“Everyone was gathered here.”

At that moment, Aaron, the student council’s treasurer, approached.

Small build like Rukna, a face with fine lines, slightly pointed ear tips, and pink curly hair.

The small tattoos on his cheeks and back of hands were lovely, but his expression was the coldest among the student council members.

The reason Rukna wasn’t suspected of being a girl was thanks to the existence of small and pretty cadets like Aaron.

He was of the Gnome race, called the earth fairies.

Gnomes liked to decorate their bodies with tattoos and made the land fertile by pounding it with wooden hammers.

As Aaron’s family belonged to a race that considered farming a virtue, they owned the central golden plains of the empire and were responsible for more than half of the empire’s grain production.

In other words, Aaron’s family was one of the wealthiest in the empire.

Like a typical Gnome, Aaron always carried a wooden hammer, but he was more interested in law than farming.

Perhaps that’s why when he encountered disobedient cadets, he would imitate a judge with his farming hammer, determining guilt or innocence to punish them.

“You’re here now, Aaron?”

Bolton greeted him, seemingly mocking Aaron’s small stature by comparing their heights with his hand, but Aaron thoroughly ignored Bolton’s provocation.

Still, Bolton was glad to see Aaron’s arrival.

Because until just now, he thought he was suffocating from the extremely fierce atmosphere here.

Aaron opened his mouth while watching Rukna and her gang disappear in the distance with dry eyes.

“That’s the ‘student of concern’, Rukna Golden.”

“Our troublemaker has become quite famous. Even you recognize the troublemaker.”

Bolton giggled and poked Aaron’s shoulder with his elbow.

“I know about students of concern too. And dirty contact is guilty.”

Aaron immediately swung his wooden hammer and hit Bolton’s back. Bolton rubbed his back and whined exaggeratedly.

“Hey! How can you hit for just that?”

“Just that? Did you wash today or not?”

“……”

“A ball of germs is sentenced to death.”

Aaron hit Bolton’s back once more with a thud.

Bolton, who got his spine properly hit with the wooden hammer, rolled on the floor.

Chad, who was watching this scene, held his stomach and laughed.

“Puhaha, ha. Oh, my stomach.”

“Ugh, my back hurts like I’m dying. How can you laugh when someone’s fallen?”

“Well, it’s funny. Haha! I laughed too much, I’m getting dizzy. I should go take a nap.”

Chad was all skin and bones without a single muscle due to lack of exercise. He turned towards the student council room.

Bolton, with tears in his eyes, muttered towards Chad.

“How does a guy with such weak stamina manage to hit on girls? He’s just good at magic, but he’s even weaker than the troublemaker.”

“Chad is much better than you who imagines that you can hit on girls with physical strength.”

Aaron shook his head at Bolton who didn’t know the obvious.

A nagging followed, telling him to wake up to reality instead of just imagining dating girls.

“What do you mean imagination? I was told I’d be quite popular if I just dressed up!”

“By whom?”

“My mom.”

“…The more I hear, the more pitiful you are, so I’ll declare your previous statement not guilty.”

Not guilty. Aaron tapped his palm twice with the wooden hammer before turning towards the library.

You, little Gnome brat! Angry Bolton fiddled with his black eye patch while looking for Matian.

“Hey, Matian! Why are there only weirdos like that in the student council?”

Huh, Matian? Bolton looked around. The spot where Matian had been standing was now empty.

“Hello, Matian. Haha.”

Arriving in front of the dormitory room, Rukna greeted Matian who was waiting for her in the corridor.

How did someone who was clearly standing far away arrive here before her?

Thinking he might have used some kind of teleportation with his long legs, Rukna called his name once more when there was no response.

“Matian? Are you sick somewhere?”

His complexion looked bad beneath his perfect smile.

If he’s sick, why come all the way here to bother people instead of going to the infirmary?

But Matian just rubbed his solar plexus with his palm and smiled without saying a word.

“Did you come looking for me because you have something to discuss? I’m a bit tired now and think I should sleep.”

Rukna truly had no energy to deal with him.

Training that started at dawn, tight lectures, and the increasingly intense provocations from the gang.

Really, with such busy days continuing without a break, her final goal of living as a rich extra after graduation was becoming hazy.

‘I don’t have the luxury to waste emotions on Matian.

Moreover, when he’s around, even the holy sword goes silent, so I can’t get help even if a crisis comes.’

As Rukna openly showed her discomfort, Matian, who had been quietly looking down at her, slowly opened his mouth.

“You, it seems you’ve been using something like a mop as a weapon lately.”

