The Villain Wants to Change Genres

Chapter 73

“That’s a bit…”

“Did you experience something so frightening that you can’t easily talk about it?”

The vice president’s demeanor sharply changed. It doesn’t seem like she’s angry at me, but rather at my roommates. I’m not sure why she’s so invested in my situation, but this can’t continue. I’ll have to discard the excuse about being bullied.

I couldn’t think of a reason that would allow only me to leave while keeping my roommates in place, but I had no choice.

I considered appealing to Adrian about wanting to escape the four-person room, or if that didn’t work, summoning Fei Vinter… No, that won’t do. If I make a move, it’ll reach my sister’s ears, and if they change the dormitory assignment for an unfamiliar commoner instead of Luwen, Norman will likely attract attention.

‘If it weren’t for that, I would have resolved this long ago.’

In the end, Adrian was the only option left.

“Actually, it’s difficult for me to be around other people…”

Although it would have been nice to resolve the dormitory issue while I was here, I’ve achieved my initial goal, so it’s fine.

“…Is that all?”

She seemed somewhat deflated. I nodded with an embarrassed smile.

“I have severe insomnia, so I can’t sleep well. It’s even harder with other people’s presence… That’s why. There’s no other reason.”

“But why did you act so serious about it?”

“I, I was embarrassed… It feels like I’m throwing a tantrum about sleep at this age…”

The vice president let out a hollow laugh. She must find it ridiculous. Damn. I know. If I hadn’t brought up expulsion, I wouldn’t have had to make such a sudden turn. No, that’s not right. I should be grateful I mentioned it. How uncomfortable would it be if they found out later that they were almost expelled because of me?

“I understand for now. It’s absurd, but I’m glad it’s nothing serious. I’ll try to make the request, but it’ll probably be difficult.”

Well, you never know… Thinking there’s nothing to lose, I nodded.

“I really thought something serious had happened. Everyone’s so hot-blooded these days.”

I wonder what this person imagined. As I watched the vice president chuckle to herself, I just smiled along. I didn’t want to make it more awkward by keeping a serious face.

Anyway, because of the vice president’s misunderstanding, my roommates almost suffered unfairly. It means I almost ruined innocent kids’ lives by taking it lightly. Feeling the need to be more careful with my words, I was about to prepare to leave when the student council room door opened, and a familiar herbal scent pushed away the lavender fragrance.

“Huh? At this hour… Norman?”

“President, what brings you here so early?”

“I came to check the roster, but the person in question is right here.”

President? So this man is the president who volunteered for the subjugation team? I’m sure they said his name was Alteo. They said he’s on par with Luwen.

I observed the man closely. Short brown hair and fair skin. He seems about my height, and his thin build is not much different. If he could do it, maybe I can too. Is the treatment for the support team unexpectedly good?

“Since you’re here, that’s good. I have something to tell you.”

“Let’s talk about this first since we have a guest. We can have our private conversation after.”

The president walked over with a calm smile.

“It’s related to Norman anyway, so I think it’s okay if he hears it.”

“Is that so?”

The president, who had naturally taken the seat of honor, turned to me and responded. But something felt off. I sensed an inexplicable hostility from the smiling president.

I didn’t know why he disliked me since we were meeting for the first time, but it was a familiar situation, so I just went along with it. In my previous life, when I first started modeling, there were people who would glare at me or whisper behind my back.

At first, I responded every time, but I realized that paying attention to each incident only tired me out. It was beneficial to ignore them appropriately as long as they didn’t openly pick a fight.

‘They hated being ignored more.’

Thanks to that, I became so insensitive that I didn’t even notice most whispers or glances unless they raised their voices enough for me to hear. It also made life easier when I became so numb that I didn’t even realize when people were looking at me.

‘I probably won’t meet the president again after today anyway, so I’ll just deal with him casually and leave.’

It seems the vice president’s business is about changing my dormitory room, so it’s better to just smile innocently now, pretending not to notice anything.

“Actually, Norman came to request a change in his dormitory room.”

“Did he?”

He seemed a bit surprised, but I don’t understand why. Are there not many people who come asking to change their dormitory rooms?

“What’s the reason?”

The vice president glanced at me. It looked like she was asking whether I would speak directly or if she should explain on my behalf, so I opened my mouth.

“I…”

Just as I had told the vice president, I mentioned my insomnia, showing a bit of embarrassment and awkwardness.

Throughout my explanation, the president maintained a smile, but it was strangely unpleasant. It felt like he was looking down on me. Or perhaps contempt? Somewhere in between, but both were equally annoying, so there was no need to distinguish between them.

“I see. It would be tough if you can’t sleep properly. Where do you want to move? A single room?”

The moment his voice sounded quite kind, I realized that this guy was also a human wearing a facade.

“A single room would be nice, but a double room is okay too.”

“I’m sure. After all, there are many nobles in single rooms. Even commoners in double rooms are usually from wealthy families.”

What’s this? There’s an extremely unnecessary addition here. Even the vice president turned around, finding it strange.

“Oh, I’m sorry if that’s a misunderstanding. I’m not sure if I should be saying this…”

If you’re not sure, then don’t say it. Usually, what follows such statements tends to be irritating. If I weren’t playing the role of Norman, the naive country boy, I would have retorted to just not say it then…

“Huh? Misunderstanding? What do you mean…?”

I shrunk my shoulders, feigning a scared look.

“It seems you don’t know much about it, so I think it’s right to tell you for your own sake.”

Really, put your hand on your heart and tell me if it’s truly for my sake. I could bet Norman’s identity that it’s not.

The president hesitated for a moment, then continued.

“Well… don’t take this personally. There’s a rumor going around that Norman entered the academy to seduce the upper class. They say you’re actually working on Adrian Escardo? Of course, it’s just a rumor, so I don’t believe it myself. But still, such rumors don’t spread without any reason, right?”

…How did such a rumor start? Unless someone deliberately spread it to slander me, it seemed unlikely to occur naturally.

Was the president’s subtle look earlier because he believed the rumor? If that’s the case, we could clear up the misunderstanding, but.

“Me? That’s not true… I don’t know why such a rumor started…”

It seemed that guy firmly believed the rumor.

“Ah, so you really didn’t know?”

The president sighed with apparent regret. On the surface, that is.

“No, I have no idea…”

“I heard you went to the Swordsmanship Department on your first day at the academy? It’s rare for new students to leave their department on the first day, so it stood out. Especially since the Swordsmanship Department has many nobles and is famous.”

Was that such a noticeable action? No, why aren’t there people leaving their departments? Live with some curiosity.

“I haven’t traveled much, so everything about the academy was fascinating to me. Out of curiosity, I was walking around and found a crowd of people gathered. Suddenly, I felt unwell and collapsed. I didn’t know it was the Swordsmanship Department, and Adrian just helped me then, which is how we became acquainted.”

“Is that so? Are you feeling better now?”

“Huh? Yes, I’m fine now.”

“That’s good to hear.”

The president smiled slightly and added,

“I’m actually friends with Adrian. As you know, he’s the secretary of the Business Department. The student council members often have meetings, so we’ve become close.”

I didn’t know that.

“But from what I heard from Adrian, he said you became friendlier after he revealed he was from the Escardo Count family. Isn’t that true?”

It’s true that I changed my attitude, but the reason is completely different… or not quite. I do plan to use Adrian to uncover the ledger. Does this mean I’ll have to deal with these rumors every time I meet Adrian from now on? And if I go to see Luwen too, it would be like confirming the rumors myself?

‘Oh no.’

I was trying to live without standing out, but I can see a future where I become the protagonist of rumors. It seems my plan has gone awry.