078
Even to me, it honestly felt strange.
Out of nowhere?
And just when Teacher Tillia was about to open the door.
All the boys were just standing there, blankly staring at the scene.
Everyone was equally flustered.
“I-I know you all hate me… b-but I am the real daughter… It’s always Shupetty… No one ever cares about me…”
Wait—why is she dragging me into this again?!
This must be what it means to be completely dumbfounded.
Just then, Teacher Tillia appeared behind Sister Luarel, who was sobbing uncontrollably, wearing a stern expression.
“What exactly is going on here?”
“Huuu… huuuhuu… Teacher Tilliaaaa…”
“I need an explanation. First, stand up. A noble lady shouldn’t kneel so carelessly.”
“Y-yes… T-Teacher Tillia…”
Teacher Tillia extended a hand toward the sniffling Sister Luarel.
Angela, who had been watching this, suddenly shouted with a contorted face.
“She’s faking it! No one made her cry—she started crying on her own! She’s pretending to be all sweet and pitiful just because the teacher’s here!”
“Miss Angela, when a friend cries, you should try to comfort them and ask why they’re upset.”
“But, but still!”
“What was the reason Miss Luarel started crying in the first place? Why was she kneeling in front of you, Miss Angela? Did you make her cry?”
She didn’t though. Luarel suddenly just burst into tears by herself.
Angela had been making me do forward rolls and backflips.
If anyone should’ve cried, it should’ve been me!
But Angela, unable to explain things properly, just huffed in frustration. Eventually, she got so worked up she started crying too.
The funny part? Sister Luarel had already stopped crying and was now glancing around slyly.
‘Making me pretend to be a crab was kinda mean, but…’
Still, wrong is wrong.
This whole thing felt off. Why did it seem like Angela was the one at fault?
In the end, I raised my hand high in the air.
As high as I could—so the teacher couldn’t miss it.
“Teacher! I’m the vice class leader, and I can explain what happened!”
“All right, go ahead.”
All eyes were on me.
Straightening my back proudly, I opened my mouth in a clear, firm voice.
“At first, Sister Luarel told me… that she thought I didn’t like her. But it’s just because I was at the beach being a dolphin, so I didn’t get a chance to say hi. It wasn’t on purpose.”
“I see. And then?”
“Then Angela came over and said she didn’t want to hang out with Sister Luarel.”
Hmm, if you stop there, it kinda sounds like Angela’s completely at fault.
But the timing—that’s what really matters!
“And then a while later, just when Teacher Tillia arrived, Sister Luarel suddenly started crying.”
If she was upset, shouldn’t she have cried right when Angela said that?
But Sister Luarel had been hovering awkwardly for a while, waiting for the right moment.
“So it wasn’t Angela who made her cry. Angela was playing with me.”
“Hm.”
“And everyone only dotes on me, but they never say Sister Luarel is pretty. She said that made her want to cry. So I didn’t make her cry, and neither did Angela.”
I firmly explained everything, step by step, in front of the teacher. I stared straight into her eyes.
Because I wasn’t lying—there was no reason to look away.
“I see. Then everyone, is what Miss Shupetty said true?”
Teacher Tillia looked around as she asked.
Then the kids began chattering loudly.
“I mean… it’s hard to say Angela didn’t make her cry.”
“But it’s also true she cried way after that.”
“Maybe she was just holding it in?”
Some were still undecided—
“But crying right when the teacher walked in? That’s fishy. Kinda theatrical.”
“Who pulls such a low-level socialite stunt like that?”
“She’s so obvious, it’s cringe.”
Voices criticizing Sister Luarel started to grow louder—
“But it’s true the adults spoil Shupetty too much.”
“Yeah, even Teacher Cedric is blatant about his favoritism…”
Some kids began glancing at me with sharp looks.
Then suddenly, Louis and Jillian shot up and pointed at those kids.
“Did you all forget how Shupetty made a contract with the Spirit King of Air and took down the golem? She saved us back then!”
“You should be thankful. If something terrible happens in Pashayen, it’s going to be Shupetty who has to step up. With great power comes great responsibility, right? It’ll be her taking the risks, more than any of us!”
[The Spirit King of Fire, ‘■■■■■’, agrees with Jillian.]
[The Spirit King of Earth, ‘■’, nods silently.]
[If she were just an ordinary girl from an ordinary family, it’d be a problem. But in truth, that favoritism comes with the expectation that she’ll step in to protect Pashayen when danger comes.]
As everyone shouted their opinions, my head started to spin. The room felt like it was spinning too!
Feeling a bit dizzy, I sat back down. Angela, who had been watching me with a weird expression, moved her lips slightly.
‘Why… why are you taking my side?’—that’s probably what she was trying to say.
Why? Because this isn’t about taking sides.
I like to state things clearly. I don’t like misunderstandings.
If someone did something wrong, they should be punished fairly.
But if someone didn’t do anything wrong and still gets blamed—that’s not okay. No matter who it is.
I’m the vice class leader!
It’s my job to help lead this class on behalf of Class Leader Leviwood.
‘Plus, if I earn some points here… maybe I can get invited to Angela’s house?’
Aunt Cecilia hasn’t been coming outside at all lately.
I have a hunch I’ll only spot something suspicious if I go to her house!
“All right, I understand. So, Miss Luarel must’ve been feeling hurt.”
“T-teacher…!”
Teacher Tillia calmly settled the group and then gently patted Sister Luarel on the shoulder.
“If something is bothering you, you need to talk about it and work it out with others. I heard you just returned home, Miss Luarel. Let’s all give each other a little more time.”
“Ah… okay.”
“And Miss Angela, saying directly to someone’s face, ‘I don’t want to play with you, I don’t want to hang out with you’—that’s just plain rude. Now, apologize and make peace.”
At Teacher Tillia’s words, Angela’s face turned pale.
She looked genuinely upset.
Well, Angela’s got a lot of pride—she never apologizes. I know that better than anyone.
“I didn’t do anything wrong!”
“Hurting someone is wrong. Whether Miss Luarel cried on purpose or timed it for when I walked in—whatever the case, what you did, Miss Angela, was still wrong.”
At that, the entire classroom fell silent.
Angela bit her lip, clenched her fists, and trembled.
“S……”
“…..…”
“S…..”
She squeezed her eyes shut, clearly struggling with the words.
“Fine! I’m not sorry! But since you’re making me apologize, I will. Satisfied?!”
“…….!”
That was so… typical of Angela.
But then—look at this.
Sister Luarel started crying again.
And then she said.
“I-I’m sorry. Y-you don’t have to apologize. I won’t follow you around anymore. I’m sorry for being annoying…”
“What the heck?! Why are you making me look like the bad one?!”
Whatever happened between the two of them, Angela clearly had a lot of pent-up frustration.
Teacher Tillia’s expression was worsening by the second.
Oh no. What now?
“Alright, that’s enough. I’ll speak with the adults separately about this matter. And Miss Luarel.”
“Y-yes, ma’am.”
“I understand you just reunited with your family, and naturally, you want to grow close quickly and have all their affection to yourself. But remember what you said earlier?”
Teacher Tillia’s gaze caused Luarel to flinch and tremble slightly.
The teacher began gently repeating Luarel’s earlier words, one by one.
“No matter how much they hate me, I’m still the real daughter… but all they ever love is Shupetty.”
“….…”
“First of all, no one hates you, Miss Luarel. They just don’t know you very well yet. Most people are not very affectionate with someone they don’t know. Interpreting that distance negatively is what we call a victim mindset.”
A victim mindset?
