I had resolved to buckle down and originally planned to just lock myself in my room to study. Even though it was only a week behind, when you add up all the subjects, it really amounted to quite a bit. Still, I figured that by cramming for just a few days, I could at least catch up on what I’d missed. And if all else failed, I could always borrow my friends’ notes, which should be enough, right?
“So, I think it’s better if you all go without me today.”
I had made a plan to skip the shopping trip at the newly opened store after being discharged from the hospital, and I informed my friends of my decision to stay behind and study.
“No way! We’ve all been waiting to go with you!”
“I’m really sorry, but I think I’ll have to for a while. Please bear with me for just a little while.”
I felt bad that everyone had waited a week for me, but there was nothing I could do. Sure, skipping today wouldn’t be a huge problem, but today could easily turn into two, three, or more days. It’s best to start something like this once you’ve made up your mind.
“But if you’re not coming, it’s not really the same, is it?”
Selian also chimed in with a mild complaint, looking disappointed. Watching her downtrodden expression, the guilt began to weigh heavily on me. Should I just let it slide this one day?
“Hmm… how about I help you study?”
As everyone was hesitating without a resolution, Yuli spoke up.
“If we study together, you’ll catch up in no time. It might be a good idea, right?”
Honestly, if Yuli helped, I’d feel nothing but gratitude. However, it was only natural to feel guilty despite my thanks.
“You don’t have to waste your time on me. I’ll feel even worse, so no.”
That’s why I tried to decline, but Yuli spoke up, raising her usually quiet voice.
“I’ve received a lot of help from you before, so I’d like to return the favor. Or is my help unwanted…?”
Her voice, which had risen earlier, softened again at the end.
“No, no! That’s not it at all. I’d actually like to ask for help! Please, help me!”
In an attempt to cheer up Yuli who seemed down, I said the first thing that came to mind, but once words are out, there’s no taking them back.
“Really?”
The moment Yuli heard my words, her expression completely changed, and she grabbed my hand with a bright gaze, asking once more in a raised voice.
Sigh. At this point, I might as well steel myself and accept Yuli’s help.
“I… I’ll help you too. I’m confident in my teaching abilities.”
“Huh?”
And then, Selian, who had been watching all of this from the side, grabbed my other hand with a matching grip and looked up at me while speaking.
“What? Are you trying to leave me out again? Me too! I want to help El!”
“Eh?”
Suddenly, Anne, who had been left out, hugged me from behind and shouted.
“It’s the class representative’s duty to help out classmates. There’s no other way.”
“Ugh?”
At that moment, the class rep arrived to deliver some printouts and observed the scene before speaking up.
“Come to think of it, didn’t all first-years in the Department of Swordsmanship study some basic magic? If it’s magic, I can definitely teach you.”
“Eh?”
And oddly enough, Presia, who had come earlier, now understanding the situation, spoke up.
???
Before I knew it, all the people around me decided to help me without consulting me. Of course, I couldn’t dampen the enthusiasm and determination they were showing, so I had no choice but to accept their help.
“But if we’re not just all studying together, and the goal is teaching, wouldn’t it be better if it’s done one-on-one?”
“Alone… Yeah, studying one-on-one would definitely be more efficient. So, I’ll…”
“Aah~ Selian, you’re trying to hog El all to yourself! I want to, too!”
“Te, teaching hog? That’s…!”
“…I can teach magic best.”
“I’m not bad at writing either!”
Before long, the scene had descended into chaos. By the way, Yuli, are you aware that you addressed the professor from the Department of Magic rather casually? Though she looks as young as Anne, she’s still a professor of magic. You should be careful.
“What if we take turns teaching in shifts? How does that sound?”
Sitting on the sidelines, the class rep clapped her hands once and proposed an alternative. The others seemed to think for a moment, and deciding that Lena’s suggestion was reasonable, they all nodded in agreement.
…Why doesn’t anyone ask for my opinion?
Time with Yuli
In the end, we agreed to rotate helping me, each day assigned to one person. I figured that if I had voiced any objections, I would have faced backlash, so I stayed silent and nodded along.
Knock knock
As I was tidying up the room waiting, the clock hit our agreed-upon time, and right on cue, there was a knock at the door. It’s unlikely she was waiting outside the door to knock exactly at the time, but it seemed like perfect timing.
“Just a moment~”
After finishing tidying up the desk, I went to open the door.
“Come in, Yuli.”
“Hi, El. Excuse me.”
Yuli entered my room with a lady-like manner and greeted me softly.
“I feel strange taking time out of your day because of me.”
“Say that one more time, and I might get really mad?”
Though Yuli declared she would be mad, her puffed cheeks made her look like an adorable little animal, irresistibly cute. I even got this strange urge to make her angry. Then again, I’ve never seen Yuli truly angry before.
Suddenly, I recalled an image of myself biting an apple.
I shook my head violently, erasing the vision from my mind. Nope. I don’t remember anything. Our sweet Yuli would never get mad.
Yuli was just worried about me and wanted to feed me some apples!
“El?”
