Even a Scoundrel Gets Tired

27 – Midterm Evaluation (2)

The midterm evaluation commenced, and

the professors gathered the students of their respective classes.

Their teaching assistants distributed bracelets to the students,

warning them to be careful, as losing this bracelet would also

result in disqualification.

And teams, once ready, would proceed to the portal connected

to the island.

Once the professor’s instructions were complete,

I decided to first seek out Rianna.

I intended to check what she had

brought with her, after all.

Rianna’s appearance was not one to easily blend in, so

I found her faster than I anticipated.

However, several students were surrounding her.

Judging by the troubled look on her face,

they didn’t seem like friendly companions…

Curiosity piqued as to what they were discussing,

I secretly drew closer to eavesdrop, and

perhaps due to the surrounding noise, I could barely hear their

conversation only when I was quite near.

“So, I said I didn’t want to.”

“A pretty face and haughty to boot, I like you even more!”

“…”

Combining Rianna’s scowling face and the content of their words,

it seemed the gang gathered, led by that one fellow,

was courting her.

She desperately refused, expressing her dislike with her whole body,

but that one, appearing to be the ringleader,

seemed to care not at all for such displays.

What to do now, then, I wondered.

What to do? Just watch patiently and step in when it’s about to end.

I had no desire to pick another fight with fellow cadets,

to risk unnecessary danger.

Besides, they couldn’t keep this up indefinitely,

not before the instructors came to investigate.

So, resolving my mind,

I casually lit a cigarette.

*

‘Ugh, I can’t stand him! This guy!’

Rianna bit back the words, swallowed them down.

Barely managing to keep them from escaping her lips.

But if this situation persisted,

she wasn’t sure she could hold them back much longer.

The nerve of him, bringing his cronies to surround her,

laying on the ardent woo even after she’d made it clear she wasn’t interested.

This man, introducing himself as Derek, second son of the Reuben baronial house,

boldly demanding she become his wife.

His tone, as if he were bestowing charity upon a commoner,

the smug look on his face, grated on her nerves.

His body was a landscape of wobbly fat,

his face hardly a masterpiece.

Still, he seemed convinced that becoming his wife was happiness itself,

and that she would naturally accept his offer.

Of course, she had refused him at first.

She didn’t judge people based on appearances, but

it was hard to consider a man who demanded marriage upon first meeting

as entirely sane.

Yet, he wouldn’t be deterred.

He relentlessly listed her supposed appealing qualities,

and when she tried to flee, already a few cadets, seemingly his gang,

had positioned themselves around her.

Suppressing the urge to plant her fist in his amorous face,

she desperately sent a mental SOS to the one

who might be looking for her.

‘Wouldn’t Jennison be looking for me to finish our preparations…?’

“When are you coming…!!”

“Hasn’t he found me yet…?”

She kept sending out SOS signals that couldn’t possibly be heard,

then whipped her head around at the sudden nearness of Derek’s face,

and was finally able to spot him nearby.

Looking perfectly at ease, puffing away at a cigarette.

At first, she was relieved.

She believed he would get her out of there.

But no matter how much time passed,

he just kept smoking, cigarette after cigarette.

“What are you doing…!! Jennison!!”

As time ticked on and there was still no sign of him moving,

she sent him a signal.

A desperate plea for help,

clear in every gesture of her body.

But his expression was so very listless.

Rianna knew that look.

It was frequently seen on the faces of cadets inside the Academy.

Mostly in the training grounds.

The look of the ones waiting, directed at cadets in training.

An expression that said, “When will this be over?”

Realizing this, Rianna felt a flicker of anger.

She’d even felt a sense of camaraderie with him while sharing the same team,

which had lessened her guilt at the same time.

And now, seeing his friend in such obvious distress,

he just watched from afar, wearing that expression!!

Thinking this, she abandoned all hope of his help

and began to ponder how to escape this situation.

She soon came up with a definite plan.

A way to get through this unscathed

and give Jennison a good jab in the ribs, too.

“Duke Derek.”

“Oh, yes! So, you’re finally ready to become my wife.”

“No!! I have something I need to do!”

