-Fei's POV-
Yet another day is going to pass.
I breathed out when I remembered the small back of Charlotte that day. She seemed so fragile she would break but... I had nothing to say to ease her pains.
...as I thought, I'm not good enough for her.
After all, I'm nothing but a Vagnalos. The fact that I could think up ten steps ahead when reading the flow of battlefield never helped me in pleasing other people, much less entertaining women.
More like... I don't understand women. I don't get what they think about certain topics and they're hard to tell I think I want to give up. However, I can't.
"Not now. Not like this..." I clenched my fists and gazed up at the sky.
...I need more time. I've already decided so I can no longer be swayed by anything. What I must do is to go straight ahead. Simple to say but hard to do.
Even so, I will do it. Even if I have to kill them...
"Feliiiiiixxxx!!"
...damn. She found me. I looked behind me and there's a girl with odd hairstyle. I'm not sure how her hair spiraled like that but it's definitely an odd sight. Really odd.
"Now I'm repeating myself for three times... I guess it really is odd."
I put a hand on my face as the girl furrowed her brows and told me off. About what? Well, it's obviously about the council and various other things.
I did submit the formal reports about the incident to Luna but I had no reason to tell her that I chose Charlotte as my Oratoria. She would be in glee and I'm quite sure I won't like the outcome if the secret leaked out.
Other than that, only the student council knew my circumstance. Though Roland slumped down in his chair, Herbert laughed like mad, and only Chloe smiled like the usual. Should there be something worth to mention...
It's the fact that this fiery red haired girl became furious. I wonder if I should appease her wrath or flee from her?
...no. I mustn't do that. As long as she's a noble, I can't turn my tail and run from her. The way to repel threats coming from the nobles is to put a calm face and remaining unperturbed by storms. Just like how I deal with the annoying fat pigs trying to lick my shoes.
"And? Is there anything else?" I said without a hint of emotion.
Renleina was flabbergasted. She glanced around with her cheeks tinted red but I could see her agitation from her gestures. She's losing her cool, eh?
"If there's nothing, then I have to go—"
"W-wait! Please wait!!"
The redheaded girl grasped my sleeve and I furrowed my eyebrows.
...Tch. Now what...? I glared at her but Renleina being Renleina, she was trembling and she looked like a clown. I don't have time to waste for yet she's stalling me...
"Fe... Felix... are you close with Charlotte Augmund...?"
"Ha...?"
"I... I saw you carrying her in the Spring Incident. But... but, your expressions were like no other..."
Why? She asked. Mh... is she digging information about her? I can't say I'm correct but I felt a bad feeling about this.
One reason being that Charlotte is the heiress of the Augmund family. This fact is still kept quiet but some would probably remember vaguely about that household on the brink of ruin. I'm not even sure if it still existed since I rarely went to the royal palace, but it's still something I need to investigate before I took my leave.
The other reason is about my relationship with her. I can't just blurt out I knew her from childhood since it would cause ruckus, not to mention people would target her. Most who hated me could never hope to throw me down under the rugs physically, so they might try to use our bonds as their bargain chips.
The last time it happened, the old bastard killed my best friend to teach me a lesson.
I didn't want the same thing to happen again. Losing one person is already more than enough for me so I can't let people discover the truth. Come to think of it, that son of a bitch with rapier seemed to know it... has someone spied on me and sold information to him?
"That's none of your business."
I yanked off my arm but Renleina grabbed my arm, then I pulled it off her and broke into a small run only for her to grasp the end of my coat. Gah! She's persistent! The fuck is this stalker trying to do, huh!?
"Let... me...! Go!"
"No... no! You're misunderstanding! At least hear me out first!!"
"Nothing will do me good by getting together with a noble like you...! Get off me!!"
The girl screamed 'Noooooooooooooooooo!' hysterically and it ticked me off! If people were to hear us out then my name will go down into oblivion and Luna will laugh at me for months!! As if I want another annoying title like the 'Black Hero' or 'The Ladies' Man'!
The one I like is Charlotte! Even if I have to be dominated or dominating her, anything is fine as long as it's for her sake! Yes! I have no reason to become the 'Yes Man!' of women other than Charlotte!!
"This is bad...! If Charlotte were to see this—"
"Oh, so you don't want me to see you flirting and doing inappropriate things with that girl?"
I instantly turned my head. There was a snapping sound but my regenerative ability healed me in moment's notice ever since I Harmonized.
But... standing in the middle of the corridor... was a golden haired girl with emerald pupils staring dagger at me.
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Here I thought things would flow calmly.
The moment I peered at the pair of obsidian grey, the two idiots separated together. The owner of the grey pupils approached me and stood in front of me. The eyes showing bewilderment and the mouth agape as if gawking.
It's already clear who's in front of me. No one would miss the handsome facial covered by dark strands of hair, darker than night and his well-toned figure. Summing it all up, an Ikemen or a handsome man and his name is, by the way, Felix Sanctum Raumia AKA the Black Hero.