Yuli called out to me, probably noticing me acting odd and putting on a private show.
“No! Nothing!”
Thankfully, Yuli didn’t seem to notice anything strange from my loud reply and just tilted her head before stopping.
“By the way, this is the first time I’ve been in El’s room.”
“Is that so?”
Thinking about it, I’ve invited friends over many times, but it’s the first time I’ve had them come into my room. The situation of being alone with a girl in my room would make any guy’s heart flutter. But after becoming a girl, the initial flutter was less noticeable except for rare moments.
…Sorry. I may act calm, but this is one of those rare moments.
After entering my room, Yuli began looking around curiously, like observing a new wonder.
Of course, I’ve already gotten rid of anything that could expose my assassin background or hidden it carefully, so I don’t worry about that. However, my room was slightly more barren compared to other girls’, so I was a little worried about how she’d perceive it.
“I’ll take a detailed look at El’s room later, but for now, let’s start studying, shall we?”
Thankfully, Yuli didn’t comment on my room and took out the textbook and notebook from her bag to begin studying.
“Yeah, please help me.”
And so, I received one-on-one tutoring from Yuli.
“That part can be easily solved by plugging in a formula we’ve studied before.”
“Is that so? Then, like this…”
Yuli casually solved a math problem I was stuck on and offered a hint. Indeed, when I applied the familiar formula as Yuli suggested, the problem unraveled easily. I had heard that excelling at studies and teaching are different talents, but Yuli was gifted in both.
“Wow, it worked so quickly?”
“Now, since you’re getting familiar with these problems, try solving this one. It’s an advanced problem, so it might be tough. But if you can solve this one, it means you fully understand this section.”
Yuli handed me a problem from her notebook, saying as much.
“It’s a problem the professor gave during class time. Since there is an answer key, it’d be good to try solving it yourself and then compare.”
“Yeah, wait just a moment.”
I picked up my pen and started solving the problem Yuli handed over. As she mentioned, it was clearly more challenging than the previous ones. I was unsure about which formula to use and how to approach the problem.
So, I spent quite a while thinking. Since it isn’t a test, there was no need to rush. I focused solely on solving the problem on my own.
I scribbled in my notebook, tried plugging in several formulas, realized I was wrong, returned to the start, and began again.
After wrestling with the problem for some time, I finally saw a glimmer of light. Once past that hurdle, the rest was swift. Though the single sheet of my notebook was filled with working, I managed a satisfying answer. Whether it’s correct or not remains unknown; now it’s time to confirm with Yuli.
I slid my notebook over to Yuli after double-checking the solution and answer, waiting for her verdict.
However, no response came from Yuli.
“Yuli?”
Since I needed her to either confirm it’s right or wrong to progress, I turned around and called her name.
“Uh, uh!?”
Upon meeting my eye, Yuli startled and flinched. Why is she acting this way?
“This is solved, so…”
“Uh, uh!”
I slid the notebook back to her, and she finally realized what I was trying to say, picking up the notebook to examine my solution and answer.
Was she dozing off?
Well… even if you’re studying yourself, it’s likely to get sleepy. Watching someone else do math is bound to get boring.
Still, I internally thanked Yuli for teaching me without showing any signs of boredom and waited for her grading.
“Yeah, it’s perfect. For this part, it’ll be good to just practice problems regularly so you don’t forget.”
“Hmm~ Why do we even study math?”
I leaned back against the backrest, stretched my arms wide, and sighed. Glancing at the clock, I realized it was almost curfew time.
“You’d better head back to your room. Don’t want you to get penalized. Thanks so much today.”
If Yuli got penalized because of me, I’d feel way too guilty to look her in the eye. Therefore, I decided to send her back early.
“…”
However, Yuli lingered, fidgeting with her textbook and notebook without packing them away, seemingly hesitant.
“Yuli?”
“Umm…”
“Uh?”
As she hesitated, Yuli nodded to herself and reopened her mouth.
“Can I… can I stay over like old times? It’s been a while since we slept together.”
“…?”
I was speechless for a moment due to the sudden overload. After a brief pause, I finally understood what she said.
Come on, aren’t you a grown woman? What kind of shameless…
But then I reminded myself of my current situation.
I am not the ‘Number 3 El’ but ‘Alicia Frentz’ the girl. For Yuli, we were childhood friends who used to play together all the time. She probably remembered our childhood fun times and suggested this.
If I were truly Alicia, I might have accepted Yuli’s offer, but as someone who still remembers being a man, I couldn’t possibly be so shameless sharing a room with a woman alone.
I’m not that kind of trash.
“No, that’s… ”
“The math portion is almost done anyway… Quickly finish this tonight and move on to the next subject tomorrow.”
“But…”
“It’s not… impossible… right?”
I opened my mouth to decline, but Yuli’s large, hopeful eyes made me give in before I even realized it. A strange sense of déjà vu struck me as I couldn’t refuse her request. But it’s surely just a coincidence.
By the time I realized what I’d said, Yuli was already heading back to her room with a happy grin, having turned herself in for curfew.
…
I am NOT trash.
