‘I wanted to talk to many people and make lots of friends. There was a time when I made such a resolve.’
One day after class, Patricia, on her way to the restroom, was led by a group of female students to a secluded place.
Behind her was the school building wall.
In front, five women, their eyebrows arched in anger.
At this point, it was obvious enough for her to immediately understand the situation she was in.
“What a surprise. I thought young ladies from good families would be a little more reserved, but you’re surprisingly cunning.”
“So this is how nobles act, flirting with anyone and everyone, huh?”
“Kusu kusu kusu kusu.”
‘They seemed to be having a great time laughing’, Patricia thought as she looked at the women before her.
‘Well, it’s much better than scheming in the shadows’, she thought, and opened her mouth.
“What exactly is it that you wish to say?”
“What, you don’t know? Do you really not get it?”
“I think you could figure it out if you gave it just a little thought.”
Hmph, she placed her hand on her chin.
Honestly, she more or less understood what they wanted to say.
In short, they were trying to warn her off.
She didn’t know which man these girls had set their sights on, but it was clear they wanted her to stay away.
However, even if she understood, there was no need to play along.
Patricia had decided when she came here.
She would live freely.
“I’m terribly sorry. I don’t think I’ve done anything wrong in the slightest… I don’t understand what it is that you are so angry about. Would you please enlighten me?”
She wished they’d just say it outright, since this was such a hassle.
Her words, filled with that sentiment, seemed to have gotten through.
The girl in front of her, her face clearly growing more severe, clenched her fist tightly and said, “You, stay away from Clive-sama and Heine-sama.”
“I have not approached them.”
“Ha!? You were right next to them just now!”
“Do you mean in the classroom earlier? If so, they were the ones who approached me.”
Patricia had not made any move towards the two.
That’s why she answered as such, but the faces before her only grew more enraged.
“Ha!? You’re the one who seduced them! If you care about those two at all, you should stay away!”
“They are noblemen, you know? I could never refuse them of my own accord.”
“Th-!”
It was the truth.
Both of them were of noble blood.
Even as the daughter of a Duchess Household, she wasn’t in a position to casually converse with them.
If someone of such standing spoke to her and she ignored them, she might even be punished for disrespect.
That’s why she couldn’t simply ignore them, but the girls, lost for words, pressed in even closer.
“Then act in a way that makes them dislike you!”
“I believe that, too, would be an act of disrespect…”
“Shut up! Just—anyway—!”
“What’s all the commotion?” A man’s voice came from behind them.
The girls all turned around in surprise, their cheeks quickly turning red.
Seeing this, Patricia wondered if perhaps Clive or Heine had arrived, but she quickly realized she was mistaken.
The familiar figure was Sigurd Evans, the son of an Avalon Kingdom count whom she’d met yesterday.
After looking at the girls, he spotted Patricia and his eyes widened.
‘He always seems to look at me like this’, Patricia thought.
For now, she gave a polite bow, and immediately his brows drew together.
“…She is a young lady of the Duchess Household.”
“We—we weren’t doing anything weird! We were just telling her how things work at this academy.”
Well, that was true enough; they were simply teaching her their own way of doing things.
It’s all about how you say it.
“Teaching her? You? And just what might you be able to teach? I’d very much like to be taught as well.”
“Th-that’s…”
“You haven’t studied a single thing since enrolling, yet you’re arrogant enough to think you can teach others?”
“…”
“Before gossiping about the male students, shouldn’t you focus on what you ought to be doing here?”
“…………”
The girls, their cheeks flushed just moments ago, now paled and hung their heads in silence.
Some even looked close to tears, and Patricia, arms crossed, found herself feeling uncomfortable.
She understood what Sigurd meant.
This was a place of learning, after all.
To forget their true purpose here and become obsessed with romance was, indeed, unseemly.
But, as a woman herself, she understood their feelings.
If you’re to be with someone, let it be someone wonderful.
That’s a thought every woman who’s ever dreamed of love must have had at least once.
Maybe not a prince on a white horse, but still, to spend one’s life with even a little bit of an ideal partner.
She didn’t want to think of that feeling as something bad.
“You girls are just—”
“Evans-sama, that’s enough.”
She stopped him just as he was about to continue, and he shot her a piercing look.
Though his displeasure was clear, Patricia didn’t back down in the slightest.
“Why stop me? I was trying to help you.”
“Yes, I understand. Thank you for coming to my aid.”
“Then—”
“But that’s a separate matter. What you’re doing now is simply using my presence as a shield to hurt them.”
“—…What did you say?”
His expression grew even darker with anger, but Patricia didn’t find it frightening.
Somehow, he reminded her of Alex.
The way he denied others’ opinions head-on was just the same, and for some reason, that familiarity meant she felt no fear.
Perhaps she’d just gotten used to it in a bad way.
“Thanks to Evans-sama, I think they’ve learned their lesson. Let’s leave it at that.”
“…Are you trying to be a saint?”
“Hardly.”
She couldn’t help but laugh.
There was no way Patricia could ever become such a being as a saint.
If anything, she was much further away from such an existence.
Perhaps things would have been different back when she still intended to become Empress.
But now, Patricia was just a noble’s daughter, with little need to suppress her emotions.
That’s why, all the more, she could forgive these girls.
In the past, she might have punished them according to custom, but those customs didn’t exist here.
So there was only one thing for Patricia to do.
“I have no interest in them. In fact, I barely care about them at all. So please, do not trouble me with this any further.”
She added with her gaze that this applied to him, too.
She didn’t want to waste time on such troublesome matters, and so she didn’t want to get involved with him, either.
Sigurd, frozen at her words, watched as Patricia gave a polite bow, just as she had the first time they met.
“Good day, Evans-sama. Ladies.”
To address someone by their surname was a rejection, a signal that she didn’t intend to become close.
Of course, he probably wouldn’t pick up on such a nuance, but that was fine; it was her own rule.
Without looking back, she left the scene.
Sigurd was apparently a year above, so they likely wouldn’t meet again, and she’d made it clear she didn’t want any further involvement.
The girls, too, had hopefully learned their lesson and things would be quiet for a while.
With only a few minutes left before the next class, Patricia hurried a little toward the classroom.
She had no idea what the next lesson would be, but the thought filled her with excitement.
Even as her figure disappeared, Sigurd’s eyes searched the empty air, as if chasing after her fading image.
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