Black Solstice-Chapter 28: Demon’s Doctrine of Mystics [5]

In the end, one of the Beast Taming instructors managed to resolve the situation and calm down the runaway. They also made sure to give the irresponsible bond master a fitting punishment.

But.

"Sniff... sniff..."

Dabble continued to sob as he carried his books.

He had been like this ever since.

No matter what I said or how I said it, he kept sniffling like he simply couldn’t stop. Honestly, I would probably cry too if I’d been snatched up by some intimidating, horrifying creature.

"There, there. It’s alright."

"I almost got eaten..."

"You weren’t going to be eaten Just... aggressively relocated."

"That’s not better!" he whimpered, wiping his nose with his sleeve.

We walked slowly across the courtyard, students passing by without sparing us more than a glance. A few snickered under their breath, devils really were merciless, but most simply stepped around us, as if seeing a crying Imp being comforted was just another Tuesday.

Curious, I asked, "Hey, Dabble, which course do you have next?"

"Infernal Law and Affairs."

"Law? Do you want to become a lawyer?"

"Is it no good?"

I smiled and shook my head.

"No, it’s not bad at all. A lawyer is a respectable position and important to society as a whole. But I was slightly surprised. You don’t really give off... lawyer energy."

Dabble sniffled again, looking down at his feet.

"W-What kind of energy do I give off...?"

"Uh..."

I paused, because telling him ’small and kickable’ felt rude, and telling him ’perpetually victimized’ probably wouldn’t help his emotional stability or self-esteem either.

So I settled for, "You seem more like... a scholar type."

His eyes brightened just a fraction.

"R-Really?"

"Yeah. You’ve already been carrying a mountain of books since morning. That screams ’dedicated’ to me."

He puffed his cheeks, flustered.

"I-I just like studying... Infernal Law is fascinating. I have been fascinated about it ever since I was lowly little devil..."

He suddenly flinched, tightening his arms around his books.

"Actually, never mind..."

"What? Why stop?"

He hesitated before whispering, "People say it’s weird. Imps aren’t supposed to aim for high-ranking legal positions. It’s usually families of noble devils who get in... not someone like me."

"Someone like you? What’s that supposed to mean?"

Dabble shrank slightly. "Imps are... you know... small, weak and disposable. Most devils don’t think we can handle something as important as law."

I stopped walking. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

He kept going for two steps before realizing I’d halted, turning back with wide, worried eyes.

"...Did I say something wrong?"

Frowning, I said:

"No, but you’re wrong about one thing."

He blinked. "Huh?"

"Being an Imp doesn’t disqualify you from anything. If you want to study Infernal Law, then study it. If you want to become a lawyer, then aim for it. You don’t need anyone’s permission for that. Everyone should have that level of freedom."

Dabble stared at me for a long moment, stunned, as if nobody had ever said such a thing to him.

Then his eyes filled with tears again.

"A-Are you crying again?"

"I-It’s not my fault! Y-You keep saying things nobody else says! My emotions aren’t built for this! I won’t forgive you if you’re playing tricks on me!"

Where was this coming from? His sense of self-worth was even lower than I thought.

I sighed.

"Alright, alright. To prove I’m being sincere, how about we eat lunch together when break time comes?"

His sniffling paused. His eyes widened just a bit.

And for the first time since the lizard incident, he actually looked surprised in a good way.

"Really? Do you mean that?"

"Of course. Unless you don’t want to."

"I-I do!" he blurted out immediately, then flinched at his own volume. "I mean... I would like that. A lot."

The tips of his ears turned slightly pink.

Cute.

In a pitiful, kicked-puppy kind of way.

We resumed walking, though the atmosphere was far lighter than before. Dabble still sniffled occasionally, but it was more out of leftover emotional turbulence than actual distress.

"So," I said, glancing at him, "do you usually eat alone?"

"...Most of the time."

"Why? You seem pretty easy to talk to."

"That’s not what people tell me..."

"Well, they’re wrong. You’re just fine."

"H-Hey! Why are you like this?" I cried out.

"I can’t help it!" he wailed. "You keep saying nice things! It’s suspicious!"

"I’m literally just talking!"

"That’s even more suspicious!"

This guy... just how weak hearted are you?

It felt like I was talking to a highschool girl with daddy issues!

Before I could respond, the academy bell chimed; deep and resonant like some ancient horror stirring awake. Conservations quickly died down as students across the courtyard perked up and moved toward their respective buildings.

Dabble sniffed hard, wiping his face with his sleeve.

"I-I have to go to class..."

"Oh, right. Infernal Law and Affairs."

He nodded.

Then, after hesitating, he took a tiny step closer.

"Um... Cassius?"

"Yeah?"

"T-Thank you. For earlier. And for not laughing at me."

I smiled. "Anytime."

His cheeks reddened, but this time he didn’t cry.

"O-Okay. I’ll see you at lunch then!"

With a small nod, he hurried off, pattering across the stone path.

I silently muttered to myself.

So you see, devils were really interesting.

† †

When I arrived at my next class, I chose a random seat and sat down.

The room was mostly empty.

Seems like I’m early.

After a few minutes, more students began filing in. While most were first-years, a handful of second-years had also chosen to take this class.

It seemed this was that kind of class.

"Can I sit here?" asked a girl who had suddenly appeared. Her expression was unreadable. From the looks of her uniform, which was black with subtle golden designs here and there, I could tell she wasn’t just any student.

I quickly identified her as a member of the Disciplinary Committee from the ’white eagle’ emblem on her chest.

"Sure, feel free."

She gave me a slight bow before pulling out her notes, carefully straightening her skirt in a refined manner before taking a seat.

What a peculiar devil. I wondered what type she could be.

She reminded me of someone I knew.

’How is Aiko these days? I heard she’s attending that famous college everyone wants to get into... what was it called again? USC, that’s right. She’s smart, so it shouldn’t be too hard for her. Still, she’d probably stand out as eye candy for all those eager college boys. Maybe one of them will get lucky.’

Thinking about her, along with a twinge of regret, I could only smile at the memory.

It had been a long time, after all.

"Good morning to you all, young devils and the lot. It’s a bit late, but since it’s still technically morning, the use of ’Good Morning’ remains accurate," A professionally dressed woman said, capturing everyone’s attention. She was about my height, or perhaps a little taller due to her high heels, with medium-warm brown skin and short, pale blue hair.

She wore a business suit, complete with a miniskirt, and a speckled white blouse.

"Hmm, looks like we have quite a crowd. Is it more than last year? I know Rune Architecture is popular, but this is certainly a surprise. I’ll welcome it. I am honored to have this many students," she said, offering a rare smile that seemed to capture all the first-years’ gazes, whereas the upperclassmen shifted uneasily. It was clear Teacher Olga wasn’t the type to smile often.

Why was I getting a bad feeling all of a sudden?

She didn’t seem unreasonable, so there should have been nothing to worry about.

"This is Practical Rune Architecture, or PRA as I like to call it, though you can simply call it Rune Architecture. I hope you’re excited, because we’re going to have a lot of practice! By ’practice,’ I mean learning through example, what better way to understand magic than by hands-on experience, right? That also means you’ll all have plenty of practical assignments!"

"..."

I take back every good thing I said about her.

My coursemates seemed to share my sentiments.