Chapter 299: Wint’s Response

Chapter 299

Wint’s Response

After Ellie’s bold move, many students grew to like her even more. However, it also made some feel that she wasn’t friendly with the new student. After this, there might be rumors about a conflict between them, but Ellie didn’t care.

With someone like Student Grace, it was better to become enemies openly. The consequences of being an enemy were less frightening than being friends and then being betrayed.

An enemy’s actions would make it clear to others that they had ill intentions towards each other. But as friends, it would make Ellie seem worse. It was like before, where she ended up fighting with a friend over a boy. Even though it was true, people didn’t know the real story behind it, and those who valued friendship ended up hating her too.

Well...Ellie didn’t want to care about this anymore, but Grace’s demeanor and actions were so similar that she couldn’t help but think about the past.

Professor Lucien reprimanded his student and forced her back to the Light Element Building to focus on her studies. He also instructed other students to keep an eye on her and report if she tried to leave. He even arranged for her meals to be delivered, effectively grounding her as punishment for causing trouble.

After handling his disciple within a few minutes, he returned to the Botanical Building. Seeing Medik’s look, he understood what he wanted. Upon arriving, he saw Ellie sitting with Professor Medik, who seemed at a loss for words. Lucien broke the awkward atmosphere.

"Student Ellie, shouldn’t you be heading to the Stratagem Branch?"

"Oh, I’ll go now," Ellie replied immediately. With Lucien’s arrival, the initial awkward atmosphere eased. The young professor dismissed Ellie, and she complied. Even though Professor Medik seemed to want to ask her something, he couldn’t find the words. It just felt like something was bothering him.

"She rarely comes by, and you’re sending my student away already," Medik grumbled a bit, but Lucien didn’t care. He sat down beside Medik, intending to remind him of this matter specifically.

He knew that Medik was very fond of his student, and Lucien felt the same way. A diligent and intelligent student was hard to find, and Ellie had never caused trouble before. It was no wonder that Medik had so much faith in her. Medik’s immediate rush to defend his student when he thought she was being bullied was similar to how he had once become Lucien’s adversary to fight for justice for his student. Because of this, Lucien thought highly of Medik.

However, not being cautious in showing affection towards one’s student could create problems later on...

"Do you know what mistake you made today?" Lucien jumped straight to the point, causing Medik to pause.

"I...”

"I understand you’re very protective of your student, but by doing what you did...I’m afraid it might cause trouble for her in the future."

"What do you mean? I just wanted to defend Ellie’s reputation."

"I understand, but...you need to see what the situation really is. Don’t let others’ words sway you. If you and Ellie had reprimanded those students today just for talking about her past, do you think other students would still think positively of Ellie after today? In the future, they’ll be cautious with their words and always being tensed when approaching her. Would anyone want to be around someone who can get people in trouble just for speaking facts? How do you think they will see her then?"

"Well, about that..." Medik wanted to retort that it was his disciple who started this whole thing. But when he reconsidered Lucien’s gaze as he looked at his own disciple, Medik realized that Lucien had been critical of his disciple from the beginning.

"You didn’t notice because you weren’t being careful. Luckily, your student was quick-witted and managed to defuse the situation. Remember, you can’t judge someone’s heart in just a few days. You need to observe and investigate more thoroughly. You’ll eventually understand the true motives behind their actions and words. Also...even though it’s not something I should say as a professor...don’t forget she’s from the Rhea Kingdom."

Upon hearing this, Medik realized that both Ellie and Lucien didn’t seem to genuinely like the new student. His first thought was that they were prejudiced against people from the Rhea Kingdom. However, upon reflecting on Student Grace’s words and actions, he began to see some troubling signs.

"When did you...start noticing?"

"I started after your student. As I’ve always said, your student is smart and observant. Because of that, I noticed she had certain attitudes towards the new student. But I didn’t just believe her suspicions. I observed Grace’s actions and found Ellie’s concerns to be somewhat valid."

"She hasn’t been very focused on her studies but has tried too hard to get close to me. I don’t understand what her intentions are. Also, I’ve heard her inquiring about other male students from those in the Light Element Building. Because of this...you should be cautious."

"Her older sister has to marry into a noble family by royal decree. So, she might be concerned about her own status. The Ares Kingdom won’t ignore her, after all. With her special abilities, they’ll likely find her a suitable match. If you don’t want to be her partner, then keep some distance from her."

Lucien didn’t know exactly what the young woman’s goal was, but he based his concerns on observable facts. Even if his worries weren’t entirely accurate, they were very close to the truth. His concern for Medik was substantial; the other man was too soft-hearted and easily worried. If Grace managed to get close, Medik might easily fall for her. Therefore, to prevent such a scenario, Lucien needed to give him a stern warning.

“Is she really looking for a partner?” Medik was slightly startled, but considering what Lucien said, it did seem plausible. Medik began to feel a headache forming. He was the type who focused solely on work, never imagining what it would be like to have a wife and children causing a ruckus. How would he handle that?

Seeing his target started to come to his senses, Lucien relaxed. He didn’t let Medik stew in his thoughts for too long, pouring him a cup of hot tea to calm his nerves.

"Don’t worry too much. I just wanted to make you cautious. There’s no need to overthink it." Lucien offered some sweets from his dimensional ring to cheer Medik up. The young professor, who had been anxious, immediately brightened at the sight of the sweets. Finally, the atmosphere in the Botanical Building returned to normal.

Meanwhile, after returning to her room, Ellie collapsed onto her old but surprisingly soft mattress. This recent confrontation was the first time she had faced someone who felt like her former "best friend." She had planned numerous responses in her mind for if the other party said this or that, all to be ready to retaliate one day.

