Mia’s heart instantly leaped into her throat. The heavy footsteps of the cleaning lady and the clatter of her mop and bucket grew closer, accompanied by a slightly puzzled inquiry.
“Is someone in there? What’s that noise?”
This was a huge problem! Teacher Sefina was still inside!
Sefina had also heard the footsteps outside. However… while she could barely restrain herself before the magic crest was addressed, now that things had started, her reason had completely shattered. She simply could not stop!
Mia was so anxious that sweat nearly broke out on her forehead. If the cleaning lady discovered Teacher Sefina hiding in a student dormitory bathroom in such a state…
The consequences would be unthinkable!
In her desperation, Mia steeled herself. She suddenly clamped her hand over her mouth and let out an extremely exaggerated, soul-wrenching series of coughs.
“*Cough! Cough, cough, cough—!!!*” She used nearly her entire lung capacity, attempting to use the loud noise to completely drown out the ear-burning pants coming from behind the door.
“Is someone there?” The cleaning lady outside was indeed distracted by the coughing and called out to confirm.
“There’s… *cough, cough!* There’s someone here, Ma’am!” Mia replied, raising her voice while struggling to maintain the violent coughing fit, fearing the woman wouldn’t hear her clearly.
“Aren’t you all supposed to be in class at this hour? Why are you still in the dormitory?” the lady asked in a routine tone of inquiry.
“I… *cough, cough, cough!* I forgot my textbook. I… *cough*… I came back to get it during the break! *Cough, cough—!*” Mia felt like she was going to cough up her lungs, her cheeks turning bright red from the effort.
“Oh,” the cleaning lady grunted, seemingly accepting the explanation. However, she was immediately drawn by Mia’s exaggerated coughing to offer a word of concern.
“Did you catch a cold? That’s quite a cough you have.”
“Y-Yes, Ma’am! The weather’s been turning cold lately, so I… *cough*… I caught a bit of a chill! *Cough, cough, cough!*” Mia followed the lead, throwing herself even more “passionately” into her coughing, as if her lungs might burst at any moment.
“If you’re feeling unwell, you can always ask for a leave of absence. Your health is what matters most,” the lady kindly reminded her.
“I’m fine, Ma’am! It’s… it’s just a little cough! *Cough, cough!*”
Mia answered with difficulty while straining her ears to listen to the movements inside the bathroom.
Teacher Sefina’s panting seemed to have weakened slightly, but it hadn’t stopped entirely, still challenging Mia’s nerves like constant background noise.
Right then, the cleaning lady seemed to catch a faint, rapid breath, and she asked suspiciously, “Huh? What’s that noise now? You’re panting awfully hard, aren’t you?”
Mia broke into a cold sweat instantly. Her heart hammered against her ribs, and she blurted out, “I… I just ran all the way back! I’m out of breath! Right! I’m just out of breath! *Cough, cough—!*”
She quickly reinforced her story with another burst of even more violent coughing.
Silence lingered outside for a few seconds as if the woman were judging the truth of her words.
Ultimately, the cleaning lady likely believed the explanation and stopped prying, simply instructing, “All right, all right. Just get your textbook and head back to class. Don’t be late.”
Then, the sound of the mop and bucket clattered again.
Accompanied by the sound of receding footsteps, it was clear that the woman had begun cleaning the hallway on this floor and was slowly moving toward the floor below.
Only when the footsteps had completely disappeared down the stairwell did Mia let out a long sigh of relief, feeling utterly exhausted. Her back was nearly soaked with cold sweat.
She leaned weakly against the wall by the door, patting her chest as she muttered in a low voice, “That was too close. Teacher Sefina almost suffered a total social death…”
Mia cast a worried glance at the still-closed bathroom door. The panting inside seemed to be gradually subsiding, though an occasional whimpering sob with a slight tremble could still be heard.
Mia scratched her head, a look of confusion and worry crossing her face. Teacher Sefina was still… doing that.
