Ah!
Seeing Cecilia’s eyes well up with tears made my heart pound.
I was supposed to broaden my relationships and gradually drift apart! How could I say it so bluntly, me!
“Riana…”
“That’s not it… We’re just friends. I’m not her spokesperson.”
I corrected myself with a leisurely smile. Though it felt like my facial muscles were awkwardly twitching, I’m sure my outward expression was perfect.
I almost made a mistake.
Cecilia’s expression brightened a little. As she wiped away her tears with her fingertips, Paul quickly pulled out a handkerchief from his pocket and offered it to her.
“What’s this? Are you seducing a lowly servant with your tears?”
“But isn’t a stable hand still a civil servant?”
“What does it matter? They’re just underlings anyway, and anyone below a noble is a servant.”
Ominous voices seemed to drift in.
For some reason, I felt as if I might end up locked in that stable someday. Was it just my imagination?
Suppressing my sudden bout of gloom, I opened my mouth to speak. One way or another, I had to tidy up this mess.
“I don’t think Natalie was trying to scare you. But her attitude was a bit rough. Don’t you think so?”
I don’t mean to blame anyone. I spoke calmly.
“But that doesn’t mean it’s okay to criticize someone so carelessly, does it?”
Natalie raised her voice.
“I…”
Cecilia waved her hand, trying to interject. I gently took her hand and lowered it.
If you speak in a trembling voice, it’ll only make things worse!
‘That’s not it, I just… sniff.’
‘Why are you crying! What did I even do!’
‘What are you doing!? Lady Cecilia, are you all right!?’
‘I’m fine, it’s not that person’s fault, I just made a mistake…’
‘That’s ridiculous! Even if you made a small mistake, isn’t this too harsh?’
‘What?! Harsh? Ha! Fine, just wait! You’ll see!’
I suddenly remembered what happened before I returned.
Every single time. Whenever Cecilia cried, the situation always worsened.
And thinking of Hawkins and Evan, who always rushed over before I could fix things, gave me a headache.
“Riana? What are you doing?”
Daisy looked at me with a puzzled expression.
‘Thank goodness.’
I let out a sigh of relief.
For a moment, I had a chilly feeling that Hawkins might pop out from somewhere, but thankfully, even after glancing around, I didn’t see that green hair anywhere.
Anyway!
“Cecilia, don’t cry! Natalie, Cecilia is just a bit emotional.”
Should I say it’s not because of Natalie?
She still had a sullen expression.
The more I tried to defend her, the more unpleasant it would obviously become…
“I think it was just a misunderstanding. I also think having no fence is a bit dangerous. Wouldn’t it be better to ask the professor about this? What do you think?”
Natalie, let’s do that! There are too many eyes on us, let’s not show them us fighting! Otherwise, we’ll just be gossip fodder…!
I met Natalie’s gaze, trying to convey my feelings.
They say the eyes are the window to the soul—please, read my heart.
The stares from all around made my cheeks burn.
“Anyway, I don’t like it.”
I tilted my head with a smile.
“Isn’t it true? The person who caused all this is hiding in the back. I also hate becoming the main character of some rumor; it’s just too bothersome.”
“I see.”
So she wasn’t trying to make a fuss, but just raised her voice out of concern for safety.
I nodded.
I almost misunderstood her because of her attitude. I’ll have to be careful from now on.
But Natalie already had the look of someone who felt wrongly accused.
“Is that really it? Cecilia, are you okay?”
‘Ah, no. We just calmed things down, Daisy, don’t stir it up again…’
Glancing over, Daisy was patting Cecilia’s shoulder to comfort her. Paul, still restlessly shuffling his feet, was only watching Cecilia’s face. As for us, the only ones watching were the classmates hungry for drama.
“……”
“……”
‘Damn.’
I barely swallowed the curse that wanted to slip out. Natalie and I lost our words and stared at each other.
No, actually, it’s better if Cecilia doesn’t jump in.
