I Became the Academy’s Female Delinquent Chapter 62. Interlude

Time is relative.

Depending on the person, depending on how they accept it.

As a woman, Elsie was inevitably forced to face that day’s event.

That shocking experience shook and disrupted many things within Elsie.

Roughly two months had passed since that incident.

Some might say it was fast, but for Elsie, time flowed agonizingly slowly.

‘I thought I was living each day to the fullest…’

Physical training, combat training, energy manipulation.

She had been consistently repeating everything without missing a single thing.

Elsie calmly looked down at her hand that had been brushing her hair.

She clenched her fist and then opened it again.

Smooth, continuous motion. A living sensation. Vivid sense of reality.

“Hoo.”

Elsie sighed and quietly closed her eyes.

From the first possession to the present, several months.

Perhaps the reason she felt the flow of time was slow was because… a part of her still felt unfamiliar with all of this.

‘There’s still no news about the martial arts tournament.’

Rumor had it that the principal of this Main Academy was postponing the schedule, but she couldn’t know the details.

“It’s the World Integration Martial Arts Tournament, so it won’t be that simple…”

But couldn’t they at least announce the schedule?

Elsie, grumbling in her mind, dropped her head and collapsed.

Elsie, slumped on her desk, wiggled her legs while sitting on her chair.

Her frustrated heart began to manifest in her actions, and her legs stretched out forward.

Then, her small feet peeked out and disappeared again.

As she randomly wiggled her legs, the quiet classroom gradually became noisy.

Elsie frowned and raised her head, sensing something strange from the boys’ clearing of throats.

“What…”

Do you guys even know how I feel? Elsie’s expression seemed to say.

The gazes that had been pouring over her quickly scattered.

Thrud wasn’t there, and the other Valkyries happened to be away, so there was no one to talk to.

When she turned her head, the boys, who were engrossed in something, had red faces and avoided her gaze.

Because the gender ratio was quite skewed towards male students, there weren’t many female students left in the classroom.

Even those who were there were a group engaged in an academic discussion about the massive structure of the Bifrost rooted outside the real universe.

‘Wait… now that I think about it, do I… have an incredibly narrow social circle?’

Except for a few people she was always with, most of her classmates were only acquaintances.

Even excluding the extremely chaotic beginning of the semester, it had already been more than two months.

Elsie’s face hardened with shock as she realized her shocking communication skills.

Elsie, who had been dangling her legs, neatly folded them and began to seriously ponder with her chest on the desk.

‘Should I greet everyone I see like Thrud does…?’

That was a social skill she could never attempt, even if she died.

Why was she even worrying about this in the first place?

She had been doing fine without any problems until now.

A large shadow fell over Elsie, who had reached the conclusion of escaping reality.

“Eh?”

“Elsie.”

Doyun, with a serious expression, massaged his shoulders and looked down at Elsie.

Right, she wasn’t completely alone.

There was Han Doyun, the loyal one, hiding among the boys.

“What?”

Elsie asked Doyun with a slightly excited face. Her expression said she was glad that at least he was there.

Then, Doyun, who had momentarily lit up his eyes, blushed slightly and averted his gaze.

“You’re not being careful enough. If you shake your legs like that…”

“Ah, you wouldn’t have been able to see, right? I’ve been careful since Thrud beat me up last time. Did you… see it?”

Elsie had experienced several incidents where she almost became an exhibitionist due to her reckless leg movements.

Eventually, after Thrud’s physical therapy, she had shown much improvement.

“No, it wasn’t exactly visible, but…”

“If you didn’t see it, you didn’t see it. What’s with the ‘exactly’? Are you teasing me?”

Elsie stretched out her foot and tapped Doyun’s leg, who was standing in front of her desk.

“Joint! Joint!”

*(T/N: Korean Slang, “조인트 까이다” [literally “get your joint cracked”] means to get beaten up, especially by being kicked or hit in the knees or joints. So, someone shouting “조인트! 조인트!” could be warning or threatening to beat someone, or mimicking a sound made during a scolding or fight.)*

Doyun, who had been silently looking down at Elsie’s small foot teasingly tapping his leg, sighed.

Two months ago. After that day’s incident, which was an extremely shocking experience from Elsie’s perspective, she had changed a little.

A little… should he say she had become more foolish?

‘No, to be exact, it’s more like she’s become more playful…’

Becoming less careful to the point of being physically treated by Thrud, reducing the distance between them, and so on…

Doyun felt that she had changed a little, as if she was trying to shake off something she didn’t want to admit.

Tap tap-

And like now.

Tap tap tap-

Like now… the frequency of her petty pranks had increased.

It was a relief, if anything, that she didn’t do this to other boys besides him.

Doyun was secretly pleased that Elsie’s reduced distance only applied to him.

