“Think nothing of it. It’s not like it’s the first time those beings have acted as they pleased. Don’t worry too much about it, Nathan.”

“Professor…”

“You have it hard, too.”

Patting his shoulder gently, Melchiel felt a sense of camaraderie with Nathan.

“In fact, I thought this would happen someday.”

Indeed, Melchiel was quite used to such things. Whether it was because he managed this place or something else, dragons wearing human skins would enroll from time to time.

“We have a new student at an awkward time, but there’s nothing to be done. I don’t have the confidence to break that stubbornness… Still, we should consider it fortunate that there are no other dragons.”

***

Meanwhile, Calypse was waiting for Nathan in the garden, playing ball with Ruth. Leonard and Azar were also watching the two from a distance, waiting for Nathan to come out.

“By the way, is it okay to decide so suddenly?”

At that moment, Ruth, catching the ball Calypse kicked, tilted his head and asked. For reference, Ruth had enrolled in the academy last year. Having a slight talent for magic, he chose the Magic Department, but lately, he was showing interest in magic tools and swordsmanship as well.

Having eaten well, slept well, and played well, Ruth had grown quite tall. There was more than a double difference in height compared to Calypse. So, at a glance, the sight of the two playing looked like an older brother playing with his younger sibling.

At Ruth’s question, Calypse, opening his usually aloof eyes round and tilting his head cutely, asked back.

“What?”

“I mean enrolling in the academy. I’m happy since I can meet Lord Calypse more often, but… You don’t really like this place, do you?”

Since Ruth had met and hung out with Calypse often since childhood, he knew enough about his personality. He also knew that Calypse stuck to Nathan more just to torment Azar, who lived with them.

“Hmm, I thought it was about time to release him.”

“Pardon?”

When Ruth asked what that meant, Calypse made a short humming sound as if pondering for a moment. It was an appearance that didn’t fit a three-year-old child at all.

“Three years is a pretty long time for humans, right?”

“Is it?”

“It is.”

At the still cryptic answer, Ruth drooped his ears and tail.

“I don’t know what you mean.”

“There’s just something like that.”

But Calypse seemed to have no intention of answering further.

“Calypse!”

In the distance, Nathan was walking over with Melchiel. Seeing him beckoning him to come, Calypse bade farewell to Ruth.

“Then I’m going.”

“Already?”

“We’ll see each other often soon anyway, so what does it matter?”

Saying that, Calypse waved his small, cute hands gently and ran to Nathan in an instant with light steps.

“…It’s fine to enroll, but you need to grow a bit more.”

Looking at Calypse, Nathan bent his knees to meet his eye level. He still looked to be around three or four years old.

“They said admission is possible from at least 8 years old…”

“8 years old?”

Saying that much wasn’t difficult, Calypse ducked inside Nathan’s robe, and a moment later, he walked out trudgingly.

The appearance of Calypse that emerged was much more grown than before.

“This works, right?”

“…Do you want to enroll that badly?”

Nathan looked at Calypse with a complex expression. Calypse nodded, meaning yes.

“To go through the proper admission procedure, we should head to the administration office first.”

Melchiel, standing next to them, spoke instead of Nathan.

Even while following behind Melchiel, Nathan somehow felt a lack of reality. Things were proceeding smoothly, but was this right?

“Are you really going to attend?”

“I told you I am.”

He answered so nonchalantly, so why was one corner of Nathan’s heart so anxious?

At that moment, children who seemed to have just enrolled passed by them in a flock.

“—Yuri! What are you doing not coming quickly!”

“Let’s go together!”

Among them, the gaze of a boy running at the very back holding an armful of books met Calypse’s gaze for a very brief moment.

***

“Did you guys see?”

“I saw!”

“Seeing Professor Melchiel next to him, he might be a new kid!”

“But he looked really pretty!”

The elementary students who had just enrolled this year walked down the hallway chattering, holding books and bundles in both hands. Right now, they were excited after spotting a child their age who was with Melchiel just a moment ago.

The anticipation that they might get a new classmate. And because the appearance of that person looked lovely even in the children’s eyes, they couldn’t control their excitement. The children were chatting away lining up various guesses, but there was one child following quietly behind them without joining the conversation.

It was the child who had made eye contact with Calypse just now.

‘He looked like a doll.’

Those brilliant, jewel-like eyes didn’t leave his mind. The splendid red hair, the pretty face—he looked like a living, moving doll. The child blushed slightly.

“It would be nice if we took classes together. Right, Yuri?”

At that moment, the child walking ahead turned around abruptly and sought agreement. At that, the child nodded in a daze.

“Ah, huh? Yeah. It would be nice if we took classes together…”

***

“I will take good care of Lord Calypse.”

“Thank you, Professor.”

Letting out a sigh once, Melchiel stared at Calypse playing with Ruth in the distance.

“…Since that person has his own thoughts, he won’t cause trouble if possible.”

“…Do you really think so?”

