Chapter 32: Karma
The most talked-about topic at the academy recently was, of course, about Baek Hoyeon.
Whispers about a rivalry between the empire’s crown prince and the southern duke’s son, mysterious meetings between Stefania and a certain first-year student, and dubious rumors about midterms involving physical exams—all these were enough to fuel gossip.
But nothing intrigued Camilla as much as the rumors concerning Hoyeon. After all, the knights captured by Hoyeon’s guards were part of her family’s personal order.
On the very day of the incident, her father, the head of the family, had been away attending to other matters, leaving Camilla to sit at the negotiation table herself.
If she were to sum up her first impression of Hoyeon in a single word, it would be predator. A creature that naturally stood above others, disinterested in those below it.
In the end, there were no casualties or property losses—just a slight blow to the prestige of Camilla’s family.
Compared to other territories, which faced reports of stolen food supplies or breached castle gates, it was a fairly favorable outcome.
But a young girl’s wounded pride was another matter entirely. If Hoyeon had outright scorned her, she might have understood. Instead, Hoyeon had shown her nothing but complete indifference.
Having never once been treated as though she didn’t exist, Camilla found the experience particularly jarring.
That was why she was determined to confirm the rumors herself.
The rumors that Hoyeon was seen with a man.
What kind of man could possibly draw the attention of someone who had shown utter apathy toward her? Camilla resolved to find out.
Surely, it must be a prince or a duke, she thought.
It was Camilla who had tipped off Anastasia about Hoyeon’s dormitory location. Now, she stood at the entrance of the fourth dormitory, scanning the crowd with a sharp gaze as they exited.
Hoyeon’s white hair, streaked with occasional black strands, and her distinct features as a member of another race made her impossible to miss—or so Camilla thought.
Even after an hour of constant vigilance, Camilla showed no signs of tiring. Her determination was unrelenting.
She even considered storming inside if Hoyeon didn’t appear. But then, finally, Hoyeon came into view.
As the rumors said, she was indeed accompanied by a man. If Hoyeon had taken an interest in him, Camilla assumed she must know him. Her gaze shifted to the man.
She did recognize him. She had even exchanged words with him before. But he wasn’t who she had expected.
She didn’t know his name, but he was the audacious fool who had dared to hold Exipri’s hand. A man so dull that he could be called the epitome of mediocrity—a mere commoner.
And yet, he stood by Hoyeon’s side.
As Camilla’s mind filled with question marks, she noticed the two of them speaking to each other.
The moment she saw that, all other thoughts disappeared from her mind.
She couldn’t restore her wounded pride, but she could at least give Hoyeon a similar wound.
That thought alone consumed her.
Camilla’s malice toward Hoyeon began to spin its own tale.
A story of a princess daring to dream of forbidden love with a commoner. Whether the story was true or not didn’t matter.
Whatever the case, it would be enough to cause Hoyeon trouble.
She felt no guilt. If anything, she considered herself the victim. And as for that commoner? He dared to hold Exipri’s hand, after all.
Smirking at the thought of the trouble she was about to stir, Camilla turned and walked away.
***
For some reason, a girl I didn’t recognize was staring at me with a fierce intensity.
Who was she? I couldn’t even begin to guess.
After giving me a creepy smile, she disappeared. I couldn’t help but wonder what her deal was. Dogeon, standing next to me, seemed entirely oblivious.
“Um, by any chance, when did you start hearing this?” Dogeon asked hesitantly.
Judging by the way he asked, I knew for sure. If he wanted to know when I started hearing it…
Since the very first day. I’d heard everything—the sound of him showering, humming to himself—all of it.
Most sounds didn’t carry through the walls, but everything from Dogeon’s room was unnaturally clear.
“Since the first day. Your snoring is quite the spectacle,” I replied.
“…I see. I’ll be more careful,” he said.
That response made me uncomfortable. He was essentially saying he’d suppress any noise in his own space because of me.
It wasn’t even that loud. Maybe I shouldn’t have mentioned it.
