116 – The Gap Between Races

“What do you mean by living off a woman? Come on, that’s too much. It’s mutual success, alright?” The fruit juice had alcohol in it. As I kept drinking, I started feeling a little drunk, and my words began to slur.

“I think it’s more like she’s the only one contributing to your success,” John said after a moment of thought. “In fact, she hasn’t even accomplished that much for you yet.”

“As your friend, I’ll just say this — plenty of students have their eyes on Teresa now. If you think clinging to her will let you coast without improving yourself, then one day, someone might just take her from you.” John’s tone turned serious as he said this.

I nodded. I knew John meant well, and what he said was true.

No matter how good the relationship between a Divine Princess and her Divine Child was, it still had to be one of equals. Like love, it was a balance between two people — if one side moved too close while the other stayed still, the balance would tip. Conversely, if one drifted too far away, the same would happen. They had to move toward each other equally.

An unequal relationship would inevitably lead one side to grow arrogant and spoiled, while the other accumulated resentment. When that resentment erupted, the relationship would collapse.

I understood that. I was never the kind of person to stop moving forward. But the issue was, John’s warning just didn’t feel realistic.

The reason was simple — no matter what I did, Teresa would never throw a tantrum or get upset with me, and she definitely wouldn’t run off with someone else.

After freeloading off John’s dinner, I staggered out of the restaurant.

This was a dining place somewhere in Coleman City. I wasn’t on the academy grounds at the moment.

A breeze blew the moment I stepped out, and it sobered me up quite a bit.

There wasn’t much alcohol in the juice to begin with — I just had a low tolerance. A few glasses were enough to get me tipsy.

Still feeling a little lightheaded, I leaned against a roadside railing, gazing at the night. I didn’t really have anywhere to go, so I figured I’d wait until the buzz wore off before heading back.

“Excuse me. Are you Mr. Dylin?”

“Hmm?” The clear, sweet voice came from behind, sounding both familiar and unfamiliar to me.

Familiar because I’d heard it before. Unfamiliar because its owner had never spoken to me in such a polite, distant tone before.

“......You are?” I turned around — and saw those twin ponytails, flowing like flickering flames.

“Litt?......”

“You know my name? Did Miss Teres—... Teresa tell you?” Litt’s pretty face showed a flicker of surprise.

“Ah, yeah, she did.” I quickly remembered that I wasn’t Teresa right now and nodded.

“That’s good. Then I can skip the long self-introduction.” Litt placed one hand to her chest and offered a somewhat formulaic smile with her cherry lips — an expression that felt unfamiliar to me.

Everything about her manner made one thing clear: there was a gap between us, and she was deliberately keeping her distance.

Not that she was doing anything wrong. I hadn’t actually met Litt many times before. But because I used to be Teresa, this sudden coldness hit a little hard on a sensory level.

It wasn’t that Litt disliked me or held any prejudice. I could tell — this was a matter of culture, ideology, and racial differences.

Everyone had different social attributes and wore countless faces depending on who they were interacting with. This — this was the face Litt showed to outsiders.

Polite yet distant, graceful yet remote.

I could imagine she used the same formulaic smile when dealing with any non-Elf or stranger.

No — the Elf Tribe in general behaved this way toward outsiders.

Even that gesture she’d made earlier probably wasn’t even a formal bow — just hands folded at the abdomen, a simple acknowledgment of my presence.

At its root, Elves just didn’t understand human culture and values very well. That lack of understanding bred prejudice.

Elves were proud. Combine that with the stark differences in culture and tradition, and their rigid, rule-abiding nature, and you got a race that seemed extremely xenophobic.

So sometimes, it wasn’t that Elves looked down on humans — it was just that they truly had nothing to talk about with a race that saw the world so differently.

These were conclusions I’d come to through personal experience. Now I could let go of the resentment. Every home had its own troubles — and every race, too. Elf xenophobia wasn’t just pride. There were deeper, objective reasons.

“Miss Litt, did you need something from me?” I leaned on the railing and looked up at the silver moon in the sky.

“It’s not a big deal.” Litt was a bit surprised that I didn’t react at all after glancing over her.

She wasn’t vain, but human men usually lingered on her body with their gaze. Even the more polite ones would awkwardly avert their eyes in an obviously forced manner.

But now she realized why.

When you were constantly surrounded by women like Teresa and Astrid, you probably built up an immunity. Naturally, my gaze wouldn’t dwell on her appearance.

“You are Miss Teresa’s Divine Child. You should know where she went, right?”

“...Well.” I did know.

“If you do, then please pass on a message: the Headmaster is looking for her.”

“The Headmaster?” I furrowed my brows. “If I’m not mistaken, the Headmaster is an Elder from the Moon Elf side.”

“That’s right. Just pass it on like that — she’ll understand.” Litt didn’t intend to say more. To her, this was Elf internal business and had nothing to do with me.

Besides...

She still didn’t fully trust my character, and had been looking for a chance to test me.

“Can you tell me why the Headmaster is looking for her?”

“Sorry, Mr. Dylin, I’m not authorized to know that.” At my casual mention of Teresa’s name, Litt’s brows twitched ever so slightly. “That’s the Headmaster’s instruction, not mine.”

“I understand.” I realized it wasn’t appropriate to press further, so I nodded.

“Mm...” Litt’s frown deepened slightly.

It was subtle, but I noticed. I immediately guessed it was probably the faint smell of alcohol on me that made her uncomfortable.

It wasn’t strong — not something you’d notice unless you were really sniffing. But Elves had sharp senses.

And that was fair. If I had to talk to a drunk who reeked of booze, I’d be uncomfortable too.

“I got it. I’ll pass the message to her.”

