CH 5.04

Chapter 5 Part 4

Translator  : PolterGlast

Iris' POV

"... Uh~"

In a pitch-black field of vision, I regained consciousness and groaned.

"This is, the infirmary?"

When I opened my heavy eyelids and looked around, it was the infirmary of Solminati Academy. I was laid down on a bed of pure white sheets, my long black hair thrown over the sheets.

My uniform coat had been taken off, and it was hung on the clothes rack next to me. Maybe it was a hindrance to the medical examination.

"Are you awake? Irisdina-kun"

"Norn-sensei ..."

It was Norn Altina, the teacher in charge of the infirmary, who called out to me when I woke up.

"You had a match against Lisa in a mock battle in practical lessons, and simultaneously attacked and knocked each other, so you were brought here."

I finally remembered why I am here.

(Yeah, I fought Lisa, talked to her, and my rapier was blown away by her rage...)

Touching my waist gently caused a throbbing pain.

"You received a blow on your waist, but there is no abnormality in your bone. It's a little swollen now, but I think it will get better soon. But if the pain persists, go to the doctor. "

"……Okay" 

Norn-sensei told me the result of the examination, but I was in a daze.

I wanted to know him. I wanted to help him.

So I approached Lisa, but in the end, I couldn't do anything.

“…………….”

I felt depressed and my face naturally turned downwards. I was sad that I couldn't get in between Nozomu and her.

"...But, just as Anri said, Nozomu is starting to change."

"Eh?"

"Until last year, he didn't even try to talk to anyone at school. Anri said he was always alone, and once class was over, he went home and trained in the forest."

I knew he wasn't very well-liked by the people at the school, but I didn't know he didn't even have someone to talk to.

"It's dangerous to enter the forest alone, so Anri was very worried about him, but he didn't seem to want to stop. However, Nozomu's behavior had changed since the end of last year."

(Surely at that time ...) 

It was around the time when he could release his Ability Suppression.

I thought Norn-sensei knew something, so I listened to her words.

"Especially since the beginning of this year, He started laughing at school too."

(...he starts laughing...)

Those words warmed my heart a little. I'm happy to think that I was able to help him even a little.

"Hmm? Should I clear the rumors?"

"Eh?"

When I was surprised at Norn-sensei's words, the door of the infirmary opened and people came in.

""Excuse me""

"Sorry for cutting in~~"

"Nozomu, Tima, Mars, and even Somia too..."

The people who came in were my friends I knew well. I can even see Somia who should be in Ecross.

"... A, are you okay? Ai"

"Are your injury alright? Ane-sama"

"I met Tima on my way to buy lunch and heard that Iris was injured. And Somia-chan, who came to eat lunch with me, also joined ... are you alright? "

Everyone came to the side of the bed.

Tima and Somia looked at my face with worried eyes, and Nozomu explained why Somia was here with a bitter smile behind them, but like Somia, he was also worried about me.

"Y, yea. I, I'm alright." 

The fact that he cares about me makes my heart warmer and makes my good mood rise to the surface, but when I try to tell those who are worried that I'm alright, my mouth trembles and I can't speak properly.

"Well, it looks like your injuries will be alright, and your friends have come to visit. So, let's have lunch for the time being."

"Ai, here."

With Norn-sensei's suggestion, Tima took out the package and presented it to me. It's my lunch that I left in the classroom.

"Thank you Tima"

When I received the lunch box, the infirmary door opened again and Anri-sensei came in with a big smile. She holds her lunch box in her hand.

"Norn ~~ Let's have lunch ~~. Oh, so Nozomu-kun and the others were already here ~"

"Hello, Anri-sensei" 

After confirming that Nozomu is in the infirmary, she comes with a lunch box in her hands. Her smile seemed to shine even more.

"E~h? Who is this child?"

Anri-sensei tilted her head when she saw Somia by my side. By the way, Somia had never met Anri-sensei before.

"N, nice to meet you! My name is Somiliana Francilt. Thank you for always helping my sister!"

Somia greeted Anri-sensei and Norn-sensei for the first time.

Yes, yes. As an older sister, I became proud of my reliable little sister figure.

"So, c-cute ~~~!"

"Mugyu!" (TL: sfx for hugging tightly) 

Anri-sensei hugging my little sister, perhaps because she can't overcome Somia's cuteness.

Anri-sensei, I understand your feelings, sometimes I want to hug her too, but please restraint yourself.

"Hey hey, Anri. I understand your feelings, but Somia seems to be suffering, so let her go. Anyway ... I see, are you that Somia?"

"Umm ... do you know me?"

"Hmm, that arm decoration, isn't it what Nozomu-kun gave you? I was watching him making a present for you. That said, he was in the middle of making it, so I haven't seen the finished product yet. Can you show it to me for a moment?"

"~! W, wait, Norn-sensei !?"

"Y, yes! Here you go!"

Nozomu makes a surprised voice at Norn-sensei's request, but Somia smiles and shows her arm decorations to Norn-sensei.

