The Academy's Terminally Ill Side Character-Chapter 94: Public Opinion [1]

"You’re disturbing everyone—and let’s be honest, the person suffering the most here is Rin," Ryen said firmly. "Pretty sure he didn’t sign up for a front-row seat to your drama this morning."

Finally. Someone had the guts to say it.

The class went still. Kiera gave a lazy shrug, still lounging like she owned the place. Her ex-friend muttered something under her breath, clearly still seething. As for me? I just sat there, numb and exhausted, wondering why I hadn’t just skipped school altogether.

Then the ex-friend broke the silence again.

"Ryen, you know exactly what kind of stunt this girl pulled on Rin. I’m just trying to protect him from whatever scheme she’s cooking up now."

Ryen’s expression darkened. He turned to Kiera, who, for once, wasn’t smiling. She looked down, as if the floor was more interesting than all the eyes on her.

Just when the tension started to settle, Kiera raised her head again—and that smug little smile was back like it had never left.

"What?" she said lightly. "I’m just trying to be friendly with Rin. But someone keeps butting in like it’s her business. Maybe she should learn her place."

Yeah, you both should.

I groaned inwardly. This was going way longer than it needed to.

Why does this feel like some terrible romance subplot I didn’t sign up for?

"Ryen, you’re not actually buying her act, right?" her ex-friend said, her voice cracking a little. "You know she’s lying."

Ryen’s jaw clenched as he turned to her.

"You’re in no position to act like the moral compass here," he said flatly. "You believed the rumors, didn’t you? You spread them—without ever checking the truth. So don’t act like you’re just here to ’save’ Rin."

That shut her up.

Across the room, Leo looked like he couldn’t care less. Most of Kiera’s old crew exchanged awkward glances, probably realizing that sticking with her wasn’t going to do them any favors anymore.

Now, normally, this would be the part where Kiera falls for Ryen—the handsome, righteous guy who stood up for her in public.

But instead...

"Loser."

Huh?

I looked up, and she was staring straight at me.

"What?" I blinked.

"Our loser is being so cold," Kiera said with a pout. "I’ve been asking for your number all weekend. Why are you ignoring me?"

...Seriously?

I glanced at Ryen, expecting confusion or irritation, but he just pinched the bridge of his nose like he was tired of this whole circus.

’Maybe she’s not latching onto Ryen yet because he wasn’t flashy enough in her defense. Or maybe she’s just clinging to me because she doesn’t have anyone else left. Either way, it’s Monday, and I already need a vacation.’

-----

The bell rang, signaling the end of first period which was [Basic Magic Class], and I was the first one out of my seat. Not because I had somewhere to be, but because I needed to escape that ticking time bomb of a classroom before someone decided round two was worth it.

I stepped into the hallway, dragging my feet toward the vending machine like a ghost in search of caffeine. The hum of students around me barely registered. My brain was still echoing with ’Loser and Why are you ignoring me?’

Yeah. I definitely should’ve stayed in bed.

At that moment, someone stepped beside me.

"You good?" Ryen asked.

I blinked and turned my head. He was standing there casually, hands in his pockets, watching me with that calm, too-sane-for-this-place expression he always wore.

"As good as a guy can be after becoming the unwilling protagonist in a lunchtime soap opera," I muttered.

Ryen chuckled under his breath. "You handled it pretty well."

"By doing nothing?"

"Exactly. Sometimes doing nothing is smarter than jumping into a mud fight."

I nodded towards him, indicating that I was listening.

"You are going to help her out right?"

"Well, you were the one told me to do so in the first place."

I couldn’t help but chuckle at his reply.

Well, All left is now changing public opinion of her.

After that it would be final step to excute my plan.

... Just little more.

----

Public opinion around Kiera had started to shift—not drastically, but enough that people weren’t openly hissing at her anymore. Most of it had to do with Ryen stepping in and clearing up the rumors. He didn’t exactly defend her with passion or anything, but he used me as a reference point, saying if I could move past it, then maybe others should too.

To the average student, it looked like the person most affected by her antics had forgiven her. Combine that with a week’s worth of gossip fatigue, and people just moved on to the next drama.

But let’s be real—it wouldn’t have gone this smoothly if Ryen hadn’t intervened.

Her former friends didn’t come crawling back, though. That was off the table. But the open mockery, the whispers behind her back, the stares in the hallway? Those had quieted down.

Mostly.

That didn’t mean everything was fine. Ryen might’ve been cool-headed enough to move on, but his companions? Not so much. They didn’t seem the type to forgive and forget, especially when it came to someone like Kiera. To them, it wasn’t just about what she did—it was about who she embarrassed. Leo.

The school had practically split into two camps at this point: Ryen’s circle, built on goodwill and charisma, and Leo’s loyalists, driven by pride and grudge.

And today... something felt off.

The atmosphere in class was weird. Tense, but not loud. Like the kind of silence you get right before a thunderstorm rolls in.

I leaned back in my chair, staring at Kiera from the corner of my eye.

She was here again, not sure why she isn’t attending her class but at the moment she was talking with Ryen.

She was smiling. Laughing, even. Not the cold, plastic smile she wore when she wanted to provoke someone. No, this was lighter. More casual. Almost cheerful.

...And that was not a good sign.