Betsy’s girls' night out was a stroll through the town with her friends Ravina, Sheila, Aubrey, and Millie. Betsy led the group through a well-off area of the city. The city, under the jurisdiction of the royal family, was well maintained. However, it was still governed by an aristocracy, and certain parts of the city were restricted, requiring either a higher pedigree or enough cash to bribe one’s way in.

Students in the city were given last names if they didn't already have them, which is why even the simple children of farmers were granted a surname. This allowed the students access to most parts of the city, but the Kendel district required more than just a last name. To enter, one needed to be a noble of established lineage—or, in Betsy’s case, she only had to flirt with a young guard and slip him a handful of don.

It was in the fabulous noble district that the girls indulged in various treats and admired the many sights. It was at a particular establishment that they found a way to coax Aubrey out of her shell. “He’s just so cute!” she insisted, finishing her glass of wine. “I mean, I’ve always had to lean on him ever since I arrived at the orphanage, but he was just so dashing. When he was 13 years old, do you know what he said to me?!” Unfortunately, her excitement was focused solely on her boyfriend.

“Hey,” Sheila nudged Ravina, “is that okay? She’s kind of… crazy?”

“Um… well, they are a cute couple…”

“Not that,” Sheila tutted, “I mean letting her drink that much.”

“That much? It was only half a glass.”

“Yeah, and she’s not handling it well.”

“I’d be more concerned about that one.”

“That one?” Sheila’s question was answered when Betsy hugged her from behind.

“Hey, what’re you whispering about over here?”

“Betty, hey, watch the hands.”

Ravina took a sip of her wine, savoring the pleasant aroma and the rich taste of berries and wood—at least, that’s what she wanted to believe. Unfortunately, the taste was too strong for her, and she realized after the first sip that she didn’t really like alcohol. However, her friends were watching her expectantly… okay, so maybe it was peer pressure, and she found herself susceptible to it. But it was fine. Based on Aubrey’s rosy cheeks and cheerful chatter, Sheila’s smiling eyes, and Millie’s third glass of wine, she could tell they were all fully enjoying the moment without a thought of school—and so was she.

Soon enough, they were kicked out of the district. It was inevitable. Although they had money, their group was a bit too rowdy for the noble district. The guards, however, were gentle enough to guide them to another area. With that, the group decided to head to the night festival. In the end, Betsy carried an inebriated Aubrey out of the district while the others followed.

“Suppose that’s it for today?” Millie suggested.

“What do you mean?!” Betsy objected. “We’ve got plenty of time until the sun falls out of the sky—woah, I gotcha girl!” Her enthusiastic declaration nearly caused her to drop Aubrey. However, she quickly recovered, eliciting a gentle, “Weeee,” from the poor girl.

“Nah, I need to work on my finals right now. I’ve been sort of putting it off,” Sheila commented with a dry laugh. “Ugh, I can’t even think about what I should focus on…”

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

“Right, it’s way too open. We’ve only been studying for a year, and now they hit us with this annoying demand,” Millie complained.

“Right? First of all, we haven't learned anything practical and it's been one theory after the other, how exactly are we supposed to figure out anything!”

Their voices rose in noisy complaints about the unfairness of the classes and even some concerns about the two-year program itself. The group continued their chatter until they bumped into a rather dashing young man. He was leading two other men, and Shelia accidentally collided with him as she turned the corner, causing him to catch her so she wouldn’t fall.

“Whoa, gotcha. Are you alright?” he asked, ever the image of a dashing young knight. Of course, he was dressed as a commoner—though a wealthy one at least. He had an untamed mop of unruly brown hair and dull brown-gray eyes that sparkled with bemused consent.

“Ah, n-no, it was my fault fo- fo-” Shelia stammered, her face flushing as she felt the sturdy muscles under the man's fine clothes. She truly faltered when her bright green eyes met his. Yet, it wasn’t warmth that filled her body but a small chill.

She soon began to struggle, and the man let her go easily. “Take it easy; don’t want you to get hurt, alright?” he said, studying her face as she stepped back. Sensing the change in her friend, Betsy tossed Aubrey to Millie and stepped in front of Shelia, while Ravina put a comforting hand on her shoulder.

“Oie, what’d you do to ‘er?” Betsy demanded.

“Watch it, she bumped into him,” one of his friends insisted.

“So, what right does that give you to bully our sweet lily?”

“Hey now,” the young man said, clapping his hands. “Let’s not get out of hand. I don’t mind what happened, but I am concerned about her. Is she alright?” He narrowed his eyes as he looked at Shelia. “She seems familiar,” he muttered, but his view was blocked when Betsy stepped in front of him.

“She’s sorry, we’re sorry, good day,” she insisted, and with that, the girls started moving past them. Betsy played defense, Ravina guided the shaken Shelia away, and even Millie gave them a cheeky face, sticking out her tongue in mockery. Though she looked less intimidating with Aubrey in her arms, her red face beamed brightly at them.

Still she was able to contribute to them by telling them that, “Cammy’s cuter, hehehe.”

They almost made it when the guy called out after them. “Shelia?” he asked, “is that you?” Ravina felt the girl shiver hearing her name.

“What of it!?” Betsy shouted, “she wants nothing to do with you.”

“Ah, I see.” there was a sad expression on his face but he continued. “It make sense, still if I can just have a small moment of her time-’

“Absolutely not!” Betsy insisted, signaling the others to keep moving. Just like that, they began walking again until another shout echoed down the street.

“I’m sorry.” The boy was bent at a full 90 degrees, his eyes closed and his body tense. His friends objected, and the entire street looked on, but he continued, “I just wanted to say I am sorry.” He remained in that position as the group hesitated, glancing over at Sheila.

“He’s… sorry?” she whispered loudly. With her ragged breaths and slight perspiration causing sweat to cling to her skin, Ravina decided to pull her forward, trying to get her away from the man. However, Sheila pulled away from her grip and walked, slightly unsteadily, toward the man still bent over like a capital L. She swallowed, despite her mouth being dry. “You’re sorry?” she repeated.

“I should have never treated you that way. I know that now, and I also know that nothing I can say will ever fix it, but… I am sorry. I won’t ask for your forgiveness or anything more.”

To the world, it seemed like a man was apologizing sweetly to a woman he must have wronged. However, to Sheila, her entire world was shrinking. Everything was becoming small and fading away into a white nothingness. “Sorry?” Why is he sorry? He couldn’t be sorry; he didn’t do anything wrong. Right, she deserved it. That’s why she had to flee, that’s why she ran away, that’s why she had to escape. But he was sorry? He should have never treated her that way? But… but… She hugged herself, shivering from the venom of his sincere apology.

Betsy collected her. “Enough,” she called to him as she turned Sheila away, and the two of them walked off. The rest of the group followed, leaving the boys behind.