"He~e, it's well done. And this is the Orient bell. It's used for festivals and amulets in the eastern countries."

"It's not a good craft..."

"That's not the case, Nozomu-san! I was very happy to receive this!"

"That's right, Nozomu-kun. Feelings are the most important thing. You put your feelings for Somia in this gift, and Somia accepted it. It's important to put your feeling that you care for her through that gift. Sure, it may not be as good as the crafts made by first-class craftsmen, but in terms of feelings, it is more valuable to Somia than what other craftsmen make, and your feelings are conveyed to her." 

Somia nodded at Norn-sensei's words. Of course, the arm ornament made by Nozomu resembled the arm ornament Somia used to wear.

The arm ornament that Somia used to wear was a tool to take Somia's soul, but for Somia, who had been feeling lonely without her mother, it was one of the things that ascertain her family ties. In fact, after that incident, she was looking at her arm with a slightly sad face until Nozomu gave her that arm ornament.

The arm ornament never left Somia's body, even when she was sleeping and take a bath.

In that sense, Nozomu's feelings must have been properly conveyed to Somia.

While being healed by Somia's happy smile looking at her arm ornament, on the other hand, I honestly feel a little jealous of her.

"...Hey Mars-kun, what's going on? You're a bit weird..."

"E, uh, what's wrong?"

When I heard Tima's words and looked at Mars, he stood up with a dazed facial expression.

"Well, umm..."

Mars-kun is trying to say something in front of Tima. Tima is tilting her head, honestly doesn't understand him either.

"Well, Mars kind of in a bad mood today."

"... Eh! Mars-kun, are you okay?" 

With Nozomu's words, Tima stared at Mars with a surprised voice.

"Ah, no. Nothing of the sort."

"Speaking of which~~, Mars was doing something unusual during the morning class. He tried to use both Qi and magic at the same time, but it didn't work out well."

"Wha! Wha!"

"Mu ~~! Mu ~~!"

Mars, who heard Anri-sensei's words, tried to stop her mouth in a hurry. I know he learned about magic with Tima recently, but was that what he was practicing?

"It is impossible to use Qi and magic at the same time! Mars-kun, you are trying to do something very difficult. Since the power used by magic and Qi is very different, you should decide to use only magic or Qi. Otherwise, the difficulty level jumps up dramatically ... "

That's true.

Since it required a high level of skill, one had to be well trained to be able to use it in mock battles.

Before coming to this school, Tima did not have good expectations due to her overwhelming magical power. Therefore, she was reluctant to use new or powerful magic, especially when it came to magic control.

Her magic power was too great, therefore, it was difficult for her to use magic stably.

"... Perhaps, Mars-kun. Did you use that technique in a mock battle? Even though you haven't done it well in practice yet ..."

Tima raised a sad voice. As I thought, Mars-kun seems to have used a new technique without adequate training.

"Chi~...I'm the type of person who learns things easily with my body. I thought I could get the hang of it if I used it in a practice."

"... But it's dangerous. If it accidentally running wild ... it's going to be a disaster !?"

Tima has been seen with cold eyes by others since her childhood because of her high magical power. She avoided her magic running wild above all else.

More than that, She didn't like it when Mars use the technique without consulting it with her beforehand.

"B, but ... the activation of the technique itself went well ..."

"But! If you weren't good at handling it, Mars-kun might have been injured ... I don't want that ..."

Tima's voice became sorrowful. Tears overflowed in her eyes, she was about to start crying.

"Uu ..."

“……………..” 

Perhaps Mars-kun, who saw Tima's sorrowful appearance, thought it was really bad. He lost his momentum and got stuck in words.

"...S-sorry..."

"...No more doing reckless things?"

"I won't."

"…… Un."

Tima is looking up at Mars with tears in her eyes.

When Mars-kun saw such a pure Tima, he couldn't be more stubborn. He scratched his head and turned his gaze away, but he obediently apologized.

"Now now~! Let's have lunch~~! I'm hungry already~~!"

"... well that's right. Shall we eat?"

Anri-sensei's extended voice brightened the atmosphere, and Nozomu agreed, so we each prepared lunch in our respective seats.

"Ane-sama! Let's eat together !!"

"Okay, Somia" 

Somia came to my side and spread out her lunch box. Maybe because she can eat with everyone, she smiled 30% brighter than when she ate in the mansion. When I saw it, my cheeks naturally loosened.

"...Mars-kun, was your lunch box made by Hannah-san?"

"No, this is made by the old man. The kitchen is managed by the old man. What about you?"

"... T, this was made by my mom. But sometimes I make it myself ..."

"Hee, it looks good."

Mars-kun and Tima showed each other their lunch boxes. Looking at the two of them, they were still awkward, but they didn't seem to care about the previous matter.

"Nozomu-kun~~. So you bought bread again~~?"

"Well, yes. To be honest, it's because it's cheap and easy to get..."

