The Strongest Guild Kidnapped Me

The atmosphere was tense.

It wouldn’t have been surprising if they charged at me at any moment.

I slowly retreated, dragging my feet across the grass.

"I-I’m sorry..."

I guessed they were upset because I missed the goal, even though they had set me up for it.

I apologized quickly, but their menacing energy didn’t fade. Maybe my voice had been too soft, trembling with fear.

"Get them!"

At someone’s shout, the boys rushed toward me like a pack of angry bulls.

My heart pounded in my chest.

"W-wait, I didn’t mean to—"

But then I caught a glint of mischief on their faces.

I recognized those expressions, the kind that people wore when they enjoyed messing with others. I’d seen them too often in the days before I had mana.

This was the kind of situation where fists would fly.

I quickly dropped to my knees and curled up, shielding my head with my hands. My tail instinctively tucked beneath me.

Thud thud!

The sound of their approaching footsteps and the pounding of my heart overlapped.

All I could do was let out a soft whimper as I awaited the inevitable.

The boys got closer, their presence looming over me. I shut my eyes tightly.

Here it comes, I thought. Pain.

Wait—wasn’t Saebyeok still on my back?

I forced myself to raise my trembling head.

"Why are you acting like this all of a sudden?"

"Because you charged like a lunatic."

"Well, didn’t you charge too?"

"Yeah."

The boys were now circling me, clearly hesitating.

From behind me, I heard a low growl.

"Saebyeok?"

Apparently, she wasn’t as asleep as I thought.

I almost laughed at myself for nearly using her as a shield.

Carefully, I stood up, cradling Saebyeok in my arms.

For some reason, the boys’ earlier hostility had completely dissipated.

"Sorry about that. Did we scare you?"

One of them stepped forward and apologized sincerely.

Maybe I’d misunderstood the whole situation.

"I-I’m sorry... I thought you were mad because I missed the goal..."

"What? Who gets mad over that?"

"Uh... right..."

In truth, I knew plenty of people who did. I’d experienced it firsthand more times than I cared to admit.

But these boys didn’t seem like that type. They were smiling warmly now, clearly trying to reassure me.

"Actually, it’s the goalkeeper’s fault for fouling."

"Yeah, a total foul."

"Who could’ve predicted such a blatant violation?"

Foul?

All the goalkeeper had done was block the ball with his foot...

I didn’t know enough about sports in this world to argue, so I kept quiet.

"You should take another shot."

A tall boy brought the ball back and placed it right in front of the goal.

It looked like a free kick, similar to soccer.

I guess it was a foul after all.

As I watched curiously, someone gave me a gentle push.

"Go on, try again."

"M-me?"

"Yeah. You’re the one who got fouled, so you should take the shot."

Is that how it works?

I hesitated for a moment before sliding the bag off my stomach.

I still couldn’t put Saebyeok down since she was fast asleep, but at least this way, I’d have a little more freedom to move.

"Just kick it as hard as you can toward the goal."

"Okay..."

Aiming at something was my specialty, but power was another matter entirely.

Would I even be able to kick it hard enough while holding Saebyeok?

Well, this was just a game anyway. I’d just give it my best shot.

As I approached the ball, I suddenly felt an eerie tension behind me.

"Huh?"

I turned to look but only saw the boys grinning at me.

What was that?

For a moment, it felt like they were glaring at me with murderous intent, but maybe I was just being paranoid.

Shaking it off, I turned back to the ball and swung my leg.

Thud!

The ball sailed through the air with a satisfying arc.

I could already tell from its trajectory that it would land perfectly in the top-right corner of the goal.

The goalkeeper jumped, his fingertips brushing the ball, but he couldn’t stop it.

Wham!

The ball bounced off his hand and into the net, shaking it violently.

This time, it was my victory.

"Yeahhhh!"

"Whoo!"

The boys erupted into cheers so loud they made my ears ring.

I was startled at first, but their excitement felt genuine, and I couldn’t help but smile.

"You did great."

Saebyeok, who I thought had been asleep, patted my head.

Her tail wagged gently, brushing against me like a soft ribbon, adding a touch of warmth to the moment.

"Your Majesty!"

Levinas ran up to me and jumped into my arms.

All this fuss over scoring one goal in a silly game...

Maybe coming to the school wasn’t such a bad idea after all.

***

The boys left the field and returned to their classrooms, leaving the playground empty.

We stayed behind, looking around at the deserted space before turning our gaze to the main school building.

"Your Majesty, there are so many people in there."

"Yeah. Should we go in?"

"Yeah!"

Since we had permission for this school visit, wandering around inside shouldn’t be an issue.

As I stepped into the building, I briefly thought about the "scholarship" I had in my possession.

It wasn’t my money, but something the guild had prepared.

Who am I even supposed to give this to?

It was just paperwork, so I hadn’t bothered to check the amount. It was probably a huge sum anyway.

