Nuka answered Rezita before she finished speaking, as if he had anticipated this moment.
Rezita stopped talking and stared at him in amazement.
"Your jokes are really lame, Mr. Nuka. Now, can I know which famil-"
"lady, I'm completely serious."
Rezita's deep breaths made her large, protruding stomach move. Her large, white face was now red. It was like she couldn't breathe from anger. But Nuka, ignoring her, continued eating his food. I glared at him angrily as he ate.
"Good for you? Now you've gotten yourself and also me too into trouble."
I put my hand in front of my mouth.
'Oops! I said it out loud.'
When Rezita threw all the food trays on the table to the side with the back of her hand, I realized I had really messed up. Her eyes were red like a bull that had seen a red cloth.
"What?!"
Her scream made everyone in the cafeteria turn their attention to us.
"What was the headmaster thinking, letting a stinking bug like you into this school? When did a peasant ever have the right to read and write?"
The whispers started.
"A peasant? Is she serious?"
"What was the headmaster thinking, really?"
"I wouldn't want to be in the same class as this stinking bug for a second."
I stared at the chaos I had created with a sweet smile.
'What a delicious meal I've gotten myself into. Oh, my!'
Nuka, with his infuriating indifference, bent down and picked up the trays.
"Oh! The floor is dirty. There's no choice, we have to sweep it."
'This boy really has a talent for making people angry.'
He moved towards the buffet with the trays, but he hadn't even taken two steps when Rezita grabbed his collar from behind and pulled him back.
"How dare you ignore me? I'll beat the crap out of you right here in this cafeteria, you'll see."
"What's going on here?"
The whispers died down at the sound of the vice principal's voice, and everyone turned towards him. A tall man with a bony frame, he approached us with long strides. The checkered suit he was wearing looked like it was screaming, as if his mother had bought it for him. He also had a mole right on the tip of his nose that I wanted to pick off. He was just like my teachers and nannies. His presence was very faint and insignificant. I think I've only seen him once in the schoolyard. But this time, his voice and presence were so attention-grabbing that everyone turned towards him. Even Rezita stopped what she was doing. Maybe because his voice is so dead, everyone's attention goes to him.
'I wish my voice could at least attract attention.'
"Ms. Tasmani, please let go of Nuka's collar."
Instead of obeying, Rezita turned to the vice principal angrily.
"How dare you order me around?"
The vice principal sighed. "Ms. Tasmani, while you hold an important position in society, things are different within the school environment. You need to listen to the school staff, otherwise you'll only make it worse for yourself."
Rezita snorted and reluctantly let go of Nuka's collar.
"From now on, I don't want to see any more arguments or fights because of class differences. You are all future builders of this country. It doesn't matter what class or background you come from. I'm sure you all know that the headmaster doesn't do anything without a reason. So be careful of your behavior."
Then he turned to Rezita and said,
"Now apologize to Nuka, Ms. Tasmani."
"What? Not in a million years."
"Please don't make me report your behavior to the headmaster."
Rezita gritted her teeth. It was clear that she was about to explode with anger.
"Actually, I'm going to complain to him about this situation myself."
"Do whatever you want. But don't think the headmaster is very merciful. If he finds out what you did to the new student, he might have a serious talk with your parents."
Rezita turned pale. Of course, they were all stunned, but I didn't know why.
"Y-you mean to say that..."
"Not only your parents, but all the other families of the students are aware of this and have agreed to Nuka's presence at the school. Your protest amounts to undermining your family's consent. I think you should reconsider this."
'Hmm, so that's how it is!'
So, Nuka has been officially accepted by the royal families. I don't know why, but it seems like no one is going to pick a fight with him after this.
"I...I'm sorry for what I did."
After a pause, Nuka smiled kindly and said,
"It's okay, lady Tasmani. Anyone in your place would have acted like this."
I gave a tired smile. It seems like Nuka is making millions of enemies per second, not just because he's a peasant, but because of his a##hole acts.
'This was the last time I talked to him. I don't want to get myself into trouble at all.'
***
"Mr. Bernard?"
"..."
"Mr. Bernard?"
I took a deep breath and lowered my hands that had been near my lips. Finally, school was over and I was back home. But wouldn't this damn janitor open the door? He was like the nanny. He doesn't notice me, even if I'm next to him , let alone my shouting. I kicked the stone next to my foot in frustration.
'Do I have to climb over this stupid gate?'
Usually, I would return home with Aldous's automatic carriage, and I didn't even need the janitor to open the door for him. He would fall into the house out of the sky. But this time, he went home earlier than me without a word. He was really mad at me.
I exhaled through my mouth. I put one foot on the brick next to the wall and the other on the gate's ledge. The gate was a hefty 3-meter ( about 9.8 ft ) piece of scrap metal that had been painted black to cover the rust. It had a painting of a knight attacking a monster with his sword. The style reminded me of medieval paintings; dry and formal with an aura of spirituality. I put my hand in the gap between the brick of the gate's minaret and the wall and put my foot on the embossed head of the unlucky horse.
"Huff... huff... I'm finally getting there."