Chapter 14 Colleagues, Boss, And Seniors
The room Arnold led me to was located in a hallway facing a courtyard. Without explaining the room's purpose, Arnold simply said, "We'll meet again later," and then left somewhere.
Feeling somewhat dissatisfied with his casual guidance, I opened the door in front of me. Inside was not Kasper-san, but a girl of the same age as me.
As soon as she caught sight of me, she stood up from the sofa. Her red hair tied in pigtails swayed.
"Oh, I'm Chelsea! Chelsea Gawley. Nice to meet you, colleague!"
The girl gave me a friendly smile.
As I felt the unnecessary tension leaving my body, I reached out my right hand.
This girl - Chelsea is my colleague, so there were two people who passed this year. Since we are colleagues, we will probably undergo training together. She's a very pleasant girl, which puts me at ease.
"I'm Laura Ampère. Nice to meet you, Chelsea."
She tightly grasped the hand I extended.
Chelsea then vigorously shook the hand she held. From her lively smile, it was clear that she had an energetic personality. Her manner of speaking was also very clear and assertive.
"Where is Laura from?"
"I'm from a small village called Emme Village. It's a really quiet countryside village. How about you, Chelsea?"
"I'm from Richele village. It's also a super quiet countryside place!"
Chelsea laughed out loud, and it seemed like I could relate to her being from the countryside, so the small talk continued.
We talked about the exam we had just taken, our favorite synthesis methods, our hometowns, favorite foods, stories of being surprised when we arrived in the capital city, and so on.
Our interest in each other never seems to fade, and new topics pop up naturally. At first, we were a bit reserved and cautious in our tone, but as time passed, our hesitations disappeared, and laughter filled the air.
"Wow, you two are matching outfits. Did I come late? Sorry about that."
The door opened, and Kasper-san appeared.
Chelsea and I quickly stood up from the sofa. Our timing was perfectly in sync, and we couldn't help but exchange smiles.
It seems like Chelsea and I are going to be good friends.
"Once again, congratulations to both of you on passing! I guess I'll be your boss... Kasper Claesen here. Starting tomorrow, you'll be working as Royal Alchemist trainees under me..."
From Kasper-san's mouth came those words, and I swallowed nervously. Since I've been working hard towards this 'place,' it should be a happy occasion, but even so, I seem to be nervous.
Starting tomorrow, I will be a trainee at the Royal Alchemist.
As I pondered over this fact, Kasper-san suddenly raised his voice towards a closed door.
"Lina-san, you can come in!"
A few moments passed after Kasper-san's words, and then there was a knock on the door. And it opened.
There stood a beautiful woman with light blue hair. Well, to call her a woman might be a bit young. Yet, she seemed mature for a girl.
Fluttering her long eyelashes, she gazed at me and Chelsea.
"My name is Lina Bevelshtam. I have been entrusted as your senpai for education."
When, she introduced herself in a calm voice that suited her mature appearance.
Lina Bevelstam. Lina-senpai. She's two years older than us, so she's 16. And to add, she's Arnold's colleague.
Chelsea and I hurriedly introduced ourselves. Lina-senpai looked at us firmly, smiled kindly.
Just as I was about to breathe a sigh of relief at her kind demeanor, she threw a question at us.
"By the way, are you Arnold's girlfriend?"
Her golden eyes gazing at me weren't intimidating, nor were they smiling. However, her lips formed an elegant curve.
――Arnold's girlfriend?
"What!?!"
Before I could even grasp the meaning, a voice of confusion burst out of my mouth, surprisingly loud even to myself.
Chelsea and Kasper-san also widened their eyes in surprise. But the senpai in front of us didn't break her smile at all. On the contrary, her smile deepened.
That smile was very beautiful, yet somehow powerful. It felt like a sharp tension was hanging around Senpai.
I was overwhelmed by that power and tension, and hurriedly opened my mouth.
"Um, why is there such a rumor? Arnold, you mean the alchemist trainee, right?"
The first to react to my question was not the girl in front of me, but Chelsea next to her.
"Arnold-san is not a trainee! This year, he became the youngest Royal Alchemist genius!"
"...Is that so?"
――It was news to me.
Arnold, who was called a genius, had become the youngest Royal Alchemist. The guy I had just reunited with was no longer just a "trainee."
If he had just said so, it would have been better. Well, maybe in the alchemist community, there's talk of a genius appearing, and Arnold himself might have thought I knew all about it. Unfortunately, I've been holed up in the countryside—
As I pondered these thoughts,
"...You didn't know? So, is the rumor about you're his girlfriend a lie?"
