小嫂子的味道

It was morning and the slight sunlight was falling onto our faces as we sat inside the wagon.

I hadn't slept much last night since I didn't feel like it or you could also say that I was busy gazing at the stars and the moon in the crystal clear sky.

Ellyn and Anya were different, however. Anya was awake with me for a while but she soon fell into a slumber as well and both of them slept soundly until I woke them up in the morning.

I don't need to say it outright that during that time Req didn't hesitate to give me some wild suggestions, which I obviously ignored.

"We're finally back, huh?" Ellyn said under her breath as she stretched her body. Perhaps the laziness still hadn't left her.

"So we are," Anya replied, looking at the changing scenery out of the wagon.

A few minutes later the rolling wheels of the wagon came to a halt and we stopped at the side of a main road.

"This is as far as I go," the wagon driver said, and he wasn't wrong. You didn't see many public vehicles near the academy so I guess there was some kind of rule preventing that.

We stepped out of the wagon and since the only luggage we had was on our backs, we didn't have to waste much time there. After paying the wagon driver we left for the academy on foot.

Going through the crowds of people I noticed the obvious change in Sofrora city and Roswell city. I don't know if it was because this was the capital city but the architecture of the buildings here looked much more premium and delicate.

Around ten to fifteen minutes later we were standing before the gate of the academy. We stepped inside and were stopped by the guards, although they made way for us to get inside once we showed them our transaction cards.

Inside the campus, the three of us walked together to the dorm buildings but since we had different buildings this was where we parted ways. Anya and Ellyn went to the class A dorm buildings while I headed toward the class B one.

After climbing the stairs and taking a walk in the corridor I was soon standing before the door to my room.

I took out the key from my pocket and inserted it inside the door lock. The lock gleamed in pink and the runes inscribed on the key lit up and I heard a clicking sound which indicated the unlocking of the door. I pulled the key back and slid it into my pocket.

Then twisting the doorknob I opened the door and stepped inside. There was an air of nostalgia as I took out my shoes and went toward the main room. Or so I'd like to say, but it was really just the smell of dust.

Still, though, it didn't feel like I was in an unknown place. Coming back here was like returning to a second home. I stood there staring at the surroundings, I let out a breath and slumped my backpack on the bed.

I had some dusting to do, so I couldn't relax before that until I wanted to powder myself up. Req also transformed into her human form and watched me while I cleaned—while making her usual seducing attempts, of course.

Once the cleaning was done, I sat and took a breather for a while. Then I took a bath and changed my clothes as they had been dirty from one day of continuous travel.

Most of the things were done for the moment thus I told Req to watch the room and went outside.

I came down from the dorm building and headed toward the cafeteria. I put my hands in the pocket of my jacket, and as I walked into the academy grounds I saw that the population of students was still quite low from what it used to be.

It was understandable since most of the students were still away at their homes. However, since today was the last day of the vacation I was constantly seeing students enter from the gates and go toward the dorms as they arrived back.

Reaching the cafeteria I saw that there was not much crowd there either, only five of the seats were occupied. I went to the counter and ordered a coffee and some sandwiches.

As I've said, there wasn't much rush at the cafeteria thus I got my order in only a span of about ten minutes. I picked up the tray and sat on a seat beside the glass wall.

I glanced outside as I sipped my coffee and ate the sandwiches. It was then that I noticed the slight change at the campus.

There were decorations at the light poles and the buildings. The cafeteria was decorated as well. I found this strange and thought about it as I ate my meal.

Then it occurred to me, something about the plot which I had forgotten because it was insignificant and had not left much impact.

Today was the last day of the vacation and tomorrow, on the day of reopening, the academy will be holding a fest. In the novel, loli_pop had added it basically as a filler and since there was nothing much happening in that part, I had forgotten about it. It's been quite a few days since I checked my diary so that must be the reason.

I finished my meal and stood up. Going to the counter I first paid for the things I'd ordered and then bought some donuts, and asked them to be packed. I paid for it as well, took the package, and left the cafeteria.

I wasn't particularly excited or anything about the fest as it was your usual trope of generic fest you see in every other novel and anime. Plus, there won't be anything worth my attention going on so I had no reason to get pumped up about it.

***

After cleaning her room, taking a bath, and changing into some better-looking clothes Ellyn left her room.

She walked in the corridor of the class A dorm building until she found what she was looking for. Standing in front of Leon's room she knocked on the door.

"Yep, just a minute," his voice said from behind. A few seconds later the sound of running on the floor was heard as Leon came and opened the door in a hurry.

"Phew! I didn't make you wait much, did I?" he asked.

"No, not at all."

"You're back, huh? I'm glad to see you after such a long time," he said. One month wasn't exactly a 'long time' but exaggerating was in his blood. "Why're you standing there, come inside. You might catch a cold," saying as he made way for Ellyn to step inside.

"As you can see, I just arrived so thought I'd say hello," Ellyn replied as she stepped inside Leon's room. It wasn't weird or anything for her, she had been here many times before.

"You know, I was getting really worried about you. Since you were there out alone and all the stuff with your dad, and I was not there to protect you as I've promised you that I will…you're fine, right?" Leon asked, a sense of worry in his voice.

There was also a hint of guilt on his face and it was probably there because he would've blamed himself if something had happened to Ellyn and he was not able to protect her

Ellyn looked at him for a few seconds and thought about everything that had happened to her that day. The time when she had been held captive by the men sent by her father, the time when they were just about to kill her and she'd given up on life.

At that time when the blade was just on her throat and the man was about to push it in, she had completely given up on life. But then Zero came and saved her, just like he had said he will.

Until then even if she didn't want to think about it, she couldn't help but harbor some doubts about Zero in her heart. And there was no blaming her. She had witnessed the things he'd done and the lengths he can go to, thus it was hard for her to trust him.

But he kept his end of the deal and protected her. There were no such doubts lingering inside her anymore.

"No, nothing of sorts happened. I was fine," Ellyn replied.