Chapter 31: Academy Trip (part 1)

The smell of bread filled the room. The sound of a crunchy crust and the aroma of butter mixed with flour lingered in the air. The scent was coming from Dinua herself, who also smelled like sweet bread. 

As the room, which previously had a slightly fishy smell, became fragrant, a smile tugged at the corners of my mouth. Scent, after all, had a way of affecting one’s mood. The warm sunlight streamed through the open window. 

The bread I had just eaten made me even hungrier. I closed my eyes for a moment and lay down on the bed naturally. 

“Let’s sleep for five minutes or ten minutes…” 

With that thought in mind, I closed my eyes. Just then, someone poked me in the cheek. 

Was it Senior Dinua? Was there something I needed to do besides read a book? 

But I didn’t want to get up. I didn’t want to break the serene feeling of sleeping with the sun as a blanket and the clouds as my bed. 

“…wake up.”

At the same time, a strong scent of roses pierced my nose. The sharp perfume abruptly intruded into the room, which had been filled with the sweet smell of bread. 

I opened my eyes with a frown, only to see Stella standing before me, smiling brightly with her red hair fluttering. 

“Awake?” she asked, her tone playful. 

She was laughing, but not smiling. How such a contradiction could exist, I only now understood. 

After waking me, Stella set a basket down on the table and wandered into the kitchen to find a teacup. 

Of course, I didn’t own one—she must have brought it herself. If I had money to buy a teacup, I would have bought clothes instead. 

She took out a cup and poured tea from the teapot she had brought. Sitting down in a chair, Stella began to savor her tea with elegance. She took a light sip, letting out a soft hum, her face reflecting the calmness the tea brought to her mind and body.

“So…” Stella’s scarlet eyes shifted from me to Senior Dinua. 

“Even though you knew I was coming, you flirted with your senior and ate snacks?”

Suddenly, she opened her handmade lunch box and spread its contents across the table. There was a lot—enough that it would be impossible for me to eat alone. Stella picked up her utensils and began to eat from the lunch box without hesitation.

“You also ate bread, so are you full?”

“…Not really,” I replied.

“Then, would you like to come and eat now?”

“Now… I’m not very hungry.”

“Ah, so you are full?”

When I refused the meal, Stella tilted her head, as though I wasn’t telling the truth. She wasn’t entirely wrong, though. If I had planned to eat, I shouldn’t have eaten the bread Senior Dinua had recommended. 

I glanced at Senior Dinua, who sat nearby, her head down, pretending to read a book. But it was obvious she wasn’t reading—the book was upside down, and not a single page had been turned.

I quickly tried to shift the conversation. 

“So…how did you get in? The door should have been locked.”

“Oh, Ian…I’m sorry…” 

Senior Dinua, who had been feigning interest in her book, cautiously raised her head. She glanced between me and Stella before speaking softly. 

“I didn’t want to wake you up. You were sleeping so peacefully…so I unlocked it…”

“Ah…” 

“Do you feel uncomfortable when I visit? Should I stop coming by?” Stella asked suddenly.

“No, that’s not it…”

Stella’s question made me uneasy. Senior Dinua had only visited once, while Stella had been coming by regularly. The difference was that Senior Dinua was considerate, while Stella seemed to impose herself. 

Rejecting Stella here would have been a mistake. If I pushed her away, she could end the bet between us on a technicality. While Senior Dinua was kind, Stella had a certain authority. 

“…I’ll eat.”

“Heh, of course you will.”

In the end, I sat at the table, rubbing my slightly bloated stomach. I had eaten too much bread—between academy meals, snacks, and this, I felt like I was eating all over again. 

At least it was delicious. 

There’s a saying that the best food is the kind you eat when you’re full. And Stella’s cooking was just that—so good that you kept eating even when your stomach was stuffed. But all of it was heavy and greasy. Grilled steak, thick cheese, and bread.

My eyes drifted to the salad Stella was eating. 

“…What?” she asked.

“Could I have some salad?”

“You want to eat this?”

Humming, Stella paused for a moment, as if deciding whether to share. Then she scooped a small amount of salad into a bowl for me. 

I reached for the bowl, but she swatted my hand away, scolding me. 

“Oh, I’ll do it.”

“…Huh?”

“I said, ‘I will do it.’”

She opened her mouth slightly and offered the salad, as if feeding me. It felt bold to accept a bite from her, especially with Senior Dinua right there. But after hesitating for a moment, I opened my mouth.

“Ah.”

The salad was fresh and light, the dressing tangy and refreshing. It soothed my overly full stomach. After a bite of salad, I ate some of the heavier food—meat and cheese. 

Stella watched me, her gaze following my movements.

When she saw that I still had room, she fed me another bite of salad.

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