Chapter 100:
In the end, Sue left most of her lunch untouched and stumbled towards the infirmary.
Hella was also at the Graduation Building infirmary. She had some kind of contract with the Lopetrefers, so she had naturally moved here when Enzhe’s grade level changed.
Sue took the medicine Hella gave her and decided to lie down and rest until lunchtime was over.
She was startled awake by the sound of the grand bell ringing. She looked at the clock, and there was still plenty of time left before lunchtime ended. She looked out the window, wondering what the bell was for, and saw the students in the garden looking around in confusion.
“Is it malfunctioning…?”
She felt a little cheated, but she decided to get ready instead of going back to sleep. She had a feeling she wouldn’t wake up until dinner if she fell asleep now.
She re-braided her hair and left the infirmary, and there, standing in front of her, was a familiar figure.
“Master Acrea. What brings you to the infirmary?”
She realized it had been a while since she had last seen him. He must have been busy because of his brother’s engagement, as they had only briefly crossed paths at the Vava mansion.
“It’s been a while, Byron. I have some business with Teacher Hella.”
The platinum blonde boy, his face as bright as sunshine, greeted her with his usual emotionless smile.
“Teacher Hella is out right now.”
She hadn’t seen her since she had woken up, so she must have gone out for coffee or something.
Sue felt a pang of sympathy for him, having come all this way for nothing. Acrea shrugged, unfazed.
“I’ll just wait until she gets back.”
“I see…”
“Byron, are you here because you’re not feeling well?”
Acrea asked. His eyes were completely devoid of emotion.
“Yes, it’s nothing serious, but I wanted to rest for a bit.”
“Then why don’t you take the day off? You’re weak, aren’t you?”
Right, that was the excuse.
Acrea had reminded her of the lie she had blurted out at the Lopetrefer’s small ball. She couldn’t take it back now, so she just smiled and changed the subject.
“Ah, congratulations, Master Acrea.”
“Huh? On what?”
Acrea tilted his head, as if he had no idea what she was talking about.
“The engagement of Duke Reeves and Lady Melaine. My family sent a congratulatory gift.”
It wasn’t a gift she had personally sent. She had heard from Ten that Eren had carefully chosen an expensive wine to send to both families.
“It’s wonderful that Lady Melaine and Master Acrea are becoming family.”
Acrea didn’t answer for a long time. He just stared at her, his face still smiling. Sue, wondering if she had said something wrong, started to back away when his gentle voice reassured her.
“Thank you. I hope that happens too.”
***
“Byron, we meet again.”
It was strange. Sue, having parted ways with Acrea and having nothing else to do, had gone straight to the music room. And there, in the empty music room, was Halo, sitting alone at the piano.
“I was practicing the piano.”
She greeted Sue with a tired smile, her fingers on the keys. Sue mumbled, “I see,” and sat down.
Why are we meeting so often?
She thought, suppressing the urge to cover her ears from Halo’s terrible piano playing.
Come to think of it, it was a miracle that this was the first time their paths had crossed, considering Sue, who had no friends, and Halo, whose only friend was Ains, always acted alone.
Of course, there hadn’t been any trouble between them, but Sue felt strangely uncomfortable being alone with her.
“Byron, can you play the piano for me?”
Halo, who had been struggling with the sheet music, her head in her hands, suddenly asked with sparkling eyes, remembering what she had said earlier.
Sue snapped out of her daze. She was about to refuse, but seeing the pink-haired girl’s exhausted face, she couldn’t bring herself to say anything.
Halo looked terrible. Perhaps even worse than Sue. Her pale complexion and ragged breathing filled the silent room.
Sue reluctantly sat down at the piano.
Halo’s eyes, filled with anticipation, were fixed on her. Sue placed her feet on the pedals and rested her fingers on the white keys.
She took a deep breath. And then, she played the piece she had practiced countless times since childhood, her fingers moving mechanically.
“Wow! That’s amazing! How can you play so well?!”
Anyone born and raised in noble society could play at this level. So Halo’s praise only made her feel embarrassed.
“That was helpful. Thank you so much for playing for me, Byron.”
Halo was inherently kind. She was empathetic, sociable, and would seek guidance from anyone, even if they were a piece of trash.
