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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 65
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65. The Peculiar Vibe Between Two Female Instructors
***
"Oh, Instructor Kali?"
Adelia, who had expected a student to be visiting the infirmary, was surprised by the unexpected visitor. Kali looked at her and offered an awkward smile.
"Hello, Instructor Adelia… I actually came because I heard one of my students was here. Are Student David and Student Han Cheon-seong inside?"
"Ah, yes, they are. Is class already over?"
"We finished a little early today."
"…Is that so? Well, they're inside, so come on in."
Adelia calmly ushered her into the infirmary. As Kali stepped inside, she found herself surveying the room. The first thing she noticed was David, lying on a bed as if asleep.
"By any chance, what's Student David's condition? He didn't seem to have any major issues from what I saw…"
"As Instructor Kali said, there's nothing particularly wrong. He just lost consciousness, so he'll wake up a bit late, but he'll be fine. Thinking about it, I wonder if it really takes this long to wake up. Anyway, he should be able to attend the academy normally tomorrow."
"That's a relief. Thank you."
"No need for thanks. I just did what I was supposed to do."
Adelia waved her hand dismissively, and Kali unconsciously scanned the surroundings again.
Besides David, Cheon-seong should obviously be visible, but he wasn't in Kali's sight.
"Instructor Kali. Are you looking for Student Han Cheon-seong?"
"Ah, yes. That's right."
"Then just a moment. Instructor Kali, please wait a moment."
Suddenly, Adelia stopped Kali and walked toward an area with a white curtain drawn. Kali watched blankly.
*Swish.*
As Adelia pulled back the white curtain and stepped inside, Cheon-seong was a little surprised.
"Student Han Cheon-seong."
"Yes, Instructor Adelia."
"How are you feeling now? Are you alright? I might have inadvertently harmed you while trying to demonstrate my power. Are there any lingering effects?"
"No, I'm really fine now."
When Cheon-seong nodded, confirming he was truly fine, Adelia let out a soft breath and carefully extended her right hand.
*Whoosh.*
Suddenly, Adelia placed her hand on Cheon-seong's forehead. Cheon-seong was surprised but accepted her touch.
*—!!*
Immediately, a brilliant, fresh green light erupted from Adelia's hand, and a warm breeze enveloped Cheon-seong's entire body.
As Adelia's unique healing energy swirled around Cheon-seong's body, he was surprised but simply accepted it.
Instantly, his body felt lighter, and vitality began to well up within him.
"This is…"
"It's my ability. A moment ago, I went out thinking a student who needed urgent help might have come for me, but since I know it's Instructor Kali now, I thought I'd give you a little healing."
After caressing Cheon-seong's forehead for about a minute, Adelia slowly withdrew her hand, and the warm healing breeze that had enveloped Cheon-seong's body also faded away.
Cheon-seong felt a momentary sense of regret and checked his body.
His body felt completely refreshed, as if he had just taken a shower that morning. To Cheon-seong, it was an unbelievable effect.
"Thank you, Instructor."
"No, it's nothing. I was the one who inadvertently used my power on you, so of course, I should do this much."
Adelia, a faint smile playing on her lips, suddenly leaned forward.
*—!*
The moment her body abruptly bent down, Cheon-seong, who was seated, couldn't react at all.
"..."
An overwhelming mass suddenly loomed large, almost covering Cheon-seong's eyes; it felt like something more than mere force.
In addition, the unique scent of Adelia's feminine body distinctly reached him.
"Student Han Cheon-seong. Just in case, I have to ask, are you really not uncomfortable with Instructor Kali?"
When she suddenly whispered the question into his ear, Cheon-seong blankly shook his head.
In Cheon-seong's vision, the immense destructive power from the moment Adelia leaned in still flickered before his eyes, but he was capable of rational thought.
"…It's fine. Instructor Kali truly doesn't make me uncomfortable."
