Special Story 8

A woman with her black hair tied back simply and draped naturally over her shoulder strode confidently down the hallway.

Though the passing nobles whispered amongst themselves, she didn’t so much as blink. This black-haired woman was Elena. She walked on, her arms full of books.

She had long since grown accustomed to life at the academy. The shy little girl had vanished, replaced by an increasingly mature woman. The days when she walked with hunched shoulders, lacking courage among the nobility, were now a thing of the past.

Suddenly, a man blocked Elena’s path. Elena tilted her head slightly, her eyes narrowing as she scanned the man standing before her. Most people who blocked her path did so for trivial reasons.

‘…A noble.’

Since this was the most famous academy in the capital, both commoners and nobles could enroll, but they were by no means treated as equals. They were distinguished by everything from their attire to their demeanor.

“Ahem. I’d like a word with you for a moment.”

He didn’t look like he was going to back down. Furthermore, if she, a commoner, ignored a noble’s words, it would only cause unnecessary trouble.

‘My Lady tells me not to worry about such things, but…’

She couldn’t allow herself to tarnish the honor of the Clies family—her guardians—or the reputation of her Lady herself.

Hiding behind Lepina’s back out of fear of nobles was a distant memory. She couldn’t rely on her Lady’s help forever.

“Yes, how can I help you?”

Elena greeted him with a bright smile. The young nobleman glanced around cautiously before carefully handing her something from inside his coat.

“It’s nothing else, but I was hoping you could deliver this letter…”

Elena stared intently at the white envelope he held out. Then, she slowly observed him. The crimson blush, the stuttering words, the restless eyes—Elena made her diagnosis. He was a man in love. Moreover, the object of his affection was her precious lady, Lepina Clies.

‘Of course, she is our Lady, after all.’

Feeling inwardly proud, Elena accepted the letter. It was only natural for interest in the opposite sex to grow with age and maturity, and Lepina, who had a knack for capturing people’s attention, received countless gazes.

However, not every man who fell in love provided a sincere love letter. There were also arrogant nobles who viewed it all as a game.

Some handed over letters with conceit; some approached her with the mindset of “poking at a fruit they can’t have” despite having no real feelings; and some even confessed to Lepina out of a sense of inferiority toward Evan.

This time, however, it was someone who had genuinely fallen in love.

“You are always with Lady Lepina, aren’t you? I’d like you to find an opening and deliver this. I haven’t had a chance because of Young Lord Evan’s interference…”

He clenched his fists as if frustrated. Elena listened to his story in silence.

“People talk about love and whatnot, but there’s no way that guy feels that! It’s clear she’s being overworked… I truly want to save Lady Lepina from the clutches of that man who is destroying her life!”

‘That guy’ was Evan, and for some unknown reason, the young noble seemed to believe that Evan was using Lepina as an errand girl.

“To make her wait on him when she isn’t even a servant…!”

“Because my Lady is a kind person.”

“Exactly! I know that well! She was the one who treated my wrist…”

Ah, Elena remembered him then. She had wondered why his face looked familiar; he was the one who had once dueled Evan.

‘I didn’t recognize him because he has such an ordinary face. I doubt the Lady remembers him either. After all, she only has eyes for the Young Lord…’

She wondered if Lepina would even remember what he looked like. While thinking these cold thoughts inwardly, Elena nodded.

“Understood. I shall deliver it.”

Though she accepted the letter readily, Elena had absolutely no intention of handing it over. There was only one reason she ever acted as a messenger for letters.

‘To confess to my Lady when you don’t even have the courage to withstand the Young Lord’s gaze. A man like that isn’t a good match.’

Besides, what did he even know about her Lady to be confessing? Her Lady had likely already forgotten his existence entirely.

The young noble, completely unaware of her hidden intentions, rejoiced at the thought of his letter being delivered. For him, this was a confession to Lepina that everyone else had discouraged.

“Please keep this a secret from Young Lord Evan. Definitely! Please make sure it’s delivered. If the two of us end up together, I will reward your service greatly!”

Elena said nothing, only curling the corners of her lips upward. As the man waved and disappeared into the distance, Elena glared at the letter as if she were about to set it on fire before tucking it into her pocket. Just then, someone popped out from behind her.

“Elena! What was that? Did you just get a confession?”

“My Lady? …Did you see that?”

It was Lepina and Evan. Lepina looked horrified, thinking the noble who had just left had given Elena a love letter.

“Yes, I saw. He’s a noble, isn’t he? Elena, aren’t you a bit too popular…?”

