Chapter 51
“Are you worried about them?”
“Of course. I hope they make up soon.”
Sue said with a bitter smile, her words sincere. It would be a blessing if Enzhe remained lifeless forever, but that was impossible. It was better for everyone if they made up quickly. And the only person who could expedite their reconciliation was Acrea.
“It’s fine.”
“Huh?”
Acrea smiled faintly, as if reading her mind. He said calmly,
“I have a plan.”
His platinum blonde eyes, which had always been lifeless, suddenly sparkled. Sue’s jaw dropped.
“Really? That’s a relief! As expected of Master Acrea!”
“Haha, do you even know what it is?”
“I’m sure you can make them reconcile, Master Acrea!”
The lump in her throat finally went down. She trusted Acrea. She blurted out,
“Please tell me if there’s anything I can do to help! I’ll help in any way I can!”
“Huh? You?”
“Y-yes…”
Sue stammered, flustered by Acrea’s surprised expression.
His expression clearly said, ‘You think you can be of help to me?’
Even Sue couldn’t help but feel her already low self-esteem dwindle at his reaction.
Acrea observed her unwavering smile for a while, then chuckled.
“Alright.”
He picked up his tray and stood up. Sue looked up at him. His warm, sun-like eyes met hers.
“Then I’ll call you if I need help. Enjoy your lunch, Lady Byron.”
***
Sue adjusted her white bonnet, which had slipped down. Today was the day she was meeting with Leo. She sat on a bench in the main square, waiting for him. With the National Founding Festival just around the corner, the square was bustling with workers setting up decorations and stalls.
She was watching them curiously when she spotted Leo in the distance. He was dressed neatly in his uniform, as always. She had been worried because he didn’t wear short sleeves even in the summer, but fortunately, the weather had cooled down with the arrival of autumn.
“I apologize for making you wait, Lady.”
“Not at all. I just arrived early.”
Sue’s gaze naturally fell on Leo’s waist as she answered.
‘A sword?’
There was something new on his waist. A sword. And it looked somewhat familiar.
“Is that sword from the Noel count family, Sir?”
It had a simple hilt, and the bottom of the blue scabbard was decorated with a gold star emblem. It was the symbol of the Noel count family.
Sue vaguely remembered seeing Noel wearing a similar sword. And she was even more curious because Leo had never worn a sword before when they met.
“Was it bestowed upon you by the Count?”
Sue asked, wondering if the Count had formally given him the sword. But his answer was unexpected.
“No, it wasn’t formally bestowed upon me. Raines gave it to me.”
“Sir Raines?”
“Yes. He said it was a gift.”
Leo said, gently stroking the scabbard. His usual sly eyes softened as he looked at the sword. It was clear that he treasured it.
“I see. That’s wonderful.”
Sue smiled faintly, feeling happy for him.
A gift.
They had been claiming that they weren’t close, but it seemed like they had made up. She had wondered why Noel had asked about Leo a few days ago. She didn’t know the details, but they must have become friends again. That’s good.
They continued their usual trivial conversation. The entire main street was busy with preparations for the National Founding Festival, but the area around the square was especially chaotic. Leo frowned at the workers setting up an arch in front of the fountain.
“I should have suggested meeting in the outer district.”
Sue replied lightly,
“It’s alright. It’s actually quite fun to watch them prepare for the festival.”
“Is that so?”
Leo tilted his head, as if he couldn’t understand.
But Sue was genuinely enjoying herself. She was even excited.
How could she not be happy, seeing the human-sized flowers, probably a product of Imperial magic research, lining the streets, the large outdoor stage being set up for singers and actors, and the festival carriages for the parade lined up in the alleys?
She couldn’t wait for the festival to begin, and she asked Leo without thinking,
“Are you planning to watch the festivities during the National Founding Festival, Sir?”
“Me?”
“Yes!”
Sue smiled innocently. Leo paused for a moment, then smiled wryly.
“Yes, of course. Are you planning to as well, Lady?”
“Of course! I’ve been waiting for this festival all year.”
Sue declared confidently.