To be honest, I wanted to punch and bore his skull with a drill for psychological therapy. Unfortunately, I have absolutely no proficiency when it came to something other than swords and bladed weapons.
Once, when I tried to swing a hammer to fix a chair, the head instantly flew and it hit father right at the groin. Then, when I tried a fishing pole, the hook was stuck at Leon's clothes and he got thrown into the river as additional bait. What's more, I tried using a bow recently but the arrow flew before turning around only to stab Anise's butt. The bow itself became a boomerang and replaced Instructor's moustache.
...somehow, almost all usable tools turned into dreadful weapons with 'friendly fire' attribute in my hands. I wonder why and how but it's one of the 7 mysteries in my second life. The other six are... well, in any case...
"...Charlotte...? Do you need something here...?" Fei asked in confusion.
Ah, he broke the ice this time. Well, this place is the hallway within the edge of the west wing at the Knight Course building. And it's still a day after I asked something out-of-my-character to senior. But, it didn't seem like he's around so...
"Fei." I called out in a tone colder than the longest winter in my history.
It's not even worth to compare it with the time when I drowned in my childhood and Fei flinched. Hm. Since he looked like he's prepared to answer my question, next...
"You're going off this weekend right?"
"Yes."
"You have no intention to bring me along, right?"
"Yes."
"Is it because you have a reason to do it by yourself?"
"Yes."
"You don't need any help right?"
"Yes."
"And you have not an ounce of hesitation to pick Renleina and Chloe as my substitutes?"
"Yes—wait, wha—"
A punch flew faster than wind connected with Fei's jaw. His body blasted up and floating in midair, embracing the ceiling and...
*CRASH!* The Black Hero fell headfirst. Clouds of dust rose up, then I snorted before turning away.
"Ch-Charlotte...!?" Fei came out from the smokes.
As expected, he's uninjured. I felt less resistance so he must have parried my hand and landed in a systematic manner to cut down the damages. I'm amazed by his brilliance but he's being a jerk for doing that.
"Are... are you upset?" Fei asked.
"No, I'm not." I answered
"...you're upset, aren't you?" Fei asked again.
"No, I'm not upset. I'm just taking out my stresses." I answered back.
The youth frowned, but he masked his worry and bowed down deeply. Wow, a 90 degrees bow? Really?
"...I'm sorry." He said with a slightly hoarse voice.
...well, now. Why is he apologizing now? The violence that happened had already attracted many attentions, you know? Doesn't the other students have their interests piqued now?
Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.
I sighed and crossed my arms. Oh, are they growing bigger again...? Ugh. It's starting to tire out my shoulders. Let's just wrap this up quick.
"...I'm going to attend a Peace Gathering with the Golden Tiger Monarchy."
My words caused Fei to straighten his back up and his eyes resembled saucers now. It wasn't long until his complexion paled.
"Please tell me that is a joke..." he muttered.
"No, I'm serious. Dead serious." I said.
His lips started to quiver and I saw Fei's shoulders heaving up and down. What? Is he angry? Too bad that I badly need the 27 A+ scores so there's no way I want to pick other options. I mean... this kind of harmless Quest doesn't compare with the alternatives which sounded impossible even for Fei.
"You mustn't attend it. It is too dangerous for you."
...is he implying I'm too weak to even negotiate? What is he talking about? Treating me as a child now...?
"Charlotte, will you reconsider it...?" Fei asked as if begging, but all I could do was to exhale.
"You do know that I am a noble from Aeinsland, correct? Then, it is already obvious why I cannot back down." I refuted his words.
The youth nearly shouted 'but...!' when I interrupted him again.
"Do I need to repeat myself?"
He flinched, and he looked down while biting his lips. He voiced an apology with the tone as if vomiting blood.
...well, I might be too harsh on him, but when I looked behind him, I couldn't help to spat out those words. Haa... things just wouldn't go well for me.
Well, fine! I have to make the line now so it's definitely okay for me to do this!!
"Fei." I called out. "Do you want to stop me?"
"......no. I cannot be so insolent to disobey your order, Charlotte."
I see, I see... so you're my faithfully loyal dog? Well, sorry but I don't have any reason to become sadistic. I curved my lips upward and said.
"Then, this is my order while I'm not around. Do listen well, okay?"
The dog young man looked at me intently. Yosh, I got his attention so next is...! I approached him and leaned forward, then, when our bodies almost made physical contact, I poked Fei's chest.
"Don't. You. Dare. To. Sleep. With. Anyone."
...what I got was a priceless expression enough to please my rotten mood. Fei panicked with red cheeks and he raised his voice.
"W-wait! Ju-just what are you saying...!?"
"Oh? Are you trying to play dumb when you already stole my lips twice? You're such a beast..."
Fei froze as if he was stared at by a Medusa. As I thought, that topic is a sore spot for him. Then... Let's see how he can handle this!
"You promised me your eternal devotion... Were you toying with my feelings all the time...? Even for the last seven years...?" I faked a tear and sobbed.
