Atelier Tanaka

Book 6: Chapter 3 (11)

Academic City (1st)

The three bullies tried to follow the girls example and attempted to run away but were quickly stopped by Allen. This finally allowed me to learn the true relationship between the four of them. And, to my surprise, it wasnt at all what I expected.

So, youre saying she was the one harassing you?

T-Thats right! That girl is from a well-renowned noble family and even skipped a grade to enter the academy. She always acts like a big deal because shes good at studying and takes every chance she can get to mock us!

The ikemen boy responded on behalf of the rest of them. My assumption about him being the leader is probably accurate.

I understand. I can see why youd dislike her.

Right!?

But everything Ive seen suggests you three are the ones doing the bullying now. How do you explain that?

Her house has fallen and she no longer has the backing of her noble family. Theres nobody left to spoil her and give her an advantage anymore. T-This is just us getting even. It is entirely justified.

There was a hint of regret on his face. I wonder if this ikemen is aware that what hes doing is wrong.

Allen was the first to speak.

I can understand how you feel.

R-Right!?

Still, just because your positions have swapped, doesnt mean its okay for you three to be the bullies now.

.

Allen spoke with a calm tone and had a compassionate look in his eyes. This ikemen is incredibly good looking. This left the ikemen boy at a loss for what to say. This is a skill only a true ikemen can possess. If I were to attempt the same thing, people may vomit in disgust or punch me in the face.

The lolibitch overheard the ikemen boys excuse and spoke in a matter-of-fact tone,

Well, she has no one to blame but herself.

She sounded completely disinterested.

It was a response Id expect from the original Ester-chan.

This is the type of person she was when I first met her.

Im sure its not as cut and dry as that. Everyone has their own reasons for the actions they take. Just as you had your reasons for interrupting the lecture earlier.

.

Allen is really determined to bring Ester-chans memories back. Hes more persistent than I thought. This may be the first time in his life hes thinking with the head on his shoulders rather than the one below his waist.

You all understand that no matter how much you harass and bully her, it will never make you happy, right?

O-Of course we know that! But, we cant just let her.

The ikemen boy looked genuinely remorseful about how he had behaved.

Ive only witnessed these three bullying the girl, but Ive witnessed nobles harassing commoners before, and I can understand how painful that can be. The feelings this caused the three of them will probably remain with them for the rest of their lives. The fat and skinny boys had similar expressions on their faces.

Incidentally, what noble family does she belong to?

The three boys looked hesitant to respond to Ester-chans question

I heard that she belonged to the Aufschnaiter family in the Penny Empire.

Eh, umm, that girl belongs to the Aufschnaiter family?

I think I heard she was the youngest member of the family.

The ikemen boy spoke this time.

Aufschnaiter? Why does that name sound so familiar? I know Ive heard it somewhere before. As I wondered where I knew the name from, I remembered that Gon-chans late parents belonged to that house.

That would make that girl a relative of his.

I see, shes a member of the Aufschnaiter family.

Ester?

Im familiar with the family. The house was completely destroyed and the entire family put to death. I can only assume the reason shes still alive to this day is due to her studying abroad. It was by complete accident that she escaped execution.

Ester-chan looked off in the distance at nothing in particular.

A-All of them, completely annihilated.

She muttered this to herself. The bullies overheard and the colour faded from their faces.

Her words seemed to be a bit much for the young boys.

Their house stood above all others in their prime. They were known for their fastidious nature.

.

This is part of the reason why the other noble families turned on them and collectively decided to destroy them.

It seems Gon-chans family has a more tragic past than I imagined. Hearing this directly from Ester-chan herself tells me its an accurate portrayal of what happened. She mentioned other noble families turning on the Aufschnaiters which indicated the FitzClarences may have been involved.

By the way, were the four of you here to listen to the lecture?

Allen must have decided pushing any further on the subject was a bad idea and decided to lighten the mood.

Thats right. We were thinking about doing our report on it.

Report?

The ikemen boy gave a surprisingly honest answer.

The boy responded to Allen with the same explanation the girl had given me previously. They had been given an assignment to discuss the likelihood of creating a true life potion.

Oh, I didnt realize assignments like that were given.

Nobody really believes that true life potions are capable of being made, so I dont see the point of this assignment.

I see.

The ikemen spoke with a fair amount of enthusiasm.

He must have been more interested in the assignment than the bullied girl.

You shouldnt blindly go along with what everyone else takes as fact without at least doing your own experiments. If something is declared to be fact, it must first be tested over and over and the results verified by multiple parties.

