She happened to meet Eugenie in front of the study room. How many times had she witnessed Clarisse muttering, ‘I don’t pity her,’ while giving her strange looks?
“Uh, it’s because of Belleville.” Clarisse quickly gave an excuse. “He keeps asking me to be his friend.”
“…Abington?”
Eugenie’s eyes wavered for a moment; it seemed hard to trust what Clarisse was saying.
“Yes, he was going to give me a basket of tangerines. I heard that he received it from a priest.”
“You mean Abington?”
“That’s right. So he helped me find my name in the attendance register yesterday?”
“That Abington?!”
Clarisse nodded enthusiastically.
Eugenie, after thinking for a while, gave the only answer with a serious face. “Did Abington study too hard…?”
“Oh, I know what it is.” Clarisse, who had heard stories from Quentin about people getting strange from studying too much, added, “There used to be test takers who would randomly run through the monastery hallways on rainy days. Some even sprayed ink and played in the small lake in the central garden.”
It seems that such legends were more diverse than expected. Eugenie also nodded and gave another example.
“I heard that there are test takers who stay in their rooms all night.”
At that moment, Abington, holding a basket of tangerines, was coming hurriedly down the stairs.
Eugenie and Clarisse looked at him at the same time. With eyes filled with deep compassion.
“How hard must he have studied…”
But when he looked up and saw Clarisse, his eyes sparkled, and she got goosebumps.
“E, Eugenie! Then I will go. Have a good day today, too?”
After hurriedly saying hello, Clarisse quickly left the room. It was fortunate that Noah got out of the study room at that moment.
Even if he wasn’t, he was on his way to look for her.
“Noah!”
Clarisse quickly grabbed his arm.
“Girl?”
He glanced back and saw that Abington, who was approaching Clarisse, had somehow stopped after spotting Noah. It seemed like he was afraid of Noah. Clarisse couldn’t figure out why Noah, wearing a cute cat mask, could be scary.
Is it because of that red light that suddenly appears in Noah’s hand?
She didn’t know what it was, but since Noah didn’t use magic to harm people, it must be some kind of helpful magic.
“Why is he following the girl?”
“He wants to be friends.”
“…Are you talking about Belleville?”
“Mhm, he was going to give me a basket of tangerines.”
“Belleville?”
“Mhm, he helped me find my name in the attendance register yesterday?”
“That Abington Belleville?”
Clarisse nodded quickly. “Eugenie said it might be because he studied a lot.”
“Indeed, there was a similar example among the wizards. Every night when lightning struck, they took off their clothes and ran outside.”
“That…It’s really terrible. I never want to see it.”
“The desire for learning is sometimes scary. Therefore, girls should always study while maintaining a good ratio between rest and study.”
“Mhm, I will. By the way, Noah.” Clarisse looked at him, paused for a moment, and then cautiously asked a question. “Did… I do something wrong?”
Clarisse asked that question because Noah’s behavior was different from usual. Today was the last morning cleaning day, but unlike before, he didn’t move with Clarisse. Even after breakfast, he somehow ends up going somewhere alone…
There was no reason why Noah had to stay with Clarisse. However, she was worried that this sudden change in behavior was because Clarisse had done something wrong.
“Ugh…”
It looks like something was bothering him too. She watched him fiddle with the mask as if in contemplation. “G, girl didn’t do anything wrong. I, it’s a little uncomfortable…”
“Still, you should tell me; I think I should be careful if Noah is uncomfortable.”
“Really no, absolutely not.”
“Still…”
What did it mean that Noah was uncomfortable with Clarisse? That was very heartbreaking. As Clarisse muttered, unable to say anything, he extended one arm in front of her.
“….?”
There was a white ribbon beneath the flowing robe.
“Ah.”
It symbolized the friendship between Noah and Clarisse. So, Noah seemed to want to say that he hadn’t changed at all.
‘Somehow… Has he come up with a situation where he can’t talk about it?’
Clarisse felt like she wanted to dig into his story as a friend. But she soon quit.
‘I’m not even telling Noah my whole story.’
Even if there was a secret she couldn’t tell him, Noah was very precious to Clarisse. Probably Noah was like that too.
“I won’t ask any more questions, but if it gets too difficult, you need to let me know, okay?”
