A Misunderstood Sacrifice
It was late at night, and I was just getting ready for bed when I heard a soft knock at the door.
"Ah, come in, Sylvia. What brings you here at this hour?"
Since Sylvia was the only person who would visit my room at this time of night, I naturally opened the door and let her in. At first, having a beautiful girl like Sylvia visit my room late at night made my heart race like crazy. But since she came over quite often, and we usually just chatted for a bit, I had gotten used to it lately. To think I'd reach a point where a beautiful girl visiting me at night felt completely normal... Should I consider myself blessed?
Anyway, Sylvia usually came to my room with a look of pure liberation, as if she had finished all her work for the day and could finally relax. Today, however, her expression was completely different.
"...Miss Scarlet."
"You don't look well. Are you okay? Are you feeling sick or..."
"...My body is fine. It's just... because of what happened today..."
Hearing that she was physically fine relieved me a bit, but her face remained incredibly stiff. As I wondered what on earth could have happened today to make her look like that, I suddenly remembered Sebastian, the mansion's butler, mentioning to Sylvia during breakfast that she had an important meeting today.
Since Sylvia was the heir to the Astra family, she had access to information that ordinary people could never dream of hearing. She had likely received some terrible news at today's meeting. Perhaps it was a critical issue concerning the city.
I had let my guard down a bit because the city's recovery was progressing so quickly despite the damage, and the Academy was even scheduled to resume regular classes in a few days... But the thought that a serious problem might have arisen behind the scenes made me realize I couldn't do anything if I remained in the dark. I immediately asked her.
"Sylvia, can you tell me what's going on?"
"Ah... well..."
Sylvia looked troubled and hesitant, as if it were a topic she found highly uncomfortable to discuss with me. However, one thing I had learned the hard way recently was that there was a world of difference between knowing something was going to happen beforehand and being caught completely off guard. Half wanting to be prepared and half wanting to ease her burden, I spoke to her gently.
"Sylvia, keeping your worries bottled up inside will only make you sick. They say a worry shared is a worry halved. I might even be able to help, so won't you tell me?"
"Miss Scarlet..."
Hearing my words, Sylvia murmured my name, her face filled with deep emotion. Just how much pressure had she been carrying on her shoulders to react like this to such simple words? A wave of pity for her welled up in my chest, but I pushed it aside for now. Seeing that she was finally ready to speak, I focused all my attention on her stiffening expression.
"...To be honest, I debated a lot over whether it was right to tell you this, Miss Scarlet. But since you put it that way, I can't keep it to myself anymore. Please, don't be too shocked by what you're about to hear."
A warning delivered in an incredibly grave voice. Convinced that this was some highly classified, top-secret information that could never be leaked to the public, I swallowed hard and waited for her next words.
"...Today, I witnessed Yoon Siwoo meeting another woman in secret."
"...Is that it?"
"Huh? Y-Yes? But..."
The sheer anticlimax of her words instantly deflated my tension, and I let out a silent sigh of relief. And here I thought another Witch had popped up out of nowhere... But Sylvia, seemingly baffled by my reaction, spoke in a flustered voice.
"Excuse me, Miss Scarlet? I said Yoon Siwoo is meeting another woman!"
"Well, that can happen. He's at that age, after all."
Knowing the original novel's Yoon Siwoo—who would shamelessly raise flag after flag with any female character who had even a shred of screen time—the fact that he was meeting a girl wasn't surprising in the least. Maybe he met that girl Marin mentioned she liked, I thought, responding nonchalantly. Still, at Sylvia's age, gossip like this was practically life-or-death, so I could understand why she was making such a fuss. At that age, if news broke out about who was dating whom, the entire school would know within minutes. Everyone was dead serious about other people's love lives. I guess even Sylvia isn't that different from regular kids her age, despite how she looks.
As I watched her with a proud, fatherly smile, Sylvia cried out as if she wasn't finished yet.
"T-The woman he met! It was Miss Marin Eloise from Class 1-B!"
Ah, so today was the day. I wondered how the matchmaking session went. Since those two had gotten along quite well in the original novel, the atmosphere probably wasn't too bad. It would've been nice to see them blushing during their blind date. As I indulged in this small wish of a former reader, Sylvia, who had been closely monitoring my reaction, asked with a slightly frustrated pout.
"...How can you be so calm? Shouldn't you be at least a little surprised?"
Ah, was I supposed to act shocked? Come to think of it, if someone triumphantly announced, "Hey guys! So-and-so is dating what's-their-name!" expecting everyone to gasp, only to be met with dead silence, it would be pretty awkward. Was she pouting like that because she had shared a massive secret she'd kept all to herself, only for me to react with a shrug? Finding her reaction incredibly adorable, I suppressed the urge to grin and replied.
"There's nothing to be surprised about. I already heard it from Miss Marin herself. She said she was going on an arranged marriage meeting."
"From her own mouth?! No, wait, an arranged marriage meeting?! Then... then that means they might actually get married!"
Sylvia shrieked in shock, evidently having had no idea about the matchmaking context. Her reaction was so similar to mine back when a buddy of mine announced his marriage right after graduation that I had to bite my tongue to keep from laughing. I nodded, and Sylvia muttered to herself.
