The Academy’s Ankle Reaper

“I have an engagement in Clover Kingdom.”

What River said was far more shocking.

It was so shocking that for about ten seconds, Amy and I were speechless, staring blankly at River’s face.

“Wait… an engagement?? Right… if it’s someone from Seymour, they might already have one…”

As Amy spoke, she casually shot me a glance.

It felt like she was subtly probing if I had one, considering I’m from a notable family too.

“I don’t have one.”

I think I once did, but as soon as it was revealed that I had a growth impairment, that ended quickly.

We had only met once; who was it again…

It was quite a while ago since I came to be like this, so I don’t even remember anymore.

Engagements are quite common in noble society.

It’s a reasonable action for families to mix their blood to forge stronger alliances.

It’s fortunate if they actually like each other, but often personal freedom isn’t a factor.

Looking at River’s expression, it seems like the latter is the case.

“He’s an old guy much older than me. I guess he asked for it as a price for helping my family when we were struggling.

When I heard he was coming from Clover Kingdom, I was scared that he might actually show up… I just wanted to get stronger.”

That engagement being asked as a price made sense.

The current head of the Shimoa family… River’s parents wouldn’t just hand over their child for money.

There must be something bigger involved.

Having read up to the latest chapter, I was surprised by how many things were still undisclosed… I felt like hitting the author.

Considering there wasn’t any such episode in the original work… it could be related to a character who won’t matter in the future.

‘Clover Kingdom itself will become a puppet state of the Demon Church within two years..? That’s surprising to know, damn.’

The top brass there ended up becoming contractors after gradually dealing with the Demon Church behind the scenes.

In the first place, before River even graduated from the Academy, the entire country fell into the hands of the Demon Church, so an engagement from Clover Kingdom would be the least of my worries.

“I was feeling anxious. There’s no way someone who’s not even connected to the Academy would come to the exchange meeting. I was just scared all by myself.”

River awkwardly laughed.

It must have been embarrassing for him to be scared of an engagement that may or may not happen.

“What’s so scary about an old geezer! Where’s that dueling enthusiast that Class 5 bragged about?”

“Ugh..!”

Since he was trying to set the mood, I draped my arm over his shoulder and pulled him close.

River was startled by the sudden shoulder hug, his face turning bright red.

“Don’t worry, I’ll definitely keep my promise. By the end of this year, I’ll make sure you reach the highest level.

If you’re an Expert at the highest level, that’s equivalent to a pillar. Right below a Master. Then you won’t be swayed by any fat old noble.”

“Well, you do make promising words…”

Though River’s lips pushed out in a pout because of my teasing, he didn’t seem to dislike it.

“…Thank you for telling me.”

“No, I’m feeling a bit relieved now that I’ve said it.”

When the atmosphere lightened, it seemed like we both loosened up and started laughing a lot after finishing our meal.

I had grasped a clue for the incident.

River’s engagement, huh…?

Even though he didn’t mention who, I was certain they weren’t an ordinary person.

It’s strange if someone from the Clover Kingdom helped the Shimoa family in danger.

I should start investigating from there.

——————————————

The next day, early before lunchtime, I snuck out alone to enjoy a tea party in a room prepared by Shaara Prigia.

Though there was no sign of anyone having entered or exited, the strangely well-organized room was a vacant clubroom for a ghostly group that wasn’t active.

Damn, it seems there are several places in the vast Academy where footsteps rarely tread.

After all, it’s possible thanks to the golems that roam around at night doing cleaning.

Since I told Shaara that the minimum condition for participating in the tea party was to have no one else present, she had a private meeting with just me.

How could she even consider meeting me, someone weak who can’t resist if she had no subordinates, given that I nearly killed her in the dead of night?

“Is the tea to your taste, Lord Atlas? I managed to procure the tea leaves from the Great Forest that the Elves enjoy.”

Shaara said with a natural smile, pouring tea from a teapot into the cup.

She had an incredibly bright… angelic smile that wouldn’t be visible to others.

The tea in the cup had a deep green color, reminiscent of the drug made by Professor Praha.

I watched it without taking a sip and said, “Next time, just stick with what I normally drink. Elven tea doesn’t suit my palate.”

I knew very well how expensive the tea was.

I was well aware of how much margin noble families charge for the noble Elven tea leaves among the Empire’s nobility.

But just because it’s expensive doesn’t mean it tastes good.

