"Hissss!!!"
There were still two days before the Second Defense officially began.
Greg stood outside his advisor Alice's room. He had only just knocked when a hiss came from inside, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on.
Greg hurriedly called through the door, "Calm down! Alice, meow, I'm not a bad guy! I'm your student, Greg!"
There was a moment of silence inside, followed by an even fiercer response: "Hissss!!!!!!"
The corner of Greg's mouth twitched.
Why did it feel like her hackles were rising even higher?
Did my voice sound that much like a bad guy's?
Only after quite a while did the door slowly open a crack.
Wearing an oversized professor's robe, Alice poked half her head out from behind the door, her purple hair falling to her shoulders. A trace of lingering wariness remained in her eyes.
Only after confirming that the person outside really was Greg did she relax a little and say somewhat sheepishly:
"Sorry... I think I accidentally got a little jumpy just now."
Greg said, "I won't forgive you. You've wounded my fragile, innocent heart."
Alice blinked and lowered her head, at a loss. "Mmm..."
"Just kidding. How could a lion with lofty ambitions like me be so petty?"
Seeing her like that, Greg couldn't bear to keep teasing her. He smiled, pushed the door open, and entered the room.
He looked around-the curtains were drawn tight, the desk was piled with documents and materials, and several open suitcases lay on the bed. The whole room felt as though it had been cut off from the world for days.
He turned to Alice.
"Come to think of it, you haven't left this room in days, have you? You're acting pretty strangely. Even Professor Grace from the first-year department asked me to