The Academy's Terminally Ill Side Character Chapter 221 221: The Chaos

Ironically, even after asking, I never got a clear answer about the real reason Rachel showed up.

All I got was, "I'm here as an external inspector, that's all." Or, "I told you last week I'd co visit."

Which, to be fair, she did—right after Leo and I finished that dungeon raid.

She called, said she'd be here the next day, all cheerful and determined.

I sohow managed to stall her visit for a whole week.

…And now here she is.

At the academy. In my dorm. Inspecting my classes. Eating my food.

A force of nature, impossible to stop.

And then there's that whole "Rachel's not actually your sister by blood" thing Zaho Yuren dropped on .

What a surprise that was.

But it's not like I could turn to Rachel right after that and casually say, "Hey, by the way, are we even related?" I an, how do you even begin that conversation?

It's complicated.

Not the kind of topic you just throw out over stew and rice.

Anyway, by the end of lunch, sohow, Rachel and Lena managed to have a 'sowhat' civil conversation. Nothing exploded. No one cried. Lena didn't faint.

That was a win in my book.

Still, I can only hope they don't clash again anyti soon.

My nerves were already hanging by a thread.

Honestly, this was more stressful than the ti I nearly lost a leg in that dungeon raid.

And that's saying sothing.

Right now, I wasn't just irritated—I was one deep breath away from completely snapping.

Why?

Well...

"How are you feeling?" one cadet asked with concern.

"You're sweating a lot, junior. Here—have a cola. I thought you might like it," another chid in, offering a cold drink like we were best friends.

Before I could even respond to that, soone else barged in.

"Hey! Take that garbage away from my brother-in-law, would you? He doesn't drink that stuff. Not good for his health. How about you back off?"

Brother-in-law?!

Who the hell gave you permission to call that, you fucker?

I should've seen this coming. The mont Rachel revealed she was my sister, the male cadets basically lost their minds.

Of course. This was an academy story, after all.

"Haha, you're popular, huh? Lucky you, Rin," Leona said with a sly grin, still in her disguise as Leon.

Lucky , huh?

Yeah right.

"Well, it's not just that. I an, his sister is super pretty," Ryen added with that dumb smirk of his, clearly trying to win points where none were being offered.

I turned to look at him.

Ryen. Buddy.

Please.

If you're going to dig your own grave, at least don't start dragging into it.

I caught a glimpse of Nora from the corner of my eye—she was glaring at us like she was about to start a fire with just her stare.

This was getting out of hand fast.

And all I wanted was to survive the day without having a full-on ntal breakdown.

You know that mont when you're just done?

Like, you've been holding it together with tape and prayers, and then soone breathes in your direction and the dam just breaks?

Yeah.

That was .

Right now.

I stared at the cola in my hand like it had personally offended .

My eye twitched.

The cadet who gave it to was still standing there with a hopeful smile, like I was about to give him a cookie for being considerate.

"Thanks," I muttered, then imdiately shoved it back into his chest. "But I didn't ask for this."

His smile faltered. "O-Oh, I just thought—"

"You thought what?" I snapped, turning to face the growing circle of cadets hovering around like I was a zoo exhibit. "That I suddenly forgot how to take care of myself just because my sister showed up?"

There was a beat of awkward silence. Ryen raised his hands like he was surrendering.

"Whoa, chill. No need to go nuclear—"

"No, I will go nuclear, Ryen," I shot back. "Because all of you are acting like you're in so reality show and I'm the drama of the week."

"C'mon Rin, it's not like that," another cadet tried. "We're just worried—"

"Worried?" I repeated, narrowing my eyes. "You were gossiping about being Rachel's brother five minutes ago. And you!" I pointed at the guy who called brother-in-law, "if you say one more word like that again, I swear to every god in the sky, I will personally shove your training sword so far up your—"

"Whoa! Whoa! Dude don't say that line! Kid's are reading it!"

I glared back at Ryen for trying to cald down but I also don't want to say that cursed word loudly.

"Fine..."

But it's not like saying it's a fine other would follow the sa and shut up their mouth.

It's getting crowded around us.

Too crowded.

I could feel the heat crawling up my neck like a slow-burning fuse.