Lina-senpai muttered. Her once powerful smile had disappeared, and she now looked wide-eyed.
Feeling relieved by the eased atmosphere, I nodded vigorously several times.
I don't understand why such rumors are spreading. I was just informed of my acceptance a little while ago. After that, Arnold brought me here, but I shouldn't have said or done anything to be misunderstood.
"Why would such a story even... Our mentors have a mentor-disciple relationship, and we've only met a few times."
The surprised voice at my response came from Kasper-san, who had been quietly observing until now.
"Really!? I thought Laura-chan has been Arnold's girlfriend for 2 years ago..."
"No, no, that's not true!"
What are you talking about, Kasper-san.
Swallow those words and just give a wry smile. While still looking surprised, Kasper-san, I vaguely recalled what happened 2 years ago.
――Is that cute girl over there your girlfriend?
I remember being asked such a thing. I'm sure I denied it back then, but as I dug up my memories, I clearly remembered Vake approaching me with words that overlaid my denial.
I see, so that denial must have passed through Kasper-san's ears. But looking at this surprise, could it be that Kasper-san is the source of the rumors?
As I secretly pondered in my mind, the girl with light blue hair exclaimed, 'Oh, that's right!' with a bright voice. Then she turned towards us once again.
"Nice to meet you again, Laura, Chelsea."
Her smile was beautiful. Her voice was very clear. Because of that, the unusualness of her smile from earlier stood out.
It didn't seem like she was asking out of curiosity about the truth of the rumors. It didn't feel like she was openly hostile towards me either.
Certainly, the atmosphere surrounding Senpai was unsettling, but that atmosphere just lingered around us, and I didn't feel like it was directed at me. Although, maybe I just wanted to believe that.
Lina-senpai holds some kind of emotion towards Arnold. That much is certain. If that emotion is one of affection — well, it wasn't unreasonable for her to ask like that. However, it still didn't sit right with me.
Even so, no matter how much I think about it, the answer won't naturally come. Upon hearing Kasper-san's words, "I'll show you to the room!" I quickly gave up on my thoughts."
* * *
"This is your guys' room. Feel free to arrange furniture however you like."
The room we were shown was small but clean and well-lit. Chelsea and I are apparently going to live together here starting today.
There's a bunk bed, two desks, and a large closet built into the wall. It seemed like a pretty cozy room.
Without saying a word, Chelsea and I nodded at each other. To have a good life together, we'll need to cooperate.
"Lina-san's room is next door, so if you need anything, feel free to visit her."
After Kasper-san showed us around, he left with the words, "Please relax today."
As soon as Chelsea and I were alone, I felt the tension leave my shoulders. It seems I had been unconsciously tensed during the meeting with our boss and senior.
"Chelsea, which do you prefer, the top or bottom bunk?"
"Is it okay if I take the bottom bunk? I'm a bit embarrassed, but I tend to move around a lot in my sleep. Sorry if I get noisy at night!"
"Haha, really? It's fine, it's fine. Then I'll take the top bunk."
We chatted while unpacking our belongings, including the clothes I had brought.
Although I had brought a decent amount of clothes, when I laid them out, the colors seemed a bit dull. They were items sold in the rural Emme Village, so I couldn't help but feel they paled in comparison to the clothes worn by people in the capital city. Once I received my salary, I planned to go buy some new clothes.
――As I finished organizing my things, Chelsea suddenly spoke up.
"But I'm glad."
"Glad about what?"
"I was worried about having a colleague like you, Laura. If you were a cold or scary person, I wouldn't know what to do."
A hint of unease could be seen in Chelsea's smile.
From the countryside, a 14-year-old leaves home and comes to the capital city alone. Besides the joy of achieving the goal they aimed for, it's natural to feel such anxiety. Even "I" felt lonely when saying goodbye to my parents and Lukas.
From now on, we will share a room together and our living space. We will undergo training together. It may be a bit too much to say we'll be like a family right away, but I want to build a good relationship. I'm sure Chelsea feels the same way.
Standing up from where I was, I approach Chelsea. Once again, I reach out my right hand to her.
"Nice to meet you again, Chelsea."
"Yeah, let's do our best together, Laura!"
――Blessed with a very cute colleague, my days as a Royal Alchemist trainee have begun.
Please bookmark this series and rate ☆☆☆☆☆ on here!
Donate me
Support Me with USDC
(ERC20)
Support Me with XLM
(Stellar Lumens)