Chapter 30

Tears welled up at the kind voice. But since the students were watching, Hazel bit her lips desperately to hold them back.  

The noblewoman’s gaze fell on Hazel’s bag. Then, she whispered softly to Hazel, who flinched and shrank back.  

“It might be a good idea to get a new bag that can close properly. What if you lose something really important next time?”  

Hazel nodded and swallowed her tears. Only after confirming that Hazel had calmed down a bit did the noblewoman leave.  

Left alone in the spot, Hazel clutched her bag tightly to her chest. She couldn’t think of anything. She just wanted to disappear into dust and vanish from this place.  

Her steps felt unbearably heavy as she began walking. Each step weighed on her heart.  

She didn’t even remember how she made it into the building. Dragging her shoulders down, Hazel was stopped by Vivian.  

“Hazel, Hazel!”  

Vivian was already fussing before Hazel could even take off her outdoor cape.  

“I heard you’re going to work with Professor Meyer? And you’re even going to the Imperial Capital? What on earth happened for things to turn out like this? Can you handle it alone? Should I help you?”  

Hazel remained silent, overwhelmed by Vivian’s barrage of questions. She was too drained to respond properly.  

Vivian, however, paid no mind to Hazel’s lack of response and continued talking.  

“Why would they suddenly create a new course in the middle of the semester? It’s important, sure, but not so important that they’d go to such lengths. And of all people, why you and Professor Meyer?”  

Hazel replied with a bit of defiance.  

“I’m the only person suitable for the job. Of course, Professor Meyer is knowledgeable about the Imperial Family. They probably felt the need to give him a chance to save face. There’s a lot of talk going around since he suddenly came to the Academy.”  

To Hazel, none of that mattered anymore.  

‘Please, I hope the noblewoman doesn’t tell anyone…’  

Once she calmed down, she could objectively see how embarrassing her situation had been.  

A professor bringing something that blatantly resembled a man’s g*nitals to the Academy?  

And a professor of general education and literature at that.  

If someone said she lacked the refinement to teach children, she wouldn’t even be able to argue back.  

Hazel bit her lower lip hard. The thought that everything she had worked so hard to build could disappear in an instant because of one mistake terrified her to the point of madness.  

“Hazel?”  

Vivian, now realizing something was off, cautiously called her name.  

“Huh? Did you call me?”  

Feigning nonchalance, Hazel quickly hid her bag out of sight.  

“You don’t look well. Did something happen?”  

Concern lingered deep in Vivian’s eyes. Hazel wiped the cold sweat from her forehead and replied,  

“I’ve just been busy lately. It’s that time of the year.”  

“Well, true. Things are so hectic that I can’t even remember how the day goes by.”  

As Hazel had hoped, Vivian shifted the topic. Hazel let out a sigh of relief and sat down in a chair.  

She had embarrassed herself in front of a noblewoman who was likely a guardian of one of the students.  

Hazel glanced at her bag with a resentful look. She had left it on her bedside table, so why was it here?  

Suppressing the urge to scream, “What did I do to deserve this?” Hazel let out a deep sigh.  

Then, she clasped her hands together and prayed earnestly.  

Please, if you have any pity for me, let nothing come of this. And please, take that cursed object far away from me.  

She wanted to confide in someone—anyone. It was too heavy a burden to bear alone.  

“Hey, Vivian.”  

Vivian’s eyes sparkled at the tone that made it obvious something was up.  

“…Never mind.”  

But when Hazel shook her head and dismissed it, Vivian looked exasperated and annoyed.  

“Do you have something on your mind?”  

“Well, yes, but…”  

“Is it about a man?”  

“Kind of, but also not really…?”  

Vivian raised an eyebrow at Hazel’s vague answer.  

“If you can’t talk about it, why bring it up in the first place? Now I’m dying of curiosity!”  

“I don’t know how to say it…”  

Vivian crossed her arms and stared down at Hazel for a moment before snorting and flipping her hair back.  

“Fine. It’s not like this is the first time you’ve acted like this. You always keep things to yourself, even when you’re clearly troubled.”  

The pointed remark hit a sore spot, and Hazel let out an awkward laugh.  

Avoiding Vivian’s disapproving gaze, Hazel fidgeted with her fingers.  

She was dying to talk about Enoch Meyer.  

She always told her students to seek advice from those around them if they couldn’t solve a problem on their own, but here she was, failing to follow her own advice.  

After hesitating for a long while, Hazel cautiously began.  

“What would you do if the person you’re seeing turned out to be a huge pervert?”  

“Lord Meyer is a pervert?”  

“W-What? No, that’s not it!”  

Though Hazel had carefully crafted her question, Vivian’s lighthearted response made it feel as though it had been blown away by the wind.  

When Hazel raised her voice to deny it, Vivian gave her a skeptical look.  

Hazel’s face turned pale, and cold sweat trickled down her back. Vivian, who was scanning her up and down, shrugged and said,  

“Well, I guess it depends on what kind of pervert he is. Either way, it wouldn’t be pleasant. He’d probably expect me to cater to his preferences. Once or twice might be fine, but doing it every time would be exhausting.”  

“…I guess you’re right.”  

Hazel already knew as much, but it suddenly struck her that Enoch had never adjusted to her preferences. She always had to cater to his.  

As a faint sense of resentment began to build in her chest, Vivian casually asked,  

“If Lord Meyer isn’t the pervert, then are you the pervert?”  

“I told you, it’s nothing like that!”  

Hazel shouted so loudly that her face burned with heat. Vivian frowned and covered her ears.  

“Why are you so sensitive? I was just asking.”  

“Because you keep, you keep…!”  

“Keep what? You knew I’d ask, so why bring it up? If you didn’t want to talk about it, you shouldn’t have said anything!”  

Faced with Vivian’s relentless criticism, Hazel clamped her mouth shut. There was no undoing what had already been said.  

As Hazel let out a deep sigh and buried her face in her hands, Vivian, suppressing a laugh, said,  

“Costumes are pretty common, you know. A lot of men like maid outfits, surprisingly. But I’d never do it. I believe that if I’m going to cater to someone’s preferences, they should cater to mine too.”  

Wait. Enoch Meyer in a maid outfit?  

The image of him in a dark maid’s dress with a white apron flashed in her mind, and Hazel slapped her own cheek.  

What am I thinking?  

Have I gone mad?  

Enoch Meyer in a maid outfit? A pervert?  

Startled by Hazel suddenly slapping her cheeks, Vivian looked at her in disbelief.  

“Are you insane?”  

“Maybe.”  

When Hazel replied with a dazed expression, Vivian clicked her tongue.  

“I knew it. You’ve been overworked from the start. You haven’t had a proper break, have you? You can barely manage your classes. You should ask the Dean for a day off before you collapse.”  

Even knowing it was impossible, Hazel appreciated the sentiment. Letting out a deep sigh, she leaned back in her chair.  

I am tired.  

On top of being overwhelmed with work, she had to deal with Enoch Meyer’s desires.  

It wasn’t that she hated it, but the lack of time to recover from her exhaustion was the real problem.  

“By the way, have you heard the news?”  

Vivian, pulling up a chair to sit across from Hazel, asked.  

“What news?”