“Amelia, I’m sorry. Please break up with me.”
Just as I was about to graduate from school, I was taken aback by the words that were suddenly spoken to me.
My boyfriend, a knight student, and I, a magic student, were both busy with various things and were passing each other near graduation, so we didn’t have much time to spend together. But isn’t that normal?
“…Daruk, can I ask you the reason?”
“I decided to go out with Iris.”
“Huh?”
…Not that he fell in love with Iris, but that he ended up going out with her?
I let out a low voice at the answer, which skipped too many steps.
“What do you mean? If I’m not mistaken, is it Iris Stookey, who belongs to the Saint department and is also in the same party?”
“Yes. That Iris. I’m really sorry. I also love Iris… but Iris was engaged to the Crown Prince, right? So I thought I had no choice but to give up. But recently, the engagement was broken off by the Crown Prince, and Iris said she liked me, so we started dating.”
Is it better to think he’s being sincere because he clearly explains the reason for this, or is it because he liked another woman, but he didn’t have any hope of dating her, so he somehow ended up dating me. And it’s already confirmed that they are going out, not just a prospect. Should I think he’s being dishonest because he’s talking about a convenient story for wanting to break up?
I don’t know whether to be angry or sad.
There is only one thing I want to say to a man like this.
“Okay. Let’s break up. But let me complain about one thing. If you wanted to break up with me, I wish you’d told me sooner. You’re going to the graduation party in a week with Iris, aren’t you?”
“Ah. The engagement was called off, and Iris doesn’t have an escort partner. It’s impossible for a saint not to attend the graduation party, isn’t it?”
I’m also currently in a tragic situation where my escort partner disappears a week before the party!
But I understand what Daruk is saying.
Saints are important human resources, not only in this country, but in this world.
In this world, the mysterious power of mana is floating everywhere. This mana is converted within the body and used as magical power; knights use it to strengthen their bodies, and mages use magic. We also use this mana in our daily lives, so it is indispensable.
However, for some reason, mana is stagnating all over the world. Maga occurs, and the creatures living there transform into monsters due to the maga. And monsters attack people. Those with holy magic that can purify this maga are called saints, and saints are carefully protected.
The graduation party also serves as an introduction to important people in the country, so as long as you are a saint, you are bound to attend.
However, your partner at the party doesn’t necessarily have to be your boyfriend or fiancé. When there is no one else, it is customary to ask a relative to help. School is a place where you come to learn, so it doesn’t mean you absolutely have to fall in love here.
“Iris doesn’t have any parents. Moreover, I hear that her relationship with the nobleman who took her in is not very good. I want to protect her.”
“And the fact that you are reporting to me late is another story, isn’t it?”
“That’s…”
I’m sure it was at this last minute that he decided whether to go out with Iris or not.
If he couldn’t give up on Iris, he should have broken up with me half a year ago when Iris and the Crown Prince broke off their engagement, and gone through the process properly.
Isn’t this just insurance in case he couldn’t go out with Iris?
Many things are getting cold.
“Or is it because you thought that if you broke up with me six months ago, I would refuse to form a party with you and Iris for the graduation exam?”
My words make his shoulders jump.
Daruk’s face distorts in frustration, but seeing that he doesn’t say any words of denial, I seem to have hit the mark.
I’m the head of the magic department. Therefore, if you form a party with me and take the graduation exam, there is a high possibility that you will get a good score in the practical exam.
I took a deep breath. Somehow, it doesn’t matter anymore.
However, this exchange has become troublesome.
“Everyone makes their own calculations. So if you were sincere and decided to go out with Iris after telling me six months ago, I would have helped with the graduation exam, right? I’m graduating too.”
I had to take the graduation exam, so no matter how much it hurt, I would have swallowed it.
But I think this is a deception.
“…I’m sorry for acting so cowardly. But…”
“There are a lot of good excuses. For the time being, I have agreed to break up with you. I will not be attending the graduation party, so please excuse me.”
