Chapter 32

Second, Atlant.

This man, in a broader sense, is similar in temperament to the 'Bayyan' I had cursed before.

He is quick to anger, violent, hot-tempered, and even cruel.

'The only difference is that Atlant is more playful?'

While the third, Agenor, waited for the strong to let their guard down to overturn the relationship, this guy enjoyed toying with the strong.

Especially in battle, he relished the sight of flowing blood. If we were to be precise, he was a madman who preferred to win by getting hit and bleeding, even when he could win without being hit.

What a troublesome family, to have so many madmen.

'Madness and madmen are just a hair's breadth apart.'

If I had taken one more step, I would have thought Atlant was just a madman.

But this guy was cunning and had his thoughts; he didn't indulge in bloodlust to the point of harming his position.

That was truly the mark of a calculating whale.

After finishing my thoughts, I stretched.

For now, I decided to just take note of Agenor's madness.

'After all, I won't be facing Atlant anytime soon.'

Agenor, as well as Atlant, would be in the intermediate division right now.

Being around the middle school age, I wouldn't have any reason to see them.

"Ruga."

"Ye! Lady!"

"Didn't you find Ruban?"

"Yeah. Do you want to sit down too?"

Since they were so active, I thought it would be hard to keep them for long, so I quickly spoke.

"You two are twins, right? You get along well."

"We don't get along!"

"We don't get along!"

"You don't get along?"

Ruga and Ruban looked at each other and nodded.

"Dad says we should get along... but Ruban always says he's the older brother."

"I am the older brother, right?"

"This is a lie. A lie. I'm the mature one, I'm the one who's patient."

"Don't be ridiculous. Lady, Ruga always lies!"

"Is that so?"

"Is that right?"

"Uh... Kids? Don't fight. Woah. Calm down."

I felt a sense of crisis that I might make the supposedly friendly twins fight.

I quickly intervened, squeezing between them to sit down.

Ruga and Ruban, as if they had never fought, each grabbed one of my hands and laughed happily.

"Wow, when we bicker, Lady holds our hands?"

"She does!"

"Don't learn from this, you cunning ones."

"Hehe."

I sighed deeply.

"Do you have any other siblings?"

"No. Mom doesn't want to have more."

"Dad is too busy!"

"Is that so?"

Usually, the heads of families don't have many children.

Grandma was an exception.

"Instead, we have a lot of cousins!"

"Really a lot!"

"Is that so?"

The whale children playing nearby seemed to take an interest in our conversation and started to gather.

I took the opportunity to ask if any of them had siblings.

"Our brother always takes our snacks!"

"Our brother is nice to us!"

"How old is your brother?"

"Twenty!"

"Next."

"I have a younger brother, but Mom only likes him..."

After a deep conversation, we concluded that in our class, it was rare for siblings to get along well, except for those with a significant age gap.

Still, it wasn't to the point of wanting to be bullied like the third brother; they had ordinary bickering but deep affection for their siblings.

"But Lady, Karone isn't here today."

"He's not here."

"Ah. I see."

While I was thinking about what kind of conversation to have with Agenor next based on the data, I was worried about the third brother's character and looked up.

'He's absent today, right?'

Karone had been absent for a few days.

Ever since the incident with me.

I was the only one who knew the reason, but I didn't show it to the twins.

"Is it more comfortable without Karone?"

Ruga and Ruban looked at each other and hesitated.

Their faces were clearly positive, but they seemed to be hesitating to answer.

"Does Karone not want to see the teachers?"

"I think he does."

Despite the teachers' rather laissez-faire approach to education, the children really liked their teachers.

I felt a strange mix of emotions seeing the twins think of Karone even after being bullied.

'If I were them, I'd probably think it's better if he never came back. Ah, I'd be disappointed that I can't take revenge myself.'

Is this what I lost, some kind of innocence?

I looked around the class.

Since Karone's absence, the atmosphere among the whale cadets had been a bit strange.

They used to stick together, but now they seemed to be divided into two groups.

Moreover, the groups subtly excluded or were hostile to each other.

It was a peculiar and strange atmosphere for something that had formed in just a few days.

'What's the criterion for dividing them?'

I hadn't had enough conversations or shown enough interest to know, so I just tilted my head.

And honestly, it was a waste of time to pay attention to those who weren't even a threat.

* * *

"Hello, Lady."

On the way back after all the classes were over, I met a familiar person in front of the classroom. It was Laila.

"Uh, do you have something to talk to me about?"

She stood there as if she had been waiting for me, which made me curious.

"No, not really. I just came to talk to the teacher of this class for a bit."

That was even more strange.

Why not call the teacher to her office? Didn't she usually do that?

From what I knew, Laila rarely left her office.

Come to think of it, we had met more often than usual lately.

"Then why not call the teacher?"

"Sometimes, I need to see things in person."

I thought for a moment and asked.

"Is it about the whale groups?"

"..."

Laila, who had been silent for a moment, smiled faintly.

"Most of what I do is related to the whale family."

She's dodging the question.

I shrugged. I had wanted to talk to Laila once, but today didn't seem like the right time.

Especially with the children still around, watching with curious eyes.

And it seemed she wasn't lying when she said she came to see the teacher, as Camille was waiting anxiously.

"Lady."

"Why?"

Just as I was about to turn and leave, Laila suddenly called me.

"Did you know there's a family meeting coming up?"

A family meeting. I already knew this from the Bluefish sisters.

I nodded, and Laila's face showed a slight surprise and interest.

"Did Pierre tell you?"

"No, but I have other sources."

"If it wasn't him, you're quite well-informed."

Is that so? I thought it was a common story since the Bluefish sisters talked about it so casually.

I shrugged.

Laila scanned the corridor and then looked at me intently.

She gracefully bent her knee to meet my eye level.

"Be careful, Lady."

Her voice was low.

Then, she leaned closer and whispered in my ear, a voice so soft only I could hear.

"Up until now, it's been common for promising candidates to disappear just before the family meeting."

I wasn't surprised.

Instead, I looked at Laila with clear eyes.

Soon, a beautiful smile appeared on my face.

"It's okay. Dad will protect me."

"Yes, that's true."

Laila also smiled, but soon wiped the smile away and said.

"But don't be complacent, Lady. This huge family has too many gaps."

"Thanks for the advice."

I said this, but since Dad wouldn't protect me, I became a bit serious.

'She must have warned me personally because she thinks something will happen.'

As I approached the stairs, Ruga and Ruban, as if they had been waiting, suddenly stuck out their heads.

Ah, I was startled.

The twins, who had been looking forward to this time, picked me up and carried me down the stairs.

...I'm getting used to this.

"Thanks, kids. Be careful on your way home."

"Ye! See you tomorrow, Lady!"

"See you tomorrow, Lady!"

Since the kids' dad wasn't picking them up today, someone else took the twins.

As I turned my head, I stopped.

"Wow, I'm surprised."

There, standing in casual clothes, was Agenor.