Chapter 49: Do Whatever You Want

Seres approached the academy with a mix of nervousness and anticipation.

As soon as she reached the grand gates of the academy, she immediately spotted a familiar figure standing guard by the side—the very person was Aetin.

“Aetin, good morning.”

She paused slightly, a flicker of surprise crossing her face, then quickly stepped forward and greeted him with a faint, almost imperceptible joy.

“Good morning, Seres.”

At the sound of her voice, Aetin turned his head and, upon seeing Seres, a warm smile spread across his face.

“Aetin, what are you doing here… on duty?”

Seres looked at the brand-new red-and-white Disciplinary Committee Member Armband on his arm, her expression filled with curiosity.

“I’m now a member of the Disciplinary Committee. Senior Hei Shen told me to get familiar with the daily duties first, so she assigned me to stand guard here at the gate for a while and get some experience.”

Aetin scratched the back of his head a little sheepishly.

“That sounds really tough.”

Watching Aetin’s serious expression, Seres spoke softly.

As she did, her gaze fell upon his tie, which was tied somewhat crookedly.

Almost instinctively, she reached out her hand with gentle, practiced movements to straighten and smooth it out.

Her actions were natural and intimate, flowing as if she had done this countless times before, carrying the tenderness and care of a newlywed wife.

Students passing by gradually slowed their pace when they saw this scene, their curious and probing eyes lingering, followed by a surge of whispered gossip that was hard to suppress.

“Look! It’s Seres and that transfer student.”

“Are they… together? They’re acting so close.”

“As expected, that transfer student boldly stood up to support Seres back then, confronting that bastard Rufus. He must have completely won the beautiful girl’s heart.”

Nearby, a boy overheard this and showed a look of regret on his face, immediately pounding his chest and stomping his feet.

“Damn it! If only I had stood up to support Seres back then. Maybe now…”

“Get real. Did you have the courage and strength to go against Rufus at that time? Don’t even dream about it!”

A companion mercilessly burst his bubble.

The boy was left speechless, opening his mouth but saying nothing, only able to gaze at Aetin with a mixture of envy and resentment.

Time quietly passed until the official start of morning classes.

In the classroom, Aetin barely touched his head to the desk before collapsing into a deep sleep.

He hadn’t slept well on the sofa the night before, and being assigned to guard duty at the gate so early this morning only intensified his fatigue.

Now, drowsiness washed over him like a tide.

He even let out soft, steady snores, clearly in a deep sleep.

Seres sat beside him, hearing the faint snoring and worrying it might disturb others or draw the teacher’s attention.

She quietly raised her hand, conjuring a barely perceptible ripple of magic at her fingertips, casting a small area of Soundproof Magic around Aetin.

After doing this, she gave up on listening to the lesson herself and mimicked Aetin’s pose, resting her head on the desk, only facing toward him.

Tilting her head, Seres’s deep blue eyes fixed unblinking on Aetin’s sleeping face just inches away.

Watching his unguarded expression soften much more than usual, his eyebrows relaxed, and eyelashes fluttering slightly with his breathing, Seres couldn’t help but reach out a slender finger to gently poke his warm cheek.

The sensation at her fingertip made the corners of her mouth uncontrollably lift into a sweet, tender smile.

Aetin’s sleeping face… is really adorable.

As the Noon Break Bell rang, the classroom gradually became lively.

“Aetin, it’s noon. Time to wake up.”

Seres gently nudged Aetin’s shoulder, softly calling his name.

“Mm…”

Aetin groggily lifted his head and rubbed his sleepy eyes.

“Well… shall we go have lunch together?”

Watching Aetin wake, Seres felt a faint flush rise on her cheeks and mustered the courage to invite him.

This was her first time inviting someone to lunch.

Although she knew it would definitely attract many glances and gossip, she was no longer afraid.

Deep inside, she even harbored a small selfish desire to “declare” her close relationship with Aetin to others.

“Sorry, Seres, the Disciplinary Committee scheduled me for work at noon, so I have to eat there.”

However, Aetin showed a somewhat troubled and embarrassed expression.

He waved his hand apologetically and said,

“Sorry.”

Without waiting for Seres to respond, he hastily grabbed his things and left the classroom, as if something urgent had come up.

Seres watched Aetin’s quickly disappearing figure by the door.

