– Whooosh -.
The moment they arrived at Tenegan Academy, it was now raining outside.
Occasionally, there would be a thunderclap that sounded like ‘Kwang-’, so it was clear that the rain was not just light and intermittent.
Luke had said the weather would be bad today, so they had brought an umbrella, but because it was raining, even though it was still daytime, it was somewhat dark.
The dim academy had a subtly eerie and droopy atmosphere.
And such an atmosphere was quite fatal to Dayton, who was already tired.
“Ugh, I moved around so much yesterday that I’m exhausted and my eyes keep closing.”
Yesterday, after delivering lunch to Luke at the academy, Dayton had received a call from an acquaintance and spent the day running around looking for Yerna, ending up sneaking into some strange facility in the end.
There had never been a day in Dayton’s life as busy as yesterday, and there surely wouldn’t be one in the future.
Rather, it was amazing that Yerna could get up early and meet someone after going through all that.
Considering the racial differences between humans and elves, it was true that Yerna had superhuman stamina.
Dayton felt like he would burst with negative emotions towards the current parents and teachers who summon committees for such trivial matters.
Isn’t it laughable to call it school violence just because kids got into a fight?
“Back in my day, when one guy got beat up, we had to take revenge ourselves since this kind of thing didn’t exist. The world has certainly improved a lot.”
However, Dayton did agree that a school violence committee was indeed necessary, provided it was used correctly.
Not as a means to extort money from the losing side in a brawl.
“Haah.”
Fatigue is a breeding ground for all sorts of bad thoughts.
Since his head hurt, he couldn’t even come up with good ideas.
So, he decided to think about someone he knew.
“Speaking of which, there should be Tenna at Tenegan Academy. Should I look for them and have a chat later?”
But because he was so tired, he wouldn’t want to see them for long.
No, rather, he was feeling lazy, so he should just give it up.
After all, he often saw Tenna anyway, and right now, he longed for his bed more than talking to a familiar face.
Just as he barely fought off his drowsiness and walked down the hallway, he bumped into a student coming around the corner.
– Thud.
If it were any other time, he would have reacted just fine, but now, fatigue prevented him from responding.
It wouldn’t have been easy for the student either to dodge the massive body of Dayton that suddenly appeared in the narrow hallway.
However, Dayton didn’t move at all, and rather, the student fell down with a thud.
This was a natural consequence of the overwhelming difference in weight.
“Ah.”
But that impact seemed to slightly wake Dayton from his drowsiness.
Indeed, shock therapy might be the best way to chase away slumber.
With that, Dayton inwardly thanked the student and reached out a hand to help them up.
“Are you okay? You should watch where you’re going.”
“Y-Yes! I’m sorry! I’ll be more careful!”
But the student didn’t seem to be thinking of grabbing Dayton’s hand.
Rather, they were closing their eyes and trying to avoid eye contact.
“Hmm…”
Dayton wondered if the student was too embarrassed to get up and grabbed their arm, using some strength to lift them up and said,
“Be careful from now on, got it?”
“Yes!”
But as soon as they replied, the kid took off running again, only to trip over their own feet and fall dramatically.
– Crash!
When Dayton saw that and was about to go help them up again, this time the student sprang up on their own and bolted away.
It was as if they were being chased by something.
Dayton watched their retreating figure and thought.
“…Could it be a game of tag?”
If that were the case, it wouldn’t be hard to understand.
When they were young, running was just that much fun.
“Still, I told them to be careful…”
He hoped the kid wouldn’t injure their knee from that.
—–
Dayton and Third then encountered each other.
Their first impression of one another, to be honest, was not positive.
‘This person is my legal guardian…?
‘Is this kid really a student…?’
While they were both internally marveling at each other’s impressions, Dayton spoke first.
“You’re Third… right?”
“Y-Yes, but I heard that Yerna the Forest Keeper was coming…”
Third was genuinely petrified by Dayton’s monstrous physique.
It is common knowledge that Forest Keepers have superior physical abilities, but this hulking figure was beyond all common sense.
Usually, Forest Keepers prefer not to appear overly large and endure their surroundings, looking similar to ordinary neighbors for security reasons.
What they need is not overwhelming physical strength like an athlete but rather the precise ability to carry out their duties.
However, Dayton seemed to completely disregard such trivialities.
‘If the person I know looks like this, does everyone feel this way? This is a monster, no less than Yerna!’
“Oh, something happened… so I came instead…”
And seeing Third’s face, Dayton felt similarly.
Thinking it would be easy just because Luke knew them, when they actually met, the feeling was distinctly different.
Fifteen years old with that face?
Dayton was taken aback by Third’s appearance, which was far from anything he would consider for a 15-year-old.
Dayton knew they were younger than him, but he felt uneasy about speaking to them comfortably, as if they were on equal terms.
The way they looked, as if the storms of life had battered them alone, made them, despite wearing a school uniform, appear more like someone in their mid-20s.
Moreover, Third’s size was much larger compared to kids his age, enhancing that feeling.
‘Isn’t this way too mature for a 15-year-old? I feel embarrassed to speak easily…’
Thus, Dayton’s tone of voice was ambiguous, neither like talking to a child nor an adult.
If they met outside in civvies, he would surely perceive them as an adult and speak with more respect.
“So, um… can you guide me first? Where should we go?”
“Th-That way.”
“Uh, really, you didn’t do anything wrong, right…?”
“That’s right, but… why do you say that?”
“Well… I’m just feeling a bit uneasy…”
“…? Y-Yes…”
As the conversation halted, a suffocating awkwardness ensued.
Thus, they began their dialogue, each harboring negative feelings toward the other.
—–
At that moment, the students began to hurriedly hide and whisper at the sight of Dayton and Third.
The kids who saw Dayton’s figure had a collective reaction of shock.
If it were Third, maybe it wouldn’t have been recognized, but Dayton’s build was not something you could just ignore.
The sleeves of his suit were fit snugly enough to reveal his thick arms, and his face bore a fierce expression that seemed ready to fold anyone in half with a mere touch.
That was truly a catastrophic situation for the students who frequented an ordinary academy.
“Isn’t that… Third’s guardian?”
“Are they crazy? That’s a monster!”
“No, seriously, isn’t that just a golem or something?”
“They look really angry…”
“Duh, of course. They were summoned for something like this, would they be in a good mood?”
“Well, that’s true…?”
By the way, standing next to Third, their combination looked like an outright gang of thugs.
At that moment, a student spoke up as if a sudden thought had crossed their mind.
“I heard earlier that that person was talking respectfully to Third. Doesn’t Third have something going on?”
This statement caused a significant stir among the students.
“What? So does that mean that rumor is true?”
“What rumor?”
“Didn’t you hear? There’s a rumor that Third is connected to the underworld. Maybe that’s why their guardian came?”
“Is that true? That rumor?”
“N-No way! That’s just a rumor!”
While being associated with the underworld would normally be treated as baseless gossip, in the present context, the plausibility of that rumor could not be dismissed.
“To look at that, it doesn’t seem like just a rumor…”
The student watched the figures walking down the hallway through the classroom window.
Perhaps due to the dark weather, it seemed like a scene straight out of a violent movie.
Third wasn’t exceptionally small, but standing next to the demon-like killing machine, they looked undeniably like a child.
However, what kept the fearsome atmosphere alive around Third, despite their presence, made it feel as if a lion was accompanying a tamer.
The students were convinced.
Third was someone they should never touch.
– Thunderclap -.
Just then, thunder roared.
All they could do was pray that they would pass through this day safely.
