Chapter 20 Ms. Ruth
Cecilia Blackwood's POV
If Kane really skipped the most important class because he was upset with me, I wouldn't know how to face him afterward.
Kane replied softly, "You misunderstood. I just forgot something and went back to get it."
I breathed a sigh of relief. "That's what I thought. Why would you suddenly get angry for no reason?"
"Besides, we're friends. You wouldn't be mad at me, right?"
I had to admit, I really wanted to see him nod, though I didn't know why.
"Yes." Fortunately, my wish came true.
After Kane left, I entered the classroom. I originally wanted to find a seat in the front row, but on second thought, sitting in the back would be better.
I could sit in the front, but what about Kane? Would he be willing to sit there? Or rather, would the other students let him?
Fortunately, the classroom wasn't very large. Even sitting in the back row, I could still hear what the teacher was saying.
Before long, several figures approached—it was Rowan, Domi, and the others.
I didn't get up to greet them. Not because they'd put danger labels on my belongings, but because they'd thrown my necklace into the Spiritual Spring.
I couldn't imagine how much I would have blamed myself if I hadn't found the necklace that day.
It was the keepsake my mother left me. If it had been lost or damaged, I would have blamed myself for the rest of my life!
Rowan smiled slightly. "What's this? Pretending not to know us? We used to be best friends."
Domi snorted lightly. "Best friends? Her best friend is clearly Kane, that dangerous Dark Mage!"
Eddie stretched lazily. "By the way, you've spent so much time with that Dark Mage—have you noticed anything wrong?"
"Don't be shy. Just say whatever you want. Let us have a good laugh too!"
I impatiently raised my eyelids. "Are you done yet? Did you come over just to spout this irrelevant nonsense?"
"If that's the case, you'd better leave now. Class is about to start, and I don't want to waste time on this."
Rowan slammed her hand on the desk. "We're concerned about you! Don't be ungrateful!"
"When Kane finally hurts you, you'll know whether we were helping or harming you!"
I found it somewhat amusing. "You're concerned about me? Are you sure? I think you're just making excuses for your own unfair treatment."
"Because you discriminate against Kane, you don't want anyone else to approach him either. In your minds, Kane doesn't deserve to have friends!"
Rowan stopped pretending. "That's right! He doesn't deserve friends! All Dark Mages should die!"
"We're giving you one last chance. Stay away from Kane and be friends with us, or be strangers—it's up to you."
"If you refuse, you'll regret it. You'll be ostracized by the entire school!"
I waved dismissively. "I don't care. First, I don't think you represent the entire school. Second, even if I am ostracized, I don't mind."
Thinking back to the years I'd spent always alone, not deliberately isolated but practically the same—what happened? I still lived just fine, didn't I?
Besides, now I had Kane with me. Wasn't that much better than before?
Rowan pointed at me. "I'm asking you one last time! Will you stay away from that guy or not!"
I slowly shook my head. "I won't stay away from him. I'll say it one last time too—no one can dictate my choice of friends. No one!"
"If you're not satisfied, come at me directly. Just do it openly, not with underhanded tricks behind my back!"
The three of them gritted their teeth in hatred, as if they were about to attack any second.
Just then, Kane walked into the classroom. With just one icy glance, he scared the three of them into fleeing.
Normally, they would have left behind a few harsh words, but now they ran faster than each other.
Kane sat down, radiating a menacing aura. "What did they do to you! Did they hurt you!"
I laughed lightly. "Listen to yourself. They might want to hurt me, but they don't have the guts."
"This is a classroom. If anything happened to me, all three of them would be expelled!"
Kane took a deep breath. "Protect yourself. Contact me immediately if anything happens."
"Okay."
"By the way, where did you go just now?" I asked curiously.
Kane pulled out a milkshake—the kind that wasn't too sweet.
"For you." He placed the milkshake in front of me without any extra words.
Only then did I realize—Kane had noticed I hadn't brought a cup and had specifically gone to buy me a milkshake.
"You really don't need to do this. You're too good to me, and it actually makes me uncomfortable."
"Uncomfortable?" Kane's brow furrowed instantly. "Why uncomfortable? Don't you want to be friends with me?"
Seeing Kane's anxious expression, I panicked. Did he think I wanted to cut ties with him? But that wasn't what I meant!
I quickly waved my hands. "No, no, no! I don't mean I won't be friends with you. I just don't want you doing so much for me."
"We're friends, but we're also equals. When you do all this, I really... Forget it, forget it. Class is about to start. Let's not talk about it."
I had no choice. I really didn't know how to explain, so in the end, I decided to just keep quiet.
Before long, a somewhat plump woman walked in. She was our Magic Incantations teacher, Ruth!
Beautiful name, beautiful face—just a figure that didn't fit mainstream aesthetics. But that had nothing to do with me.
"Let me introduce myself. I'm Ruth, your Magic Incantations teacher. I'll be teaching you various magic incantations. Pay attention."
I straightened up and pulled out my notebook, ready to write down all the magic incantations.
Of course, I'd also record everything Ms. Ruth said—the more I could note down, the better, for review later.
If I could learn about incantations to suppress witch aura, that would be hitting the jackpot!
But as the saying goes, imagination is beautiful, reality is cruel. Ms. Ruth was simply reading straight from the textbook.
The most outrageous part? The content was identical to what was in the book—even the punctuation marks were the same!
"Am I... am I hearing this right? She's just reading from the textbook?" I whispered.
Kane nodded slightly. "Yes. Are you bored?"
I exhaled heavily. "It's fine. The important part should come soon."
I didn't dare let my guard down, afraid of missing crucial knowledge.
But the class was already more than halfway through, and Ms. Ruth continued the same operation without any change.
Looking at the front row, some students couldn't take it anymore and had fallen asleep.