Standing upright on his feet, Péréz made his way to the chair and sat down.
"So?"
Adrian opened a conversation and the wheat-haired boy fidgeted nervously.
"Haa…"
Bracing himself, Péréz exhaled a deep breath and spoke.
"I apologize for my past behavior towards you."
Adrian listened quietly with his unreadable expression.
"I mistreated you, spread groundless rumors about you, and disrespected you on multiple occasions."
He continued.
"I know I can't undo what I've done, but I want to make it up to you. Also, I will fix the rumors once the Study Tour is over."
"..."
Silence.
There was no reaction.
Although the stillness choked him down, Péréz patiently waited.
—Tap —Tap —Tap
Adrian tapped his fingers at the armrest and after seconds of consideration, he eventually answered.
"I appreciate your apology, but I can't forgive you."
Adrian's words were final.
Péréz drooped his head and his face painted with disappointment.
Honestly speaking, he had hoped for a different outcome, but he knew that he had to accept Adrian's decision.
As he sat there, Péréz realized that this experience would serve as a valuable lesson for him.
And he was determined to learn from his mistake to become a better person.
"But I believe people can change. So I'll give you a second chance."
"!"
Péréz abruptly looked at Adrian.
His eyes widened in surprise at Adrian's unexpected response; he couldn't believe what he just heard.
Even though making mistakes was a natural part of the learning process, it was important to acknowledge that bullying was never acceptable.
However, upon seeing how Péréz genuinely remorse and asked for forgiveness, Adrian decided to give him another opportunity.
He believed everyone deserves a second chance.
The wheat-haired boy's face softened, and the corner of his lips tugged up.
"Thank you so much."
Péréz spoke with a tone of sincere gratitude and resumed.
"I promise, I won't let you down."
Adrian gave him a small smile.
"Well, I hope so. Because this is your last chance or there will be big consequences."
"I understand. I'll do my best."
Péréz assured him and a sense of relief flooded him.
It felt as if the weight that had been burdening his shoulders was lifted off.
When a thought hit him, Adrian asked right away.
"By the way, what did you eat in the forest?"
Péréz tried to recollect his memory before answering.
"Oh, I ate a mushroom."
The white-haired boy sighed and massaged his nose bridge.
Well, that explained a lot where he got those dehydration symptoms.
"Never ever eat mushrooms again."
"Huh? Why?"
"Although they are edible, there are some that are poisonous too and it's not worth the risk."
When he had a mission in the jungle with his team, it was a rule of thumb to avoid consuming mushrooms.
Let alone kids inexperienced like them, even the Mushrooms Picking expert had found themselves in the Emergency Room after ingesting mushrooms that resembled the edible variety.
Just like he said before: it was not worth the risk.
"Ah! No wonder my throat felt on fire that time!"
"When you are uncertain whether the fruit you find is edible or not, you can ask me or Vivi."
Sylvina was the second most knowledgeable person in the group.
"Alright, I got it."
"Good. Also, take these with you."
Adrian took out something from his Magical Sphere.
Soon, a spread of berries, apples, and a grilled rabbit covered in leaves appeared on top of the table.
"This…"
Péréz was perplexed, he opened and closed his mouth several times but no words came out.
"We've had our lunch, but I saved your share."
"But, I…"
Adrian shrugged nonchalantly.
"Didn't I say that the lunch will be on me? Don't worry about it."
The wheat-haired boy couldn't help but feel a sense of gratitude.
Even after the nasty things he did, Adrian was so thoughtful of him.
He was so ashamed.
"Thank you… thank you so much!"
Adrian nodded in response and stood up from his seat.
"Let's go back. They must be worried."
"Ah, I agree."
Péréz put the food inside his Magical sphere and they walked side by side.
"Um, can I… ask a question?"
Péréz voice chimed in.
"Sure, go ahead."
"When you said 'big consequences', does it refer to me being kicked out of the Academy?"
Adrian shook his head.
"No, but I'll just create a rumor about you."
"A rumor?"
Péréz's forehead creased, somehow he didn't understand.
Wasn't just creating a lousy rumor a too-light punishment?
Adrian nodded his head.
"Yes, I heard you have an 'interesting' story with a dog, right?"
Péréz halted his step and froze.
Yes.
This little wheat-haired brat was a cynophobe.
In the novel, there was a scene where Simone and Nathaniel shared a conversation about their siblings.
Thanks to it, he was able to learn about Péréz's deep-seated fear of dogs.
At the age of 5, his father gave him a dog as a present to alleviate his son's loneliness.
However, it marked the beginning of the tragedy.
On the following day when the two were alone in Péréz's chamber, he saw the dog enter a secret passage that he had never known about.
Curious, Péréz followed the dog, and it led him to the Royal Palace Garden.
He was excited to find it and they played in the garden for a moment.
But, when he tried to take the dog back to his chamber, it refused to budge no matter what he did.
The little Péréz, who was frustrated with the dog's stubbornness, eventually hit it with a stone.
Unthinkably, the dog retaliated by biting his pants ferociously.
Although it did not physically harm him, Péréz was traumatized by the experience.
And the real embarrassment came when Péréz tried to escape from the dog.
Amidst panicking, Péréz immediately took off his pants in order to escape, but soon the dog began to chase him.
Unbeknownst to him, he frantically ran around the Royal Palace bottomless, exposing himself to the residents.
The incident ended with the dog being taken away by the Royal Palace guards and executed.
Shortly, the news spread like wildfire throughout the Royal Palace and caused the Palace's residents to snicker and giggle whenever they saw him.
Despite Péréz's attempt to erase the incident by asking his father to fire numerous maids and butlers, the embarrassing memory remained.
—Thud
"Sob… Sob…"
As sobbing entered his ears, Adrian turned and to his surprise, Péréz was kneeling with tears streaming down his face.
The white-haired boy was bewildered, he couldn't help but furrow his eyebrows.
"Péréz, what are you doing?"
Yet, instead of answering, Péréz suddenly hugged his left leg and wept uncontrollably.
"Huuaa!!"
Fortunately, Adrian was able to regain his footing, preventing his butt from kissing the ground.
"What the—Péréz! What are you doing?!"
"I'm sorry!! I'm really really sorry!!"
Péréz didn't want the embarrassing moment he tried so hard to bury to be known throughout the Academy!
No.
It should not happen!
IT SHOULD NOT HAPPEN!
"Péréz! Let me go!"
Adrian attempted to break free, but Péréz's grip was unyielding.
He clung tighter to Adrian's leg and wailed louder than before.
"I swear upon my life that I will not repeat my mistake! Adrian! I swear to you!"
"What are—!"
—Rustle
They stopped whatever they did and darted at the noise.
Soon, they found Rhea, Sylvina, and Ralph were stunned with great shock dyed on their faces.
Just like them who were surprised by the scene present, Adrian and Péréz were all equally baffled upon seeing them.
After a few moments, Péréz eventually got up.
"Ahem!"
He let out a fake cough to mask his embarrassment.
"Let's continue with our journey. We're behind schedule."
He proclaimed and walked away with his stoic face, acting like nothing had happened.
"I concur."
Adrian nodded and followed Péréz.
The trio stay silent and exchange confused glances before falling into step behind them.
Although they had no idea what Adrian had done to make the prideful Péréz cry and kneel, they all quietly took note of one thing:
Adrian was not to be messed with.
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