I hadn't even had ti to process everything—Rachel's sudden appearance, her dropping bombs over stew like it was the most natural thing in the world, Leona nearly combusting from fanboy energy, and now… this?

A full-blown circus in the hallway?

I wiped my forehead with my sleeve and tried to walk faster, but of course, I couldn't get two steps before another cadet popped up like a mole in a ga.

"Rin, your sister is seriously amazing. I watched that replay of her last raid. Man, she just walked into that ogre nest like it was nothing. Do you think she could—"

"Do I look like her manager to you?" I snapped.

The guy blinked, taken aback. "Uh… no?"

"Then why the hell are you asking about her combat stats like I carry her resu in my pocket?"

Dead silence for a beat.

Then the whispers started again, now just barely outside earshot.

"Damn, he's testy today…"

"Well, I an… his sister is Rachel Evans. Must be stressful."

"I heard he passed out after the dungeon raid last week."

"Damn. That's rough."

I clenched my jaw and turned around.

"Oh, now everyone's a whispering ghost, huh?" I said, eyes scanning the little audience that had ford without permission. "I didn't know I was putting on a show."

They backed off a little, but not far enough.

Leona—still in Leon mode—appeared at my side with a small sigh and a hand on my shoulder. "Easy, Rin. They're just excited."

"Excited? About what?" I barked. "That my sister ca here like so queen on patrol? That I got hospitalized for two days which is not true by the way and sohow that's gossip-worthy now? Or is it because everyone suddenly thinks we're close when she barely called for years?"

I was breathing hard.

Shit.

Too much.

Even Leona took a step back.

I turned my eyes upward, trying to calm down, but all I saw were the damn academy banners fluttering from the high ceiling—like they were mocking too.

It wasn't even noon and I felt like I'd run a marathon in full armor.

Then, of course, the final nail.

"Rin."

Her voice.

Rachel's.

Sohow still calm. Soft, even.

Like she hadn't just caused a storm by existing.

I turned around slowly.

She was leaning against the archway behind , arms folded casually, like this was a coffee break instead of a breakdown.

"Why are you making such a fuss?" she asked, her expression unreadable. "This much noise over a little hallway chatter?"

I opened my mouth. Closed it again.

God.

I didn't even have a good reason. I was just…

Tired.

So damn tired.

"…Sorry," I muttered, voice lower than I ant. "I didn't an to snap."

Rachel stepped forward, waved off the crowd with a flick of her wrist—like a queen dismissing the court—and surprisingly, they actually dispersed.

Once it was just the three of us—Rachel, Leona, and —she tilted her head and studied again.

"You're pale," she said. "Worse than earlier."

"Yeah, well," I grumbled. "Hard to sleep when your sister barges into your life without warning and steals your favorite spoon."

Leona chuckled. Rachel smirked.

"Fair," she said. "Though, technically, it was a nice spoon."

We all laughed.

For a second, it was normal.

Almost.

Before a cadet took out pen and paper and was asking for her autograph.

And just like that, the illusion shattered.

Rachel blinked. "Huh?"

The poor cadet stood there, all trembling eagerness and sweaty hands, holding out a pen like he was offering a peace treaty.

"C-Can I get your autograph, Miss Evans? Please?"

There was a beat of stunned silence.

Then Leona snorted.

Rachel looked at the cadet, then at the pen, then back at —eyebrows raised in sothing between amusent and disbelief.

"You brought that with you?" she asked the cadet dryly.

He shrank. "Y-Yeah, I an… I always carry a notebook for… class. It's not weird, right?"

Rachel took the notebook with a sigh that clearly said this is my life now, scribbled her signature with a flourish, and handed it back.

"There. Go write your essays or sothing."

The cadet bowed like he'd been knighted. "Thank you, ma'am! I won't forget this day!"

He scurried off like a squirrel on caffeine.

I rubbed my temples. "You just encouraged them, you know."

Rachel shrugged. "I didn't want him to cry."

"You shouldn't have signed it with a heart emoji," I muttered.

"It adds flair."

Leona was holding back laughter, but she failed and started choking instead.

Rachel smiled, smug.

We kept walking until we found a shaded bench behind the training hall. The chaos died down, finally.