"Your Majesty, where are we going?"

"I’m not sure... Let’s just look around for now."

The long hallways of the main building were eerily empty, likely because classes had started.

Levinas, curious about the lack of people, pressed her face against the window of a nearby classroom.

The windows were high, so she had to stand on her tiptoes to peek inside.

"There are people!"

Levinas shouted excitedly, catching the attention of the students in the classroom.

Some turned to look at us, their reactions mixed—some blushed, while others seemed puzzled.

Levinas cheerfully waved at them, and a few students waved back, including the teacher conducting the class.

"Looks like they’re in the middle of a lesson."

"Yeah! We shouldn’t interrupt!"

Levinas bounced down the hallway, stopping to peek into each classroom until she reached an open door.

"Your Majesty! Over here!"

"What is it...?"

The room was empty.

Above the doorway hung a sign reading Art Room.

It must’ve been unused at this time. A quick look around wouldn’t hurt.

"Your Majesty, sit here!"

"Alright."

I pulled out a chair and sat at one of the desks, setting Saebyeok down on the table for a moment.

"Today, Levinas is the teacher!"

Standing at the chalkboard, Levinas grabbed a piece of chalk, clearly ready to play teacher.

"What’s the lesson today?"

"Today’s lesson is... hmmm..."

Levinas folded her arms, deep in thought. Her ears perked up as she made her decision.

She scrawled the word carrot on the chalkboard in her clumsy handwriting.

"How to eat carrots deliciously!"

"Wow."

An unexpected cooking class in the art room.

I clapped lightly in amusement.

Just then, the sound of footsteps echoed down the hallway. A group of over a dozen students was walking toward the art room.

I hope they just pass by...

But my hopes were dashed as they entered the room.

The door slid open, and I locked eyes with one of the girls in the lead.

She blinked, looking around the room in confusion.

"Why are you blocking the doorway?"

"S-sorry, but there’s..."

"What?"

Another girl peeked out from behind the first, her eyes widening when she spotted us.

"Oh! It’s Winter!"

"Winter? You mean the one from the Dawn Guild?"

"Yeah. Levinas and Saebyeok are here too."

"What are you talking about? Why are the guild kids here?"

The art room quickly filled with students crowding the entrance, making it impossible for us to leave.

"Huh? It really is them!"

One of the students pushed through the crowd and came over to us. Her name tag read Kim Ah-young.

She plopped down in the seat next to me, grinning from ear to ear.

"Winter, what are you doing here?"@@novelbin@@

"I was just exploring the school..."

"Really? That’s so cool!"

Ah-young gently tapped Saebyeok’s tail, which was draped across the desk. Then, she turned to the students crowding the doorway and shouted:

"First come, first served!"

"Huh?"

What does she mean by that?

Before I could ask, several students scrambled to sit around us, shoving desks and chairs noisily.

"The front seat’s mine!"

"Hey, that’s cheating!"

I could already tell why they were so eager.

It wasn’t every day you got to see beastkin up close, especially at this age when curiosity was at its peak.

"You were playing school in an empty classroom, huh?" Ah-young said to Levinas.

Levinas puffed out her chest proudly.

"Yeah! Levinas is the teacher today!"

"Really? What’s today’s lesson, teacher?"

"Today’s lesson is... how to eat carrots deliciously!"

Levinas knocked on the chalkboard with her fist, and all eyes turned toward her.

Wow.

I couldn’t help but admire how she handled the growing audience without a hint of nervousness.

"Teacher, I don’t like carrots," Ah-young said, raising her hand.

Levinas gasped. "You don’t like carrots?!"

"Nope! They’re hard to eat!"

"Then Levinas will teach you how to eat them deliciously!"

"Really?!"

"Yep! The first step to eating carrots deliciously is...!"

Levinas paused dramatically, and everyone leaned in, completely captivated.

"...Having the person next to you feed it to you! If you eat it well, you get a hug too!"

Levinas pulled a carrot out of her pocket to demonstrate.

"Wait, what?"

Wasn’t I the one sitting next to her?

I glanced at Ah-young, who covered her mouth and blushed.

The other students glared at her with fiery eyes, filled with what could only be described as jealousy.

What is this?

There was no way they were jealous of me feeding her. That would be ridiculous... right?

"Your Majesty! Take a bite first!" Levinas said, holding out the carrot.

"Me?"

"Yeah! You have to show everyone how to eat it deliciously!"

"Uh... okay..."

It made sense. I took the carrot from her and bit into it with a loud crunch.

As I chewed, a girl sitting in the front row clenched her fists tightly.

"Ah-young, if you eat that, I’m reporting you to the police."

"What? Why?"

"I’m serious. I’ll really report you."

The atmosphere grew tense again.

I kept munching on the carrot, silently observing the students around me.

For some reason, they were terrifying.