Chapter 39
Eventually, Seria ended up in my arms. There was nothing I could do about it.
Honestly, if a beauty like Seria asked to be hugged, did any man exist who could refuse her?
Of course, there might have been. I might even have been one of them.
However, when Seria began to grow dejected again after receiving no answer from me for quite some time, anyone would have had to hug her.
The fear that she might start crying again also played a part. Seria looked unstable to anyone who saw her.
With her face buried against my chest, she rubbed against it several times as though savoring the sensation. I felt as though I was going to die of embarrassment, but Seria showed little reaction, perhaps because she was still intoxicated by relief.
It was a little while later that she suddenly came to her senses. As though she had just realized something, she opened her eyes wide and looked up at me.
My face had reddened as much as it possibly could, and I had long since been avoiding Seria's gaze. That was how embarrassing the situation was.
Seeing my reaction, Seria seemed to realize only then what kind of situation we were in.
A junior student was nestled in a male senior's arms, rubbing her face against his chest as though relieved. That alone was enough for people to mistake us for lovers.
Seria's face heated up in an instant. Stammering, she pulled herself out of my arms. Her eyes spun.
“Th-th-that is… S-Senior Ian? Th-this…….”
“It’s fine. As long as you’ve calmed down…….”
In truth, Seria looked even more panicked rather than calm, but I deliberately refrained from pointing that out.
I merely hoped that letting her borrow my arms had helped. I tried to let the matter slide, but Seria desperately stopped me.
“P-please listen! I-I mean, this is because of my mother!”
“……Your mother?”
Thus began Seria's story. It was about memories of her mother, something I had heard several times lately.
However, today's story was not about the nightmarish memories we had discussed until now. Rather, it was about the faintly lingering happy memories from before all that.
Before I knew it, Seria and I were walking along a quiet path. We had to attend a lecture soon, so there was no helping it.
It was a path through the forest, with flowers and grass growing here and there. The atmosphere was suitable for the two of us to talk.
“When I was little, Mother used to hug me whenever I cried.”
“Sounds like you cried a lot even back then.”
Perhaps my words reminded Seria of how she had sobbed just moments ago, because she lowered her head with her cheeks faintly flushed. Her voice trembled with embarrassment.
“A-anyway, Mother was originally a maid, so she was often called away. Even after giving birth to me, she was summoned away.”
“……Even so, could they really do that?”
She was a woman who had become pregnant with and given birth to the head of the household's child. Even if House Yurdina was devoted to blood purity, that was too much. To summon her like some ordinary servant.
Seria's voice sank even lower. She could not even manage a bitter smile. As always, her face was expressionless.
Knowing that it was a mask meant to conceal her emotions, I said nothing.
“It’s not as though they really made her work like a servant. Some of the elders in the family simply disliked her, so they would call her out for no reason and lecture her… It was something like that.”
Yet no matter how young she had been, there was no way Seria could have failed to realize that her mother was being treated with contempt.
If anything, children are more sensitive to adults' emotions the younger they are. Ordinary children use that sensitivity to throw tantrums and get what they want.
Seria would not have been able to do that. It was probably around then that she became less talkative and her expression grew increasingly blank.
As if to prove my deduction, Seria continued her confession.
“It wasn’t really something I needed to be that anxious about, but even then, I dimly understood that the atmosphere in the family was ominous whenever it came to Mother.”
“So you cried because you were afraid Mother would leave?”
“……Yes.”
As she said that, Seria lowered her head slightly. The flush on her cheeks remained. She glanced at me repeatedly, gauging my reaction.
Come to think of it, didn’t that mean I reminded her of her mother?
She probably did not actually think of me as her mother, but it meant I was someone precious to her. I thought that was something to be grateful for.
It was probably because I was the first friend she had made. As her relationships gradually widened, she would come to realize it too.
That friends did not sever their relationships over a few words, and that there was no need to keep treating me as someone special in particular.
When that time came, my heart would grow a little lonely, but it would mean Seria had grown even more, so I would have to accept it humbly.
Even so, I felt a little grumpy, so I said something mischievous to Seria.
“Am I really that precious to you? Precious enough to be compared to your mother?”
“Th-th-th-that is…….”
