Chapter 54

Afterward, Elena was able to hear the full story from Felix.

The Emron Potion container she had was swapped, and something else had been added to it.

Thanks to Felix, who rushed in and used a defensive spell after realizing what had happened, greater damage was avoided.

With the help of a witness, they quickly identified the culprit. It was Nate, an eighth-year student in their department.

Elena knew him too. He was the boy often mocked as “Eternal Second Place Nate.”

As soon as she heard what he had done, Elena could guess that Nate’s actions were driven by jealousy toward Felix.

Although they worried that Nate might deny the accusations, he surprisingly confessed without resistance. Or rather, he lashed out at them.

“Yeah, I did it. So what?”

Such audacity left Elena speechless, but Felix stopped her from stepping forward.

Felix calmly asked,

“Why did you swap the Emron Potion with the Blown Potion?”

Elena gasped. The Blown Potion was classified as a hazardous item.

If shaken, it could explode, requiring careful handling. Running with such a potion could have had disastrous consequences.

If it truly had been the Blown Potion, Felix surviving unscathed was nothing short of a miracle.

“Why aren’t you answering? I asked why you swapped it.”

“…Because…”

“What?”

“Because I can’t stand you!”

Nate shouted in a fit of rage, his eyes bloodshot.

Felix let out a hollow laugh, which seemed to provoke Nate further. Nate grabbed Felix by the collar.

“Nate, stop…!”

Elena tried to pry his hand away, but Felix gestured for her to stay back. Deciding to observe for now, she stepped away, trusting Felix to handle himself.

Nate began to pour out the resentment he had bottled up inside.

“You’ve always been like this! Always looking down on me and ignoring me! You treated me like trash just because I always came second to you!”

“I’ve never done that.”

“Don’t lie!”

Elena wanted to correct him. Felix didn’t just ignore Nate; he ignored everyone.

But saying that would only add fuel to the fire, so she kept quiet.

“Do you find it funny to see me struggling? While someone like you, who’s naturally talented, can achieve everything with a snap of your fingers, I have to practice hundreds, thousands of times. Is that amusing to you?”

“I swear, I’ve never thought that.”

“Don’t lie to me!”

Thud. Nate finally punched Felix in the face. Felix wiped the blood from his lips with the back of his hand and spoke expressionlessly.

“Feel better now?”

“What?”

“I asked if you feel better now that you’ve done what you wanted.”

“You bastard!”

Nate clenched his fist again, but Elena stepped in front of Felix, spreading her arms wide.

However, Nate, already blinded by rage, swung his fist at her instead.

This is going to hurt…! But if I dodge, Felix will get hit!

Elena didn’t avoid the punch and squeezed her eyes shut. But there was no pain.

Peeking through her lashes, she saw Felix holding Nate’s fist with one hand. Nate’s hand trembled violently.

Felix gently twisted Nate’s fist and pushed him away. Nate lost his balance and fell to the ground.

“That’s enough. I’ve put up with your tantrum long enough.”

“Ugh, always acting so superior! You’re just lucky to have been born with talent! If I were as gifted as you… No, if you didn’t exist…!”

Elena couldn’t bear to listen anymore. She placed her hands on her hips and shouted as threateningly as she could.

“What do you even know?!”

Admittedly, Elena had once thought like Nate.

She believed that someone like Felix, who had everything, could never understand ordinary people like her. She thought he belittled her efforts.

But she was wrong. Felix worked hard in his own way.

Yes, he was naturally talented enough to be called a prodigy. But without effort, Felix wouldn’t be who he was today.

Even in written exams, where Elena almost always scored perfect marks, Felix was consistently second.

In truth, they were the ones belittling Felix under the guise of “talent.”

“Felix works hard too. You say you came in second because of him? That you’d have been first if he weren’t here? Ridiculous! You’ve lost to him in written exams too! If it’s a matter of effort, shouldn’t you have beaten him in those? And let’s not forget, you’ve never beaten me in written exams either!”

“What do you know, you who only scrape by in practicals?!”

Elena flared up.

This guy was worse than Felix!

“Yeah, I’m not great at practicals. So what? At least I can take pride in myself. I’ve always done my best and earned fair results. Unlike you, I don’t blame others!”

“…”

“Judging by how you’re acting now, you clearly have no intention of reflecting on your actions. Fine, I won’t ask for an apology. Let’s handle this by the rules! Don’t expect me to plead for leniency on your behalf!”

With that, Elena grabbed Felix’s arm and pulled him along.

“Let’s go.”

“Alright.”

Felix followed her without resistance. Once outside the classroom, Elena scolded him while looking at his injured lip.

“Are you out of your mind? Why didn’t you dodge? Why let yourself get hit? Did you learn swordsmanship for nothing?”

“Are you worried about me?”

Felix teased, clearly referencing her earlier concern in the infirmary.

Scoffing, Elena denied it.

“Worried? As if. I’m just saying it’s pathetic.”

Felix chuckled.

“What’s so funny?”

“You.”

“Whatever. Just go to the infirmary. Or better yet, heal yourself with magic.”

At that, his lip healed instantly. No incantation, no gestures.

So infuriating.

Elena muttered under her breath.

“Now I understand how Nate felt.”

Felix raised an eyebrow.

“What?”

“Nothing. It’s resolved now, so I’m leaving.”

Elena waved him off and went to prepare for her next test. In twenty minutes, she had a retake for the Magic Potion class.

Behind her, Felix called out,

“Are you really not going to forgive Nate?”

“Nope. Let him get expelled.”

“Well then…”

‘Good,’ Felix’s voice drifted after her. Ignoring him, Elena headed to class with the correct Emron Potion container this time.

***

“Did you hear? Nate got expelled.”

A few days after the Emron Potion incident, Penny, the informant of their department, brought the news.

“Really?”

“Yeah. Apparently, his parents made a fuss in the department head’s office, demanding he apologize, but he refused to the end. They say he can’t even transfer to another academy.”

Someone, upon hearing this, remarked that it was too harsh, considering there were only six months left and transferring was impossible.

Alice glared at the source of the voice and scolded them.

“What did you just say? Too harsh? And it wasn’t too harsh that our Elly almost got hurt?”

“Well, I mean… it’s just a way of speaking.”

The owner of the voice immediately backed down.

“Anyway, you don’t need to feel guilty, Elly. Nate is just paying for his crimes.”

“I don’t feel guilty.”

Elena responded without a moment’s hesitation.

“He’s the one who did wrong, not me. If anyone should feel guilty, it’s Nate.”

She stood up with her book in hand and went to check the bulletin board on the first floor of the Magic Wing. The rankings for the midterm exams were posted there.

『Written Exam Rankings