Firmly restating her refusal,

she immediately dashed over to Jennison.

And grabbing his arm,

pulled him towards her chest.

He, whose arm had been seized, wore an expression of utter bewilderment,

and seeing his dumbfounded face, Rianna smiled once more.

A smile that would ensnare any man, without exception.

“I apologize, Duke Derrick.”

“Wha… What in the world are you…!”

“I now have things to do, *alone*, with this gentleman…

I must be going.”

With that, she seized his arm and began to run.

Leaving behind a pig, practically apoplectic with rage.

*

“Huff… huff…”

“Phew… Perhaps you could release me now?”

“Ah! S…sorry.”

Completely taken in, I was.

A situation that was bound to draw attention, like it or not.

I hadn’t imagined she’d resort to such measures.

I knew full well she’d noticed my presence.

How could I not, with the way she was gesturing in my direction?

But there was no real need for me to intervene, so I ignored it, hoping she’d wrap it up quickly.

Never did I expect she’d seek revenge in this manner.

What image did I project to that student, I wonder?

Judging by his expression when she grabbed my arm, probably the man who stole his woman.

Truthfully, it’s laughable.

Rianna had clearly rejected him countless times.

Isn’t it unsightly, the way he persists with his courtship?

But if he were capable of such thought, he would have ceased his declarations long ago.

In any case, his fury will be directed at either me or Rianna.

And now I’ve gained a pointless enemy right before the midterm evaluations.

Thinking that way, I felt a renewed resentment towards her.

She should have refused him directly and left immediately. What was she even doing?

Thinking that, and filled with resentment, I delivered a sharp chop to the crown of her head with my hand.

The moment she was struck, she brought her hand to her head.

She glared at me, but remembering her actions moments before, quickly averted her eyes.

“…What’s done is done, I’ll think about it later, for now.”

“So… what *did* you bring?”

“Ah! This!”

She said it like that, reaching into her bag,

pulling something out to show me.

A proud look on her face,

she presented… a perfectly ordinary stone.

“…A stone?”

“Yep! I can transform this however I want!

It’s so simple it barely uses any mana!”

“…But there are stones on the island, right?”

“…Ah.”

She hadn’t thought that far, it seemed, a sigh

escaping her. I just pressed my fingers to my forehead.

It wasn’t a *completely* terrible choice, actually.

Stone’s structure is simple, after all, and

light enough to be thrown and transformed mid-air.

But it lacked any real, clear advantage.

It’s not like there wouldn’t be any stones on the island,

and if she was going to bring something extra, she should have grabbed supplies.

Bringing a stone at the cost of other, more useful items

was a net loss, really.

Seeing the deepening lines on my face, she

quickly reassured me that she had brought other things too,

producing food, potions, and so on.

Of course, the whole stone thing still bothered me,

but there was no time to pack anything else now.

Thanks to the earlier fuss,

we were already later than the other cadets, and

the evaluation wouldn’t start until everyone had arrived, meaning

we were currently the center of attention from the professors’ glares.

Lingering any longer could cost us points, so

we decided to leave as we were.

“Do you remember what we need to do the moment we arrive?”

“Uh… yeah! You mean gather food, right?”

“Exactly. That’s right.”

Our goal, naturally, was to survive as long as possible

and earn a good score, so

gathering food was essential.

The island supposedly has various animals living on it,

and trees laden with fruit.

The more cadets striving to survive,

the greater the demand for rations, and eventually,

scarcity would be unavoidable.

Therefore, prioritize gathering food

and endure with the thought of conserving as much as possible.

Seemingly understanding my words well, her bag

was overflowing with provisions she had procured.

Since I could craft most cooking utensils myself,

we were able to pack more rations.

And so, we repacked our belongings

and moved toward the location of the portal.

When we arrived, the other cadets had

already vanished, having gone ahead, and

those remaining were lined up, taking turns,

entering into the portal.

The professor, upon seeing us, beckoned us to hurry

with a gesture, and

after confirming our names, we too

advanced toward the surface of the blue-glowing portal.

A moment where the world’s scenery inverted.