I Got a Fake Job at the Academy

Chapter 843 - Side Story 116: A Week of Happiness (3)

Rudger leaped across space. It wasn't difficult to chase after Rene, who had left first. Though she pretended to be angry, she deliberately left traces of mana in the air. It was to let him know which coordinates she had gone to.

It meant she was a bit upset, but for that very reason, she wanted him to hurry and catch up to ease her mood. He wondered why she couldn't just say it directly instead of going through all that. It was a natural thought from a man who preferred things simple and straightforward.

Still, he knew that understanding and being considerate of such aspects was what it meant to live together.

The place he arrived at through the shadows was a cafe in the capital. Since it wasn't time for a meal yet, it must mean she wanted to spend the remaining time here. There was a high possibility she had made a reservation in advance.

Rene was standing blankly in front of the cafe entrance. As soon as Rudger arrived, she abruptly held out the gifts she had received from Julia.

Rudger accepted them with a "can't be helped" attitude and put them all into his shadow.

"So, have you calmed down a bit?" 

"We'll see."

She wasn't actually that angry, yet the way she deliberately spoke sulkily was so cute. Rudger nodded and played along with Rene's mood.

As he was entering the cafe she had reserved with her, he suddenly recalled what Julia had said.

Something about not letting it slide if he made her cry. Naturally, it was something she could say as a friend who cherished Rene. Back when they attended Theon, even when Rene clung to her, Julia would complain about it being annoying, but it seemed her true feelings were different after all.

Of course, even if Julia hadn't said such things, Rudger had been planning to do so willingly for at least a week. 

Now that time had passed, about five days remained. He had resolved to do his very best until then.

They ordered drinks and dessert at the cafe. Rene ate them deliciously. Rudger watched her silently.

Perhaps her mood had lifted with the sugar. Rene began chattering away with a beaming smile. Rudger either chimed in with her words or offered his own opinions.

The next place the two headed was the zoo. It was a famous place full of all kinds of mysterious animals from the continent, which even mages occasionally came to see.

It was established recently. Thanks to active trade between the continent's nations and improved relations, they were able to receive rare animals from each country.

"Wow. Oppa, look at that. That's what they call a penguin."

Particularly, the penguin brought from the frozen land far beyond the Fatima Dynasty at the southern hemisphere's end caught Rene's attention.

"It is cute. If you want to see more penguins, we could go there ourselves, just the two of us."

Rene looked at Rudger with an expression of disappointment at his suggestion.

"You have to see them in a place like this for the special charm. Besides, Antarctica is incredibly cold. If we just go, we'll freeze to death, won't we?"

He was about to say that it could also be handled with magic, but stopped. If he said that, it seemed Rene would look at him even more disappointedly.

The two walked around the zoo like that, looking at other animals. There were also animals unique to the continent that couldn't be seen on Earth.

After touring the zoo like that, Rudger expressed his curiosity.

"Hmm. Are there no spirit beasts?" 

"......Oppa. Even so, how could you look for spirit beasts at a zoo? It's not like they're in some forest or anything. You'd have to go at least to the Kasar Basin to maybe see one."

At Rene's rebuke, Rudger couldn't say anything. However, Rudger knew there were more spirit beasts in this world than he had thought.

Since they called it the Empire's super-sized zoo, he had thought there would at least be spirit beasts.

It was around the time he was thinking about going somewhere to catch one. Rene grabbed Rudger's hand and led him to another location.

The two who left the zoo walked along a well-maintained walking path nearby. As they walked endlessly like that, the sun set and the sky was dyed with twilight.

The light of the hot sun setting beyond clouds mixed with pink and orange warmly covered the world.

The two stared blankly at the setting sun like that, then moved locations when they saw a navy blue canopy spreading across the opposite sky.

It was to have dinner, and though Rene was thoroughly prepared, she hadn't separately reserved a restaurant.

Instead, the place she headed to with Rudger was their own home where the two lived in Leathervelk.

When they arrived there, they could hear murmuring sounds from inside.

"Oh my. Rene, you're here? How was your date today? Did you enjoy it?" 

"Ooh. Rene. It's been a while." 

"Ah, Mom. And Uncle Gabriel."

Gabriel Cosmo greeted Rene, then saw Rudger following behind her and his expression completely soured.

"Why are you scowling when you come to someone else's house?" 

"Tch. Really, I just don't understand why Rene likes a guy like you."

Though the two grumbled as soon as they met, it didn't escalate into a serious emotional fight.

The meal that had been prepared as if waiting for Rene's arrival adorned the table. It was more than expected for four people to eat. It seemed not only Rudger noticed this.

"Mom. Is someone else coming?" 

"Just wait and see."

Mother only postponed her answer with a broad smile. After a bit of time passed, the window rattled and shook. It was because a sudden gust of wind blew from outside.

Rene was puzzled, and Rudger immediately figured out who it was.

Faintly, it seemed like the howling of a wolf could be heard.

-Ding-dong

The doorbell rang. It meant a guest had arrived. Rudger and Rene got up from their seats to go greet the guest.

As soon as the door opened, a bouquet of flowers was handed to Rene. Naturally, the one who handed over the bouquet was Freuden Ulburg.

"Long time no see, Rene. Here, a housewarming gift." 

"Oh, Senior. Long time no see! Wow. It smells good." 

"I got these flowers directly from the elves. They'll keep giving off fragrance even if you leave them alone for a while. Still, they said you'd need a flowerpot if you want to keep them for a long time."

