Chapter 159: Academy IF Side Story – The False Family (5)

Chapter 159: Academy IF Side Story – The False Family (5)

“What did I do..?”

I stared at Meichen, her face flushed crimson, with a blank expression.

She was lying next to me, looking like she didn’t know what to say.

“Um.. Meichen..”

“Uh, yeah.. I’m here..”

When I called her name, Meichen lowered her eyes slightly and replied in a small voice.

Her clothes were still undone.

I remember that time.

After we slept together in a fit of passion, I remember hugging her briefly and closing my eyes.

I feel completely refreshed, as if I’ve had a deep sleep.

I distinctly remember my mind going haywire from the scent of her perfume.

I don’t know how I should react.

After aggressively pinning her down like that, should I now have a normal conversation?

That seems crazy too.

But then, I recall Meichen telling me she liked me.

Is my memory distorted, or did Meichen genuinely have feelings for me from the start?

My head is spinning with confusion.

Meichen’s expression as she looks at me also drives me crazy.

Her slightly moist eyes make me want to hide in a rat hole.

First, I need to sort out the situation.

“Um.. Meichen..?”

“Cecil..”

“Ah, uh..”

“Yeah..”

However, the situation worsened as our words overlapped.

Meichen, half-naked, looking at me, and the awkward atmosphere.

I covered my face with my hands, which had turned red, and continued.

“…I did it, right?”

“Did what..?”

“Th-that thing. That..”

“Uh, yeah.. You did.”

“I.. I’m sorry. Your scent was so good, I couldn’t control my impulses.”

“No, it’s.. it’s probably because of the perfume.. It’s okay.”

This is bad. The atmosphere is even more awkward.

Sometimes, a direct approach is more helpful in situations like this.

I removed my hands from my face and stared at her.

“…But, can I ask you something?”

“Huh? Yeah. Of course. What is it?”

“Was what you said about liking me.. real?”

“Uh, uhh..? Did.. did I say that?”

“Hmm.. Is that so..?”

I’m sure I heard it.

I scratched my head and nodded.

Well, if the person involved says so, then so be it.

There’s nothing to gain from prying, and I should help her get dressed and sort things out between us.

“…Ahem. Well then, first.. let’s get dressed. You must be cold.”

Saying that, I spoke about getting up with her.

But.

Meichen didn’t move at all.

Wondering what was wrong, I looked at her, and Meichen subtly pressed her body against mine.

Her ears and cheeks were as red as if they would explode.

“Meichen?”

“..I, I’m a little cold.”

It was indeed chilly weather.

Even though it’s March, it’s a bit cold to be undressed like this.

But the reason she’s clinging to me doesn’t seem to be just the cold.

Her soft body pressed against mine.

The sweet scent wafted over again, making my head fuzzy.

‘No, I need to stay calm..’

I felt a bit strange, but I managed to endure it.

Even if we’ve gone this far, doing more feels a bit against the rules.

For now, I hugged Meichen tightly, as best as I could.

The rising body heat transmitted clearly, which felt good.

Her panting breath touched my neck.

And my desire began to rise again.

Still, I managed to endure the sweet scent.

The first time is always difficult, but the second time is easy.

I hugged Meichen tightly without a word and spent a strangely sweet time.

It wasn’t a bad time, surprisingly.

****

“Ugh.. This can’t be..”

“Haha! Cecil Constantine, the great and powerful, failing? The sun must be rising in the west.”

“This isn’t right.. This isn’t right..”

“..Well, don’t be too discouraged..”

I stared at the report card in my hand with a look of despair.

This is driving me crazy.

The report card showed brilliant scores of ‘A+’.

But what caught my eye was something else.

It was ‘Failed Elemental Theory’.

Failed.

Meaning, I received a score below the passing threshold on the exam.

In this school, failing two or more subjects results in the terrible punishment of being held back a year.

Fortunately, since all other subjects were A+, I wasn’t held back, but I had to take a remedial class for the failed subject.

And that remedial class is taught by a professor who is terribly boring.

I sighed deeply, feeling despair.

“No.. That professor is really boring..”

