After appointing me as the class ambassador of 1-S, Alex pointed at where I'll be sitting, located at the second row on the left.
I thanked him once more and proceeded to my designated spot. From there, I saw someone sitting there as well.
It was a girl.
A very cute girl.
A very cute petite girl.
I was instantly mesmerized by how utterly adorable that girl was. Her charm was certainly on the same footing with Ana.
And most importantly, she sat at my assigned table, undeniably making her my seatmate.
Was the Lady of Fate finally started blessing me after all the weird happenings that have transpired upon me?
Truly, the Seven Gods were also capable of mercy on this young pure soul such as myself.
From the depths of my mind, I heard Master sneering in response to my statement as if she was in great disagreement with it.
"Please, the only thing that is pure is your libido. Young pure soul my ass, pfft!!"
I merely ignored her baseless rants. I'm so much in a good mood that not even Vivian's insults would deter me from attaining the springtime of my youth!!
Anyways, the girl was simply attractive, possessing short pale blonde hair and radiant blue eyes that you can't help but take your eyes away. She reverberated with an aura of calm, her pleasant composure soothing a person's heart.
To make things brief, Ana possessed the aspect of sophisticated beauty while this girl was more akin to the cute side.
Ah, why don't girls like them existed back in my village?!! All of the girls that I knew from Rivershire lacked the class of a lady due to their upbringing as farmers.
Well, except for one girl, back when I was a kid, a childhood friend. Even if she's the daughter of the Baron of the village, she would often come out of the Manor and play with the other villager's children like myself.
But sadly, she was sent away by her father for her education.
And that's a story for another time.
Going back to the pale blonde beauty, I gave her a friendly smile when I approached her at her table... Our table.
And as Lady Fate shared more of her blessings, the girl sweetly smiled back at me and invited me to take a seat right beside her.
"Hi there, Ken Bruce, correct?"
Don't screw this up, Kennie boy. Keep your cool and everything is going to be letter "A" alright.
I accepted her invitation and sat in my chair.
"Yep, that's me, right in the flesh. And you are?"
The girl giggled (how cute!!!) even if it was my poor attempt at a joke.
"Philip... Philip Oswold. But you may call me Phil for short."
Philip.... Phil... Even her name was as lovely as her whole existence.
Can I just skip a few steps and marry this angel already?
"Brat, there's something I should warn you-"
Not now, Master!! Can't you see that I'm in utter bliss?
Is... Is this what they call love?
Love at first sight?
"Heh, don't say that I did not attempt to warn you. My how blind you truly are, hahaha."
Oh, fuck off, Vivian. What's there to warn about? The only one who was blind was you for not seeing the beauty that was in front of me!!!
As my pure and undivided attention was at Phil once more, she clapped her hands and said something with her usual precious smile.
"And by the way..."
Yes, future wife?
"I'm a man."
At that very moment, my world crumbled to dust, and I could hear the glass shattering into a million pieces.
She must be joking. No way can a man be as beautiful as her. It's simply unreal!!
"Haha, you're kidding, right?"
"Nope, I'm a man, a biological member of the male sex of the human race."
"I... I see, ahahaha. Can you give me one moment please?"
"Sure."
With the heavy weight of unadulterated depression hitting me hard like a mace in the head, I hastily retreated back to my mindscape, losing my consciousness as a result.
"Oh my goodness!!! Are you alright??!!"
While on my refuge, The last thing I heard was Phil immediately screaming out of concern for my poor, devastated self.
(Ken POV)
Back here in my mind, Vivian could only laugh so hard as she witnessed me now banging my head repeatedly at the ground for even having such feelings... for a man of all people!!!
This... this was not the romantic encounter that I pictured in my mind!!!
First, my dumbass assumption of Ana confessing her love to me.
And now this!!???
What a bitch Lady Fate truly was!!!
Damn it, my dumbass brain should have realized that Philip was a man's name, but instead, focused on its slightly girlish nickname of Phil!!!
Vivian's efforts for holding her amusement back were cut in an instant as her unadulterated laughter echoed within my mindscape.