"But~. It won't be enough~~. I'll split my share~~!"

"T, thank y... why did sensei use the fork to give it to me!?"

"Here, ah~~~~n"

Nozomu and Anri-sensei were also showing each other lunch, but for some reason, Anri-sensei is trying to feed her lunch to Nozomu.

…… Somehow, I felt uneasy my hand that was holding the fork naturally became stronger.

"It's too much! Also, It's more enjoyable for me to pick it up with my fingers!"

"Eh ~~. Fingers? I understand ~~~"

After saying that, Anri-sensei tried to pick up the contents of her lunch box with her fingers.

That's not the problem!! Why are you trying to pick it up with your finger! Are you possibly going to feed Nozomu that way?!! 

"Wha, do you really understand?! I just need to use my own finger, not sensei's finger! Anri-sensei only needs to present the lunch!"

Nozomu hurriedly picked up the contents of Anri-sensei's lunch box and threw it into his mouth.

"Buu ~~. I tried to feed you ~~"

Anri-sensei puffed out her cheeks, probably because it didn't go as she expected.

Did you intend to feed him after all?

I was distracted by the hustle and bustle in front of me and completely forgot. I wasn't the only one who fainted in that mock battle.

Norn-sensei's line of sight, who didn't join in our conversation, was facing the bed next to the bed I was sleeping on.

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After Nozomu and the others had finished eating lunch and returned to their respective classrooms, Norn Altina remembered about Lisa Hounds, the girl who had been sleeping in the bed next to Irisdina.

"Nn~ ..."

"Are you awake?"

About 10 minutes before Irisdina woke up, Lisa woke up on her bed.

"... Is this infirmary?"

"That's right. Do you know why you are here?"

"……Yes"

Lisa's consciousness was clear, and she answered Norn's question without a problem.

"I see. For now, I've examined your body. You have a bruise formed by a magic bullet fired into your stomach. It might hurt a little, but it will heal in a few days. If the pain persists, see a doctor."

Norn spoke about the results of the examination, but Lisa's gaze fluttered as if she was worried about another person next door.

"Are you worried about her? Well, based on the examination, she is alright. She'll be in pain for a few days like you, but soon she'll get better."

"Is that so……" 

Norn, who saw Lisa's uneasy behavior, told her that Irisdina was still sleeping, and she asked a little more in-depth question to Lisa.

"...  is it Irisdina who you are worried about, or is it that boy?"

"……What do you mean?"

Lisa's facial expression grew more intense. Her nature and gaze became sharp, even though it was rude to her superiors, Lisa couldn't stop her own violent emotions rising in the depths of her chest.

"Nothing in particular, but Irisdina is really worried about Nozomu-kun lately. Well, what she did is somewhat meddlesome."

Norn implicitly talked about Nozomu's rumor.

"... I don't want to talk about it. All I can say is that he's the worst .... Honestly, I don't want to remember about him anymore."

"……Is that so" 

Lisa answered Norn's question with a gaze like biting a bitter worm, but maybe she doesn't want to touch on the topic of Nozomu anymore, she shifted her gaze out of the window and got up from the bed.

Her attitude clearly said that she was not willing to speak anymore, and Norn didn't pursue her any further.

Heavy air was flowing in the infirmary for a while, but when the sound of knocking on the door resounded, the heavy air dispersed, and two students came following after the knocking sound.

One of them is Ken Notis who is now Lisa's lover. The other is Lisa's best friend, Camilla.

"Norn-sensei. How is Lisa condition?"

Ken asked Norn about Lisa's condition in a polite tone, so Norn stated there was no problem.

She clearly described Lisa's condition, but her gaze towards Ken was somewhat sharp.

"She has a bruise on her abdomen, she will be in pain in a few days, but that's okay."

"Thank you very much. Lisa, let's go."

"Yes. Thank you very much, Norn-sensei."

Ken and Lisa thank Norn for her treatment, but Lisa leaves the infirmary with a displeased facial expression over the previous exchange and is followed by the other two.

Norn confirmed that the three of them had disappeared behind the door. She sighed loudly.

"... Good grief. This seems to be difficult."

Norn is slightly aware of what was happening between Nozomu, Lisa, and Ken, but she decided to remain as a spectator and watch over them until the end.

The three of them are still her important students, so She's still anxious about it.

She wanted to know Lisa's true intentions, so she implicitly asked her about Nozomu, but it was a topic she didn't want to touch and was still completely rejected.

"However, did she aware?"

Still, Norn had learned something from Lisa's behavior.

Norn opened the window and looked up at the sky. The warm sunlight shone inside, and the still slightly chilly early spring breeze pushed the stagnant air that remained in the room away. It was like erasing the traces of the her previous conversation with Lisa.

"Lisa-kun. The opposite of love is neither hate nor hatred you know ... "

The sleeping princess, who was still asleep, didn't notice the words Norn mumbled and was drowned by the spring breeze.