"This feels wrong."

The young master of the Merricks was currently sitting beside the pool at an inn sponsored by the academy for his stay.

After watching him work relentlessly and successfully pass, the professors had recommended this break the moment Theo’s vacation started.

Beside his sunbathing chair were two others, and the individuals occupying them looked just as uneasy as Theo felt.

"This isn’t right... but you need this break, young master," Clara said, getting up for the tenth time from the sunbathing chair to get some juice for him.

She wore a modest bathing suit, while both Theo and Elias were simply in shorts.

"Sit down, Clara. I don’t want any more juice," Theo said with a sigh.

He could feel his legs growing restless after not doing anything for an hour.

Finally, he stood up and jumped into the swimming pool.

Clara and Elias tried to stop him since they had never taught him how to swin before, but they froze when they saw him moving effortlessly through the water, making lap after lap. A moment later, he reached the center of the pool and dived straight to the bottom.

The pool was only ten feet deep, but for Clara and Elias, who had never swum in their lives before, the sight was nothing short of astonishing.

After spending a few more hours in the pool, Theo retired to his room and slept through the rest of the day. He didn’t particularly want to, but the academy had arranged and paid for this vacation—he wasn’t going to waste the academy’s finances when they had thought so much for him.

Two days passed. Theo tried his best to enjoy himself, but eventually, he had enough. Without hesitation, he packed his bags, finally ready to leave the inn.

The inn owner handed him a card for future visits, should he ever feel like taking another vacation again.

And just like that, Theo made his way back to the academy.

This time, the academy campus was far more crowded than before. Dressed in a uniform like everyone else, he drew no attention, no more than a few passing glances, and for once, that made him feel... normal.

"My only reason for coming back early is because I want to make a club. That counts as a fun activity too, right?" Theo said to his attendants.

The two looked at him with quiet pride.

Their young master was finally acting his age... though the real reason was beyond any of that.

As Theo made his way toward the student body head, who was moving between classes, she stopped and stared at him in surprise.

"It’s only been a few days since you left..." she said, at a loss for words.

"I am still on vacation, but I wanted to do something fun. Can I create a club, Selmira?" Theo asked.

She narrowed her eyes at him.

"Theo, starting a club isn’t as fun or relaxing as the inn you were sent to for the break. You can’t be serious right now," she said, massaging her forehead.

It felt like she had been in connection with him for quite some time now, and why wouldn’t she?

Theo was the only student who had been studying in the summer holidays while she was working for the academy.

They were the only students in the academy during the holidays.

"Come on, Selmira. Please let me start a club right now. The students have just come back from their vacation; they will be interested in joining a new club if I start one now."

Selmira stared at Theo, unsure how to deal with him.

With a sigh, she gave up and agreed to his request. "What do you want to call it? The Workoholics?" she asked, prompting a chuckle from Theo.

"Nothing weird. Just call it ’The Misfits’," Theo replied with a plain look and a smile that made Clara and Elias look away in embarrassment.

"...And what exactly will this ’The Misfits’ club be about?"

"Good question!" Theo felt a grin form on his face. "It’s about students practicing their trades with their own ideologies. For example, if someone wished to let their beast act on its own, it’s okay to let them do that! The idea is to help the students explore unique ways to work on their ’misfit’ abilities."

His eyes were literally sparking with excitement as he said that. Selmira, on the other hand, simply glanced at Clara and Elias with a judging look.

"We all know why you are doing this, Theo. Why are you taking this to heart? That professor was merely doing his job," she said with a sigh, as if feeling tired already.

At the mention of the professor, Theo’s grin faded, and his mood turned grumpy.

"I can either get this club made with your permission... or I can go directly to the headmaster and get the approval, Selmira. You wouldn’t want the headmaster’s busy schedule to be disrupted, would you?" Theo asked with a fake innocent look, making Selmira grit her teeth.

Silence hung in the air for a few seconds, but seeing her expression, Theo could let out a small sigh and smiled.

"Fine... I will approve the club. But making the brochures is entirely on you, and you will be given the minimum budget to work on," Selmira said. 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

Theo’s smile widened, and he gave her a short bow.

"That’s what I expect from the gate student body head. Thank you."

"You don’t need to do that; just go already," she replied. "I will inform Ryan, your guide, about the club’s location once it’s decided. It could take a few days to a week, so don’t pester me every day."

She scribbled a note about it on a piece of paper before walking off with a light ’hmph’.

Theo, Clara, and Elias just watched her leave while Theo took a big stretch.

"Young master, why do you torment her so much?" Elias asked with his usual bluntness, making Clara feel like the only normal one among the three.

One didn’t know his place while talking to a noble, and the other was a noble who never acted like one.

"What? I didn’t do any such thing," Theo said casually. "It’s how the saying goes— ’One must use their connections to the best of their abilities.’ I am merely doing that."