“Sith.”
“Why did you enter someone else’s room without permission?”
Sith, frowning, took the picture from my hand roughly.
Vin’s face, which was drawn quite beautifully, was also crumpled in the hands of Sith.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t take my eyes off the painting.
Even so, I managed to look away and look Sith straight in the eyes.
“I came in thinking you were inside. I was about to leave immediately after checking that you weren’t here. Sorry.”
“You’re sorry?”
Damn. His perception of ‘normal’ words were astounding.
Please stop being a bit weird.
If I’m 13, it’s probably time for me to grow up, so I’ll do something for you.
“No I wouldn’t liked someone entering my room without permission either.”
“Irillin Heather is not someone who knows how to put herself in someone else’s shoes.”
“Sith, I see you don’t know me well.”
“I know you’re not a person who can apologize.”
“That too, show that you don’t know me very well.”
“No. I know better than you.”
“Why do you think so?”
There was no answer to that question .
He just pointed at the door with his finger.
“Get out?”
“You know what I have to say? You said you’re sorry, then you should leave now.”
“Yes, I’m really sorry I didn’t leave sooner.”
I let out a sentence full of sarcasm and strode toward the door.
In front of that guy, it’s not ‘Chuck'(?) that somehow has a bad personality. It gets really worse.
So, the sarcastic tone just now was not pretending to be Irillin, but my sincere feelings.
Bang-! The same is true for the door I slammed shut to express my dissatisfaction openly.
“It’s strange.”
Regret rushed in at the same time I heard Sith’s muttering through the door.
I have to somehow win over Sith, but he gets emotional like an idiot.
‘Kill your temper and live, you wild boar. Are you sure you’re to befriend someone like this?!’
My sister’s sarcastic voice, disguised as advice, lingered in my ears before disappearing.
At the time, I was probably too angry and didn’t listen to my sister, but it looks like it’s probably going to be true.
My emotions and the anger I felt at that moment was more important than whether I would live or die.
‘I have to do better tomorrow.’
I made countless decisions in my life thinking of my older sister, but now I am thinking about Sith.
Sister, do you know?
That I am trapped in a world that you created, and when I come in contact with the characters of the world, I think of you.
I’m afraid, that every single person here will resemble you little by little.
The morning of the second day of school in the academy was bright.
Now that I have figured out what happened right before the vacation and the course of the incident, now I have to show my heart through action rather than just declaring I have changed my mind.
It seemed like it was a morning filled with enthusiasm, but there was an unexpected difficulty.
Among the many classes in the academy, there is no class that I am not a partner with Vin. Except for mobile classes where the partner is not specially fixed.
I wanted to prove my feelings had changed by openly avoiding Vin, but I couldn’t. Damn it.
Besides, it was a swordsmanship class that could not be missed even for an hour from the first period.
‘You said you wouldn’t bother me anymore? What a ploy to get my attention. Aren’t you ashamed?’
Vin didn’t say anything, but somehow his expression seemed to say that.
“You haven’t forgotten the classes you’ve been taking for the past six years just because you haven’t had classes in a while, right? Alright then, as always, sparring begin!”
The swordsmanship teacher shouted in a loud voice, and all the students took out their practice swords from their sheaths in perfect order.
Maybe it’s because they’re students in the Imperial Academy and even though most of them are only 13 years old. They seem to be quite prepared.
Among them, the person in front of me, Vin Ortega, was truly excellent.
After all, he is a talent that will rise to the top of the chief knights of the Imperial Knight.
“What are you doing? Draw your sword.”
Vin asked, pointing at my sword sheath with his chin.
Cold sweat ran down my spine as I gulped down saliva.
I tried to bring my hand to the scabbard, but I couldn’t.
Am I worried that if I’d pick up a sword, it will be obvious that I’m a beginner? That is absolutely not the case.
I am a person who used to wield a sword in my original life as well.
Moreover, the swordsmanship they use is very similar to the ‘fencing’ I learned.
And how can someone who was aiming to become a national fencing champion feel intimidated in front of some 13-year-olds.
The reason I can’t draw my sword right now lies in something else.
‘From now on, fencing will be really difficult. Even in your daily life, you will have to be very careful. ‘
These are the words I heard form the doctor right before entering this world.
At that time, because of the injury I received during the game, I couldn’t even pick up a spoon, let alone a sword.
So when I first came into this world and possessed the healthy body of Irillin Heather, I was honestly happy.
Opening the door myself, eating with a spoon, brushing my hair. I wouldn’t have been able to do it, so I didn’t take it for granted.
