"Enemies? But... they don’t seem bad, are you sure? Aren’t they like Klein, just affected by their families? I an, they’re... helping with social practice," Ren repeated, genuinely confused by the reactions around him. "Like I said... with handling unwanted attention... And it’s been working. Did you notice how there are fewer groups chasing lately?"
"Oh, they noticed," Mayo said, her voice full of amusent. "And do these ’lessons’ include what exactly?"
"Conversations where I feel ’comfortable’ mainly," Ren shrugged. "We talk about various topics. They explain to sotis how certain behaviors are perceived in noble circles. How to distinguish between ’genuine interest’ and political opportunism, for example."
"How convenient," Luna said, standing abruptly. The chair scraped against the floor with a harsh sound. "Three beautiful noble girls teaching you about ’genuine interest’."
That made Ren rember the situation Luna had ’cataloged’ as ’not genuine’... The mory was fuzzy, confusing, sothing he’d tried not to think too much about.
"Luna," Ren began, reaching toward her, but she was already walking toward the exit, her posture rigid.
Ren watched her leave, completely lost. "What did I do?"
"Ren," Larissa said with a voice trembling with anger, "do you understand what’s really happening here?"
"Is social practice bad?" Ren offered, increasingly unsure.
"They’re seducing you, idiot," Mayo declared without filters. "Or at least trying to. And Aldric brought them specifically for that."
Ren blinked, the words not processing imdiately. "What? No... But... Aldric said it was for social practice. They heard the sa thing and..."
"And you believed him," Liora closed her eyes, breathing deeply like soone trying not to scream. "Of course you believed him if he used ambiguous language... For soone sincere, reading a noble’s mana can be counterproductive, eh? Oh Ren..."
Her voice was exasperated but also had so protective concern.
"But the social practice?" Ren protested, grasping at the logic that had made sense to him. "It’s real. And the girls are being useful. In fact, I think that’s why there are fewer groups now. They’re applying what we’re practicing and..."
Larissa looked at him fixedly, her blue eyes intense. "Ren, have you noticed that only girls from the most important houses remained?"
"Uh... yes?"
"Doesn’t that seem suspicious to you? To begin with, that so-called ’social practice’ doesn’t exist..."
"But... I thought the more insecure girls from minor houses had given up and moved away because of it," Ren admitted, the words coming out defensive despite himself. "Or that I was projecting sothing different that discouraged them thanks to..."
Mayo let out a hysterical laugh, the sound bursting from her like she couldn’t contain it anymore. "Oh, gods. This is gold. Pure gold."
"I don’t understand," Ren said, his frustration growing with each second. "Why are you upset? Things have improved. They’re not chasing as much. And I thought..." he stopped, realizing sothing.
His eyes widened slightly with the connection.
"I thought Larissa was teaching the sa thing." Ren pointed at her, the gesture almost accusatory in his confusion.
Larissa flushed intensely, the red rising to her cheeks like a tide. "I... that’s not..."
"Isn’t it?" Ren asked with genuine confusion, trying to understand. "You’ve been acting similarly. Touching a bit longer when you correct my posture. Positioning yourself closer. I thought it was part of common social practice. Showing how it works... I thought I understood better because I noticed Liora does it sotis too!"
Liora turned around and covered her face with both hands, a muffled sound escaping that might have been a groan or a whimper.
Larissa’s face went from red to crimson, a color so intense it looked almost painful. She opened her mouth. Closed it. Opened it again. She seed completely incapable of forming words, her usual composure shattered into pieces.
Mayo was laughing so hard she had to hold onto the table and sit in a chair. "Oh... oh this is... I can’t... it’s too good..."
"Mayo," Maria said with warning tone, though her own lips trembled slightly with the effort of not joining in.
Larissa finally found her voice, though it ca out as a shriek. "I wasn’t teaching you anything!"
"No?" Ren frowned, confusion deepening into sothing close to hurt. "Then why...?"