"You don't need to be overly formal here. I'll ask again, are you truly not uncomfortable?"
Despite Adelia repeatedly asking, Cheon-seong nodded blankly.
His eyes were wavering at the fresh floral scent emanating from Adelia. Even with Cheon-seong's reaction, Adelia let out a soft breath and pulled her body away.
"…"
Faced with Adelia's sudden approach and her slow withdrawal, Cheon-seong could only stare blankly.
How much shock could a person experience when a chest of overwhelming mass approached and then disappeared from their sight?
As it came so close, Cheon-seong instinctively had to struggle to suppress his primal urges.
"To say that much, it seems Instructor Kali treating you well wasn't just empty words?"
Adelia gave a small smile as she spoke, and Cheon-seong nodded again.
He wasn't even aware that he was openly staring at Adelia's chest.
Adelia, with a small smile at Cheon-seong's gaze, raised her hand and lightly flicked his forehead.
*Thwack!*
"Ah…"
As she lightly flicked Cheon-seong's forehead, he belatedly snapped back to attention.
"Student Han Cheon-seong. I certainly allowed you to look, but I didn't say you could stare *that* intently at my chest, did I?"
"…Ah, I'm truly sorry."
"It's fine. It doesn't seem like you did it on purpose. Shall I open the curtain now?"
"Yes. It's fine."
As Adelia slowly pulled back the curtain, Cheon-seong swallowed hard and immediately composed himself.
***
*Swish.*
After Instructor Adelia entered the curtained area, Kali couldn't hear any sound.
It was as if she had isolated the space with her energy.
'…Why?'
Kali felt a sudden doubt.
Why Adelia had used her energy to isolate the space.
And only after nearly five minutes did the white curtain part, revealing Instructor Adelia and Student Han Cheon-seong. Kali couldn't help but give them a strange look.
The space behind the curtain was narrower than she had imagined.
'Just Instructor Adelia and Student Han Cheon-seong…'
Why were they in there for several minutes? It suddenly felt incredibly peculiar.
Of course, there was nothing to suspect about either Instructor Adelia or Student Han Cheon-seong.
No, she didn't even know what she was suspecting between them to begin with. But thinking of such a cramped space, it kept giving her the strange idea that they might have naturally been close…
"Instructor Kali, hello."
As Student Han Cheon-seong offered an awkward smile, Kali dismissed her thoughts.
"Yes. I heard you were in the infirmary because you were worried about Student David."
Even as they exchanged pleasantries, Kali became aware of Instructor Adelia, standing to one side of the room, watching them with an intrigued expression.
Adelia was a woman considered among the best nursing officers on the battlefield, and Kali had always looked up to her. But now, something felt odd.
"Instructor. I apologize for skipping class without permission. I truly didn't intend to, but unintentionally…"
"It's fine. I didn't come all the way to the infirmary to reprimand a student for missing class."
Answering calmly, she found her eyes narrowing unconsciously.
'…That.'
Student Han Cheon-seong's shoulder caught her eye.
Seeing the long, green hair, she couldn't understand why another instructor's hair would be there.
"And David's condition is fine, I heard. He just hasn't regained consciousness yet."
"I know that; I heard it directly from Instructor Adelia. I just came to check on both students since they're under my charge. You don't have to be so nervous."
"…Thank you for your concern."
As she watched him bow his head slightly at her words…
'As expected, it's Student Han Cheon-seong.'
Student Han Cheon-seong was exactly as she knew him: humble, diligent, and respectful towards instructors.
Yet, she didn't know why her gaze kept drifting to the green hair remaining on the student's shoulder.
"Hold on a moment, Student Han Cheon-seong."
It bothered her strangely, so she approached Student Han Cheon-seong.
*Swish.*
As she extended her hand, Student Han Cheon-seong flinched for a moment, and Kali involuntarily let out a laugh.
'Despite his appearance, he really doesn't seem used to women.'
