“Anyway, I’m glad that you are okay.”

Lortel gently put her hand on the hand that was on her shoulder… I closed my eyes as I felt her warmth.

A villa in a deserted camp. There was a gentle warmth in the early morning forest.

Exchanging the warmth of our hands, we stayed silent like that for a while. The two of us felt a strange sense of satisfaction between us.

After a while, Lortel slowly opened her eyes and asked again.

“So… Who was the second…??”

Surprisingly, she was quite an obsessive girl.