What the hell?
Why’s she pretending to be kind all by herself?
So annoying.
That’s how it goes.
[Then you help him!]
“Thank you.”
[For what?]
“For seeing me as that kind of kind person.”
She had no intention of joining in on bullying others, but neither did she feel like stepping up to help.
Like she’d just said: the moment you butt in, you get dragged into a colossal hassle.
It’s hard for a mere student to go up against the whole Student Council.
Not just the president, Merise, but all the officers under her were in on it.
In short, it meant taking a stand against the people who had the Academy in a chokehold.
Stick your nose in halfway, and from that moment your school life becomes hell.
[Damn it! Even so—!]
“Don’t get so worked up. The boy we saw today is going to quit the Academy soon.”
In the end, unable to endure the bullying, Kevin Brian would withdraw and leave.
He’d wanted to graduate from the Academy somehow, but his parents learned he was being bullied.
Baron and Baroness Brian urged Kevin to leave the Academy. Then they hoped he’d settle everything and {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} go live quietly in the countryside.
Reporting it wouldn’t even occur to them.
Because the ones leading the bullying were too high-born.
Student Council President Merise was a marquess’s daughter, and the other officers were all scions of nobles who ruled the Empire’s roost.
They knew all too well that if people with no power tried to complain, what came back was even greater harm.
In Camilla’s memory, when the officers heard Kevin was withdrawing, they were actually pleased.
Finally left.
Clung to life like that, and now he’s gone.
They giggled right in the classroom as if it didn’t matter who heard.
Even Camilla, who hovered on the Academy’s fringes, had heard it—enough said.
[Fucking bastards!]
“They crossed a line.”
But even so, her heart didn’t move. She still had not the slightest intention of sticking her nose into Student Council business.
The problem was the next target.
“Soon they’ll pick a new one.”
[A new target?]
“Because Kevin’s gone.”
[These lunatics!]
And Camilla knew very well who the next target would be.
****
“Kevin—he was too mild.”
“Yeah.”
The Student Council room, accessible only to Student Council officers.
Those gathered there snickered over a withdrawal document lying on the desk. Kevin Brian’s withdrawal.
“Who should be next?”
Seated at the head and smiling serenely, Student Council President Merise broached the point.
“Have we picked the next one?”
“Yeah. Here.”
“Who is it this time?”
At Merise’s question, one officer handed her a sheet. A single name was written on it.
“Looks like the students of that class all voted together.”
“Feels like someone greased the wheels, doesn’t it?”
“Hm.”
Seeing the name, Merise’s lips lifted gently.
A new game was beginning.
****
“Huh?”
Back from lunch, Laila’s eyes went round at the pile of notes stacked on her desk.
She glanced around, wondering what was going on, but no one answered.
If anything, when their eyes met, they deliberately looked away.
“What is this?”
Tilting her head for a moment, Laila began opening the notes one by one and reading.
— Laila, you’re from an orphanage, right?
— They say your parents work on someone else’s farm. Is that true?
— You smell weird sometimes.
— You’re the one leeching off the Academy on a scholarship, right? You know we pay for that scholarship?
Every student in the classroom watched Laila read through the notes.
Some snickered, others looked away in disgust at the ones snickering.
But the truth was, most of them were enjoying Laila’s reaction.
“Wow...”
That was Laila’s response after reading them all. She parted her lips slightly, as if sincerely impressed.
“You all know so much about me!”
“......?”
“Thanks for caring!”
Her sunny smile brought a brief hush.
Regardless, Laila lifted her sleeve and sniffed it.
“I wash my clothes often... Sorry, I’ll pay more attention. I do tend to grow a lot of crops.”
“Laila.”
A little group approached, grinning sheepishly.
Grace and her friends—the ones who’d asked to copy her homework and had been kicked out on the spot thanks to Camilla.
“Know what?”
“Hm?”
“Your mother takes piecework from my house.”
Grace’s smile deepened at the corners of her mouth.
Of course, it was a lie.
She had only heard a rumor—that Laila’s mother took small needlework jobs and the like from nearby noble houses to earn money.
“Really?”
“Of course really. Why would I lie—”
Grab!
“Thank you!”
Beaming, Laila clasped Grace’s hand tight.
“Mother’s been so upset lately because there’s no work... I’ll be counting on you.”
