Fron's gaze was as cold as ice, sending shivers down my spine.

I couldn't help but flinch and tremble under her piercing stare.

I knew I had to get up from the hallway floor, but the atmosphere around her was so frigid that I couldn't bring myself to move.

Just then,

Click-

Fron closed her dorm room door and offered me a twisted smile.

"What are you doing in front of my room?"

"Well"

"Don't just sit there looking pathetic. Let's go to class."

Her voice held the same playful tone as before.

If I only focused on that, I might have been convinced that nothing was wrong.

But I knew better.

Swoosh-

As I watched Fron walk past me,

[Adel, that girl]

"Yes, I saw it too."

Samuel's voice was grave, and I had to agree.

Fron's eyes weren't the lifeless, vacant orbs I had seen before.

They now shone with a strange, bright light, brimming with life.

However,

Her lips weren't smiling.

"Tsk."

Frustrated, I let out a sigh and scratched the back of my head, replaying the memories of Fron's past that I had witnessed through the necklace.

Hundreds of children were imprisoned behind thousands of iron bars.

Their faces were etched with a melancholic gloom.

And among them, 'she' stood out the most.

A girl who looked strikingly similar to Fron.

Unlike the other children, she had a bright and cheerful demeanor.

Could it be that Fron and that girl were sisters?

Or perhaps

"Maybe everyone there"

[What are you talking about?]

"It's nothing."

I shook my head at Samuel's question.

The fact that I could see the past through the necklace was still a secret.

Moreover, I was the only one who could see the light emanating from it.

Even Samuel, residing within my very being, couldn't peer into Fron's past with me.

Anyway,

"This is troublesome."

[Indeed, it seems so.]

Both Samuel and I were disheartened.

If only Fron had reached out for help, expressing her pain, it would have been different.

But her recent actions were a clear rejection, a silent plea to leave her alone.

There was very little we could do for her now.

All we could do was wait for her to overcome this on her own.

The question was, could she?

We had no choice but to trust in her.

"At least we succeeded in getting her back to class. Instructor Ares shouldn't give us any more trouble about it."

[Knowing Instructor Ares, he might just scold you for not being able to handle this even as the class president.]

"I doubt that will happen."

It was true that Ares had been strict with me before, expressing his disapproval.

But that was back when I was suspected of being a spy.

After the midterm exams, his vigilance had shifted solely towards Baltan.

And ever since I had advanced in mana control, suppressing my killing intent, Ares no longer regarded me with suspicion.

Unlike Idea, he didn't treat me any differently, but at least he acknowledged me as a student.

And that was perfect.

Too much attention, like Idea's, would only make me uncomfortable.

[Hmm, I suppose Ares is the most instructor-like among the instructors.]

"You can say that again."

He was a man with much to teach, even if he sometimes displayed a colder demeanor than Idea.

But even that seemed calculated.

For instance, he never interfered in conflicts or disputes between students, unless their lives were at stake.

He left the resolution and mediation entirely up to them.

In other words,

"Instructor Ares must believe that we can handle this ourselves."

[Even though she's tight-lipped and refusing to talk about it. How exactly are we supposed to resolve this?]

Samuel's point was valid. It was true that without Fron opening up, resolving the issue seemed impossible.

However, that didn't mean there was no way.

'There is one.'

If I delved deeper into Fron's past through the necklace, I might find a solution.

The necklace would be active again around the break. It had activated about two months after I saw Samuel's past.

Which meant I needed to see Fron again during the break.

The problem was,

'Is it worth investing my break time for this?'

I already had a lot on my plate during the break.

I had to investigate the information Kyle had shared and conquer the hidden dungeon.

I also needed to return to the Bares family estate and speak with Crete.

On top of that, I had to visit Samuel's temple.

Was it worth sacrificing that precious time to uncover Fron's past?

It was clear that if Fron overcame her trauma, she would become a much stronger asset. However, the process was sure to be anything but smooth.

But

'If what I'm thinking is true'

Then helping Fron was absolutely necessary. If my suspicions were correct, it could be the key to getting one step closer to the level needed to face Diana.

So,

'Let's wait until the break to decide.'

There was no need to rush into a decision.

Besides, nothing I did now would help Fron overcome her trauma.

All I could do for now was watch and wait.

And so, we left, having gained little to no progress.

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