“I thought it was somewhat listenable. Except for his monotonous and slow way of speaking..”

“He’s good at teaching. There’s even a saying that if you don’t fall asleep, you can master the theory thoroughly..”

“Well, everything has its pros and cons. By the way.. failing by just 1 point. You should have paid more attention during the study group..”

“Ugh.. I’m really bad at elemental magic.. I’m definitely not cut out to be a scholar..”

“But there’s nothing we can do.. You know that if you fail the test in the remedial class, you’ll have to take it again, right?”

“Noooooo.. I’d rather die than do that..”

Should I ask Adela to help me with elemental magic?

I thought about it, but then shook my head.

While she’s interesting to watch, she’s not a very good teacher.

Her individual ability is outstanding, but she doesn’t know the ‘process’ to solve problems.

Because she can solve everything just by looking at it once, she has no way to teach it.

Therefore, Meichen’s teaching method was the most suitable for me.

It stimulated my sight and hearing without being too boring.

And she explained the formulas as easily as possible, which I really liked.

Should I just ask Meichen to help me study?

After the last lesson, something had slightly changed between us.

That is, we hang out together, but we rarely go into enclosed spaces like rooms.

Whenever the suggestion to go to each other’s dorm rooms comes up, even subconsciously, our faces turn red.

It’s clearly because of what happened before.

Because of that, I hesitated to suggest studying.

“Um.. So, Meichen.”

“Yeah?”

As expected, as soon as I spoke, Meichen’s face turned bright red.

She twisted her hair around her finger.

Then, she swallowed hard.

“Could you.. help me study? It would be great if you could help me.”

“Uh.. Study? Hmm.. I, I don’t mind. This evening.. after dinner, we can go, right?”

“Yeah. Come then.”

“..Okay.”

Was Meichen’s expression a little strange, or was it my imagination?

Either way, I rejoiced inwardly, wanting to resolve the awkwardness between us.

Yes. Even though something like that happened, there should be a chance to make up for it.

Thinking that, I thought of the chocolates remaining in my room.

This time, I’ll really study hard and get an A+.

****

‘I’m doomed..’

I felt my head spin again from the sweet scent.

Moreover, the scent was stronger than before.

Meichen seemed to have put on more perfume, as she tucked her hair behind her ear and blushed.

Her hands fidgeted constantly, and she slightly tucked her feet in.

My heart pounded.

Meichen looked incredibly attractive, as if she were trying to seduce me.

Whether she knew it or not, she said, ‘Let’s start studying,’ and took out a book.

But, will that really be studying?

I grabbed my quill, barely holding onto my reason to avoid pouncing on her.

‘I’m going crazy..’

I felt like I would make another mistake if I stayed like this.

First, I opened the window to ventilate the room.

Then, fresh air rushed in, and I felt a little better.

“..What’s wrong?”

“Uh, just.. I think I’m a little hot.”

“It’s March..?”

“Um. I, I get cold easily..?”

To her question, I gave a foolish answer with a foolish expression.

As if she knew what was on my mind, she stuck close to me and even smiled brightly.

“If we stick together, maybe it won’t be so cold. Let’s stick together.”

‘It’s because of you..!’

As our bodies drew closer, the sweet scent intensified.

I swallowed involuntarily, and Meichen gently took my hand.

For a moment, I looked at her with a bewildered expression, not knowing what this signal meant.

“Excuse me, Cecil.”

“Uh, yeah..?”

“Are you very cold?”

“It’s.. not as cold as I thought. Maybe.. because we’re sticking together.”

Meichen, who suddenly asked a nonsensical question, clung to me even more closely.

No. If I stay like this, I’ll end up pouncing on my friend again.

Even if it happens in our soundproof dorm room, it’s better not to..

‘Wait a minute..’

Come to think of it, my room is located on the outskirts of the dormitory.

That means no one will notice whatever we do here.

‘Let’s go to your dorm room.’

Suddenly, Meichen’s suggestion came to mind.

I looked at her, just in case.

“Really..? I know another way to get warmer..”

She was staring intently at me with a somewhat dangerous look.