96. All Eyes on Me
Dorothy was someone with a strong sense of responsibility toward her duties. Perhaps that was why so many people around her asked how she managed to keep her sanity in such a brutal place.
Well, she had always been a fragile person. Startled by even the slightest noise, unable to withstand even a bit of pressure—putting it nicely, she was delicate, but in truth, she was an easy target.
It was no wonder her best friend dismissed the rumor as nonsense as soon as she heard that Dorothy was going to become a teacher at Amaurus Academy.
That's how unsuited she was for the academy.
The ordinary academy where future leaders gathered did not match with someone as ordinary as her, who had grown up in a normal household under normal circumstances.
"...Um... Hoyeon... student...?"
Of course, it wasn't as if she had become a teacher without any reason.
Had she not met the academy's principal, she would still be living as a timid village maiden.
If not for the encouragement that people weren't born special but became special on their own.
And now, standing before her was a student whom even the principal, with his usual stern demeanor, had advised her never to provoke.
A girl whom even those who never faltered before the Crown Prince or the Grand Duchess suggested to offer special treatment if necessary.
"...Ah, did you call me?"
"Instead of 'did you call me,' shouldn't it be 'did you summon me,' Hoyeon?"
"...Hm. That's true. Did you summon me?"
According to academy regulations, students were required to wear their uniforms, but that rule was strangely often ignored.
As long as the alterations didn't go too far beyond the point where it was still recognizable as a modified uniform, most teachers didn't make a big deal out of it.
However, Hoyeon had clearly crossed that line.
The clothes she wore now didn't resemble anything from the academy—or even from this entire continent. She responded to Dorothy's call with a half-hearted tone.
Dogeon, sitting next to her, had corrected her choice of words, but to Dorothy, that only added to the pressure.
"...Um, Hoyeon... student...? Did you... accidentally wash your uniform, so you had to wear... those clothes...?"
Even the principal was afraid of her; how could a mere teacher like Dorothy handle Hoyeon?
The only reason Dorothy had managed to maintain her composure thus far was that Hoyeon had been somewhat respecting her authority as a teacher.
"No, I just wanted to wear it. Is that a problem?"
"You should say, 'I just wanted to wear it. I will be more careful in the future.' That sounds more appropriate."
"Ugh, why don't you just keep quiet?"
But right now, she didn't even feel that minimal respect.
"...The dress code... does... break the rules... Uh. In the future... could you at least put on a uniform jacket...?"
The only thing Dorothy could do was squeeze out every bit of courage she had and make a suggestion.
A teacher asking a student for a favor—it could have been a shameful situation, but given who she was dealing with, no one found it strange.
Even students who usually had issues with the school's rules or with Dorothy's demeanor looked at her with a pitiful gaze.
"...Breaking the dress code, huh. I will... keep that in mind."
What came back to Dorothy, who had closed her eyes in fear of meeting those golden eyes, was an unexpectedly compliant answer.
"T-Thank you... Please be more mindful in the future...!"
Though Dorothy stuttered in fear, trying to assert some semblance of authority as a teacher, all it did was make her seem even more miserable—though she herself was unaware of it.
***
All Eyes on Me.
There was a song with that title, or something like it, and it perfectly described my situation now.
On normal days, I could feel the occasional glance, but today, everyone was openly staring at me.
Even Dogeon.
Not that I wore this because of him... but still, since I was wearing the outfit he had once complimented, he did seem to be looking at me more than usual.
There was a bit of an impure gaze mixed in there, but well, since it was Dogeon, I could let it slide.
"...But Hoyeon, did you really wear that just because you felt like it?"
Actually, there was a reason, but it was too embarrassing to admit.
"Yeah. Why, do you find it hard to know where to look?"
I teased him, lightly pulling on the hand we were holding, but even that didn't seem to work as well as before. He always had a response ready.
"Yes, it's so beautiful that I don't know where to look."
Like now. Whenever I tried to tease him, this was how it went. But yeah, the outfit was a bit much. If I had thought about it one more time, I probably wouldn’t have done it.
Well. Once a month, I had a day when I just turned into a fool, so it couldn’t be helped.
"...Ahem! Anyway, Did you do well on the exam?"
