I took a good rest overnight… Actually, I occasionally tossed and turned on the bed so I was not able to sleep well. The following day after I have regained my consciousness, I left the hospital while being sent off by the doctors. The sky outside was clear blue, a great day to be discharged from the hospital after being admitted for two days.
“Hmp… Hah!”
Stretching my stiff joints, I slowly walked towards the not-so-far-away school. A lot of good and bad things happened, but I am alive and safe. Of course, I am grateful from the bottom of my heart.
I watched as the shops prepared to open for the day, and when I had walked enough, I entered a familiar place. For the time being, I returned to the dormitory to take a bath and change my clothes. Although I took a sick leave which was the highest priority, I am a bit disgusted because I have not taken a bath. Fortunately I am wearing a jacket but the blouse and skirt I am wearing were probably wrinkled.
A beautiful white castle that does not look like an educational institution spread before my eyes. Relieved that it was different from the battlefield the last time I saw it, I entered the gates. “I hope I have a place to return to even though it was only two days”, I said out of character, feeling sentimental.
“Ms. Foster, thank God, you’re safe.”
After I finished dressing and went to school late, I was immediately urged to go to the Art Department Preparation Room. On my second visit, I was welcomed by Barrett-sensei whom I had interacted with recently. He wore a long gray robe, his blue hair hiding an eye. Although he is the kind of teacher who gives a strange impression, he looked kind of worn out right now.
“I’ve put you in danger because of my incompetence . . . I’m terribly sorry.”
“No, it seems that it was really a disastrous day. It wasn’t your fault, Sensei.”
When I tried to remember the scenery, it was truly a scorched ground. It was a battlefield filled with explosion and black smoke. It truly resembled a battlefield so there is no guarantee that the others were safe. A teacher who had to think about things like giving assessments or grades while observing amidst that uproar has truly rendered a meritorious service. [T/N: (T^T)]
“If you say so, I’m really grateful. Did you hear the details from Kralvane-kun?”
“About the girl culprit, only the summary.”
“Oh . . . As a precautionary measure, I will tell you that she was a fifth year student majoring in Barrier Magic. Although she has a quiet disposition, she is a diligent and an excellent student in class . . . So regrettable. She was expelled from school and was also excommunicated from the Magical Association, who took the incident seriously. She is currently detained by the Organization of Public Safety. So that she will not be associated to the school and be involved with you in the future, of course.”
“I . . . see.”
To the somehow dejected teacher, I could only nod in assent. According to Senpai and the other teachers, the “Box Dimensional Barrier” is a difficult spell. It is really a waste.
To be only imprisoned is not a heavy punishment. That is if she only used her magic to inflict harm on me. Even with the same poison, it is what she concocted herself. Even though it may have been done with strict precaution.
Did the sudden announcement of the exam and the lack of time for preparation finally pushed her to the point of no return?
The doctor said that the poison used on me was mass-produced and the preparation was very complicated. That was why it was incompatible with me even though it was only at that level of concentration. As for me, I don’t mind it now, but as for that person . . .
If that person was capable of instantly executing her plan of poisoning me with a neurotoxin, she would still have done it sooner or later. Anyway, her fate has already changed. If she will never ever harm me again, I will not leak this incident to others.
While feeling a little sympathetic, I bowed to the teacher and left the preparation room with his permission.
With this, the case is truly over.
“Meryl, are you all right?!”
When I entered the classroom after the class ended, my classmates, including Monica, all crowded in on me at once. It seems that my general situation was made known. Well, I got hospitalized and the other girl was expelled so I wonder if it is important in itself.
“I got into a little danger, but I am okay now. My body was completely detoxified and it seems that the biggest cause of it is that the poison is incompatible with my body.”
“Really! For common students, using poison is not allowed during exam…!”
It was said in half-anger, half-worry, I guess. Looking severe with her eyebrows creased, she touched my cheeks and hands for assurance. I really think that Monica, who seriously thinks about me, is a very hard-to-obtain friend.
“Thank you, Monica.”
“I am also thankful. Wait, you are together now with Senpai (Kralvane), aren’t you? Are you guys really getting along with each other?”
“Don’t worry about us. If you ask me if our relationship is good or not, I could say that we have progressed somehow.”
“…Well, you still have a long way to go, you baka couple.”
What kind of nickname is that? For some reason, some of my classmates nodded in agreement. No, I think that in your eyes, we were just eating our lunch together.
“Well, if the concerned person will accept it, the bystanders cannot make a fuss out of it. Senpai understands it to some extent, right? About responsibility.”
“Senpai didn’t do anything wrong. Rather, it was me who was being protected all along. I don’t plan to make him take a strange responsibility.”
“……I simply don’t understand. Why are you sticking up for that person?”
Although she became serious again, Monica seems dissatisfied for some reason. It’s not that I am protecting him. He did not do anything bad. The eyes looking at the most popular man still held partiality.
“If you’re okay and if there are no more problems, then that’s fine.”
“Yup, it’s okay. Rather, I want to be with him.”
“I wonder what kind of brainwashing he employed on you. It is interesting in a sense.”
Uhmmm . . . Will my best friend understand someday? Or, does she not want me to be involved in such a romantic affair? But he is really a surprisingly good man.
In any case, I got a lot of congratulatory message from everyone for coming back safe. Of course from those friendly girls and those male classmates who I do not usually talk to. I’m really happy.
I do not know what will happen next. Rather than run around the battlefield, I only hope to continue to spend my life happily with everyone.
I’m back now, to my everyday life.