‘I wonder what’s actually wrong with her? Will there be side effects after this?’
After some more time had passed, the noises inside the bathroom finally faded into complete silence, leaving only the sound of faint breathing.
Mia cautiously leaned toward the door and gave it a soft tap, asking with concern in a hushed tone, “Teacher Sefina? How… how are you? Are you okay?”
There was a moment of silence from within before Sefina’s somewhat raspy voice responded with a weak “Mhm…”
Next came the rustling of clothing being adjusted and the faint sound of running water.
A short while later, there was a soft *click* as the bathroom door unlocked. The door was slowly pulled open from the inside, and Sefina stepped out.
Her face still bore the flush of exertion, though much of that seductive crimson had faded compared to before.
The student uniform she wore was slightly disheveled. Although she had clearly tried her best to tidy up, a few wrinkles were still visible upon closer inspection.
Sefina kept her eyes downcast, avoiding Mia’s gaze. She responded to Mia’s earlier concern with a flat tone that was several degrees weaker than usual.
Watching Teacher Sefina’s fragile and bashful appearance, Mia couldn’t help but speak up again. “Teacher Sefina, what’s really going on with you? Why did you suddenly just…” She didn’t finish the sentence, but her meaning was clear.
Sefina’s body stiffened imperceptibly, and her cheeks seemed to heat up again. She pressed her lips together and didn’t answer.
‘How am I supposed to say it?! Am I supposed to tell my own student that I have a shameful magic crest on my body that flares up periodically and makes me lose my mind?!’
Seeing Teacher Sefina’s pursed lips and shifting expression, Mia sensed her difficulty in speaking. Though her curiosity was nearly exploding, she vaguely realized that this might be a very private or even painful secret of her teacher’s.
While Mia was the neighborhood’s recognized “curious cat” and “big-mouth,” she still knew when to show restraint in moments like this. ‘I should ask less and be nicer to Teacher Sefina…’
Consequently, she did something rare and suppressed her urge to pry. Instead, she scampered over to the small table in the dormitory, grabbed her cup, and skillfully used a simple heating magic to warm a cup of water.
Then, Mia dug a packet of cocoa powder out of her snack stash and mixed a steaming, fragrant cup of hot cocoa, carefully carrying it over to Sefina.
“Teacher, have some hot cocoa. It’ll warm you up and make you feel a bit better,” Mia said with uncharacteristic thoughtfulness.
Sefina gave Mia a somewhat surprised look, seemingly not expecting her to be sensible enough to stop prying and even prepare a drink.
A complex emotion stirred in her heart. Sefina took the warm cup of hot cocoa and whispered, “Thank you…”
Sefina took a small sip. The sweet, warm liquid sliding down her throat did indeed provide a trace of comfort.
She was relieved that Mia hadn’t tried to get to the bottom of things this time. Otherwise, she really wouldn’t have known how to face her. Telling her the truth was just… it was just too humiliating.
Cradling the warm cup, Sefina’s knees instinctively pressed together, her slender fingers rubbing against the side of the mug.
‘I still feel so embarrassed…’
To do such a thing in a student’s dormitory under that student’s “cover”…
Even though this wasn’t the first time she had lost control in front of a student, every instance made her feel incredibly ashamed and humiliated.
However, just as Sefina thought the storm was passing and she could catch her breath—
*Tap, tap, tap—*
Clear, hurried footsteps echoed from the hallway again!
This time, the footsteps had a clear destination, heading straight for this dorm room!
Then, before those inside could even react, a crisp, decisive knock sounded at the door, accompanied by a familiar and slightly anxious female voice.
“Mia! Why are you taking so long to get a textbook? Class is about to start! We’re going to be late if you don’t hurry!”
It was Kefi’s voice!
Mia and Sefina both froze at the same time. They shared a look, and both saw the word “disaster” written in each other’s eyes.
They had just dealt with the cleaning lady, but now someone even more familiar and harder to fool had arrived—Kefi!