Seria immediately began floundering and trying to make some excuse, but her beet-red face had already revealed her true feelings.
I chuckled. I naturally took both of Seria's hands. Her startled gaze met mine. I spoke with a serious look in my eyes.
“I’m not going to leave you over something that trivial, so don’t worry.”
I meant that she did not need to be anxious anymore.
Leto had told me that when speaking to a woman, holding her hands and using a firm tone inspired greater confidence. Of course, making eye contact was essential too.
Perhaps Leto's advice really did work, because Seria's face flushed once again. Then she lowered her gaze slightly and spoke in a voice filled with a strange emotion.
“……Yes.”
Satisfied that she would not act like that again, I finally let go of Seria's hands. Seria let out a small “Ah,” as though disappointed, but soon quietly folded her hands against her chest.
As though she meant to feel whatever warmth remained. She was that lonely by nature.
I would have to keep looking after her in the future. At least until Seria made a few more friends.
While walking with Seria and thinking that, I suddenly came to a halt upon spotting a flower blooming by the roadside.
Its sky-blue petals caught my eye. Six petals spread wide, displaying their beauty. I had seen the name of that flower somewhere before.
When I stopped walking, Seria followed my gaze with a puzzled look. Then she soon let out a small exclamation.
There was a subtle note of delight in her voice.
“Ah, it’s a Sepia flower.”
“……You know it?”
I asked without thinking. My voice had lowered somewhat, but Seria did not notice, occupied as she was with looking at the Sepia flower.
She spoke in her usual tone.
“Yes, it was Mother’s favorite flower. When I was little, Mother would pick one and tuck it behind my ear.”
A faint smile appeared at the corners of Seria's mouth. It was a rare sight. Seria seldom smiled, so she must have had many memories connected to the Sepia flower.
That was why I could not say anything.
A single name written at the end of the letter.
The pen name ‘Sepia’ suddenly flashed through my mind. The magical beast attack during swordsmanship practice, and even the upcoming Hunting Festival.
My gaze quietly shifted toward the woman standing beside me. She had always been like an ice sculpture, but now she was gazing down at the flower with warm eyes. The contrast was striking.
Enough to make my heart skip a beat.
“Even now, seeing Sepia flowers makes me feel warm inside. They’re one of the few memories Mother left me…….”
Could she be ‘Sepia’?
It was the moment that question, buried in my heart for so long, came back to life.
**
That afternoon, I walked along the Academy's main boulevard without saying a word.
My thoughts were a mess. My memories of what had happened with Seria today thrashed around in my mind like fry released into a stream.
‘Sepia’… Could Seria really be her?
Judging from the person who had sent me the love letter from the future and the warning scrawled by someone, Seria and I had to become lovers.
Only then could we prevent the world's destruction. To be honest, the story did not feel real to me in the slightest, but the phrase remained lodged in my chest like a sharp stone.
If so, would Seria and I become lovers in the future? That would be an incredible rise in status for the second son of a provincial viscount's family. Even if Seria was an illegitimate daughter, didn't she still bear the Yurdina name?
It meant I could become related by blood to one of the Empire's five great noble houses. Moreover, Seria was a prodigy blessed with not only skill but also beauty. She was more than worthy of a wholehearted welcome.
Yet that was precisely why I found it so doubtful.
Really? Me? Would I become her lover?
Compared to Seria, wasn’t I far beneath her? Perhaps I was thinking too much. I could not be sure that Seria was ‘Sepia’ based on something so slight.
It was while I was walking and thinking about this and that that something happened. At some point, a soft impact struck my arm. Startled, I turned my gaze toward the person I assumed had caused it.
Black hair and tawny eyes. The lovely girl was someone I knew all too well.
Celine Haster. Uncharacteristically, she wore an awkward smile as she clung to my arm.
“W-w-what a coincidence! Ian oppa, no… Brother? How have you been?”
“……?”
I looked at her with an expression that said, What’s gotten into this girl? But Celine was still watching my reaction. Only then did I remember the conversation I had had with Leto that morning.
Come to think of it, he had predicted that Celine would soon come to me to make amends. He had grown up with her like a real brother, so his prediction had apparently been right. The unfortunate part was that Leto, who had wanted so badly to see Celine acting like this, was not actually here.