"Ahahahahaha!!! Now I truly see, my dear cute student!!! Anyone is actually okay for you as long as they are cute, correct? It does not matter if they are a she, he, or perhaps even an it? My, my, your libido surely knows no bounds and covers a wide range of every sexual aspect!!!"
"Fuck you, Vivian!!! I did not know that she... he's a man!!! I'm straight as a die and there's no way in hell that I'm gay or whatever sexual orientation that you imply!!!"
"That's what they always say. Denial is plainly the first step. Open your eyes, Ken, and see the world candidly in a new light."
Open? World? What in Arkadia was she babbling about now?
Tehee your face!!!!
Damn it!!! My dignity as a man, all ruined now.
With my sorrow inescapable, I heard Master still cackling like a madwoman for a few minutes until she eventually halted her laughter.
After that, she sighed and shook her head while crossing her arms, now finding the whole affair to be tiresome and boring.
"Okay, this is getting pretty old. Alright, brat, while I have to admit that the entertainment was highly delightful, good things also must come to an end. Cease your pitiful bearing and stand up this instant."
Master now appeared to be serious and I involuntarily followed her command without question.
Because a serious Vivian Algrande thundered with an aura of sheer authority, one that you can't simply defy without any dreadful consequences.
She then proceeded to lecture me like the advisor she was.
"Look here brat, while your reaction was definitely hilarious, what you did was also fucking insensitive to Philip."
"Insensitive, what did I do?"
My answer furthered the frown on her face and she elaborated my confusion.
"Just because your expectations of Philip was that of a girl, that does not mean that you should exaggerate your astonishment and faint right on the spot like the stupid prick you are. He did confess that he was a man immediately during his introduction so you won't be having any kinds of misinterpretations and twisting some wrong ideas. I could only assume that his girlish appearance troubled him ever since he was young and he was most probably either harassed or bothered due to it, thus the need to clarify his true gender immediately."
I... I didn't realize that at all.
Was I really an ass for having such an exaggerating reaction?
Fuck, now I feel guilty all of a sudden. I'm not sure how I should face Phil when I finally woke up from this slumber.
"Well, the situation is still salvageable at least. In this circumstance, the only way to renew your impression is through a deep, heart feeling, sincere apology. I can see no other way around this unless of course your newly acquired draconic pride gets in the way to even comprehend the meaning of the word sorry that is and come up with a flimsy excuse to justify your assholeness."
I shook my head in disagreement at her last statement.
"No, I'll definitely apologize to him. Thank you for enlightening me about this, Master."
"That's what I'm here for, my dear cute student, not only to teach you magic but to sway you away as well from the blunders of immaturity and help you grow as a person. I'm such an awesome and magnanimous Master, am I?"
While her final remark of self-praise was quite unnecessary, I can't say that I disagree with her. Her pieces of advice had done nothing but help me so far, and as her student, it's my sole duty to follow every one of them at heart.
"Haha, yeah, yeah. Whatever you say, Master. Anyways, I'll be leaving my mind now."
"I wish you luck, student, tehee."
"Okay, when are you going to stop with that fucking footnote!!!???"
"Never!!! Buwahahaha!!!"
Yup, getting the fuck out of here now hence my sanity was going to break loose.
(Ken POV)
When I finally woke up, I felt my head resting against the table. I swiftly got up and started searching for a particular dude who looked like a dudette.
As I turned to my left, Phil was there beside me, never leaving his spot ever since my abrupt departure from the land of the living.
"Ah, Ken, you're finally awake. Thank goodness, I thought you got sick or something."
While Phil's concern was quite touching, I wasted no time and begun to accomplish the task that was necessary for my impression by him to be recovered.
I rapidly stood up from my chair and eyed Phil with a grave expression, much to his confusion.
"Is something wrong, Ken?"
I held the top of the table directly with my two hands and begun prostrating my head as sincerely as I could.
"I'm sorry!!"
Only one thing came out of Phil's mouth.
"Ehh!!??"