Kyelli moved closer, her footsteps soft against the polished floor. She came around the sofa, her hand resting lightly on my shoulder. Her touch was firm yet surprisingly gentle, her cool demeanor betraying a hint of warmth.
Creak.
The sound of the chair’s weight adjusting under the chairman echoed ominously in the silent room.
Gasp!!
My chest tightened involuntarily as I felt the intensity of the atmosphere grow.
The chairman’s eyes darkened, his imposing frame leaning forward just slightly. The subtle shift made the already suffocating tension in the room even more unbearable.
His large hand rested casually on the desk, but the weight behind his words hit like a hammer. “Don’t worry. If you have any bad intentions, I’ll make sure you’re sent off as comfortably as possible.”
Sent off…? My heart skipped a beat. Where are you planning to send me!?
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I swallowed hard, my mind racing through the implications of his words. Before I could dwell too long on the ominous phrasing, his lips curled into a faint, knowing smile.
“Kyelli has seen your abilities firsthand,” he continued, nodding toward the student council president standing calmly beside me. “There’s no one better suited for the job. So, what do you say? Will you accept?”
The realization hit me like a cold slap to the face. So this was the reason Kyelli had come to pick me up so early this morning.
A hero’s life—a role I had no intention of ever stepping into.
I couldn’t stop the groan that built in my chest. I really don’t want to go through all this trouble by choice…
“Choose wisely, Lucas.”
Kyelli’s voice cut through my internal struggle like a knife. Her tone was soft, almost coaxing, as she leaned down slightly, her silver hair brushing against my shoulder. Her whisper carried a weight that felt impossible to ignore.
“…I believe you can change.”
Her words struck a chord somewhere deep inside me, leaving me momentarily speechless.
Having incurred the wrath of an SS-Rank hunter and having been caught in the act, I knew there was no way out of this without offering something in return.
‘I can protect my academy life,’ I thought.
Cerys—beautiful, dependable Cerys—had said she would try to protect me. She must have spoken directly to the chairman, leveraging her influence to keep me from being completely exiled.
Thank you, Cerys.
Taking a deep breath, I straightened my back and looked the chairman in the eye. “I will do it.”
“Then, from now on,” the chairman said, his tone final, “I’ll leave most matters concerning you to Kyelli. Is that alright with you, Kyelli?”
“Yes,” she replied without hesitation, a sly smile playing at the corners of her lips.
“It’s my first time dealing with a ‘student of interest’ who seems to need so much attention,” she added, her voice tinged with amusement. “But I’ll do my best to teach.”
I felt my stomach drop. The way she emphasized “attention” made it clear that this wasn’t going to be a simple arrangement.
‘Just when I thought I was properly marked from the first day,’ I thought bitterly.
Now I’ve evolved into an officially recognized student of interest by the academy.
“Do you agree with our academy’s management process, Student Lucas?” the chairman asked, his gaze sharp and expectant.
“…I agree.”
Those two words sealed my fate.
To agree meant…
It meant that Kyelli now had every reason to meddle in my affairs. I had officially become someone under her “management.”
A soft chime sounded in my mind, followed by an unexpected notification.
[You have received the ‘Student of Interest’ project from Principal Wilhelm.]
[Our student needs care and love.]
[Praise a lot and a lot~! Criticism is a NO NO!]
‘What… is this?’
I blinked at the ridiculous messages flashing before me, my mouth slightly agape.
“That’s the core of our process,” the chairman said with a hearty laugh, clearly enjoying my confusion. “Now, open it up.”
Hesitantly, I activated the panel, revealing something that looked suspiciously like a daily check-in calendar from a mobile game.
“What is this?” I muttered, my voice laced with disbelief.
“‘Good job’… Maybe the young ones these days don’t know?” the chairman teased, his expression betraying just how much he was enjoying my discomfort.
I flinched. I could feel the nuance of his words sinking in, and it wasn’t a pleasant sensation.
Kyelli stepped closer, her movements fluid and precise. Her hand brushed past mine as she leaned over to demonstrate, her scent—soft and floral—filling the space between us.
“Watch,” she said simply, her voice calm but tinged with subtle amusement.
With a practiced motion, she stamped a bright ‘pong’ onto the calendar, marking today’s date with an animation that read:
[Student of Interest Lucas, good job!]
“…Heh.”
Kyelli’s lips curled into a faint, almost playful smile as she straightened, her eyes flicking toward me with a glint of mischief.
“Does she really enjoy tormenting me this much!?” I thought, my frustration bubbling under the surface.
Kyelli must have caught the flicker of emotion in my expression because she leaned in slightly, her voice dropping just enough to send a chill down my spine.
“Just so you know,” she said with a smirk, “that stamp can’t be duplicated. Oh, and it’s best not to even think about stealing it for yourself.”
“I have no such thoughts…” I grumbled, unable to meet her gaze.
This is humiliating…
Where was the serious atmosphere from earlier? The one where they said, ‘We might need to restrain you because of your dangerous ability’?
Give me that back! I’d rather be growling with restraints all over my body—it’s more dignified than… this!
“Men die for such romances!” I lamented silently. “Not for a ‘Good job’ stamp!!”
Kyelli seemed to sense my despair because her playful smirk deepened. “As a demonstration,” she said, “I’ll remove this first stamp for you, Lucas.”
“…”
Strangely, I felt a twinge of loss as the bright, cheerful stamp disappeared from the calendar.
“You need to get a stamp without missing a day for three weeks,” Kyelli explained, her tone matter-of-fact. “It’s fine to get them all at once since it’s up to my discretion when to stamp.”
Her words hit me like a cold bucket of water. “It sounds like my entire academy life depends on the student council president’s mood.”
Kyelli’s eyes sparkled with amusement as she looked at me. “Precisely.”
———
(A/N: Hello guys done reading. If yes, send a power stone, 1 power stone is also enough we just have to increase fan value, so 1 power stone is enough, but if you like the novel I won’t mind if you send more stones, and plz don’t forget the gifts.)
Thank you very much for all your support.