episode_0008

Beep beep beep beep

widely!

“Kkaaaam… ”

My early morning began again today with the sound of the loud ringing of a magic tool hitting the crown of my head.

A week has already passed since I returned to the academy.

The days that passed in the meantime were ordinary, not much different from usual.

The only thing that has changed is my morning condition.

I took one tonic a day that Celdianne gave me, and I woke up feeling more refreshed than before.

Moreover, the small vials packed tightly inside the box were a full three months’ worth.

For a while, I was able to continue my energetic academy life.

In order to properly express that gratitude, I have been preaching about Celdianne’s generosity to everyone I talk to for the past few days, but for some reason, I stopped because she ordered me to stop spreading rumors.

Was it too much acting for a guy who was usually attacked like that to suddenly start praising him?

Anyway, I conveyed my gratitude in my own way, so there won’t be any nitpicking later.

“읏차.”

After getting out of bed, I prepared for school as I always did and prepared lunch for two.

Something that has been repeated for a long time and has now become a daily routine.

In order to maintain an unchanging relationship even after breaking up with Tirisia, it was in some ways a stubborn and blind act.

But as I continued to do this over the past week, one question came to mind.

Is it really okay to leave it like this?

In fact, if we put aside all the emotions and look at it superficially, it didn’t make sense that I, who was no longer her boyfriend, was responsible for Tirisia’s meals every day.

What’s more, we eat together every day as if we were on a date?

How would your current boyfriend see this situation?

There was no need to consider the feelings of the person who stole my girlfriend, but even my brain that had lost its sense of humor could not deny that something was strange.

Tyrissia is now another man’s woman.

Even if you want to deny it, it is the truth and reality. You have to accept it calmly.

So, as a friend, I needed to clearly distinguish between what I could and could not do.

My wish was to maintain my original life without ruining it, so I will quietly carry out what I was doing.

But it is unclear how Tyrissia’s position will change now.

If she were to request a change in our course of action, I would respect her wishes without question.

That would also be the path that Tirisia would choose for her own happiness.

“For now…just like this.”

I muttered as I zipped up the insulated bag containing my lunchbox.

But coincidentally―

Today was the last day.

*

“Erto, I… have something to apologize for.”

“Huh? What is it?”

The morning commute to the academy.

While walking side by side along a quiet tree-lined street, Tirisia brought up the subject.

“Starting today… I think I’ll have to eat separately.”

“Huh… ?”

As my steps stopped, Tirisia also stood up and faced me.

Her jade green eyes examined the main thermal bag on my shoulder, then fell to the floor as if it was being crushed by something.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t tell you in advance.”

“… … No.”

When I answered stiffly, Tirisia stroked her arm and explained the reason.

“Actually… That… This morning, my senior… told me to come to him during lunch time starting today… ”

“I see.”

Actually, it wasn’t that surprising.

Because it was a matter that had been given careful consideration.

I didn’t think I could continue on like this, as if nothing had happened.

However, the fact that that moment came sooner than expected and that it ended in an instant was a bit bitter.

Ah, today’s lunch box has some delicious side dishes.

“I’m sorry… ”

“Well… I can’t help it. If they call.”

I nodded with a bland smile.

Tirisia apologized in a small voice without meeting my gaze.

“Actually, I wondered if this was okay… I was so grateful that Erto packed my lunch… but I wondered if continuing to receive that favor was just to satisfy my selfishness… I was confused.”

“… Yeah.”

“Erto and I decided to remain friends, and I hope that will remain the same, but… I was worried that maybe my easy acceptance of his feelings was making things harder for him.”

“… I understand.”

She lifted her face and spoke as if appealing.

“So maybe, this is a good thing for both of us. If we were forced to stop, it would be a little easier for Erto and me to understand.”

Even as she rationalized it in her own way, Tirisia was still biting her lip with a painful expression.

Ha, in times like this, I guess I should call her kind. Her weak point was her withdrawn personality.