Freuden greeted Rene gently, then looked at Rudger. Unlike when looking at Rene, his eyes were very complex when looking at Rudger.

Feelings of jealousy while simultaneously having to acknowledge, yet unable to give up.

"I never thought you would come." 

"......Well, I was invited to dinner."

Freuden went to the kitchen and greeted Rene's mother and Gabriel as well. As the five of them sat down like that, Rudger suddenly recalled old memories.

When he first met Rene. The time when he wandered the world following his master, then settled in one place even if briefly.

Back then too, they used to gather like this.

These were people he thought he would never see again. This gathering was more novel to Rudger than any other sentiment.

"Come on, come on. Let's drink today!"

Gabriel raised his beer mug and shouted loudly. He naturally put his arm around Freuden's shoulders.

Though Freuden seemed a bit uncomfortable, he didn't refuse the drink Gabriel offered.

The two got along surprisingly well. It was probably because they were united in the aspect that neither of them particularly welcomed Rudger.

Watching that scene, Rene's mother laughed cheerfully. Rene also watched the scene while crunching on her food.

It was joyful and warm. Even in dreams, he had never imagined such a scene. He couldn't. He shouldn't have. Because he wasn't without responsibility for that catastrophe.

Still, it should be fine to savor this moment at least. Just as he thought that and turned to look at Rene, Rudger flinched.

-Drip. Drip

Rene was shedding tears. Thick tears like chicken droppings endlessly flowed down her cheeks.

"......Huh? Rene."

When Rene suddenly shed tears, all the other people looked at her in surprise. It seemed Rene too belatedly became aware of her own state.

"Uh, huh? Why are tears suddenly......?"

Rene hurriedly wiped away her tears with her sleeve. No matter how much she wiped, the tears didn't stop. It seemed even Rene herself didn't understand why she was crying.

Everyone at the table looked at her with concern.

"Our daughter. Are you okay?"

At her mother's words, Rene nodded while sniffling.

"Yes, yes. I'm fine. It's just, suddenly tears......"

Rene's hands trembled. Rudger, who had been silent, reached out and held her hand. The trembling stopped at that warmth. Rene looked back at Rudger with reddened eyes.

Rudger quietly nodded to her.

Did that help her calm down a bit? Rene finally stopped crying. Though she couldn't help sniffling from the aftermath.

"I don't know why, but just having everyone all together here made me so happy it was strange."

Something welled up from somewhere in her heart without her knowing. That's why she shed tears. It was unseemly, but there was no other way to explain it.

The others looked at Rene with concerned gazes. They would be thinking whether her physical condition might be bad.

But in this place, only Rudger alone knew the reason.

'The sense of disparity between the past she experienced in the original world and the current reality. That's why she's reacting like this.'

Rudger wasn't without emotional turmoil himself when seeing the current scene. But naturally, the person who would be affected even more greatly than him was Rene.

She lost her mother. She even lost her uncle and master.

Just as this scene was something Rudger could never see again, For Rene, it was perhaps a memory far more special and precious.

'But, she still hasn't recalled the memories.'

Rudger took Rene's hand and led her.

"It seems Rene is tired from going around too much today. I'll take her upstairs for a moment." 

"Oh, o-okay. Do that."

Leaving behind the people who didn't know what to do, Rudger and Rene entered the master bedroom on the second floor.

The two sat side by side on the bed.

"I'm sorry."

Rene apologized as soon as she sat down.

"What are you sorry about?" 

"The atmosphere got weird because of me. Busy people made time to all gather together, and we should have been enjoying ourselves but couldn't."

Her voice was gloomy and her head hung down too. Rudger got up from the bed and knelt down in front of Rene.

"Straighten your shoulders. You didn't do anything wrong."

He met the eyes of Rene with her head down. She tried to avoid them, but Rudger's two hands cupped both her cheeks and held her.

"People can be like that sometimes in life. What mortal sin did you commit that you're hanging your head like this?" 

"B-but......It was supposed to be a happy day, and I ruined it all." 

"You didn't ruin anything. The others will think the same. It's a gathering where everyone came to celebrate you. Do you think anyone would blame you for shedding tears?" 

"......" 

"Rather, everyone's probably thinking you cried because you were so happy. I thought so too."

Rene was about to say what nonsense that was, but stopped. Thinking about it carefully, there was nothing wrong with what Rudger said.

Why did she cry? Emotions suddenly welled up. But that wasn't sadness or anything like that. She was purely happy. She felt incomparable happiness at the fact of sitting in that place.

"Emotions are willful, so sometimes tears flow like this even when you're happy. So don't blame yourself too much. If you truly feel responsible, then for the sake of the people gathered there, you should become even happier."

Rene nodded her head slightly.

Rudger got up from his spot. Rene also raised her lowered head and met Rudger's gaze.

The moisture still remaining around her eyes, Rudger gently wiped away with his fingers. Rudger smiled mischievously and said.

"And, your smiling face is the prettiest. Sometimes I want to make you cry, but not right now." 

"What are you saying?"

Rene chuckled. Her mood lifted a bit at the sincere joke.

"Have you calmed down a bit?" 

"Yeah. Thanks to you." 

"I'll wait downstairs. Let's go down quickly. We still have to finish our meal. Everyone will be waiting." 

"Okay. Got it. But before that. Oppa." 

"What is it?"

Rene spread both her arms wide toward Rudger. It was the posture of a child asking to be held. Just as he was wondering if she was asking to be carried down, Rene said.

"Kiss me."