“Uhm, okay. Is Girl on your way to study?”
“That’s right, but right now I have something to discuss with Noah.”
“To me?”
Clarisse nodded and looked around for a moment. They were near the study room, and there were quite a few test takers walking around. In other words, it was an unsuitable environment for talking about secrets.
“Noah, why don’t you go to my room?”
“….!”
Clarisse tilted her head as he suddenly took a deep breath.
“If you don’t like my room, I can go to Noah’s room.”
“I, I don’t think either of those are such a good idea.”
“But that’s the only way to talk quietly.”
Noah, who had been contemplating something for a moment, gently shook his head, saying, ‘It’s still not advisable, as expected’.
“Instead of that, it would be better to take a walk outside and talk. There are few people outside the monastery, so it will be suitable for conversation.”
“Mhm? Okay.”
Clarisse nodded quickly, as anywhere was fine as long as they could talk quietly.
* * *
Noah was relieved to be able to talk to Clarisse outside.
The reason he refused her invitation to go to her room was because his feelings for Clarisse were not appropriate. He didn’t want to leave Clarisse alone in a room with a man who harbored such evil feelings.
Even if that man was himself.
And above all, it wouldn’t help his ‘healing’.
He was a monster mixed with stone, and she was an ordinary human being. Can it really be said that having a crush on an absolutely different being is a normal emotion?
No, absolutely not.
So, Noah classified his emotions as one of ‘disease.’ It’s something that needs to be healed quickly.
They left the monastery’s main gate side by side.
“Wow.”
The nearby fields, as well as the mountains in the distance, were newly covered in white from the snow that had fallen overnight.
“Pretty. Ah… I forgot.”
With an excited expression and a delighted sound, Clarisse, who had previously enjoyed the situation, seemed to have finally realized something about herself, shrugging one of her shoulders and smiling.
“I was hoping it wouldn’t snow.”
“It’s not like Girl’s usual answer. Didn’t you say that Sheridan Manor is upset because you can’t build a snowman without snow?”
“Yeah, that’s true. Prince Valentine said…”
In the midst of the casual conversation, Noah felt a subtle discomfort again when he heard that name.
Still, he endured it and listened to her and Valentine’s story without giving any specific response.
“So, what is Girl’s secret story?”
“Uhm…”
They walked slowly along the path they had taken this morning.
“You know, I’m going to say something now, and Noah might feel a little uncomfortable.”
“What’s going on? You’re taking such a long time?”
“That’s…”
Clarisse held her hands together, thought for a moment, and began to explain with difficulty. It was a story about a special jewel given to her by the Marchioness of Curno. Noah quickly figured out why Clarisse first spoke like this while understanding Noah’s feelings.
“This story…It can be uncomfortable for me.”
Noah stopped walking and turned to look at Clarisse.
“Mhm.” Clarisse also looked straight at him and nodded.
“The blood relatives test came back saying there was no matching blood. Last weekend.”
Clarisse is probably saying that she doubts the conclusions of the wizards.
Noah didn’t feel particularly offended by that fact. Because he didn’t feel a bond with other wizards in the first place.
“Of course, I thought there was a possibility that what the gem said was wrong. However, seeing it accurately recognize people other than madam…”
“It means you can’t just let it go.”
“Mhm, that’s right.”
“However, blood relatives testing is the most accurate test among existing methods…”
Noah stopped talking for a moment.
As he said a moment ago, the blood test itself was highly reliable magic. However, the problem was that the person who performed the magic and delivered the results was ultimately a ‘human’.
Moreover, didn’t Noah see a very strange sight last weekend when the results were delivered?
Inside the second castle wall, where wizards rarely enter and exit, there was a wizard wearing gray robes. And that too, without even wearing the robe he was supposed to wear.
Noah remembered that he had a letter in his hand.
Of course, that might be because the wizard hid his identity for personal reasons.
However… just in case.
Really just one chance.
What if that has something to do with the Duchess’ test results?
“Uhm…”
This may be an excessive assumption.
No, it was undoubtedly an assumption.
There was no reason for the wizards to worry about testing the blood relatives of nobles.
“Please…prepare a place, Clarisse. I will check it myself.”
