Despite Being an Extra, I'm the Villain's Childhood Friend - Chapter 36
Chapter 36
“Hasn’t it been a thousand years?”
He brushed his fingers across the cover of the thick book, his gaze strange.
Founded in the early days of the nation, Stephil Academy was built with the personal fortune of an individual named Oscar Stephil. A man who had devoted his entire life to education, he remained a figure greatly respected throughout history.
Of course, the current Stephil Academy had strayed far from his intentions, transforming into a place where the children of nobles gathered to cultivate their refinement, virtue, and connections.
In any case, Oscar Stephil was someone Robert admired.
“Come to think of it, didn’t you say we were supposed to learn liberal arts as well?”
Izeline asked, a memory suddenly surfacing in her mind. Three years ago, the Duke of Brioche had mentioned in passing that they would be learning liberal arts along with swordsmanship.
Liberal arts encompassed a wide range of subjects, including manners, customs, history, geography, philosophy, and the arts. It could be seen as a comprehensive education that provided nobles with the basic knowledge and refinement they needed.
In other words, it meant an enormous amount of studying.
From the children’s perspective, there was absolutely no reason to seek out extra studies when the teachers didn’t even show up.
As a result, it had slipped everyone’s mind.
“Judging by your silence, it seems like it was swept under the rug.”
Robert averted his gaze and spoke nonchalantly. In truth, he questioned the need for separate liberal arts lessons. Manners could be learned simply by observing and imitating, and any knowledge he needed could be found in books.
“It doesn’t matter if we don’t learn it.”
“That may be true for us, but shouldn’t Michael learn it?”
Robert raised an eyebrow as if to say that he couldn’t agree with Izeline’s statement. What made that stuck-up bastard so different that he needed to learn liberal arts while they didn’t?
She gave an ambiguous smile and added an explanation.
“Michael went so far as to kick up a fuss at Stephil Academy and come here.”
“So?”
“That means he should receive an education befitting of that.”
“Whatever. He doesn’t need that kind of education.”
With that, Robert snatched the book from her hands and returned it to the shelf.
“Etiquette is nothing but useless ornamentation. It’s something people learn just to show off how much they know.”
“Is that really true?”
Izeline’s eyes widened. She hadn’t been the one to say that just now.
The book that had just been replaced was suddenly pulled out from the other side, and a pair of purple eyes stared at the two of them. The man looked to be somewhere between a teenager and a young man.
Izeline blinked in surprise.
“Who are you?”
“What are you?”
Robert was also quite taken aback. He muttered to himself, checking his senses.
“I didn’t feel anyone approaching…”
“I’ve been here from the start.”
The man pulled a few more books from the shelf as he spoke. When his face was fully revealed between the shelves, he showed snow-white hair that seemed at odds with his age.
“Your hair is like an old man’s…”
Izeline accidentally blurted that out and quickly covered her mouth with her hand. The white-haired young man glared at her sharply. However, he didn’t seem to be too offended because he soon turned his attention back to Robert.
“Do you really think that?”
“What?”
“That liberal arts is useless.”
“You were eavesdropping on our conversation. It’s clear that you don’t have any manners yourself.”
“You’re the one who was talking right next to my ear, kid.”
“What did you say?”
The atmosphere of the conversation, which had been filled with back-and-forth banter until now, suddenly turned cold. Robert’s voice had become sharp and icy.
He dared to utter the word he hated the most.
“What did you just say?”
“What? You’re the one who spoke to my ears? Kid?”
“Say it one more time.”
Robert’s voice became even lower. However, the unidentified young man, realizing what word he was reacting to, became even more sarcastic.
“Kid?”
“You…”
“What, kid?”
Izeline tensed up at the sound of teeth grinding coming from beside her. Why were all the men around her so childish?
She had a somewhat self-deprecating thought…
“Rob…”
She was startled and shouted at what happened all of a sudden. Robert reached out over the bookshelf to grab him by the collar in an instant.
“Stop it!”
Still, there was no way she could stop the speed of her genius childhood friend.
Swish!
It was someone else’s intervention that saved the white-haired young man’s collar.