Tap tap tap tap-

“…”

Still, there’s no way he’d like it if she played too many pranks.

Doyun bent down to stop Elsie’s foot, which was currently acting up.

He grabbed Elsie’s slender ankle with a thud! and raised his head.

“Elsie… if you keep doing that, your skirt will ride up.”

“Heok-”

Doyun was relieved when Elsie instantly became quiet and looked around.

It was only natural that the surrounding gazes were gathering on Elsie, who stood out even when she was still.

Doyun, who was especially bothered by the gazes of the men, felt relieved inside and quietly looked down at Elsie’s leg that he was holding.

As he looked at it, he could feel the elasticity in her beautifully straight, long legs.

“Let go…”

The way she was wiggling her toes as if she was sulking…

“I said let go! I’ll be quiet!”

“Ah, okay.”

Doyun let go of her hand before Elsie got even more annoyed.

Elsie, who had changed a little since that day.

If he had to pick the biggest change, it would be that she had become even more captivating, like now.

‘That was dangerous.’

Doyun, who was horrified that he almost got treated like a pervert in an instant, was relieved alone without realizing that he was already perverted enough.

“Ah! Right!”

Elsie suddenly jumped up and looked up at Doyun.

“What…?”

“Come with me for a second.”

“I have something to do now…”

Doyun was planning to have a pretty serious discussion with his friends about how to deal with monsters using weapon techniques from now on.

He swallowed hard as he watched Elsie’s expression become gloomy in real time.

“…nevermind.”

“Ooh…”

Doyun’s heart pounded like crazy at Elsie’s purely happy appearance.

Elsie urgently grabbed his sleeve and went out of the classroom.

Doyun felt countless gazes pouring down on the back of his head, but he couldn’t help it.

He had a clear priority.

“But where are you going?”

“A walk.”

“…Huh? A walk?”

He wondered what she was trying to do by dragging him out, but… a walk?

“I’m a little hesitant to go alone… Thrud is busy today too…”

She was getting restless just staying in the classroom-

Elsie, who had muttered that, suddenly let go of the hand that had been pulling Doyun.

Doyun’s heart softened at Elsie’s appearance, which seemed strangely spoiled today.

“And… if I walk alone, strange men keep hitting on me!”

“S, strange men?! How did they get inside the academy grounds?”

‘Was she experiencing things like that every time she walked alone… Elsie…’

Doyun froze with his hand outstretched at Elsie’s shocking statement.

“No, I don’t mean actual men who came in from outside, but… well… they say they’re Seonbae, but they don’t act like Seonbae…”

Elsie’s eyes narrowed as she frowned, as if unpleasant memories had surfaced.

Putting aside the fact that they were academy students who were old enough to be mistaken for men, what was with suddenly appearing and blocking her way, and then grabbing her wrist and trying to drag her away?

Elsie, who had explained the whole story to Doyun, looked at his face, which was changing every moment, as if it was fascinating.

His expression was hardening, and his eyes were gradually becoming empty.

“What did those bastards do to you?”

To think that they tried to drag the innocent Elsie away as they pleased.

Anger boiled up from within.

Elsie simply shrugged at Doyun’s fierce question.

“Nothing? I blew them all away.”

Elsie reached out her fist and tapped Doyun’s chest.

One Pure Strike per person.

She had shown the lazy bastards who were disturbing her peaceful walk a spicy taste of her fist, regardless of whether they were Seonbae or not.

“They must have looked down on me because I was alone. Or… because I’m short! They underestimated me!”

Elsie trembled, shouting as if she was wronged.

She was still bothered by her relatively petite physique compared to Thrud or Doyun.

“Haha, Elsie…”

Doyun, who was dumbfounded by her signature ending, chuckled.

“That’s enough.”

“What…?! What do you mean it’s enough! Are you making fun of me because you’re all grown up?”

“I’m saying you look good even now. And I’m still growing.”

“Tsk…”

He’s teasing her. This is definitely teasing.

Elsie pointed at Doyun with her trembling hand, feeling wronged.

“Just you wait! I’m going to get much taller than I am now!”

“Hmm…”

Doyun began to seriously examine her at Elsie’s declaration.

And he nodded and replied.

“Definitely. I think it’s okay for you to get a little taller. I’m in favor of it.”

‘What is this bastard looking at to agree so easily?’

Elsie, who was as angry as she could be, couldn’t figure it out until the end.

*

Ratatoskr was climbing Yggdrasil.

This giant squirrel never tired, even though it repeated the journey of going from one end of the majestic World Tree to the other.

A mysterious ability to create small-scale Bifrosts.

He was also a master of information, traversing the Nine Worlds while climbing the World Tree and absorbing all sorts of useless information.

Papap!

As he gradually approached the top of Yggdrasil, Ratatoskr felt a presence and paused for a moment, heavily shaking his thick tail.