I was about to tell her I had already gotten over my anger, but a needless curiosity surged up, so I merely looked down at her without saying anything.
I wanted to see what Celine would do. As a result, her eyes grew even more anxious.
She soon began dabbing at the corners of her eyes with her sleeve and pretending to cry.
“This little Celine hasn’t had a moment’s peace all day thinking about you, Brother… That cold back of yours as you walked away in anger…….”
“It hasn’t even been a day yet. Of course you haven’t had a moment’s peace all day.”
“Ah, anyway!”
Celine had been about to snap at me as usual after my criticism, but she must have felt a twinge of guilt, because she began watching my reaction again. Then she put on another bright smile and pressed herself against my arm.
“I deeply regret upsetting you then, Brother Ian… Celine was a little too harsh. So you’ll let go of your anger, right?”
“No.”
“Oh, come on!”
At my firm refusal, Celine began stomping her feet with a pout. She clung to me in a pitiful voice, her tone full of coquettish charm.
“Let it go, okay? Okay? I’m sorryyy… I won’t fight like that in front of you anymore, Ian oppa.”
“So you’re planning to keep doing it when I’m not around?”
“No, but that bitch keeps getting on my nerves… Ah, aah! I won’t, I won’t! I surrender completely! I’ll listen to you, Ian oppa!”
Celine was about to voice her true feelings in an annoyed tone in response to my questioning, but the moment I tried to shake her off, she immediately declared surrender.
A snicker escaped my lips. Celine looked quite cute like that.
Hearing my laugh, Celine's face immediately brightened. She asked me excitedly,
“Y-you laughed? You smiled just now, Brother, didn’t you? You’re not angry anymore, right?”
“That depends on how you behave.”
“Oh, you’re not angry anymore~”
Then she poked me repeatedly in the side. Even as she did so, she kept discreetly checking my reaction, apparently wanting to make sure I had really calmed down.
Of course, my anger had faded long ago, so there was no need. I shook my head from side to side as though she was impossible.
Celine made no attempt to hide her delight. Her mood immediately improved, and she whispered in my ear in a suggestive voice,
“If you’re still angry… want to touch my breasts?”
Her voice was sweet, almost seductive. As her breath tickled my ear, a tingling sensation ran down my spine.
But I had only one response. My fist slammed into Celine's forehead.
“Ow!”
“Getting cocky again.”
“Ouch, that hurts!”
Celine shouted in outrage, then began grumbling beside me.
She complained that I was no man, that rejecting a pretty girl like her was a sin against history, and other equally outrageous things.
Of course, I pretended not to hear a word. If I indulged every one of Celine's pranks, it would never end. I was simply pleased that our relationship had returned to normal.
Celine and I soon went back to teasing and bantering with each other as usual. It was while the two of us were walking alone like that.
I felt someone block my path with a thud.
My puzzled gaze shifted ahead. A girl wearing the conical hat favored by mages was standing there.
She had elegant brown hair and mysterious blue eyes. She was shorter than Celine, but the conical hat made her look a little taller. Even so, she still looked like a child.
I immediately realized who she was. The man trailing beside her with a woebegone expression had a familiar face.
Lupin Rainella. The man I had punched once before. I thought I had warned him there would not be a next time, yet he had the nerve to show up in front of me again.
Or perhaps he had not been dragged here of his own free will, either. The moment he saw me, he began trembling like a leaf. My eyes quietly turned toward the girl.
Looking again, she was not a girl at all. The black cloak draped over her shoulders represented her year.
She was a fourth-year, the Academy's senior-most student. Come to think of it, I had heard that the fourth-years were returning one by one for the Hunting Festival. It seemed she was one of them.
‘Elsie Rainella,’ one of the prodigies of the prestigious mage family Rainella. Naturally, she was one of the strongest seniors among the fourth-years.
With Elsie at their head, several burly fourth-year seniors began gathering around me. They were probably the group that followed Elsie Rainella around.
I had heard rumors that they looked like dolls but acted no differently from a criminal organization.
A groan escaped my lips.
I had a good idea what they wanted, but I decided to ask anyway, to show the minimum courtesy due a senior.
“Senior Elsie, what can I do for you?”