Even if it was well-dried, Elven tea tends to have a strong grassy and astringent taste.

I don’t even want to remember the time I suffered after drinking it without knowing it was served to me at the Great Forest.

Elves drink it regularly because they’re accustomed to it, but they actually prefer human tea.

Although it’s not well known because exchanges are scarce.

“I-I’m so sorry. I-I lack so much…!”

Upon seeing that I didn’t even touch the teacup, the color drained from Shaara’s face and her hands began to tremble.

Realizing she had made a mistake, fear seemed to take hold of her.

Swiftly, Shaara stood up, “I-I’ll clean it up!”

“No, don’t clean it…”

Just when I thought of taking a sip, she had already reached the teacup.

As she shook with trembling hands and grabbed the small teacup, ripples started to appear on the tranquil surface of the tea.

‘This looks worrisome.’

The moment I thought that,

“Eek?!!”

The teacup she was holding dropped into my lap.

As the cup hit the table and fell into my lap, the hot steam-filled green liquid splashed out, soaking my clothes.

“Ugh..!”

It wasn’t enough to cause a burn, but the warm and damp feeling made me scowl.

The outside was black, so it didn’t stand out much, but the white shirt I wore underneath was stained green.

Upon seeing this, Shaara’s eyes started to wildly shake.

“Ah… I-I’m sorry..!!”

Kneeling down, she took out a handkerchief and began to wipe the wet part of my clothes like a maid.

Even though tea was still spilled on the floor, she kneeled down and her skirt got stained too.

If it were known that the noble lady of the Prigia family was doing this, the Empire would be in an uproar.

“It’s fine.”

The tea that had already seeped through wouldn’t come out by wiping it with a handkerchief.

Considering it a futile action, I grabbed Shaara’s bustling wrist and lifted her up.

Then our eyes met as she was on the verge of tears.

Releasing her wrist, I said to the tearful Shaara,

“There’s no need for your clothes to get dirty too. Stand up.”

At once, Shaara obediently stood up like a machine.

Her black stockings were stained with a mix of dirt and tea, and the fabric was laddered, revealing the bare skin of her knee.

I quickly glanced at her small hands, smaller than mine, as I examined them.

“No burns. Just be careful next time.”

Her trembling little hands had some dirt on them, but no injuries were visible.

It would stir up a commotion if she just appeared out of nowhere with burns, so I had to be careful.

“Lord Atlas…”

Seeing her trembling hands calm down, I looked into her eyes and saw a faint light glimmering in her tear-filled gaze.

‘Looks like she likes this sort of thing.’

She was definitely scared, but even a little kindness made her face turn red.

It seems that while I instilled fear in her, other feelings have bloomed alongside it.

Though I hadn’t planned on it, this would be a huge help in her training.

“Now, getting to the main point… Shaara, we need to use some informants.”

“Informants..?”

“Yeah, you can do it the fastest, right?”

“Yes! If you trust me, I won’t let you down.”

I was certain after I saw her hire an assassin before.

While it’s impossible for a student to directly bring subordinates to the Academy, it was clear she hired people outside through direct links.

Shaara’s eyes sparkled at the mention of needing her.

“I need information on two things. The details of the Clover Kingdom students participating in this Clover Academy exchange meeting and the people accompanying them.

Also, investigate the Shimoa family. Someone from Clover Kingdom is said to be River’s fiancé, and they don’t seem like an ordinary human.”

“So I just need to look into those two things?”

“Exactly.”

Shaara accepted her orders without any doubt at all.

She just nodded her head, fully committed to carrying out the orders.

Suddenly, as Shaara was listening intently, she appeared to be contemplating something and cautiously spoke up.

“Is it possible… if I do well, might I receive a reward…?”

‘A reward..?’

What kind of reward was she looking for..?

Since I’m making her do free work, I’m willing to grant her requests as long as it isn’t anything too weird, but I worried whether she was hoping for a strange reward.

“I’m sorry, that was presumptuous of me…”

Seeing my delayed reaction, Shaara hurriedly lowered her head, thinking she had misspoken.

“No, if you do well, I’ll definitely grant you a reward.”

If she does well, it’s only right to give her a reward.

But since I have no idea what she wants, it’s a bit concerning…

“I’m looking forward to it, Shaara.”

“Yes.. yes!!”

Shaara smiled innocently, not suspecting anything.

Since there’s still time, I should start pondering how to reward her properly from now on.