There were people nearby.

A group of healers collecting young leaves of the World Tree that grew near the top of Yggdrasil.

‘Healers from Alfheim and Asgard.’

They could get more leaves in the realm of the nameless eagle a little higher up.

But considering the nameless eagle’s terrible personality, the reason why they were here was also explained.

It wasn’t just once or twice that he had playfully chased away the healers who were loitering around his territory.

Ratatoskr blinked his round eyes.

“Oh? Look over there! There’s a huge squirrel!”

At that moment, one of the healers discovered Ratatoskr and shouted.

Healers who frequented this place should know him.

Ratatoskr sparkled his eyes and looked at the healer pointing at him.

Not only healers, but his infamy in the Nine Worlds was quite well-known, so they would usually pretend not to see him.

‘A newbie.’

Ratatoskr, who came to that conclusion with a quick brain rotation, shook his thick tail once.

The healers nearby also discovered Ratatoskr one after another at the newbie’s shout and froze.

“Hey, you idiot! It’s Ratatoskr! You should have pretended not to see him!”

“Yes, yes?”

“Oh my god… I thought it was going to end quietly today…”

The healers, except for the newbie, screamed or grabbed their heads after confirming Ratatoskr’s appearance.

It was certainly surprising to encounter a giant squirrel that was 3 meters tall, but their reaction wasn’t that kind of thing.

The newbie, who had been fascinated by Ratatoskr, asked Heyrun, a green-haired elf woman nearby.

“Heyrun-nim. What’s all this about?”

Heyrun shook her head, touching her forehead.

“Well… it’s like an unspoken rule, but I didn’t tell you because I thought nothing would happen.”

It was unlucky that Ratatoskr was passing by when a healer was climbing the World Tree for the first time today.

Heyrun thought so and opened her mouth again.

“Ratatoskr is a bit… his mouth is a bit-”

[Big tits.]

“”…?””

Ratatoskr’s voice burst out before Heyrun could finish her explanation.

The surroundings instantly fell silent.

It was because it was a vulgar word that they never expected to hear at the top of the World Tree.

“…his mouth is a bit rough and vulgar.”

[Big-titted woman.]

Heyrun blushed and covered her chest with her gown at Ratatoskr’s playful voice.

The reason why the healers were troubled.

It was because that damn giant squirrel was one of the most foul-mouthed and playful creatures in the Nine Worlds.

In the end, they had to work while listening to all sorts of swear words and lewd jokes from Ratatoskr, who was loitering around.

It was annoying because it wasn’t even a person, but some animal was acting like it was possessed.

“Please stop it!”

Ratatoskr ran to her like an arrow at one healer’s scream and said gently.

[Your face.]

…

The healers, who had been tormented for about ten minutes, began to rejoice that they were leaving faster than usual today when Ratatoskr showed signs of leaving.

Ratatoskr, who was climbing the World Tree, looked back at them rejoicing.

[….]

The giant squirrel was silent for a moment.

The cheering healers stopped and looked up at Ratatoskr with nervous faces.

A gap of silence.

A wind blew from somewhere and passed between an animal and the healers.

[…idiot.]

_Pababak!_

Ratatoskr, who had spewed out vulgar swear words until the end, quickly climbed up the World Tree.

“…Let’s withdraw for today.”

At someone’s desperate suggestion, the healers of Alfheim and Asgard nodded at the same time.

Ratatoskr, who had arrived at the top of the World Tree, the realm of the nameless eagle, leaped towards the eagle sitting far away.

His greatest pleasure was this moment.

That’s why he didn’t stick around the healers for long.

[Ratatoskr? What’s going on?]

Vedrfolnir, who was sitting on the head of the nameless eagle, discovered Ratatoskr and opened his mouth.

[It’s not like I only come to visit when something’s going on.]

[No, you always came when something was going on. For example-]

[Nidhogg?]

[Yeah…]

Ratatoskr chuckled at Vedrfolnir’s sigh.

[Nidhogg told me to tell you something.]

[…Do I have to listen to that? What’s that damn bad-breathed lizard going to say again…]

Unlike Vedrfolnir’s words, the nameless eagle was staring at Ratatoskr as if he was going to listen.

The fact that Nidhogg of Niflheim and the nameless eagle didn’t get along was now known to everyone.

It was truly an antagonistic relationship with a long history and tradition.

Ratatoskr opened his mouth with the cheeky face unique to squirrels.

Interpreting what Nidhogg wanted to convey purely in his own way.

[Cunt.]

[….]

The nameless eagle howled.

The eagle, who had taken off with the intention of beating up that rotten-mouthed dragon, immediately began to descend towards Niflheim.

Ratatoskr, who was delighted that there was a fun spectacle after a long time, followed the giant eagle down the World Tree.