Because she had a dream that was more precious to her than her life.
As class time approached, students started gathering in the music room. Fritz was always surrounded by people, but he seemed strangely lonely, his indifference to almost everyone radiating from him.
The grand bell rang, signaling the start of class.
As scheduled, they had a preliminary evaluation for the spring semester in the music room.
“Good job, Byron.”
Sue finished her performance without any mistakes, just like the other students. The music teacher praised her curtly, not even looking at her, and scribbled something on his sheet.
“Phew.”
It had been a dry, uninspired performance, but there were no mistakes. She had been playing for years, but she had still felt nervous during the evaluation.
“Not bad.”
She heard someone muttering as she returned to her seat. It was Fritz. She thought he was talking to himself, but he was looking straight at her. Their eyes met, and Sue replied sheepishly,
“Thank you, Master Fritz.”
“…Good. Good job, Bill. Next, Soran Halo.”
“Y-yes!”
The evaluations continued, and it was finally Halo’s turn. Everyone watched silently as she stood up nervously and walked towards the piano.
This was the moment the ‘specially recruited student’ was revealed to the other students for the first time.
Some were jealous, some were indifferent, some were worried, and some were curious.
And so, they all waited for her performance.
“Phew.”
She took a deep breath, then slowly opened her eyes and started playing.
Fortunately, her playing was much more bearable than the terrible sounds she had been making earlier. There were a few stumbles, but nothing too cringeworthy.
“Hmm, not bad for a beginner. Good job.”
“Thank you, Teacher!”
Halo smiled brightly, not discouraged by the teacher’s encouraging evaluation. Sue heard someone click their tongue from a corner of the music room. She hoped Halo hadn’t heard it.
“Next, Shina Fritz.”
To think the protagonist would be followed by another protagonist.
All eyes were on him again, but this time, for a different reason.
Expectation. And admiration.
The students who had been in the same class as him before, the students who had been assigned to the Golden Lion Class this year, the students who were seeing the son of the Fritz grand duke family for the first time.
Their eyes were filled with adoration and love.
Fritz sat down at the piano, as if he was used to receiving such attention.
As expected, their expectations, admiration, and adoration weren’t betrayed. Fritz’s performance was flawless. Even Sue, who considered herself tone-deaf, was impressed by the flowing melody.
“Wow…”
Even Halo, who knew nothing about music, stared at him, her mouth agape.
His long fingers danced gracefully across the keys, a sight to behold.
Shina Fritz Digoril, the son of the grand duke.
He was truly a perfect man.
***
As she left the main building, her body heavy, Sue finally realized.
That God hadn’t abandoned her yet.
The moment she saw Soran Halo standing blankly in front of the glass garden, her hazy mind cleared.
It was strange.
Sue Byron started running. Dust clung to her white uniform and shoes. But she didn’t care. Her dignity as a noble lady, her composure, it all meant nothing.
Ah, it’s today.
Right, it was today.
The day Shina Fritz and Soran Halo would first become aware of each other.
Something was strange. The curse mark had acted up all night, Halo had been alone all day, the grand bell had malfunctioned, and Enzhe was holed up in the glass garden.
After class, Halo would search the entire academy for a lost item. But she wouldn’t find it, and she would eventually arrive at the glass garden.
Enzhe, Fritz, and Acrea, who would be enjoying refreshments in the glass garden, would freeze at the sight of the transfer student who had barged in.
She didn’t have to think about what would happen next.
Enzhe, embarrassed by her protégé’s rudeness, would storm out of the glass garden, and Fritz would become interested in Halo, who had created such an unexpected situation.
That transparent, beautiful, and grand glass garden was the starting point of it all.
“Miss Halo!”
“Whoa!”
Sue grabbed Halo’s wrist, her hand on the doorknob.
“B-Byron?”
Halo flinched, her face contorted in surprise. Sue ignored her.
She didn’t let go of her wrist, even though she was out of breath. She spoke, her voice strained,
“You can’t go in there.”
“…Why?”
“Just trust me.”
Sue pulled Halo’s arm and started running. She ran towards the sixth-year building, her legs heavy. Halo, confused, followed her.
She had to stop this, somehow.
She couldn’t let the story of ‘Beyond the Tiny Droplet’ begin.