“I… I…”
Seeing Ximon’s constipated expression, the silver-haired beauty instantly grew flustered as well.
No, it can’t be, if this guy refuses me again, where on earth am I supposed to find a fifth member? None of the other students are really close with me, you know!
No, I can’t let this slip. He’s the only one left. I have to seize this chance!
“Can you tell me why? Ximon, the thing is, the teacher thinks you’re the most suitable candidate. So, um, your reason, can you tell me what it is?!”
“Uh… actually, there’s nothing especially important, it’s just… I’m a bit worried I’ll drag the class down. And… well, I do have confidence in myself, but in the honors class, there are those A-grade monsters…”
Ximon scratched his head, then continued sheepishly, “The reason I came to this class was to avoid them in the first place. I’d rather be the head of a chicken than the tail of a phoenix.”
“Now you want me to compete—it’s basically asking for humiliation. There’s no way I can beat them. I… I’m a little afraid of making a fool of myself…”
Ah.
That’s such a common thought. Even this proud little lord thinks this way…
Was it because I struck him down too hard before, and he lost all his confidence? Keti remembered that at first, this little guy was actually quite arrogant.
Thinking of this, Keti couldn’t help but feel a twinge of guilt inside. No, this won’t do. I can’t let my student lose his self-confidence! Isn’t that a kind of bullying in its own way?!
Ahem, ahem.
Although I’ve already disciplined him with my hands, that was character correction!
Now, I have to encourage Ximon properly, help him regain his confidence!
“Don’t worry about that, Ximon. Actually, as your teacher, I’ve always had high hopes for you! Because, well, look, you have B-grade talent, and your family background is good.”
“Among your peers in our class, only you have mastered Magic Arrow Rain, such a high-level spell. In a way, you’ve already chosen your path and can officially head toward becoming a Mage!”
The silver-haired beauty clapped her hands and looked at him earnestly, “That’s such a dazzling gift. You’ve already surpassed so many people. In our class, you’re the strongest among your age group!”
“That’s why I came to you! Because this last spot, I want to give to someone who can achieve great results! Ximon, are you going to let your teacher down? Uu~”
By the end, there were even tears welling up in her eyes. The little lord instantly shook his head in panic, then waved his hands and said, “How could I… I, I, I…”
Ka—!
This, this is just cheating! Teacher Keti is just too cute like this, I can’t possibly say no.
But… she probably didn’t realize it herself, that her honest thoughts just now put even more pressure on me—not only do I have to participate, I also have to get good results and all that…
Teacher Keti has really high expectations for me, ugh.
“Thank you. I’m glad Teacher Keti praises me so much, but… no matter how highly you speak of me, I… I was still instantly beaten by you, a D-grade. And because I lost so badly, I developed some weird feelings.”
“Uh… what?!”
The silver-haired beauty blinked in utter confusion, and realizing he’d said the wrong thing, Ximon hurriedly waved his hands, then showed a troubled, pained expression, “In any case, I absolutely won’t participate, so please, teacher, don’t insist anymore!”
“Ho~?”
The atmosphere suddenly went silent. After a moment, with a cold snort, Ximon started trembling all over, and when he looked up, the silver-haired beauty’s eyes had gone cold.
“Little lord, I’m not negotiating with you. Don’t think you can refuse me so easily, hmph… Don’t think I don’t know what you’re up to~”
“Ka… teacher, I, I, I…”
W-what’s going on?!
My brain hasn’t even processed the sudden change, but my knees—my knees already want to kneel before the loli teacher!
Ah… t-this cold gaze, this disdainful expression~
Could it be, because I acted so cowardly just now and showed my fear, I made Keti angry, and that’s why she suddenly turned like this?!
No, don’t! My image in Keti’s eyes, isn’t it just getting worse and worse?
B-but, hiss, ha, hiss, ha—
Why am I getting so excited!
“Hmph… The way you’re panting now, you really are… just like a little puppy~”
Keti sneered, then suddenly picked up a plastic stick from the table—a long, thin one, like a pointer. She gently tapped it on the palm of her other hand, producing crisp “pa—pa—” sounds.
“As long as you sign up for the competition, then I’ll put you five through Devil Training! Hmph… After all, anyone who doesn’t get results is just embarrassing me! So, what do you think, want to join now? There’ll be Devil Training and Devil Punishment~”
“Ooooh—! I, I, I… ah… I’ll join, I’ll join!!!”
After a while, Ximon couldn’t help it anymore and dropped to his knees, trembling as he shouted. The silver-haired beauty blinked in confusion, not knowing how to react to this sudden kneeling.
And after kneeling, the blond little lord instantly regretted it. Why are my knees so soft! Ka… Ugh… But, I really want to lick Teacher Keti’s shoes!
Ahem… To avoid embarrassment, Ximon started doing push-ups on the floor right then and there, pretending he was just showing his burning passion.
He did over ten in a row before finally getting up, then looked at Keti with determined eyes,
“I’ll participate! Teacher, when it’s time for special training, please be even stricter with me!”
“Oh… I, I will… hahaha, hurry up and sign!”
Keti was afraid the duck would fly away after all this, so she rushed him to sign. Ximon took the paper and pen right away, and then…
The last one’s settled! Heh, they all took the bait~
Phew… Now that I think about it, this little lord Ximon really is a bit strange. I just improvised a bit, and it worked so well?
Of course, the Devil Training is real… With this lineup, if we don’t train hard, how can we possibly win the championship? Even with Layla and Sylvia, I can’t say victory is guaranteed.
“All right, you go back to class for now! Hmph, I need to prepare for the Devil Training, but it’s going to start soon, so get ready to have all your break time taken by me!”
“Ah~ Yes—!”