The courage and hope she had just gathered deflated like a burst balloon, and a wave of disappointment rose in her heart.

After the afternoon training class ended, it was time to go home.

Seres packed her bag and once again summoned her courage, walking over to where Aetin was tidying his things, softly asking,

“Aetin… do you want to go home together today?”

“I’m really sorry, Seres. The Disciplinary Committee arranged a patrol duty after school. I probably won’t be back until late.”

Aetin zipped up his bag, turned to Seres, joined his hands together, and wore an apologetic expression.

“Don’t wait for me. You go ahead and be careful on the way home.”

Seres watched Aetin firmly refuse once more, opening her mouth but ending up saying nothing.

She could only nod silently, watching him rush out of the classroom and leave her standing there alone, feeling utterly empty inside.

Days passed like this.

Since Aetin became a member of the Disciplinary Committee, it was as if he had fallen into an endless whirlpool.

He was constantly assigned various tasks by Hei Shen Akane that seemed never-ending.

From early morning gate duty, to maintaining order in the corridors during breaks, to patrolling the campus after school, even paperwork and inventory checks—all these chores fell onto him.

The result was Aetin was busy nonstop, exhausted by the time he returned to his residence, barely able to collapse onto his bed.

One day, during a rare short break, Aetin slumped in his seat like a boneless rag doll in a classic “Ge You lie” pose.

His head leaned limply against the chair’s backrest, eyes vacant as he stared at the monotonous patterns on the classroom ceiling.

His hands hung loosely by his sides, exuding an overwhelming aura of despair.

Wasn’t the main task of being a Disciplinary Committee member to watch over Seres?

In the past few days, he hadn’t even stayed in the classroom except during class time.

He had once summoned the courage to ask Hei Shen Akane, but the ice-cold senior only glanced at him with her emotionless red eyes and replied calmly:

“This is to help you quickly familiarize yourself with the duties of a Disciplinary Committee member and become qualified. As for Seres, I will monitor her myself for now.”

Aetin could only sigh helplessly, feeling a bleak future ahead.

He didn’t know when this dark and hopeless chapter would end.

Seres had seen and felt all of Aetin’s exhaustion and hardship, and it pained her heart.

She understood very clearly that Aetin had been forced into the Disciplinary Committee solely to protect her, to prevent Hei Shen Akane from “dealing with” her.

Hei Shen Akane’s near-exploitative arrangements struck Seres as deliberate torment, which made her deeply disapprove and even feel a surge of anger.

So, during a longer break one day, Seres summoned her courage and went alone to the Star Garden, a place usually inaccessible to ordinary students.

Amid numerous curious and scrutinizing gazes from noble students, she strode straight to where Hei Shen Akane was seated under the garden pavilion, reviewing documents, and bluntly confronted her.

“Senior Hei Shen, isn’t your treatment of Aetin too harsh? He’s been exhausted every day for the past few days, with no time to rest.”

“Are you worried about him?”

Hei Shen Akane lifted her eyes from the papers, expressionless, arching her delicate brows without answering Seres’s question, instead returning a counter-question.

“Yes, I am worried. So what?”

At this moment, Seres threw caution to the wind.

For Aetin’s sake, she was willing to set aside all her shyness and timidity, answering without hesitation.

Under normal circumstances, she would never have spoken so plainly, even provocatively, but now, for Aetin, she felt anything was worth it, and she dared to do anything.

“Seres, Aetin is my subordinate now and must obey my orders and arrangements. As for you, you currently do not have the qualification to speak to me on equal footing, let alone criticize or make demands about my commands.”

However, Hei Shen Akane merely fixed Seres with her cold, red gaze, her tone calm yet carrying unquestionable authority.

An invisible pressure spread instantly.

Seres clenched her fists, hesitated for a moment, then pursed her lips and turned away.

She had hit a brick wall—neither soft nor hard—with Hei Shen Akane and felt a flush of frustration.

On the way back, Seres happened to see Aetin patrolling the campus under the blazing sun, sweat pouring from his head.

Despite his exhaustion, he was still forcing himself to stay strong.

The sight stabbed sharply at her heart.

“Aetin…”

Seres instinctively clenched her fists, biting her lower lip so hard it almost bled.

Deep inside, an unprecedented firm resolve quietly took shape.

Hei Shen Akane, just wait.

I will never let you continue to do whatever you want to Aetin like this.