There’s Space Behind the Wall

The incident was over.

The traitor was dead, and while the students had some minor injuries, no one was seriously hurt.

It was a perfect victory for the Academy… or so those who only judged by the outcome would think.

But those focusing on the fact that such an incident occurred at all didn’t share that view.

True, this incident proved the Academy’s capability to handle unexpected crises… but…

Some people began questioning whether the Academy was truly safe, expressing doubts about how such an incident could happen in the first place.

Our Principal clearly belonged to the camp that believed the incident shouldn’t have occurred at all.

…Frankly, I couldn’t care less.

We’ll probably laugh this off later, right?

Anyway. The moment it was revealed there was a traitor among the faculty, the Principal rushed back to the Academy after completing her urgent business and immediately started eyeing all teachers with suspicion.

Well, the teachers understood this much.

After all, a colleague they’d been chatting with just days before turned out to be a criminal whose goal was assassinating the Princess and the Watcher.

Teachers who understood how the world works accepted this as inevitable and moved on.

But they failed to notice. No, they knew but deliberately looked away, thinking it wouldn’t be a big deal.

And the consequences of their negligence arrived.

“Teacher Ophelia, are you here? We’re not bad people. Come out and we’ll give you candy.”

Candy my ass.

More like dumping work on me.

Holding my breath, I prayed they’d pass by without noticing me.

Not that I believe in it, but gods must exist in this world’s setting.

God, please don’t let them find me!

“Found her! It’s Teacher Ophelia! Get her!”

“…Ah, damn it! I swear I’ll never pray again!”

“Catch her now!”

Why am I being chased by faculty members?

To explain that, we need to go back a bit.

The Academy was already short-staffed.

Hence the Principal running around headhunting everywhere.

Fortunately, the well-established system and competent teachers who met the Principal’s standards had kept the Academy running smoothly.

…Right. If that incident hadn’t happened, these teachers wouldn’t be chasing me with those exhausted eyes.

The terror incident made the Academy extremely busy.

Families worried about students coming to visit was just the start.

Citizens filed complaints, the Imperial Family and Papal Court kept poking around, and journalists smelling a scoop kept swarming in. “Busy” doesn’t begin to cover it.

With the Academy already critically short-staffed and now down another person, the workload exploded.

Even when remaining staff tried responding to the incident, the Principal kept unexpectedly taking them away for “ideological verification.”

Exhausted from constant overtime and heavy workloads, teachers begged for more staff… but…

As if that would happen. It hadn’t even been a month since the terrorist appeared.

Naturally few applicants, and even if there were, they might be criminals – the Principal declared no new hires for the foreseeable future.

Teachers sighed deeply, thinking they might die buried in work… when…

Unfortunately, I caught their eye.

As counseling staff usually less busy, perfect for dumping work on.

Even when I protested I’d never done such work, they ignored me. “You can learn,” they said, pushing me into the workload.

At first, I tried hard.

However heartless I might be, seeing them struggle made me want to help.

But everything has limits. When the work seemed endless, I quickly realized:

This can’t continue. So I ran.

“Huff, huff… D-dead end…”

Of course, a physically weak civilian like me couldn’t possibly escape trained faculty members.

…Then why haven’t they caught me yet?

The answer’s simple.

They want rest too.

Using chasing me as an excuse, these teachers are taking a break.

Once they feel like working again, they’ll immediately catch me.

But cornered like this, they’ll have no choice but to return to work. With me in tow.

The thought horrified me.

I refuse to work 18-hour days…!

But using hypnosis?

That felt equally unsatisfying. …How should I put it? Like admitting defeat.

“Ugh, what should I…”

“Hide here, Teacher.”

“Eh? Eileen…?”

While desperately pondering my escape, Eileen’s voice came from nowhere.

…No one was around here?

I frantically turned toward the voice but only saw a white wall.

“…Was I imagining things?”

“You weren’t.”

“?!”

“Why so surprised?”

“H-how couldn’t I be?! A person just popped out of a wall!”

G-geez, what a scare.

There’s space inside the wall…?

Looking closer, I saw microscopic cracks in the wall.

Hairline fractures barely noticeable unless staring intently.

The cleanly cut wall surface suggested an Academy secret passage?

“I never knew the Academy had secret passages. Amazing.”

“? There aren’t any.”

“Huh? Then this…?”

“I made it temporarily. Great spot for skipping work, isn’t it?”

“…”

“Come in. I’ll help you hide for a bit.”

I’d been excited thinking it was a secret Academy passage. How cool. But no.

Feeling betrayed, I stared daggers at her.

But briefly.

Hearing approaching voices, I hastily hid in Eileen’s secret space.

“…What? She definitely came this way.”

“Must’ve been mistaken.”

“Hmm…”

Please don’t find me… Please don’t find me…!

This time I prayed to God with all my heart.

I’ll overlook You ignoring my last prayer…! Please! Just this once! Help me!

“Ah.”

“What? Something wrong?”

“…!”

But apparently God still wasn’t listening.

Through a tiny crack, my eyes met those of a pursuing teacher.

God is dead. Must be dead…

I cursed God internally. Never answers my prayers.

I don’t want to work anymore.

I envied myself from months ago, living as a Salary Thief.

“Nah. Must’ve been mistaken. Let’s look around leisurely. Teacher Ophelia runs surprisingly well.”

“Be honest. You saw her, right?”

“No? Didn’t see anything?”

“Oh come on, why hide it? Teacher Ophelia! Wherever you are, you’re relaxing comfortably! Let us benefit from your absence too!”

“Why say it like that? We need to find the Teacher for work.”

“Ah, right. …Hurry up! Work’s piling up!”

Retracting that curse.

Seems my prayer was answered after all.

I sighed in relief after the teachers left.

“Thank you, Eileen. You saved me.”

“…Huh? You know my name?”

“Of course. The Princess-nim mentioned you.”

Well, not exactly, but this should work.

As expected, she sighed and muttered:

“…Damn that woman. Always gossiping about useless things.”

“Haha.”

Eileen, the Sword Prodigy.

A Playable Character with incredible growth stats but pathetically low starting abilities.

Maybe due to real-world buffs, she seemed stronger than Leo.

Anyway. She hates taking initiative.

According to settings, she spends most days skipping work.

…I’d wondered how she skipped work, but cutting clean holes in Academy walls to hide? Never imagined.

Her swordsmanship talent being wasted on creating nearly invisible cut surfaces felt tragic.

“…Why did you help me?”

“Huh?”

“From what I heard, Eileen really… dislikes troublesome things.”

Eileen pathologically hates troublesome matters.

When problems arise, she avoids rather than solves them.

…So why help me?

She casually answered my question.

“Ah, felt a sense of kinship.”

“…Kinship?”

I was baffled by this unexpected reason.

Should I be flattered or not…?

Good that we’re getting along faster than expected, but…

My feelings were complicated.

She sees me as similar to her?