Izeline and Robert looked at the other side with surprised eyes. The young man, who was grabbed by the nape of his neck by some giant, was dangling his legs in the air.
“Jeez, what are you doing with the kids, Gerald? So childish.”
“Oh, Grosh.”
The white-haired young man called Gerald responded bluntly to the voice of an old man.
“Let me down.”
“If you promise not to make a fuss in my bookstore.”
At those words, Gerald sighed deeply as if he had no choice and waved his hand roughly as if to say he understood. Then, the giant old man called Grosh lowered him to the floor.
“I guess I came down for nothing.”
“What are you talking about? You made me come to this rural backwater. Anyway, he said liberal arts are useless.”
As he said that, Gerald gestured towards the two children on the other side. Izeline blinked in confusion as she looked at him from across the bookshelf.
‘Why is he saying that?’
It was as if he was their liberal arts teacher who disappeared into the other side of memory three years ago…
“Who are you?”
Perhaps arriving at the same thought, Robert furrowed his brows and demanded an answer. Although his attitude was hardly befitting when facing someone who might be a teacher.
“Can’t you tell just by listening? You must be an idiot.”
“Gerald.”
Grosch scolded him by name. He glanced at him before muttering something. When he opened his mouth again, more polite words came out.
“My name is Gerald Leblanc. I am your liberal arts teacher.”
“How do you know who we are?”
When Izeline asked, he slowly walked around the bookshelf, approaching them before stopping right in front of them.
“The girl is Izeline. The boy is… Hmm… Seeing as he doesn’t have orange hair, he must be Robert von Armaty.”
“What do you mean?”
Before he could ask how he knew their identities, a vein popped out on Robert’s temple as only Michael’s distinctive characteristic was mentioned, and his mood soured. Although Gerald wouldn’t have been any better when he was young, considering that he didn’t have orange hair either.
Gerald arrogantly raised his chin.
“A student’s personal information is basic.”
As he said that, he intricately waved his index finger in the air. Surprisingly, something began to emerge in the empty space.
Robert and Izeline’s eyes widened like lanterns. In the air, the faces of the two people were semi-transparently drawn, and below them, their names, ages, and special notes were written in cursive.
“Wow! Wow!”
“Wh-wh, what is this?”
Gerald looked at Izeline, who was gaping in awe, and Robert, who was stuttering, before arrogantly raising one side of his lips.
His purple eyes turned towards Robert.
“Liberal arts are not useless ornamentation.”
“….”
“They are the cornerstone of learning.”
As he said that, Gerald made a circle by intertwining his thumb and index finger. At the same time, the semi-transparent magic scroll floating in the air transformed into a gold coin.
Robert’s expression became strange.
So, what was he trying to say right now…?
“Is it still useless, even like this?”
“This guy!”
“Ouch!”
Gerald, who had been acting smug, was immediately punished by Grosch.
Grosch, whose hair had turned completely white, seemed quite intimidating despite his old age, perhaps due to his height. In reality, he didn’t seem like someone who would be pushed around. He grabbed the boy’s head and shook him.
“Who told you to teach like that?”
“What?! What did I say wrong?!”
Although he was protecting his head with both hands in case he was hit again, Gerald didn’t back down.
“Information is money! Don’t you know how much money the information guild rakes in?!”
“What does that have to do with educating the kids?!”
“Of course it does! If you build a basic foundation, it’s much easier to approach your target naturally and extract information!”
“Stop talking nonsense!”
Despite telling him not to cause a commotion in his bookstore, Grosch was the one shouting the loudest. Izeline let out an awkward laugh, wondering what was going on. The two of them looked like a spirited grandfather and a mischievous grandson.
“What is your relationship?”
Unable to overcome her curiosity, she asked. The two of them shouted at the same time.
“This old man is a nagging spy!”
“This kid is an infuriating blockhead!”
“….”
Izeline’s lips parted silently at their fiery responses. She didn’t know what kind of trouble she’d get into if she asked any more questions. She wanted to ask in detail whether they were family or friends despite their age difference, but she suppressed her urge to ask.
Fortunately, she was able to make some rough guesses from the ensuing argument.
“I came down here with you, and you’re still as thick-headed as ever!”
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