I gave a resigned smile. Natalie, as if aware of the murmuring students, stepped closer to me.
“Lean down.”
“Huh?”
I blinked in surprise, and Natalie frowned.
“I don’t want to stand on tiptoes, so just lean down.”
Ah.
Natalie was quite short. Out of camaraderie, I quietly lowered my head, and Natalie came even closer.
What is she going to say?
“You’re really annoying, so don’t butt in next time!”
“…Natalie.”
“Hmph.”
‘Unfair!’
Natalie, speaking just loudly enough for me to hear, spun around so quickly her skirt fluttered and strode off. A male student who looked just like Natalie, who had been watching from a distance, followed behind her.
“Riana, are you okay? Sorry… You got caught up in this because of me, didn’t you?”
“What! Lady Cecilia, not at all. It was because of me. You were just standing up for me, weren’t you?”
Cecilia pushed away Daisy’s hand and took mine instead. Daisy hid her now-empty hand behind her back and looked at me.
Before I could reply, Paul shook his head and cut in. The murmurs grew a bit louder.
‘Please, stop it!’
Even though things had more or less settled down, the ruckus was making everyone talk about us! Academy rumors are terrifying…
I shuddered at the thought of a few particularly twisted rumors.
“Are you all right, Riana! Did Natalie say something scary to you?!”
Cecilia grabbed both my arms, her face full of concern as she pressed for an answer.
‘Ah. That’s not why I shuddered!’
“If that’s it, please tell me. It’s my fault for not explaining properly.”
“…Yes, Lady Riana. Please tell us.”
“It’s nothing like that.”
I smiled, trying to calm them down. First, I gently pushed away Cecilia, who was clinging to me as if to bind me.
It is unfair, but… Hmm. Natalie’s voice didn’t sound as if she really hated me.
So it’s fine. What’s making me uncomfortable is your reaction, Cecilia.
“Really, it’s not that.”
“Then what did she say?”
“…She just said we should have a meal together next time.”
Natalie, I’m sorry. I have to tell a little lie. I can’t repeat what you actually said!
“Why?”
“Hm?”
“Why are you having a meal with her?”
Was it my imagination, or did Cecilia’s gaze toward me seem a bit chilly?
She stared at me blankly, then blinked rapidly. Her thick eyelashes fluttered like butterflies.
“Why?”
“What’s wrong, Cecilia?”
“……”
Cecilia turned her head.
Huh? What’s going on, all of a sudden…?
“Um, Cecilia?”
I’d never seen her like this, so I was flustered.
What’s the problem! Is it eating together? Or is it because it’s with Natalie? But that shouldn’t even be an issue, right?
“Cecilia.”
Even when I called her gently, Cecilia didn’t respond.
“Lady Cecilia, would you like to take a walk with me?”
Daisy patted her back and tried to talk, but Cecilia didn’t reply.
“What’s her deal? Why is she acting like that?”
“Maybe she got scolded by Lady Riana? She stepped in and then just withdrew!”
“Huh? Wasn’t it Lady Riana who butted in by herself?”
Even having watched from right up close, everyone saw something different…
“Well. I guess if you want to hang out together, you should expect that much discipline, right?”
“Even among academy students, there are different ‘classes,’ after all.”
Cecilia must have heard that, too.
It’s not like that!
If I got riled up and argued here, it’d just make the rumors worse. I did my best to calm my pounding heart. Even though the wide open riding grounds and the woods stretching back like a broad field lay before me, I still felt suffocated.
“Cecilia, if you feel like talking, will you tell me then?”
It’s better to just leave for now.
Maybe because I was worn out without realizing it, my voice sounded calm. Cecilia still stared at the ground. Because of her fallen blue hair, I couldn’t see her face.
Honestly, if we just drift apart like this, maybe that wouldn’t be so bad.
I should ask Paul if it’s okay to look around at my own pace.
Seeing the horses grazing so leisurely, I wanted to go see them up close.
“Paul…”
“Riana.”
Cecilia slowly lifted her head. The skin beneath her eyes was a little red.
