I knew this would happen, and that's precisely why I preferred not to be near that guy.
Evan awkwardly wiped his face with a towel, offering apologetic glances at his sister, who stood with crossed arms, displaying a mix of anger and a pout. It was genuinely a cute sight.
It must be really hard for her to have such a fucked-up brother. Fortunately, Evan didn't divulge to Celeste that I was the one who intruded into her room. I managed to evade further annoyance.
"Are you ready for the final trister exam tomorrow?" lfina asked.
"Of course, I am," Celeste responded confidently.
"I am as well," Alia added, elbowing Celeste.
"I'm not. Can you divulge the content of the exam?" I asked, attempting to probe for any advantage.
"You know very well I can't do that," lfina said with a grimace.
"How about inside a group without elves? You can do that, right? As thanks for beating up Manuel Hylkren," I insisted but lfina still shook her head.
At least I had tried.
I aid to be in a competent group, perhaps even without elves. I knew that 99% of elves hated to the core and I didn't want any unnecessary distractions tomorrow.
"You shouldn't hate all the elves just because a few of them are like that, Edward," lfina sighed. "Connor Olphean loved all the races equally."
True, but I'm not my brother.
"W-Wait, what happened with Manuel?" Celeste interjected, looking at seriously.
Ah, right...
"Nothing special, I just beat his ass, and he ran away with his tail between his legs," I nonchalantly shrugged, spearing another piece of the pork.
Celeste was taken aback by my words. "T-Then is he dead?"
Both Celeste and Evan, even lfina, looked at , seeking an answer. After all, he had taken the life of soone close to them.
"I wasn't able to kill him. He lost consciousness and vanished," I answered honestly.
"R-Right..." Celeste, with a slightly pale face, leaned back in her chair.
"It can reassure you," I remarked, bringing the fork to my mouth and munching down. "His hatred towards has clearly overtaken his desire for you. He'd rather kill first."
"W-Why…" Celeste asked, visibly shaken by my words.
"Well, I beat him up and killed his boss in Celesta," I replied, stating the facts plainly.
"Why are you so calm about it? He is an international criminal…" Alia asked, genuinely dumbfounded.
"Well… let's say that I have seen worse than him," I said with a cold tone, mories of Jayce surfacing in my mind.
….
….
"I'm leaving first. Thanks for the al," John stood up and walked off.
Edward glanced at him for a mont before resuming his al.
"Tiring," John muttered as he walked through the corridors of the castle. Exhaustion clung to him, whether from overeating or the discussions, he couldn't discern.
() Hecate asked with a giggle.
"Will you stop annoying one day? Your cringe remarks during the al really angered , Hecate," John said, clearly annoyed.
()
"Cheer up with what? I'm not in that mood. First, I have to find whichever bastard made these rumors and make him regret being alive," John declared, gritting his teeth in anger.
It started with Edward, then spread to the small circle of Celeste's friends, and eventually beca known throughout the entire Academy.
He didn't need that.
()
"Shut up. You know nothing," John retorted.
() Hecate said with a grin.
"John."
John halted his steps, furrowing his brow as he turned around, spotting Alia hunched over on her knees.
"What?" John asked, his tone sowhat curt.
"You don't have to be so dismissive," Alia said, a hint of vexation in her voice.
John remained silent, waiting for her to continue.
Alia's heart raced under John's unwavering gaze, especially now that they were alone. She fidgeted nervously. "Y-You know…it's been three months since we've known each other, and we've helped each other a lot, especially in our Craftsmanship group. At first, I thought you were just strange, but as ti passed, I got to know you. You've saved multiple tis, and I wanted to thank you…"
John stared at her in silence, then shrugged and turned away.
Alia was taken aback and took a step forward to stop him, but summoning her courage proved difficult. Nevertheless, she clenched her fists and continued, "I-I know you're not an idiot!"
John ignored her.
