The Retired Supporting Character Wants to Live Quietly - Chapter 121

Chapter 121 – A Slap for Every Penny Found (3)

Without even noticing I was getting closer, Hindrasta scrutinized the cakes with great seriousness and finally pointed at one.

“I’ll take this one. Just put it on Professor Dian’s tab.”

“Put it on my tab, you say?”

“Eek?!”

Hindrasta jumped backward as she saw me.

“You little rascal. I cleared off everything you put on my tab last time, and now you’re at it again! Where do you think you’re running off to!”

I grabbed the ends of Hindrasta’s twin-tails as she tried to escape.

“Oww!”

“Where did you spend all your money?! Didn’t Knightley and Vice-Headmaster Ismera give you an allowance back then?!”

“Ugh, seriously!”

Hindrasta swatted away my hand angrily.

“That pocket change was long gone! Did you think it would still be around?! And while we’re on the topic! You promised to let me go get my money!”

“Oh, right. I did.”

I had completely forgotten about that because of the situation with Ismera.

Before coming here as a special student, Hindrasta worked for the Reblanc mercenary group and still needed to retrieve her earnings.

When she charged at me to kill me, I ended up dragging her here as a special student by force, so she couldn’t collect that money.

Even if she’s a troublesome dragon, that doesn’t justify denying her rightful wages.

“Alright, you can go. But not on weekdays.”

I raised my finger as she was about to protest.

“You’ve got quite a lot of demerit points already. Didn’t you beat up the honor students last time, and haven’t you been skipping a lot of classes too? If you leave without permission during the week, you’ll be disciplined immediately.”

“Hah, this damned academy. I’ll just quit if it comes to that.”

Grumbling, Hindrasta glanced at my expression and immediately backed down.

“Fine, fine! I’ll go out on the weekend!”

“And how do you plan to get there? Reblanc is quite far from here.”

“They have a branch in this city. I’ll just go there and shake them down. Don’t worry about it.”

Hindrasta waved her hand dismissively and left the cafe. What a cheeky brat.

“Excuse me, shop owner. How much has she put on my tab here?”

I asked while pulling out my wallet, and the owner gave me the amount.

“What, how much?!”

Hearing the total, I had to chase Hindrasta down and give her a good whack on the head.

# # # # #

After wrapping up the morning meeting for the Combat Department, I was heading out when I noticed Ismera standing in the hallway.

She stood there with her arms crossed, looking quite displeased.

“Good morning, Vice-Headmaster. Lovely morning, isn’t it?”

“How can you sound so carefree right now?!”

As I greeted her, Ismera snapped at me furiously.

Hearing her shout, the other professors quickly dispersed, leaving the hallway empty save for the two of us. The moment we were alone, Ismera’s expression relaxed.

“Mister. What are you doing this weekend?”

“This weekend? I’m going to town with Olysia. Why?”

“For what purpose?”

“Well, to look around, do some shopping, eat something tasty.”

“Then I’ll join you, if that’s alright.”

Ismera suggested with a smile.

“I’m sure you’re planning to cheer up Miss Olysia, who’s tired from household chores, right? She helped me a lot during the preparation for the competition, so it’s only right for me to repay her as well.”

Come to think of it, Olysia did prepare vegetarian late-night snacks for Ismera, catering to her picky tastes. She had a point.

“Sure, sure. Let’s do that.”

“Great. Then give me a kiss.”

Ismera closed her eyes and puckered her lips, and I gave her a light kiss.

“Have a good day today.”

With a gentle smile, Ismera stroked my cheek and then turned away, her steps light as she walked down the hallway.

Is that really the Ismera I know? Sometimes I get confused because her behavior has changed so much.

Still, it’s nice to see her like this—so cheerful.

# # # # #

The weekend arrived.

I headed to the main gate to supervise the students who were leaving for their weekend outings.

The gate was already crowded with a bustling crowd of students who had applied for leave.

“Hello, Professor.”

When I turned around, I saw Merilda approaching with Knightley, both greeting me.

“You two going out together?”

“Yes. Knightley is taking me somewhere nice.”

“Somewhere nice, huh?”

“The kind of place fresh, vibrant young girls our age would enjoy.”

Knightley replied with a smug look.

Since the competition, Merilda and Knightley had become quite close.

Both were honor students, and Merilda seemed to tolerate Knightley’s arrogant personality quite well.

It was like watching Ismera and Niertra.

