Let’s Never See Each Other Again

Riel was glaring at Allen with a cold expression. Allen was staring at her with a blank expression, unable to properly comprehend what he had just heard.

‘I said it…!’

Despite her cold expression, Riel was internally surprised at the words that had come out of her mouth.

Until now, whenever she stood before Allen, it was as if something blocked her mouth, preventing her from saying anything, and as if something gripped her entire body, making it impossible to move properly.

But today, at last, she had been able to express her true feelings exactly as she wanted.

That fact brought her a refreshing sensation and euphoria, as if years of built-up frustration had suddenly been released.

Meanwhile, Allen stood still with his mouth agape and a blank face.

That was understandable.

Allen never dreamed he would hear such harsh words from a girl, especially from Riel.

Allen finally came to one conclusion.

I must have misheard.

“Riel? I think I misheard…”

“Are your ears clogged? I said don’t talk to me because it’s unpleasant.”

“……”

He hadn’t misheard.

Allen, his face turning pale blue, spoke urgently.

“R-Riel, did I do something to make you angry?”

“……”

The corner of Riel’s cold eyes twitched slightly.

“Riel…”

“Seems like you didn’t hear me telling you not to call my name so casually. You’ve called it three times already.”

“B-But…”

Allen’s mind was in chaos.

Why is Riel acting like this?

Although he had been with Riel for almost ten years, he felt like he was seeing this side of her for the first time.

No, come to think of it… recent Riel has been nothing but unfamiliar.

“R-… I mean… you’re not the kind of person who would say such things…?”

“What do you know about me?”

Allen was flustered by Riel’s sharp retort.

Iris was quietly observing the scene, and the girls who had been following Allen stood still, not knowing what to do.

Normally, they might have taken Allen’s side and said something to Riel, but overwhelmed by Riel’s current aura, they couldn’t say anything.

“You… are shy and reserved, and don’t talk much… but you’re too kind to say such things…”

“Hahahaha!!”

Unexpectedly, it was Iris who reacted to Allen’s words.

Iris burst into loud laughter after hearing Allen’s words.

“Shy? Doesn’t talk much? I only just introduced myself to her moments ago, but she didn’t seem like that kind of person at all.”

Of course, Iris said this without knowing that Riel had indeed shown behavior that would make her appear that way in the past, but Allen felt even more confused by her words.

Riel continued:

“Anyway, please stop talking to me. I really can’t stand someone like you.”

“I don’t understand. You’ve never said such things before.”

“Do I really have to spell it out? If I gave you such hints, you should have kept your distance on your own.”

“W-What do you mean…”

“The reason I haven’t said it until now is because your behavior was truly absurd.”

…In fact, it wasn’t that Riel hadn’t said anything until now, but rather strangely, whenever she stood in front of Allen, her words would get stuck. However, wanting to avoid giving Allen unnecessary information, Riel told a convenient lie.

It was a rather implausible lie.

“When someone ignores you and glares at you, shouldn’t you realize ‘Oh, this person doesn’t like me’ at the very least?”

“Riel has been like that from before… I thought she was just being shy, not that she truly meant it…”

“What…?”

For a moment, Riel was so dumbfounded that she lost her words.

Until now, since she absolutely couldn’t speak in front of him and couldn’t even move her body properly, she had tried every method she could to express herself through small actions – ignoring him, avoiding him, glaring at him.

But Allen paid no attention to Riel’s actions and kept approaching her, saying incomprehensible things like he would protect her. This made Riel doubt whether her expressions were conveyed properly.

But now she realized that even though her expressions were conveyed, the other party had arbitrarily misinterpreted her intentions, something she had never even considered.

“…I’m truly speechless.”

“R-Riel…”

“I’ve wanted to say this all along, but I’ve never once given you permission to call me by my name.”

“What…?”

“Right now we’re academy students so it can’t be helped, but do you think someone like you, a mere commoner, can casually call me by my name?”

Allen’s expression went beyond pale blue, approaching white.

That’s because Riel’s words and behavior matched the conditions of the “arrogant noble” that Allen arbitrarily judged and despised.

Allen’s mind seemed to be moving beyond confusion to the realm of chaos.

“I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t call my name or speak to me from now on.”

“……”

“Well then, let’s not see each other again if possible.”

With that, Riel turned around sharply and walked away with large strides.

Seeing this, Iris left one last comment, “Please be quiet in the training ground from now on,” and followed Riel.

Allen could only stare blankly at Riel’s retreating figure.

After finishing one set of training, I wiped off my sweat with a nearby towel and drank some water.

While I had recent experience facing magical beasts, it had been a really long time since I faced people, so I created a training menu combining intense image training.

I might need a practice match soon too…

As I was thinking that, I remembered that I had arranged to have a match with Senior Iris in the near future.

Yes, that seems to have worked out well.

Thinking this, I turned around but couldn’t see Riel.

She was definitely sitting there when I started practicing…?

As I approached the bench area looking for Riel, I heard her voice.

“Kyo!”

Whoosh!

“Whoa.”