I smiled at Tirisia with perfect sincerity, not a single speck of dust mixed in.

“Don’t worry too much. I’m fine.”

Actually, if you think about it, it was a situation where I had nothing to lose.

Everything that could be taken away has already been taken away, and there is no heart left to be hurt.

It was just one less thing to do in the morning.

If they tell you not to do it with an unavoidable excuse, wouldn’t that be a good thing?

The disappearance of the time spent with Tirisia at lunchtime made it seem as if we were growing apart, but our friendship was not truly broken.

It’s just that the ambiguous boundary between the two people is becoming a little clearer.

It is truly one of the processes through which we break up.

So, it’s really okay.

“I’m sorry for suddenly bringing this up… I wish I had more time.”

“No, anyway, from today onwards, we can just go about our daily lives during lunch time, right?”

“Yeah… You don’t have to make lunch boxes for me anymore, Erto.”

“Okay.”

“Thank you so much for everything… Erto’s food was always delicious.”

“That’s fortunate.”

I chuckled and started walking back towards the academy.

“Let’s go now, quickly.”

“Ugh, yeah.”

Tyrisia followed me, her head bowed quietly.

For a while, we didn’t speak to each other.

So, we, who had gone a little further than yesterday, walked side by side on the path we walked every day.

*

Now, there’s just one problem left.

What to do with the food for two that has already been prepared?

It was such a sudden situation that I couldn’t even call anyone I knew.

It’s a well-known fact within the Academy that I pack lunch for Tirisia every day.

In short, since it was a special item for just two people, if they suddenly shared it with someone else, it would create a suspicious picture.

Starting tomorrow, I could just talk things through and eat alone, but today, I needed a way to handle things separately.

A place where no one notices.

And a person with a heavy mouth to eat with there.

The conditions are these two.

“Hmm… ”

As I was looking at my thermal bag and thinking deeply before lunchtime, a person’s face came to mind.

Yeah, if it’s that guy, all the conditions fit perfectly.

Ding-ding-ding-ding-ding-

After making up my mind, I walked to the place where my partner always appeared as the bell rang to signal the start of lunch time.

*

In this academy where students live, the rooftop was a non-mainstream space used only by a select few.

This is because there is a separate building for relaxation with a well-decorated rooftop or terrace, while the rooftop of the bachelor’s building is a really bare space with nothing on it.

The iron fence obstructed the view, making it difficult to spread out a mat and create a picnic atmosphere, and a garden or a lawn-covered terrace was much more suitable for sitting around and eating, so no one, whether noble or commoner, went out of their way to visit the rooftop.

But there is always one frog in a group.

I knew that there were lone wolves in this academy who preferred such secret and quiet spaces.

“Senior, are you there?”

I opened the closed door and entered the rooftop, looked around, and called out to the wolf.

What you see is a flat, square space surrounded by a barbed wire fence to prevent falls.

There was no sign of human presence.

Has that senior not come yet?

“Well… Let’s wait for now.”

As I was walking to see the scenery beyond the iron fence after closing the door,

Tick―

Something light and small flew into my head.

“Huh?”

I picked it up from the floor and examined it, and it was an uncooked soybean.

At the same time, someone’s voice was heard from the back of my head.

“Hey, this isn’t a place to come for romance.”

When I turned my head, there was a woman sitting with her legs crossed on a small square raised above the rooftop, in the space where the door was installed.

“Ah, senior, hello.”

I nodded and greeted her.

Two-toned short hair in navy and sky blue with pointed piercings in her ears.

The blue eyes are sharply pointed at the corners as if they are scorning the world, and the lips are clearly showing their molars as if they are about to spit out a curse.

A female student who wears her uniform jacket with her arms roughly stuffed in and draped around her waist, making anyone who sees her look like a delinquent.

The official Academy Ranking 2nd place was ‘Iron-Blooded Swordsman’ Perzena.