“I am hoping so.”

“I’m sorry.”

Nathan apologized to Melchiel once again. Thinking about what hardships might unfold in his future from now on, he could only say sorry.

Because Melchiel helped from the side, Calypse’s admission procedure proceeded quickly. After the paperwork was done, they took Calypse to Lupelham. Lupelham, visited after a long time, was a city as moderately quiet and moderately bustling as before. perhaps because the semester was in session, there were quite a few students visiting on the weekend.

Sometimes, there were people who recognized Nathan. After being surprised for a while at the fact that he had brought his own child now, Tionan saw Calypse and laughed heartily as if noticing his true identity immediately. They were almost kicked out when he said there was no wand that fit him perfectly here. Besides that, fitting the uniform and buying necessary items kept them busy, so by the time they returned to the academy, the sun was already setting.

Since it was during the semester and would be processed as a mid-term transfer, Calypse decided to just stay at the academy instead of returning to the territory with Nathan and Azar.

“…”

That weighed on his mind endlessly. The reason he couldn’t easily take a step away was probably because Nathan had never been separated from Calypse like this all this time.

‘I never thought I’d be separated from Calypse in this way.’

He already felt his empty spot greatly. The time spent with him had been long. He had always been by his side…….

“Calypse! We’re going?”

Nathan deliberately raised his voice and called Calypse. At that, Calypse didn’t even come close but ended the send-off by just waving his hand gently.

That was truly heartless. The steps leaving the academy behind were slower than usual. Seeing Nathan’s expression become gloomy, Azar wrapped his arm around his shoulder.

“Cheer up, Nathan. He’ll probably act on a whim again soon and come back, you know?”

“Will he?”

But saying that would be a nuisance in its own way, Nathan made a subtle expression. Still, he seemed much better than before.

However, his mind still seemed directed toward Calypse remaining at the academy. Seeing that he was walking deliberately like this when he could just use warp magic to return to the territory as he came.

Instead of pointing that out, Azar walked slowly, matching Nathan’s pace, at less than half his usual speed.

“Since we’re at it, shall we return to the territory slowly for a change of pace?”

Saying that, Azar pointed ahead with his chin. Only then did Nathan check where they had arrived and widened his eyes.

Before they knew it, the two had arrived in front of the train station.

“…Look at me. When did we walk all the way here?”

Nathan laughed sheepishly and lightly scolded him, asking why he didn’t say anything while coming here.

“I wanted to walk a bit too. More than that, what do you think?”

“About what?”

“Since we came down all this way, let’s take the magic train back.”

The Nover territory had stabilized enough that it was okay for the owner, Nathan, to be away for a while. So, at the suggestion not to return immediately but to go back slowly looking around the surroundings as if traveling, Nathan was honestly a little tempted.

…Perhaps even more so because the location was here.

“…”

It was the place where everything started. Many things happened here, and the results led to now.

Nathan gazed at the person gently entangling his hand with his. And the sight of him smiling softly looking back.

“It reminds me of the old days.”

Which day’s memory was the ‘old days’ he spoke of? Was it the dawn when he acted disgracefully? Was it when he invited him to the summer villa? Perhaps he was recalling both, just like Nathan…….

Sweeping his thumb over the back of Azar’s hand out of habit, Nathan soon nodded, saying let’s do that.

At that, Azar ran straight to the ticket booth and bought train tickets. Seeing him return waving two tickets triumphantly, a laugh like air escaping burst out.

<Crackle, hiss—. Ah, the train will arrive shortly. Passengers scheduled to board, please check in advance if you have left any luggage behind and if the time and train number on your purchased ticket are correct. We repeat. Shortly, the train will arrive at Aurora Academy Station…>

Waiting for a moment, the train arrived at the station making a loud noise.

Perhaps because the semester was in full swing, there were few people at the station even though it was a weekend. Thanks to that, the two were able to board a two-person compartment instead of a multi-passenger car.

The appearance inside the compartment seemed to be etched into his eyes. Since the layouts were all similar, it couldn’t be the place where he had opened his eyes before, but…

“Nathan?”

A questioning voice touched him. Nathan said it was nothing and sat in the window seat.

“It’s been a long time since I took a train, too. In the past, I used to take this with other kids to go play in the neighboring city…”

Azar said, looking around the compartment. He mentioned that he usually shared seats in multi-passenger cars, so a two-person compartment like this was also a first in a long time.

“It’s been a long time for me to take a train, too.”

It truly had been a long time. He rode it often when he was attending the academy, but after that, he couldn’t ride because train operations were suspended in various places due to the Great Upheaval, and even when he saw trains still running, he deliberately avoided them after memories of the past resurfaced. So it really had been a long time. Somehow, he felt strange.

‘…But it’s not a bad feeling. Is it because Azar is next to me?’

Not long after, the train departed.

Nathan captured the scenery rushing past the window in his eyes.

[The Extra Works Hard: Side Story End]