Fate/Counter Order

7 - Coeur and Blood (Part 2)

She then asked them to explain how Camus's work affected their personal experiences in terms of love, friendship, and intellectual pursuit. When she was done, she instructed each student to write down his or her interpretation of the book and to read through the book together before sharing their findings with the group. This would hopefully provide some insight as to why they should engage themselves in further contemplation of the novel.

The discussions flowed, with students sharing diverse perspectives and engaging in thoughtful debates. Gabriel's spirit soared as he absorbed the different viewpoints, his mind sparking with new ideas. He contributed passionately, his words painting vivid pictures of existential dilemmas and the human condition.

He soon noticed another member of the student body staring at him, though she wasn't paying any particular attention to the conversation around her. Her eyes were fixed on him, boring holes into his back. She appeared intrigued by his speech.

Suddenly her face transformed into an expression of delight. He looked over his shoulder just in time to catch her eye-rolling dramatically with mock exasperation.

He felt a blush creeping across his cheeks and turned away. He was too embarrassed to even turn his head back in her direction.

It wasn't long until Gabriel heard the girl speaking again. It sounded like she was talking directly to him. "You don't know it, but you're one hell of a philosopher, Monsieur." There was no doubt that she addressed him directly now.

Gabriel's blush worsened, and his fingers started tapping nervously against the desk. It was difficult to keep his cool and appear calm while she continued.

Her voice had shifted back to its normal conversational cadence, but her words still caused him to stiffen, "And that was so interesting because it seemed to contradict what people usually think of philosophers... which is that they're stupid or uneducated intellectuals."

"What?"

He blinked, did she just-?

Gabriel wanted nothing more than to turn around and give her the cold shoulder. But he couldn't ignore a potential opportunity for academic advancement, especially since the class was about to end. Besides, she hadn't given up. She obviously expected something substantial in return for her kind gesture.

Gabriel swallowed hard, trying desperately to hold his composure and keep his temper. "What do you mean?" He managed to grit out.

The girl rolled her eyes, but there was still a small smirk dancing at the corners of her lips. "Well... people who believe that there are other beings above us are typically idiots. Their minds don't work in the same ways ours do. They are so limited by their beliefs that they can only see the things that they already assume exist. For example, someone like you thinks that there are ghosts, demons, and even spirits of animals like horses and wolves, and therefore believes that everything else on Earth has a similar existence as these creatures."

She shook her head in disappointment. "But I assure you, there isn't anything supernatural here. I don't want you to worry."

There was still a hint of amusement in her tone. Gabriel couldn't help but feel somewhat relieved. "Why not?" He didn't know exactly how to respond to her statement.

She shrugged, "Because it doesn't fit in with the rest of reality. We live on Earth for a reason. Ghosts aren't real, neither are dragons, and neither are fairies. If that makes any sense to you, then I can't imagine that what I'm saying makes much sense to anyone else either."

Gabriel nodded silently. She didn't seem to care whether he agreed with her or not. It was as though she thought he should know that all of his thinking was wrong and she wasn't wasting her breath trying to educate him.