After the Rain Comes the Mud (1)

The first year at the academy ended, and winter arrived.

A brief respite from the daily sword-swinging academy life during the winter break.

The hero Gyeotmwa Josyegigot was spending his vacation taking care of children at a remote orphanage in the western region.

‘In the end, I couldn’t confirm it this time either.’

Lilith Rosewood, the exclusive maid of Ethan Richard Blackwood.

Now a branch family noble of the Blackwood household using the name Lilith Blackwood Rosewood, but Gyeotmwa Josyegigot couldn’t possibly be unaware that she was the Lilith from the original game.

And now, he harbored suspicions that Lilith might be a transmigrator like himself.

Seeing her actions at the banquet-stopping Agnes from drinking and effortlessly handling Natalie’s drunkenness-he thought it likely.

Of course, there was still room for doubt, so he wanted a bit more certainty, but…

‘At the last banquet, I should have found a way to get Lilith to talk.’

In the end, that day’s banquet ended in chaos due to Natalie’s rampage. Drunk, she had caused a scene by demanding a duel with Ethan of all people.

Thanks to Lilith’s quick thinking, they managed to get her to sleep quietly, but that was as far as it went.

As soon as Natalie calmed down, Ethan and Lilith left the after-party, and the mood among the remaining guests was far from pleasant.

‘I guess this kind of gathering just isn’t for me. My presence seems to have put Natalie-yang in a bad mood, so I’ll take my leave first.’

‘Wait, Prince Ethan. I’ll apologize on Natalie’s behalf, so could we talk for a moment…?’

‘I fail to see the point of an apology from someone other than the person who caused the trouble. And even if I accept it, I don’t see why I should stay here.’

‘…….’

‘If Young Master Ethan says so, I’ll take my leave as well.’

‘…Lilith, you can stay a bit longer. I saw some acquaintances among the hero’s companions earlier. It’s fine to mingle with them before leaving.’

‘No, I’ll leave as well. I need to prepare for our departure to Blackwood early tomorrow morning, so it’s best to return now.’

‘…If you insist.’

Ethan, who already didn’t like him much, had frowned the moment their eyes met-a look Gyeotmwa Josyegigot still remembered.

Already in a bad mood, Ethan had expressed his full displeasure with the fuel Natalie provided.

Lilith, Ethan’s exclusive maid who had shown fatigue while calming Natalie, naturally left with him.

Though Seraphine tried to keep the remaining guests engaged, the ruined atmosphere couldn’t be salvaged.

Despite the precious opportunity Seraphine had arranged at his request, he couldn’t confirm whether Lilith was a transmigrator.

…No, perhaps it would have been better if he hadn’t gotten what he wanted.

That day’s banquet ultimately backfired on the hero Gyeotmwa Josyegigot in the worst way.

The initial composition of the hero party he had carefully built began to show cracks.

“H-Hey, everyone, stop…! If you play with food, I-I’ll scold you…!”

“You lost your doll, and you expect me to do what? Can’t you look for it yourself? Do you think I rode that uncomfortable carriage all the way here just to babysit you?”

Volunteer work at the western orphanage.

One of the episodes available during the first-year winter break at 『Luminor Academy』.

Solving the case of missing children at the orphanage where Celista grew up and eliminating the roots of the dark cult.

As one of the major events, it wasn’t originally planned for just the three of them to come.

Excluding Celista and Silena, who were dealing with the children, Gyeotmwa Josyegigot had intended to bring all the remaining hero party members.

Not only was it a valuable event to boost the party’s experience, camaraderie, and bonds, but he also wanted to make the final battle with the dark cult’s executive a bit easier.

But the originally planned orphanage volunteer team had halved, leaving only three members.

Natalie, shocked by the footage of her drunken antics shown by Seraphine’s magic recording device, returned to her hometown.

Thomas, who was supposed to join after visiting his hometown, sent only a letter saying he likely wouldn’t make it, worried about Natalie’s condition.

And Agnes, seemingly disillusioned with the hero party after seeing Natalie’s rowdiness, silently returned to her family home without a word.

In the end, only Celista and Silena-who would follow him no matter what-remained to accompany him to the orphanage.

…Only the two people least suited for handling young children in this orphanage event.

“Sigh… I don’t get why you’re crying. You’re the one who couldn’t take care of yourself. Can you stop already?”

“I-I told you not to play with food…! Waaah…! Why, why do you keep bullying me…! *Sniff*… *Sob*….”

