I Became the Academy’s Female Delinquent Chapter 60. What Must Be Accepted (4)

Health teacher Heyrun took out a small envelope and handed it to Elsie.

“What is this?”

“It’s dried young leaves collected from the top of the World Tree.”

Elsie, taken aback, accepted the envelope and stared at it for a moment.

Then, she looked at Heyrun with a questioning expression.

“Hehe. These leaves have a soothing effect that alleviates premenstrual symptoms and reduces discomfort. I thought it would be helpful for you.”

“Eh…”

Elsie didn’t know how to respond.

She still didn’t want to acknowledge it.

But the symptoms she was experiencing today meant it was imminent.

She could only nod with difficulty.

“T-thank you…”

“You can brew it and drink it, or use the steam from hot water to inhale the aroma indirectly. Elsie, you’re a pure-blooded Aesir, so it should work well.”

“Pure-blooded…?”

“The pure bloodline of the Aesir is more delicate.”

Since the Adorencia family is in Asgard, being of Aesir descent is understandable.

‘But what’s with the pure-blooded thing?’

In a world where various races live, are there significant differences in medical and pathological conditions depending on race and bloodline?

She didn’t know. In fact, she wasn’t very interested, so Elsie simply tilted her head.

‘If the health teacher says so, then it must be true.’

With just that thought, Elsie opened the envelope she had received.

Inside the envelope was a clump of well-dried young leaves from the World Tree.

They seemed to have been deliberately crumbled for ease of use.

It looked similar to catnip, commonly known as catmint.

“So, you’re saying I should brew this and drink it, or use it as incense?”

“If the symptoms are severe, you can do both. It only works when you need it, and… recently, it’s become easier to collect from the top of the World Tree.”

Thanks to the grumpy giant eagle and hawk living at the top of the World Tree often being away from home, the supply had become more stable.

Heyrun smiled slightly as she explained.

“Grumpy eagle and hawk…”

Elsie’s eyes narrowed.

It couldn’t be a coincidence that she thought of the two monstrous birds with Dane.

Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, Elsie looked back into the envelope Heyrun had given her.

‘Does it really work?’

Elsie wore a dubious expression.

Despite the explanation, she couldn’t help but be skeptical.

The unknown, uneasy feeling she was experiencing, and the suppressed, aching sensation in her chest. All of it was unfamiliar, making it hard to believe.

Was it because of this curiosity?

Elsie instinctively opened the envelope full of dried leaves and brought it to her nose.

‘If it works by inhaling the aroma… then I can just smell it, right?’

Snnniff!

“Ah! E-Elsie! No-!”

Heyrun was startled by Elsie’s sudden action and tried to stop her. But it was already too late.

The subtle yet strong fragrance emanating from the dried leaves of the World Tree was inhaled through Elsie’s nose.

…?

……?!

………?!?!

Boom-!

A sun exploded in her head.

“Ugh-?!”

Elsie, who had her face buried in the envelope, trembled as if struck by lightning and lifted her head.

The explosion of an immense fragrance she had never experienced before.

It felt like her brain was being shaken as it slammed through her head.

“Ugehet-”

For a moment, everything in front of her and in her head became dizzy.

Elsie, unknowingly wrapping her arms around herself and twisting her body slightly, leaned back and slowly fell over.

“Elsie!”

Heyrun, who barely managed to catch Elsie as she fell backward, shouted.

Elsie, who had briefly rolled her eyes back and lost her mind, suddenly snapped back to her senses.

“Haa-!?”

Elsie quickly tried to regain her posture and move.

Then, she bumped her face into Heyrun’s large chest and bounced back, staggering.

Sitting on the bed with a startled expression, she gasped for breath and looked down at the envelope in her hand.

“W-what is this…”

“You shouldn’t try to smell the dried raw leaves directly!”

At Heyrun’s firm scolding, Elsie widened her eyes and looked at her with a hiccup.

“Do you understand? Like what just happened to you, the effect is too strong and can backfire, so be careful!”

“Y-yes… hiccup!”

“As I said before, you must use it after diluting it. Especially since Aesir purebloods are more delicate!”

At Heyrun’s figure bending down and emphasizing her words, Elsie blushed slightly and nodded fervently.

Then, she carefully tied the opening of the envelope and treasured it.

She received the teacup Heyrun handed her, calming her frantically pounding heart.

“Have a sip before you go, even if it’s just a little.”