"Marriage... That... that shouldn't be allowed."
Her face looked incredibly grave as she said it shouldn't be allowed. Since she was a sheltered young lady, perhaps the concept of marriage at this age was completely beyond her imagination. In the original novel, when Marin first showed interest in Yoon Siwoo, Sylvia had shown her conservative side by saying, 'Are you perhaps planning to have a shotgun wedding like your parents? How... how shameless!' Anyway, as if this were something she couldn't even fathom, Sylvia asked me in a trembling voice.
"...Miss Scarlet, Yoon Siwoo might get married... and you're completely fine with that?"
I pondered her question for a moment before answering.
"Hmm... I suppose it is a bit of a shame."
While I didn't think ending up with Marin was a bad thing, I was firmly of the belief that the protagonist should end up with the main heroine. Having rooted for Sylvia to end up with Yoon Siwoo while reading the original novel, I did feel a slight pang of disappointment. When I said that, Sylvia's eyes lit up, thinking I was agreeing with her.
Sorry, Sylvia, but that's not what I meant. Apologizing inwardly, I continued.
"But if that's what Yoon Siwoo wants, there's nothing we can do. Personally, I just want him to be happy."
At those words, Sylvia's face crumpled completely. She looked as if she were about to burst into tears, seemingly devastated that I hadn't validated her feelings. Seemingly angry, she took large strides toward me, closing the distance until she was right in my face. Unfortunately, since I was slightly shorter than her, I had to look up at her eyes. Suddenly, Sylvia wrapped her arms around my neck and hugged me with all her might, squeezing tightly.
What is this? A guillotine choke?
Of course, thanks to my enhanced physical stats, I wasn't actually suffocating, but the constant contact with something soft made my face burn with embarrassment. I tapped her back to signal her to let go, screaming internally.
Tap! I'm tapping out! I surrender, so let me go! Aaaagh!
Fortunately, my message got through, and Sylvia slightly loosened her stranglehold. As I squirmed and struggled to escape her embrace, Sylvia whipped around in a huff and stormed out of my room, shouting over her shoulder.
"I! I will absolutely never accept such a thing!"
Her voice was thick with sorrow and anger, as if making a solemn vow. Why was she so angry? It didn't seem like she was just throwing a simple tantrum. As I pondered the reason behind her fury, a sudden realization struck me, and my eyes widened.
No way! I thought she didn't care, but does Sylvia actually have feelings for Yoon Siwoo deep down?!
Well, of course. She was the main heroine, after all; there was no way she would drift away from the protagonist so easily. Recalling that we would be returning to the Academy soon, a shiver of excitement ran down my spine. The day Sylvia and Marin faced each other again... there would undoubtedly be a fierce catfight. I fell asleep seriously debating whether I should prepare some popcorn alongside my macarons for our return to school.
I can't accept it.
Returning to her room, Sylvia fought back the tears that threatened to spill over.
It's just too sad.
She had expected Scarlet to get angry when she found out about today. How could he meet another woman when he had her? For any normal woman, that would be the natural reaction. Even Sylvia herself would never forgive her partner if he cheated on her with another woman.
But Scarlet—this foolishly stubborn, incredibly kind girl—was different.
'Well, that can happen. He's at that age, after all.'
Scarlet had brushed it off as if it were nothing.
'There's nothing to be surprised about. I already heard it from Miss Marin herself. She said she was going on an arranged marriage meeting.'
She had already known. She knew that Yoon Siwoo was meeting another woman behind her back. And it wasn't just a simple fling; he was actually going on an arranged marriage meeting. And Scarlet had heard that fact directly from Marin herself.
What on earth must that have felt like? To hear directly from another woman's mouth that the man you loved was going on an arranged marriage meeting with her. She must have felt mocked. She must have felt humiliated.
Yet, Sylvia knew now. Scarlet was the kind of person who would look at that woman and say, 'Good luck with your meeting.' Even as she spoke, she looked as though she were constantly holding something back. That was simply the kind of person she was.
Lying in bed, Sylvia tried to imagine how Scarlet must have felt. But she couldn't.
She couldn't understand how a girl who had endured painful, horrific experiments, waiting for the end without a shred of hope, felt when she finally gained her freedom for the first time. She couldn't understand the unbearable, burning passion that allowed a gentle girl—who had once refused even an offer of friendship out of fear of her inner Witch, terrified she might hurt someone—to fall in love.
'Hmm... I suppose it is a bit of a shame. But if that's what Yoon Siwoo wants, there's nothing we can do. Personally, I just want him to be happy.'
Because she truly wished for her beloved's happiness, and because she believed he could never be happy with her, she had suppressed her own lingering regrets and given up on her love. There was no way anyone but Scarlet herself could truly understand how she felt. All Sylvia could guess was that it must have been a sorrow so profound that an ordinary person would have broken under its weight.
Thinking of the grief that this pitifully tragic girl had to endure, Sylvia finally let her tears flow. And then, she made a silent, solemn vow.
Her love, her happiness—even if Scarlet had given up on them, Sylvia would reclaim them for her, no matter what. She would make sure Scarlet could fully enjoy those things until the very day her life came to an end.
She swore it to herself, with absolute resolve.