Raising a Wolf in the Academy

“Your guess is correct, Ms. Aisha. This is proof that I am loved.”
“Proof… that you are loved?”
Love.
She knows the meaning of that word.
Aisha is not someone who would doubt her own ears at such a close distance.
Nevertheless, she couldn’t help but ask again.
‘Please… Tell me it’s not true, Professor…’
So that she could breathe a sigh of relief and tell him never to play such a joke again.
She hoped he would say it was a joke, that it was just a joke to lighten the mood as usual.
But.
When has the world ever gone the way she wanted?
“This is perfect. I was going to introduce you anyway.”
Instead of saying it was a joke, the professor got up from his seat and headed towards the bedroom.
It was the same smiling face as always, but that smile wasn’t for her.
From now on, forever.
It would be that way.
“I’m… sorry… I’ll leave right away…”
Unable to bear this fact, she chose to run away.
“Why, Ms. Aisha? Stay a little longer.”
She heard the professor’s voice trying to stop her from getting up.
A voice tinged with sincerity, not just the usual courtesy.
But in a situation like this, it was the cruelest words.
‘That’s right… The professor was always like this…’

Always caring for someone like me, allowing me to stay by his side.
“It’s okay. I, I have an urgent matter… Goodbye…”
That’s why she had no choice but to run away.
Because she didn’t know what face she would show if she met the person who left marks on his neck right now.
At the very least, shouldn’t she avoid showing an unsightly appearance?
*
*
*
After rushing out of the office.
Walking through the cold, empty corridor, she thought.
She didn’t realize it earlier because she was distracted by the professor.
But now that she had come to her senses and looked back, she couldn’t help but notice.
The hair fallen on the floor was different from his hair color and didn’t look like a man’s at first glance.
Even his face that seemed flushed from what he had been doing.
“…..”
Her mind, once it found something strange, kept digging deeper.
The reason why the professor had seemed excited these past few days.
The reason why he wanted to return to his office quickly.
‘No…’
When her thoughts reached that point, she tried to stop thinking.
Because it felt like she shouldn’t think any further.
Because she didn’t want to think about what might have happened if she had gathered her courage a little earlier.
She only hurried her steps, wanting to return to her room as soon as possible.
-Plop, plop plop.
Small droplets formed a line along her path as she walked.
“Assistant Aisha? What brings you here at this hour…?”
“It’s… nothing… Liannis, please go back to your room…”
-Sniff, sob
Although Aisha said it was nothing, her face continuously streaming transparent tears said otherwise.
So Liannis silently embraced her and headed to her own room.
Because she thought that was what a friend should do.
“Ms. Liannis…”
“Aisha. Just call me Liannis for now.”
It seemed tonight would be a little longer than usual.