Surprisingly, even Hindrasta had built some rapport with the two of them.

There may be various reasons, but perhaps it’s simply because they treat her equally without knowing she’s a dragon.

Or it could be because Knightley threw her some gold coins, feeling sorry for her.

However, Hindrasta wasn’t here at the moment.

“So that’s where she was?”

Knightley chuckled in disbelief.

There was Hindrasta standing right in front of the tightly shut gate, practically pressing her nose against it, shuffling her feet impatiently.

“Ugh, I’m in a hurry… Why won’t it open….”

But weekend outings weren’t allowed until nine o’clock. No matter how early she arrived, the gate wouldn’t open before then.

“I asked her to come along, but she completely ignored me and left the dorm an hour ago to do that.”

Knightley shook her head.

“She says she’s going to get the money she earned working with the mercenaries. She’s so naive.”

“What do you mean by that?”

Merilda asked, her tone hinting at curiosity.

Knightley responded with a look that seemed to say, ‘Isn’t it obvious?’

“Think about it. Mercenaries are just legalized ruffians. They may call themselves mercenaries, but they could easily become bandits if it suits them.”

“And?”

“Do you think people like that would keep the money safe for her, holding onto it with the intent to return it someday? It’s probably long gone without a trace.”

“I see….”

Hearing Knightley’s explanation, Merilda looked at Hindrasta with pity in her eyes.

But they were missing something. Hindrasta is a dragon.

If they refuse to give her the money, she’d squeeze the oil out of those mercenaries if she had to. Dragons have an almost pathological obsession with gold and treasures.

There’s a saying: if you want to kill a dragon easily, steal treasure from its lair and throw it in front of its doorstep.

That way, the dragon will burn the house to the ground without asking any questions.

At nine o’clock, the gate finally opened, and Hindrasta bolted out ahead of everyone else.

“I’ll be back, Professor!”

“I’ll bring back some snacks. Wait for me.”

After that, Merilda and Knightley hailed a carriage and left as well.

After confirming that all the students had left safely, I returned home.

I needed to change clothes since I was going into town with Olysia and Ismera.

By the time I arrived home, Olysia was already dressed up and waiting outside for me.

“Sir Dian! Hurry up! What took you so long?!”

“Alright, alright, I’m coming.”

Olysia, like many girls her age, loves indulging in small luxuries at the glitzy city shopping districts.

However, being a war orphan sold to slave traders during her unfortunate childhood and growing up in the remote Brunswell, she had suppressed those desires.

But now that I was working as a professor at the academy, we lived in Calvasar, the largest city on the continent. No wonder she was so eager.

That’s why she was constantly anxious, fearing I might get fired from my post and we’d have to return to Brunswell.

“Come on, hurry up.”

After I changed clothes and came out, Olysia nudged me towards the carriage.

“Oh, by the way, Vice-Headmaster Ismera said she’d be joining us. You don’t mind, do you?”

“Vice-Headmaster Ismera? Of course not!”

Olysia, hoping for me to strengthen my ties with those in high positions, had no reason to object to Ismera joining us.

I rode the carriage with Olysia to the main building.

“Vice-Headmaster!”

Seeing Ismera ahead, Olysia leaned out of the carriage window and waved.

“Miss Olysia.”

Wearing a flowing dress and a wide-brimmed hat, Ismera waved back with a bright smile.

Ismera looked truly beautiful.

The elegant sky-blue dress suited the summer’s hot sun perfectly, flowing naturally along the curves of her body.

The lightweight material reflected sunlight with a gentle shine, and her waist was cinched with a ribbon, highlighting her slender figure.

She also wore a wide-brimmed white hat adorned with a sky-blue ribbon matching her dress, and her strapped sandals were tied neatly around her ankles.

She looked just like the spirit of summer.

Ismera, wearing such an outfit? Really unexpected.

After getting into the carriage, Ismera smiled at us.

“You both look lovely.”

“You look absolutely beautiful, Vice-Headmaster.”

Olysia, trying to act as mature as possible, exchanged pleasantries and excitedly shouted.

“Alright, let’s go!”

The carriage set off briskly, leaving the academy behind.

From the seat opposite, a refreshing scent wafted from Ismera—like the smell of a forest in the early morning of summer.

So I, caring little for appearances, closed my eyes and took a deep breath, soaking in her scent. Not that it makes me a pervert or anything.

———-