In fact, I had to secretly do this things as Irillin, but it was nice to do it anyway.
Even so I didn’t dare hold the sword. I was afraid.
Because it wasn’t something I’ll be able to do if I return to the original word.
I didn’t want to feel the loss of not being able to hold the sword again.
I didn’t want to collapse.
“I… I will sit in the classroom for a while. Tell the teacher that I’m not feeling well.”
“What? Wait for a moment!”
“You want to ask why I’m not taking the opportunity to stick with you? I told you. I won’t bother you anymore…”
“No. Tell the teacher yourself.”
“……Yes.”
Unattractive child. You’re as nasty as the person who made you.
Because Vin made me feel embarrassed I had to tell the swordsmanship teacher that I was sick.
Fortunately, I was still in elementary school, so I didn’t have any grade deductions for missing classes.
After changing from practice clothes to casual clothes, I was going back to the classroom alone, when I suddenly saw a familiar figure.
Sith Heather, a boy with blue hair and eyes like Irillin.
He was standing in the hallway in front of our classroom.
Sith is 14, so he must be taking classes in the middle school building next door.
What is this guy doing here?
“Sith?”
“Ah.”
At my call, Sith trembled for a moment as if surprised, then took his eyes of something he was looking at and looked at me.
What he was looking at was a promotional pamphlet pasted in our classroom.
“Keonkajae Art Contest? Why are you reading this?”
“I don’t know.”
“Why did you come here?”
“I don’t…”
“Looks like you’re on an errand.”
I said, pointing my chin towards the publicity booklet for Konkuk International in Sith’s arms.
Sith suddenly took a step back, hugging the thing in his arms tighter.
Just looking at him, it’s obvious the want to hide something about the ‘Geonjeungje'(?).
Then like an adult, let’s pretend not to know!
There’s no way he’ll say anything anyway.
I didn’t want to be nosy as a 20 years old, but this 14-year-old in front of me is the one who will kill me someday, so I can’t just ignore the trivial things.
Any information about Sith, might just be the key to my survival.
With wide eyes I read the promotional pamphlet Sith was looking at.
The 36th Abert Empire Founding Ceremony Junior Art Contest
Field of application:
Painting – Portrait, Landscape, Abstract
Dance – No restrictions
Writing – Poetry, Novels, Essays
Reward:
1st place – 3 million gold
2nd place – 1 million gold
3rd place – 100,000 gold
Let your dreams come true!
As soon as I saw it, there was a field that caught my eye.
Painting! Isn’t this the hidden talent of Sith Heather?
I can speculate that Sith’s talent for drawing did not appear in the novel for two reasons.
Due to his timid personality, he has never challenged this kind of competition, or the setting was omitted due to the quantity.
Either the former or the latter, there seemed to be no reason why Sith wouldn’t try.
No you must try!
Because this competition might be the key to my survival.
“Sith, do you want to enter the drawing contest?”
“…What are you talking about? No.”
“You want to do this! You want to showcase your talents to others.”
Typically, I’m talking about Sith’s parents.
The reason why the Marquis and Marchioness discriminated against Sith had no desire and will.
Irillin had a desire for Vin. As she tried to follow her multi-talented Vin, she too reached a similar level.
Sith on the other hand, had no such thing as desire. All he wanted was for him not to get bullied by anyone.
So Sith’s life was full of avoidance. He had neither the will to develop his talent nor the desire to publicize it.
The Marquis couple, who were full of will and desire, did not want to recognize their unlike son as family.
The more that happened, the more Sith shrank.
But that won’t be the case anymore.
Because I’m going to change the course of the novel!
If parental discrimination is also the cause of Sith’s hatred, then it’s not enough for the discrimination to end.
To have desire and will.
“Show that you have desire and will! Are you going to be going to be trampled by me like an insect for the rest of your life? Aren’t you going to crawl out?”
I spoke in a deliberately provocative tone.
As if he didn’t have to do it, as if I wasn’t desperate for him to do it.
But Sith crushed my efforts with a very light tone.
“No.”
Rest time after the sparring…
A cool breeze blew through Vin’s silver hair. Today, his hair was not wet with sweat.
What kind of shock struck me? It was because my partner, Irillin, who never missed swordsmanship class, no, all the classes I have with her, missed class for some reason.
“I… I will sit in the classroom for a while. Tell the teacher that I’m not feeling well.”
When saying that, Irillin seemed to be afraid of something.
That something was probably a sword.
She was clearing trembling at the sight of the sword.
Why? Someone who wasn’t previously like that at all. Had something happened during the period he hadn’t seen her?
That thought flashed through Vin’s mind.