“Mm-hmm. One more thing — the academy asked me to deliver this to you.” With that, Litt took out a finely wrapped square gift box from behind her.

“Take it. It’s a reward for winning the tournament. Of course, this is only part of it. The rest will be awarded at the ceremony.”

“Thank you.” I deliberately avoided touching her hand and accepted the box.

“I’ll take my leave now. Sorry for the interruption, Mr. Dylin.” With that, Litt turned gracefully and walked off, her fiery twin-tails swaying under the moonlight like dancing flames.

As I watched the Elf girl leave, my thoughts drifted elsewhere.

It didn’t take a genius to figure out that the Coleman Headmaster contacting me wasn’t a coincidence.

But why?

To commend me for winning the Crown Tournament? That was unlikely. Even back when things happened with Astrid, the Headmaster didn’t personally intervene or publicly reprimand me — just had someone give me a warning. Being the tournament winner shouldn’t have been enough to draw him out of hiding.

So then, why me?

Thinking back to that day’s broadcast glitch and the Crystal Orb malfunction... I had a bad feeling.

Could it be...

No, no use overthinking.

The awards ceremony for the tournament would be held a week later. After such a tense and thrilling competition, the academy had arranged a short break to let new students unwind. During this week, as long as we didn’t leave Coleman City, we were free to go anywhere.

After spending so long out in the cold wind, I’d sobered up quite a bit. Full and with nowhere to go, I could only return to my dorm — though given tomorrow’s plans, I couldn’t sleep in the boys’ dorm tonight.

Back at my own dorm, I opened the box Litt gave me. Inside was a finely tailored men’s academy uniform, a gold-trimmed rose brooch, and a purple gemstone.

This was Coleman Academy’s official student uniform. Mine differed from the standard design, consisting of an outer coat and inner layer. The coat flared like a trench coat, with golden trim and blue crystal chips on the cuffs and hem.

The pants were a matching dark color, also trimmed with metallic blue along the legs.

This was the exclusive attire for the Crown Tournament Champion. Walking down the academy’s main streets in this would draw 100% attention. It screamed “look at me.”

A bit too flashy, really.

As for the brooch and gemstone, they were likely part of the champion’s prize. I remembered the other major reward — the Crown Gemstone.

This purple gem must be it. But according to the rules, the winner had to personally retrieve it. So who had secretly gotten it for me?

After storing the clothes and gift box safely, I slipped out and found a quiet alley. Glancing around to make sure no one was there, I cautiously slipped inside — and shortly after, a platinum-haired girl in fine clothes stepped back out.

Brushing the hair by my ear, I — Teresa — adjusted the earmuffs. Once the reflection confirmed I was showing human ears, I felt reassured.

I’d originally planned to sleep in the boys’ dorm tonight, but with the Headmaster summoning me tomorrow, I had to be more cautious and play my role to the end.

I pulled the key necklace off from around my neck — warmed by body heat against my collarbone. It was the key to the dorm room assigned to Teresa, with the room number engraved on it.

The girls’ dorm was nearly empty at this hour — just like the boys’ dorm. Everyone had gone out to celebrate, leaving only the auntie watching the gate.

I was glad for the quiet. I went upstairs, and when I reached the door to my room, I blinked, wondering if I’d come to the wrong one.

After a moment’s hesitation, I crouched down, resting my cheek on one hand and poked at the ‘little red-furred hamster’ curled up at my door, hugging something.

“...Mmm?” The red-furred ‘hamster’ sleepily opened her eyes and stretched.

“All rested up?” I smiled.

“Wha—Wah! Y-Your Highness!” Recognizing me, Litt almost jumped off the floor.

“S-Sorry, Your Highness! I meant to wait for your return but... I must’ve fallen asleep while waiting...”

“I told you,” I said, pressing a slender finger gently against her lips, then leaning in with a playful smile. “Don’t call me ‘Your Highness,’ okay?”

“Mmmph!...” Litt blushed furiously and quickly turned her face away, nodding like mad.

I couldn’t help but chuckle at her reaction.

This girl... She probably had zero dating experience. A tiny tease turned her face red instantly.

Speaking of...

She had just spoken to me a little while ago, yet her attitude had been completely different.

Though maybe I hadn’t noticed — I, too, acted more freely around my own kind.

“Sorry! I’d just finished the match earlier, and I was so tired... I must’ve dozed off...”

“No worries. Your sleeping face was adorable. I actually stared for quite a while before waking you.” I crossed my arms and beamed.

“H-Huh?!” Litt’s eyes went wide. “H-How long have you been here?!”

“Mm... Just got here. Maybe half an hour ago.” I pretended to think.

Litt turned pale — her terrible sleeping face had been seen for half an hour...

“I wanna die...”

“It was really cute. Especially earlier — you were drooling in your sleep~”

“D-Drooling?!” Litt immediately wiped her mouth, only to find it dry.

“Pfft, just kidding. I really did just get here.”

“Your Highness!” Litt pouted at me with a soft, loli-like voice full of grievance and a hint of indignation.

“Sorry, Miss Litt was just too cute — I couldn’t resist teasing you a bit.”

“C-Cute?” Litt covered her cheeks, a warm, unfamiliar feeling of happiness flooding through her.

Being called cute... by the Golden Elf Princess herself...

“Alright, enough playing around. Miss Litt, you went to the trouble of asking for my room number and came all the way here — what’s the matter?”

“Ah, I nearly forgot... Right, Your Highness, the Headmaster asked to see you. He said if you’re free tomorrow, he’d like a meeting.”

“Of course, he said if you’re not free, that’s fine too — the Elder said to come see him whenever you’re ready.”

“Got it. I understand.” This was the second time Litt had brought up the matter — and this time, she passed on the Headmaster’s words more fully than she had with Dylin.

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