How long had it been since Aisha rushed out of the room?
I was still sitting in the chair, unable to recover from the shock.
It’s not that I’m doing nothing.
I’m in the middle of organizing my thoughts, going through everything that happened over the past few days.
The reason is obvious. Because her actions just now clearly showed her will to leave this place.
The problem is, I haven’t done anything that she would dislike.
No matter how much I thought about it, nothing came to mind.
‘What’s really going on? Was I actually someone with a split personality? Am I divided into a light me and a dark me?’
But if that were the case, I’ve never seen even a puzzle similar to the Millennium Puzz—
‘Wait a minute…’
Just as my head was about to be filled with meaningless jokes due to extreme stress.
The phrase ‘change of perspective’ came to mind.
With this, I once again composed myself and looked back at Aisha’s reactions.
Before rushing out, she had moved her hand towards her mouth.
Just before, I thought she was expressing disbelief at my words and was about to show proof.
But what if that wasn’t it?
‘Oh, is this it?’
Suddenly, my mind sparked.
Deduction comes from a change of perspective.
Thinking I had found a clue, I decided to re-establish the premise.
‘Okay… First, let’s move away from the thought that Aisha’s action was ‘an expression of disbelief in my words.”
Then why did Aisha cover her mouth with her hand?
I pondered for a long time sitting in my chair.
So much that I didn’t even notice Whitey, who had quietly come out at some point, wandering around me.
“Heck Heck”
“Oh, Whitey. I’m sorry, but I can’t play with you right now. Sorry.”
-Pat pat
It’s a sorry thing to say to Whitey, but if asked which is more important between Whitey and Aisha, it would definitely be Aisha.
So I was going to lightly pet it a few times and let it play alone…
When I withdrew my hand after petting Whitey, fur was stuck to it.
‘Oh?’
Long white fur that unmistakably reveals itself as wolf hair.
After staring at it for a moment, feeling almost sacred, I looked down at my body.
There was hardly a spot on my clothes where Whitey’s fur wasn’t stuck.
No, not just the clothes, but the floor was also full of fur.
‘Could it be…?’
I recalled the situation from earlier once again.
This time, a bit further back, before Aisha came.
———
“Heck! Heck!”
“Yes Whitey, I like it too!”
-Sniff, exhale
-Pat pat pat pat
“Awoooo!”
———
Whitey and I had been rolling around playing long before Aisha came.
Not just in the bedroom, but in the office as well.
‘Which means, Whitey’s fur was scattered all over the office…’
That’s enough of the past with Whitey, now I recalled Aisha’s hand position.
Her hand moving towards her mouth with her eyes wide open.
Just before, I thought it simply meant something like ‘Professor?!’, but now I could see the truth.
‘In fact, Aisha—’
“Heck! Heck!”
Just as I was about to put a period on my deduction.
Whitey approached, panting with its tongue out, with an expression asking for praise as if it had done well.
This number one contributor that allowed me to make this deduction.
How could I scold it, let alone not give it a reward, just because it ruined the conclusion?
-Pat pat pat
I tickled its nape, stroked its back, and rubbed its belly.
It deserved my ‘Good boy full combo’.
It’s a fair reward for preventing a catastrophe that could have created an unbridgeable distance with my assistant.
…While also cooling down my head that had overheated from deduction, and satisfying my personal desires a bit.
Anyway, now all my worries have been resolved.
What remains is to finish the deduction that was interrupted while thanking Whitey.
‘Yes, in fact, Aisha…’
Has a fur allergy!
She must have felt strange when she entered the office and sensed the strong animal smell.
But she would have endured it. Why?
Because she’s kind.
She knows that I, who rarely ask for favors, care for animals enough to ask her for a favor.
She probably entered the office thinking, ‘It should be fine for a short while.’
‘And to such an Aisha, I… offered her tea.’
By this point, she must have sensed that she would have to sit for a long time.
Nevertheless, she said nothing and accepted the tea I gave her.
Why? Because my assistant is kind.
‘Was I trying to show Whitey to her without even knowing she was fighting with an allergy…’
I could understand why she left her seat abruptly.
I know how painful allergies can be too.
Uncontrollable coughing, rashes and itching all over the body.
Rather than enduring these, it’s better to leave immediately and explain the situation with an apology later.
‘That was a close call.’
The fortunate thing is, her allergic reaction doesn’t seem to be severe.
Perhaps there was nothing unusual in her back view that I saw last.
Of course, just because no problem arose doesn’t change the fact that I committed a sufficient discourtesy.
Moreover, she even bought pet food for me despite her allergy.
If there were steel robots in this world, it would be at a level where one could shout ‘Aisha… was the woman who could become my mother!’ and board it.
‘A professor who invited her to a room where he had been rolling around with an animal without even asking about his assistant’s allergies…’
With what face should I meet Aisha?
I don’t know for sure, but I’ll need to make thorough preparations.
The fortunate thing is that we won’t have any official meetings for the next two days because it’s the weekend.
A time limit of two days.
Within that time, I need to think of a way to smooth over today’s mistake somehow.
…What would be good?
-Pat pat
“Heck! Heck!”
‘Should I create an allergy removal spell?’
I thought it wouldn’t be a bad idea.
Not being able to touch such a cute creature is like losing half of one’s life.
‘Okay, then… I’ll dedicate this weekend to researching magic for Aisha.’
“Heck Heck”
Let’s feed Whitey first.
It should like the high-quality food that Aisha bought with such effort.

“Here, Whitey. It’s time to eat. It’ll be delicious, right?”
The bastard said that while pouring something unidentifiable into the bowl.
“Crazy bastard.”
I muttered lowly.
There was nothing else I could say.