One person making a child cry. Another person crying because of the child.

Silena, whose individualistic nature made her ill-suited for childcare, and Celista, whose tender heart couldn’t handle the children’s mischievous pranks.

Seeing them like this, it was inevitable to miss the others who should have been here.

If Natalie and Thomas-who had experience caring for children in their hometown-had been here, Celista’s burden would have been much lighter.

Even Agnes, despite her poor social skills, surprisingly got along well with younger kids.

With those three gone, the western orphanage volunteer work foreshadowed his hardships from the start.

‘Did I mess things up by stirring unnecessary trouble that wasn’t in the original…?’

Then, would it have been better to stick strictly to the original game’s route?

But if things followed the original plot, by the end of the second year, he would have to face Ethan in a life-or-death duel.

‘I don’t know. There’s still about a year left.’

Considering how pointlessly he had spent the past year, a year didn’t feel like much time.

For now, he had to console the tearful Celista and teach Silena how to handle children.

“Silena, they’re just little kids. How can they understand if you scold them like that? Celista, stop crying too. Kids, if you make the priestess cry, demons will come under your beds when you sleep….”

For him, who just wanted to defeat the Demon King and return home, each day was an exhausting ordeal.

⁎ ⁎ ⁎

Unlike the troublesome summer break, the winter break passed in the blink of an eye.

Due to Seraphine’s student council duties, my return to the Blackwood mansion was delayed, and likewise, my return to school was hastened by the same responsibilities.

Of course, because of the incident at the last banquet, the atmosphere upon returning was still tense.

“…….”

“…….”

“…….”

“My, what’s wrong with everyone~? Why is the student council room so quiet today~?”

Only Orion, who hadn’t attended the after-party, spoke in his usual tone, while the other members exuded an awkward atmosphere.

“L-Lilith… Here’s the budget list for the first semester club support funds….”

“…Thank you, Lady August.”

“Y-Yeah….”

Lizzie, who had clung to me drunkenly after two cocktails, awkwardly avoided my gaze.

“…Here are the gratitude documents for last quarter’s water fountain replacement, President.”

“T-Thank you, Prince Ethan….”

Seraphine, who had invited unannounced guests and caused Ethan discomfort, couldn’t lift her head in front of him either.

With four clear-cut aggressors and victims in the room, the atmosphere couldn’t possibly be good.

While Lizzie had miscalculated her alcohol tolerance, Seraphine couldn’t have known about Natalie’s drinking habits, so she might feel unfairly blamed.

But if she wanted to voice that grievance, she should have at least informed the student council members that the hero party would attend.

Since Seraphine had invited Gyeotmwa Josyegigot’s party without consulting the attendees, any resulting issues were ultimately her responsibility.

She probably thought her role was just to mediate and foster friendships among the awkward group.

As a princess with early education in various fields, Seraphine excelled at finding common topics to build rapport.

But even she couldn’t handle Natalie’s merciless drunkenness, leaving her indebted to Ethan.

During the winter break, Seraphine sent handwritten apology letters and gifts to Ethan, so I thought he had softened somewhat.

…But it seemed Ethan still held onto that incident.

‘All I’ve done is stir up trouble that wasn’t in the original, making everything more complicated….’

Antagonizing Seraphine at this stage wasn’t a good sign.

After all, she was a protagonist from start to finish in 『Luminor Academy』.

Turning against her meant turning against the hero Gyeotmwa Josyegigot, and worst-case scenario, the hero might see Ethan as a villain.

While a slight rift could be mended, standing in direct opposition to her was a different story.

As I quietly pondered this, the time stone signaled the end of student council duties.

“I’ve finished all the audit-related tasks, so I’ll take my leave now, President Seraphine.”

“Ah, Prince Ethan. If you have time tonight….”

“My apologies. I still have unpacking to do from the mansion. I need to finish before the semester starts, so I won’t have time.”

“…I see. Be careful on your way back, Prince Ethan.”

“Yes, President Seraphine.”

Ethan’s blunt interruption of Seraphine’s peace offering was undeniably rude, but everyone except Orion and Lizzie knew the anger stemmed from Seraphine’s actions.

No one could easily stop Ethan. Not even Luke, Seraphine’s attendant.

“Lilith, let’s go.”

“…Yes, Young Master Ethan.”

Until then, I still thought Seraphine and Ethan’s relationship could be mended relatively easily.

“I won’t be joining the student council in the second semester, Lilith.”

…At least, until Ethan said those words after returning to the dorm.