Chapter 137 – Insignificant People

“E-Elder...?.........”

Frand stared in disbelief at Diderlay, who was still smiling as usual. His ever-smug, narrow eyes were now wide in panic, his refined persona in complete shambles.

He could barely believe his ears. They were supposed to be kin. Same blood. Same tribe. Why would Elder Diderlay get so furious on behalf of a couple of fleeting, insignificant insects? Frand simply couldn’t understand.

In his heart, Frand had always identified himself as part of the Elves, clinging to disdain for humanity and a sense of superiority as a way to seek validation from the Elf Tribe.

Though he rarely had any interaction with real elves, he believed that as long as he showed enough loyalty, the Elf Tribe would one day recognize him.

After all, he had elf blood. That was indisputable. Even if the elves shunned him, surely they wouldn’t deny he was one of them. And hadn’t the Elder always held him in high regard? Why else would such an important task—pressuring Dylin—be entrusted to him? At least, that was what Frand had always thought.

So the current situation was completely incomprehensible to him.

Why would the Elder rage at him—for the sake of an outsider? A human? Someone so beneath consideration?

Maybe... the Elder was just someone who followed rules very strictly, and Frand had broken the decorum of the award ceremony? That must be it... right?

No matter how many excuses he tried to conjure, Frand simply couldn’t accept reality.

“Harassment might be too strong a word.” Teresa didn’t even glance at the trembling, panic-stricken Frand beside her. She seemed to have no intention of pursuing the matter.

That was all she said. She had no desire to waste attention on someone who didn’t deserve it.

“Oh? But from the sound of his tone, this wild elf seems to have caused you quite a bit of trouble. At the very least, he bore you ill will,” said Diderlay quietly. His voice was soft—barely audible amidst the bustling square.

“Malice arises from the heart. Any negative emotion breeds ill intent. The question is whether it caused any actual harm.” Teresa was unbothered. More accurately, she simply didn’t care about Frand as a person.

“Elder... I did it for you! I only interfered with Teresa winning, and tried to drive Dylin out of the academy... for you!” At this point, the massive blow to his ego had shattered Frand’s rationality.

He scrambled to explain himself to Diderlay, desperate to prove his loyalty to the elves.

Hearing this, Teresa rubbed her forehead.

There were always people like this in the world. They’d try to harm others, but when their victims couldn’t even be bothered to retaliate, they’d spiral. Projecting their own wickedness onto others, they’d force things to a boiling point, even when no one else was taking action. In the end, they’d push themselves off the edge.

“So stupid, and so rotten,” Felicia said coldly, watching.

Astrid didn’t say anything. She had never liked Frand.

Now, hearing that he’d acted against Dylin without proper authority, her silver eyes turned frosty.

So Dylin had endured all this in silence...?

“I never gave you the power to expel any student. Nor did I authorize you to interfere with the fairness of the competition,” Diderlay said with a smile, looking at the terrified Frand.

It was the truth.

Diderlay had only intended to give a warning. But some lackey, eager to prove his loyalty, had gone completely overboard—trying to force Dylin out, and in the process, offending Teresa as well.

“A complete failure, Instructor Frand.”

“E-Elder?!”

Teresa blinked, a little surprised by Diderlay’s words.

To hear someone who’d lived for centuries speak so bluntly, almost crudely—she could tell just how furious he was behind that smile.

“Don’t call me Elder, Mr. Frand. I am not your Elder.”

At that, Frand’s heart turned to ice.

The implication was clear.

I am an Elder of the Elves. You were never truly one of us. You have no right to call me that.

“I-It must be... something I didn’t do well enough, right? That’s why you’re this angry, Elder?” Frand, abandoning all dignity, collapsed to his knees, staring up into Diderlay’s still-smiling, but frost-bitten gaze.

“Please, please give me another chance! I’ll do better next time! Don’t abandon me! Don’t say I’m not an elf!”

Gone was the smug, bullying figure who once strutted before Dylin.

What remained was a sniveling, broken man.

Because if the elves didn’t accept him... what was he?

Could he really be just another lowly human?

No, no way! He couldn’t possibly be the same as those short-lived worms who died before reaching a hundred!

Rejected by humanity, rejected by elves—what was left of his identity?

“Miss Teresa, it was my mistake not to see the truth earlier,” Diderlay said sincerely, ignoring Frand’s pathetic pleas and bowing slightly to Teresa.

“It’s nothing. He didn’t affect me much,” she replied calmly.

That last line was like a dagger in Frand’s chest.

Didn’t affect her much. In other words—he was completely insignificant.

It didn’t matter whether he existed or not.

“However, I do believe this should serve as a wake-up call.”

“Oh? A wake-up call?”

“Unlike other academies that thrive on nepotism and corruption, Coleman Academy prides itself on fairness. That’s one of our core competitive values.” Teresa spoke seriously. “And any core value should be preserved and amplified—not allowed to drift away.”

“Well said, Miss Teresa. I’ve learned from this.” Diderlay nodded and raised his voice just enough for Frand to hear.

“The existence of cases like this is directly linked to a lack of oversight on my part. There are many instructors like Frand, who throw around borrowed authority and disrupt our sense of fairness.”

“And if such people aren’t punished severely, it won’t serve as a warning to others.”

Frand’s pupils contracted.

“Mr. Frand, you’re a genius. Given time, you could have soared like a dragon from the sea.”