She swore to herself she wouldn’t let herself be bullied like a fool again. Having succeeded this time, Ellie was so happy that she almost couldn’t hide her smile. It felt like a significant step in overcoming her inner turmoil. From now on, she wouldn’t fear facing the other party again.

However...this excessive familiarity made Ellie genuinely curious. If she could use spores to track the other person, she might discover who they really were. Why did the newcomer’s behavior mirror someone she once knew so closely?

Ellie even had a negative thought: perhaps the author of this story hated her for being such an unlikable character, so much so that they sent someone who once defeated her to handle her again. But even if that were true...Ellie wanted to tell the author that: Sorry, but the person who once defeated me has only made me stronger. Ellie wouldn’t be a pawn again!!

Just as she was about to close her eyes to rest, the visitors arrived at her door...

Upon hearing that the duchess they were supposed to protect had encountered trouble, Wint and Zoey, as if thinking alike, left their classes to talk to Ellie. Initially, they thought Ellie would be in the Botanical Building, but they only found the two professors talking there. So, they had to search elsewhere, with only 2 possible locations remaining: her dorm room and the Stratagem Branch.

At the Stratagem Branch, Ellie typically went early in the morning, so Wint and Zoey guessed that she would be in her room, and it was correct.

"Duchess Ellie." Little Zoey was so worried about Ellie. She had heard that Ellie had talked about her village and wasn’t sure if she had come to terms with Nara’s passing. Wint, on the other hand, didn’t think Ellie would be sad about Nara’s death, given that they had always been enemies. He was more concerned about what happened afterward. He had heard that Ellie had even quarreled with a new student and rebuked her in front of many people.

Wint had hoped Ellie would make friends like she used to have Nara from their village. But when Nara turned against her, they became enemies. Although Ellie had friends like Vida and Aria, they were only distant friends, not close enough for Ellie to confide in.

In Wint’s mind, a young girl like Ellie should have trusted friends by her side. But once again, Ellie faced trouble because of a new friend.

For Wint, the new student was interesting, but she would be more interesting if she could become friend with Ellie. The petite woman he saw was incredibly resilient. Besides the Setter family, who were genuinely kind to her, no other friends seemed to be able to support her. Initially, he thought following Ellie would bring attention to his family, but after over a year, Wint saw Ellie as a friend.

Still, having him as a friend wasn’t the same as having female friends, right? Seeing Ellie in trouble again made Wint feel like history was repeating itself with Nara, and he feared Ellie would overthink the situation.

"Duchess Ellie, are you resting?" Wint called out. His voice was louder, so it annoyed Ellie, uh, well...it caught Ellie’s attention more effectively.

Ellie had just returned to her room and hadn’t even rested when the persistent visitors called for her. Eventually, she had to open the door for them.

"What do you want?"

"Duchess Ellie..." As soon as Zoey saw her master—her kind senior—she couldn’t hold back her tears any longer. She rushed to hug Ellie, catching her off guard and causing Ellie to stumble back two steps. Fortunately, Wint acted quickly. Upon seeing that Ellie was about to fall, he placed his hand on Ellie’s back to prevent her from falling to the ground.

Wint glared at his junior and disciple, pulling Zoey away from Ellie as quickly as possible.

“What are you doing?”

“Sob, Duchess Ellie...even if you lost a friend from your village, I’m also a scholarship student, so I understand you. If anything happens or you need to talk, sniffle, you can come to me anytime. I...I. Besides being your knight, I can also listen to you,” Zoey, in her naivety, cried out, looking even sadder than Ellie herself.

Wint smacked the young girl lightly on the head when he heard this. Did someone like Ellie really have time to grieve over such a loss? He feared she was brooding over the new student.

“You’re being too silly. If you keep talking nonsense, I’ll send you away.”

“Ah! No. I...sob, I won’t say anything more,” Zoey, not wanting to be sent away, quickly wiped her tears.

Seeing these two come to her immediately upon hearing about her quarrel with the new student, Ellie couldn’t help but smile.

“So, what brings you both to me?” Ellie asked again. Wint released his hold on Zoey and looked at Ellie as if trying to gauge her thoughts. Ellie raised her eyebrows at him, prompting Wint to sigh.

“I thought you might be overthinking about the new student, so I came to see you.”

“Oh, so...what do you think?”

“Hmm?”

“About the new student. What do you think of her?” Wint squinted slightly at the question. Normally, if someone else asked this, he might think the girl was jealous of him and the new student. But this was Ellie. She wouldn’t ask out of such feelings. There must be more to the question, so he had to think carefully.

However, Ellie didn’t want an answer right away. She turned to little Zoey and asked the same question.

“Zoey, what do you think about the new student?”

“E-Eh? Me?... Uh, about the new student, I...I think she seems like a good person, doesn’t she? But I haven’t seen her much, only in the cafeteria. Maybe because we’re in different grades, we don’t talk. But I’ve heard others talk about her. They say she’s approachable, kind, and not arrogant at all.”

“Is that so?” Ellie smiled indifferently, but Zoey and Wint were different. Zoey didn’t understand the question deeply, but Wint did.

When he heard Zoey’s answer, stating she didn’t interact much with the new student but still said she seemed like a good person; just hearing that...Wint felt as if he was facing a worthy competitor.

While he played the role of a knight who upheld justice, someone else could make people believe in them just as convincingly?

“Dangerous,” this was Wint’s response, and it made Ellie laugh out loud.