The school was still very dark and quiet when he arrived. Compared to the other students, he looked more like a thief. Thankfully, he was already used to coming in earlier to study. Since his grades were always good, the Tidsears didn't think much of him. Besides, they actually knew that Hanasta was being bullied in the dormitory.
However, unlike a typical morning when he would go to the laboratory, library, or class, this time, he was glued to the holographic screen of one of the computers in the school's data room. His index finger busily swiped across the touchscreen. His eyes were focused on the only source of light in the room.
"This is strange," he muttered, frowning. If the perpetrator spreading rumors through "false sources" and social media among the students was in Special Proctor Gildas, he should be able to find a trace of them. "But there's nothing anywhere."
"What are you doing, Hanasta?" a voice suddenly asked from behind him, even without any hint of presence or footsteps approaching.
"OH MY GOD!" the teenager exclaimed in shock, reflexively turning around. He saw a tall figure with a flat expression standing straight in the darkness.
The man placed both hands behind his back. His two eyes gazed at the teenager in front of him with a condescending look. "Don't be excessive. What are you doing here so early?" he repeated the question in a flat tone.
He reflexively shut off the hologram screen. "Tidsear Farras," Hanasta called his homeroom teacher from middle school.
Clap clap. Tidsear Farras clapped twice, which immediately turned on the room lights. Now, they could see each other clearly. He crossed his arms over his chest, raising his chin as if to say, explain!
Lowering his gaze, he tried to explain, "There's something I need to do…" His breath was irregular. His head was getting more dizzy. The negative effects of "resolving issues" with Georgiy earlier in the dorm hadn't faded yet. Why did he have to get involved with someone more troublesome now?
"You know that students aren't supposed to be here? Especially at a time like this."
Does Tidsear Farras already know about that rumor? Ah, no. He might know and is pretending to see my reaction. Or something else. The important thing is this cannot be allowed to continue.
"Hanasta," called the man with the thick mustache.
"Yes, Tidsear."
He pointed his thumb at the door. "There are many things I need to discuss with you. Now let's go to my room."
But Hanasta didn't move. Instead, he said, "Actually, there's something I want to say too."
*
Unlike the dormitory for students whose families come from the working class that drives the economy. The dormitory for students from noble and elite families, which stands at the top of the hierarchy, consists of one large and luxurious room. It usually accommodates two people at most, depending on how wealthy their families are, since the cost of the school dormitory is very high.
That morning, in one of the rooms in the noble students' dormitory. A teenage girl woke up from her restless sleep. Recently, there had been conflicts that made her heart race continuously. It was related to someone precious to her.
"How can everyone be caught up in such cheap rumors?" she asked while gripping the messy bangs of her hair.
She was aware that she was far above the social caste line of Special Proctor Gildas. No one would dare to touch her. Even the Tidsears had to be careful around her.
But the problem wasn't there.
"If I openly defend him, maybe they won't do anything. But only in front of me. I don't know what they'll do behind my back."
She tightened her grip on her blanket. She felt confused between romance and idealism.
I could lose my important position among them. Branded as an odd person siding with the underclass, she thought.
And more than that, her parents might start to suspect and wonder about their relationship. That was already troublesome enough and also dangerous for Hanasta.
"Even though I just want to be by your side..." she sighed in frustration.
Yet, this world is built on very clear dividing lines. The nobles and elites above. The residents of the slum area below. It seems that one has to play by the rules.
Just a little longer until the Tidsears finds out about the rumor and takes action. Or perhaps they actually already know, but are waiting for the right time to act? Either way, they are certainly trying to keep the school situation conducive.
Sacrificing a "slum area resident" like Hanasta would surely be considered a win-win solution. Not even caring whether the rumor is true or not.
"Such a thing has never happened before," the girl thought. She picked up the HoloPad from the bedside table. She reopened a series of links scattered across various student chat groups.
Only Hanasta was the only child who was never invited to all those chat groups. Hanasta's student account only existed in the official student group that only discussed school-related matters and the like.
"I've tried to invite him. But even when Hanasta wasn't aware he had joined a chat group, the group admin had already kicked him out."
The world is indeed very cruel when it comes to social strata. For that reason…
She placed the HoloPad between her chest and thighs. She hugged her knees tightly. "Why do I have to fall in love with someone like you, huh? Stupid, stupid! Even I like it… uurgh."
Buukh. She lay down again on the bed. She hugged her pillow, unintentionally flying off into memories of how those feelings originated. From a moment that happened many years ago.
"Solielle, I will conquer this world. And when that time comes… I will erase everything that makes you uneasy."
Her vacant eyes stared at the ceiling of the room. "Hanasta."
In a world that has lost all its wonders and miracles, where else should humanity pray?