Chapter 10: Ch 10: Equal Treatment

They were late to class and it was all Daniel and Alan’s fault. But the teacher decided to ignore the two star students and instead turned her attention toward Noah.

"Student Noah, can you explain to the class why you are late? The others can go ahead and take their seats for now."

This was not fair. Noah was clearly being singled out by the teacher and made to take the blame. It was a clear violation of rules and ethics. And yet...

Who would dare argue with their teacher over something this simple? Even Noah did not want to point out the obvious flaws in his teacher’s reasoning.

Instead, he decided to draw attention to his injury by raising his plastered leg.

"Sorry for being late. I was discharged an hour ago and had a hard time getting everything done. I’ll try not to be late tomorrow."

Noah tried to de-escalate the situation, but he was more distracted by the two presences standing beside him than the teacher at the moment. And the teacher noticed this as well.

Her decision came after a few seconds of deliberation.

"Well, injury or not, my classroom is a place where discipline will be upheld. So as punishment, you will have to stand outside the classroom for the entire period, and I will not make any exceptions. I am being lenient since this is your first offense, so don’t make a habit of it."

The teacher gestured for Noah to head outside, and he took a few steps before realizing that he was not alone.

Both Daniel and Alan had decided to accompany him, which left him stunned.

And he was not the only one who was shocked. The teacher looked like she was about to explode as well.

"What is wrong with you two? I told you to take your seats already!"

The teacher reminded Alan and Daniel, causing the pair to turn toward her with blank expressions.

"Teacher, are you going to punish all of us equally? We were all late to class, so it feels unfair that only one of us receives this punishment, right?"

Alan asked in a shy voice. He sounded like a model student who was afraid of breaking the rules, which made his question seem even more innocent.

But the teacher was left stunned. She had never experienced something like this before.

She was a biased person and everyone knew that about her. So if she picked on a few students for doing something while letting others off with a slap on the wrist, no one said anything...especially not the people she was favoring.

"You...want to be punished? Daniel, you as well?"

She asked in a low voice, but Daniel did not reply. He looked torn between wanting to stay in class and following his classmate outside for punishment.

That hesitation made anger boil inside the teacher.

She was usually a person who was willing to bend over backward for students who showed potential. After all, she had no idea when she might need their help.

But this time was different. These kids were openly defying her and that did not sit well with her.

"Fine! If all of you are in agreement, then you can all take the punishment together. But make sure not to do this next time."

And just like that, the punishment that was meant for Noah alone became a punishment for all three of them.

He almost wanted to ask Daniel and Alan why they had chosen to accompany him, but one look at their faces was enough to make him change his mind.

’It’s...better not to ask. I’m sure there isn’t any deep reason behind this anyway.’

Noah sighed and waited for their class to end.

Somehow, he had a feeling today was going to be a long day.

...

They were finally allowed back inside the classroom after the first period. Their strict teacher left and another took her place.

The first thing Noah did when he got inside was look for an empty desk to sit at. And he found one near the back of the classroom.

But it was not actually empty, and the student sitting beside it immediately shot him an annoyed glare.

"Tsk, a B-class guide? Seriously? Why did you have to come and sit beside me?"

The speaker was an esper, and his eyes kept drifting toward Daniel, making his intentions obvious.

Noah was not even fazed by this, but he felt a little better after realizing that he was blocking an asshole from bothering Daniel.

"Sorry, I’m all you’re going to get today."

Noah smiled at the esper before taking his seat. It made the esper frown, but that expression did not last long before Daniel decided to walk over to them.

The esper noticed Daniel heading their way and immediately started trying to chase Noah out of the seat.

"Hey, move. I’m going to invite Daniel to sit here, so you need to leave."

The esper whispered, but Noah settled into his seat even more firmly. He was simply going to tell Daniel "no" if he asked him to change seats. After all, Daniel did not deserve to sit beside an asshole like this.

However, Daniel ignored their desk and instead whispered something to the person sitting on the other side.

The student looked wide-eyed before nodding. He gathered his things and changed seats.

And just like that, Daniel had a desk of his own with one seat open.

"Noah, come sit with me. I’ll feel more comfortable sitting beside you."

Daniel’s words were clear, and Noah decided to follow them before anyone else could take that open invitation.

"Hey! Stop!"

The esper Noah had been sitting beside tried to grab his arm and stop him, but Alan chose that moment to sit in the now-empty seat and passed his new deskmate a smile.

"H-Hello! It looks like we’re deskmates now. Let’s get along well."

Alan’s smile was calm, but it hid a darkness that made the other esper back off instinctively. In the end, he decided it was not worth pursuing the matter for now.

But the glare he shot Noah made it clear that this was far from over.