“I heard you beat up my little brother?”
It was blunt. My eyes slid toward Lupin standing behind Senior Elsie. Contrary to his refined appearance, he let out a shrill scream and clung to Senior Elsie.
“S-s-sis… I told you, let’s just drop it! This bastard isn’t normal! He’s completely insane!”
But Senior Elsie merely furrowed her brow slightly and spat out cold words.
“Can’t you shut up? No wonder the family has nothing good to say about you… Is it really acceptable for the heir of House Rainella to get beaten by the second son of a provincial viscount and do nothing?”
Lupin fell silent at her words, as though he had been struck dumb. Yet the way he kept sneaking glances at me made it clear he was still afraid of me.
Celine squeezed the hand gripping my arm. Glancing over, I saw her looking around with rather frightened eyes.
They were upperclassmen—and high-ranking nobles at that. She had no choice but to be afraid.
Normally, I should have been, too, but after losing my memories and becoming abnormally audacious, I merely asked Senior Elsie in an incredulous voice,
“Is this really all right? We’re in the middle of the Academy.”
“No, it isn’t. So let’s go somewhere quiet, just among ourselves.”
As she said that, Senior Elsie jerked her chin toward somewhere. I did not know the exact location, but she presumably meant a quiet clearing with few people around.
Students passing nearby began gathering one by one and whispering. No one could have been stupid enough not to guess what was happening, yet not a single person stepped forward.
House Rainella was a prestigious family, and Senior Elsie's reputation was outstanding as well. The group she brought with her was probably no ordinary bunch either; one way or another, they were people who had survived to the fourth year at the Academy.
If they did not want to get caught up in it for no reason, staying quiet was the right choice. Celine tugged insistently at the hem of my clothes.
“I-Ian oppa…….”
I looked at Celine for a moment, then let out a deep sigh.
There was no helping it. I said to Senior Elsie in an even tone,
“Please let Celine go. I’m the one you have business with, anyway.”
Senior Elsie looked at me in silence for a moment, then soon gave a short laugh.
“You’ve got guts. Fine, I don’t want to make more trouble than necessary, either.”
She was cute and lovely even at a second glance. It was just unfortunate that her behavior was nothing like it.
At Senior Elsie's subtle signal, several of the burly men moved aside.
I pushed Celine toward the opening. She stumbled back awkwardly and looked at me with worried eyes.
The situation was different from last time. There was no possibility of a surprise attack, and my opponents were fourth-years itching for a fight. Worse, there was even a skilled mage named Elsie Rainella among them.
I would probably have to spend another stay in the intensive-care ward, which meant the Saintess would likely scold me again.
I was sighing like that when Celine, who had been watching me with wavering eyes, bit down on her lip as though she had made up her mind.
Crack.
A sharp sound rang out. Then one of the burly men surrounding me pitched forward.
With a thud, the large man's body collapsed.
Silence descended. No one standing there had expected this. Everyone's blank gaze turned toward the back of the fallen man's head.
A small notebook lay there. Had its corner struck him? But no matter how heavy the notebook was, it could not knock out a fourth-year Academy student with one blow.
If so, there was only one answer. The person who had thrown the notebook was even more powerful.
Every eye slowly turned toward the direction from which they presumed the notebook had flown.
The crowd parted down the middle. It was a path made for one person alone. The woman receiving such treatment seemed to regard it as perfectly natural.
Brilliant golden hair caught my eye. Then came crimson eyes, snow-white skin, and a slender figure.
She was a northern beauty who looked as though she had stepped out of a painting. Draped in a jet-black cloak, she walked with confidence. Several people followed behind her as though accompanying her.
I had heard of her—the woman whose beauty rivaled the sun and who drew people to her like moths to a flame.
The direct heir of House Yurdina, the Golden Lion who guarded the North.
“……Delphine Yurdina.”
Senior Elsie spat out the name as though chewing it. Open hostility had already settled in her blue eyes.
Regardless, Delphine Yurdina wore a smile.
She was so confident, as though Senior Elsie and her group were not even specks of dust compared to her.
“A few cats were bullying a kitten, and it annoyed me a little… In the old saying, would you call it ‘a thorn in one’s eye’?”
She was the greatest wall Seria would have to overcome.