“......”
“If it’s all right, could you pass some work to me, too? I sew well!”
It had been meant to taunt her, to shame her...
“As expected, Grace—you’re such a good friend!”
Zero damage.
Instead, Grace flushed and jerked back from her. Other students stared at Laila like they couldn’t believe it.
“Sorry, but can I throw these out? There are too many to keep.”
Unbothered, Laila quickly cleared the stack of notes off her desk.
Pfft.
Someone watched that scene on the sly—Camilla.
She had come on a hunch, and at the sight of Laila being her usual self, she laughed to herself.
She knew well this was only the beginning, so she couldn’t just laugh it off, but their dumbstruck faces were, admittedly, satisfying.
How will it go this time?
For the first few rounds, she would handle it with that unintentional guileless cheer, but as the bullying escalated, even Laila would realize something was off.
Back then, when she grasped the malice and began to struggle, Petro and Arsian helped her.
Two people who had no interest in how things were going and didn’t even know about it learned everything because of Laila, and as a result the Student Council collapsed.
Since it happened while they were both keenly interested in Laila, it didn’t even take long to get there.
But now?
Honestly, she wasn’t sure.
Both Arsian and Petro had no real connection with Laila right now, and their attitude toward her was, unlike before, downright lukewarm.
Camilla kept watching Laila, who was still smiling brightly as she busied herself clearing the notes.
“For now... should I just watch the situation?”
...Was it really okay to just keep watching?
“Achoo!”
“Did you catch a cold?”
“I’m fine.”
Doesn’t look fine.
“My friends spilled water on me by accident.”
“Those friends sure have accidents every day.”
“H-ha...”
“Your knees are scraped again, too.”
“Ah, I tripped over my friends’ feet...”
Laila’s laugh was fading. The smile at her lips was gone as well.
Even someone as slow as she was could feel something was wrong at this point.
Hmm.
What started as childish acts—sending notes and letters full of malice, sticking mocking phrases to her back—grew worse and worse.
In truth, even the first things weren’t something you could dismiss as merely childish.
Laila might have brushed them off, but if it had been someone else, the content would have been crushing.
Imagine thinking that every time you walk by, the students around you are whispering or snickering. Is that merely childish?
When it reached a point where it was hard to call it a prank anymore, Laila was deeply flustered.
But that was all. She only got as far as sensing the strange atmosphere around her.
She still didn’t properly grasp what was happening to her.
And those two are quiet.
Arsian and Petro showed no interest in Laila. Naturally, they didn’t know what she was going through.
This is far too different from before.
Of course, it wasn’t time for them to step in yet. Back then, they intervened right before the Student Council used direct violence on Laila.
Even so, this time they were too uninterested. Back then, they’d at least vaguely sensed it!
Pressing a hand to her throbbing forehead, Camilla sighed. Her head was a tangle.
Do I wait until then?
Last time, it had unraveled naturally.
The situation was a bit different now, but the main current was the same, so she couldn’t decide whether it was okay to interfere rashly.
What if she butted in and only made it worse?
“Don’t worry. I brought a spare change of clothes in advance. Smart, right?”
As Laila smiled stoutly like it was nothing, Camilla’s dilemma grew deeper and deeper.
****
“This one’s a bit unusual, isn’t she?”
Student Council President Merise kept bursting into laughter.
“Her reactions are something else.”
“It’s like she doesn’t realize she’s being bullied.”
“Maybe the kids are going too easy on her?”
At Merise’s words, one officer shook his head.
“More like this target’s a bit dull. They say she even smiled.”
‘You should’ve just said take out the trash. Got it—I’ll clean it all up!’
Laila had instead beamed and blithely tidied her seat.
“Interesting.”
Merise’s smile deepened.
“The students must be fuming.”
“Seems that way.”
Seeing Laila show no reaction despite all kinds of bullying, everyone’s temper was cooked through.
“We could scare her ourselves.”
“But...”
Merise’s gleeful gaze slid to the Vice President, Luhis. Something was snagging at him; his expression wasn’t good.
“She seems to be acquainted with Miss Camilla.”
“Camilla? Camilla Sorpel?”
“That’s right.”
Merise’s eyes widened a touch, surprised.
“There’s actually someone who’s friendly with Miss Camilla? This one really is unusual.”
