Chapter 21: Mixed emotions in the final exam.
I came with Alondra to the bulletin board, where the test results were posted.
The hallway was filled with excitement as the joy and disappointment of the students checking their rankings echoed under the bat ceiling. We made our way through the crowd and finally arrived in front of the bulletin board.
“I’m 7th. I did my best, I guess.”
A pure 7th place without any shortcuts. Considering how busy I’ve been lately, I can say I did my best.
Alondra quickly found her name at 8th place. As usual, the score distribution was extremely biased, with only the difficult magic research getting a perfect score.
“Alondra is still amazing as always.”
“It’s not that amazing. I just did what I liked and this is what happened.”
Despite achieving a high ranking, Alondra’s lack of a smile was cool, and I smiled softly. I think Alondra’s unassuming personality is something to be admired.
Having achieved our purpose of checking our rankings, we quickly turned on our heels and left the bulletin board.
However, just as I was trying to escape from the crowd, I was called out by the protagonist of the event.
“Hey, Miss Leticia and Miss Alondra.”
The air filled with the students’ enthusiasm trembled with a rustle.
I don’t want to be in the spotlight, but I don’t want to ignore someone who’s talking to me, so I turned around and greeted him with a smile.
Elias-sama, the top student of the year, had his usual gentle smile on his face.
It’s incredible to think that he was involved in something ridiculous during the early stages of the test week. His ranking is nothing short of amazing.
Moreover, he doesn’t even seem tired, which shows his awareness as a prince.
“You girls were the only ones among the female students who ranked in the top 10. That’s impressive.”
Elias-sama’s eyes seemed to hold genuine respect.
There aren’t many students who work hard on their studies like us, considering that many female students either get married right after graduation or drop out to get married even while attending school. Therefore, getting high scores attracts a lot of attention.
“Miss Alondra still beat me in magic research. How can you get a perfect score?
The surrounding girls all erupted into beautiful smiles.
“…I’m just studying because I like it, Your Highness Elias.”
Only Alondra can maintain her composure against the deadly prince charming smile.
Elias-sama is known for his charisma, so much so that everyone affectionately calls him by his name with a title. However, Alondra seems to be the only one who calls him “Your Highness” because she simply doesn’t like him.
“Indeed, liking something is the best motivation.”
“…Yes, well, I think so too.”
Alondra remains expressionless throughout the conversation.
She used to say that she’s uncomfortable when others talk to her because it rarely happens, perhaps during her freshman year.
Last year, Elias-sama was also in the same class as Alondra and me, but he was the only male student who dared to approach us. I wish we could get along a little better.
Feeling a distress signal coming from Alondra, I politely ended the conversation.
In reality, the looks from the female students were starting to become harsh.
“Well then, excuse us, Elias-sama.”
“Okay, see you later.”
Alondra nodded silently.
As we walked away from the bulletin board, I chuckled at my friend’s somewhat unsociable behavior.
“We should try to have more fun conversations. Elias-sama is a really nice guy, you know?”
“I’m not interested…”
Alondra’s sigh-filled response probably revealed her true feelings.
She’s a really straightforward person when it comes to whether she’s interested or not. It’s almost like a miracle that she’s friends with me.
After school, as I walked down the hallway to go to the Volunteer Club meeting, Telencio came towards me.
As usual, he had dark circles under his eyes and was covering his mouth while yawning. It seemed like he was sleep-deprived again from studying Kaizen.
When I invited him to come to club activities, Telencio replied with a bold attitude.
“Sorry, I can’t go. I have a makeup test.”
“A makeup test? Again?”
I replied with a sigh.
Telencio didn’t seem to feel guilty at all, but in reality, he is a struggling student who is on the verge of being expelled.
When you fail and have to take a makeup test, you are usually prohibited from participating in club activities.
It had become customary for Telencio, who almost always fails, to be unable to participate in activities until the makeup test is over.
“Makeup tests are easier than regular tests. In the end, it saves you study time. It’s a very rational way to allocate time on Kaizen.”
“It’s actually refreshing how determined you are.”
I no longer felt the need to admonish him. How far will Telencio’s love for Kaizen take him?
He is good at board games and should be smart, but he spends class time sleeping, so there’s nothing we can do about it.
Just as I was about to leave after encouraging him, a figure appeared behind Telencio.
“That’s a pretty audacious thing to say, Telencio-kun.”
Lena-sensei had her usual gentle smile, but her eyes weren’t smiling at all.
Telencio, who turned around, noticed the awkward situation and his face twitched. It was probably a decent attitude for him not to say “Uh” out loud.
“It seems Telencio-kun has forgotten his duties as a student. How can we make him repent?”
“L-Lena-sensei, it’s not like that… Oh, Language! Lena-sensei’s Language class is fun, you know?!”
Telencio’s panicked and pathetic argument didn’t seem to resonate with Lena-sensei.
At the moment when even I shuddered at her increasingly cold smile, Lena-sensei firmly grabbed Telencio’s shoulder with her right hand.
“Please tell me after you can stay awake during class. Now, let’s go to the staff room since I have some assignments to give.”
“What? Assignments?! There shouldn’t be any make-up tests…?!”
“Leticia-san also did her best on this test. Please continue to work hard in Volunteer Club.”
Ignoring Telencio’s plea completely, Lena-sensei smiled at me. A true smile with warm eyes.
I love Lena-sensei because she watches over me and my efforts.
“Thank you,” I replied, and Lena-sensei took Telencio away.
She has more stamina than her delicate appearance would suggest. Being a teacher is really a tough job.
As I walked further down the hallway, I ran into Camilo. It’s clear that he’s also heading towards the Volunteer Club.
“Leticia, what a coincidence!”
If I were to walk with him, people might start gossiping again, so I hesitated for a moment. But I couldn’t be rude after seeing his happy smile, so I returned his greeting with a smile. Well, it’s not strange to talk a little bit… right?
“I moved up in the rankings a bit, thanks to you, Leticia.”
I was curious, so I checked the bulletin board since we studied together before. Camilo’s rank was 38th.
I don’t know his usual ranking, but if it went up, that’s really good.
That being said, I just studied silently in a corner of the library, so it’s not like I did anything to help.
“Camilo did well.”
“No, I was able to do my best because Leticia was there.”
His young green eyes were so kind and narrowed that I became aware of heat gathering in my cheeks.
I couldn’t think of any clever words, so I had to avoid saying anything weird by breaking our entwined gaze and looking down.
Lately, I’ve been restless and unable to calm down when I’m with Camilo.
Even in my past life, he used to make me laugh countless times.
Why is it that now, my heart beats faster and aching, I wonder?
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