Chapter 49

Rodein decided to apologize to Judith for his past mistakes.

He intended to apologize for approaching her with ulterior motives and, if possible, ask her to allow him to attend the remedial classes again.

In one hand, he held a box wrapped in luxurious gold foil.

He hoped that by presenting this gift as a token of sincerity, she would understand that his feelings were genuine.

Clenching his fist, he looked around. The quiet campus suggested that all classes had ended.

Rodein assumed Judith had already returned to the dormitory and headed straight for the dormitory supervisor’s office without hesitation.

As a male, he couldn’t just enter the female dormitory, so he needed to get permission from the famously strict supervisor.

Arriving in front of the supervisor’s office, Rodein swallowed nervously.

Knock, knock, knock.

He knocked politely and opened the door to the supervisor’s office.

The supervisor, wearing sharp triangular glasses, turned to look at Rodein.

“What brings you here?”

The supervisor scrutinized Rodein from head to toe with a stern gaze.

“Hello, I’m Rodein Roziena, a first-year student. I was hoping to visit a student for a moment…”

“No, you can’t. Give up and go back.”

The supervisor turned her back on him. Her slightly hunched back seemed like an iron wall.

But Rodein couldn’t give up after coming this far.

Having done some background research, he knew that the supervisor enjoyed reading romantic novels.

Clearing his throat, Rodein began to act with as much sincerity as possible.

“-Actually, there’s a student I really want to confess my love to.”

The supervisor, who had paused for a moment, turned back.

“……What did you just say? I must have misheard because my hearing isn’t what it used to be.”

It worked.

Internally celebrating, Rodein maintained a look of melancholic sincerity.

“I recently realized my feelings. That I deeply love her.”

“Well, even so-.”

“But before realizing that, I had already made a huge mistake towards her.”

The supervisor tried to interrupt, but Rodein continued without faltering.

“At first, I approached her with rather impure intentions. To hinder her, as she’s a top student. ……I was a bad person.”

“How could you do such a terrible thing?”

The supervisor, now emotionally invested in his story, looked at Rodein with her mouth agape.

Rodein hung his head low, muttering as if to himself.

“But during my time with her, I genuinely fell for her.”

“Oh dear!”

Tears like chicken droppings were flowing from Rodein’s eyes. He pressed his chest with his arm and said,

“I feel like I might die if I don’t confess my feelings to her soon. Because she’s stolen my heart.”

Though he felt very embarrassed, fortunately, it had the desired effect. The supervisor was now silently watching Rodein’s actions with her hand over her mouth.

Just a little longer to endure, it would soon be over.

Encouraging himself, Rodein spoke again.

“But she’s avoiding me now. I’m afraid I’ll never see her again. I’m scared we’ll drift apart.”

“……”

“So today, I want to meet her, give her this gift, apologize, and honestly confess my feelings. Is that not possible?”

When he presented the gold-foiled box, the supervisor’s eyes began to glisten with tears.

Hearing Rodein’s pitiful story, the supervisor’s heart softened quickly.

However, no matter how touched she was, she couldn’t break the rules and let a male student into the female dormitory.

After some contemplation, she asked Rodein,

“What is the name of this girl?”

“Judith, ma’am.”

“Judith, Judith… Or perhaps I could call for her and have her come out-.”

At that moment, a girl passing by the window caught the supervisor’s eye.

A girl with black-rimmed glasses carrying a bag of cookies, none other than Judith’s roommate, Hannah.

The supervisor quickly opened the window and called out to her.

“Hannah!”

Fortunately, Hannah stopped at the loud voice. The supervisor gestured for her to come inside quickly.

Soon, Hannah stood in front of Rodein, looking puzzled. The supervisor, placing her hands on Hannah’s shoulders, spoke to Rodein.

“Rodein, this is Hannah, Judith’s roommate.”

The supervisor continued, as if doing him a favor.

“I can’t let you into the female dormitory due to the rules, but perhaps you could ask Hannah to call Judith outside for you.”

“Thank you for your consideration.”

Hannah, who had been brought in suddenly, looked bewildered but widened her eyes as she grasped the situation from the ongoing conversation.

The supervisor explained the situation to Hannah in a whisper.

“This boy says he has something important to tell Judith. Hannah, could you please call Judith from the dormitory?”

“What?”

Hannah looked troubled.

“But Judith hasn’t returned to the dormitory yet.”

“……Oh, is that so?”

“Um… But I could pass the message to her when she returns.”

“But it seems he wants to convey something quite personal.”

After some thought, the supervisor turned to Rodein and said,

“What do you think? You could explain the situation to Hannah and leave the gift with her, or you could wait outside until Judith returns. It’s your choice.”

Grateful even for this, Rodein bowed deeply to the supervisor.

* * *

Walking side by side after leaving the supervisor’s office, Hannah and Rodein conversed.

Since he couldn’t keep his intentions entirely secret while asking for help, Rodein decided to confide a bit about his purpose to her.

He briefly explained that he had approached Judith with impure intentions, and now that she knew, he wanted to apologize.

“……That’s what happened.”

“I see.”

“So, um…”

Rodein swallowed hard.

“I’d really like to meet Judith in person and apologize. Could I wait for her to return?”

Hannah, who initially seemed hesitant, nodded after Rodein persistently pleaded.

“Alright, I understand. She shouldn’t be too late, so you probably won’t have to wait long.”

Then she seemed to think about something for a moment, remaining silent.

“……”

This created a strangely awkward atmosphere. With no common ground other than Judith, their conversation quickly stalled.

Since there wasn’t much to discuss with Hannah, Rodein thought this might be for the best.

But as they neared the dormitory building, Hannah cautiously spoke.

“……Just asking out of curiosity, but do you perhaps have a crush on Judith?”

Crush, that short word pricked Rodein’s pride.

However, realizing that his feelings were indeed obvious to those around him, Rodein quietly nodded.

“Yes, that’s right. Since you said you’re close to Judith, your help would be greatly appreciated.”

Rodein lowered his gaze with a forlorn expression. He added a statement that would compel anyone with a heart to help.

“Of course, I wouldn’t want to impose if it troubles you.”

Despite his efforts, Hannah remained oddly silent.

Surely she wouldn’t refuse at this point?

Feeling a bit anxious, Rodein soon heard Hannah speak.

“Helping you isn’t a problem. But.”

Hannah’s lips moved slightly. She seemed to be hesitating.

“But?”

“But actually, Judith-.”

Hannah’s lips moved again.

It was frustrating. Why was she stopping mid-sentence? It wasn’t like she was trying to tease him on purpose.

Suppressing the urge to urge her to speak quickly, Rodein waited patiently.

But Hannah’s next reaction only added to his frustration.

“No, I shouldn’t be the one to say this.”

“……”

Unaware of Rodein’s incredulous expression, Hannah muttered to herself, holding her head in confusion.

“What should I do? Why is God giving me such a harsh trial?”

“I don’t know what you’re worried about, but they say God only gives trials that one can overcome.”

Rodein spoke with eyes filled with melancholy.

“So if you feel comfortable, you can tell me. I’ll keep it a secret.”

“Do you really think so?”

“Of course.”

Perhaps touched by Rodein’s words, Hannah’s delicate eyes shimmered like fluttering leaves.