.........That sounded like praise, but Frand felt his soul freezing.

“Unfortunately, our academy is too small a pond. We simply can’t make the most of talents like yours.” Diderlay kept smiling as he pronounced Frand’s verdict in a light, casual tone.

“A tragedy for us—and a loss for you, Mr. Frand.”

“Given the circumstances, please seek your future elsewhere.” Diderlay gestured.

“No—no, no, no! How could that be?! Elder—Headmaster! I’m most useful here! I belong to this academy!”

“There’s more to the world than clinging to what you know. You should travel. Broaden your horizons,” Diderlay said as he walked up to him, towering over Frand with a smile.

“Perhaps if you’d seen more of the world, you wouldn’t have made a mistake like this today.”

“Mistake... I’ll change! I swear I’ll change!” Frand’s demeanor flipped instantly. “Just tell me what I did wrong, I’ll fix it immediately! Please don’t make me leave!”

“S-sir Dylin! I was wrong, I really was wrong! Please forgive me!” Frand suddenly turned and bowed deeply to Dylin, desperate.

But Dylin only stared at him impassively, silent.

“Miss Teresa, Miss Teresa!” Frand scrambled over to her, bawling like a child.

At this point, with his title on the line, he didn’t care about dignity. Even if the Elf Tribe no longer acknowledged him, as long as he kept his position, he could still strut around Coleman Academy as a vice-director!

“Please, Miss Teresa, I beg you! You’re generous and kind—I didn’t mean to target you! Please, just say a word on my behalf!”

“If you can forgive me, I’ll even lick your toes!”

Was this really necessary?

Teresa turned her head away, looking off into the distance.

If he hadn’t made a scene now, she wouldn’t even have remembered his existence. Diderlay might have forgotten too. He could’ve quietly kept his job. They could’ve gone their separate ways.

But now? He’d lost face, lost his title, and had nothing left.

He’d dug his own grave—no one could save him now.

“Headmaster, this is getting noisy.” Teresa held the decorated box, not sparing even a glance at the groveling man. “We’ve had enough theatrics today. My Divine Child and I are rather tired.”

Dylin nodded in perfect timing.

“We have exams this afternoon. We need to conserve our energy to perform well.”

“Understood. You may return,” Diderlay nodded, giving Dylin one last glance.

To be honest, he still didn’t see anything particularly unusual about the human boy. If anything, his personality was too quiet, too reserved. Even now, he wasn’t showing any hostility—not toward Frand, not toward him. He acted like none of this had anything to do with him.

This human’s temperament... is rare indeed...

“Then everyone, that concludes the Crown Cup award ceremony. I’m sure you’re all tired. There are exams this afternoon—please go get some rest.” Diderlay left the stage.

Behind him, Felicia’s and Astrid’s teams also withdrew.

“Sorry, everyone,” Felicia said to her former teammates as they exited.

“Why apologize, Your Highness? You’re your own person. You have every right to make your own decisions,” said her Divine Child.

“Waaah! Even though I’ll miss being teammates with you, Your Highness, I respect your choice!”

“.........Thank you.”

Once the ceremony officially ended, students and instructors gradually left the plaza.

No one paid any more attention to the kneeling clown at the center.

Except for a few amused onlookers, he was completely ignored.

***

“How’s sword class going lately?” After leaving the event, Astrid ran into Sophia, who had come to meet her.

Taking advantage of her height, Astrid patted Sophia’s little head gently. “Doing well?”

“Mhm. I’ll definitely protect my big sister in the future.” Sophia squeezed her hand back.

“Good. But don’t overexert yourself, Sophia.”

“Mhm... Say, did my big sister join a new team?”

“Yes, after enrollment, we were reassigned.”

“Can I meet them?” Sophia didn’t care about the team. She only wanted to know who was around her sister—just in case someone tried to steal her away.

“Maybe—after exams today, if everyone’s free.” Astrid didn’t give a definite answer. After all, the Crown Estate wasn’t hers alone.

“Okay!” Sophia agreed sweetly, but in her heart, she was already imagining her sister’s teammates.

Would they be burly muscle heads? No way! Smelly, sweaty brutes clinging to her sister like glue?! Dangerous!

Maybe a handsome young man? No! Those guys were always secretly twisted and manipulative! Even more dangerous!

A girl, perhaps? Still no good! Girls could have those feelings too! With shared gender as an excuse, she might cozy up and steal her sister!

The more she thought, the more anxious she got.

No matter what, she had to visit the Crown Estate!

***

Afternoon.

Exams began.

Divine Princesses and Divine Children had separate test sites and different exam content.

For Teresa, this was a major challenge.

Most people only had to complete one test.

But not her—she had to take two simultaneously.

She needed to split her mind, solve two sets of problems at once, and finish both on time.

Thanks to her link with a high-grade doll, she could receive visual feedback from what it saw.

So she used this link to control Dylin’s doll to write one test while she took the other herself.

Of course, she also had to focus on her own paper. They were administered simultaneously.

Where others had four subjects, she had to handle eight—a massive mental challenge.

This should have been impossible.

Yet Teresa looked calm, like it was no big deal. Even she wasn’t sure if her lack of urgency was wise or just foolish.

That afternoon, dressed neatly, Teresa arrived early at her test center.

Meanwhile, she secretly controlled the Dylin-doll to locate its seat in the Divine Child exam hall and sit down.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.