Lilia's Tale: Freyja's Endeavor

Chapter 11: Realisation

My first instinct when he had finally gotten up was to hug him and say, once again:

"You'll be fine."

It was kind of embarrassing after the fact, but I reactively did it regardless. I could tell he was trying to hold back from crying out loud, but I simply let him do as he wished.

As he was in my arms, I noticed just how tall he was compared to me. He was probably ten centimeters taller than me. It was a bit surreal considering he was similar to a kid to me, but I tried to not let it get to me for now.

After a while, I let him go. His face and primarily eyes were red, but I dared not comment.

"Let's go to the teachers so you can tell them what happened and who they are, okay?"

He simply nodded.

"Alright. I won't leave you alone 'till we're there just to be sure."

I handed him my hand again, though he seemed reluctant. I didn't want to waste too much time since he needed proper protection, at least for now, so I grabbed his hand instead and slowly went towards the teachers, not letting go.

A quick glance made me see his red face and eyes instead become red cheeks. It was odd but I didn't think too much of it either, instead wondering what to do with the fact the bullies were likely at the teachers' already.

Would the nurse's office be a decent choice? Did we even have one considering Light magic effectively making anyone able to nurse people back to health? I didn't know what to do, but figured teachers might.

I slowly escorted him there, checking every so often how he was doing. There were no problems along the way, so we reached the teacher's lounge, which door was open. I knocked on it to signal my presence while looking inside.

There was a group of three or so teachers gathered around at the back of the room, and another teacher that I didn't know came to us. I expected it to be Koko-sensei but didn't dare ask.

"Kouji-san! Just what happened to that student?"

"Uh..?"

"The one that came in unconscious!"

"Oh. Uh... I... went a bit too far protecting him right here," I stuttered, showing the kid that was with me.

"...I need the full story."

"I think he can explain to you?"

I nodded to the guy and left, figuring that would effectively leave everything to the teachers. I was a bit anxious over the question since it meant something serious happened to him. It kind of reminded me of Riogh, Greg and Souji, which made me both scared and depressed

On the way back to Sayuri, I noticed Tanaka-san coming over.

"Lilia, how convenient. I heard some things I need you to explain."

"Is it about the guy I knocked out cold?"

"Yes. Care to elaborate?"

I sighed and explained the whole situation to him. I expected to get an earful from him after I was done with the explanation, but all he said was:

"I see. I hope there won't be a next time."

He headed to the teacher's lounge and I was effectively alone in the hallway as a result. I was surprised there was nobody around considering the time of day. Sayuri arrived shortly after, though she still seemed somewhat scared.

"Lilia... Uhm..."

"Yes?"

"...Is he dead?"

I stared at her for a second in complete confusion before bursting laughing, incapable of controlling myself.