She happened to meet Eugenie in front of the study room. How many times had she witnessed Clarisse muttering, ‘I don’t pity her,’ while giving her strange looks?
“Uh, it’s because of Belleville.” Clarisse quickly gave an excuse. “He keeps asking me to be his friend.”
“…Abington?”
Eugenie’s eyes wavered for a moment; it seemed hard to trust what Clarisse was saying.
“Yes, he was going to give me a basket of tangerines. I heard that he received it from a priest.”
“You mean Abington?”
“That’s right. So he helped me find my name in the attendance register yesterday?”
“That Abington?!”
Clarisse nodded enthusiastically.
Eugenie, after thinking for a while, gave the only answer with a serious face. “Did Abington study too hard…?”
“Oh, I know what it is.” Clarisse, who had heard stories from Quentin about people getting strange from studying too much, added, “There used to be test takers who would randomly run through the monastery hallways on rainy days. Some even sprayed ink and played in the small lake in the central garden.”
It seems that such legends were more diverse than expected. Eugenie also nodded and gave another example.
“I heard that there are test takers who stay in their rooms all night.”
At that moment, Abington, holding a basket of tangerines, was coming hurriedly down the stairs.
Eugenie and Clarisse looked at him at the same time. With eyes filled with deep compassion.
“How hard must he have studied…”
But when he looked up and saw Clarisse, his eyes sparkled, and she got goosebumps.
“E, Eugenie! Then I will go. Have a good day today, too?”
After hurriedly saying hello, Clarisse quickly left the room. It was fortunate that Noah got out of the study room at that moment.
Even if he wasn’t, he was on his way to look for her.
“Noah!”
Clarisse quickly grabbed his arm.
“Girl?”
He glanced back and saw that Abington, who was approaching Clarisse, had somehow stopped after spotting Noah. It seemed like he was afraid of Noah. Clarisse couldn’t figure out why Noah, wearing a cute cat mask, could be scary.
Is it because of that red light that suddenly appears in Noah’s hand?
She didn’t know what it was, but since Noah didn’t use magic to harm people, it must be some kind of helpful magic.
“Why is he following the girl?”
“He wants to be friends.”
“…Are you talking about Belleville?”
“Mhm, he was going to give me a basket of tangerines.”
“Belleville?”
“Mhm, he helped me find my name in the attendance register yesterday?”
“That Abington Belleville?”
Clarisse nodded quickly. “Eugenie said it might be because he studied a lot.”
“Indeed, there was a similar example among the wizards. Every night when lightning struck, they took off their clothes and ran outside.”
“That…It’s really terrible. I never want to see it.”
“The desire for learning is sometimes scary. Therefore, girls should always study while maintaining a good ratio between rest and study.”
“Mhm, I will. By the way, Noah.” Clarisse looked at him, paused for a moment, and then cautiously asked a question. “Did… I do something wrong?”
Clarisse asked that question because Noah’s behavior was different from usual. Today was the last morning cleaning day, but unlike before, he didn’t move with Clarisse. Even after breakfast, he somehow ends up going somewhere alone…
There was no reason why Noah had to stay with Clarisse. However, she was worried that this sudden change in behavior was because Clarisse had done something wrong.
“Ugh…”
It looks like something was bothering him too. She watched him fiddle with the mask as if in contemplation. “G, girl didn’t do anything wrong. I, it’s a little uncomfortable…”
“Still, you should tell me; I think I should be careful if Noah is uncomfortable.”
“Really no, absolutely not.”
“Still…”
What did it mean that Noah was uncomfortable with Clarisse? That was very heartbreaking. As Clarisse muttered, unable to say anything, he extended one arm in front of her.
“….?”
There was a white ribbon beneath the flowing robe.
“Ah.”
It symbolized the friendship between Noah and Clarisse. So, Noah seemed to want to say that he hadn’t changed at all.
‘Somehow… Has he come up with a situation where he can’t talk about it?’
Clarisse felt like she wanted to dig into his story as a friend. But she soon quit.
‘I’m not even telling Noah my whole story.’
Even if there was a secret she couldn’t tell him, Noah was very precious to Clarisse. Probably Noah was like that too.
“I won’t ask any more questions, but if it gets too difficult, you need to let me know, okay?”