"Yes. Thanks to your teaching, I was able to solve everything smoothly."
Of course, he should. I had put special effort into preparing for his exam. Even if he hadn’t done so well, I would have been somewhat pleased, but knowing he did well made me feel a little proud.
"Naturally. Since I’m the one who taught you. More importantly... I'm a bit worried about what happened to that fool."
Anya, unfortunately, showed almost no progress in her studies—to the point where I wondered if her brain might be full of holes.
Not only was she a slow learner, but she also had the cursed trait of quickly forgetting whatever little she managed to learn. You have no idea how painful it was to teach her.
If there had been no progress at all, I might have given up. But since there was some improvement, even giving up wasn’t an option.
"Anastasia... um. Yes. I’m sure she did well, right?"
Dogeon gave a bitter smile, likely thinking the same as I was. Although he hadn’t taught her himself, he must have seen the hopelessness of teaching her—it was like reading to a cow.
Come to think of it, Anya was kind of like a cow. Gentle, strong, a bit dense, and... well, her chest too.
I found myself wondering what she would look like in a cow costume. Too bad I'd probably never get to see it.
"...Ah, Hoyeon-ssi! And... Dogeon-kun. Hello...!"
Speak of the devil. Though, I guess I'm the tiger in this case. As soon as we started talking about Anya, she appeared.
And right beside her was that muscle-bound guy—Eric, was it? It seemed the boost I’d given him had paid off since they looked much closer now.
"Greetings, Dogeon-nim, and Hoyeon-nim. I’m saddened to bring unfortunate news, but my love..."
"Please don’t say it! Eric, please...!"
I could already guess what he was about to say. No doubt it was about how she’d bombed the test.
"I know. Wasn’t it to be expected? Don’t be too downhearted, Eric. It couldn’t be helped."
"...It’s my fault. If I had been a bit more careful..."
"I-If you hadn’t called me in the first place, I would have been studying until the next day!"
As I spoke with them, I subtly observed Dogeon’s reaction. Even though he said he had given up, Anya was still the girl he once had feelings for.
But Dogeon really seemed unaffected. That only made me feel a little guiltier. I didn’t know what made him move on, but I was certain I had something to do with it.
"Well, in the end, you’re saying you didn’t study, Anastasia. So, how did you do?"
With a gentle smile, Dogeon’s words pricked at Anya.
But... the northern idiots weren’t the only ones; Dogeon’s room also had that smell. I couldn’t quite remember what it was, but it felt so familiar.
I was sure I had known it well, at least in my past life. What was it...
...Nope, still couldn’t remember. I gave up.
"Th-That is... um... so... ugh..."
Watching her mutter in a voice as small as a criminal confessing in court, one thought crossed my mind.
She hadn’t grown at all.
Dogeon, on the other hand, had grown so much. Feeling pleased, I playfully wrapped my tail around his hand. This made our bond even stronger than theirs.
Yeah. We won. I smirked as I evaluated Anya.
"Just a bit more effort, and you'll get there. It's a pity there's been no progress, though."
"Ugh... Why do I even have to study...?"
"My love, if you are to lead the North someday, you must at least do this much."
"Well... I guess so..."
I wasn’t sure whether I should be happy or feel sorry for how much closer the two of them had gotten. Dogeon’s complete indifference left me a bit unsettled.
...Well, it’s good to let things be. She found her own love naturally. It’s not like I forced them together.
"...Then, we’ll be going now. We... have a meeting to attend. R-Right... Eric?"
"Of course!"
I could see through their little lie, but I let them go. They clearly wanted to leave, and there was no need to hold them back.
"Yes, take care."
Dogeon also let them go without fuss. Though, do people usually hold meetings in the dorms?
...Well, maybe they were just hosting a small party in their room. I let it go.
That aside, being stared at this much was starting to get uncomfortable. I gently tugged on Dogeon and whispered quietly.
"...Let’s go somewhere. Anywhere but here."
There were just too many eyes watching us, whether I was hugging him or patting him.
"Then how about the botanical garden?"
"Sure."
Except for the upperclassmen dragging their half-dead selves around with reports in hand, no one ever went there. We set off toward the garden.