翁公和媛媛在厨房里猛烈进出

I mean, seeing her gloomy and lifeless expression earlier when she was resting against the tree, it wasn\'t that far-fetched.

Wait, was that part of her plan?

No... she couldn\'t have known I was going to try and save her, right?

Shaking my head, I continued walking out of the forest, almost completely forgetting about the deep wound in my chest as there was no pain to remind me of it.

Creating a cover of corruption, I placed it over my wound before throwing my bloody jacket into the forest behind me.

Lowering my shirt and hiding my cover of corruption that was blocking the wound, I walked out of the forest, acting as if nothing had happened.

Yet, just as I was about to head back to class, I saw a familiar figure sitting with my tray right next to her.

Making eye contact with Charlottle, my eyes almost almost closed from the "brightness" emanating from her.

As she saw me emerge from the forest, a smile emerged on her face as she waved at me, beckoning for me to come closer.

Glad I had taken off the bloody jacket earlier, I slowly walked towards Charlottle until I was standing right in front of her.

Scrutinizing me with a smile on her face, Charlotte joyfully asked.

"Say, I just saw the Elven princess emerge from that same spot with her hair and clothes all over the place. Her hair was all crumped up... not a very suiting look for a princess."

"..."

"And I\'ve just seen you emerge from that spot with messy hair and clothes all over the place."

"..."

"If I didn\'t know any better..."

Forcing a smile onto my face, I interrupted Charlotte mid-sentence and responded.

"Ah, it must have been a coincidence. I didn\'t see the Elven princess anywhere in the forest. I simply went for a quick nap and ended up like this!"

The perfect alibi!

I was sleeping, which caused my clothes and hair to be all messed up, and it also matched my lazy and arrogant attitude that rumors believed I had!

Patting myself on the chest, I inwardly smiled.

Yet, despite my perfect excuse, Charlottle kept her gaze locked on me, her smile only widening as the last words came out of my mouth.

Placing her hand on her elbow, Charlotte looked up at me, making eye contact, before asking in an overly happy voice.

"Is that so? I could have sworn that I heard the Elvin princess mutter "Ren," "Damn Ren," "Ren" at least a hundred times."

"..."

"Then again, I have had some problems with my ears in the past, so I might have just been hearing things. If what you\'re saying is true, then my ears must have been acting up."

"..."

Staring at my crumbling expression with a smile, she continued in her exaggerated, jolly tone.

"I\'ll have to make an appointment with the royal doctor immediately! I have to thank you for informing me of this. Without you telling me that you had napped earlier, I would have never realized that my ears were acting up!"

...is this what they call guilt-tripping?

Well... what am I supposed to do now?

Matching her exact smile, I waited for her to finish before replying in a completely serious tone, devoid of any sarcasm or jokingness.

"I am honored to have been useful to the princess!\'

Getting down on a single knee, I placed my hand over my heart before looking up at the confused Charlottle and continuing in my overly serious voice.

"I shall remember this moment for the rest of my life! A lowly noble like me was able to help someone so magnificent as the kingdom\'s princess!"

Seeing her confused expression, I tried my best to hold in my laughter and smile, staying on the ground.

I bet she didn\'t expect me to double it!

Would a normal person have just admitted their lie and owed up to their mistake earlier?

Yes.

Was I a normal person?

No!

Seeing her continue to stare at me with a befuddled expression, I awkwardly remained on the ground.

I couldn\'t just get up without her acknowledging me...that would ruin the whole skit I had just acted out!

Finally breaking the silence, Charlotte shifted her gaze upwards to the sun before saying.

"You know... you\'re a lot different than rumors, aren\'t you, Ren?"

Getting up, I continued with the act, scratching my head and smiling at the princess\'s praise.

That\'s right, I\'m not a pawn that you can use and manipulate, so stay away!

Raising my hands, I replied to her question in a confused tone.

"Am I?"

*RING~RING*

Saved by the bell!

As the bell rang, Charlotte stood up from the bench, giving me one last glance before walking away.

After ensuring that my corrupted bandage was working, I pulled back down my shirt before walking back to the school building.

Sliding open the classroom door, I resisted the urge to immediately grab Alya and slam her against the table before heading to my seat in the back of the class.

I\'d get my revenge... soon enough.

However, even though I was doing my best to ignore Alya after what had just happened, she seemed to not care.

From the corner of my eyes, I could see her gaze locked onto my every movement as she carefully observed me while wearing a surprised expression.

What!? Surprised I\'m alive, are you!?

Sitting down in my seat, I greeted Jin and Han, who had stayed in the classroom the entire break.

Looking up from his smartwatch, Han asked.

"Anything good in the cafeteria today?"

"...ask someone else."

Ignoring Han\'s confused expression, I checked the time before putting away my smartwatch.

As the sliding door opened, revealing the figure of Professor Zia, I leaned back in my seat, trying to think of a way to get everything done.