episode_0006

Rachel’s earliest memories were not of spending time with her family, but of reading books that were difficult to understand under the guidance of a teacher.

She had to receive thorough training from the time she was just able to recognize objects.

I had to learn etiquette at an age when I should have been praised for running, and I read literary books at an age when I should have been playing with friends.

There were no people I could call friends. The only people around me were people of my age, and I rarely hung out with people my own age.

Even if it existed, it was close to a social activity between nobles.

Their eyes were always looking at Eldrid, not Rachel, and the thought of becoming friends with those people never occurred to me.

They can’t make friends, have little personal time, and are constantly receiving education they don’t want to learn.

You always had to act with dignity and family honor in mind, and you needed to get your parents’ permission for anything you did.

It was an unusual lifestyle, but Rachel followed it without question.

Because I thought it had to be that way.

It happened one day.

“Your fiance will be chosen soon.”

It was a sudden remark.

It was something I never expected.

The moment she heard those words, she realized.

That your life is not your own.

If you leave it like this, you will only walk down the path your parents laid out for you, and you will die living the life your parents designed for you.

Is such a life really worth it?

For the first time, a question arose in her mind.

That question moved her body, and Rachel applied to Ferdion Academy.

But that wasn’t the end of everything. In order to go to the academy, you had to take an exam, and to do so, you needed to get permission from your parents.

Naturally, her parents were vehemently opposed.

Ferdion Academy was certainly a great educational institution, but it was also a dangerous place.

Injuries were common, and there were even cases of loss of life.

There was no way they wanted the jewelry they had worked so hard to carve to be scratched.

So Rachel did her best to persuade her parents.

The title of graduate of Perdion Academy will make their jewels even more valuable, and they preached the immense value of the connections they will meet there.

He whispered, “Wouldn’t this be an opportunity to immediately raise the honor of the family that you guys are so passionate about?”

After much persuasion, she was able to get her parents’ permission.

And, I passed the exam safely.

At that time, even just for a moment, I was grateful for the education I had received since I was young.

Although she entered the academy through that process, that didn’t mean she had any specific plans.

Although she wanted to change the situation, the name Eldrid was too much for a girl who had just become an adult to deal with.

Nevertheless, the reason I entered the academy was because of the hope for a glimmer of possibility and the desire for an ordinary life that I had never experienced in my life.

There was a longing in her heart to experience the normal life she should have had, where she could make friends and play like everyone else.

But her expectations did not last long.

Many people approached her, but not everyone saw her, but her family.

No one was looking at Rachel herself.

The friendship that transcended interests that she dreamed of did not exist there.

Looking into their eyes, she felt uncomfortable and at a loss that she couldn’t ignore.

Isn’t making friends, living a normal life, and even escaping from Eldrid’s clutches just a pipe dream? Such negative thoughts crossed my mind.

That was the reason I left the banquet hall.

I felt like I was suffocating from that sudden feeling of despair and frustration.

I wanted to go somewhere where there were no people.

For that reason, I wandered around the building, and soon found a terrace.

Stepping out onto the terrace and taking in the night air, she felt a small sense of liberation.

I felt like my breathing was relieved a little, but that didn’t last long. Because there were passengers there.

He was a man with rare black hair and black eyes.

Judging by the color of his tie, he is a freshman like himself.

The man’s eyes caught Rachel’s eye as she was contemplating whether to leave, feeling that her heart, which had become slightly lighter, was becoming frustrated again.

The eyes are quite different from the ones we encountered in the banquet hall a little while ago.

In those eyes that showed embarrassment and awkwardness, Rachel felt an unknown comfort.

Maybe that’s why. The reason she didn’t leave the terrace right away.

And in the silence that followed.

The man seemed to feel awkward and started talking.

“… I can see the stars clearly.”

These words immediately showed that the man was also feeling awkward about this situation.

Rachel followed the man’s words and looked up at the sky again, catching the twinkling stars in her eyes.

Then, strangely enough, I felt a little more at ease.

Feeling this strange comfort that she felt for the first time in her life, Rachel continued the conversation without realizing it.

Through that conversation, Rachel realized that the man, like her, had come here to avoid people.

And that I didn’t come to the academy because I wanted to.

It felt a little strange.

Even if you search the entire academy, it is clear that you can count on one hand the number of people who were forced to come to the academy.

Because she came to the academy because she wanted to.

There must be something going on, I guessed, but I couldn’t ask about it.

Instead, he inadvertently brought up his own situation.

Perhaps the impression I received from the Academy was more disappointing than I thought.

So, maybe I wanted to complain to someone.

However, no matter how much I thought about it, it wasn’t something I should bring up to someone I just met.

Rachel realized her weakness and apologized to the man who must have been in a bad mood after suddenly hearing heavy words from someone she did not know.

However, the man said something unexpected with a calm face.

At first it was difficult to guess the intention, but later I realized it.

That the man was encouraging him.

His tone of voice was a bit rough, but she could tell that he was comforting her with a pure heart.

The awkward encouragement given by the man she met for the first time warmed her heart.

The beginning is halfway.

okay. Yes.

It is too early to give up, and we should not give up.

Rachel calmed down through the man’s words.

From that day on, life at the academy began in earnest.

There was still no change in the surroundings, and the purpose of the people gathered seemed transparent, but Rachel was not as disappointed as before.

It hadn’t been long since I started at the academy, and I still had three years left.

Three years is a long enough time, and wouldn’t it be possible to make at least one true friend by then?

And if we work hard, wouldn’t we be able to reach possibilities that seem distant now?

I had that hope.

So I studied hard and practiced.

I also tried to create good relationships with people around me.

There was no longer any delusion in her mind, but there was a small regret.

I regret not having asked the man’s name.

But that regret didn’t last long.

Anyway, we are in the same grade at the same academy.

Because I thought we would meet someday.

You can just go and ask then.

If you do well, you might be able to become friends with him.

With her heart swelled with such anticipation, she envisioned a hopeful future.

However. It was just a pipe dream.

‘ah… … .’

Rachel realized reality as she looked helplessly at the group of ratmen approaching her with a broken ankle and brightly shining eyes.

The future he envisioned was nothing more than a fleeting dream.

Where did it go wrong?

Didn’t you abandon the team members who fell behind?

Or did he get the attention of the rat men to save the group that fell behind?

Did he believe that his team members would help him if he resolved the situation?

‘… no.’

Whatever it was, it had no meaning anymore.

Because there is no way to turn back time that has passed.

Even if I survived here by luck, there was no future anymore.

If the family finds out that you are in danger, you will be immediately taken to the family.

So I decided to accept it.

That this is your destiny.

In the end, everything was just a meaningless struggle.

Rachel slowly closed her eyes. And I gave up all hope and regrets.

I decided to submit to my fate.

… However, in the midst of all this, there remained one regret that I could not let go of.

‘name… Should I have asked… … .’

For some reason, what came to mind in this situation was the look in the eyes of the man I met that day on the terrace under the gentle moonlight.

With that scene engraved in her mind, Rachel waited for the pain to strike her.

However, what came to her was not terrible pain.

“Why are you doing this?”

A calm voice that does not suit this situation.

Rachel slowly opened her eyes at the voice she heard from somewhere.

Then, what I saw was not the Rat Man’s ugly face, but the face of the man I had pictured in my head just a moment ago.

“Let’s go out.”

The man said that with the same calm look in his eyes that he had seen on the terrace that day.