“Aisha is right. This… is proof that I’m loved.”
“Proof that you’re loved…?”
“Love.”
“I know what that word means.”
“Aisha isn’t someone who doubts her own senses when someone’s this close.”
“Still, I couldn’t help but ask again.”
“Please… tell me it’s not true, Professor…”
“So I can sigh in relief and tell you not to pull pranks like this again.”
“So you can say it was a joke, just a joke to lighten the mood as usual…”
“But.”
“Has the world ever flowed the way she wanted it to?”
“Very well then. I was going to introduce you anyway.”
Instead of saying it was a joke, the professor got up from his seat and headed toward the bedroom.
Though he wore his usual smile, it wasn’t meant for her.
And never would be.
“Sorry… I’ll go now…”
Unable to bear that fact, she chose to run away.
“Why are you leaving, Miss Aisha? Stay a little longer.”
She heard the professor’s voice trying to stop her as she tried to get up.
It wasn’t his usual empty pleasantries; there was genuine concern in his tone.
But in this situation, it was crueler than anything else.
“Yeah… You’ve always been like this, Professor…”
You’ve always cared about someone like me and let me stay by your side.
“It’s fine. I, I have something urgent… Farewell…”
That’s why she had no choice but to run.
If she faced the person who left marks on his neck, she didn’t know how she’d react.
At least, she shouldn’t show an ugly face.
*
*
*
After fleeing the office,
she walked down the cold, empty hallway, thinking.
She hadn’t noticed earlier because she was distracted by the professor,
but now that she’d regained her senses, there was no way she could have missed it.
The hair on the floor wasn’t his color, and it clearly wasn’t male.
Coupled with his flushed face…
“…”
Her mind kept digging once it found one odd point.
The reason the professor had seemed so upbeat these past few days.
The reason he’d been eager to return to his office.
“No…”
When her thoughts reached this point, she tried to stop them.
Because if she thought any further, it wouldn’t end well.
Because she didn’t want to consider what might have happened if she’d summoned the courage just a little faster.
She only hurried her steps, wanting to get back to her room as soon as possible.
– Thud, drip.
Small droplets trailed behind her as she walked.
“Aisha-sensei? What brings you here at this hour…?”
“It’s nothing… Miss Rianis, you should go back to your room…”
“Hic, sniffle…”
Though Aisha said it was nothing, her face streaming with transparent tears told a different story.
Without a word, Rianis embraced her and headed toward her own room.
Because she thought it was her duty as a friend.
“Miss Rianis…”
“Aisha. Just call me Rianis tonight.”
Tonight seemed a little longer than usual.
*****
How much time had passed since Aisha fled the room?
I was still sitting in my chair, unable to shake off the shock.
It’s not that I’m doing nothing.
I’ve been reviewing events from the past few days, trying to sort out my thoughts.
Naturally, because her actions just now clearly indicated her desire to leave this place.
The problem is, I haven’t done anything that would make her dislike me.
No matter how much I think about it, I can’t figure it out.
“Am I really some kind of dual-personality guy? Split between Light Me and Dark Me?”
Just as my head started filling with meaningless jokes due to extreme stress,
the word “paradigm shift” popped into my mind.
With that, I re-centered myself and reviewed Aisha’s reactions again.
Before running out, she had raised her hand to her mouth.
I thought it was expressing disbelief in my words, so I tried to show her proof,
but what if that wasn’t it?
“Could this be it?”
A flash of insight hit me.
Breakthroughs often come from paradigm shifts.
Thinking I’d found the key, I decided to start over from scratch.
“Alright… Let’s forget the idea that Aisha’s action of covering her mouth meant ‘I don’t believe what the professor said.'”
Then why did Aisha cover her mouth?
I pondered this for a long time in my seat.
So lost in thought that I didn’t even notice Hwanyang sneaking up and loitering near me.
