CH 80

“I’m here ~♡”

It was a common phrase for unannounced appointments in the world I once existed in.

To prevent any misunderstandings, let me say beforehand that such a line was not said this time. Moreover, the assumption was that I had asked him to casually, ‘Come and join!’ so it was not like this was without invitation. The other person was literally just following my words.

However, for some reason, that first sentence kept running through my mind. I would just take note of that…

As I was thinking about such things in a daze, the group in front of me began to squirm.

“Hey, hey…she looks so expressionless, is she angry?”

“Then is it really as the rumors say…?”

“Idiot, of course that’s not true. We were invited to play together, right? That’s what I heard.”

“I was just taking a nap in the dormitory, so I don’t know much about it. What do you know about it?”

“No, I also went to the kitchen to ask for a snack, so at the scene…hey, what about you?”

“What? I was asleep at the time…”

“E-Eh? Is this okay? Are we out of place?”

…I could hear the entire cute conversation.

The way they napped, asked for snacks, and didn’t seem to grasp the situation, they were just like elementary school beast-children. In this school where there were so many high-class people, this kind of non-aristocratic attitude was very relaxing.

Having been touched by the cuteness, I regained my neglected ability to think, and recovered my absent-mindedness..

As we waited for Ivan-sama’s return while practicing the Iceball magic on the school grounds, these little beastmen gathered around us.

The Golden Wolf Tribe, the Black Cat Tribe, and a slight mix of brown cats, white cats, and black wolves. I wondered if different colors were normally born every so often.

If that’s how it was, then that would make me squeal, “Ahhhh, fluffy heaven!!” I was about to let it out, but the number of people was still a problem.

…The number of people, including Ivan-sama, was 14.

I had assumed that he was just going to bring one or two of his closest friends, and now I was just plain shy.

But I couldn’t just leave them looking at me so anxiously. For some reason, Ivan-sama had a face that said, “Isn’t this great!?” And on the other hand, the golden wolf boy next to him had a blue face that made him look like he was about to pass out the second he noticed any disagreement.

It’s the law of the proverbial tongue. For now, I have no choice but to take responsibility and care for them properly.

I mean, it would be outrageous to keep such adorable children looking so anxious for so long.

“Hello everyone. Thank you for gathering here.”

I smiled with my love for the beast-children in mind, they all smiled in back unison as if relieved.

Oh no, if I’m not careful, I’ll still that expressionless look on my face. I have to reassure them.

“I was told that Ivan-sama’s friends would be joining us for studying…Is this all of them?”

When Johann asked this fearfully, Ivan-sama shook his head as if to say, “No way!” He shook his head and gave Johann a smug look.

“No, I still know some of the upperclassmen! I was in a hurry… Alice-sama, may I bring some of the others with me?”

“Uhh!? Um, well, in any case, it’s nice to meet you all for the time being. Let’s keep it at this number for today.”

“I see…Understood.”

I felt a bit shaken up.

No way…Even with this number of people, he was still holding back?

But I heard that cats were carefully raised with praise. I would honestly have praise him for his numerous connections.

“You have a very large presence, Ivan-sama! I don’t have a lot of friends yet, so I have a lot of respect for you.”

When I said that, Ivan-sama looked up quickly.

“Yes, I have many friends! After all, I’m the first son of the Black Cat Tribe!”

“First?”

Eh, he was the first son of such a great clan?

I was surprised, but Laurier-sama called out to me unexpectedly.

“Did you not know, Alice-sama? The Slacksin family is one of the most powerful houses in the Beastmen Federation.”

“A-Ah yes, that’s right.”

I honestly didn’t know that. I only thought about making friends with him because he was the cutest—Ah, no…It’s a noble strategy to draw in the neutral party…but let’s not make excuses. I really just wanted all of the fluffiness.

“…I thought for sure you were aware of this…Alice, why don’t you take the lead?”

“Waa…conquering the people, huh?”

If one is ahead of the curve, they can conquer people. If Ivan-sama had been taken in by someone who was hostile to me, it could have been dangerous. It’s just as they said.

With a bit of a twitch, Brother Will chuckled.

“Actually, I have a beastman friend myself. I had asked him to make arrangements with Johann for some experience, so I’ll ask him to instruct the others as well. Don’t worry about the manpower.”

……!!!

H-H-How reliable. I’m so thankful. I was concerned about the lack of teachers.

…But did they really want to study with me? I just told them about studying, but did I tell them that our goal was to pass all five major subjects?

I still didn’t know if we were going to impose that goal on these kids, but what was their average academic achievement on the exam?

Matilda asked, probably just as that question came to her mind.

“Well, I’d like to ask you about that…Everyone, for our reference, may I ask you what your entrance exam scores were?”

Then the fourteen of them raised their hands and said “Yes!” and replied cheerfully.

“Alice-sama, Alice-sama! I’m at 42!”

“I have a 38…!”

“17 points!”

“9 points!”

“Fufufu, 31 points!”

“I got a 47!”

“47, are you a genius? I’m at 11!”

“19 points!”

“21 points!”

“Mmm…I forgot.”

“Close to an 11!”

“Let’s see, there was a stick and a circle, so……10!!”

“I forgot to write my name down, so I don’t know!”

“Me too!”

“………”

“……Oh…………”

I suddenly looked off to the side.

Brother Will, who had previously been smugly puffing out his chest saying, “Please don’t worry about the manpower on the education side,” had collapsed to his knees.

[Original Author’s Note]: A large group of beast-children. And an overwhelming amount of academics.