After I physically silenced Balvenie, I turned to face Strass. "Seems like it''s not him. I''ll apologizeter, so let''s meet Hiram-kun."


    Strass and the others nodded slightly.


    "Wa-wait…"


    Ignoring whatever Balvenie was about to say, I bowed deeply and turned on my heel.


    "Th-this way!"


    "Hiram-senpai is good at wind magic, so he should be in the ssroom for thest lesson of the day!"


    For some reason, Bell and Liz moved more briskly than before and took the lead in front of me. Beside me were Cote and Ayle.


    "Since Onii-sama mainly specializes in earth magic, he doesn''t have many sses with Hiram-senpai. I''m good at wind magic like Hiram-senpai, so we often have sses together."


    "Oh, does that mean you''re close?"


    "No, no. We just greet each other."


    The two were chatting happily.


    Then Eliza said anxiously, "Um, is it really okay to leave Balvenie-kun like that… After all, he’s the fourth prince of the Bushmills Empire."


    "I''ll apologizeter."


    "… Haa, I don''t care anymore," Eliza muttered in resignation, her shoulders drooping, as I pressed forward towards Hiram.


    By chance, none of us had sses now, so all seven of us walked through the academy and reached our destination ssroom.


    We arrived at a ssroom on the west side of the third floor. Just as we got there, a few students were leaving the ssroom, having just finished the lesson.


    We slipped past them and entered the ssroom.


    Cote was the first to spot our target and raised one hand. "Hiram-senpai."


    At the call of his name, a boy with navy blue hair surrounded by female students showed his face. His young looks made him seem the same age as Shenley.


    He noticed Cote and smiled. "Hey, Cote-kun. It''s been a while. How have you been?"


    "Long time no see, Hiram-senpai."


    The boy greeted him casually and walked over to us. This was definitely Hiram.


    His navy blue hair was spiky, and his eyes wererge and round. He had a neutral, friendly air about him and always smiled in a way that made him approachable.


    The female students around him were praising him as cute and fawning over him.


    "Do you need something from me?" Hiram asked. Then he looked at me. "Wow! You''re Aoi Konominato-sensei, right?! I''ve wanted to meet you, but our schedules have never matched… I''d love to attend one of your sses sometime!"


    "Ah, yes. Anyone is wee to attend my sses…"


    Hiram took my hand joyfully. "Aoi-sensei, your sses are said to be the seconding of Principal Glenn! I''m looking forward to them!"


    Hiram expressed his delight exaggeratedly, and his childlike innocent smile was infectious, making me smile in return.


    "… Oh. Well, that''s fine, but I came here for a different matter today. May I ask you a few questions?"


    Hiram tilted his head. "Three sizes?"


    "No," I immediately denied, making Hiramugh heartily.


    This boy was troublesome. He kept disrupting my pace.


    I cleared my throat and regained myposure. "Let''s be serious. Please listen properly."


    "Aoi-sensei, you''re funny. You''re not used to being teased, are you? Want me to teach you a trick?"


    "A trick?"


    At my puzzled response, Hiramughed again. "Yes. First, don''t answer seriously about every single thing. When talking, don''t give the other person a chance to speak up and make sure they’re the one answering. People like me can''t do anything if we''re ignored."


    I see. So I should just proceed at my own pace. "Alright. I''ll remember that."


    Hiram nodded with a smile. "Good! I''m rooting for you, Aoi-sensei!"


    "Thank you very much." I expressed my gratitude.


    Hiram waved one hand and walked away with the girls in tow.


    Watching Hiram leave, Strass sighed. "Hiram is leaving."


    "Ah." I hurried after Hiram.


    I quickly caught up and called out to Hiram, who was about to exit the courtyard.


    "Hahaha. Aoi-sensei, you''re really funny. I like you."


    I reprimanded Hiram lightly for his casualment. "Please don''t tease your teachers. So, about what I wanted to ask…"


    Prefacing my question, I began the conversation. "I''ve heard that my sses are being disrupted by someone. Do you know anything about it?"


    Hiram''s smile disappeared, and his eyes narrowed.


    "… Who told you that?" he asked back with a forced smile.


    Sensing something off, I asked directly, "By any chance, is it you?"


    Hiram smirked fearlessly. "… What if I say yes? Would a new teacher with amoner background darein about me, a prince of the Maple Leaf Holy Empire?"


    Hiram''s overly theatrical response was met with squeals from the surrounding girls.


    "Hiram-senpai''s got a mean face!"


    "Scary-cute!"


    Hearing their strange cheers, Hiramughed.


    Seeing this farce, I sighed. "… It doesn''t seem like it''s you. Well, the possibility isn''t zero, so I''ll put you at the bottom of the suspects."


    With that, I turned on my heel.


    Hiram said in a low voice, "You''re right. It''s not me. But if it were, what would you do?"


    I stopped and answered, "I would ask you to stop putting weird pressure on people. That’s all."


    Hiram chuckled. "To treat royalty from another country like that… the rumors are true. I''m getting interested in you too. Maybe I''ll really attend one of your sses."


    "Rank and status are unnecessary between teacher and student."


    "Hmm… Interesting perspective. How about we have a meal together sometime?"


    "… I''m not really inclined."


    Hiram burst outughing.


    I sensed the res of the surrounding female students.


    Hiram cheerfully murmured to himself,  "Fore Pern Roses… He''s a renowned magician of the Maple Leaf Holy Empire, but he''s surprisingly childish. I guess he''s irritated by you, who suddenly appeared and stole his spotlight…"


    Hiram shrugged his shoulders with a "good grief" expression.


    I turned back to face him.


    "Did you forget something?"


    "… No, nothing. Thank you." I bowed and turned away again.


    Though my pace had been disrupted, Hiram ended up providing useful information. He was a boy people couldn’t hate.


    Still, I didn''t expect it to be Fore Pern Roses. He was a veteran and a senior teacher. Would he really be so hostile to a new teacher?


    "… It’s hard to believe," I muttered while walking.


    Cote chuckled and sighed. "Well, Fore-sensei''s noble idealogy is well-known, so it makes sense to me."


    A noble senior teacher. This might turn out to be quite troublesome, but for now, I had a prime suspect.