Chapter 260 - Stella: YOU MEAN... I SHOULD APOLOGIZE TO YOU?
Ten minutes later, Touka escorted Roy and Stella to Kurono's office.
Because Stella was the Imperial Princess of the Vermillion Empire, even the student council President wasn't qualified to handle a dispute involving her. Therefore, the matter was escalated directly to the Chairwoman.
"Chairwoman, I've brought them," Touka announced as she pushed open the office door.
Roy and Stella walked in together.
"Thank you for your hard work, Touka. You may leave this matter to me," Kurono said with an amused smile.
Before leaving, Touka gave Roy a reassuring look, then turned and exited the office.
"The semester hasn't even officially started, yet you've already become a regular in my office," Kurono sighed, sitting at her desk and lighting a cigarette.
Roy shrugged, his expression a picture of perfect innocence.
"I already know what happened," Kurono took a drag of her cigarette. Tokua had briefed her before bringing them in. "However, I must say, I admire your restraint, Roy."
She looked at him as if studying a novel species, her tone caught between exasperation and amusement. "Upon seeing the half-naked body of such a beautiful girl, your very first instinct was to call the council and report a home invasion. Should I call you overly serious, or just incredibly rigid? I'm genuinely curious what was going through your head."
"Chairwoman, is this really the time for jokes?!" Stella demanded, looking at Kurono in utter disbelief.
"We have to be thorough when handling these incidents. We must give everyone a chance to justify themselves," Kurono said solemnly, though her eyes danced with mischief. She gestured to Roy. "Well? Don't you want to explain?"
"Explain what?" Roy asked, pretending to be puzzled. "Shouldn't she be the one explaining herself?"
"Me?!" Stella gasped, looking as though she had just heard the most absurd nonsense in the world.
"Yes, you," Roy nodded matter of factly.
"You did something so utterly disrespectful that you deserve a thousand deaths, and you want me to explain myself to you?!" Stella glared at him furiously.
"This is an incredibly serious situation," Kurono said, putting on a show of grave concern while secretly gloating. "Roy, if this isn't handled perfectly, it won't just be a campus scandal. It will escalate into an international diplomatic incident between Japan and the Vermillion Empire! You'll be a historic sinner!"
"I'm not Japanese," Roy shot back flatly.
That single sentence nearly made Kurono choke on her smoke. It meant the diplomatic fallout wouldn't actually be his problem.
"But you are a student of Hagun Academy!" Kurono countered, her face darkening.
"I thought you were just shameless, indecent, and cunning, but I didn't expect you to lack even a basic sense of responsibility!" Stella fumed.
"I return those exact words to you," Roy replied calmly.
"What did you just say?!" Stella was livid. Not only had this guy seen her in her underwear, but he also refused to admit any fault.
"Regardless, the incident occurred at Hagun Academy. Her Highness does deserve an explanation," Kurono nodded.
"Fine." Roy conceded. Stella's expression softened slightly, expecting an apology. "If you apologize to me right now, we can consider this matter closed."
Stella pointed a trembling finger at herself. She wondered if her ears were malfunctioning.
"YOU MEAN... I SHOULD APOLOGIZE TO YOU?"
"Who else?" Roy asked.
"Why on earth would I apologize to you?!" Stella exploded. "It's obviously your fault! You barged in while a maiden was changing clothes! That kind of rude behavior is blatant voyeurism! In fact, I bet you did it on purpose! You must have known I was assigned to that room, so you snuck in to satisfy your disgusting, perverted desires!"
"Narcissism should have a limit," Roy said unhurriedly.
"Are the laws in the Vermillion Empire fundamentally different from the rest of the world? Do you not have the concept of breaking and entering?"
"Although the dormitory isn't property under my name, it is legally my private residence during my stay at this academy," Roy continued calmly. "Without my permission, you picked the lock to my dorm, stripped down to your underwear in my room, and now you want to play the victim and falsely accuse me of a crime."
Roy looked at her with feigned awe and slowly clapped his hands.
"What do you mean your dormitory?! It is obviously my dormitory!" Stella snorted coldly. "Are you just spouting nonsense because you know you're about to be severely punished?!"
"Ah, now that you mention it... did I forget to tell you in advance?" Kurono suddenly interjected, her tone suspiciously innocent. "Stella Vermillion, Roy is your officially assigned roommate. Oh dear, my memory really is slipping these days..."
Looking at the Chairwoman's suppressed smirk, it was painfully obvious she had deliberately forgotten to inform the princess.
As soon as Kurono's words fell, Stella's imposing, righteous fury evaporated instantly. It was replaced by an extremely stiff, petrified expression.
It was as if Kurono had used her Noble Art to freeze her perfectly in place.
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