The National Founding Festival and the September Festival were the two events she had been looking forward to all year. Among ‘Sue’s’ miserable memories, the only good ones were from the National Founding Festival. Well, even those memories weren’t about anything ‘Sue’ had done well, but at least the scenery of September, as seen through ‘Sue’s’ eyes, had been beautiful and exciting.
And this year’s September Festival theme was a masquerade ball. No one would recognize her if she changed her hairstyle and wore a mask that covered her face. So all she had to do was enjoy the festival. That was all that mattered.
“You’ll be attending the festival with Raines, right, Lady Byron?”
“Huh? Haha, no.”
Sue shook her head, flustered by the unexpected question.
“Sir Raines will be participating in the Knights’ inspection ceremony. And he’ll be attending Knights events after that. Didn’t you hear?”
“Ah… Now that you mention it, he did say something like that.”
“Haha, it seems like the knights have a lot of work to do.”
Sue chuckled wryly, feeling a pang of sympathy for Noel. I’m in no position to be pitying anyone.
Leo watched her silently, his hand resting on the sword hilt at his waist. His dark blue eyes, clouded with a hazy fog, were fixed on her. His lips curved into a sly smile, his voice low and unsettling.
“Then would you like to watch the festivities with me?”
“…Oh, that would be lovely!”
Sue, who had never questioned his intentions, smiled brightly, thinking it was a great idea.
“I never thought I would be watching the National Founding Festival with anyone, so I’m even more excited now!”
Enzhe usually spent the National Founding Festival with Fritz, but this year, she would probably stay locked in her house. Melaine would be following her sister to the Knights’ events, and Noel, as mentioned earlier, had Knights duties. She didn’t particularly mind being alone, but it would definitely be more fun to watch the festivities with Leo.
“……”
But his navy blue eyes, clouded with fog, simply observed the excited girl, her red hair bouncing as she fidgeted. A strange sense of pleasure, almost sadistic, welled up inside him.
“…Yes, I’m looking forward to it as well.”
Sue didn’t notice the serpent’s voice, low and insidious.
***
“……”
“……”
“…Sigh.”
On the stone steps behind the sixth-year building, heavy sighs filled the air. The sighs, heavy with despair, belonged to Sue and Melaine.
To an outsider, it might have looked like two delinquent students skipping class and goofing off, but they were actually more troubled than anyone else at the academy.
Melaine, the bolder of the two lackeys, finally broke the silence.
“What are we going to do?”
“……”
Sue, Lackey 2, remained silent, unable to answer. Melaine, who hadn’t really expected an answer, narrowed her eyes and continued,
“Giona Vercia, was it? How does someone like that appear every year? She needs to know her place. It’s disgusting.”
Sue felt a headache coming on the moment ‘her’ name was mentioned.
“Taking advantage of Lady Enzhe’s strange behavior to make a move… Even you wouldn’t do that, Sue… Sigh.”
Her headache intensified.
“…Giona Vercia.”
Sue muttered her name pitifully. It was time to address the problem of Giona Vercia, the viscount’s daughter, which they had been deliberately ignoring.
Ever since she joined the temporary committee, or perhaps even before that, Vercia’s audacity had been getting worse. By audacity, she meant the frequency with which she clung to Fritz.
She would constantly talk to him during meetings, bring up personal topics, pretend to run into him at the Golden Lion Class, and so on.
Vercia’s love for Fritz was so blatant that rumors about her had started circulating at the academy. Fritz, oblivious, treated her like any other temporary committee member, which only emboldened her further.
And finally, Melaine had heard about it. She had summoned Sue to the back of the sixth-year building during lunchtime and confronted her, her brow furrowed.
“Why didn’t you report this to Lady Enzhe?”
Melaine massaged her forehead, then sighed, as if she had found the answer herself.
“…Well, I guess with Lady Enzhe’s current state… She wouldn’t listen even if we told her a hundred times. And she probably saw it herself anyway.”
She was half right. But Sue didn’t bother refuting her.
Melaine checked her pocket watch and stood up, realizing that they didn’t have much time left before class started.
“Sue, give her a warning and be done with it. You can do that, right? It’s your specialty.”
Her cold gaze pierced Sue. Sue slowly opened and closed her eyes, then stood up.
“Yes, I understand.”
I should have insisted on being on the temporary committee.
The foolish Sue once again regretted the irreversible reality.