DPAA 41

chapter 41

“Wednesday? Was there a match then?”

I tried to recall, but there was no way my memory would contain such schedules.

To me, the tournament was just a nuisance, nothing more, nothing less.

When I looked puzzled, her pale silver-blue eyelashes fluttered slightly.

“…Forget it!”

She turned her face away, blushing.

Wait, why?

More than that, there was an inexplicable sense of déjà vu. Isn’t this exactly one of those common harem fantasy clichés?

I left the waiting room and checked the match schedule. The quarterfinals were next Wednesday, and her likely opponent was…

[Asphodel Luxellrode]

Although other names were mixed in, judging by the previous semester’s rankings, her advancement was almost certain.

So the “Wednesday match” Asphodel had mentioned before was a match between her and me.

My prediction had come true.

‘Does she like me?’

Last time, she had coldly brushed me off when I tried to talk to her, which was disappointing, but now it was clear she was at least paying attention to me.

Whether it was competitiveness, jealousy, or some kind of bond was still unknown, but it was definitely significant.

I touched my lips and thought:

‘I need to make her like me.’

A future companion is better than a future rival.

As I pondered how to break down that barrier, a rough hand landed on my shoulder.

A shadow fell over my face. Although Carnis wasn’t particularly short, a man nearing 190 cm had an overwhelming presence.

Her fiery red hair fluttered in the wind.

“Hey, Escliff.”

“Agrippe.”

I pushed this big, doglike man away, and he grinned slightly and stepped forward again.

“Call me Felix!”

“Whatever.”

I had been calling his name in my mind anyway.

Encouraged by my casual acceptance, he suddenly asked:

“Then can I call you by your name too?”

“Do as you please.”

“Alright then, Carnis. You haven’t forgotten our plan for tomorrow, right?”

He seemed more easygoing than I expected.

When we had formed teams last time, he had approached me and Aiden, who no one else had dared touch, without hesitation.

Aiden and he already knew each other, but I had had no connection with Felix. For now, I was just one of the team members to him.

“I haven’t forgotten. Did you come here to talk about that?”

“No, we didn’t decide the meeting place yet.”

He bent slightly at the waist, and finally our uncomfortable height difference matched perfectly.

Despite his loafer-like appearance, he was quite a gentleman.

It felt different from seeing Asphodel, who boldly proclaimed, “I’m from a noble family,” just from his looks.

“Th…there…all of it?”

Come to think of it, Mei, despite seeming clumsy, also showed faint signs of etiquette in her small gestures.

“Carnis?”

Even if she had lived in harsh conditions, a noble is still a noble.

“Carnis!”

I snapped back to reality.

“What?”

“What? You didn’t hear anything at all?”

“Yeah.”

Felix burst into laughter at my blunt confirmation.

“Haha, you’re really funny.”

“Good to hear.”

Then he started chuckling again.

He really was the type who laughed a lot. Better that than anger.

Thinking of Claude, who yelled and argued constantly, gave me a headache just recalling him.

Even my younger brother, Chae Jihoon, had been annoying, but not like that.

Well, maybe my memories of him were idealized—he had died when I was twenty, five years ago. That makes sense.

I clicked my tongue and watched Felix, who was laughing so hard he had to take a deep breath.

“All done laughing?”

“Ha…Anyway, I’ll pick you up in front of the dorm tomorrow. Aiden shares my room, so I’ll let him know.”

I nodded, and he left gracefully.

Ding, ding.

The bell chimed 2 PM. I checked my schedule.

The first period class would be replaced by the tournament. The rest of the day was free.

I clenched my fist and teleported away without anyone noticing.

“Excuse me?”

Mei, who had been quietly listening from her bed, flinched.

“You’re going…where tomorrow?”

“The Dark Forest.”

The team assignment for the “Practical Survival Skills” class required choosing a location and camping and hunting there for a day.

Specifically, we had to cut and bring back tails or ears of certain monsters.

Outside help was strictly prohibited for all assignments.

To prove students had completed the task on their own, they had to wear magically treated bracelets.

I fiddled with the purple bracelet on my wrist and explained:

“It’s for the assignment. Since you two are skilled, you probably want the hardest location.”

“The two of you?”

“Yeah, Aiden and… maybe you remember from last time? The guy Felix Agrippe.”

Mei’s face darkened. Her blue eyes looked at me with worry.

“Isn’t it dangerous?”

“Who? The monsters?”

“No, you.”

I expected her to be incredulous, but her answer came almost immediately.

Still, her expression wasn’t stern, but rather worried.

‘A Maltese worrying about a human…’

Cute. Really, genuinely cute.

I restrained the smile that came naturally and patted her head.

“Don’t worry. The monsters there aren’t as strong as the ones on the borders. And it’s close to the capital too.”

The Dark Forest sounds ominous, but in reality, it was between the Ecliptic region and the eastern cities.

The area was developed enough to have a large central road.

Naturally, there were devices near the road to keep monsters away, so people couldn’t approach freely.

However, small monsters from the eastern edge always existed, so the academy often assigned fourth-year students to clear them.

That assignment also gave students a legal excuse to visit the capital from the eastern academy.

Many students even used it as a weekend date spot.

After a brief explanation, Mei muttered, bowing her head.

“That’s the problem…”

“Mei?”

“It’s nothing.”

She curled back into the blanket, clearly not wanting to talk more.

I stared at her for a moment, then gestured and turned off the light.

I needed to sleep early tonight anyway.

Chirp!

A sharp bird sound rang in my ear. Startled, I flailed my arm.

“…Huh.”

“…Chirp.”

A white bird stared at me with round eyes, unsure of what to do.

Looking closer, it looked like a miniature white chicken.

‘I want to eat chicken.’

“Chirp!”

As I smacked my lips, the bird startled and chirped. Its tiny claw twitched helplessly.

Seeing its feet, split into four parts, trembling pitifully, I couldn’t help but release it.

The bird circled above my head a few times, then flew out the window.

What time was it?

Half-asleep, I checked the clock.

6:30 AM. An hour later than when Mei usually woke.

Moreover, the window I had closed was now open.

That meant…

“You woke up early.”

Mei spoke flatly, as if she had witnessed the whole scene.

“Unusual,” she added.

Just three words, but the tone was clearly curt.

I groaned and rubbed my head.

“This wasn’t entirely your doing, was it?”

“Yes… the bird cried.”

Unchanging, she kept cleaning the windowsill as I approached.

Perhaps due to malnutrition or genetics, Mei’s frame was much smaller than mine.

This allowed me to bend slightly and meet her gaze.

“Why are you in such a low mood today?”

“Well…”

Her blue eyes avoided mine. I insisted on eye contact.

Eventually, Mei lost the stare-down.

She sighed heavily.

“Sorry for acting selfishly.”

“That doesn’t really matter. I’m just curious.”

Truly, I was.

Since the first day in this dorm, I felt Mei might be the only person Carnis would ever recognize as family.

“…”

And seeing her so anxious, I couldn’t bring myself to dislike her.

I swallowed words I would never say aloud.

“It’s just that…”

After a long pause, Mei seemed to have made up her mind and spoke softly.

At the same moment, a loud shout came from outside the window:

“Carnis! You know it’s in 30 minutes, right?”

Perfect timing. Instead of answering, I harshly closed the window.

Mei flinched and opened her mouth to speak.