“I’m sorry.”
Cecilia pushed away Daisy and Paul’s hands, then gave a grateful smile. At her gentle smile, Paul clutched at his chest and shook his head.
‘What’s with that pose…’
Red-faced and clutching his chest.
Anyone could see he’d fallen for Cecilia.
I’d seen that look from him even before I returned, but why did it feel so odd?
I forgot even that Cecilia had apologized to me and just stared blankly at Paul.
“Riana. I’m sorry.”
“Huh? Oh, no, it’s nothing.”
The strange feeling faded like mist. I snapped back to attention and focused on Cecilia.
‘What am I even doing, spacing out in front of people…’
“I think I caused a scene.”
“You were just trying to help Paul.”
“Do you really think so, Riana?”
Cecilia blinked her eyes.
“Really?”
“Of course. Why do you ask?”
“It’s nothing. Then… did you really agree to have a meal together?”
“Is that what this is about? Why does a meal matter?”
Why is she acting like this? It’s driving me crazy.
Thankfully, everyone else seemed to lose interest and wandered off. There were still a few male students lurking as if waiting to talk to us, but at least most of the stares had faded.
“Cecilia. I don’t know why it matters so much that I’m having a meal with Natalie…”
As I paused, Paul suddenly cut in, looking wronged.
“Lady Riana! Lady Cecilia is just worried—”
“Sorry, Paul. I’m in the middle of a conversation. Could we finish this later?”
I gently interrupted Paul. He clamped his mouth shut, his face stiff.
‘How annoying!’
If people keep butting in and talking for her like this, when will this ever end!
“Actually, what I was asking was for you not to butt in like that next time. Not about having a meal.”
It was more of a threat than a request.
“I couldn’t say it directly with people watching.”
“Is that it?”
Cecilia’s voice softened. As she blinked, dry-looking tears fell.
‘It’s suffocating. I don’t even know why you’re crying!’
If it was just the two of us, I might have grabbed her shoulders and shaken her by now. But this was the Academy, and our reputations were at stake…
Hold it in! Just endure it!
I hid my hands in my skirt.
“Paul was right, I’m sorry.”
“Paul was right?”
“Yeah. I must have worried and maybe gotten a little jealous without realizing it. Riana… you tried to distance yourself from me before. So, I got worried without meaning to… You won’t abandon me, right? You know you’re the only one I can rely on.”
“…Yeah, Cecilia.”
Seeing her try so hard not to cry made me lose my strength.
That face reminded me of last winter. It was an unusually harsh and windy winter.
Cecilia lost her family last winter.
After that, she would sometimes say, “Don’t abandon me.” I’d forgotten about it because she stopped saying it after becoming friends with Evan and the others.
‘For me, it happened years ago, but for Cecilia, it was just last year’s terrible tragedy.’
In her memory, the wounds were still bleeding.
When I opened my arms weakly, Cecilia bit her lip and hugged me.
It was a carriage accident.
It seemed someone had tampered with the wheels, and the Cecilia family’s carriage, returning to their small territory, couldn’t make the curve on the mountain road and tumbled off a cliff—just an hour away from their estate.
Cecilia lost both her parents overnight.
They’d been heading home after preparing a small house in the capital so Cecilia could study for the Academy entrance exam.
Feeling sorry for Cecilia, whom I’d been close to since childhood, my parents became her guardians. They got her a larger estate near ours, and Cecilia stayed there, visiting me often.
The fact that her parents had died was kept a secret from society, to be revealed only when Cecilia came of age.
The news of the accident was reported only to His Majesty the Emperor.
Thus, the incident was buried in the cold winter wind.
‘If only I had returned to before Cecilia’s carriage accident.’
I quietly stroked Cecilia’s hair.
I have to drift apart from you.
“Riana.”
“Yes?”
Cecilia raised her head and smiled as bright as sunlight. Her watery eyes shimmered.
“We’ll be together forever.”
“……”
“Promise.”