"I-I can't hide it. I tried to push away these feelings, but…I can't," she confessed, her cheeks flushed. "That's why…I like you."
As John continued walking away, Alia bit her lip, feeling a pang of disappointnt.
"Please, at least say sothing…"
Finally, John halted and turned back. "I don't like you."
"...!" Alia's expression fell, her face showing indescribable sadness at his words.
John moved to leave, but Alia wasn't ready to let it go.
"I-I knew it was you at the store! It was you and Amael, right? D-Disguised? You helped back then! Then you always stayed up late at night with for the howork! You saved at the restaurant and protected against Lykhor! W-Was that all for nothing?" Her voice rose in anger. She refused to believe that their shared monts were rely friendly encounters. She was convinced that John had feelings for her too.
"You are misunderstanding. I don't like you," John repeated, averting his gaze and leaving.
"Y-You are running away from again!" Alia shouted, tears streaming down her flushed cheeks. "I-Idiot…"
Alia dashed past John, wiping away her tears as she disappeared around the corner.
John watched her vanish, his expression unreadable.
()
"If you know everything about , then you must know why I did that," John said, his fists clenched.
'Y-You are cursed, Jonathan! All the people who have the misfortune to be close to you die! You are cursed!'
Those words haunted him in every dream.
His parents had been killed by his adopted sister.
But she died soon after.
Then it was his aunt who adopted him after his parents passed away.
His uncle's tearful words echoed in his mind.
It might have been just a coincidence, but after coming to this world and hearing from Edward what Gladys had ntioned about being controlled, John couldn't shake off the feeling that soone was taking away everything close to him.
When he was reincarnated, his mories fused with those of John, and he was grateful to have a family again. But it didn't last.
His sister fell ill.
His mother passed away.
'Y-You are cursed, Jonathan! All the people who have the misfortune to be close to you die! You are cursed!'
Those words echoed again.
The only solution to safeguard his remaining family, his father, and Layla, would be to leave. But then, who would protect Layla from the fate plotted in the First Ga's Villainess route designed for her?
That's why he remained by her side.
Though he never said it to Edward, John was profoundly grateful for his presence for Layla. He saw Edward as soone he could entrust Layla to once he retreated to an isolated corner of the world after the Third Ga.
But after arriving at Sancta Vedelia, John encountered Alia, and despite attempting to avoid her, he found himself unknowingly developing feelings for her. She consistently supported him and sought to integrate him, even though he carried the label of a criminal.
That's precisely why he couldn't be with her.
"You rejected your only chance of graduating from virginity." Words echoed behind him, unmistakably Edward's voice.
John shot a glare at Edward.
"What a pity," Edward remarked with a smirk.
John snorted and turned around to walk away.
"I'm kinda worried about your love life, John," Edward said, catching up with him.
"It doesn't concern you."
"It does. You are my brother-in-law," Edward replied matter-of-factly.
"Fuck off. I don't consider soone seducing Celeste right in front of as a brother-in-law," John retorted.
"I wasn't seducing her," Edward glared back.
"Then what?"
Edward sighed, looking up at the ceiling. "She is the Prophetess, that's all. She is important for us; otherwise, I wouldn't care."
Upon uttering these words, Edward frowned and glanced behind him, finding no one there. Shaking his head, he left with John.
…
…
In a different corner, leading to another corridor, Celeste leaned against the wall. She had discreetly followed Edward, who was trailing Alia. Still reeling from John's harsh rejection, Celeste felt a mix of sadness and anger, wanting to comfort Alia but...
'She is the Prophetess, that's all. She is important for us; otherwise, I wouldn't care.'
Hearing those words from Edward cut deep. She wasn't shedding tears, but her expression clearly conveyed her inner thoughts.
"Why are you sad, Celes? He is no one to you," Evan, standing next to her, remarked while glancing at his sister.
"Yes…but I-I thought, you know, we could maybe be friends…but I guess I have no value except being the next Prophetess…" Celeste mumbled with a weak laugh.
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