Ch.5858. Denial (6)

“Sister. If something’s wrong, at least talk to us about it.”

The untouchable sore spot. The result of touching it came as a devastating price: the collapse of daily life.

Of course, considering the severity, the collapse of daily life isn’t such a big deal.

The resentful voice of a man once cornered still seems to echo like an auditory hallucination—is that price really significant?

I can’t even begin to understand his burden and anxiety, which was worse than being pushed to the edge of a cliff.

Owing him a life debt and being consumed by guilt for spewing angry words based on prejudice, her daily life was far from peaceful. So much so that she couldn’t even go outside for days after that incident.

‘Today it’s Charlotte…’

Outside, members occasionally came by, knocking on her door to check on her. They took turns visiting Aris’s room.

But inside, only silence greeted the visitors.

Day after day, she didn’t care how time passed.

‘If I just wait silently like this, they’ll leave on their own…’

Though members came looking for her many times, the room’s owner never once opened her mouth.

This time too, she firmly believed that if she waited silently long enough, she could send away the visitor.

“You know why I applied to join this party?”

But contrary to expectations, Charlotte suddenly began talking about herself.

No. Perhaps she had been muttering for a while now.

Only now were her ears opening to hear those words.

“I heard it was magic overload. I was told that when human magic is fully depleted, especially with naturally murky magical energy like mine, one begins to act like a magical beast. That’s why Professor Muniher recommended me, and I ended up here.”

It seemed pointless to listen. But the next sentence made her ears, which were about to close again, open wide.

“I… once unintentionally tried to harm someone with my own hands.”

‘…What?’

Aris, who had been turning away other members with silence as usual, was startled and began to listen.

Having heard that Charlotte, the youngest team member, had once tried to harm someone, she couldn’t help but focus all her attention on the story.

“You have no idea how disgusted I was with myself, unconsciously acting like a magical beast, licking my lips as I saw the person before me as prey. But… do you know what was even scarier?”

Gulp.

A mouthful of tension-filled liquid slid down Aris’s throat.

“That person… was a senior who tried to save me, even at the cost of their own body. I’m quite… ironic, aren’t I?”

At that moment, Aris took a sharp breath.

But that wasn’t the end. The inhaled breath seemed to stop for several seconds.

“Our first meeting was so strange. The day I set foot in the Empire, oddly enough, some memories flowed into me with a terrible headache. That’s when I met that senior.”

No way.

Charlotte too?

She knew it sounded absurd.

The identity of these revelation-like memories, sent by who knows who, remained a mystery.

And Charlotte claims she experienced it too.

“Thanks to those memories, I had prejudice against a certain senior… but when I actually met them, they were a completely different person. They even tried to save me at the risk of their own body. And this was someone I had just met that day, a complete stranger.”

“But… the fact that the senior tried to save me at the cost of their own body remained as a trauma. Some nights I would see that scene again in my dreams. That was the day I spilled your coffee… I hadn’t slept well…”

Every time she continued to hear this story, it felt like something sharp was poking her lungs.

Because Charlotte’s story was definitely not someone else’s.

And yet, a part of her wondered.

‘If it was during the beginning-of-term evaluation… quite some time has passed…’

Charlotte hadn’t shown any particular signs since then. Aris was curious about that.

How she had overcome that psychological pressure.

“Sister?”

“…Come in.”

She didn’t care what state she was in. Right now, she just wanted to hear Charlotte’s story to the end.

When she let Charlotte into the dormitory room, she wanted to ask what happened next, but her voice wouldn’t come out properly.

Charlotte then let out a deep sigh.

And then, if she wanted to hear the rest of her story, she would have to meet certain requirements before she would continue.

With no other choice, Aris nodded, and Charlotte said she would step outside for a moment.

‘She told me not to move until then…’

Shortly after, Aris could see Charlotte and the maids barging into her room.

“Everyone, please be thorough.”

“Understood, Lady Charlotte.”