“Hek hek”
“Oh, Hwanyang. Sorry, I can’t play with you right now. Sorry.”
-Petpetpet
Though I feel bad for Hwanyang, if I had to choose between him and Aisha…
it’s obviously Aisha.
So after lightly petting him a few times and leaving him to play alone…
I noticed fur stuck to my hand when I pulled it back.
“Huh?”
Hwanyang’s pure white fur – unmistakably revealing his wolf nature.
Looking down at myself after staring at it for a moment,
his fur was everywhere on my clothes.
Not just my clothes – the floor was covered in fur too.
“Could it be…?”
I reviewed the situation again.
This time going further back, before Aisha arrived.
—
“Hek! Hek!”
“Yeah Hwanyang, me too!”
-Swoosh Huff
-Petpet Petpetpet
“Auuuuu!”
—
Hwanyang and I had been rolling around and playing for quite a while before Aisha came.
Not just in the bedroom, but all over the study too.
‘That means the whole study is covered in Hwanyang’s fur…’
I recalled Hwanyang’s past antics, then focused on Aisha’s hand movement.
Her hand moving to her mouth while her eyes were wide open.
I originally thought it was expressing shock like “Professor?!”
But now I understood the truth.
‘Aisha was actually…’
“Hek! Hek!”
Right as I was about to conclude my deduction,
Hwanyang approached with a cheerful expression, seeking praise.
The number one contributor to this deduction.
How could I scold him just because he interrupted the conclusion?
-Petpetpetpet
I scratched his neck, stroked his back, and rubbed his belly.
He deserved my “Aww You’re So Cute Full Combo” for preventing a disaster that could have widened the distance between me and my assistant.
It was only natural compensation.
…Plus it helped cool down my overheated brain from all the deductions and indulged my personal affection a bit.
Anyway, all my worries are resolved now.
All that remains is to thank Hwanyang and finish the interrupted deduction.
‘So, Aisha actually…’
Had an allergy to fur!
She must have noticed the strong animal smell as soon as she entered the study and felt strange.
But she probably endured it. Why?
Because she’s kind.
She knows I care deeply about animals and wouldn’t usually ask her for favors.
She probably thought “It’s okay if it’s just for a little while” and entered the study.
‘And to such an Aisha, I… handed her tea.’
By that point, she must have realized she’d have to sit for a while.
Yet without complaint, she accepted and drank the tea I offered.
Why? Because my assistant is kind.
‘I unknowingly showed her Hwanyang while she was fighting against her allergies…’
Now I understood why she suddenly left.
I know how painful allergies can be.
Nonstop coughing, rashes and itching all over the body.
Better to leave immediately and explain later than endure all that.
‘Fortunately, it seems her allergic reaction wasn’t severe.’
At least, there was nothing unusual about her last seen silhouette.
Of course, even if there were no problems, I still made a serious faux pas.
Especially since she went through the trouble of buying high-quality feed for me despite her allergies.
If steel robots existed, they’d declare “Aisha is the woman who could be my mother!” and climb aboard.
‘To think I invited her into a room where I’d been rolling around with an animal without even asking about her allergies…’
What face am I supposed to meet Aisha with now?
Still, at least we have two days until our next meeting thanks to the weekend.
Time limit: Two days.
I need to find a way to smooth things over by then.
What should I do?
-Petpet
“Hek! Hek!”
‘Maybe I should develop an allergy-removal magic.’
That sounds like a good idea.
Can’t let such a cute creature go unpetted – it’d be like losing half my life.
‘Alright then… let’s dedicate this weekend to researching magic for Aisha.’
“Hek Hek”
First, I should feed Hwanyang.
He’ll surely enjoy the premium feed Aisha went through so much trouble to buy.
“Alright Hwanyang, it’s dinner time. It’ll be delicious, right?”
He said that while pouring some unknown substance into the bowl.
“Crazy bastard.”
That was all she could mutter.
There was nothing else to say.
