Chapter 22: Fishing Lines Entwined
“Will! Hysterm!!”
Liya stared at Will. There was no mistake! She had sensed it while tailing him last night; Will had the precious coin. However, the chilling maid had been by his side, inseparable, denying her any opportunity to act.
Now, things were different. In school, the maid could only dutifully stand guard outside the door. Heh heh heh, it was Witch Teacher’s turn now! As for this young master… Liya’s red eyes gleamed slightly. As a Witch bloodline, her “Witch Eyes” allowed her to see the opponent’s magic circuits and their upper limits. Without a doubt, this young master was… a small fry! Poor talent, and his magic circuit composition was mediocre. A small fry! Judging by his pre-enrollment tests, his stamina was also far below average. A small fry! Hmph, nothing to fear! Liya was glad the homeroom teacher for this class had gone on maternity leave, leaving a vacancy that she had seized to take over this “mess.” Therefore… now was the time for her to use her authority to coerce and lure this small fry who had picked up her coin into surrendering obediently!
“Here!”
Startled by her shout, Will stood up reflexively. Will was now certain: she had eagerly taken the bait even before he had cast his line! Liya’s appearance here was for him! Who else would start calling roll not from A, not from Z, but from W, like him?!
“You didn’t participate in the practical entrance exam, did you?” Liya seemed to have found a universally known reason and brought it up deliberately. The students below let out a few chuckles upon hearing Liya’s question. Will thought, “Don’t you know the reason I didn’t participate in the practical exam?! It’s all because of you, you broke witch who arbitrarily took on jobs when you needed money…” Well… there was also a little bit of him accidentally falling…
“Yes, I injured my magic-dominant hand a few days ago, so I couldn’t participate.” Will said in a wronged tone, holding up his bandaged right hand.
“You’ll have to take a make-up exam. You can’t always have no practical results, and this affects your future advisor selection. So…” Will saw a sly smile flash across Liya’s face. “After class, come to my office. As your homeroom teacher, I need to have a good chat with you~☆” At this moment, both the student and the teacher in the classroom felt that the other had taken the bait.
The first class rarely taught anything substantial, especially with Liya’s zero experience as a homeroom teacher. After spending half the class reading the school’s rules and regulations, she found she still had plenty of time left. She told everyone to study on their own before pulling out a magic book larger than her face and began to read. So… this class felt like it was passing incredibly slowly! Will spent the remaining time observing Liya, hoping to decipher her thoughts. But… she was too short! The book was too large! He couldn’t see her face at all. When the dismissal bell rang, Will stood up, having long awaited this moment, and Liya also stood up eagerly. The two looked at each other. Both fishermen were staring at each other, waiting for the fish to bite. The fishing lines seemed to intertwine in their gazes.
“Well then~ Classmate Will, come over after class.” Liya spoke in a gentle teacher’s tone, one that she herself found sickening.
“Okay, Teacher Liya~” Will deliberately pitched his voice higher, speaking to her in the tone of a good boy.
“Then follow me this way~” Just after class, amidst the surging crowd, Will followed Liya through the throng of students and teachers. Will wasn’t worried about affecting his next class, as it was magic calculation, his strongest subject. However… after they left the classroom together, they no longer resembled a gentle teacher and a well-behaved student. Liya walked quickly in front of Will, and as he almost caught up, she seemed to accelerate, maintaining a certain distance. Will found this behavior somewhat odd.
Liya found it extremely strange herself! For some reason, her state became very strange the moment Will stood up from his seat and walked towards her. He stood up from the last row, tidied his notebook casually, looked up, adjusted his glasses, revealed his left arm with the rolled-up sleeve, and walked step by step from his seat. In the sunlight, as he got closer, she felt her heartbeat quicken—even her magic circuits, connected to her blood, began to spin faster. She couldn’t even look directly at Will’s face or eyes, or her heart would beat even faster. That’s why she kept accelerating in front of Will, trying to distance herself, but he actually accelerated to keep up! Liya began to ponder, what was happening to her? During class, she had glanced at Will a few times; this guy was actually quite handsome. Even with his glasses, they added a touch of mature contrast to his young, delicate face. Could it be… was she developing feelings for this small fry?! No, he’s your student, and you’re older than him, possibly… by just a hundred years. This is pedophilia! Liya, who looked like a twelve-year-old girl, wake up!
However, Mary had mentioned last night that the school allowed teacher-student relationships. —No! Wake up! —I can’t fall for a small fry! Mom warned me about this! Falling for someone weaker, a small fry, leads to tragedy!
Before Liya could figure out what was happening, Will suddenly took her hand. She felt a warm, burning sensation flow from his fingertips. “Hey~ Teacher~ Teacher Liya~ Where are you taking me?”
“…M-my… office, and listen to me! Don’t just, just hold a teacher’s hand!”
“Okay, okay…” Will also found Liya’s behavior a bit unusual, as her earlobes had started to turn red. However… As a witch who hadn’t interacted much with the opposite sex in the original work, and being a tsundere, blushing from being held by her student… hmm, perhaps it was normal. A look of having his plan fall into place flashed across Will’s face.
“Well, come in.” The office was somewhat secluded. Other teachers’ offices were usually clustered in consecutive rooms on the first floor, and it was common for several teachers to share an office. However, Liya’s office was a small room located between classrooms, as if it had been converted from a storage room.
“It’s a bit messy. Here, your hand is injured, so it might be inconvenient to move a chair. Sit here first.” —It really looked like a storage room, with things piled all over the floor, leaving only the desk by the left wall relatively clean. Liya walked in and, showing great consideration for Will, brought over a chair and placed it in front of him. Then, she leaned against the slightly cleaner desk and crossed her arms. Amidst the clutter, the petite Liya looked like a pitiful doll forgotten in a warehouse.
“Good, I’ve lured him into a private space. The coin is mine!” —Liya’s flat chest exuded confidence.
“Good, she’s actively interacting with me. I will definitely reel this fish in.” —Will’s confident smile was most satisfying.
