Starting from the next day, Noah woke up from his deep sleep feeling light in both body and heart. A feeling of joy filled his chest. He changed into more elegant clothes fit for university and washed his face to fully wake up. Then he sat on the bed and pulled out his phone to check the time. It was 6:47 AM.
Suddenly, he felt a cold breeze slap the back of his neck, as if someone had dumped a bucket of cold water over his head. Noah looked to his right and noticed that the window was open, as usual, so he got up and closed it.
"Looks like the weather is cold today," Noah thought to himself silently while gazing at the sky through the window. At that moment, he heard a knock on the door. He opened it. It was Enel.
"Enel?" Noah asked, puzzled, noticing Enel's usual confused expression.
"G-Good morning... A-Are you heading to the university now?" Enel asked nervously, his eyes shifting around awkwardly.
"Isn't it a bit early?... Well then," Noah said as he grabbed his bag and locked his room door.
Noah and Enel walked together for a while and stopped in front of the elevator. Then Noah decided to break the silence between them.
"Aren't Sirius and Neriah coming?" Noah asked curiously as he glanced back toward Sirius and Neriah's room.
"S-Sirius seemed upset this morning, so he left not long ago. As for Neriah, he followed him to make sure he didn't do anything stupid," Enel replied, a little embarrassed.
"Was he upset last night because I asked him not to interfere?" Noah wondered, recalling the events of the previous day.
"Well, we'll see him there anyway, so let's head out," Noah said, and Enel nodded awkwardly. They took the elevator to the ground floor and headed straight to the northern train station without delay. They sat on the benches waiting for the train. The place was rather empty of students; after all, most students don't arrive until 7:30 AM.
"N-Noah, can I ask you something?" Enel asked nervously, fidgeting with his fingers in small circles.
"What's wrong?" Noah asked, curious about Enel's question.
"W-Well… a-about the graffiti, d-do you maybe know who did it?" Enel asked, becoming more flustered.
"Ah, I don't know who it was. Why are you asking?" Noah asked with curiosity.
"J-Just out of curiosity… w-will you try to find out who it was?" Enel asked, more stressed than before.
"If I wanted to find them, I'm confident I could. But I think I'll let it go," Noah said, glancing at Enel from the corner of his eye with a curious look.
"I-I see…" Enel replied quietly, his nervousness subsiding.
"You know, the way you talk and how anxious you are kind of makes you the number one suspect," Noah said jokingly, teasing Enel a bit.
"R-Really?!" Enel asked, shocked.
"I'm just joking. Don't worry," Noah said with a soft smile to reassure him. Enel sighed in relief, realizing Noah was just kidding. Noah knew that Enel was terrible at communication, so it was natural for things like this to happen.
At 7:00 AM, the train finally arrived. Noah and Enel boarded and sat next to each other. They continued chatting casually, full of laughter, until they reached Sector 1. The train stopped, the doors opened, and everyone got off. Noah and Enel made their way to the university. There were a decent number of students there. As usual, the courtyard was full of couples, maybe even more than usual.
Noah and Enel both noticed some people laughing and whispering while looking at them—or rather, at Noah. Some were whispering loud enough for Noah to hear, and others even pointed fingers at him.
"I can't believe someone like him got accepted into the university," one student whispered to a friend beside him.
"He didn't do anything special, but got accepted without even taking the entrance exam. We could have him expelled if the student council agrees," a girl said, her face showing clear irritation and disgust.
"He must be from some high-ranking noble family. That's why the university accepted him without an exam," another person whispered mockingly.
"Damn him, using his family's power to get in while we work and struggle hard. It's not fair," a frustrated guy said, glaring at Noah with hatred.
Noah stayed silent for a while, listening to the hateful whispers being directed specifically at him.
"When did I become this famous?" Noah wondered silently, confused.
At that moment, he felt someone tap his shoulder. He thought it was Enel, who was standing next to him, but when he turned around—it was Luo Yan. She was glaring at the students around them with a fierce, dangerous look that made them quickly avert their eyes in fear.
"L-Luo Yan?" Noah asked, a bit surprised by this encounter. It had been a few days since he last saw her.
"Noah Grace, mind telling me where you've been these past few days? I've been looking for you, but I couldn't find your lazy ass anywhere!" Luo Yan said, annoyed, arms crossed, repeatedly tapping her shoulder in anger.
"H-Huh? I-I was in Sector 11 most of the time," Noah said, feeling nervous and worried under Luo Yan's fierce gaze.
"You idiot! Girls aren't allowed in Sector 11 without an invitation from someone inside! Don't you know that already?!" she snapped, visibly restraining herself from slapping him, her hand even starting to shake.
"E-Excuse me…?" Enel interrupted awkwardly, drawing attention to himself as he stood beside Noah.
"C-Can I leave? I-I don't want to intrude on your conversation," Enel asked anxiously, hoping to escape the situation.
"Huh? Who are you?" Luo Yan asked boldly, sounding annoyed at Enel, which frightened him and made him hide behind Noah.
"H-He's Enel Hale, my friend," Noah said, a little worried about Enel's reaction, smiling slightly in embarrassment.
"N-Noah, y-your girlfriend's scary," Enel whispered nervously, but loud enough for Luo Yan to hear.
"G-Girlfriend?! D-Don't be ridiculous! W-Who would date a guy like him?! H-Haha! H-He should feel lucky that I'm even talking to him!" Luo Yan said, blushing intensely, turning her head away, smiling and laughing nervously, acting all haughty.
"I'm still here…" Noah muttered to himself, feeling a bit annoyed that he was being ignored.
"Anyway, why are you here?" Noah asked Luo Yan, curious and a little irritated.
"Shouldn't you clear up this misunderstanding first?... Ahem, ahem. I heard some rumors going around among the students. It seems like since the day you joined, you've been targeted by some annoying ones. I heard someone painted strange graffiti all over your room. Is that true?" Luo Yan asked calmly, though her tone carried irritation and anger.
"Yeah, that's true," Noah replied quietly, though he was more interested in hearing what else Luo Yan had heard.
"I see… Don't worry, I'll find them and beat them all up until I'm sure they'll never do something like that again," said Luo Yan, clenching her fist into her palm in frustration, as sparks of fire floated in the air behind her.
"Mm, it would be better if you didn't do that. But you can tell me about the rumors you've heard," Noah said calmly. He didn't like the idea of giving such a task to a girl—especially Luo Yan. She might end up killing them instead of just beating them.
"Huh? Why not? Finding them would be easy, and it wouldn't take long," said Luo Yan, shocked, as the floating sparks behind her vanished.
"It's true that finding them would be easy, but I'm trying to avoid drawing too much attention since I'm already hated here," Noah replied quietly, with a cold smile and empty eyes.
"...fuck you. You're really weird. Just defend yourself or do something, for hell's sake! This is so annoying!" Luo Yan said, scratching her head in frustration and confusion.
"But Luo Yan, even though I said I don't want that kind of attention, that doesn't mean I'll ignore this and let it slide," Noah thought to himself silently, as a faint smile appeared on his face—not a kind one, but a smile with malice behind it.
"Anyway, if you run into any trouble, you can talk to me. We're friends. And I am the one who brought you here, so technically, this is my fault," Luo Yan said, a little shyly, as if she felt guilty about what was happening.
"B-But don't get the wrong idea! I-I'm only doing this because I-I know you don't have anyone to t-talk to!" she stammered, blushing deeply from embarrassment before quickly walking away.
"Tell me the rumors before you leave first", Noah thought to himself anxiously as he watched Luo Yan walk away.