"Because I... because I... don’t make say it, idiot!" Larissa practically scread, then covered her mouth with both hands, her eyes widening with horror at what she’d just said.
Ren froze completely, his brain attempting to process the aning of the words.
Mayo bit the table’s tablecloth, otherwise she would have laughed too loudly.
Liora squeezed her eyes shut, as if dealing with a massive headache. "Larissa..."
The na ca out pained, sympathetic even.
"I have to leave," Larissa said suddenly, standing so fast her chair almost fell over. The sound of wood scraping echoed in the still-silent hall. "I have to... class. I have class. Goodbye."
And she ran out of the dining hall, her usual composure completely abandoned.
Leaving Ren sitting alone with Liora and Mayo, who was still laughing uncontrollably... until she received a hit on the head from Maria.
"I..." Ren began, but he had no idea how to finish that sentence. No idea what he was even trying to say.
Liora observed him still with her face covered, looking through her fingers.
"Ren," she said finally, her voice strangely high-pitched but with an edge that made him pay attention. "I need you to understand sothing very clearly. Those three girls Aldric brought aren’t here for ’social practice’. They’re here because their families sent them to seduce you. To win your favor. To eventually try to marry you."
"But I... they..."
"No," Liora interrupted firmly, removing her hands from her face finally. Her expression was serious in a way he rarely saw, stripped of her usual playfulness. "Listen. I don’t know if Aldric also lied to them saying you asked for ’social practice’, or if they’re playing that angle intentionally. But the result is the sa. And apparently, Larissa and Luna hate that," her voice beca very small, "and I do too..."
"I don’t understand, I don’t think I did anything wrong," Ren protested, desperation creeping into his voice. "They’re just..."
"You can still use your version of mana eyes, right? Ask them directly," her voice hardened slightly, taking on an edge of challenge.
"But... I asked... the truth was they just wanted to help and..."
"Exactly," Liora said, the word sharp. "They’re making themselves useful. Indispensable. That’s the strategy. And anwhile, Luna thinks you’re ignoring her. Larissa just had an emotional breakdown. And I," she leaned back in her chair, studying him with sharp eyes, "am realizing there’s more competition than I anticipated."
"Competition for what?"
Mayo stopped holding back laughter for a second to hit her forehead and look at him with incredulity. "Seriously?"
Liora observed him too, her expression cycling through several emotions before settling on resigned understanding.
"Ren," she said finally, and there was sothing in her tone that made him give complete attention again. Sothing serious and vulnerable... and important. "Do you rember when I told you I liked you? In that tree."
Ren’s face turned completely red instantly, heat flooding to his ears. "I... yes. I rember."
The mory was vivid. Too vivid.
"And do you rember you told we’d take ti? That we weren’t in a hurry?"
"Yes," Ren responded, his voice coming out lower, almost a whisper.
Liora leaned forward, her eyes fixed on his with an intensity that made it impossible to look away. "What do you think about Larissa and Luna?"
Ren opened his mouth. Closed it. His brain tried to process, failing from the heat.
Luna had kissed him once, but afterward had strongly denied her interest. Had said it was a mistake. And since then she’d been... distant when any family or Sirius’s topic ca up.
Larissa... he’d obsessed over her for a long ti until he could apologize, but he didn’t know if what he felt was guilt or romantic interest. And she had avoided him for a long ti, so she wouldn’t be interested in him that way... right?
But there had been those monts after their reconciliation where she seed to want to say sothing important but never did. And then there was that ti Ren thought maybe they’d kissed but wasn’t sure if it was a dream...
"I... don’t know," he finally admitted, his ears burning with embarrassnt. "I appreciate them but... I think there are more important problems to solve first. Before anything..."
"I’m sure I’m going to regret helping my rivals," Liora muttered to herself, the words barely audible.
She leaned back in her chair, sighing deeply. The sound carried so resignation, but mostly... Resolve.
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