After Aether was thrown out of the office, the Principal turned her attention back to Delphine, a mischievous smile playing on her lips.
“So, you do like him?” the Principal asked, her tone laced with amusement.
“N-No! I-It’s not like that!” Delphine stammered, her face flushing a deep crimson.
“Hmm… Hmm…” The Principal hummed with a knowing smile. She never thought she’d see the day when Delphine, known for her cold demeanour and stern professionalism, would blush because of a man… no, a young man!
“A-Anyhow, is this really a wise decision?” Delphine asked, trying to shift the conversation back to Aether’s participation in the contest.
“Well… since he agreed, I can’t go back on my word,” the Principal said, her tone contemplative. “Let’s see what he can do. Even if he fails to collect 10 flags….. We will see” She trailed off, recalling the Empress’s visit a few days ago and her words,
‘He is favoured by Arcane.’
‘Favored… hmm? Let’s see why she favours this child,’ the Principal thought. Then, a question struck her, and she turned to Delphine. “Come to think of it, he said something about ‘GIL…’ What was that?”
Delphine’s face turned even redder as she averted her gaze, unable to bring herself to explain. She couldn’t help but think, ‘Damn, that pervert boy, is really into older women, isn’t he?’ She gritted her teeth inwardly.
Sensing Delphine’s discomfort, the Principal’s smile turned more wicked. She knew Delphine had some idea of what Aether meant, and she intended to get it out of her, one way or another…. Thus she began the torture (Not for the Viewers/Readers).
A few minutes later, Delphine was lying on the ground, her arms and legs twisted in a way that defied explanation. The Principal patted her hand, admiring her handiwork.
“GILF… ha… Let’s see who’s gonna fuck him!” she murmured, her smile turning even more cruel.
Delphine’s face showed a mix of horror and fear, but she quickly regained her composure.
Suddenly, the Principal tilted her head, her expression turning serious, “It’s time… let’s begin the procedure.”
With a miraculous quickness, Delphine’s limbs returned to their usual positions. She patted her wrinkled dress and nodded in agreement with the Principal.
Meanwhile, Aether, walking down the corridor, stared at his log:
[+1 Affection]
!~Ding~!
[Survival rate: 10.5% ↓]
‘What the hell did I do now!!’ Aether screamed inwardly but then shrugged it off. With Delphine on his side now, there was no need to worry about this anymore.
‘I am a free bird~’ Aether whispered to himself, a happy expression spreading across his face as he walked towards class.
As he neared the classroom, he noticed only a few servants standing outside, with even fewer people inside the room.
“Where did they go?” Aether wondered aloud as he approached Taylor.
“Professor Alaric took the Chosen Ones somewhere, so the remaining class is cancelled for today,” Taylor explained.
“Is that so…” Aether nodded. With Aqualina not around, he didn’t have much to do, so he decided to wander around.
However, his plan was interrupted when,
“Ether~” Selene suddenly jumped on his back, surprising him.
‘Ah! I forgot about her…’ Aether facepalmed himself, just about to move away when,
‘ZING!’
A shock ran through his spine… metaphorically, of course.
‘B-Boobs!’ Aether flinched as he felt Selene’s bosom pressing against his back, even through the thick layer of her dress.
“S-Sel… Could you please calm down?” Aether stuttered, feeling his face heat up. For some reason, whenever Selene touched him, he started to act like a teenage boy… which he technically was.
“Hmm?” Selene tilted her head in curiosity, looking at Aether’s slightly blushing face. Her face and ears turned red as she grinned, ‘I-Is he becoming aware of me?’ she thought, glancing at his trembling lips.
‘Gulp’
She hugged him tighter, just as things were about to escalate when,
“M-Ms. S-Selene, what are you doing!!” Timmy shouted, seeing Selene hugging Aether’s back.
Both Aether and Selene flinched. Selene stepped down from Aether’s back, facing Timmy’s furious expression.
“H-How dare you let Ms. Selene on your back, bastard?” Timmy finally gathered the courage to confront Aether, trying to threaten him.
“Do you think Young Master Kai would let this slide?
I am going to report this to Master Velc and– PUFFFFFF!!!” Before he could finish his threat, Selene sent him flying with a punch.
“Fu~Fu~Fu~ How long has it been since I last punched him?” Selene mumbled with an indifferent and dark expression that sent shivers down everyone’s spine.
Selene, with measured steps, approached Timmy, who was struggling to stand.
“S-Sel…” Aether tried to stop her. He wasn’t worried about Selene killing Timmy; he was just a little worried about her… a little!
“You don’t need to worry, Ether~ I will take care of you~” Selene’s face turned lovely, then instantly blank as she delivered another punch.
“BOOM!” freewebnovel.cσ๓
“Ahh!”
She punched Timmy in the gut, saying, “This is for hurting my beloved!”
“BOOM!!”
“Arrhhh!!”
“This is for almost killing him!”
“BOOOMMM!!”
“Arrhhh!!”
“This is for ganging up on him!”
“BOOOMMM!”
“arr…”
“And this is for trying to report to my annoying father!!”
“BOOOMMMMM!!”
“…”
“And this is for hurting my beloved!!”
….
…
The cycle continued, her punches ruthless, as if she intended to kill him. Even Aether felt a little pity for Timmy… just a little.
However, no one dared to approach the horrifying scene because they feared they would suffer if they interrupted her.
“S-Selene, stop this!!” Lia shouted as she emerged from the classroom, hearing the commotion.
However, Selene didn’t stop until Lia grabbed her arm and forced her to halt Selene’s actions…. Selene glared at Lia for stopping, but Lia simply shook her head.
“…. Sigh,” Selene sighed and nodded. Then she picked up the broken Timmy and threw him to Taylor, who caught him like garbage.
“Take him to the infirmary and say he fell down the stairs,” Selene said with a serious face.
‘Stairs?’ Everyone exchanged incredulous glances, their eyes widening in disbelief as they beheld Timmy’s battered form. The sight of him, bloodied and broken, seemed to defy all logic and reason. ‘Even a child would not believe this!!” they inwardly exclaimed, struggling to comprehend the absurdity of the situation.
Taylor wanted to say something, but Selene spoke sternly… Taylor sighed and took Timmy to the infirmary.
Selene’s eyes returned to normal as she looked at Aether with love-filled eyes… she really wasn’t going to hide it.
However, Aether looked at her with a worried expression as he caught her hand and noticed it was covered in blood, the crimson stains stark against her pale skin.
“A-Are you alright?” Aether’s voice trembled with concern as he gingerly wiped the blood from her hand with his handkerchief, his eyes filled with worry.
“!!!” Selene flinched momentarily, caught off guard by his gentle touch. But as she met his gaze, a tender smile graced her lips, “I-I am fine,” she reassured him.
‘I am going to die!!!’ She screamed inwardly with happiness, her heart soaring at Aether’s evident concern for her well-being.
Even Aether couldn’t believe what he was doing but he decided to follow his heart.
As Aether wiped away the blood, he noticed a few bruises on her knuckles, darkening her delicate skin. “This must be painful,” he remarked sympathetically, his heart aching at the sight of her injuries.
‘E-Ether influencing me…?’ Aether thought with fear.
She then smiled gently, “Nothing compares to what you went through…”
Those words were enough for him to halt his movement,
‘Ba-Dump’
Aether’s heart skipped a beat…. Not Ether’s heart… when he lifted his head and saw her gentle smile. They stared at each other as if they were trapped in something beyond…
“Ahem!”
“W-What’s going on?” Lia chimed in.