Matian spoke while recalling the gang members collapsed in the alley. He guessed the weapon used based on the bruise marks on their bodies.

“Well, I don’t know what you’re talking about……”

Rukna felt guilty inside but pretended not to know.

“You’re too short for such a weapon. It disturbs your center of gravity.”

Matian offered unexpected advice in a gentle voice.

What’s this? Why does it matter whether I beat them with a broom or a mop?

Was this the reason he waited for me with such a terrible complexion, just to spout such words?

‘How tall does he think he is to point that out!’

Rukna looked Matian up and down and lost her will to fight.

‘…He’s tall. Flawlessly tall.’

But that didn’t make that annoying guy any less annoying. Her lips protruded like a duck’s beak, upset for no reason.

“That’s why you look even more weak, Rukna.”

“What?”

“That’s probably why hyena-like guys leave Aaron, who’s the same size, alone and only pick on you.”

Huh? What kind of fresh provocation is this? Rukna narrowed her eyes.

“If you don’t want to be looked down on, don’t make such a sullen expression.”

Matian reached out and firmly pushed in Rukna’s protruding lips.

The soft lips went back inside as he pressed.

His smiling blue eyes somehow felt chilly.

“…That’s enough.”

Matian quickly withdrew his hand.

‘This feels strange.’

How can a man’s lips be this soft? The sensation felt through the thin gloves was too unfamiliar.

Furrowing his brow at this, Matian stared at the hand that had touched Rukna’s lips for a long time.

‘If I touch them one more time, I think I’ll know exactly why.’

He felt unfamiliar with himself as curiosity different from usual kept intruding.

‘Moreover… the pain in my chest area has disappeared.’

Was it mere coincidence that the throbbing pain in his heart had subsided?

Meanwhile, Rukna, who was watching this, misunderstood, wondering if Matian thought touching her was dirty.

“Did you come all the way here just to point out my expression?”

Rukna grumbled as she took out her key to unlock the room door.

But the room inside was a mess.

“W-what happened here?”

As if a thief had visited, everything from the drawers under the bed to the desk and wardrobe was ransacked.

The curtains fluttered wildly in the chilly evening breeze blowing in from the wide-open window, and the window hinges creaked.

“There was an intruder.”

Matian, standing in the corridor, entered Rukna’s room without hesitation.

With his shoes on.

“Ah, no!”

Rukna, an honorary Korean who lived in the room with shoes off, stopped him.

Although it was already a mess after the thief’s visit, shoes were still very uncomfortable.

“Take them off over there and come in.”

Rukna pointed to the entrance while grabbing Matian’s clothes.

“You want me to… take it off?”

Matian asked, as if he hadn’t understood properly.

Seeing his ears turn red, it seemed he had made some grand misunderstanding.

“I mean the shoes. I live in the room with shoes off.”

“……”

Matian checked Rukna’s feet. Rukna, who had neatly taken off her shoes in front of the shoe rack, was indeed wearing only socks.

‘Did the Golden Count family teach their adopted child not to wear shoes?’

Was it discrimination against the adopted child, or a unique family tradition of the Count’s house?

By the way, it was amazing that she could stand properly with such small feet.

It was surprising that with those tiny feet that could probably fit in his palm, she could keep up with the military academy training and knock down thugs.

Matian couldn’t easily take his eyes off Rukna’s feet.

“Your feet are really……”

“What about my feet?”

“Nothing.”

Why did you stop mid-sentence? Rukna tilted her head.

Matian frowned, hesitated for a moment, then took off his shoes at the entrance and came into the room.

“Uh… thank you.”

Rukna scratched the side of her head as she thanked him.

It was unexpected; she thought he would ignore the request or say he’d rather leave than take off his shoes.

After all, such a request was almost rude to nobles who only took off their shoes on the bed.

“It’s disconcerting. I’d appreciate it if you could prepare indoor slippers next time.”

“Huh? Oh, okay.”

“And make sure you wear them too. If other cadets see you walking barefoot, they might think you lack basic manners.”

Matian added a nagging comment as he looked around the messy room.

Usually, cadets’ rooms reeked of a male-specific odor, but Rukna’s room was filled with a faint scent of lilac.

Not only was taking off shoes new, but this aspect was also very unfamiliar.

Meanwhile, Rukna, thinking of Matian as the king of nagging, checked if any of her belongings were missing.

Fortunately, no money or items were stolen.

‘Strange. If they weren’t trying to steal valuables, why did they come in? Were they looking for something?’

The first thing that came to mind was the holy sword.

If so, the culprit would be the one who most wanted to find the holy sword.

Rukna’s round eyes rolled towards the strongest suspect.