In response, Fei's complexion paled and he opened and closed his mouth to find words to convince me. It's sad how it looked like a fallout of marriage but I want him to suffer for he's prioritizing other women! Then, Fei's shoulders trembled and he snapped.
"Fine! FINE!! Once I returned, I will do whatever you want!! I promise!!"
Yosha! I made a guts pose in my mind. Then, giving a glance and a triumphant grin toward Renleina, I curtsied while bowing with elegance.
"My apologies for the unsightly scene. Please pardon my rudeness, Miss Volkhausen. I shall excuse myself for my class now."
Huh!? Fei exasperated but before he could say anything else, I have already broken the exchange with a 180 degrees. Widening the distances between us. On the way, though...
"...wait a minute. Why does it feel like I did something more embarrassing than being seen naked by Fei...?"
H-huh, it can't be, right? It's not like I intended to do it by my own will. But... If I remember correctly... that situation was like in a harem romcom story.
The scene is similar with when the legal wife claimed who's the number one woman for the protagonist...
"No no no! It can't be! Who's the legal wife anyway!? Me!?"
Impossible! There's no way I have any ulterior motive such as implying 'he's mine!' in front of other women...! I'm a man! Why do I have to care about the affairs of someone I considered as a rival rather than a lover!?
My heart thumped faster and I coughed once pain surged from my chest. More specifically, the black Crest is glowing brighter and I shuddered at the thought of it being exposed in this kind of place.
"Th-this is bad... I'm getting too excited. I shouldn't incite my illness and the Crest's feedback..."
I heaved up and down to restore my breathing interval back to default. I started to learn that my emotions affected the activity of the Crest to some extent. It means, the amount of mana may destabilize if I got too angry or saddened. The level of pains also changed depending on my mood and it was agonizing me.
But... There's something odd about it. I couldn't put up proper explanation but... somehow, my illness also reacted to the Crest as if in sync. At the moment, if my emotion leaned to an aspect way too much, my body would grow weaker and the body temperature would shoot up as the first sign of the relapse.
I can't let myself to go sick when I still have a Quest to do, and I don't want to be seen having this Crest glowing. I looked around and confirmed the situation.
"...no Anise is insight. Alia isn't around too."
Good... Nobody is around and I went downstairs. Hmh... let's go to the backyard and calm myself down. I think there's a garden over there.
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Leimburg Academy has a wide, vacant space filled with flowers and lush trees. One could see it as a small park with gardens for students to cultivate flowers if not vegetables and there's a glasshouse to store a collection of rare plants and herbs.
Near the glasshouse, there is a terrace made by white river rocks and there are a set of chairs in addition of a round table. Though it's autumn, I could see colorful light orbs floating around the garden, spreading glittering dusts.
They were pixies or small fairies. If I remember correctly, they functioned as guardians of the garden and they nurtured the soil to be enriched by their magic. Even some were said to have the ability to keep the temperature at a degree optimal for the plants to live longer and healthier once they settled in the area.
"Though saying that, they're mischievous." I shrugged as I entered the garden through a manmade path.
At this hour, nobody should be around and I don't have any classes in the afternoon.
Well, even if I wanted to attend classes, almost all teachers in charge of combat courses denied my presence. They said I have to recover properly or else someone will get hurt badly.
...somehow, the teachers thought of me as if I'm a mad dog. Well, whatever. I might as well find something to read like the topics about Golden Tiger Monarchy. It can be a good thing to learn for...
"...oh my? Now this is unusual..."
Huh...? I looked ahead of me, and there's someone who didn't fit well with the pure white terrace.
Coated with black coat, it seemed to be made from high-quality fur with incredible thickness and fluffiest. But, the appearance was too ragged and improper to be considered as a clothing when there was nothing underneath the oversized coat.
Exposed by faint sunlight was a porcelain white skin. Slender and skinny enough to look like branches of a peony tree, and wrapping the busty figure that caused an irritation to swell inside of me.
The most important point would be the face. Feminine enough to have men halt their steps, and sharp enough to make women mistake it as a young man's face. Veiled by oddly glimmering black-white hair tied by an extremely long strap of a ribbon, the lapis lazuli colored eyes stared at me as if seeing through my heart.
What... what is this feeling...?
I took a step back and faltered. My heart beating faster than ever and an odd shiver ran down my spine. Even the pain from my chest multiplied...!
Oh no...! The Crest is acting stronger...! Ah, aaaah...! This... is... bad...!!
"Well, now..." The person let out a melodious voice.
Low enough to be called as a whisper, loud enough to be heard, and neither too deep nor too high pitched. I was reminded of the androgynous voice I happened to hear in the Dungeon but this voice was different.
With a tone conveying innocence, the girl in black clothing tilted her head.
"How do you do? Are you my mistress?
...
I was unable to do anything, and staying rooted on the spot for moments that seemed like eternity. Then, my body fell back along with my consciousness. In other words...
I fainted.