The ikemen boy offered us what he believed to be a casual comment but this acted as an attack on Edita Senseis passion for alchemy.

Dont you think enough experimentation has been done? The creation of a life potion has been studied for centuries and were no closer to making one today as we were hundreds of years ago. We can do all the research we want, but if no progress is ever made, it must be impossible.

The majority of serious research is from the past. We continue to make advancements in other fields that may lead to improved results in the future.

W-What are you trying to say?

You said youre using my lecture to write your report, correct? You should be sure to mention the time period, environment, and level of technology in which the life potion would be impossible to create.

Time and environment?

Thats right.

Oh, Edita Sensei has entered full sensei mode. She still looks like an innocent loli and the juxtaposition between her words and her appearance was a truly wonderful sight.

Hmph, theres a simple answer to that! The time is eternity, and the environment is anywhere!

It was the lolibitch.

The lolibitch will take every opportunity available to show who she truly is. She is a noble through and through. She may deny it, but she is Richards daughter. She is loyal to her family and those close to her while remaining antagonistic to everyone else. I know how it feels to be on both sides of Ester-chan.

Edita Sensei naturally turned her ire toward Ester-chan.

That simply isnt true. This man has shown us that the possibility is not zero.

Edita Sensei glanced towards me as she spoke.

She must be referring to the purple garlic bath salts.

I feel like thats a bit of a stretch, Sensei.

You like to talk big, but life potions are impossible. Do you have any idea how many countless hours have been spent studying this by people far smarter than you? Its impossible, end of story.

It only becomes impossible if we stop trying.

Try as much as you like, but history has proven its simply not possible. Its a waste of time to assign students to discuss the possibility of something thats proven to be impossible.

As I said before, without countless testing and verification by multiple parties is necessary to call anything factual.

Yes, I suppose that is important as far as their report is concerned, although, it means they will never arrive at an answer. For the purpose of a hypothetical scenario in their report, its fine to toy with the idea. However, these hypothetical scenarios will never make it any less likely that the creation of a life potion is impossible.

Ku.

The casual talk had developed into an argument between the two and the ikemen boy had been pushed out of the conversation altogether. Surprisingly, Ester-chan is good at debating. Edita Sensei was caught off guard and made a cute expression as she tried to think of a response.

Theres no reason for Ester-chan to be so antagonistic right now. I have to assume it has something to do with the diary the lolibitch was keeping before she lost her memory. Something she read in it must have involved either Edita Sensei or something to do with me creating the healing bath salts.

I never really expected her to write anything down. I should have mentioned it to Richard before I left so he could have had the diaries destroyed.

No, no, no, getting angry about mistakes of the past wont do me any good now.

Instead, I should try to remain positive and think of how to do better in the future.

And thats when it hit me.

Ester-chan is angry with Allen and if this can lead to the two of them breaking up, naturally, the distance between them would also increase. If Allen is no longer constantly around Ester-chan, hell almost never interact with Goggoru-chan or Edita Sensei.

Not to mention, this argument involves the assignment that the JC has also been assigned. I could make an argument for bringing her in so I can spend time with her whilst simultaneously protecting Goggoru-chan and Sensei from Allens slutty penis. Two birds, one stone.

Girls at her age have a higher likelihood of having a hymen.

I could achieve my dream of a school romance.

This sounds interesting. Ill take up your challenge, FitzClarence-sama.

W-What!? What are you talking about!?

Tanaka-san!?

O-Oi.

Ester-chan and everyone else in the hall turned their attention to me.

I find myself on the side of the Aufschnaiter girl. I wish to support her and, at the same time, prove you wrong. Lets allow their reports to show who is correct in this disagreement. Ill show you that its possible to create a life potion.

Wha-!?

I could see Edita Sensei trembling out of the corner of my eye.

Hmph, be careful what you ask for! Ill take this opportunity to not only prove that life potions are nothing more than fantasy, but also to prove how hopeless your groundbreaking discovery is. You three, follow me! Ill handle your reports!

Ester-chan glared at the trio of bullies.

The three of them trembled under her intimidating gaze.

They looked toward me as if to blame me for the unfortunate position they had been placed in.

Ester!? And you, Tanaka-san, you know this isnt a good idea.

Allen was caught off guard entirely and was acting flustered.

I felt sorry for the ikemen, but this is something I have to do.

Just so were both on the same terms here, I dont plan on taking it easy on you.

I wouldnt want you to! When I win, I plan on making you lick my boots.

As if that will happen.

This went better than expected, lolibitch.

Its not like Id mind licking her boots.

***