“This beautiful hair color…!”

“My goodness. Her skin…!”

“We’ll need to fix everything.”

Seeing those eyes burning as if they had fire in them, Aris suddenly felt anxious.

And somehow, she also felt a hint of fear from them.

“We’ll be taking over Lady Aris’s schedule today.”

“So please cooperate. It’ll be trouble if you try to escape.”

“Oh, you can try to escape. But then, the young lady might hire someone to kidnap you.”

Are they… growling?

Sensing the fierce energy from the maids, Aris subtly turned to Charlotte for help.

“Ch-Charlotte… this is okay, right…?”

“Sister.”

Ah.

Upon closer inspection, Charlotte had the same expression.

“…Alright.”

What followed was such a chaotic time that she could barely remember it.

Wearing only a robe, she was carried into a carriage and taken somewhere, arriving at a villa where maids with bright smiles led her to a bathroom. Not a single part of her was left untouched, from the strands of her hair to the soles of her feet.

After being washed until her skin gleamed, luxurious nutritious meals lined the dining table.

Getting thoroughly cleaned and eating abundantly—these were Charlotte’s two requirements.

“Charlotte. I’ve done everything you asked, but… was all this really necessary?”

“You don’t understand why, do you? That’s to be expected. I was once in despair like you.”

With a bitter smile, Charlotte said so. Now, the subject that had been affecting Aris’s daily life was finally brought up in their conversation.

“How could I ignore it? With memories like that. It’s natural that they can’t be easily forgotten.”

So that’s how it is. Even though she claims to have had a similar experience, she speaks as if there’s nothing to be done about it.

For a moment, it wouldn’t be strange if her goal was to persuade Aris after getting her to open her closed ears with words.

But contrary to Aris’s thoughts, Charlotte had no intention of changing the subject.

“But what changes if you collapse like this? Living with guilt for the rest of your life won’t change anything.”

This was why Charlotte had called the maids to restore her to her original state.

***

Trudge, trudge.

Footsteps that were more like dragging shoes.

Aris, still unable to face her team members, had left the dormitory and was wandering aimlessly.

“So I decided to repay. To give back to that person, even if it’s just a small contribution. For that, I couldn’t afford to fall apart, so I prioritized returning to my normal state.”

Charlotte was truly a brave child.

Unlike Aris, who had been anxiously confined to her room, not knowing what to do.

She had the decisiveness befitting the youngest baroness who could lead a trading company.

However, even Charlotte couldn’t easily resolve this matter.

“Actually, that senior coldly rejected my help. But… I can’t just give up. They saved my life.”

Charlotte was just as frustrated.

Yet, unlike Aris who had been hiding in her room avoiding guilt, Charlotte, two years younger and three grades below, made a different decision.

When she felt there was no way to resolve it herself, she sought advice from maids or employees.

She said that while feeling guilty was inevitable, letting that guilt consume you was the worst answer.

Suddenly, Aris recalled Senia’s criticism that she made too emotional judgments.

“You always react emotionally and mess things up. If you want to avoid the worst, at least choose the lesser evil.”

‘Yes. I think I am too emotional.’

Aris finally acknowledged and accepted that nothing would change by being trapped alone in that room.

Charlotte said she wanted to repay. She wanted to give back to that person, even if it was just a small contribution.

She had even tried to pay for the person’s hospital bills, only to be discovered and sternly warned, but that didn’t stop her.

Charlotte was easing her burden by paying for the tuition of the senior who had saved her during the beginning-of-term evaluation.

Using the clever deception of a scholarship system to lighten the other person’s burden without them noticing.

‘Can I… do something like that too?’

Nothing immediately came to mind.

But there must be something. Just as she was thinking this…

“That’s strange… the hero of that defense battle was… Junon.”

“Right? The bulletin board content is really…”

“Why isn’t Junon mentioned? Should we report it?”

“Let’s do that. I heard the newspaper gets a lot of things wrong these days.”

