Chapter 108: The Tower Crumbles
Noel, leaving the training ground, spotted Sue at the entrance and ran towards her with a bright smile, like a puppy greeting its owner.
“Byron, did you come to watch the match?”
“Yes, congratulations on winning second place.”
“Thank you.”
Noel had already received countless congratulations inside, but he was genuinely happy.
The area in front of the Second Training Ground, where the crowd had dispersed, was less crowded now. Sue, who had been standing there for a while, her legs aching, leaned against the wall and squatted down.
Noel squatted down next to her.
The legs of countless people, walking around the training ground, came into view.
Sue rested her chin on her hand, her gaze blank, and mumbled,
“The last event is the swordsmanship competition, right?”
Noel, despite the surrounding noise, heard her and nodded.
“Yes.”
“Do you think you can win?”
It was a vague question, not expecting an answer.
“Well, Fritz is competing in the swordsmanship competition too.”
Sue, taken aback by his realistic answer, turned to him.
“So what? You can just win. …You can just beat Master Fritz.”
“…Well, that’s true.”
Silence fell again. She had pretended to be nonchalant, but Sue regretted her words. Why was she telling him to win when she couldn’t even win herself? No one could beat Fritz.
“…Oh, it’s Halo.”
“Halo?”
Sue pointed towards the distance.
She recognized Halo the moment she saw her pink hair.
Halo, who had luckily been on the same team as Ains, was able to compete in many events this year. She wasn’t a lazy noble who hated physical activity, so she participated in every event diligently, even if she didn’t get good results.
Halo would truly enjoy this Athletics Festival.
Because nothing like the novel, where someone picked a fight with her or she was misunderstood because of a scheme, had happened.
Sue watched Halo until she disappeared from sight, then stood up, her hand on her knee.
“…Maybe I should have signed up for at least one event.”
Sue mumbled, her arms crossed, her nose in the air. Maybe Jean was right.
She would probably just be cooped up in her house after graduation, so it would have been better to move her body, even if she lost, at least she would have felt a sense of accomplishment.
But it was too late now, and she decided to forget about it.
Instead, she looked at Noel.
He had been semi-forced to compete in almost every event, he had heard many negative comments from the spectators, but he looked happy, moving his body to the best of his ability amidst the cheers of the crowd.
Maybe she was the only one who thought Noel had been exploited by his teammates.
Maybe Noel had wanted to compete more than anyone, and the team representative, sensing that, had helped him, knowing he was too hesitant to ask.
Noel’s hair was drenched in sweat, but no one thought he looked unsightly.
Sue finally smiled. She said,
“Noel, are you having fun?”
“Huh?”
He looked more at ease among the crowd.
“Moving your body, wielding a sword.”
Noel’s eyes widened at her affectionate tone. The cold sensation of the scabbard in his hand brought him back to reality.
After the Damon Keron incident, he had thought of being in the Knights as a duty. He had only seen wielding a sword as a way to repay Yuna Vava.
He had thought of meeting his teammates’ expectations during the Athletics Festival as a way to alleviate his guilt.
But he had suddenly realized that he was enjoying moving his body, wielding a sword, once again.
“….”
He didn’t answer, but Sue seemed to know what he was thinking. She just smiled faintly.
“Right, as long as you’re having fun.”
***
The tent was even more crowded than before. She had planned to kill time until the swordsmanship competition, but it was so packed with people that she felt overwhelmed.
She wondered why it was so crowded, and then she saw the man standing in the center of the commotion and understood immediately. Acrea, having finished his work, had stopped by the tent to say hello.
Acrea was always treated like he was above the law on event days. He was always working behind the scenes, unable to enjoy the events, so there was an unspoken rule among the students not to bother him.
If this rule hadn’t been established, Acrea would have been overworked to death, juggling his student council duties and dealing with the students.
But Acrea, who had finished his work, was no longer exempt from the rules. The students flocked to him, empty-handed, trying to impress him.
“Master Acrea! I’m the eldest son of Baron Zephil from Tamuel Island…”
“Master Acrea! You might not have heard of the Grahams, but…”
“Master Acrea! My family has a long history of brilliant minds and outstanding physical abilities…”
They all had the same repertoire. Where they were from, what family they belonged to, what talents they possessed…
Unlike Fritz, who ignored everyone he wasn’t interested in, Acrea responded to almost all of them, which made the students even bolder.
But the scary thing was that despite his outward kindness, Acrea ultimately saw people as nothing more than assets.
Sue sat in a corner of the tent, waiting for the swordsmanship competition to start.
The crowd around Acrea grew larger and larger, until she could no longer see him.
“If Master Acrea had competed, our team could have won!”
The Blue Shark team had already been eliminated from the championship. The team representative, who had been hoping for a win, lamented, looking at Acrea’s sturdy physique. Many people agreed with him, expressing their regret.
“Haha, I think it would have been difficult with Shina there.”
Acrea’s eyes slowly closed. He had said it half-jokingly. But no one dared to disagree with him, even as flattery.
***
Sue met Noel again right before the swordsmanship competition began. Noel, who should have been in the waiting room, was standing at the entrance to the Grand Training Ground, waiting for her.
“What’s wrong?”
Noel hesitated to answer her question.
He had been thinking about what she had said earlier.
Her eyes had been the same as when she had told him, “You can do anything,” last year. So he had wanted to ask,
“Byron, do you want me to beat Fritz?”
“….”
Noel looked straight at her, as always.
He wasn’t joking.
Talent, effort, power, defeat. It all vanished from Sue’s mind the moment she heard his question. She didn’t have the luxury of thinking about the answer. She just had a wish. A wish she had had for a very long time.
***
The spectator stands were packed, even though she had arrived right on time. She decided it would be better to stand at the back and cheer than to try to find an empty seat in the crowd, so she leaned against the wall.
“You came to watch again this year.”
Acrea’s voice suddenly came from beside her. He was standing next to her, silently watching the scene in the training ground.
Sue, startled by the interruption, blinked and looked up at him. Strangely, she was getting used to these encounters, and she wasn’t as surprised anymore.
“Are you taking a break now?”
She asked, even though she had seen him in the tent. He wasn’t carrying anything this time.
His empty arms were crossed, and it felt strange, compared to his usual appearance, always carrying a stack of documents.
“I’ve pretty much finished everything I had to do.”
“Get some rest, Master Acrea.”
An emotionless smile met another emotionless smile. He didn’t seem to be bothered by her questioning him about Melaine earlier.
Sue felt a sense of relief and was about to step away from him when he said,
“Byron.”
“Yes?”
“About what you asked me earlier…”
He had seemed indifferent, but he was thinking about it.
Acrea brought her back to their earlier conversation, which had ended abruptly. Sue waited for him to continue, and he did, his voice gentle,
“The engagement is broken.”
“….”
As expected.
She had thought that was the only possible explanation for Melaine’s tearful outburst, her composure completely shattered.
“The official announcement will be made later. Can you keep it a secret for now?”
“Of course, thank you for telling me, Master Acrea.”
She had answered readily, but now that it had been confirmed, Sue didn’t know how to face Melaine.
The biggest news in the capital in a long time had turned into a tragedy in just a month and a half.
Would Melaine hit her too?
Fortunately, the cannons fired, signaling the start of the swordsmanship competition, before her gloomy thoughts could consume her.