“Is this what you mentioned earlier…?”

“That’s right. It’s tea brewed from the leaves. We call it the Tears of the World Tree, tár.”

Elsie swallowed hard and looked down at the teacup.

The immense shock of the raw leaves that had paralyzed her reason.

She was still trembling slightly from the shock.

Heyrun was looking at Elsie with a surprised expression.

The way Elsie was holding the teacup in a demure posture seemed so natural, as if it were ingrained in her.

‘Does her body remember unconsciously?’

Observing her with interest, she opened her mouth before Elsie drank the tea.

“Elsie. You haven’t forgotten what I told you, have you? If you start bleeding-”

“O-of course! I remember everything… of course…”

The escape attempt thwarted by Han Doyun.

Elsie, dragged back to the infirmary, had been held by Heyrun until this hour, receiving a lecture… no, an education.

The kind of education that was extremely embarrassing for her.

The premonitions, symptoms, and coping methods of that day that comes to women every month, something she never thought she would ever know.

The more she heard, the more a storm of emotions raged within her, including self-loathing, fear, despair, dread, unfamiliarity, and confusion, making it impossible to come to her senses.

“There are cases where there are no premonitory symptoms, but if symptoms appear like Elsie’s, it means it’s not far off. Maybe today-”

“Hiccup!”

“…I’m worried because you seem too scared.”

Elsie lowered her head with a flushed face.

The hand holding the teacup began to tremble even more than before.

“Drink this and calm down for now. Your friend is waiting outside.”

“Y-yes… that’s right.”

Elsie smiled awkwardly and took a sip of the tea with an excellent posture.

Apart from her perfect posture, the way she drank was so hearty that it was cute.

“How is it? You’re probably still out of it from smelling the raw leaves… does it feel calming?”

Elsie, who had become drowsy as the heat spread throughout her body, nodded with a languid expression.

“Nyeheeeng.”

“…”

‘Was it a little too strong?’

Heyrun, who had sipped the same tea, tilted her head. There was nothing wrong with the concentration.

Heyrun scratched her cheek, recalling that there were rare cases among Aesir purebloods where the effect of the leaves was strong even when diluted due to their delicate nature.

“Hmm…”

*

Creak-

The door to the infirmary opened, and Elsie walked out with languid movements.

Certainly, as teacher Heyrun had said, the effect of the tea made from the leaves was amazing.

‘It feels like I’m floating on a cloud…’

“Elsie?”

An atmosphere that was 180 degrees different from Elsie’s usual self.

Thrud, who had been waiting for her outside, called out to Elsie with a surprised face.

Eyes that were softly curved to the point of looking languid, and eyebrows that had been tense were also relaxed and at ease.

“Elsie…?”

Thrud called Elsie’s name again blankly.

It was so different from her usual appearance that she was dumbfounded.

Elsie’s smile, which even had a hint of a smile on her lips, became even deeper.

She gently held an envelope to her stomach and looked at Thrud.

Thrud took a step back at Elsie’s languid gaze, which even felt affectionate.

“Gasp.”

The same was true for an unspecified number of students who happened to be passing by in the hallway.

“Thrud…? Can you take care of Elsie…?”

“W-what happened?”

Thrud, who approached Heyrun with a troubled expression, glanced back at Elsie and said.

“Well…”

Thrud, who had heard Heyrun’s story, rubbed her forehead.

Elsie, who was intoxicated by an excessive state of tranquility.

Her atmosphere had been reversed into a languid and elegant beauty, and she was looking out the window with melancholic eyes.

Elsie, who was bewitching the students passing by in the hallway with that dangerous pheromone without restraint, was like a painting.

Thrud, who had come to her senses, swallowed hard and moved with Elsie.

The fact that her steps were faltering showed that the calming effect was really certain.

‘I didn’t know Elsie’s immunity would be this weak… So, can I ask you a favor, Thrud?’

The health teacher’s troubled face flashed through her mind.

“…”

This was an unexpected appearance, but it seemed better than being in a state of anxiety. Probably.

“Elsie.”

“Eung…?”

Thrud trembled with her head bowed at Elsie’s languid answer.

She grabbed Elsie’s waist, which she was supporting, roughly-

“Cute!”

She picked up Elsie like a doll.

“Don’t…”

Elsie’s resistance was surprisingly weak.

She only shook her body lightly even at Thrud’s intense skinship, who was rubbing her head against her.