“Uhm, okay. Is Girl on your way to study?”
“That’s right, but right now I have something to discuss with Noah.”
“To me?”
Clarisse nodded and looked around for a moment. They were near the study room, and there were quite a few test takers walking around. In other words, it was an unsuitable environment for talking about secrets.
“Noah, why don’t you go to my room?”
“….!”
Clarisse tilted her head as he suddenly took a deep breath.
“If you don’t like my room, I can go to Noah’s room.”
“I, I don’t think either of those are such a good idea.”
“But that’s the only way to talk quietly.”
Noah, who had been contemplating something for a moment, gently shook his head, saying, ‘It’s still not advisable, as expected’.
“Instead of that, it would be better to take a walk outside and talk. There are few people outside the monastery, so it will be suitable for conversation.”
“Mhm? Okay.”
Clarisse nodded quickly, as anywhere was fine as long as they could talk quietly.
* * *
Noah was relieved to be able to talk to Clarisse outside.
The reason he refused her invitation to go to her room was because his feelings for Clarisse were not appropriate. He didn’t want to leave Clarisse alone in a room with a man who harbored such evil feelings.
Even if that man was himself.
And above all, it wouldn’t help his ‘healing’.
He was a monster mixed with stone, and she was an ordinary human being. Can it really be said that having a crush on an absolutely different being is a normal emotion?
No, absolutely not.
So, Noah classified his emotions as one of ‘disease.’ It’s something that needs to be healed quickly.
They left the monastery’s main gate side by side.
“Wow.”
The nearby fields, as well as the mountains in the distance, were newly covered in white from the snow that had fallen overnight.
“Pretty. Ah… I forgot.”
With an excited expression and a delighted sound, Clarisse, who had previously enjoyed the situation, seemed to have finally realized something about herself, shrugging one of her shoulders and smiling.
“I was hoping it wouldn’t snow.”
“It’s not like Girl’s usual answer. Didn’t you say that Sheridan Manor is upset because you can’t build a snowman without snow?”
“Yeah, that’s true. Prince Valentine said…”
In the midst of the casual conversation, Noah felt a subtle discomfort again when he heard that name.
Still, he endured it and listened to her and Valentine’s story without giving any specific response.
“So, what is Girl’s secret story?”
“Uhm…”
They walked slowly along the path they had taken this morning.
“You know, I’m going to say something now, and Noah might feel a little uncomfortable.”
“What’s going on? You’re taking such a long time?”
“That’s…”
Clarisse held her hands together, thought for a moment, and began to explain with difficulty. It was a story about a special jewel given to her by the Marchioness of Curno. Noah quickly figured out why Clarisse first spoke like this while understanding Noah’s feelings.
“This story…It can be uncomfortable for me.”
Noah stopped walking and turned to look at Clarisse.
“Mhm.” Clarisse also looked straight at him and nodded.
“The blood relatives test came back saying there was no matching blood. Last weekend.”
Clarisse is probably saying that she doubts the conclusions of the wizards.
Noah didn’t feel particularly offended by that fact. Because he didn’t feel a bond with other wizards in the first place.
“Of course, I thought there was a possibility that what the gem said was wrong. However, seeing it accurately recognize people other than madam…”
“It means you can’t just let it go.”
“Mhm, that’s right.”
“However, blood relatives testing is the most accurate test among existing methods…”
Noah stopped talking for a moment.
As he said a moment ago, the blood test itself was highly reliable magic. However, the problem was that the person who performed the magic and delivered the results was ultimately a ‘human’.
Moreover, didn’t Noah see a very strange sight last weekend when the results were delivered?
Inside the second castle wall, where wizards rarely enter and exit, there was a wizard wearing gray robes. And that too, without even wearing the robe he was supposed to wear.
Noah remembered that he had a letter in his hand.
Of course, that might be because the wizard hid his identity for personal reasons.
However… just in case.
Really just one chance.
What if that has something to do with the Duchess’ test results?
“Uhm…”
This may be an excessive assumption.
No, it was undoubtedly an assumption.
There was no reason for the wizards to worry about testing the blood relatives of nobles.
“Please…prepare a place, Clarisse. I will check it myself.”
