The next evening, in Sefina’s office.
Rubbing her slightly sore eyes after finishing her last class, Sefina pushed open the office door.
Today’s lessons had gone fairly smoothly, and the students still looked at her with a mixture of respect and awe.
It seemed that Elraya really hadn’t mentioned what happened yesterday, which gave Sefina a small measure of relief.
She walked over to her desk, ready to sit down and start grading papers, but her gaze was immediately caught by an unfamiliar, neatly wrapped box resting on the surface.
“Hm?” Sefina frowned in surprise. What was inside this? Who had left it here?
She glanced around—there was no one else in the office.
Curious and cautious, she picked up the box. It was surprisingly light. There was no signature or note on the outside.
With a mixture of intrigue and wariness, she gently lifted the lid.
However, the moment she saw what was inside, her expression froze completely.
Inside the box, folded neatly, were… several pieces of pristine, soft Magic Diapers?!
Alongside the diapers was a simple note, written in elegant and familiar handwriting:
【To Teacher Sefina: This is a product launched a few years ago by the Inventor “Einstein.” It can assist you when needed. I hope you recover soon.
— Elraya】
Sefina:
She held the box motionless for a full three seconds.
Then, a wave of mixed absurdity and helpless laughter suddenly surged through her entire body.
“Ugh—ah—!!!”
Sefina let out a low roar, barely holding back a breakdown, and violently threw the box to the floor!
“I don’t need this!!!”
Her cheeks flushed red with anger as she furiously stomped several times on the box of Magic Diapers with her small leather shoes.
“Elraya, you… you…”
She was so mad she couldn’t find the right words and finally stopped, looking at the crushed box on the floor with a mixture of frustration and amusement.
The most ironic part was… this thing… seemed like… one of the “byproducts” she herself had accidentally created years ago under the alias “Einstein” while researching magical water-absorbing materials…
Who would have thought that by some strange twist of fate, it would end up back in her hands in this way?
What on earth was going on!!!
Sefina glared at the now somewhat deformed box of Magic Diapers on the floor, her chest rising and falling sharply before she finally sighed helplessly.
The embarrassment and absurdity gradually faded, replaced by a complicated sense of guilt.
She had been so harsh and threatening to Elraya yesterday, probably scaring her badly. And yet this kid…
This kid hadn’t held a grudge but instead thoughtfully tried to help her solve an… embarrassing problem.
Although this care was entirely based on a huge misunderstanding, making Sefina’s toes curl in awkwardness, the sentiment…
Ah, the intention behind it was genuinely good.
Sefina bent down and resignedly picked up the box, brushing off the dust.
Throwing it away seemed too heartless—after all, it was the good intention of a student. If she found out, how upset would she be?
Well, better to just put it away for now; out of sight, out of mind.
So Sefina casually stuffed the box into the deepest drawer of her desk, as if that could seal away the social death she’d experienced yesterday as well.
She forced herself to stop thinking about that suffocating misunderstanding, took a deep breath, and sat back down, focusing on the towering piles of documents in front of her.
Academic Reports, Teaching Plans, Student Assignments, Academy Notices…
Sheets of all kinds nearly buried her desk.
Sefina rubbed her temples, picked up her pen, and began to grade them one by one.
Time quietly slipped away with the soft scratching of her pen.
Outside the window, the sunlight gradually softened, turning orange-red before finally fading into the deep blue of twilight.
The Magic Lamp in the office automatically turned on, casting a cold white glow.
Sefina put down her pen, shook out her aching wrist from long hours of writing, and rubbed her dry, strained eyes.
She had processed less than half the documents—her efficiency was shockingly low.
“So many…” she murmured, glancing at the completely dark sky outside.
The hallway was already silent; the other teachers had clearly left long ago to enjoy their personal time.
Was it because she was still new to the position and unfamiliar with the procedures? Or was the workload for Osairenka teachers always this terrifying?
Looks like she wouldn’t finish today. Sefina sighed in resignation and decided not to push herself anymore—she would just get up earlier tomorrow and finish the rest.
She tidied her desk a bit, neatly organizing the unprocessed papers, then turned off the Magic Lamp, locked the office door, and dragged her slightly tired footsteps toward the Faculty Dormitory.
***
The night at Osairenka Academy was quiet and mysterious, the Magic Lamps lining the paths casting a soft glow that mingled with the sparse starlight above.
A cool breeze stirred her blue hair as it brushed past.
The rhythmic “tap tap” of her black leather shoes echoed as Sefina arrived at the quaint Villa assigned to her.
By now, the night was deep. The Villa stood quietly beneath the moonlight and starlight, its windows pitch black, the door firmly shut—looking no different than usual.
As usual, Sefina pulled out her keys, ready to unlock the door.
However, just as she was about to insert the key into the lock, her movements suddenly froze.
An extremely subtle sense of dissonance, like a cold spider’s thread, brushed over her finely tuned senses.
Her wine-red eyes narrowed slightly in the darkness, warily scanning the tightly closed door and windows.
Everything inside… seemed normal. Even if someone else were here, there would be no obvious signs.
But Sefina knew.
There was someone inside her home.
An uninvited, unknown intruder was hiding inside.
She was one hundred percent certain.
In an instant, all her fatigue vanished.
Her body tensed slightly, and her magic quietly began to flow.
She gently withdrew the key into her palm, while her other hand silently gripped the magic wand she always carried.
Now, she wanted to see who was inside.