It was a little later that Elsie, who had been reduced to a doll, regained her senses enough to put up meaningful resistance.

Today was a day when you could see Elsie’s various appearances.

Starting with blowing up the class with a headbutt after becoming a shield human, to being in a panic, crying, and being confused.

Doyun walked while staring blankly at Elsie with a dumbfounded face.

It was safe to say that Elsie’s languid and relaxed appearance right now was the freshest and most shocking of the day.

Elsie, feeling Doyun’s persistent gaze, glanced at him and quietly warned.

“Han Doyun. There’s a streetlight ahead.”

“…Huh?”

Thud-!

Doyun, who was walking with his soul completely gone, crashed his face into the streetlight and staggered.

Thrud, surprised by the sound, chuckled at Doyun’s appearance, and Elsie’s lips also slightly turned up.

However, perhaps because the effect of the leaves was still lingering, Elsie, who was maintaining her composure, slowly reached out her hand.

“E-Elsie…?”

Elsie grabbed Doyun’s staggering face and began to examine it.

“Let me see… there are no injuries.”

Elsie, who showed kindness that she wouldn’t normally show, patted Doyun’s forehead and walked again.

“Elsie has become kind…!”

“What are you saying… I’m not…”

Elsie denied it with a small snort at Thrud’s impressed tone.

Doyun, with wide eyes, was frozen in place as if nailed down.

Shocked, he could only stare blankly at Elsie’s receding figure.

The eyes containing her beautiful pupils had curved softly right in front of him.

It was so intense that it stirred his heart.

Wasn’t it against the rules to shake his heart with a new appearance every time like this?

Doyun followed the two people who were moving away while thinking such silly thoughts.

Standing at the crossroads, Doyun asked Elsie.

“Are you not going to tell me what happened today until the end?”

“…”

Something must have happened if she even went to the infirmary, but Elsie remained silent until the end. Even Thrud.

Doyun, guessing that there must be a reason, scratched the back of his neck and said.

“Well… I don’t know the details… but if something happens when you get back, contact me. I’ll run right over and help you.”

At Doyun’s shocking statement, Elsie blushed and clenched the envelope she was holding tightly.

‘He said he’d help me if something happened…? That…? Crazy…’

He doesn’t know the details, so he’s just saying it out of pure goodwill.

Even so, the shock did not subside easily.

Elsie, who had imagined Han Doyun helping her when something happened, was suffocating at the insane sight.

Elsie, avoiding Doyun’s gaze, muttered in a small voice.

“This time, absolutely not… absolutely…!”

She was sorry for him for trying to help, but this time was different.

No matter how much she denied it, she had to admit it now.

Something she had to accept.

‘I’m… damn it…’

That’s why she couldn’t receive his help.

More than that, if he barged in to help, it would be a social burial.

That was troublesome, so Elsie refused indirectly and gently.

“Leave it to me, Doyun.”

Thrud winked one eye and put her hand on Elsie’s shoulder.

It was a reliable appearance, but from Elsie’s point of view, it was just as difficult to receive help from Thrud.

‘Thinking conventionally, it’s definitely better than Han Doyun… but still…’

She just imagined it, but she wanted to die of shame.

“N-nothing will happen.”

It was best to just mutter quietly and soothe herself.

Even so, Elsie’s anxiety and worry only deepened like the abyss of Ginnungagap.

*

After a night when the moonlight was unusually bright.

When the twinkling starlight was about to leave above the house nestled in the middle of a quiet forest.

Dawn.

It came suddenly without warning.

Elsie was in an uncomfortable sleep, dreaming an extremely terrible dream of a large snake biting its own tail and spinning.

Then, at some point, she was startled by the immense pain that stirred her lower abdomen, and she woke up with a groan.

There was no time to think comfortably, ‘Did the snake in the dream bite my lower abdomen?’

Unfamiliar pain, unfamiliar sensation.

Elsie trembled all over.

An invisible hand squeezed and pulled her lower abdomen, even the organs inside, causing an indescribable pain.

“Agh… Aaaah…!”

The lower part is warm. Very, very strange.

What should I call this?

She pulled back the blanket with trembling hands.

Whether it was because of the pain that squeezed her lower abdomen, or because of the shock, tears streamed down her face.

It burst. That day had come.

In the early dawn. Elsie screamed like a shout and then began to cry out loud.

Even after Thrud, who had been preparing for a possible situation, arrived, the crying did not stop.