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Upon waking up in the morning, the first thing that caught my eye was Frecia’s sleeping face, softly breathing away.

If I had been in a male body, I might have found myself in a compromising situation this morning, but thankfully, being in a female body spared me from that.

I tried to gently slide out of bed without waking Frecia, who was snuggled up against me, but alas, it proved futile as she blinked one eye open, rubbing it sleepily.

“Elysia?”

In a voice still heavy with sleep, Frecia called my name.

“It’s still early. Go back to sleep a little longer.”

I peeked through the curtains and saw the sun just rising, painting the sky with morning colors.

“But… aren’t you going back to your room now?”

“Well, yes. I have plans today, so I should get ready to head out.”

Frecia sat up on the sofa, her eyes still filled with remnants of sleep.

Since I woke her up, it seemed only right to help her go back to sleep.

I approached Frecia, gently laid her back down on the sofa, and pulled the blanket back over her.

Frecia, still clearly needing more sleep and seemingly not wanting to let go, lay there looking up at me.

“You must be tired from all the walking yesterday. Sleep well and wake up refreshed.”

I lifted my hand and gave her head a gentle pat, once, then again.

Frecia responded like a cat, tilting her head slightly against my hand, rubbing her face against it.

Without me even moving my hand, her face was the one seeking my touch.

Seeing the cute antics of our little boss made my lips curl into a smile.

“Okay, okay. No more cuteness for now. Just close your eyes and go to sleep. You’re already half asleep, so don’t push it.”

“No… I can stay awake…”

However, her voice grew weaker, and her movements slowed down.

I pulled my hand away from her cheek momentarily, then swept her bangs aside gently.

Just like when I was a child and scared of the dark, needing my mother to soothe me, I lightly kissed her forehead, which had been revealed by lifting her bangs.

[I kissed!]

When I glanced at her, checking for any sign of discontent, thankfully she looked happy instead.

She smiled bashfully and lifted the blanket over her face, hiding it just below her eyes.

“Yeah. I think I can sleep now…”

Fortunately, it seemed my actions had worked; Frecia’s previous stubbornness faded completely.

As I sat there watching her, soon her breathing turned rhythmic, signaling she had slipped back into sleep.

Leaving Frecia to her dreams, I headed towards the dormitory room.

*

As soon as I returned to the dormitory, I was caught at the entrance by the dormitory supervisor.

However, thankfully my friends, who had received a note from Gomtaengi, must have explained things well on my behalf, as I only had to endure some minor scolding without receiving any demerits.

The morning training was about to start, but it was still too early for everyone to be awake. I stood at the door and slowly turned the doorknob.

I turned the knob so slowly that even the sound wouldn’t be heard, and I pushed the door open just as carefully.

The dormitory was so well-maintained that the door opened without a squeak.

It was dark inside, probably because the curtains were drawn, and I relied on the faint light seeping through the opening to cautiously step inside.

I shut the door quietly, tiptoeing to avoid making any noise as I looked at the bed.

The first thing that caught my eye was my bed nearest to me.

Normally, no one should be there, but on my bed, Anne was sprawled out, blanket kicked off, pajama top slightly raised, exposing her belly and drooling away in sound sleep.

Phew, thankfully the noise of me coming in seemed not to have woken her.

Well, if an assassin can’t manage even this, then maybe I should just die.

The room was so dim that I couldn’t confirm whether Selian and Yuli were awake, but they were likely sleeping soundly like Anne.

Satisfied, I took a step towards the bathroom.

The room was so dark that, despite having adjusted to a bright area beforehand, I could hardly see.

But turning on the light might disturb my still-sleeping friends, so I carefully recalled the room’s layout, moving forward by touch.

I felt my way along the bed frame, then passed the bed and felt the table before continuing ahead.

If I get past the sofa, the bathroom should be…

Squish?

Huh?

I felt something peculiar yet familiar that didn’t match the softness of the sofa.

Gingerly, I examined the area my hand had touched, slowly raising my gaze.

“Ugh!”

With a thud, I let out a strange scream as I stumbled back, shocked by the situation.

In the pitch darkness, a pair of cerulean eyes were watching me as I lingered, half-crawling across the sofa.

Only then did I realize my hand was on someone’s thigh.

As I awkwardly scrambled to rise, I suddenly noticed another pair of eyes looking down at me.

“Eek!”

Thud!

Startled, I sprang back as if bouncing off a spring, only to bang my head against the bed leg.

“Ow…”

As I held my head in pain, rolling on the floor, a click echoed through the room, and bright light flooded in.

Just a moment ago, the darkness had felt normal, but now light poured in painfully, making it impossible to keep my eyes open.

Yet, even after the lights turned on, the only sound filling the room was Anne’s wheezing snores, leaving an awkward silence throughout.

I squinted at the brightness, adjusting to the light, and slowly peeked around.

…….

“Hehe…”

I rubbed my still throbbing head with one hand while offering an awkward smile to the two people looking down at me.

*

“Urrgh… good morning…”

After a hearty sleep, Anne greeted me with her cheerful voice and a contented groan.

I could hear her rustling around on the bed.

“What time is it, Yuli… huh?”

“Oh, hi! Good morning…”

“You came in, Elysia. But why are you like that?”

Anne rubbed her eyes as she spotted me kneeling on the floor, having gotten caught while delivering the note I asked for yesterday, holding Gomtaengi in one arm.

“Hahaha… it’s just that….”

“Whoa!”

I tried to explain my situation to Anne, but then her hissing noise made my hands shoot up again.

“Yawn… I’m off to wash up first for the tournament prep.”

But it seemed Anne’s interest in me didn’t go past that, as she yawningly turned toward the bathroom.

“Don’t leave me behind, Anne! Please save me here!”

Desperately sending out distress signals in my mind, of course, she couldn’t hear me, and she went straight into the bathroom.

Instead, as she entered, Gomtaengi jumped from the bed and hopped down to the floor.

“Ah! You’re the only one who cares about me, Gomtaengi! Please get me out of here…”

Gomtaengi trotted adorably over to the door, then leapt up, managing to turn the doorknob and open it.

Peeking back at me from the narrow door opening, Gomtaengi waved goodbye with one paw and left without further ado.

No! You’re not supposed to say goodbye and leave! Come back and rescue me!

“Elysia? Should I add 10 more minutes?”

“N-no!”

At Selian’s cold voice, I realized the sad truth that no one was here to save me and lifted my hands again.

“We couldn’t even sleep, worrying about you, Elysia! You look like you slept just fine!”

“Ugh…”

Yuli approached, smiling and pinching my thigh.

Having knelt for so long, my legs were already getting numb, and when Yuli’s fingers dug into my thigh, a shiver shot through my body.

But Yuli, apparently wanting to continue, poked at my thigh again.

Oh no! There’s a demon among us!

“Ugh… please stop…”

This was a level of torment I had never experienced, not even during my time as an assassin.

Despite my pleas for mercy, Yuli seemed to find joy in prodding me, without ceasing.

If I could at least enhance my body with Aura, it might help, but as a Sword Master, Selian had always been quick to sound warnings whenever I showed even the slightest intention to use Aura.

In the end, all I could do was suffer through Yuli’s relentless poking while trying to keep my composure in front of Selian.