Elena tilted her head slightly. As Lepina said, she was indeed quite popular and received her share of confessions, but this place was a microcosm of society. It was a place where everyone knew exactly how a noble confessing to a commoner would be perceived. Most of those who confessed to her were either fellow commoners or, at most, of Baronial rank.

Lepina muttered in a serious tone.

“It’s because you’re the female lead that you’re so popular… This won’t do… Elena already has someone.”

It had been the same the day Elena received her very first confession. Lepina had been anxious the whole time, asking if she was actually going to date him. She had even said that such a man wasn’t a good match for her.

‘And at the same time… she said a man like the Young Lord would be a much better fit.’

Elena didn’t know why her Lady was trying to set her up with the Young Lord. What was certain was that Elena and Evan were not in a position to whisper sweet nothings to each other; rather, in a different sense, they both vied for the position closest to Lepina.

“Ar-are you going to answer the confession?”

Lepina asked with a nervous face. Elena decided not to mention the letter. As she expected, Lepina didn’t even remember who that noble was. There was no chance of a relationship blooming even if she delivered the confession, and the man would never be able to show his face before Lepina anyway.

Because of the Young Lord standing there with those murderous eyes.

While Lepina seemed to think the departing noble had confessed to Elena, Evan glared at the man as if he knew he was actually targeting Lepina. Being quick-witted, Evan might have noticed that the man’s gaze toward Lepina had been unusual since the day he was treated.

“More importantly, My Lady.”

“More importantly…?”

Lepina tilted her head, confused by how dismissive Elena was being about the “confession.”

“Where did you meet Young Lord Evan? Didn’t you say you were going to the greenhouse?”

“Huh? Oh, I met him at the greenhouse. He came because he said he needed some medicinal herbs.”

Elena glared at Evan with a skeptical look. She clicked her tongue softly.

‘He didn’t need herbs; the herbs were just an excuse to come see the Lady.’

Elena rarely left Lepina’s side. It wasn’t an exaggeration to say that, at least within the academy, she spent more time with Lepina than Evan did.

That was how she realized it: Evan appeared whenever and wherever. As long as Lepina was there.

Lepina had stopped by the greenhouse at a professor’s request to pick up herbs needed for class. Even though it was something Evan shouldn’t have known, he met her there under the guise of a coincidence, as if he had known she would be at the greenhouse all along.

“Anyway, Elena! Are you going to accept the confession?”

Lepina looked at her with anxious eyes, as if that were the most important thing in the world.

“No. I’m not interested. I don’t even know who he is.”

“R-right?”

Lepina let out a sigh of relief.

“My Lady, we’ll be late for class. Didn’t you go to the greenhouse to prepare? I’ve already packed the books you need for the lecture.”

“Oh, that’s right!”

Since she had things to prepare, Lepina needed to get to the classroom quickly.

“Evan, thanks for carrying these. They were heavy, weren’t they?”

“It’s fine.”

There was no way a basket neatly filled with herbs was heavier than the sword he usually carried. Though his condition improved as time went on, Lepina always carried a mountain of worries for him.

“See you later! Elena, take your time! I’ll head there first.”

Taking the basket from Evan, Lepina ran off into the distance. Elena moved to follow, but Evan spoke to her.

“Elena. If it’s something useless, I’ll throw it away for you.”

He spoke while looking at the letter peeking out of her pocket. Elena’s expression crumpled. It was obvious he intended to read the contents. However…

“Here it is.”

“Hmm.”

Elena handed over the letter obediently. While she disliked how Evan acted innocent and frail to hog Lepina’s attention, he was still better than the other noblemen. He cared for the Lady the most, after all.

Evan quickly scanned the letter. Then, he ripped it to shreds.

“Ha. To think he’d ask to be her partner when I’m clearly right beside her. Someone who doesn’t even have the courage to speak directly dares to… Lep has already decided to be with me.”

Elena hadn’t read the letter, so she didn’t know the details, but she could guess the gist of it. Judging by the mention of a partner, it seemed he had asked her to be his partner for the graduation ceremony.

“I’ll take care of this fellow myself.”

Her lady should have known this—how many people had been “taken care of” because of him. But no one had ever managed to break through, past or present. That was why things were as they were now.

Elena let out a small sigh.

“Hm? Elena? What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, I was just thinking about the past.”

Nothing had changed between then and now. Elena watched Lepina, who was fuming and vowing to protest to the Imperial Palace because Evan had come back “injured,” and whispered to herself.

“You’re just the same as ever.”