Nearby, two students were discussing the misreporting of the Osoptera defense battle.

Judging from their conversation, they seemed to be two people who had followed Junon’s instructions during the siege.

‘…This is it.’

He was said to be the hero of the Osoptera defense battle and the Alcaide Hall siege, but he seemed to dislike being recognized.

At this rate, his actions, which he wanted to keep hidden, would soon be exposed.

The two students walking near her were whispering and expressing doubts.

If those two revealed the truth, it wouldn’t remain hidden as he wished, so Aris was thinking of approaching them to dissuade them.

Just then, a nearby female student with ash-white hair spoke up.

“Don’t bother. Junon doesn’t want the attention, so he asked to let it slide.”

‘Who is she…?’

It was a female student named Silvia, known to often accompany Junon.

“Why? It’s worthy of an award from the academy.”

“There’s no one among the vanguard students who’s made such a name for themselves. He should definitely accept it.”

“That’s what I’m saying. Why refuse such an honor? It’s strange, Silvia.”

“Well… that’s just how Junon is. He really dislikes being known.”

“Really…?”

“Wait, he does seem quite mysterious. We never knew anything about him. Didn’t he once get the better of Professor Kyoph? You don’t know about that?”

“Well… I’ve only heard bad rumors, never heard that before.”

“There’s actually more, but… Junon really hates being known. He personally asked me to let it be known this way.”

“Hmm. I see.”

“That makes sense. We’ll let others know too.”

“Could I… ask for your help with that? There are too many people for me to tell individually…”

“Of course, Silvia!”

“You can ask us for things like this anytime. Gosh, you’re so kind.”

“Ah, haha… thank you.”

As the three moved away, their conversation gradually faded.

“…He’s already taken measures.”

To think he had prepared to this extent.

She thought that perhaps staying quiet would be more helpful to Junon, to avoid causing him harm.

***

“Quite a heavy story.”

“Isn’t it?”

“It’s hard to believe.”

Muniher had received a story from Dalia that would leave anyone dumbfounded.

As an imperial chancellor, as the strategist who directed the Kanolatleu subjugation and cleanup operations, and as a personal advisor.

“Darling, I know it sounds absurd. I know it sounds suspicious.”

When his wife Dalia came to visit, he thought it would be nothing special.

He expected to share news from the academy, submit reports, and exchange words of appreciation for each other’s hard work.

But what Muniher received instead was an incomprehensible reaction from a young boy.

“…Where on earth did that young one gain such experience?”

There’s a condition called hemophobia. A common condition where one feels fear and disgust at the sight of blood. It’s something people can be born with.

The degree varies from person to person, but to overcome it, the academy includes it in the curriculum for students.

When sufficient time is invested in helping students withstand fear and various psychological conditions.

Only then can students finally adapt to the sight of blood.

But if asked whether there are people who wouldn’t be shaken by the sight of real blood and entrails, one couldn’t answer immediately.

The students who reported aftereffects from the recent defense battle were prime examples.

That’s why.

Muniher couldn’t help but doubt his ears at Dalia’s testimony that there was not even a hint of hesitation during surgery.

Watching Muniher, Dalia chuckled with a helpless smile.

“You’re reacting just like I did. I probably had the same expression at first. Anyone watching would have thought I’d lost my mind.”

“…Dalia. You weren’t one to enjoy pranks, were you?”

“Even if everything else I’ve done might seem like a joke, I can assure you this isn’t.”

It was a frightening story.

That a 19-year-old boy, just entering his third year, showed an indifferent reaction while performing surgery involving blood and entrails.

The couple, looking at one depleted Blueshire Arc, were enveloped in a strange sense of déjà vu.

“For now, let’s keep an eye on him. He might have a troubled past, so remember to approach him carefully.”

Looking at that boy, both of them simultaneously recalled a man with the same hair color.

That name, the two of them would never be able to forget.