Chapter 27

Professor Karel crossed his arms, looking even more displeased.

“Why should I answer you? You have no right to know such things.”

“If you won’t answer, I’ll ask Judith directly.”

“Ha?”

Despite the incredulous laugh, Chase was undeterred and strode over to Judith.

Soon, he asked her with a determined look in his eyes.

“Judith, why did Professor Karel call you here?”

“He just wanted to talk about the assistant professor position. It’s nothing.”

What kind of misunderstanding had Chase had that he barged in like this?

After hearing her words, Chase was silent for a moment before speaking again.

“I knew it. I’m glad I came.”

“…”

Now Judith was just anxious about what he might do next.

Chase soon shifted his gaze from Judith and began to scrutinize the office with hawk-like eyes.

His gaze stopped at the desk Professor Karel had set up for Judith.

Chase frowned as if he had seen something distasteful.

“What on earth is that desk? Why does it have Judith’s name on the nameplate? Did you assume she’d become an assistant professor and set it up?”

Thud.

His words were excessively rude. Startled, Judith quickly covered Chase’s mouth with her hand.

But it was already too late. Professor Karel had heard everything Chase had said.

In a voice so cold it sent shivers down the spine, Professor Karel spoke.

“Why act like a child who’s had candy taken away? You keep pretending to be the victim, but the real victim here is me. If it weren’t for you, Judith would have…”

Professor Karel, filled with frustration, gritted his teeth.

Their eyes locked in a fierce battle, as if they were about to devour each other.

Caught between two fighting whales, Judith felt like the shrimp whose back was about to break.

The tension was so thick it seemed to freeze the very air. Not even the sound of swallowing could be heard.

Complete silence.

The first to break eye contact was Professor Karel. He turned to Judith and spoke in a low tone.

“Judith, my business with you is finished. You can leave now.”

“What? But…”

Judith hesitated to leave the office. She was anxious about what might happen between the two if she left.

But Professor Karel knew an easy way to get Judith to leave.

“Why aren’t you going? Do you secretly want to be an assistant professor while saying otherwise?”

“I’ll see you next time, Professor.”

Bang.

As if she had never hesitated, Judith quickly disappeared from the office.

Professor Karel stared at the firmly closed door, then turned his gaze away.

He had expected the tactic to work well, but not this well…

Anyway, now the only ones left in the office were himself and Chase.

Professor Karel was utterly baffled and incredulous at this situation.

In his 14 years of teaching at Prussian Academy, he had never encountered a student as insolent as this.

Chase Cardandy, who had chosen accounting as a minor but was notorious for skipping classes.

Chase was on the verge of not graduating due to lack of attendance and failing grades. To graduate, he needed to win favor with Professor Karel.

Yet, instead of trying to ingratiate himself, he was glaring insolently. His red eyes were openly filled with dissatisfaction.

Tap, tap.

Professor Karel uncrossed his arms and walked toward Chase. With Judith gone, there was no one to mediate between them.

Despite having every reason to feel intimidated, Chase glared back fiercely. It was almost laughable, given his youth.

Stopping right in front of Chase, Professor Karel spoke.

“Chase, be honest. Are you upset that I called Judith to my office?”

He asked if Chase was upset, but didn’t expect him to actually admit it.

However, Chase was bolder than Professor Karel had anticipated.

“To be more precise, I’m upset that you offered Judith the assistant professor position.”

Oh?

Professor Karel was taken aback. He placed his hands on his hips and smirked sarcastically.

“Why? Are you afraid? That Judith becoming an assistant professor will mean she won’t marry you?”

He expected Chase to hesitate before answering, given his personality. But Chase glanced at the door Judith had exited and answered without hesitation.

“Yes.”

“…”

Professor Karel was at a loss for words. Feeling a headache coming on, he rubbed his forehead.

“Do you actually like Judith?”

He asked just in case, but Chase’s face, usually insolent, turned bright red.

“No! Why would you misunderstand like that—”

“Then why?”

Interrupting Chase, Professor Karel pressed him further. Chase lowered his gaze and mumbled.

“Because when Judith is around, annoying people don’t approach me…”

“Really?”

After a moment of hesitation, Chase added.

“Breaking off the engagement and finding a new fiancée would be troublesome, so I don’t want to break it off if possible.”

“Hmm.”

Professor Karel stroked his chin thoughtfully.

Listening to Chase, it all sounded like excuses. Chase was avoiding eye contact and trailing off.

But he didn’t press further.

For whatever reason, it was clear Chase didn’t want to end the engagement with Judith.

Now it made sense why Chase had come banging on the door, demanding entry to the office.

Of course, understanding didn’t mean condoning his behavior. His insolence was still unacceptable.

Professor Karel tried to look down on Chase to intimidate him.

But he failed. The insolent boy was unnecessarily tall.

Feeling even more displeased, Professor Karel furrowed his brow and asked in an accusatory tone.

“If Judith truly wants to be a professor, what will you do? Will you make her give up a good opportunity because of you?”

Chase’s expression faltered. His red eyes wavered with guilt. But it was brief, and he soon firmed his expression and spoke.

“If that’s the case, I’ll step aside without complaint.”

Chase met Professor Karel’s gaze without flinching.

“But it doesn’t seem like Judith wants to be an assistant professor right now.”

“…”

“So please don’t force the assistant professor position on her.”

“Oh?”

Their fierce gazes clashed again in the air.

After a long stare-down, Professor Karel declared.

“I have no intention of giving up on Judith.”

Chase, equally resolute, replied.

“Neither do I.”

His defiant gaze showed no hesitation.

Seeing this, Professor Karel let out a hollow laugh.

The impudent young man was being audacious beyond belief.

* * *

Time passed, and the first day of the remedial class arrived.

Having stayed up all night preparing for the class, Judith was in terrible shape. She trudged towards the classroom, her feet heavy.

Stopping at the door, Judith sighed briefly.

Once she opened this door, Cedric and Riana would be there, too.

How should I face them?

At least her tired face with dark circles was a blessing. If her expression crumpled, they would attribute it to fatigue.

Creak-.

She opened the door and entered the classroom. But the scene inside made Judith’s eyes widen.

There was only one person in the classroom.

It was Cedric.

Class was about to start, so why hadn’t anyone else shown up?

Judith, puzzled, stopped at the door. Cedric nonchalantly called out to her.

“Judith, why aren’t you coming in?”

“…Why are you the only one here?”

“Who knows, maybe everyone decided to skip.”

Judith blinked. If anyone were to skip, she would have expected it to be Cedric.

Could there be some mistake?

She was about to leave the classroom to investigate when Cedric called her back.

“Where are you going? We should start the class.”

“But no one’s here yet. For everyone to skip like this, something must be wrong.”

“There’s no need for that.”

His tone suggested he knew something. Judith gave him a suspicious look.

Sensing her gaze, he smiled and spoke.

“Actually, I altered the notice. I changed the class time to be a bit later than the actual time.”

He said it so casually that it took Judith a moment to grasp the meaning. She blinked several times before asking.

“…Why did you do that?”

Cedric’s smile deepened at her question.

“Because I wanted to have a conversation with you.”

“What?”

Judith was at a loss for words.