I let out a surprised sound as Riel suddenly rushed toward me and hugged me.

“R-Riel? Why suddenly…?”

“I… I finally could speak! I could say everything honestly!”

“What are you talking about…? No, more importantly, I’m sweating a lot so I probably smell…”

I tried to pull away from her in embarrassment, but she held me tightly and wouldn’t let go.

And I noticed that her body was trembling slightly.

In the end, I gave up trying to break away from her and looked around.

Senior Iris was watching from behind with a smile.

“Senior…? What on earth happened?”

“Ahahaha… just leave her be. Honestly, I’m not sure, but it seems like she accomplished something on her own.”

“???”

I don’t understand.

I don’t understand, but worried about Riel’s slight trembling, I gently hugged her back.

“It was a bit… a bit scary… but I did it properly.”

“Y-Yeah… you really did well.”

I have no idea what she accomplished, but I praised her anyway.

…Maybe I should ask about this later.

Allen stood blankly staring at Riel’s retreating figure.

As he continued watching, he saw Riel suddenly run forward.

Although dressed in training clothes unlike usual, the black-haired man with black-rimmed glasses was someone Allen knew well.

Kyo Wentos.

“……”

Riel ran to him saying something and hugged him.

Kyo Wentos seemed momentarily flustered, but then hugged her back.

…It was painful to watch any further.

“Allen…?”

“Hey, are you okay?”

The voices of girls concerned about him.

Snapping back to reality at those voices, Allen forced a smile and said:

“Yeah, I’m fine.”

The girls could tell that the smile on Allen’s face was forced.

But they had nothing to say to comfort him.

A brief silence followed, and it was only when Allen finally started preparing to leave that they departed from the training ground.

I was surprised.

I didn’t expect that Riel would actually be able to express her true feelings to Allen.

No, missing such an entertaining development!

…Well, that’s a bit of a frivolous thought. I felt more strongly that Riel, who had been brightening up recently, had finally achieved something.

That was my impression after hearing her detailed story in the secret room of the Grand Library.

“So, do you think Allen understood?”

“Honestly, I’m not sure. He’s not exactly someone who understands things properly in the first place.”

“That’s true.”

“And I was so angry just looking at his face that I didn’t even look at him properly.”

“I… see.”

Well, considering what Riel went through, it’s understandable that she would dislike him.

“Congratulations, Lady Riel.”

Phyllis sincerely congratulated Riel.

Well, Phyllis is certainly someone who suffered greatly because of Allen.

“Anyway, I definitely gained confidence! If he tries to talk to me again, I’ll hit him!”

Riel said this while clenching her fists and doing shadow boxing.

…Hmm.

Even though she’s doing shadow boxing with her tiny hands, making swoosh swoosh sounds with her mouth, she just looks cute.

Ah, that’s not the point.

“Still, considering what he’s done until now, we don’t know what kind of unexpected thing he might do.”

“That’s true…?”

“Hmm…”

Considering Allen’s behavior pattern so far, he often couldn’t understand things even when told directly and would make arbitrary judgments and act within his own delusions.

Even though Riel directly told him in words this time, we cannot predict how those words might be distorted in his mind or how he might act.

“For now, try to stay with me as much as possible within the academy, and outside of that… Phyllis, could you stay by her side?”

“Would that be alright?”

Phyllis is my personal maid, after all.

This means that if Phyllis stays with Riel, it would be difficult for me to receive support.

“It’s fine. I can take care of myself.”

“For someone who says that, you couldn’t even dress properly when I was away.”

“…I’ll probably be fine.”

It’s not that I can’t dress myself; it’s that Phyllis is very good at dressing me.

Anyway, that’s how it is.

Allen, who had experienced a shocking event at the training ground, was lost in thought in his room.

Was it really Riel that he met?

That’s certain. It doesn’t make sense that he wouldn’t recognize Riel.

Then what was the meaning of Riel’s behavior?

‘I said don’t talk to me because it’s unpleasant.’

‘When someone ignores you and glares at you, shouldn’t you realize “Oh, this person doesn’t like me” at the very least?’

As Riel said, was that truly her heart’s desire?

Indeed, Riel had often ignored or glared at him.

Then could it really be…

‘That can’t be! Riel and I have been together for ten years…’

Allen shook his head vigorously, denying that it could be true.

Yes, without a doubt. That couldn’t have been Riel’s true feelings.

…But.

‘Do you think someone like you, a mere commoner, can casually call me by my name?’

Riel’s words kept lingering in his mind.

The arrogant nobility he despised, those who flaunted their status and looked down on others… behavior just like Kyo Wentos’s.

For Riel to say such things…

It was too shocking.

As Allen was lost in these thoughts, the image of Riel hugging Kyo and Kyo comforting her flashed in his mind.

“Ah…”

At that moment, a hypothesis formed in Allen’s mind.

Of course, it was a completely self-serving hypothesis.

“I see… so it was you who made her like this. Kyo Wentos…”

A hollow laugh escaped Allen’s lips.

“Hahaha… don’t worry, Riel… I’ll protect you… I’ll definitely return you to your original self…”