Guiding the Male Lead out of His Trauma

‘The only S-Class Guide I know of is Millia. Unless another high-ranking Guide suddenly appears, Millia is by far the most likely to become Acteon’s Guide.’

That’s why I’d intended to find out Millia’s whereabouts in advance and arrange for her to meet Acteon.

‘But now that Acteon is tagging along with us…’

Maybe it’s better to just let the two of them run into each other at this point.

But the hopeful anticipation I’d built up soon collapsed like a failed batch of dough.

The trouble began the moment we arrived at today’s first destination in District 1.

Acteon excused himself, saying he had an errand, and Hyacine said he wanted to look for something nearby. So I ended up at the bank alone, and immediately felt a few people’s gazes on me.

Not long after, someone approached me.

“Um… Are you Liliope Ortis?”

“Yes, that’s me.”

The bank teller who had just checked my ID seemed flustered, then asked me to wait for a moment before leaving the counter.

A few minutes later.

“I didn’t expect to see you here again. How have you been?”

A familiar voice.

No way, I thought anxiously as I turned my head.

“I heard there was another unauthorized report sent to the Bureau last time.”

From the inner section of the bank—normally only frequented by wealthy magnates—the blond prince appeared.

At the same time, my mind was tossed like a little boat in a storm.

* * *

Why are you… coming out from there?

“I’d been wondering what happened, so this works out well. I was just about to summon you.”

Prince Isadore greeted me with a friendly smile, patting my shoulder as he came up to me.

I was nothing more than a cadet, yet everyone in the bank started eyeing me like I was some mysterious VIP.

“This place is a bit too public, isn’t it? How about we have a chat over there?”

“If His Highness wishes it, of course I must follow.”

“No need to be so tense between us. Where did that boldness from last time go?”

…So this is how he brings up the time I talked back to him.

Before I knew it, I was following Prince Isadore further into the bank, and desperately wishing I had one of Belled’s headache pills.

But no matter how ashen my face must have looked, His Highness just seemed pleased at this unexpected meeting.

It was only after we’d settled in the bank’s private lounge for special clients, and tea and refreshments were served, that he got to the point.

“It’s been about ten days since I last saw you, right? I wonder if you’ve been well at Brondearn.”

“Thanks to you, we’ve been treated more than well. My younger brother, too.”

“For someone so well treated, you don’t look very healthy. Oh, right. What exactly happened on that day, anyway?”

“Cough…”

I almost spat out my tea in a most unseemly way.

Of course. There’s no way he wouldn’t ask.

Though he acted as if we were old friends, Prince Isadore’s words had an edge.

“From what I heard, Acteon Brondearn had his first awakening, and since it was going badly, you performed unauthorized Guiding? It’s not as if you did anything wrong, so there’s no need to shrink away.”

“Th-thank you…”

“Still, you really ought to be more careful with yourself. You look like you’d fall over if someone so much as poked you, but you act without a hint of fear.”

“I’ll keep that in mind…”

It was an enormous relief that the only other person in the room was the prince’s aide.

Prince Isadore pressed ruthlessly at all my sore spots while pretending not to notice a thing.

“I heard your advisor rushed to the Bureau when it happened. What did she say again?”

I recalled my professor, who’d hoped so desperately that I wouldn’t get summoned again.

No matter how capable a professor, a troublesome student will bring ruin to their reputation.

‘And I am the very definition of a troublesome student.’

“She said that, even if you sometimes seem a little unstable, you never cause trouble without a reason. She asked us to be as understanding as possible.”

“Haha…”

“When you return, you’d better treat your professor well.”

“Of course.”

“And I heard she’s been eagerly waiting for your return.”

Should I just drop out?