“It’s fine. It’s not unbearable. By the way, can you hear anything from my room?” I asked.
If I could hear him, it only made sense that he could hear me too. That thought made me feel guilty.
“No, not at all,” he said.
His expression made it obvious he was lying to spare my feelings. These rooms were probably just one big space divided by a thin wall.
I thought they were loaded, but here they were pulling dirty tricks like this. Figures—it’s a school, after all. There’s always someone skimming money off the top somewhere.
There was always that one person like this back in high school and university. People’s behavior really is the same wherever you go.
But that was beside the point. Now that I realized I’d been overly sensitive about the noise, I felt I should make it up to him somehow.
I even considered making a favor coupon, just in case things like this kept happening.
No, wait. Do friends need something as formal as a favor coupon?
Dogeon aside, I had plenty of time to spare, so doing whatever he wanted didn’t seem like a bad idea. It even aligned with my reason for being here.
Originally, I’d just planned to observe what he did, but doing things together might be more fun.
He was bound to get busy soon, mingling with girls and whatnot, so I wanted to spend time with him while I still could.
But how was I supposed to bring this up?
Apologizing for making noise wouldn’t work since Dogeon had already insisted it didn’t bother him. That’d make it sound like I was ignoring his kindness.
No good excuses came to mind…
Wait. If I didn’t have an excuse, couldn’t I just create one?
Maybe I could annoy him during class with my tail, then apologize afterward and tell him he could ask me for anything. That should work.
It was a bit contrived, but I doubted Dogeon would turn it down.
After all, it wasn’t like he’d lose anything, and he was the type who craved companionship.
He probably wanted someone to be around him, even if he didn’t say it outright.
Later, he’d likely have too many people vying for his attention, though.
“Is that so? Then let’s go,” I said.
“Yes, ma’am.”
On my first day, it had been disheartening to see people parting around me like Moses splitting the sea. But now, I found it rather convenient.
It was much better than having someone bump into me without even a single apology because they hadn’t noticed I was there.
Having even just one friend changed my perspective for the better.
So this is why people are always going on about how important friends are, I thought. Realizing I’d been living life at a loss, I let out a dry chuckle.
The morning assembly passed like a cloud drifting by, with no particularly important announcements.
By the time we got to math, right before lunch, it was finally time for action.
Dogeon was focused on the lecture.
He was furiously jotting down equations—or at least what looked like equations. His handwriting was so messy I couldn’t really tell.
On the other hand, I couldn’t concentrate at all. Math was the current subject, and I’d already learned all of this before.
The humanities classes we’d had earlier? History and general education? Those could go straight to hell.
Those were the kinds of subjects you could cram a week before the test. Acting like they were more important than math was ridiculous.
How could something purely based on memorization compete with math?
Anyway, Watching him focus like that made me hesitate. Was it okay to bother him?
But his focus also gave me the perfect excuse. Just poking him with my tail felt too minor for what I planned to ask, though.
Whatever. Here goes nothing.
I deliberately ran my tail across the back of his knee, just to annoy him. His reaction was bigger than expected, making me feel a little guilty. But in the end, it was for his benefit, so I didn’t hesitate.
Anything he missed while I was bothering him, I’d explain later. After all, I’d done my fair share of tutoring in the past.
Granted, most of my students had been unmotivated slackers, so the results weren’t great. But Dogeon, with his obvious enthusiasm, seemed like the type who would absorb what I taught.
Come to think of it, this guy was a total cheat code for life. Popular, studious, great with girls, brimming with charm.
…Life isn’t fair.
I stabbed at him with my tail, fueled by a little resentment. After dozens of jabs, he finally called my name, pleading for me to stop. But I wasn’t planning to.
It wasn’t until the lecture ended that Dogeon was finally freed from my tail’s relentless assault.
Maybe I overdid it a bit because of my emotions, but it seemed just right.
He was giving me a look that clearly asked, What grudge do you have against me to pull something like that?
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