“Eh? Why?”
“Why, you ask? It is only a week away? And my relatives are in the faraway countryside.”
No matter how hard you try, it’s too late to ask them to come.
“Countryside? You’re from the royal capital…”
“I was born in the royal capital. Due to various reasons, my father quit being a royal magician and moved to the countryside. I think I’ve talked about this properly?”
My mother was a magician working in the royal palace. But after my mother died of an epidemic, he got tired of the recommendations for a second wife from his boss and others, so he submitted his resignation and moved to the countryside.
Even after that, he occasionally comes to the capital due to requests for cooperation from the magicians in the royal palace, but we basically live in the countryside. And since my father is originally from the countryside, my father’s relatives are not in the royal capital either.
In the end, Daruk wasn’t listening to me properly.
Maybe it’s a good thing that I started to see the unpleasant parts since we broke up.
“In that case, my friend-”
“I refuse. If you ask a friend who is close to your age, people will think that’s the kind of person you are, right? You never know what kind of rumors will be spread.”
There is too little delicacy.
I crossed my arms and looked at him with narrowed eyes. At the very least, please don’t pretend to be a pitiful victim who was abandoned. If I were to participate with a man of the same age, people might think it was because I was unfaithful to Daruk, not that it was Iris who stole him.
“But what do we do with the top prize in the party’s practical exam?”
“That’s why I’m telling you. I won’t be participating. You and Iris will receive the award.”
We had the best results in the graduation exam. It can be said that those who do the best have a guaranteed future. The award will be given directly by the King.
“But we’ll be receiving an award from the king, right? If you don’t attend, it will interfere with the future of the party, right?”
“…How conceited are you? There’s no way I’ll continue to form a party with you after graduation after being betrayed like this.”
A saint must definitely take on the task of purifying maga. And such a saint forms a party with a magician and a swordsman, and goes all the way to the maga while defeating monsters. That’s why people often continue to form a party with the people they partnered with during their graduation exams, but there are times when this is not the case.
So there is no problem even if I leave.
“But you said you would cooperate in the exam-”
“Again, you’re not listening properly. I said I would help you with the exam. I’m going to graduate too. But why do I have to work while looking at my ex-boyfriend and the girl who took him away from me even after I graduate? I have a choice, too.”
That’s not the only job a magician can do.
“I’m going to retreat to the countryside.”
“What?! It’s the duty of everyone in this country to help purify the maga, isn’t it? Isn’t strange that you have enough power to defeat monsters but you don’t use it? Don’t confuse work and love. If you do things like that, it’s because you’re a woman, right?”
Daruk’s words clicked.
It’s something I often heard in the magic department. Women are not driven by reason, but by emotion. So they can’t think.
That’s what I heard every time I took the first chair. No matter how good my grades are now, I won’t be able to get a job in the future.
So I’ve been working even harder to put it behind me.
…But it doesn’t matter.
“Just say it.”
“Ah, Amelia?”
“You can just say that women can’t work because they confuse love and work. Instead, don’t bring me a job. It’s impossible to work with someone who says that. It’s impossible. I’m a woman, so I will move based on my emotions. I will decide my future based on my emotions!”
I’ve been patient, I’ve been trying hard, and this is the result.
“I’m leaving your party and retreating to the countryside. I will also be absent from the graduation party. I’m no longer relevant. Please don’t get involved with me.”
After making this declaration while breathing heavily, I ran towards the dormitory.
Tears of frustration come out of my eyes. It’s definitely not because I have regrets.
On this day, I left Daruk and Iris’s party.
Hello Everyone! I will be translating this web novel from now on and hope you enjoy it. Please feel free to leave comments. I will leave my own opinions at the end of the chapters like this, so if that is something you don’t enjoy then please ignore it. Constructive criticism such as pointing out spelling or grammar mistakes is welcome! I would rather it be pointed out so I can fix it than have it ruin the reading experience.
I hope you enjoyed this chapter and thank you for reading!
