"Kars, was going to school fun?" Flandre, having learned about the incident, curiously asked Kars about his school experience.
"Not at all! It was completely frustrating! Listening to things I didn't understand, and having to do homework that made no sense. Little Auntie, you definitely wouldn't like it." Kars immediately rattled off the disadvantages of attending school. Flandre, trusting Kars's word, nodded and dismissed the idea of going to school herself.
"But ultimately, this all happened because you didn't listen, and you ended up getting a spanking when you came home." Koakuma glanced toward Kars's backside and couldn't help but laugh. The turn of events was quite amusing.
"Hmph! What's so funny! That's mean." Seeing Koakuma laughing continuously, Kars huffed in annoyance. Laughing at him now was like rubbing salt in his wounds.
"Alright, alright, I know I was wrong. I shouldn't have laughed at you." After she had her fill of laughter, Koakuma stopped and comforted the slightly angry Kars.
"But are you really planning not to go back to that place called Terakoya?"
"Why would I go there? It's completely useless to me. Besides, like I said, the teacher's lectures were so boring, especially the history—I didn't understand any of it! What's the point of learning that? It's no use to me at all. Her lectures weren't even as clear as Patchouli's."
"Going to that class is pure suffering. Even if you went, Koakuma, you'd probably feel the same way." Hearing Kars's description, Koakuma wondered if he was exaggerating, but she agreed with one point: learning the history of this place was unnecessary. If he had to learn history, it should be European history, which Kars might at least understand a little.
"Do what makes you happy." No one bothered to correct him on this matter. Even to Koakuma, Kars attending school or not was irrelevant. If it was fun, he could go; if not, he could carry on as usual. It made no difference.
"Sigh, she seemed like a very nice person, but why did she have to be like that?" The day's experience left Kars mentally and physically exhausted. His initially positive impression of Kamishirasawa Keine had diminished significantly. He no longer wanted any contact with her, worried he would be dragged back to class again.
"Kars, don't be too sad." Flandre reached out and patted Kars's head, trying to cheer him up. Kars responded by hugging Flandre, burying his face in her chest.
Hmm… there's nothing there. The sensation was certainly unusual.
Kars rubbed his face against Flandre's chest, causing her to giggle a few times before he looked up.
"Then don't do things like that again. If a similar problem comes up again, it will be entirely your own fault." As long as he didn't repeat the behavior, Koakuma was confident that he wouldn't run into such trouble again—assuming he could stick to that promise.
"Yes, I understand." Kars nodded quietly. However, Koakuma wasn't entirely convinced he would truly change, considering he said the same thing the last time he made a mistake. What had been the result then?
"I really don't understand your personality. Most people would be scared after one bad experience, but you just don't seem to learn your lesson. You dare to do the same thing again."
"Can you stop talking about that? You're definitely trying to make me angry."
"If I don't talk about it, you might never learn your lesson." Koakuma tugged on Kars's cheek. Kars, not one to accept abuse, reached out and tugged on Koakuma's cheek in return. The two began to wrestle playfully, and Flandre, finding the situation amusing, jumped in, turning it into a three-way scuffle. Most of the action, however, was Kars and Flandre ganging up on Koakuma.
"That's not fair! You two are teaming up against me! That's totally unfair!" Koakuma, unable to fight back against the two of them, was thoroughly annoyed. She was the weakest of the three, yet she was being treated this way.
"Since you know resistance is futile, Koakuma, you should accept your destiny of utter defeat! Hahahaha!" Kars let out a villainous laugh. Seeing the weak and helpless Koakuma, he felt all the previous unhappiness drain away, and his mood instantly improved.
The next day arrived soon after.
Kars returned to his usual routine: waking up, sunbathing, eating, and then heading to Patchouli for magic lessons. The matter of the Terakoya was completely forgotten.
When it was time for class at the Terakoya, Kamishirasawa Keine looked at Kars's empty seat. Cirno and the others could feel the terrifying aura emanating from her.
"He skipped on the very first day. How could he engage in such delinquent behavior?" Inwardly, they all prayed that Kars would be alright, knowing that Teacher Keine's headbutt was not easily endured.
"But is my class really that unlikable?" After the terrifying aura dissipated, Keine sighed. Kars's absence made her consider the quality of her teaching. She saw the students' reactions, but this was the only way she knew how to teach, and changing her style was impossible.
"I should find some people to help me, and then I'll pay a visit to the Scarlet Devil Mansion to speak with Kars's guardians about this. That should solve this problem." Since she didn't have many students, she wouldn't easily give up on Kars. If his family agreed, Kars wouldn't be able to skip class anymore.
With a solidified plan, Keine felt much more determined. She then took out her textbook and began today's lesson.