…She didn't exactly have much experience with men either, but Student Han Cheon-seong seemed flustered whenever a woman approached him.
Nevertheless, she liked this peculiar attitude, as if he clearly understood the boundaries between instructor and student.
He kept his boundaries while not neglecting his efforts… In many ways, he was a student she was very fond of.
"It's nothing. Just some dust."
*Pat. Pat.*
As she carefully brushed the student's shoulder, she let Instructor Adelia's hair fall to the floor.
"Thank you, Instructor."
"It's nothing. Don't mention it."
As she was about to step back, she felt a strange sense of unfamiliarity.
"…"
As she subtly inhaled, the unfamiliarity became distinct.
It was clearly a fresh floral scent.
'This smells like lavender.'
How could a lavender scent be coming from Student Han Cheon-seong's body? Would a male student use lavender-scented products?
Of course, there was no law against it, but it clearly felt inconsistent with the image she had of Student Han Cheon-seong.
Then, unconsciously, her head turned.
"Huh? Why are you suddenly looking at me?"
"…No. It's nothing."
At the sight of Instructor Adelia, who had suddenly spoken at her gaze, Kali's heart sank instantly.
Because for a moment, a truly foolish thought had crossed her mind.
'It can't be.'
There was no way.
'But for this much scent to remain, wouldn't their bodies have to be in close contact?'
She dismissed the thought again.
There was no way Instructor Adelia and Student Han Cheon-seong could have been involved in such a thing. She could understand if some of the scent had lingered on Student David after receiving healing from Instructor Adelia, but…
'It must have been left by chance.'
Forcibly clearing her thoughts, she put some distance between herself and Student Han Cheon-seong again.
"Student Han Cheon-seong. Do you have any appointments or other plans later…?"
She had intended to just check on the two students and leave, but now that she had met him in person, it felt a shame to part ways so soon.
Since she had allowed him to use her private training room, it seemed like a good idea to properly teach him about magic engineering items today.
'Student Han Cheon-seong also missed class this afternoon.'
She thought her idea was perfectly reasonable as an instructor.
"No. I don't have any further plans. If it's something you need me to accompany you for, I'll prepare right away."
As expected, Student Han Cheon-seong readily agreed, which made him seem all the more admirable.
His willingness to work hard, and his lack of aversion to effort—all of it made a good impression.
"Then I'd like you to spend a little time with me…"
"Just a moment, Instructor Kali."
Suddenly, Instructor Adelia's voice made Kali stop speaking.
And she looked at Adelia and replied.
"Yes, Instructor Adelia."
"I'm sorry, but I'd like you to let Student Han Cheon-seong go for today."
"What are you suddenly talking about?"
At her untimely interference, Kali's brows furrowed slightly without realizing it.
Student Han Cheon-seong was strictly a student under her charge. She couldn't understand why Instructor Adelia was trying to interfere with her regarding Student Han Cheon-seong.
"I know Student Han Cheon-seong missed your lecture today, Instructor Kali. But that was already agreed upon between you and me, wasn't it?"
"…Yes, I'm aware of that. What I'm trying to tell Student Han Cheon-seong now isn't about the lecture."
"Even so, Instructor Kali, I made a promise to Student Han Cheon-seong today. I told him not to worry even if he missed class. In that sense, I'd like you to let him go for today."
Calmly yet steadily.
But unlike how she had looked at Kali before, Instructor Adelia met her gaze with an utterly indifferent expression, and for a moment, Kali was speechless.
She understood Instructor Adelia's words themselves.
That she thought highly of Student Han Cheon-seong and was being generous out of a pure heart, considering his friendship with Student David.
…But why?
Kali didn't know why her words sounded so unpleasant to her.
"Student Han Cheon-seong. Did my words perhaps make you feel pressured?"
So, without realizing it, she redirected the question.
She would hear the answer to that opinion 'directly' from Student Han Cheon-seong.